The New Codgers

It’s a fine fall-like 56ºF morning on my back porch here in my beloved old river town of Saint Paul, Minnesota, and I am enjoying my “Danger Bay Collectible” mug of organically & shade-grown, fair-trade, French-roast coffee firing up my remaining brain synapses to synapting, as I consider this, my one year anniversary here on the ‘Rain.

Hello Activerainers (September 16, 2006)

I don’t expect to write a lot in this blog, but from time to time, you may expect me to offer an opinion or two about home repairs & maintenance. Opinions I have many—and I’m usually willing to share (folks my age tend to be loooong on opinions, ‘cause we don’t let facts get in our way).

One year ago today that was my first ever post to Active Rain. It seems much longer to me—as if the time I’ve been here should be measured in years not months!

Wow! I was certainly mistaken in that first phrase: “I don’t expect to write a lot in this blog…” After 319 (counting this post) posts, 24 of them featured, 111,956 points (excluding this post), it would seem my ability at prognostication is wanting—or perhaps, my understanding of the addictive quality of blogging was lacking—not to mention competitiveness.

When I began blogging here, Active Rain was a relatively small group of plucky bloggers, and today? Who would have thought there would be more than 48,000 members—no longer a small community by any measure!

A short trip down memory lane:

I haven't displayed those in a while.

It’s been a great ride—and I loved it! But this is my last post to the ‘Rain. The time has come to let an RE professional claim the second spot in Minnesota! I have a new blog-mistress, “Our Saint Paul,” and she is demanding my complete attention!

But I’m not leaving completely, I’ll still stop by to comment, even if it is only by leaving my new “Comment Icon” just to let you know I’m still around and still care about our Gentle Readers!

I have included many of your outside and AR blogs in my blogroll and in my RSS Feedreader—so that I may remain in contact, and I invite you to visit me at Our Saint Paul—you will be warmly received.

Sincerely,

A Complete Episode (no link-click required)!

Happy Labor Day, Gentle Readers! It is a fine Saint Paul, Minnesota morning with the temperature a pleasant 65ºF. I was just thinking that all too soon we’ll be reporting temperatures in degrees below zero [[shudder]]!

Pleasant as the weather is in Saint Paul, we decided to have our chipped & well-used “Codger Collectible (January ’07 Edition) Mugs” of organically & shade-grown, fair-trade, Guatemalan-Roast coffee, here in Danger Bay at Silverthorn’s Café instead. We both have a very busy Labor Day in front of us.

As we clumped up on the boardwalk and entered the café, we saw Hiram, Sr. behind the counter, Medlar Farkleberry, and an old geezer (who we haven’t yet met) at the counter.

We headed for our usual table, the one by the front plate-glass window when Hiram called out: “G’mornin’ fellas. Please have a seat here at the counter—it’s too early for me to be traipsing all the way over there.”

“Saving your energy for the morning rush?” Boomer asked as we ambled over to the counter.

“The Sparrow is making her first Voyage from the harbor this morning,” Hiram replied as we sat at the counter between Lar and the strangely familiar looking geezer, “Maggie tells me they have 30 reservations for the trip, so I figured I’d better save my energy for REAL customers.”

“Aww Hiram,” Lar piped up, “That ain’t what ya’ told me when these fellers came in th’ door, You said: ‘Let’s jes see who wins a battle o’wills, me—or that stubborn old man—bet I kin get ‘em ta sit at th’ counter!’ That’s what ya said.”

“Stubborn old man?” the geezer next to me piped up, “Just a short time here and he’s already got you pegged!”

I took a closer look at the geezer (in Minnesota—we don’t generally stare at people we don’t know—part of our passive-aggressive nature) and realized who it was: “M…” I began, but was interrupted by Boomer:

“…Jay! We gave him back that name for his own purposes—remember?”

“The ‘Codger,’ as he is known in these parts,” Hiram said, “used to fish commercially, until 61 was re-routed away from Danger Bay. Used to sell fresh Lake Trout from his shop on the pier, but the realignment of the highway caused his business to dry up. In fact, that’s where you guys have your office now.”

“Yep,” the Codger added, “I left the blog, but kept the keys. I have all the passwords (heh-heh), so I can visit whenever I wish, and regale you with my wit & wisdom.”

“But, who drew you?” I asked, taken aback just a little, “You can’t draw worth spit!”

Boomer only smiled.

“OK, there’s only one ex-Codger left,” I thought aloud, “but he says he’s waaay too busy for this stuff anymore.”

“Is this where we meet for the boat trip?” came a voice from the entry…

TO BE CONTINUED…

Gentle Readers, this was a complete episode—brought to you by:

Danger Bay Stories

Danger Bay Graphics (NEW GRAPHICS)

Danger Bay Sets (NEW GRAPHICS) 

and

Farkleberry’s Ship’s Chandlery (Collectible Stuff) 

Please visit us!

Boomer & I are enjoying our chipped & well-used “Codger Collectible (January ’07 Edition) Mugs” of organically & shade-grown, fair-trade, Guatemalan-Roast coffee, and enjoying a late summer Saint Paul, Minnesota morning on my back porch.

Yeah, Jay, and your over-sized and totally ripped-off version of my replica “Pruett’s Pig Powders” thermometer tells us the temperature is 65ºF, and I can plainly see that the sky is partly cloudy. And for now, and through Monday, no rain is expected!

This should be a good weekend for the Minnesota State Fair—the harbinger of fall for kids everywhere in the state. Moderate temps, no rain—the place should be packed!

True—for this last week I’ve had to find work-arounds to avoid any of the streets leading to the Fair, Jay. Couple that with the tragic loss of the I35W bridge, and traffic can be miserable.

Around here folks, we don’t wait for mid-September for fall to begin, it begins, conveniently—I think—just when the Fair ends. The kids go back to school, and we start our preparations for our too-long winters, and certainly enjoy the cooler, drier weather of the season.

Thanks for reminding me, Jay—I’ve gotta get the snow-blower fixed.

You’ve had all summer to do that!

Can you spell “p-r-o-c-r-a-s-t-i-n-a-t-e,” Jay?

I can spell it—better yet, though—I sometimes practice it—if I get around to it!

There’s a point somewhere here, for why we are posting this morning, right? Some sort of announcement?

Well, sure—we completed the remodeling of cyber-Ines Hedegus-Garcia’s “Danger Bay” cyber-business! See:

That’s cool, but there was something else. (more)

We completed the update to cyber-Sarah Cooper's General Store: