Good early morning GH. It is just past 3:30 a.m. in "The City," and this is likely to be an abbreviated blog. That's because as I look out the Weather Window, I see a great deal of lightning to the north. I can hear occasional peals of thunder too. The National Weather Service is describing that as light rain with thunder. Sugar the Weather Dog will keep me posted. If the thunder and lightning get too close, she'll head towards her hide-e-hole and that will be warning enough for me to shut down. Right now, the lightning seems to be staying north of Whitehall or New Era.

It is raining lightly right now. Like the lightning and thunder, that wasn't in the forecast until later today. Our current temperature is 47°, coming off a high yesterday in the lower 60s. We are heading for today's forecast high of 65°. It's been a long time since I was able to write that; one 60° plus day followed by another, with still two more in the forecast. That won't last, but for now, what's not to like?

Speaking of Sugar the Weather Dog, she and I spent some time in the "Bone Zone" yesterday afternoon, as promised. She chewed as I worked in the back forty, a good division of labor. I moved some pots in the gardens, after I had put the snow blower away in the man-cave. Then I got out the lawnmower and the bicycles. I went so far as to put air in the tires of the bicycles. That's how good the warm temperatures felt. The temperatures felt so good, that I spent some time on the deck myself, next t Mary's garden plants as they get hardened off.

More about the north, I just watched as the nightly run of the train headed in that direction. The usual locomotive combination followed by a string of 32 covered hopper cars, interspersed with one box car, two white tank cars and five of those dreaded black tank cars. That's the train news for the early morning, as I missed the southbound run earlier.

In sports, the boys in blue once again found a way to lose to that other team from Chicago, this time 1 - 5. The Tigers continued their winning ways, as they pounded the Astro's pitchers for 11 runs, en-route to an 11 - 4 victory. The Tigers are a team on a genuine roll. I wish the topsy-turvy season of my beloved Red Sox was on that same trajectory. They beat the Reds yesterday, 4 - 3, but they haven't engendered much confidence in their fan base. The Caps continued their winning ways. They once again defeated the Lake County, IN Captains by a score of 3 - 1. The Dayton Dragons are keeping pace with the Caps, as both teams have identical 19 win records. However, the Caps have suffered one more loss to leave them one-half game back of the Dragons.

Today I plan to stay out of trouble as Mary continues her relentless pursuit of a finished project. Then I will have to put my editor's hat back on and help bring the project home. That's still a few days off. I also have to get my few strands of hair cut today too. Mostly I need the expert hands of the barber to clean up my beard and other wisps of errant hair. Sugar and I will stay in other than our morning walk if the rain continues.

My plans for my music stand were altered yesterday afternoon. I poured some concrete into the base to make it heavier. If all goes well, when I bring it up from the man-cave, it should be better able to hold the heavy music books on top. That being said, I can then play more. I'll also read more and finish the N. Y. Times crossword puzzle too.

I have been having to fend for myself at mealtime, as Mary has been busily working. I really can't complain, because Mary made my favorite meal, soup, earlier in the week. Nothing fancy, but Mary chopped some vegetables, added a bit of veggie sausage for protein, and all I had to do was reheat. I did that three times, interspersing a salad and sandwich to break up the menu. Now I am back to canned soups. Not as good as Mary's homemade, but adequate to the task for a soup lover like me. I should give mention to Tuesday's brunch menu. Mary made her famous Swiss cheese and sauerkraut sandwiches rather than stopping once she got down to work. Ciao.