Good morning GH. It is just past 2:00 AM in "The City," and the current temperature is 32° as we head down to our high today of 25°. Saturday delivered more snow than was originally expected, as the front moved more northward. As the day/evening wore on, the snow continued to fall. We now are under a winter storm warning until 1:00 AM EST on Monday. That warning is in addition to a wind-chill watch from late today through late Tuesday afternoon.

The Chicago area got hit with an additional eight inches of snowfall to add to the 12 inches that had already fallen. This year, to date, we are seeing snowfalls all over the country that are well in excess of previous year's totals. I am glad that we don't have any where to go and all day to get there. Our next required trip is on Wednesday for another rehab session. Our snow shoveler will be by on Sunday to dig us out, yet again. The city plows have already gone down our street, dumping the usual extra at the entrance to our shared driveway.

In the local school district, the second half of the school year begins anew on Monday, January 6, 2014. The same is true of the district in Illinois from which I retired. The weather will have an impact on both, I am sure.

Yesterday, Mary and I received some sad news. A young lady who was quick to embrace us in our newly adopted hometown passed away suddenly. She always welcomed us warmly whenever we visited the Post. She was always ready to greet us and give us a hug, both upon arrival and as we departed. Sally, the bartender at the Post, called to give us the sad news early on Saturday. The young lady had had the flu and succumbed to its effects. We are having an outbreak here in Michigan. This young lady and her smile will be sorely missed. Things will not be the same without her. Some things should never change.

In happier news, the daughter of one of my former colleagues had successful hip replacement surgery on Thursday. She is already up and walking and now faces three months of rehab. Then, she gets to start all over on the opposite hip. I have faced my own share of rehab, so I  can both empathize and encourage.

On Saturday, Mary continued to work on her latest project. I did get in some reading, but I am still having trouble reading more than a few pages at a time. I'll just keep plugging. I have stayed within my usual mystery genre, but I am trying an author recommended by the librarians at our local library. So far, I like their suggestions. In the past, their recommendations on some non-fiction and fiction books have been solid.

Today looks like more of the same. I read and sleep; Mary works and makes the meals. I will continue to empty the dishwasher in my slow and plodding fashion. I won't try to wash Mary's china though. If nothing else, I can watch the ice-bowl play-off game from Green Bay. Speaking of sports, thanks for that reference Mr. Cosell, pitchers and catchers report in about 40 days. Then, spring will officially begin.

I have always believed that baseball is life. As one musical artist proclaimed in a song, "I'm born again, there's new grass on the field."  At our local Triple-A affiliated stadium they had that fire that means that they are also in rebuilding mode. Their rebuilding is on their stadium though. We had planned to get there the last two years, but we only saw the outside.

The Super Bowl this year will be played in the East in an outdoor stadium in the cold and snow. That's football weather. Baseball celebrates life, as it is played in a park, in the sunshine, not in a stadium in bad weather. Unfortunately, the boys in blue will probably make us wait yet another year. The Tigers will have a new manager and a revised roster, and a wounded Triple-A stadium/team, so they are an unknown. Likewise, my beloved Red Sox are also retooling, so I don't yet have a prediction.

That looks like about it for Saturday and early Sunday morning. Sunrise today will be at 8:16 AM and Sunset at 5:25 PM. Ciao.