Rubber Ducky Resort & Campground - A family campground located in Warren, near Winnipeg, Manitoba

Glad to be wrong

rubberduckyblog — Sat, 28 Jan 2012 16:59:54 +0000

Back in October I went out on a limb and made my predictions for winter. Boy was I ever wrong. I said that we would get our first snowfall just before Christmas and that it would be a cold, cold January. I heard today that this has been the 3rd warmest January since they started keeping records in 1873. At least I wasn’t the only one that was wrong with my winter predictions. The Farmer’s Almanac and Accuweather were also calling for a cold, snowy winter. This was one time that it was good to be wrong. The Farmer’s Almanac is still saying that February will be a couple degrees colder than normal and we will have below average precipitation. Not sure if anyone wants to listen to them, but thought I would pass it on anyway. I am not going to make anymore predictions though. We will wait and see what Mr Groundhog has to say next week. With February just around the corner and only 52 days until spring even if we did get a cold snap we still can’t complain. Unless, of course you are a snowmobiler, skier or anyone that operates a business related to snow. On a serious note I know that this has been a tough winter for you guys.

More ducks

rubberduckyblog — Mon, 23 Jan 2012 23:18:05 +0000

It is amazing just how much Duck stuff and information is actually out there. Most people probably don’t notice. But, not surprisingly I am always on the look out for anything Ducky. This time they have named a search engine after us. DuckDuckGo. Okay, so maybe it has nothing to do with us but I can pretend.

Gotta give credit to Tod Maffin and his Facebook post for letting me know about DuckDuckGo. If you click on his name you will link to his post about why he has switched to this new search engine.

I’ll be honest…

rubberduckyblog — Mon, 16 Jan 2012 00:59:33 +0000

I’ll be honest. If you are looking for any type of interesting reading you can stop now because it ain’t here. As I have said before there is really not much going on this time of year so my blogs posts are few and far between. But, I have one seasonal who likes to harass me about not posting enough, so this post is simply to make him happy. lol.

So, let’s start with the sure fire topic for when you have nothing else to say – the weather .. yep it’s winter. I hate it, some people love it. Although we have been spoiled up until now, it looks like things may be changing. I am glad that I don’t live in Alaska though. Photo Gallery. As you may have heard some places had 18 ft of snow. As I say some people and animals like the snow. Check out this dude.

Anyone in the market for a good, used car? The Barrett Jackson auction is set to start in the next couple days. There is even a 1969 Camaro that is painted Rubber Ducky Yellow. (Friday picture 19). If anyone was wondering what to get me for my birthday …….

Another great no-topic topic is stupid facts and I found a few good ones

- Alfred Hitchcock didn’t have a bellybutton.

- When you sneeze, all bodily functions stop even your heart!

- The first Harley Davidson motorcycle built in 1903 used a tomato can for a carburetor.

- Elephants are the only animals that can’t jump.

- It is physically impossible for a pig to look up into the sky.

- 23% of all photocopier faults worldwide are caused by people sitting on them and photocopying their butts.

- No piece of paper can be folded in half more than 7 times.

- The king of hearts is the only king without a mustache

- You are more likely to get attacked by a cow than a shark.

- Banging your head against a wall uses 150 calories an hour.

- A duck’s quack doesn’t echo, and no one knows why.

- Someone on Earth reports seeing a UFO every three minutes. In the U.S., reported sightings are most likely to occur in July, at 9 p.m. or 3 a.m.

- Since the Lego Group began manufacturing blocks in 1949, more than 189 billion pieces in 2000 different shapes have been produced. This is enough for about 30 Lego pieces for every living person on Earth.

- In the USA – more toilets flush at the half time of the Super Bowl than at any other time of the year

I read it on the internet so it must be true. Now admit it, how many of you reached for a piece of paper and started folding? And if you are having a bad day at work and feel like beating your head against the wall, you can now call it exercising.

Well that is the best I can bore you with today. Bundle up cause it sounds like old man winter is returning.

Just in case you were wondering

rubberduckyblog — Wed, 04 Jan 2012 22:09:36 +0000

With this warm, sunny weather our thoughts tend to turn to spring and of course camping. Combine this with the start of the new year I figured it was time to do some calculating. So, just in case you were wondering how long till camping season starts:

3 months & 11 days, or
14 weeks, or
102 days, or
2400 hours, or
146,000 minutes, or
8,800,000 seconds (give or take a few seconds)

And last but not least….

Q: What do you get if you put a 20 ducks in a box?
A: A box of Quackers

Ernie and his Ducky

rubberduckyblog — Fri, 09 Dec 2011 20:20:28 +0000

I must admit that before this week I really didn’t give the Rubber Duckie song much thought. It was just a little ditty that Ernie sang on Sesame Street. I never considered it a ‘real’ song until recently when I received an email that changed my thinking. (btw Thank you to the little birdie that tweeted this to me. I am always interested in all things ducky)

Now about Ernie’s song – did you know that Ernie’s Rubber Duckie actually went to #16 on the Billboard Chart in 1970. It was even nominated for a Grammy Award, but lost to ‘The Sesame Street Book & Record’, which incidentally contained the Rubber Duckie song. So indirectly it did win the Grammy. There have been versions in different languages such as German and Spanish; even a Rock N Roll version by Little Richard. A quick youtube search finds lots of these versions to choose from. Here is one of the original songs: http://youtu.be/TtWfTrY-Wug

And for something a little different here is Little Richard http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tWCEG6lV0ek

Hopefully you can forgive me if you now have Ernie’s voice bouncing around in your head. It’s Friday afternoon and who wants to think work thoughts at this time of day anyway.

Have a safe, happy weekend. Take the time to relax and enjoy some fun with the family.

December Dillies and Sillies

rubberduckyblog — Thu, 01 Dec 2011 15:57:56 +0000

It sounds very clichéd but wow did November ever fly by. Seems like only a week ago that we were heading out trick or treating and already I am starting my chocolate countdown calendar. I can only hope that the rest of the winter goes this fast. Typically with all the hustle and bustle of Christmas December is a fast month as well. It is January and February that really gets ya.

Of course there isn’t much happening around the Duck at this time of year, so I have been a little lacking for topics for the blog. I decided to set out on a search of the internet to find some interesting December tidbits to write about and was well rewarded. There are all sorts of strange December superstitions, weather lore, beliefs and sayings that I have compiled to share . You will notice that I couldn’t help but also share my unsolicited opinion on the ‘facts’ below

First off a few simple December Superstitions

“On Christmas Eve all animals can speak”

However, it is apparently bad luck to test this superstition. So if you see the Reindeer that ran over Grandma it is probably best to just walk away.

“Wearing new shoes on Christmas Day will bring bad luck”

If you had shoes on your Christmas list, you may want to do some editing.

“Good Luck will come to the house where a fire is kept burning throughout the Christmas season”

I gotta contradict this one. I think if a fire burns in my house throughout Christmas, it will be very, very bad luck since I don’t have a fireplace.

“If a girl raps on a henhouse door on Christmas Eve and a rooster crows, she will marry within a year”

Forget about getting trampled in the garter toss ladies, give this one a try. And make sure to send me a wedding picture if it works out.

If your birthday is December 28 close your eyes and don’t read this part. This day is widely regarded as the unluckiest day of the year. I have no idea why, but I guess with superstitions there never is an answer to this question.

Here’s a useless did you know fact:

December Starts on the same day of the week as September.

December ends on the same day of the week as April

Ok how many of you besides me checked the calendar after you read this?

There is a seemingly unlimited supply of weather tidbits on the net so here is just a sampling of the Weather lore:

- “A clear, star filled Christmas Eve will bring good crops in the summer”

- “If sun shines through the apple trees upon Christmas Day,

When autumn come they will a load of fruit display”

- “ Snow on Christmas means Easter will be green.”

Before you google it, Easter 2012 is on April 8.

-“A green Christmas; a white Easter”

- “If Christmas Day be bright and clear

There’ll be two winters in the year”

- “The nearer the new Moon to Christmas Day, the harder the Winter.”

Uh oh, the new moon is on December 24.

My job is done now that I have filled your time with useless information. My next mission to settle my curiosity will definitely be to see how many actually come true. I will be tracking the snow and sunshine over the next few months and report back on my findings. In the mean time I will continue my google expedition to find some useless tidbits to amuse, entertain and possibly bore you with.

Happy December Everyone. And remember you are never to old for a Christmas Chocolate Countdown Calendar. Go out and buy one today and spend a little time acting like a kid again.

Go Bombers Go!!

rubberduckyblog — Tue, 22 Nov 2011 19:42:02 +0000

There were a few times this season that it didn’t look good, but the Bombers pulled it off and have made it to the Grey Cup Game on Sunday. They are really going to have their work cut out for them though. Let’s hope that there are lots of Bomber Fans making the journey so they can drown out the home town crowd. On the Grey Cup Website there is a fan poll asking who will win the game. As of right now they have had 2029 votes and the Lions are just barely ahead with 52% expecting them to win. As always we will have the Game on the Big Screen in the Rec Building. It is a free family friendly event and everyone is welcome to come out and enjoy the afternoon.

This weekend also signifies Black Friday and Cyber Monday. I know there are quite a few Manitobans that head down South for the chaos of Black Friday. Not me, even if you paid me I don’t think I would take part in such madness. Now, Cyber Monday that is a different story. I have my thinking cap on to come up with some good Rubber Ducky deals . You will have to check our www.facebook.com/RubberDuckyResortandCampground on Monday to see what I decided on. I can tell you one little secret – one lucky camper is going to win a fantastic prize from Rubber Ducky Resort and Campground. (no purchase necessary)

The Race was on

rubberduckyblog — Fri, 28 Oct 2011 17:04:21 +0000

Well it sounds like the boys took my advice and they enjoyed the ride to the Summit World Finals. You’ll remember a few weeks ago I posted about how ‘our’ car was going to the World Finals in Virginia. The boys have returned and by all accounts it sounds like it was a great experience that they won’t soon forget. They came back with lots of pictures and videos to share. The pictures don’t do it justice, but you can get a bit of an idea of how big the event was. This is the type of thing that most people will never even see or be a part of. It truly is the type of thing that you had to be there to appreciate what the event was like. If you have facebook you can check out the Internation Hot Rod Association page https://www.facebook.com/#!/nitrojam. If you scroll down, there are a few stories about the World Finals. One of the other big sponsors was RacingJunk.Com. If you are looking to get your own car and get into racing this is where to start shopping. If you want to see more of the Raceway in Petersburg this is the website for Virginia Motorsports Park

Drag Racin' Duck

Winter :(

rubberduckyblog — Mon, 17 Oct 2011 00:51:06 +0000

I won’t beat around the bush and I am sure I have mentioned it before. I HATE WINTER. I HATE COLD. Yes hate is a strong word, but it is fitting in this circumstance. Unfortunately it is the time of year when we have no choice but to accept the fact that old man winter will soon be here. We have been lucky up until now and have enjoyed an amazing fall but it seems to be quickly coming to an end. It is also time for the winter forecast predictions to come out. The Farmer’s Almanac is calling for a cold and stormy winter; AccuWeather says it will be approx 3-4 degrees colder than normal with lots of snow. Environment Canada seems to agree with colder temperatures and more snow. So, does this mean they are all copying each other or do they really know something we don’t. Along with the forecast Farmer’s Almanac also has a list of some signs of a hard winter so we can make a decision on our own. Have you seen any of these signs:

Thicker than normal corn husks
Woodpeckers sharing a tree
Early arrival of the Snowy owl
Early departure of geese and ducks
Early migration of the Monarch butterfly
Thick hair on the nape (back) of the cow’s neck
Heavy and numerous fogs during August
Raccoons with thick tails and bright bands
Mice eating ravenously into the home
Early arrival of crickets on the hearth
Spiders spinning larger than usual webs and entering the house in great numbers

Pigs gathering sticks
Insects marching a bee line rather than meandering
Early seclusion of bees within the hive
Unusual abundance of acorns
Muskrats burrowing holes high on the river hank
“See how high the hornet’s nest, ‘twill tell how high the snow will rest”
Narrow orange band in the middle of the Woollybear caterpillar warns of heavy snow; fat and fuzzy caterpillars presage bitter cold
The squirrel gathers nuts early to fortify against a hard winter
Frequent halos or rings around sun or moon forecast numerous snow falls.

Ok so maybe it is not much help. But I can tell you that there are no acorns here and the muskrat holes are not that high on the banks. Now, I have no intention of checking a cows neck to see how thick it is. Nor do I have much desire to go searching for a hornet’s nest either. I have noticed that the ducks and geese are still hanging around and have not departed early. I just don’t even know what to says about the pigs. Has anyone ever seen a pig gather sticks? All in all I gotta say that these signs seem to contradict the ‘experts’.

Here’s my uneducated prediction for the upcoming winter:

I have analyzed all the signs, studied the facts, checked the historical data, dotted the i’s and crossed the t’s and say it will be a late first snowfall, coming just in time for Christmas; it will be a cold, cold January; and an early spring with the snow gone by April 1. (Ok some wishful thinking involved)

Anyone else want to share your predictions, post a comment with your best guess.

Enjoy the Ride

rubberduckyblog — Thu, 06 Oct 2011 19:51:28 +0000

If you are a faithful reader of my blog, you will remember that we sponsor a local drag racer. When you see our truck ( the one with the ducky on it that you can’t miss) travelling between here and Gimli pulling a really nice purple car that would be Dean. Well this has been a very successful summer for Dean. After racing all summer at his home track in Gimli, Manitoba he qualified to compete in the IRHA Summit Super Series divisional run off in Edmonton, Alberta on Sept 16-18. Unfortunately the week before the competition Dean’s car broke down. Luckily he was able to borrow a car and had just enough time to get it ready for the Edmonton Race. This setback left no time to try out the car prior to the race. But with only two test passes the morning of the race, he was still able to pull off the win. So next week if you see the Ducky Truck somewhere between here and Virginia pulling a really nice black car, that will be Dean. Dean and his crew will be competing in the Summit World Finals in Petersburg, VA. There are only 16 drivers from all around the world that are invited to compete. We would like to send a huge congratulations to Dean Smith and wish him good luck during the finals next weekend.

This is Dean’s regular car that helped him make it to Edmonton. A 1973 Camaro that has run 9.13at 149mph in the quarter mile.

This is the car he will be taking to Virginia a 1967 Cougar

Have a great trip guys. Sit back, hold on and enjoy the ride.