Good morning GH. It is just past 1:00 a.m. in "The City," and the current temperature is a balmy 54° as we come off of Saturday's high of 59°. Today we are expecting a high of 60° under partly cloudy skies. However, the chance of precipitation is 0%. I'll take it. Monday we are expecting a high of 55° with a 60% chance of T-showers. As the week progresses, the chance of precipitation drops to less than 30% and the temperatures will also drop no lower than 47° on Tuesday, before they rebound to 61° on Thursday. The farther out you look, the forecast becomes more problematical and therefore, I'll update as the week progresses.

Saturday, Mary and I worked in the gardens of the palatial estate. I had my Irish Jam session in the p.m., so before I could assist any further, I had to go. We did go north to Mantague to pick up some additional mulch and then Mary dropped me off at the jam. While I had some aches at the jam, I was able to play most of the time. When I got back, Mary was done gardening, but she was unable to turn on the outdoor water faucet to water her efforts. The faucet is one of those frost free types, and my sense is that it will take a plumber to resolve the problem. We used a work around by hooking the hose to the indoor faucet of our laundry sink. As you can imagine, that is very temporary, and so I'll have to call the plumber. I was going to do that anyway for another issue, so I can at least combine the service calls for a single fee.

After that, we walked up town for dinner and then came home. I am done walking for the next couple of days, as my blisters have blisters. Since I have an appointment at the podiatrist on Thursday, that will be resolved shortly. Since I did very little walking this winter due to my shoulder, I didn't build up my tolerance for walking. Then when I began to break in my new shoes I got blisters that have never really healed. Normally, I don't have a problem.

Sugar the Weather Dog was enjoying a bone in the "Bone Zone," when we walked up town. Since we couldn't leave her outside, we brought the bone into the mud room. However, when we weren't looking after we came home, Sugar once again surreptitiously carried her bone into the dining room and continued cleaning her teeth. Thankfully, we haven't had the carpets cleaned inside the Palatial Estate for spring. Sugar thinks of the carpet as a giant sized napkin for her nose.

The boys in blue responded to a message from their new manager coming off of Friday's loss to the Reds by tallying an 8 - 4 win on Saturday. Now they are at 5 - 10 on the season. Elsewhere in Chicago sports, the Hawks fell to 0 - 2 in the playoffs as they lost to the St Louis Blues, 3 - 4. In addition, they may lose a player to suspension for a rough hit on a St Louis player. I saw the play, and even by NHL standards, it was over the top.

Returning to baseball, my beloved Red Sox once again fell to the Orioles, this time by a score of 2 - 4, and they are now at 8 - 10 on the season. On the plus side, the Tigers defeated the Angels by a score of 5 - 2 to go to 8 - 6 this year. The Caps fell by the slimmest of margins to the Cedar Rapids Kernels, 6 - 7. That dropped their record to 9 - 7, a full 2.5 games behind the Midwest League leading Dayton Dragons.

Otherwise, not much on tap for the day. We'll read the paper, read some books, and enjoy a few things that Mary has planned for our culinary delight. Since the weather is supposed to be pleasant, we may eat on the deck. A perfect day for it. Sugar may even get a return trip to the "Bone Zone."

That looks like enough for the day. Rest, relax, repeat. The sun will rise at 6:54 a.m. and set at 8:32 p.m. Ciao.