USMB Coffee Shop IV

[beautress]

Oh, my goodness. I tried loading "tropical fish store interior." and got a couple of good shots. A lot more like Uncle Wimpy's house, except modern aquariums are so much bigger.

Yeah, I think that's a lot more like what Uncle Wimpy's living and dining rooms looked like. ​

 

[beautress]

Close, the river is less than 200 yards from the front door.

Nothing so good as peace like a river! Can you catch fish there?

​

 

[Dragonlady]

You're right, Dragonlady, I do love that shared picture: It's so colorful and serene at the same time.
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I cannot tell you how much I miss the cottage. I understand why Mom and Dad decided to sell it. It was a 2 1/2 hour drive for us to and from Toronto in light traffic, but it was more than 4 hours one way for them, and Dad was over 70. We were wishing that we had enough money to buy the rest of the family out, but we didn't, and even if we had been able to do it, we couldn't have afforded two houses.

My mother-in-law bought the lot, and the family camped out in a tent on the lot, throughout the early 1970's. They started construction on the cottage the year after we started dating, and he was spending EVERY weekend up north, camping in a tent, helping his father, his brother, his uncles and cousins, build that cottage. They subcontracted out the things they couldn't do themselves, like excavating and pouring the footings and foundations for the basement, but they did all of the framing, and above ground construction.

I was able to find REAL pictures I took from our dock, but no really good outdoor pictures of the cottage. My husband kept the one he had on his night table. The cottage was set into a hill, and the back door of the basement walked out into the back yard. The main floor door from the kitchen, lead to a large raised deck which went across the whole width of the cottage, and looked out over the lake on one side, and the woods on the other.

The cottage has an A-Frame roof. One end was almost entirely windows and glass. The original plans called for a platform bedroom in the top of the A but they left it open with a high, high ceiling and lots of light in the living area. the views were spectacular. So my MIL put up these hideous cafe curtains so people couldn't see in. THERE WAS NOBODY ANYWHERE NEAR US TO SEE IN. We were so far off the main road, and directions were so convuluted, in the days before cell phones, we had to meet people at the highway and lead them to the cottage.

Here are my pictures from our dock:

 

[SFC Ollie]

Nothing so good as peace like a river! Can you catch fish there?

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[SFC Ollie]

My brother with one of his prize catches.

 

[beautress]

I cannot tell you how much I miss the cottage. I understand why Mom and Dad decided to sell it. It was a 2 1/2 hour drive for us to and from Toronto in light traffic, but it was more than 4 hours one way for them, and Dad was over 70. We were wishing that we had enough money to buy the rest of the family out, but we didn't, and even if we had been able to do it, we couldn't have afforded two houses.

My mother-in-law bought the lot, and the family camped out in a tent on the lot, throughout the early 1970's. They started construction on the cottage the year after we started dating, and he was spending EVERY weekend up north, camping in a tent, helping his father, his brother, his uncles and cousins, build that cottage. They subcontracted out the things they couldn't do themselves, like excavating and pouring the footings and foundations for the basement, but they did all of the framing, and above ground construction.

I was able to find REAL pictures I took from our dock, but no really good outdoor pictures of the cottage. My husband kept the one he had on his night table. The cottage was set into a hill, and the back door of the basement walked out into the back yard. The main floor door from the kitchen, lead to a large raised deck which went across the whole width of the cottage, and looked out over the lake on one side, and the woods on the other.

The cottage has an A-Frame roof. One end was almost entirely windows and glass. The original plans called for a platform bedroom in the top of the A but they left it open with a high, high ceiling and lots of light in the living area. the views were spectacular. So my MIL put up these hideous cafe curtains so people couldn't see in. THERE WAS NOBODY ANYWHERE NEAR US TO SEE IN. We were so far off the main road, and directions were so convuluted, in the days before cell phones, we had to meet people at the highway and lead them to the cottage.

Here are my pictures from our dock:

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That's so fabulous, Dragonlady. Those colorful trees remind me of how good maple syrup is because we flew up north to the Eastern Board of the US where we were promptly classified as "leaf peepers" because we went in the fall at what they said was one of the most beautiful years for fall color. We were overwhelmed. Your home away from home must've been like heaven for your family.

 

[beautress]

My brother with one of his prize catches.View attachment 681474

I guess you were taking the pictures that day. Nice!

 

[Montrovant]

We’re back at home. I thought I’d post some pictures from the memorial.

 

[Coyote]

Was it your dad's idea? My mom's brother, Uncle Wimpy, served in the Navy in WWII. By the time I was 10 years old, it was fun to go to Uncle Wimpy's and Aunt Mattie's house because every wall in the living room and dining room had rows and rows of tropical fish, each tank had a different species. There must have been a hundred tanks, all with different colored fish in each tank. They were so beautiful. *sigh.* After Aunt Mattie was gone, he moved to Australia and married a lady in Sydney he met in the war, and who was my mom's pen pal for at least 30 years before Uncle Wimpy decided to marry her, both were widowed. He passed away in Sydney 5 years later, but I know he was happy before he got lung cancer and passed, sometime in the mid 70s. Here's a modern one, but uncle Wimpy's aquariums were from wall to wall, floor to ceiling, and I don't think I'll find anything like what he had in his charming home.

View attachment 681128​

It was my boyfriend at the time, he loved aquariums and a good friend of ours would supply the fish. My favorites were the Koran Angels, Yellow Tangs and this funky psychedelic fish that burrowed in the sand

 

[Dragonlady]

That's so fabulous, Dragonlady. Those colorful trees remind me of how good maple syrup is because we flew up north to the Eastern Board of the US where we were promptly classified as "leaf peepers" because we went in the fall at what they said was one of the most beautiful years for fall color. We were overwhelmed. Your home away from home must've been like heaven for your family.

In going through the pictures there were so many happy memories. The air is so clear and clean, and we frequently had northern lights in winter. We tried hard not to use the electric heat because rural power is expensive, so in winter, I would lay in bed and pretend to be asleep so I didn't have to get up and start the fire in the woodstove.

I would often hear loons on the lake, but you very seldom see them. The place was just a post card, in every season except spring. Black fly season. Horrible things, black flies. They start around Mother's Day, and are gone by July 1st, and good riddance. People have gone mad in the bush after 3 days during black fly season. I stayed in the city until they were gone.

All the pictures were happy smiling kids, loving the outdoors, and the sheer beauty of the place. We were only about 50 miles from the western edge of Algonquin Park - the largest of our National Parks 7700 square kilometers of Canadian shield wilderness.

We had a canoe and swimming off the dock in summer. In winter, it was a great place for cross country skiing or snow shoeing.

Every time we arrived at the cottage without my in-laws, I opened up the dumb cafe curtains so I could see out the windows.

 

[Oddball]

Saturday morning!

Magic tricks can be fun but....

Let the cartoon begin!

 

[Montrovant]

In going through the pictures there were so many happy memories. The air is so clear and clean, and we frequently had northern lights in winter. We tried hard not to use the electric heat because rural power is expensive, so in winter, I would lay in bed and pretend to be asleep so I didn't have to get up and start the fire in the woodstove.

I would often hear loons on the lake, but you very seldom see them. The place was just a post card, in every season except spring. Black fly season. Horrible things, black flies. They start around Mother's Day, and are gone by July 1st, and good riddance. People have gone mad in the bush after 3 days during black fly season. I stayed in the city until they were gone.

All the pictures were happy smiling kids, loving the outdoors, and the sheer beauty of the place. We were only about 50 miles from the western edge of Algonquin Park - the largest of our National Parks 7700 square kilometers of Canadian shield wilderness.

We had a canoe and swimming off the dock in summer. In winter, it was a great place for cross country skiing or snow shoeing.

Every time we arrived at the cottage without my in-laws, I opened up the dumb cafe curtains so I could see out the windows.

I don’t have much urge to travel, but I would like to see the Northern Lights.

 

[Foxfyre]

I don’t have much urge to travel, but I would like to see the Northern Lights.

We took one of those wonderful cruises to Alaska. There were several things on my bucket list I really wanted to see including among many others: Denali, the Northern Lights, a moose in the wild.

Alas no moose in sight the entire trip even though we went 143 miles north to Talkeetna and from Anchorage to Seward where we boarded the boat. It was cloudy the whole time we were in Alaska so no northern lights. It was so foggy the day we were in Talkeetna we couldn't see past the deck of the hotel so no great photo of Denali. Wonderful trip anyway.

 

[beautress]

I don’t have much urge to travel, but I would like to see the Northern Lights.

We saw the northern lights in the 50s when we lived at Ft. Richardson, near Anchorage, military family that we were.


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[Dragonlady]

I don’t have much urge to travel, but I would like to see the Northern Lights.

There was one winter night driving up to the cottage before our daughter was born, when the lights started right around Orillia as we drove straight North up Hwy 11. The green and blue "curtains" rippled and flashed for more than 40 minutes, completely filling the front window of the car. My husband finally pulled over in a safe spot because the lights were so distracting. They made a kind of tinkling glass sound. That was the most spectacular display I've ever seen because it filled the whole northern sky. But I've never been further north than Timmins.

 

[Hossfly]

 

[beautress]

This morning I woke up and let Miss Songie out. I have to turn on the computer to find out what the weather's going to be like today and check out the clock. The first thing I saw was that it is August 14. My older brother would have been 78 today. He was in the Navy, and I just adored him. What a wonderful brother he was. His love for fixing up old cars that didn't work, and having them look spiffy was his passion. It's no wonder that he wound up being a mechanic who could "take apart and put back together blindfolded" a phantom jet as something they called a chief petty officer in the Navy, which he retired from sometime after 2000. Happy birthday, Jack, wherever you are. You are loved and missed. When we were kids, Mama used to lead us in a little prayer "Now I lay me down to sleep...." and at the end of the prayer, she added a blessing of God to help make us bless each member of the family by name, which grew to grandparents, mom and dad, and 5 brothers and sisters with all our kinfolks and all our friends before the "amen." What a precious mother we had who kept us from eating each other's lunch in the years we were more combatant rivals than brother and sister! That all went away when Jack went to sea for the whole time American soldiers were in Viet Nam, fighting for freedom of people being tormented by a Communist neighboring country. That's why this day is special to me. Jack was such a good brother, and hopefully he is up there watching over the US Navy which took over his whole life, and he served in a way that made him such a totally useful guy to his fellow sailors. It's 5 am, and I am reminded how good of God it was to give me such a great bro.

Even so, I gotta have some coffee this morning. I have to call my younger brother and sister today. I always call them on relatives' birthdays. Have a great day, everybody.

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[Foxfyre]

Our son has been in the hospital for most of a week now admitted with atrial fibrillation that may or may not have been triggered by a full blown case of double pneumonia. He called and said he's being discharged today--the pneumonia has pretty much cleared up but there are still heart issues. He goes back for a stress test Tuesday. We are very concerned. This is the sweetest, most kind, most generous person in the entire world. The thought that we could lose him is pretty unbearable.

 

[Dajjal]

 

[Dajjal]