As the Stomach Blooms....

We finally decided to get the professional opinion of a plumber, given that things were still not flowing properly despite having the septic tank pumped out...and it turns out that tree roots had infiltrated the short clay pipe between our house and the septic tank itself.

Finally things are moving again....on several fronts...and there was much rejoicing!

On an unrelated note, our fine spring weather continues with a crocus bloom and getting the garden ready for planting vegetables. I have even started by pre-planting the watermelon and broccoli in small peat cups in the house!

Yep, that's our toilet....in the tub!

...and where the toilet USED to be....

Hocus Crocus, in Focus

Niagara Falls!!!

A surprise birthday party for a friend and co-worker from Barrie provided the perfect excuse for a night in Niagara Falls, actually a little surreal so soon upon the heels of Las Vegas. We headed down early on Saturday morning, and were graced with another beautiful spring day.

For all of you who have followed our recent septic woes, to go from no flush to one of the world's largest flushes provided stark contrast indeed.

Arriving before the rest of the revellers, we had a chance to walk around and enjoy the Falls and wander the Clifton Hill area on our own. We even managed an enjoyable lunch at the memorable Rainforest Cafe before heading back to the hotel to wait for the others, whilst sipping local Niagara Gamay Noir.

The birthday festivities began with champagne in the room, before we headed off to dinner at Brasa, a Brasilian steakhouse and winebar in the Hilton, where gauchos bring various meats to your table on huge skewers and carve them onto your plate. Along with an incredible buffet/salad bar and a wine list beyond belief, the tables operate on a simple two-sided coaster system - green means keep it coming, red means a break from the endless barrage of charbroiled meats.

From there the party wandered over to the Casino, where Jane parlayed $5 on the $0.50 slot machine into $110 on a mere four spins! Some more drinks back at the hotel lounge, and the evening wound down, equalling one Happy Birthday for our guest of honour.

The view from our hotel - the walk down Murray Street

American Falls on the U.S. side of the border

The pride of the Canadian side - Horseshoe Falls

Out over the rim....

As the Stomach Churns....

So the very friendly local septic guy came today and pumped out the tank, now that we had the lid open far enough. That didn't seem to solve the problem entirely, as there seems to be some issue before the tank. There is work yet to be done, not to mention filling in all the holes too....but at least the tank should be good for two years.

Things aren't flushing quite properly yet....but at least they are flushing!

It's a dirty job but someone's gotta do it...

Not sure how I got hosed into this line of work....

But this job sucks!!!

What a Waste....oh, the Humanity!

As the Stomach Turns....

The septic woes continue....today the septic service came to pump out the tank (with Mike in London), but were unable to lift the several hundred pound concrete lid. This may be partly because they only sent one guy, even though Jane made it very clear that the lid was an issue. On top of that, he seemed unconvinced that she would be of any help. So he left.

The good news is that this gave me a chance to prove that four years of university science actually has some real-life application. I found a rusty old homemade jack stand kicking around the barn, which I'm sure I meant to throw in the garbage and only saved when I realized it would be worth more for scrap metal, and a bold plan sprang to life. We already had the lid open just enough to slide a metal plate in sideways....once we had dug down yet more to allow room for the jack stand.

Yeah, we jacked up the lid. I had to stand on the other end of the jack plate to keep it from tipping sideways as the metal bent, and we kept having to add bricks as the weight of the lid sunk the jack further into the mud.....but Jane was right there, jamming pieces of wood in the breach every time the lid raised another few critical centimeters.

Hopefully when Buddy comes back tomorrow, the lid is open enough that he can do his thing, or at least allow the three of us to open it the rest of the way.

Remind me to buy a tractor with all the various attachments - winch, bucket, mower, snowplow, beer cooler....AM/FM stereo with 8-track....

Just when you thought I didn't know jack...

Theoretical Physics and human waste - a deadly combination

Black Gold

Anti-Septic

Once again the septic system has reared it's ugly head....things not really flowing so much from the toilet these days. Some of you may recall our previous septic issues that arose during the very first "Rawk the Coop"....well, the tank should not fill again in less than two years....that is, unless there are other problems with piping and tiling and drainage so forth.

So dig we did, in an effort to unearth the source of our discomfort. In the meantime, thank Somebody for the outhouses 2 km down the road at the Two Creeks park which luckily I must pass by each morning on the way to the office.

We're having the tank pumped out as an interim solution, which should at least get things, er, flowing again. Otherwise, we continue to dig and reveal a rather unconventional septic setup, likely a homemade farmer's remedy from days gone by.

Here we are standing atop our concrete "coffin style" septic tank - yep, that's it there, the one with the several hundred pound cement lid that is nigh on the definition of "immovable object". With all due respect to Archimedes, I'm sure the lever he claimed he could move the world with was slightly more professional grade than a stock tire iron, two shovels, and a random steel pipe.

Like effluent through the sand filter, er, hourglass, tune in tomorrow.....As the Stomach Turns.....

Las Vegas 2010!

Just back from a week in Las Vegas, a nice surreal escape from the real world. Weather was good, high 60's and sunny. We flew out of Detroit, which negated both a 6 hour round trip drive, and generally makes for an easier Customs experience crossing the border on the ground....plus you can grab two cases of duty free Alexander Keith's for $35 on the way home!!

We stayed at the Las Vegas Hilton at the top of the Strip for most of the week, then moved to the Imperial Palace mid-Strip for the final two nights.

Highlights of the trip included:

1. Cirque du Soleil's "Zumanity" show at New York, New York.

2. Two visits to Dick's bar and restaurant at the Excalibur, where they insult patrons in a fun way and generally say and do all the things servers normally only think about saying or doing.

3. The Gun Store - Mike fired off a few rounds from a Beretta 9mm handgun (into Jane's souvenir tank top) and emptied a few clips from an AR15 assault rifle into a paper target.

4. Watching Canada win the Gold Medal in Olympic men's hockey on 40 big screen TV's, surrounded and outnumbered by a host of surly Americans.

5. Drinks at Coyote Ugly.

6. Jane's massive $24 strawberry daiquiri, which she needed HELP just to carry!

Rocky Mountains from the best seats in the house

Our return flight with Sierra Nevada mountains in background

Jane's bullet riddled souvenir t-shirt from The Gun Store

Don't mess with redheads and their famous temper

The Strip - Las Vegas Boulevard looking north