Checkered Lounge Pants

“Trick or Treat…. smell my feet!” echoed from the door this morning, when my Sweet Pea Valerie wandered in from a night-time of Devil's night gallivanting with her cronies. That will most likely be the nearest Chez Valyon on the Lake gets to a Halloween haunting from tricksters or treaters on this day of hallowed haunting. We have not gotten any ghosts or goblins since our migration to the rural countryside. I may have blogged that factual tidbit last year, n'est pas? (interactive image-print cut out stencil and trace on pumpkin for carving) Nonetheless, Kevin and I stocked the cupboards with some goodies just in the event there is a surprise-haunting visitor. It would be unconscionable to be empty handed if some Lil ghosts happened by our cottage. I was watching a revered talk show the other day on PBS hosted by Charlie Rose. Since retiring I have been a pig for news and the media spins concerning the labour and business world…albeit a labour editor is as rare in the media com

Hummmm.....just reading my last blog post and wondered why I had never mentioned it was my Thanksgiving post??? Oh ya, I got all twisted up over crony capitalism.....or what I like to call "Dixie Chick stigma", but that's another story for some other forum. Speaking of meltdowns, I had a meltdown on Thursday last. I booked a foursome on the local golf course I frequent and fully expected to blow my game through the roof (and my partners) after several games of sub 20 handicap strokes alongside hours of practising short game fundamentals. WELL, triple bogey, triple bogey, double bogey, quadruple bogey start and blow me down. On that pace, I was destined for the worse game of the year and so much for my expectations of grandeur. They were purely delusional...LOL One partner, attempted consoling me, when, after enduring my whining and griping about practicing all week for naught, said to me, "even Ben Hogan said that there is such a thing as golfing too much". I g

I am giving thanks for this weather.....28C on Sunday and I was sweating it out on the golf course...whew. It was sooooo good I did again yesterday to wear off some turkey calories. LOL I hit the local winery after the game and stocked up for dinner. Val had made cranberry sauce the night before. We dined with my son and my golfing friend, John, who drove in from Dresden. The meal wrapped up with the usual pumpkin pie, and, an ice wine treat from John. It was delicious. I am also giving thanks for the governments embracing principles that will save working folks pensions and savings. Pension funds and 401K lost almost 25% of their portfolios over the last 6 weeks. Many good folks university funds for the kids have dried up while corporate executives still practice lavish excesses. Did you hear the one regarding the retreat the globalized AIG funded ($450K) for its top sellers shortly after they were bailed out with $80B tax dollars?? Lehman Brothers was not so fortunate..... No one w