Sheilajeanne

Fredk, wow, just...wow! What an antiquated attitude! My grandmother was a ground breaker! Her father, a druggist, died of a heart attack in his 50's then his only son succumbed to the 1918 flu. That meant her mother had to take in boarders in order to survive, and my grandmother had to go out and get a job outside the home, which was not very common in those days for a woman. At first, she apprenticed to a milliner. However, she had poor eyesight, and the very fine stitches needed in hat making were too difficult for her. Then, a family friend heard there was a position open at the railway office for someone to learn telegraphy. She applied, and got the job! It was a very unusual job for a woman at that time. A station agent who worked nearby was curious about this woman telegrapher, and decided he wanted to meet her. Soon they were dating, and marriage followed! Mom says they used to send Morse code messages to each other by tapping on the table when they didn't want their children to know what they were talking about!

Missed the edit window - there are two places in my reply where I said 'full time' and meant to say 'permanent'. Probably it's obvious that's what I meant, just wanted to clarify!

For Chuck, and the other hunters on the board! The last one really made me laugh!

Tilda, your path in life so far brings back painful memories of mine at the same age. After getting a degree in environmental science, I was unable to find a job. Finally, just to bring in some money, I brushed up on my Gr. 9 typing skills, and started to get temporary clerical/secretarial work assignments at the university. Some of them were interesting enough that I wouldn't have minded doing them full time*, but every time I applied for a full time job, they'd say, "You've go a science degree. You won't stay - you'll find something in your field. And every time I applied for 'something in my field', I either didn't get an interview or was told 'you've only got your bachelor's degree. Go and get your masters, then maybe we'll talk!" Fortunately, no one told me to get married and have kids. I don't know what my response would have been, but it certainly would NOT have been polite! To make a long story short, finally I did find my passion, which was community nursing. I am happy for you that you have - hopefully - found yours! Wishing you all the best with this apprenticeship! I really hope it turns out to be everything you've dreamed about! *The most interesting, challenging job I had during this time was working at the Banting and Best Institute at the university. Yes, I actually got to meet Dr. Best, the co-founder of insulin! My work was mainly typing up scholarly papers for the professors for submission to scientific journals. Their handwriting was not the best, and they used complicated scientific terminology, which I had to spell correctly. There were also lots of scientific symbols that required a special 'ball' on my IBM typewriter. The job I was doing was open on a full time basis, and I did apply, but was not chosen. One of the professors, the one who was the most difficult to work for as he was very picky, was VERY upset when he found out I hadn't been hired. He said, "They just get someone trained to do this work, and now I'll have to start all over again!" It was the best compliment I had during the time I was doing this work. Yeah, it was not a time in my life I look back on with any fondness...

HS, alas, both are gone now. The both made it to age 14, which is a really good age for a GSD. It's amazing how intuitive dogs can be, even if they aren't trained to be service dogs, isn't it? Good for Abby! A lady I know who had her service dog trained to help her balance when she walked, and also alert her to when her blood sugar was low, told me her dog would get upset when they were at the doctor's, because she wouldn't let her alert to all the sick people that were in the room! After being told to mind her own business a number of times, she'd lie down and give a big 'huff' of frustration! Once when her owner was visiting with a friend, the dog kept poking the friend's breast. She asked if she was having a problem with the breast. The lady replied she was actually on her way to the clinic to get a lump checked out! Another lady had a similar thing happen with her German shepherd, and finally decided to arrange for a mammogram. Diagnosis: breast cancer! The lump was small enough that it wasn't detectable without a mammogram or ultrasound. The dog probably saved her life!

LOL, Handstitched!

When I was doing visiting nursing, I had a Toronto cop as a patient. He was on IV antibiotics, as a result of cutting his hand while washing dishes. Yeah, pretty embarrassing... Anyway, we got talking about the way our jobs are similar, in that we were in our cars nearly all day long, and would often have to multi-task while behind the wheel. I'd be reading my Might's Street Guide (no GPS yet!) and reading my client list so I could phone my next patient and tell them I was on my way. He told me about the time he was doing waaay over the speed limit on the 400, while talking on the radio, and keying the perp's license plate number into his computer! I said, I'm going to remember that if I ever get pulled over for distracted driving! We both often ate while driving. He said, "When you're eating lunch, it's likely a sandwich and a drink, right?" "Yes, that's right," I said. "Well I'm talking Swiss Chalet, with all the fixings!" Swiss Chalet is famous for its chicken dinners with their special BBQ sauce. I can just imagine how messy that would be, if you were driving while eating!

In Ontario, the donor form is connected to our driver's license. There used to be a box you'd check, back when the license was paper. Now that it's a plastic photo ID, I guess the cops just enter your license number in their computer if they need to find the information. Here's a potential donor doing stunts on the 400 Hwy, close to where I live. I wonder if the person filming it was a friend, or a cop just waiting to see if he'd crash before he got pulled over... Oh, and the bike doesn't have a plate on it. https://www.facebook.com/atthescene/videos/1637958083830326

The temperament test for the German shepherd requires they be gun-sure. The only one of my shepherds that wasn't was the first one. And of course, she didn't much care for thunderstorms, either. Here's Star (female) and Ranger (male). When Star did the gunfire part of temperament test, she actually wanted to go behind the blind, to see who was making the loud bangs! I trained Ranger to be my hearing ear dog. When I take my cochlear implant off at night, I can't even hear the smoke alarm. He probably saved my life one night, but it didn't have anything to do with his hearing ear training! I had him at a conference. When I took him out for his bed time walk, the sidewalk was very icy, as there had just been an ice storm. As we were passing by a small woods, I thought the ground there would be better footing, are there was still snow among the trees. I took one step off the sidewalk, and my leg went into a fence post hole that was hidden in the snow. It was so deep, I couldn't pull my leg out of it. It was after midnight, below freezing, and there was absolutely no traffic on the road to the hotel at that time of night. I could easily be dead from hypothermia by morning. I'd knocked the wind out of myself when I fell, and was making distressed noises. Ranger came over, and stood in front of me, trying to comfort me. Hmm, I thought, I wonder if he will let me lean on his back. That will give me the height I need to get my leg out of this hole... He stood like a rock as I leaned on him, and pulled my leg free! What a wonderful dog he was! People with mobility problems often train their dogs to help them back up after a fall, but of course, Ranger never had that sort of training.

First frost here the other night, but it wasn't 'hard' enough to do a lot of damage, though it killed off my neighbour's dahlia flowers. The leaves are starting to show some nice colour, though it will be about another two weeks before our area peaks. The area to the north of me (Algonquin park, Muskoka, North Bay etc.) are at their peak now. I may take a drive up there on Thanksgiving Monday to enjoy the colours.

Darren, yup, you definitely understand the breed! German shepherds aren't couch potatoes either, but they are definitely more laid back than sled dogs/huskies! A lot of the dogs at the race were not pure huskies. One team was entirely border collie/lab crosses, with the lead dog being a purebred border collie. Well, border collies are another breed that definitely needs a job to keep it happy! Same with the field bred labs (think Marley)!

Four dog hitch, heading for the start of a race:

Ron's canoes were beautiful. I remember the first time I really noticed one. I was coming back from a canoe trip with the University of Toronto Outing Club, and we stopped for gas. The car at one of the other filling stations had the most beautiful canoe on the roof. "Where did you get your canoe?" I asked the driver. "It's beautiful!" "Ward's Canoe, in Orillia," the man told me. I'd been past it hundreds of times, so had no trouble finding it. I asked Ron what one of his canoes would cost. "$1,500 for a 16 footer," he said. I was a poor, impoverished student at the time, so that was way beyond my means. Little did I know that one day.... Below: Ron and his wife, Jean work on repositioning the seat of our canoe, so it will paddle better if we want to solo. Ron and Jean crack up at one of Roger's bad jokes! Second photo: the canoe in its new home. I cried the day I sold it, but at 55 lbs. it was too heavy for me to manage on my own after Roger died. I did manage to find a canoe light enough for me to portage on my own. It's a Bell Prospector, made of Kevlar. It weighs 37 lbs! Edit: Chuck, that sounds like a typical Siberian! Hey, have you ever been to sled dog races? I lived in Sundridge (Northern Ontario)for a couple of years, and went to the races in Kearney. It was fascinating to see the dogs doing what they were bred for. They are so eager to run that a 4 dog hitch needs 2 people plus the musher braking the sled to get it safely to the starting line!

Below is our canoe, made by Ron Ward in Orillia, Ontario. Ron was second generation in the canoe business. His father also fixed light aircraft, as they used the same fiberglass and canvas materials. When I was a kid, I remember seeing airplanes parked on the front lawn as we'd drive past Ward Canoe on Hwy. 11. I guess the technology changed over the years, because Ron didn't fix planes. His canoes followed the traditional lines of Ojibway canoes, and were very stable in rough water. The curved bow helped prevent water from getting into the bow, and the 'tumblehome' on the sides of the canoe helped with lateral stability - the sides of the canoe curved inwards slightly from the gunwales to the waterline. Roger wanted Ron to do some work on the canoe, which is why we took it along on a x-country skiing and snowshoeing trip!

Darren, yes, it's a she. Her name was Tasha. And believe it or not, all that hair came from only the one side of her body! She was never too keen on being brushed, so I decided to leave the other side for another day. She was 13 when that photo was taken. I said goodbye to her in August of the following year. She did me the favour of dying in her sleep, so I didn't have to make that decision every dog owner hates to have to make. And when I say she was stubborn, this is what I mean! My husband and I both loved to canoe. We spent a LOT of time getting Tasha used to the canoe, so she wouldn't dump us in the water. In October, we were renting a cottage from one of my husband's good friends. Of course, we brought our canoe along, and since it was a lovely fall day, Tasha and I went for a paddle. As we approached the dock, I could see that despite all her training, she was planning to jump from the canoe to the dock, instead of waiting for me to bring the canoe alongside. "Tasha, SIT!" I told her. She turned a deaf ear. And I'd made the mistake of letting the 8 foot leash she was wearing get out of my reach, so I couldn't physically correct her. "TASHA, SIT!" Nope, still totally deaf... "TASHA, SIT!!" and I bonked her on the head with a paddle. I might have hit her with a feather for all the effect it had. She was gathering her haunches underneath her to make the jump, and I knew that if I didn't find a way to stop her, we were both likely going for a swim in some very cold water... "TASHA - SIT!" This time, I put some muscle behind the paddle. Still, not the slightest response! "TASHA - SIT!" This time I REALLY put some muscle into my bonk. The blade of the paddle split, but she FINALLY sat down, and stayed there until I was able to draw the canoe alongside the dock! I used to say that sometimes you had to hit her upside the head with a 2 x 4 just to get her attention. Well, maybe not a 2x4, but definitely a canoe paddle! Here's a picture of her in her younger days: You can see how frightened she looks as a result of me abusing her with the paddle [sarcasm]

Yes, Darren, I'm in Ontario. And we don't have a problem with gender and sexual diversity here. Since it's not hockey, no one cares which team you play for. And Chuck, for those of us who REALLY know the breed (I've had 6 of them since the 1980's) it stands for German Shedding Dog! This is the girl that rolled in the cow poop. Picture taken on January 2nd, so no cow poop around that wasn't frozen solid. And why the heck she's decided to shed a good part of her coat in the middle of winter, I have NO IDEA!! Well, she always did have a mind of her own!

The leather collar I bought for my first GSD back in the 1980's looks almost exactly like that one, and is still going strong! Many years ago, I was visiting an aunt in the country. She suggested I let our dog run loose on her property. Since she was well back from the road, I decided to let her go. Bad idea... When we were ready to leave, she came joyfully running up to us, covered in fresh cow poop. It was a cold day in October, and she definitely did not appreciate being hosed down with cold water. She jumped around on the end of her leash like a very large fish, while my aunt watched and laughed her buns off. Needless to say, we kept her leashed when she was around the farm after that.

YUM! I love pork too. Had some very nice thick-cut bacon for lunch!

This one's sort of leather related! Another sewing machine joke:

Okay, that last bit I don't believe! He'd have to be a very mean cop to give the pilot a ticket for an emergency landing!

HS - GROAN!! Found on FB today: A Texas Highway Patrol Officer was conducting speeding enforcement on Hwy 77, just south of Kingsville, TX. The officer was using a handheld radar device to check speeding vehicles approaching the town of Kingsville and was suddenly surprised when the radar gun began reading 300 miles per hour and climbing. The officer attempted to reset the radar gun, but it would not reset and then... It suddenly went dead. Immediately a deafening roar over the Mesquite treetops on Hwy 77 revealed that the radar had in fact locked on to a USMC F/A-18 Hornet which was engaged in a low-flying exercise near it's Naval Air home base location in Kingsville. Back at the Texas Highway Patrol Headquarters in Corpus Christi, the Patrol Captain fired off a complaint to the US Naval Base Commander in Kingsville for shutting down his officer's equipment. The reply came back in true USMC style: "Thank you for your letter.... You may be interested to know that the tactical computer in the Hornet had detected the presence of, and subsequently locked on to, your hostile radar equipment and automatically sent a jamming signal back to it, which is why it shut down. Furthermore, an Air-to-Ground missile aboard the fully-armed aircraft had also automatically locked on to your equipment's location. Fortunately, the Marine Pilot flying the Hornet recognized the situation for what it was, quickly responded to the missile system alert status and was able to override the automated defense system before the missile was launched to destroy the hostile radar position on the side of Hwy 77, south of Kingsville. The pilot suggests your officer covers his mouth when cursing since the video systems on these jets are extremely high-tech. Sergeant Johnson, the officer holding the radar gun, should get his dentist to check his left rear molar. It appears the filling is loose. Also, the snap is broken on his holster." (Okay we know it probably didn't happen but it sure made me laugh!)

Wow! How would you wear something like that without spiking yourself??

Billybop, that service still exists. It's called The War Amps: https://www.waramps.ca/ways-we-help/key-tags/?gad_source=1&gad_campaignid=63428541&gbraid=0AAAAADx3latKA-J4D64VEc1nhN-s87J9c&gclid=CjwKCAjwq9rFBhAIEiwAGVAZP7FXiQQo_rgeWaK0rq1JRJukUVntf5-RjdXPRwq2ZmWv56QI5MutxhoCgzkQAvD_BwE It's only in Canada, unfortunately. But they are good people, and do a wonderful service for amputees, as well as returning lost keys for their subscribers!

Bulldogs were bred to bite and not let go (The long-banned sport of bull baiting is what they were originally bred for!) The original bulldog is now such a genetic mess they can no longer reproduce without human help, will drown if they fall into a pool, and often suffer from heat stroke in hot weather because they no longer have a muzzle to cool the air when they pant. Despite this, those bull-baiting bulldog genes can sometimes resurface, and it ain't pretty when it happens! Was this an American bulldog or a British? The Americans were bred to get rid of all the health problems the British dog has. They are longer-legged, actually have a muzzle and can breathe better. They can also move faster and are more agile, which makes them more dangerous if they want to bite someone. During my time owning a boarding kennel, the dog that gave me the biggest scare was a boxer. I was trying to get him back into his kennel, and he jumped straight up in the air to face level. For an awful moment, I though he was going to grab for my throat! Fortunately, my kennel helper came along, and called him from inside the kennel, and he went to her. But those were a tense couple of minutes, facing off with that dog!