Good early morning GH. It is just past 2:30 a.m. in "The City." Our current outdoor temperature is 67°, as we head down to an overnight low of 59°. As the day unfolds, the temperature is supposed to rise to a humid 76° with no precipitation in the forecast until Saturday's 40% chance of scattered T-storms. All of that is a long winded way of saying that I'll have to water today.

Our guests departed yesterday afternoon after a successful visit. Good conversations, seeing the sights on the Harbor Trolley™, and introducing or reintroducing them to some new and old taste treat sensations. Those sensations included a requested stop at our favorite watering hole, a trip to the new yogurt emporium in town, the Pump House, and a visit to Pronto Pup for a taste of one of GHs most famous, deservedly so, gourmet foods. Along with a stop or two at the Post, we had a great time. We believe that our guests also had an enjoyable time.

I made it to my orthopedic appointment yesterday afternoon, for the first of my knee treatments. One down and four more to go. Today I'll have a bit of pain when I walk, but that is the cost of being pain free in my knees for another six months. Since Mary and I like to walk as much as we can, it is pain with gain. Sugar the Weather Dog, Mary's brother Ed, and I, took the morning walk as a team. Sugar was happy to get out and we covered about one-half mile. Later in the day, we all went down to the waterfront so that Ed could dip his toes into the "Big Lake." He had originally intended to go swimming, but one dip into the 67° water convinced him that swimming was not a good plan. It was at the end of our beach visit that we stopped at Pronto Pup. On the deck overlooking the lighthouses and the channel, we bade our guest adieu. They are welcome back anytime.

I heard the southbound train go by earlier, but I didn't bother to get up to see it. Speaking of transportation events, when we were watching the ship and boat traffic in the channel, we saw the articulated barge, St. Mary's Conquest being pulled by it's tug boat, the Prentiss Brown. As it turns out, I decided not to wait for Dick Fox's column in the Grand Haven Tribune next week, and consulted the internet for further info. This particular barge/tug combination was the first ship to visit GH this year. It has changed owners several times since it's launching in 1937 as a steam powered ship. Several re-configurations and name changes later, for both she and her tug boat, she is now hauling cement to the docks in Ferrysburg and other Lake Michigan cities. In a past life, the St. Mary's Conquest hauled petroleum products. Her home port is Muskegon.

As it turned out, I was still at the keyboard to see the northbound train run, not just hear it like I did the southbound train run earlier. Like yesterday morning there were two locomotives, but unlike yesterday, they were towing a long string of covered hopper cars, some of those were covered in graffiti, two box cars, five white tank cars and 10 or 11 of those dreaded black tank cars. Those black cars appear ghostly in the dim streetlight.

For Mary's benefit, the annual GH Coast Guard Fest™ begins on July 25 this year. The Coast Guard cutters Hollyhock, Bristol Bay, and Biscayne Bay arrive on July 28, at 1:00 p.m. That follows the annual car show on Sunday, July 27, 2014.

In sports, the boys in blue defeated the Washington Nationals, 5 - 3. The Tigers were also victorious over the Rangers, 6 - 0. Unlike my beloved Red Sox, the Tigers have righted the ship and are now on a streak, to go to 10 games over .500. The Sox had the day off. The Caps were not so fortunate, as they lost to the Lansing Lug Nuts, 6 - 7.

Today, I may mow the lawn after I walk with Sugar the Weather Dog. Then I'll water the gardens on the palatial estate, followed by a trip to the movie theater for a humongous bucket of popcorn and a gigantic Cherry-Coke™. Mary will be doing something that she calls "chunking" om her indexing project as she also chats with her group. Talk about multitasking. Once I get home again, I can collapse and read the newspaper and another novel. I might even get in some play time with the girls.

So, until the sun rises at 6:05 a.m., I'll be heading back to bed. The sun will set at 9:27 p.m. tonight as the days once again get shorter. Ciao.