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brain dump

SheridanI’m a bit scattered this morning, so I’m sure this will flow in a similar fashion. Ugh.

I’m pretty sure I’m not taking the Ferry from Tobermory. Sure, I might change my mind at the last minute and hope for the best but, the added travel time just doesn’t make sense considering how eager I am to see my little girl. Besides, I think the time and money would be better spent if I planned a trip out there during my stay at “Camp” these next two weeks. Then I can give the Island and the Peninsula the time and effort it deserves.

Free Wifi and never ending coffee at Denny’s is awesome. Even if it is really noisy.

I’m hoping I can dodge any invitations to any kind of dinner event this evening so that I can go for a nice long walk at my favorite Syracuse Park: Green Lakes. Then again, I heard a couple of guys talking about this “new wing place you just have to try” and I think they were aiming for tonight. We’ll see.

Then thursday night, I’ll either end up going to bed early or heading out to the casino to blow a couple hundred dollars at a Craps table. It depends on what I’m going to do the next day.

I think that I might drive to Toronto via Watertown. If I leave around 5am, I’ll be to the Lake Ontario just in time to catch the good light. Then I’ll still have 9 hours to make a 4 hour trip. But I can always waste more time at the Islands or pay the crazy parking rates in Toronto and explore on my own before I meet Kim.

As crazy as they are, as insistant and demanding as they can be, as hectic as the time I spend with them can get, I like my family. My family, my extended family, and even my in-laws. Yesterday I got 4 phone calls of people singing me happy birthday. It’s a small thing, sure, and, at the time, it was interrupting a hectic day and that made it kind of annoying. But at the end of the day when I close my eyes to sleep, it feels good to know that people are thinking of me. I even got to hear my Niece screaming at my brother until he’d let her talk to me so she could say “happy birthday” too.

These next few weeks have me wound up quite a bit. The problem is that I am a planner and a worrier, and my wife and my mother-in-law are the exact opposite of that. So, I end up not coming up with things for me to do, worried that it might step on the toes of something they’ve planned to do when, in the end, they never plan to do anything. However, when I finally give myself enough freedom to make some sort of plan, it’s usually met with the knowledge that they have made plans and, of course, mine interfere with theirs. So, being selfless and a worrier, I generally give in to thier plans and opt not to make any more for myself.

This year, I’m going to try something different. I’m going to make plans for myself starting from day one. If they make plans and tell me about them and everything works out, then great. But if they come up with plans too late and I like my own plans better then I’m keeping my own plans. It’s easier said than done. I’m a push over. And I don’t like to cause trouble or upset people. But, it’s my goal at least.

There are so many things I want to see and do. Here’s the short list: Bruce Peninsula National Park, Manitoulin Island, Lake Superior National Park, Pukaskwa National Park. and Killarney. I doubt I’ll get all that in. Some of those are quite difficult to plan a trip around, especially when my “home base” is in the middle of no where with no cell service or internet access. But, it’s something to try.

If you know of anything closer to Webbwood, Ontario worth seeing, please, let me know.

I leave you now with this photo of my Neice, Sheridan.

Toronto with Bust

On Friday I’m Toronto bound. It’s about a 4 hour drive, and I have 9 hours or more to make it in (Kim is meeting me at 5pm).

These are my options:

  • I can take my time in Rochester, Buffalo, and Niagra Falls. Maybe pick out some state parks or look for some industrial areas to visit.
  • I can take a dip down through Ithaca and explore the finger lakes.
  • I can go up through Watertown, NY and explore the islands at the mouth of Lake Ontario, the many parks in that area, and then drive along the Northern Coast of Lake Ontario to get to Toronto.
  • I can sleep in really, really late, drive straight through, and get to Toronto just early enough to do a little shopping.

On Saturday I’m headed just outside of Webbwood, ON. From Toronto it’s a 5 1/2 hour drive. These are my options:

  • Head straight there, I’ve already wasted enough time and I miss my little girl.
  • Take the Tobermory Ferry to Manitoulin Island and drive up through the Island to Webbwood. Straight through, this is about 7 hours, 2 of which are spent on the Ferry. However, Manitoulin is beautiful and I’m interested in seeing the Peninsula as well as the Bruce Peninsula National Park. So that 7 hour trip will become more like 9 hours and include 2 hours of photo taking. Of course, unless I get lucky and end up with some stormy weather (slightly possible, but not likely) I’ll want to be there early morning or late evening for the best photos. This just isn’t possible considering that it’s 4 hours from Toronto (I’d have to leave at 2 or 3 in the morning). So, seeing it all will be nice, but the chancees of getting really good photographs is not all that high. But I get to spend the time on the Ferry with Kim and I get to go some place I’ve never been.