Good morning or good evening, wherever you may be in or near "The City." It is just past 4:00 a.m.

I thought  that I'd start out with a description of last night's activities.

Mary and I traveled to the Waterfront Stadium to see Toppermost, the "Best Beatles tribute band in the nation." That's their claim, and having seen other Beatles tribute bands, I'd say that may well be true. I should mention that the man who portrays Paul is the band's owner, business manager, booking agent, and a teacher in Michigan.

While there, I took some pictures of the band, the channel and the boats of all sizes plying the waters, and Dewey Hill. Here they are, in no particular order.

Their sound and look is very authentic.

This is Tom Diab, the aforementioned band manager and owner, who is also a teacher in MI

People got up and danced in a Conga Line.

As noted, the boats came in all shapes and sizes. Mega bucks, to Kayaks.

Like I said, Toppermost brought the crowd to its collective feet. 

Medium sized.

Mary took this picture of  kayaks to get a perspective on the sizes, shapes, and prices.

A nice "little" boat

The carnival was in full swing, and the lines were long for most rides.

As we left Waterfront Stadium.

A race?

The "Blue Moon."

At any rate, the night was great. STWD had been fed, so she was home and fast asleep, Oops, I mean guarding the house. 

I did get the gardens watered yesterday. I should be good until Saturday. No rain in sight until Sunday, maybe.

Mary printed out her latest project and I got my work assignment. This is another of those three highlighter jobs that I detest. I always end up with as much highlighter ink on me as I do on the pages. 

No trains to spot.

We stopped off at the Post on the way home to see the Tigers nearly lose to the Orioles. They hung in there until the game finished at a final score of 9 - 8. Somewhere in there, they traded their best starting pitcher, David Price, to the Blue Jays. They Tigers to snatch defeat from the jaws of victory, as they went from a lead of 9 - 4 when we walked in, to that final score. The boys in blue tried to give away another game to the Brewers, but an Anthony Rizzo home run gave them the lead and they finished at 5 - 2  Still no trades. My beloved Red Sox beat out that other team from Chicago, 8 - 2. The Caps unfortunately fell to the Bowling Green Hot Rods, 3 - 11. Oh well, three out of four isn't too bad.

Today, no particular plans. Playing with the girls, walking with STWD, and that's about it.

The sun will rise at 6:34 a.m., and set at 9:07 p.m. Ciao.

Good morning or good evening, wherever you may be. It is just past 1:30 a.m in "The City."

Why is it that living here in GH, I feel like that proverbial bridesmaid? You know, the one who sighs and says. "Always a bridesmaid, never a bride." In this case, I am referring to the weather that seems to leave GH at the altar more often than not.

Yesterday, I got up early to take STWD for her morning walk in anticipation of the impending T-storms predicted by the NWS. Unfortunately, we never saw those T-storms. Instead, the skies got sunny and nary a drop fell upon our parched gardens and lawns. Good for the intrepid weather dog, but not good for our crops. Our next storms are forecast for Sunday. I knew that I should have trusted on the weather dog's more accurate forecasting skills.

Not far from here, in fact about 32 miles east, the Caps were ahead 1 - 0, when the rains came. Fifth Third Ballpark, where they play, is just slightly south of GR. I know I've said it before, if you don't like the weather in GH, just wait.

Since I am on the topic of sports, the boys in blue defeated the Rockies 3 - 2. No trades yet. The Tigers were also victorious, 2 - 1 over the Tampa Bay Rays. The trade rumors are flying there. My beloved Red Sox were not so lucky in their home, Fenway Park, as they fell to that other team from Chicago, 2 - 9.

Train-spot. I only witnessed the passage of the southbound train as EMD GP 38 locomotives 2057 and 2019 in their freshly washed livery, as they rolled through at 11:25 a.m., towing a lone box car, two CHCs, and five of those DBTCs. I was OOT (out of town) when the northbound train returned, so I have no personal evidence of its passage, nor it's composition.

As noted in yesterday's blog, Mary and I had traveled north to see Terminator Genisys, which was the best T movie, in our personal opinions, of  the latest crop. Reprising his role as the original T, Arnold Schwarzenegger was a wisecracking guardian for Sarah Connor. You had to be there I guess, but we loved the movie.

However, the theater has changed since our last visit, probably two years ago, so the change may not have been all that recent. They now have reserve seating that requires moviegoers to choose their seats before going into the seating area. We chose based upon the evidence before us, that showed that many seats were already taken. In fact, only two other young women were in attendance. What a system. We'll avoid this theater if we can in the future. In this case, Terminator Genisys had already been replaced at our local theater.

We returned to GH and stopped in to see Sally at the Post. Parking was a challenge, until we realized that in front of the church across the street from church, other people had eschewed parking in what were legal parking spots in an area directly in front of the church doors. Probably the best parking spot we have found in a long time. Most people had assumed that those spots were no parking. Their loss, our gain.

Today, possibly more watering to make up for the lack of natural precipitation. I may or may not mow the vast lawns of the PE. That's the extent of my ambition for the day. Play with the girls is also possible. Mary's latest indexing project is now in, so I know what her plans will be.

Later tonight, Mary, my camera, and I, are off to the Waterfront Stadium, to see Toppermost, a West Michigan Beatles tribute band. Last night, was an Everly Brothers tribute band called The Neverly Brothers. We saw no attraction in them.

The sun will rise today under sunny skies at 6:33 a.m., and set at 9:33 p..m, when a blue moon rises. I didn't know until Mary told me, that a blue moon occurs when the moon is full for the second time in a month. That apparently doesn't happen all that often, giving rise to that phrase, "Once in a blue moon." Ciao.

Good morning or good evening, wherever you may be. It is just past 2:30 a.m. in "The City." Here in GH, the NWS is forecasting T-storms beginning at 8:00 a.m. this morning and continuing until 12:00 p.m. this afternoon. Right now our temperature is 79° but it feels like 81°. That gives you some idea of the humidity here.

Mary talked to some indexing colleagues in the western states yesterday afternoon, where the temperatures are expected to exceed 100° today amidst the droughts and the wildfires. We had considered Portland, OR as one of our retirement destinations, and discarded that as too far from our Midwestern roots. Prescient? We like to think so.

We did make it to the grocery store yesterday. Since it was Tuesday, I/we qualified for the Tuesday Senior Citizens discount of 5%. While not a huge amount, $4.15 is still $4.15 we didn't have to pay out. I encourage everyone to ask if their grocers have such a program. I am certain that Adam would approve.

In sports, the boys in blue, are back to their inconsistent selves, losing to the Rockies, 2 - 7. No trade news yet. The Tigers are all too human too, as they lost to the Tampa Bay Rays, 2 - 10. The Tigers without Max Scherzer who left for the money in D.C., the loss of Torii Hunter to the Twins, Miguel Cabrera's stint on the DL, and Justin Verlander's opening on the DL, made Brad Ausmus' job as the manager a bit harder this year. My beloved Red Sox took it on the chin once again, as they too lost to that other team from Chicago, 4 - 9. Are they now in a selling mode? The Caps also lost to the Bowling Green Hot Rods, 0 - 2. A perfect day for all of their opponents.

No trains to spot yesterday.

I finished my latest book reading, a Lisa Gardner novel entitled Fear Nothing. The ending was excellent. The heroine, is that a good choice of words?, D. D. Warren, reasoned out the antagonists and their plans late in the book. I liked it.

Today, we plan to go to the movies and see the latest in the Terminator series, Terminator Genisys. Being T fans, we just have to go. Plus, the lure of a huge bucket of popcorn and quarts of cherry cola, is just too strong for me to resist. Otherwise, no plans for today.

The sun will rise at 6:31 a.m. and set at 9:10 p.m. giving way to a waxing gibbous moon. Ciao.

Good morning or good evening,wherever you may be. It is just passing 2:30 a.m. in "The City."

Phew, it was a warm one yesterday. The temperature rose to 90° according to the NWS. The humidity wasn't too bad, but it was high enough to make things uncomfortable none the less.

Mary went to the library and I walked with STWD while the temperature was still low enough to make Sugar's life easier. Mary had a book on hold at the library that needed to be picked up, and I had a couple that were due to be picked up in a few days, so the division of duties was a wise one.

As I mentioned in yesterday's blog, we had made plans to walk to the waterfront to see the arrival of the USCG ships at 1:00 p.m. Before we left, I spent some time reading my mystery novel, I'm almost done, and Mary was hard at work on her needlepoint project.

We walked the streets of our city and watched as the annual Coast Guard Festival™ carnival was being set up. I took a couple of pictures of that activity.

With Washington closed to automobile traffic, the "Carnies" were getting ready for tonight's opening. 

The same is true of the parking lot at the intersection of Washington and Harbor Drive.
.

I took this picture of Dewey Hill and its message.

Yes, we are, Coast Guard City U.S.A.

Then we continued farther along the path that follows the channel to see the ships themselves arrive, on schedule, as did the crowds. 

People always make themselves comfortable

An example of one of the four ships.

Look, up in the sky! It's a bird, it's a plane, it's the USCG helicopter framed by the trees. 

As is our yearly habit, once we saw the ships arrive, we traveled to our favorite watering hole for lunch. Some adult beverages, some "healthy" mushrooms, and a "healthy" bean burrito and our day was complete. 

Homeward bound, when we heard the northbound train passing through town. I didn't see it, but I heard it as the horn happy engineer alerted every motorist within miles. I did see the southbound run earlier, at 12:04 a.m., consisting of locomotives 2019 and 2057 towing one box car, and nine CHCs, with five DBTCs bringing up the rear.

In sports, the boys in blue pulled out a win, 9 - 8, over the Rockies on a bottom of the ninth inning walk off homer by Chris Bryant with one on. Another pitcher's duel? The Tigers lost to the Rays, 2 - 5. My beloved Red Sox lost to that other team from Chicago, 8 - 10. The Caps had the day off.

Today, walking with STWD, watering the gardens, and other assorted household chores. Mary will continue to work on her needlepoint, Since the weather is expected to be another warm one, I'll get out early with the intrepid weather dog and then head home to finish my reading and move on to some non-fiction. Later, we'll make our way to the grocery store. Tonight, the annual Coast Guard Festival™ Street Dance follows Tuesdays in the Park. The SOUL'D Out band will offer their unique brand of rhythm and blues, top 40, and Motown there. This eight piece band is always entertaining. 

At 8:30 p.m., GH favorite, "The Sea Cruisers", will headline the Street Dance. We'll catch their first set, and then we'll be ready to retire to the porch. 

Other than those activities, our day will be mostly the usual mundane things of life. The sun will rise into sunny skies at 6:30 a.m. and a projected high of 89°. Later, the same orb will set at 9:11 p.m. under a waxing gibbous moon. Ciao. 

Good morning or good evening, wherever you may be. It is just after 3:00 a.m. in "The City."

The weather report for today is a still warmer version of yesterday, with a high of 88° under sunny skies forecast by the NWS. No rain is expected until Wednesday.

That's a nice way to segue to the discussion of the annual Cast Guard Fest™, Wheels Over GH Car Show. My focus this year was on trucks of several vintages and varieties, and only a few cars. I'll try to include a few pictures as the days unfold. Of course, like all of my plans, they can be squishy.

This takes adding accessories to an Off-Road vehicle to an entirely new level.

If you are really into Off- Road, there was this vehicle.

Jeeps were well represented.

One for Dave and Lisa

And two

I found time to read yesterday after I spent time walking with STWD, watering the parched gardens on the PE, and baking my first ever loaf of zummer squash bread. All of that before 9:00 a.m. I made up the word zummer, because as Mary told me later, the veggie I chose was a summer squash not a zucchini, and was one that Sally had dropped off the other day. I didn't know the difference, so the bread turned out just fine when I used summer squash instead of zucchini.

In sports, the boys in blue found a way to drop their third in a row to the mighty Phillies, 5 - 11. The Tigers fell to my beloved Red Sox, 1 - 11 as the Sox won, 11 - 1. The Caps were more fortunate than the boys or the Tigers, defeating the South Bend Cubs, 5 - 1.

Today I'll try to get out early again with STWD, as the weather will be more conducive to her health early in the day. 

In the early afternoon, Mary and I plan to go to the waterfront to watch the arrival of the four USCG ships at 1:00 p.m. This year we are expecting the good ships:

Mackinaw, http://www.uscg.mil/d9/cgcMackinaw/

Buckthorn, http://www.uscg.mil/d9/cgcBuckthorn/history.asp

Alder, http://www.uscg.mil/d9/cgcAlder/

And, Biscayne Bay, http://www.uscg.mil/d9/cgcBiscayneBay/default.asp

If I get any good pictures, I'll include them in a future blog post.

That should be the extent of my plans for today. I'll do more reading of an excellent novel, I'll work the crossword in today's newspaper, and do my best to do less, and plan to water again tomorrow.

The sun will rise at 6:29 a.m. and set at 9:12 p.m. Ciao.

Good morning or good evening, wherever you may be. It is just past 1:30 a.m. in "The City." My plan to do as little as possible yesterday didn't quite come to fruition.

When I looked out the WW yesterday morning, it looked  like the NWS forecast for scattered T-storms might in fact come true. So, I opted to take STWD out first thing before the rain could land on either of us. It was the day for the annual Kid's Parade in honor of the USCG, and there was also a marathon. Streets were labeled no parking, and everybody seemed to be in search of an elusive parking space.

But I digress. The intrepid weather dog and I never experienced any rain and we could have waited for later to go out.

Once we returned home, I ate breakfast, played with the girls, and read the newspaper that Sugar and I had purchased on our safari. I  finished the final picture frame that I had started the day before. All four of the frames turned out great.

While I was in the man-cave, Mary went to the annual quilt show at St. Pat's Catholic Church. I have selected a few pictures that demonstrate the skill of the quilters. Mary tells me that one of these quilts got her vote for best in show. It was entirely hand stitched with a precision that would challenge a machine. Unfortunately, I can't remember which one she said it is.

Since I was down in the man-cave, I picked up Adam's Big Brute™ R/C truck and took it outside for a test drive. I was looking good until that last spin in the gravel of the driveway. That's when I noticed that the rear wheels had developed a severe case of negative camber, which occurs when the wheels are closer together at the top than the bottom. I texted the truck's owner for advice. He says I am a rank amateur as a driver. He's right. Now I have to take a not so quick course in R/C truck repair.

Sadly, my ineptitude is hard to hide. 

Later, Mary and I walked down to one of the local restaurants to see Captain Morgan. It was fun, we ate dinner and I took a few pictures. 

The Captain was a blur of motion.

He encouraged responsible drinking habits.

A quick stop at the Post to see Sally, and then it was time to get home. I watched an episode of a car customizing show and then I was ready for bed. 

In sports, the boys in blue fell to the suddenly strong Phillies 0 - 5. They were victimized by the first no hitter thrown against them since Sandy Koufax did it to them in a 1965 game against the Dodgers. The boys are interested in trading for the pitcher who hurled this 13 strikeout game, but I think his value just rose a bit.

The Tigers and my beloved Red Sox once again played each other. The Tigers won 5 - 1 and the Red Sox lost 1-5. Big Papi, the Sox' DH, looked slow as he rounded third and was thrown out in a not so close play at the plate. The Caps lost too, in their case to the South Bend Cubs, 1 - 3.  

Today is the annual Coast Guard Festival™ car show. I'll take some pictures while we are there to see the activities. Then, I'll settle down to follow my plan, after I water the gardens on the PE.

The sun will rise at 6:28 a.m., and set under a Gibbous moon at 9:13 p.m. During the day, the temperature will rise to 86° under mostly sunny skies. That's always good for the attendance for both cars and spectators. Ciao.

Good morning or good evening, wherever you may be. It is just passing 3:30 a.m. in The City." The temperature outside the WW is 74° as we head for the overnight low of 61°. Later today, we'll rise to a high of 80° with a chance of scattered T-storms this morning. STWD will let me know.

Remember my plans to do nothing yesterday, other than edit the latest index?, The best laid plans of mice and men etc. Today for sure, I hope.

I found a note on my desk that I had written, reminding me to clear the drain in the upstairs bathroom. I couldn't put it off any longer, as the drain has stopped draining. So, that was my first successful project. I also took the carpets from the foyer outside to give them a good airing/deodorizing. I returned the two smaller ones to the foyer after a thorough vacuuming. The jury is still out on the larger one.coming back. Naturally, since the carpets were out, we thought it would be a good time to steam clean the bare floor. Since I had the steamer out, I just had to use it on the balance of the bare floors in the house too.

Once I had lifted the rugs, the anti-slip pads underneath needed to be washed. When I looked at Sugar's couch cover, it too needed to be laundered. Somewhere in there, I also walked with the intrepid one to the newspaper box. While I was out, Mary walked over to Health Hutt to get a fresh supply of yogurt.

When I was done, both outside and in, it was time for lunch. Mary handled the cooking/preparation part, but I did the cleanup. I repaired to the man-cave to work on a picture frame once I was done withe cleaning. I was called away to work on the editing of the index, so I'll finish that frame later today.

That was my Friday. I'm tired again just reading my descriptions.

However, I'd be remiss if I didn't note that trainspotting was good yesterday. The southbound run went through at 11:32 a.m. while I was outside. Good old #s 2057 and 2019 were pulling a train of one box car, 12 CHCs, and six of those DBTCs. I got to see that previously mentioned horn-happy engineer at the throttles, as he wailed the horns his entire trip through town. I guess at mid-day the horns were appropriate, but this guy does the same thing at 3:00 a.m. too. He returned at 3:56 p.m. with the same locomotives, five CHCs and one lone DBTC.

Sports was another story altogether. I was keeping an eye on the score for the boys in  blue as they took on the lowly Phillies. The boys, in typical fashion, were ahead until they weren't. They lost to the Phillies 3 - 5. I am so thankful that Theo Epstein and Jed Hoyer picked up the contract Rafael Soriano, after the reliever was released by the Nats in early June. He pitched a few games in the minors to get ready for another shot at "The Show."

Soriano's past performance should bode well for the future, but this being the Cubs, he surrendered the game winning home run to Jeff Francoeur. The Tigers were playing my beloved Red Sox in Boston. I like having a horse in the race, but that means that one of my teams had to lose. It was the Tigers turn yesterday, as they lost to the Red Sox, 1 - 2. Of course that means that the Red Sox won 2 - 1. The Caps fell to the South Bend Cubs, 2 - 6.

Today, with the exception of the morning walk with STWD , I'm going to attempt to do that nothing I had planned for every day this week.

The sun will rise at 6:27 a.m. and set at 9:14 p.m. Ciao.

Good morning or good evening, wherever you may be. It has just passed 5:15 a.m. in The City." The sun will be rising in less than one hour at 6:15 a.m. on a sunny day with a high of 82°. Many hours later, that same sun will set at 9:15 p.m. In between, this little tourist town will see more than its share of visitors as they begin to arrive for the annual Coast Guard Festival™ that begins with a car show on Sunday.

STWD, maybe Mary, and I will set out on our morning safari later this morning. If we get out early enough, we can go downtown with Sugar. She doesn't do well in crowds. Mary does have an index to finish and edit today. I have to assist with the final edit, but I have heard from reliable sources that this index is only about 10 pages.

No trains yesterday.

In sports, the boys in blue had the day off before opening a series later today against the Phillies. The Tigers lost in 12 innings, 2 - 3 to the Mariners. My beloved Red Sox fell to the Astros, 4 - 5, while the Caps fell to the Dayton Dragons 1 - 2 in 13 innings.

That's a nice way to segue to my personal sports report. I made it to the driving range in Fruitport yesterday. I rented a small bucket of golf balls and set out to swing a golf club in anger for the first time in about 20 years. I was cautious and took a small bucket to try the effects on my yak. So far, so good. I duffed a few, hit a few with a slice or a hook, and I also hit several that went to where I had hoped, though not as far as I used to. Tantalizing enough to make me try again. All that assumes that in two days I don't feel the effects.

After I hit those golf balls, I went to the resale stores to purchase a few frames for some pictures in my office. Mary and I are believers in reuse and re-purposing, rather than purchasing new, when possible. That's not cheap, that's wise, especially since many of the items at the resale stores are still in their original packaging, untouched by human hands, so to speak. I also went to the aforementioned big-box home center and got the things I had on my list. Then home for some work in the man-cave.

Mary and I did get out for diner before the weekend crowds made that impossible.

Today, since I have all  my chores done, I plan to get back to doing nothing. That's after I assist Mary with the editing. I'll certainly play with the girls and do some additional reading in my latest large-print novel. I have one little task to complete in the man-cave, but that's about five or 10 minutes at the outside.

So there you have it, a short synopsis of yesterday's activities and today's planned activities. Not much left to say except that I am going to try once more to hook up that sound box that we got from Adam and Steph. I downloaded the instructions, so I'll have to read them when my brain is at full thinking capacity.

I heard that Steph's yak or muscle is responding well to P/T and the passage of time. I have been down that road before, as has Adam, and Steph herself, so I know how frustrating waiting for improvement can be. Ciao.

Good morning or good evening, wherever you may be. It is just passing 3:00 a.m. in "The City."

Not surprisingly outside the WW, the air is turning cool and the skies are not cloudy all night. Of course if they were cloudy, I couldn't see them anyway. In an ideal world, the high temperature today would be 80° and the skies would be partly cloudy with only a slight chance of a T-storm. Wait, surprisingly that's what the forecast from the NWS calls for the day to look like. Saturday's forecast shows a more profound chance of T-storms. However this being GH, I'll wait for the forecast from the intrepid weather dog

Yesterday in sports, was a mixed bag. I say that because the boys in blue split a rare double header with the Reds, losing the first game, 1- 9, and winning the second game, 6 - 5. In short, two games played, no change in the standings.  The Tigers in their usual maddening way, were defeated by the Mariners 9 - 4, after losing the day before, 9 - 11. My beloved Red Sox fell once more to the Astros, this time 2 - 4. I'd say they are fading fast, but that would be clinging to a hope that isn't there. They have faded from contention this season. The Caps dropped the Dayton Dragons, 5 - 4.

I did as little as possible yesterday. Mary worked while STWD and I enjoyed the morning walk to the newspaper office. For those of you who have followed this chronicle of life in our little corner of the world, on our way back, Sugar and I heard the sound of a dog barking in an approaching car. The barking increased in volume and faded as it passed us by, the Doppler effect in real time. Surprise, it was the same Great Dane that I believe destroyed our front porch railing last year and which tried to eat Sugar for lunch another day. Even inside of a moving car, that dog was not in the control of it's human. What's that old joke? "What kind of noise does a large dog in a car make? Any kind it wants to." That apparently was true in this case.

Trainspotting yesterday was another pleasure. The southbound train went past at 10:35 a.m., with locomotives 2019 and 2057 towing a mix of one lone box car, 10 CHCs, and 10 DBTCs, all apparently not loaded. At 4:42 p.m., the same locomotives went past, towing a more heavily laden mix of eight CHCs, and 17 DBTCs, this time more heavily laden.

As I noted earlier, Mary was hard at work all afternoon. She is now officially behind in her efforts. That's because she decided to stay in bed and listen to the radio all morning. I couldn't lie there that long, so I got up and played with the girls and rearranged some music. I guess that we both did what we wanted, but my efforts didn't cause me to fall behind anything.

She did get up in time to make our lunch while STWD and I took our walk. She used the balance of the zucchini that I had smoked the day before to make a great pasta dish of spaghetti noodles, garlic, and olive oil. For dinner later, she made her world famous sauerkraut and Swiss cheese sandwiches. I enjoyed both meals, but as I stated earlier, I'm not behind. However, we did walk down after dinner to see Sally at the Post and deliver some of the banana nut bread that I had baked on Monday.

Today, I should do some household chores, but I also want to go out and shop at the big-box home center in Muskegon. I may also stop and hit a bucket of golf balls at the driving range near there. I want to see what will happen with my yak when I try that activity. I would have done that yesterday, but by the time STWD and I took our morning safari and ate lunch, I wasn't inclined to stand out in the sunshine and swing a golf club. Being retired can be so trying when there are decisions to be made.

The sun will rise today at 6:25 am. and set at 9:16 p.m. Ciao.

Good morning or good evening, wherever you may be. It is just passing 4:00 a.m. in "The City."

I'm going to do my best to keep this short and sweet.

No trains yesterday.

I grilled the summer squash that Sally so graciously provided from her daughter's garden. Once again, I smelled like a forest fire. But, the lunch was great. There has to be a better way. While I was outside in the the back forty of the PE, I mowed the lawn, watered our own veggie gardens, from which I had just picked our own summer squash/zucchini, and pulled some weeds. That was just for starters.

Prior to all of that, Mary and I walked STWD over to see her doctor. Mary didn't go in due to her allergy to cats. There, I got the bad news that Sugar needs some expensive dental work. On the good news front, she can now go back to regular dog food, as her kidney problems seem to have cleared up. The doctor also removed a small growth from Sugar's skin and sent it out for testing. This visit was only a "small" amount.

In sports, the boys in blue defeated the Reds 5 - 4. The Tigers fell to the Mariners at home, 9 - 11. My beloved Red Sox lost another to the Astros, 3 - 8. The Caps fell too, to the Dayton Dragons, 3 - 6.

Today, I hope to actually get to do my Tuesday plan, doing as little as possible. I spent a few minutes with  the girls yesterday, and may do more today. Here's hoping.

On the weather front, (pun intended) the day was sunny and clear. Today and tomorrow, put ditto marks on yesterday. Temperatures in the upper 70s or lower 80s.

The sun will rise at 6:25 a.m., and set at 9:17 P.M. Ciao.

Good morning or good evening, wherever you may be. It is just past 1:00 a.m. in "The City."

What a day today is expected to be. Sunny skies, a high of 76°, and no rain in the forecast. In short, what's not to like? We actually got a tiny shower in the Tri-Cities area yesterday, but not enough to make any real difference, unless you were riding a motorcycle or air drying the laundry, which I was. As Mary said, "Another rinse."

However, part way through the afternoon, STWD repaired to her hide-e-hole when the construction at the municipal complex became thunderous. She was certain that it was thunder or fireworks, so she closeted herself.

Fortunately for me, she was available in her role as STSD in the late morning, and ably assisted me when I baked the latest incarnation of my world famous banana nut bread. Breakfast, here we come. Mary bought too many bananas for she and Sugar to eat, so they had to be converted into bread. I was all too happy to oblige. In addition, my kitchen activities also allowed me to make more applesauce. Not as much as usual, because the apples are from last year's crop and turned rotten in many cases. We'll wait for this years crop to buy more.

Trainspotting was excellent yesterday. At 9:35 a.m.,the regular cast of locomotives, 2057 and 2019, rolled through, towing 6 DBTCs heading south. At 3:33 p.m., the same locomotives rolled back north, this time towing 2 DBTCs, 2 gray tank cars, 3 box cars, and 7 CHCs. All good for a train spotter who lives on a reality scale train layout.

In between breakfast and lunch, Mary and I took the morning walk with the intrepid weather dog after Gwen had departed for home.

Sports was a mixed bag. The boys in blue fell to the Reds, 4 - 5, as their pitcher coughed up a home run with the game tied at 4 - 4, leading to that loss. The Tigers fared better, as they had the reverse score, 5 - 4 in defeating the Mariners. My beloved Red Sox lost the first game of their double header to the Angels in Anaheim, 1 - 11. When last I checked, they were losing game two. Oops, they lost game two, 3 - 7. At least the rain out on Sunday allowed them to miss another loss.

Late yesterday afternoon, Mary finished her work and we traveled north to the big-box electronics store to get a replacement for my computer's external monitor. It has been blinking on and off for a few weeks, so I knew that something needed replacing. While the return process wasn't too bad, and in fact we got the exchange, it wasn't that great either. Customer service was not their forte, to say the least. However, I did get a store credit for about $21.00, since the price of the monitor had dropped since this time last year.

Today, I am going to do my best to keep my personal promise and do as little as possible. It seems that every time I say that my plans are to do as little as possible, I do more than I expected.

The sun will rise at 6:24 a.m. and set at 9:17 p.m. Ciao.

Good morning or good evening, wherever you may be. It is just past 4:00 a.m. in "The City."

The current view out the Weather Window is dark, with a side of dark. The sun will be rising at 6:23 a.m. before setting at 9:18 p.m. Alas, the days are indeed getting shorter. We have yet to reach the "Dog Days" of summer, but they are on the way.

Today, we are anticipating partly cloudy skies and a high temperature of 81°. There is a slight possibility of showers, but here in GH, who really knows. STWD probably, but as of now, she is n't telling.

In sports, the boys in blue are sporting an overall record of 49 - 41, only good enough for third place in their division. They are behind the still strong Cardinals in first place, and the also strong Pirates in second. The boys designated pitcher Edwin Jackson for assignment, finally admitting that the signing of Jackson as a $52.000,000 over four years free agent, didn't' work out. Here's hoping that their $140,000, 000 over six years signing of pitcher Jon Lester works out better, This year the boys will be in the market for a front line pitcher instead of selling one. Good news, pitcher Jake Arrieta appears to be the real deal as he won his fifth straight over the Braves, 4 - 1.

The Tigers are also in third place, with a record of 45 - 46. following a 3 - 9 loss to the Orioles. My beloved Red Sox are in fifth place with a record of 42 - 49. When I went to bed, they were in a rain delay in L.A. The Caps were victorious  over the South Bend Cubs, 4 - 2. That gives them a record of 48 - 44, good enough for fourth place.

Yesterday, I did as planned. I spent much of my day in the "Bone Zone." However, I liked it more than STWD. She disdained her bone and wanted to go back inside. I guess it was too hot for her. It was warm in the mid afternoon. I finished my latest book and now I am ready to start a new one. Mary continued to work on her index.

Later this morning, Gwen heads back to her home in IL. We have had a great visit, and introduced Gwen to the vegan lifestyle we have adopted. I doubt that we converted her, but at least she knows what we are about.

Today, no watering of the veggies, no indoor chores, just some interplay with the girls. What's not to like? Mary will continue to work and I'll continue to laze about. That looks like a complete day. I'll walk with STWD and pick up the newspaper in our typical fashion.

Yesterday, Sugar and I had a near miss when we were walking. Two unleashed dogs were lolling about in their front yard, being "minded" by their inattentive human, when Sugar and I walked by on the opposite side of the street. The dogs, being dogs, bolted across the street to "greet" me and STWD, and their human seemed to think that there was no problem. If it wasn't for Sugar's Thunder Leash™, there would have been a serious dog scrum. Sugar was at full alert and ready to rumble.

Thanks for listening. Ciao.

Good morning or good evening, wherever you may be. It is just passing 2:00 a.m. in "The City."

Yesterday morning I got a real surprise, when an alert popped up on my email to tell me that a Severe Storm Watch had been issued for Ottawa County in MI. That was unexpected, according to what I had read from the NWS the previous day. The skies darkened, the wind blew, and then the thunder and lightning started. The T-storms only lasted for about one and one-half hours, but the net effect is that I didn't have to water and STWD closeted herself in her hide-e-hole.

Later in the day the storms returned, but nothing as severe as those in the morning. In any event, the prediction for storms on Tuesday is no longer valid as of this time.

I went to the Irish Jam session at the library in the early afternoon.. A session that our mentor had predicted would last about one hour, soon became two. All good.

Afterwards, Mary, Gwen and I went downtown for a visit to the Tri-Cities Historical Museum and to visit a local store. We stopped in at the Post to see Sally, and what to my wondering eyes did appear, but a reward for putting my daily donation in the sign in box near the door. I received a tad over $35.00. What's not to like?

Then we walked over to JWs for dinner. As we were walking, the skies darkened, but we escaped the rain as we ate our dinner. All good, as only a small amount of rain fell on us as we sprinted home following our meal. By then, I was too tired to do much else, so I headed upstairs for a nap. That lasted until about one and one-half hours ago. I was just going to blog, but I sat down to look at some music, and like Mary often says, "I went down the worm hole", and I was soon revising some music. Oh well, the outcome was good.

In sports, the boys in blue were victorious in Atlanta, defeating the Braves 4 - 0. Jon Lester had a strange no hitter going into the eighth inning, until it was broken up by a bloop single by the Braves catcher, A.J. Pierzynski. So for a short time, the boy's bats came to life. Maybe today, they can take the rubber game of the series.

The Tigers were not so lucky, losing to the Orioles, 0 - 3. My beloved Red Sox, fell by the same score to the Angels. The Caps also were less than successful, losing to the South Bend Cubs, 3 - 5.

Today, I don't want to do anything except read, spend time in the "Bone Zone" with STWD, and that will be enough.

The sun will rise at 6:22 a.m. and set at 9:19 p.m. Ciao.

Good morning GH. It is too late or early, depending on where you are located, to add good evening to my opening. It is just past 5:30 a.m. in "The City."

Yesterday's weather was beautiful. The skies were bluer than anticipated and the temperatures were generally pleasant, albeit a tad humid. STWD and I enjoyed our morning walk to the newspaper office. Other than that, I did play with the girls for a bit. However, my thumb joint still is giving me pains, so I may have to opt for that surgical repair. That's a decision based on how much time I want to spend in rehabilitation. That, and whether I want to play the girls in the future, which I do.

Speaking of rehab, the youngest member of our clan, Stephany, is working her way through rehab for an ailing hip muscle. I know I have my problems, but she is too young to have any kind of muscle problem. Oh well, welcome to our club Steph.

Yesterday, I only witnessed the southbound run of our little short-line railroad. Locomotives 2019 and 2057 rolled slowly through our fair city towing 3 box cars, 11 CHCs, 13 DBTCs, a lone gray TC, and then 8 DBTCs brought up the rear. If you are counting, that's 36 total cars. The cars seemed loaded, judging by the way the house shook. We were OOT (out of town), in Holland, when the return run probably happened. That's pure supposition on my part.

Speaking of Holland, we stopped off at a couple of food purveyors to get some food supplies that we had been seeking. Finally, we traveled to the downtown area to meet Adam and Stephany for "Dunch,"  The food was excellent, the beer was cold, and the company was delightful, as it included Mary's friend, Gwen. In short, all good.

In sports, the boys in blue called up their hot hitting rookie catcher fro AAA. While he had a great evening at the plate, his shakiness at trying to throw a runner out at second was not welcome. I'm hoping that the jitters are now gone. A typical relief appearance by a fireman from the boys bullpen, let in  a couple of runs, which led to a 2 - 4 loss. The Tigers got off to a good start in the second half or the season, defeating the Orioles, 7 - 3. My beloved Red Sox dropped a heart-breaker to the Angels, 0 - 1. The Caps were victorious over the Dayton Dragons, 4 - 1.

This afternoon, the Irish Jam meets at the library, before taking a couple of months off to make way for activities here in GH and the greater West MI area. In August GH has the Walk the Beat activities, and in September the Michigan Irish Festival takes place in Muskegon on the third weekend, which is our regular time to meet. Perhaps that is a good excuse to have the repairs to my thumb done during that time.

The weather today will take a decided turn towards the hot side, with a predicted high of 87°. Tomorrow, we drop back into the 70s. No rain in the forecast from the NWS until Tuesday.

The sun will rise at 6:21 a.m. and set at 9:20 p.m. Ciao.

Good morning or good evening, wherever you may be. It is just past 5:00 a.m. in "The City." I guess it is probably closer to morning than evening here, but that's the way to story goes sometimes.

Yesterday, I didn't accomplish much, which was my original plan. I took the morning walk with STWD, and then we set out for our safari to Coopersville and Rockford, MI that is. We had to stop at the farm museum in Coopersville, which is about all that there is to see in that small town. There is an Interurban Railway museum there too, but owing to its volunteer status, it is closed on Thursdays. I should mention that the Coopersville and Marne Railroad museum is there too. But it is only in operation some day s of the week due to its volunteer status too.

Rockford was about one-half hour away. Their sidewalk sale was in full swing, but we were there to see the town, not buy things. We did have lunch at the local hot dog purveyor, The Corner Bar. That alone is enough of a reason to go to Rockford. They have the best veggie dogs around.

We returned home to find that STWD was glad to be the recipient of Gwen's "Doggie Box" contents, which consisted of an all-beef hot dog, something the intrepid one doesn't get around here. I think she liked it. At The Corner Bar, hot dogs come in pairs, much to Sugar's later delight. Somehow, the ironic symbolism of Sugar eating a hot dog was lost on her.

Mary used the leftover grilled veggies from the night before to make a tasty dinner of spaghetti noodles mixed with those veggies, a little olive oil, and garlic. By the time dinner was over, I was ready for bed, and so I left Mary and Gwen to their own pursuits.

Major League Baseball returns from its All-Star break today/tonight. Let the games begin. The Caps did play last night, and defeated the South Bend Cubs, 5 - 4.

No trains were spotted yesterday.

According to the forecast from the NWS, the weather today opens with T-storms, but they should be gone by about 11:00 a.m., when the fog moves in. Then, we will have a mostly cloudy day until the T-storms return around 6:00 p.m. We have more travel plans for today, but those are somewhat dependent on the weather. It started raining on schedule last night around 8:30 p.m. and is continuing now. We may see a lull for a few hours later this morning, but that too is subject to interpretation.

Given the rainy conditions, I have no plans to do anything but read and walk with STWD. However, if the T-storms materialize, she won't be going out.

The girls and I will get to play too.

The sun will rise at 6:20 a.m., and set at 9:21 p.m. Ciao.

Good morning or good evening, wherever you may be. It is just passing 3:30 a.m. in "The City."

Today's weather promises to be mostly cloudy with a high of 76°, Showers will be developing somewhere around 9:00 p.m. according the NWS. By Friday morning, those showers will turn into a steady rain and the chance of T-storms increases to about 65%. Will they or won't they? Stay tuned my loyal readers. I'll let you know what STWD is forecasting.

In sports, we are awaiting the return of baseball by the boys in blue, the Tigers, and my beloved Red Sox. The Caps did play, and came away with a 2 - 1 decision over the Dayton Dragons. A swinging bunt in the bottom of the ninth did the trick.

No trains again yesterday, at least none that I noticed, and I was outside all day. Between walking with STWD and doing various chores on the vast PE, I think I would have seen them. But, who knows for sure. One thing about living on a train layout, you tend to notice something as large and noisy as a locomotive towing freight cars.

I did get everything on my list of to dos, done. In fact, I did more than I had planned. It was a beautiful day and so I took advantage of being outdoors while Mary worked indoors. It was her birthday, and the card I sent didn't arrive, but her work needed to be done. In the future, I guess that I need to anticipate two days for mail to get a few blocks across the city.

Today we have a road trip planned to a few nearby cities/towns. Mary's friend made it here safely, and so she will be accompanying us. As long as I don't have to do any more work, I'll be fine just riding along.

Mary and her friend went out last evening to enjoy our fair city. I was invited, but my large expenditure of energy yesterday made staying home a better option. Plus, they probably had a better time without me. I'll be sure to ask later this morning. I know they had planned to ride the summer trolley and visit the Post and Sally, but that is all I know. I stayed home and watched some inane TV and then it was off to bed. STWD and I were ready by 9:00 p.m.

The sun will rise on those mostly cloudy skies at 6:19 a.m. and set later in the evening at 9:21 p.m. with a waning crescent moon in the sky. Ciao.

Good morning or good evening, wherever you may be. It is just passing 2:00 a.m. in "The City", Grand Haven, MI.

STWD, (Sugar the Weather Dog) has just left her usual post at the side of our bed and made her nightly journey down to her couch. That couch now has a new coverlet that Mary recently purchased and which Mary has proclaimed as "perfect" and which, "Makes her very happy!" Okay be me, but I am afraid that it won't match the intrepid weather dog's hair color, which will make Sugar's daily presence more obvious.

In other news, I was extra busy yesterday. Mary was stuck on the phone with the Social Security Administration, not so willingly giving up an hour of her life which she will never get back. At my advanced age, and now hers, we can ill afford to give up those hours without a fight. That call precipitated a trip to Muskegon to personally talk to a rep from S.S. That trip finally got Mary's questions answered to her satisfaction, but once again, another one and one half hours which we will never get back.

Speaking of advanced ages, Happy Birthday to my better half. I didn't get her anything, unless you count the clean house, the wind chimes, the fresh produce from our vegetable gardens, and the trip to the Social Security office, followed by a stop at our favorite watering hole.

I took the trip to the orthopedist yesterday morning. There I received mixed news. I have a deteriorated joint in my thumb that can only be fixed permanently, by surgery. It won't get any worse, but the cortisone shot I received can only be repeated one or two more times before those would cause more deterioration in the tissues of that area, which as it turns out, is the donor area for the transplant tissue needed for the surgical repair.

As I understand it, the surgery is much like a mini Tommy John elbow surgery for my thumb joint. So, if  the pain gets to a point where I can't handle it, I'll have to do something. Trouble is, the surgery is simple according to the doctor, but the recovery time is about three months, including total immobility for several weeks. That means that playing with the girls would be precluded for that time period. Decisions, decisions.

No trains yesterday, at least none of which I was aware.

I did finish the final wind chime, and harvested another cucumber yesterday, that makes two, with many more to come. I also cleaned up the workshop. Best of all, I managed to charge all three batteries for the Big Brute. Now I can race for at least one hour, I think. That of course assumes that I don't break something on the "Brute" that would need Adam's TLC. While I'm not sure how, the LiPo battery had recovered enough of a charge to make a recharge possible without the balancer that Adam had supplied. I guess that that is okay, but I"ll be sure to ask Adam, the guru of all things R/C car or truck.

We went to another concert in the "Tuesdays in the Park" series. The performing duo was called Max and Ruth, and they were superb. I've included a link to one of the songs that Ruth wrote to celebrate her life growing up in West Michigan.

I really like the optics and the music. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yMVG4TJL0lE

I wish that I could write and sing that beautifully.

Otherwise, not much was happening yesterday. Housework mostly done. Wind chimes, done. Mary's Social Security questions answered, done. Batteries charged, done. Trip to doctor with mixed results, done. Trip to the favorite watering hole, done. Stop at the Post, done. Just one more thing to go, and I am done working. while Mary's friend, Gwen, visits.

In weather news, when STWD and I took our morning safari yesterday morning, it was trying to rain. Not much and that didn't stop me from riding my bike to the doctor's office. Today, in honor of Mary's birthday, it will be sunny with a high of 76°.

In sports, the AL All-Star squad defeated the NL squad, 6 - 3.

I hope that the birthday card that I sent through the mail will arrive later today. I'll wish Mary a happy birthday again, but the card was my attempt to get her some mail that wasn't another credit card application, a catalog, or a solicitation for life insurance.

The sun will rise today at 6:18 a.m. and finally set under a waning crescent moon at 9:26 p.m. Ciao.

Good morning or good evening, wherever you may be. It is just passing 3:50 a.m. in "The City."

In sports, the MLB™ All-Star Game is tonight, after that contrived new format for the Home-Run Derby that was held last night. It only took MLB™ 55 years to change from the format that was part and parcel to that 1960s syndicated TV show filmed in L.A. at a park named Wrigley Field. Somehow, it figures. MLB™ decided to mess with the format from an ancient TV show. Is it better? Only time will tell.

I miss the College All-Star Game that pitted the NFL™ champion against the best college players in the nation. It was held annually in Chicago's Soldier Field from 1934 to 1976, albeit with an occasional relocation to nearby Dyche Stadium, now known as Ryan Field, in Evanston, IL. Too great a chance of injury to college players, too much time away from the teams that had drafted the players, etc.

The only baseball team that played on Monday was the Caps, who lost to the Hot Rods 2 - 4.

The weather yesterday was interesting. The T-storms arrived about 7:30 a.m. and ended by 10:00 a.m. However, it took until about 12:30 p.m. to convince STWD that it was safe to come out of her hide-e-hole.

Otherwise, I finished Mary's decorator door painting in the afternoon. It looks OK, and if I think of it, I'll take picture.

I also got the first set of batteries on the charger for the Big Brute. Just to check, I plugged the partially charged battery into the Brute, and the lights came on, and the radio receiver responded to the controller. I still have to get Adam's help with the fancier charger, but that is something that can wait.

We made it to the grocery store yesterday too. Here's a weird thing that happened. Mary actually put cans into the return machine. Of course, there were only abut 30 cans, so she wasn't overwhelmed.

I never got to the newspaper yesterday. Today I have my regular chores to accomplish along with a stop at the orthopedist to have my thumb joint checked. While it is functioning well enough, sometimes when I play the girls for an extended period, the joint can get very painful.

What's that old saying about a person visiting her doctor where she says, "Doctor, it hurts when I do that." and the doctor replies. "Well don't do that!" I want to do that, so I am hoping that there is a simple answer.

No trains yesterday.

Today, the sun will rise at 6:17 a.m. and set at 9:23 p.m. In between, the skies will be mostly cloudy with highs in the mid 70° range. Of course, that forecast and those temperatures are subject to change at a moment's notice. Plus, the world famous STWD has not offered up her forecast yet, so I don't know what to believe. All I do know is that I won't have to water today. Ciao.

Good morning or good evening,wherever you may be. It is just past 4:00 a.m. in "The City."

I was busy yesterday. I got those plants planted and everything watered. Then I set my sights on the driveway and pulled all of the invasives that I could find. I get a perverse thrill out of that activity. I attempted to paint that decorator door, but the stencils got stuck to the paint and pulled part of it away. I am hoping for some repairs today.

I also deduced how to attach the batteries to the Big Brute too. I just needed to stare at the connections for a while. I hope to charge the batteries today and go for a road test.

In sports, the boys in blue were victorious over that other team from Chicago, 3 - 1. The boys now have an overall record of 47 - 40, good enough for third place, as they head into the All-Star break. The Tigers were less successful as they dropped another game to the Twins, 1 - 7 and fell to an overall record of 44 - 44 and third place. My beloved Red Sox lost to the Yankees 6 - 8. They are now at 40 - 47 and in fifth place. The Caps also fell. They lost to the Hot Rods 2 - 5. They too are in fifth place with an overall record of 44 - 42.

In weather news, the NWS is still forecasting T-storms today. At 9:00 a.m., their forecast calls for an 85% chance of storms and by 10:00 a.m., that jumps to a 90% chance with a prediction for severe T-storms. Only STWD will know for certain.

If  the forecast for storms is accurate, and somehow I doubt it, then I'll confine my activities to indoors in the early hours of daylight. STWD won't mind.

Speaking of indoors, I am back on the highlighting gang again. I started my latest effort yesterday. I have only 191 pages to go. At least this book looks like it will be interesting.

If the storms don't flood the PE, I'll play with the girls today. That always makes me feel good.

The sun will rise at 6:17 a.m. and set at 9:23 p.m. Ciao.

Good morning or good evening, wherever you may be. It is just past 1:00 a.m. in "The City."

Last evening I spent a few hours on the porch just watching the world go by. Sometimes the time you spend doing nothing is the best time of all.

Unfortunately, that was the theme of my day. We did get to Hudsonville for some shopping, but that was the extent of our collective productivity. Mary did get in some time on her rug project while I was lazing on the porch, but that didn't impact me one way or the other.

I didn't get in any time with the girls. I didn't do any reading. I didn't plant the new plants, although I did water them to keep them healthy. I didn't work on the wind chime. I didn't paint Mary's decorator door. In short, zip, zero, nada was accomplished. I did text with Adam a bit, but that was just a trip down memory lane.

In sports, it was a mixed bag kind of day. The boys in blue lost to that other team from Chicago, 1 - 5. The Tigers were barely in their game either, losing to the Twins, 5 - 9. My beloved Red Sox defeated the Yankees, 5 - 3, and the Caps, on Star Wars™ night, defeated the Bowling Green Hot Rods, 3 - 2. Patrick Sharp was traded by the Blackhawks to the Dallas Stars in a four player deal. Only time will tell how this trade works out. With the salary cap in the NHL, this is always a coin flip.

Once again, the weather in GH was pleasant, but the forecast for rain today has been moved to Monday. Do I water? Probably, because the official forecaster for Jax Meanderings, STWD, hasn't told me what to expect. Will T-storms occur? Will STWD be in her hide-e-hole? Stay tuned. Today our high is expected to be 80° under mostly cloudy skies.

I hope to get to some of my postponed chores today. The plants still need to be grounded. The painting still needs to be done. The chime still needs to be completed, and the girls still long for my caress. Oh, I also have to figure out how the batteries connect to the charger and the Big Brute.

The sun will rise today at 6:16 a.m., and set at 9:24 p.m. Ciao.

Good morning or good evening, wherever you may be. It is just past 2:00 a.m. in "The City."

Trainspotting yesterday was great. The southbound train went through at 9:05 a.m. with the usual team of EMD GP 38 locomotives, 2019 and 2057, freshly washed and sporting the livery of the Mid-Michigan Railroad. Collectively, they were towing three CHCs, one lone box car, and seven DBTCs that brought up the rear. I was so close to the tracks near the sidewalk in front of our neighbors house, that I could see the grin on the engineers face.

I know why he was smiling, he was at the throttle of two locomotives with a combined horsepower of 4,000. That's the horsepower of the main diesels before they generate enough electricity to move the train. Interestingly enough, that diesel horsepower translates into the same horsepower at the drive wheels/axles. The energy changes form from diesel to electromotive force that uses electric motors at the axles to move the train.

Later in the day, at 1:32 p.m., I watched from the window of the Weather Office/Music Room. as the same locomotives rolled through heading north, towing a much more heavily laden mix of train cars. No CHCs, but one white tank car with some chemical inside, followed by 21 DBTCs. Like I've often said, for me it is like living on a train board.

Mary and I went to Holland shortly after the new batteries arrived for Adam's Big Brute R/C truck. I haven't charged them yet, but when I do, I'll be off to the races. I already charged the batteries in the controller, so I just have to get a charge in the main battery/batteries for the "Brute." If I have any problems, I'll call Adam.

Speaking of our trip to Holland, we went into the downtown area on 8th St. That street is under construction as you enter town, so a slight detour was necessary. Fortunately, we were able to find a parking space close by our intended destination. Then we were off to Natures's Market for some groceries. Everything we wanted was in stock.

Home by the back roads with a stop at the Post to see Sally, Ted, Bill and Claudia. By the time we got home, I was ready for bed, so that's where I was until about one hour ago.

In sports, it was not a good day. The boys in blue lost to that other team from Chicago, 0 - 1. The Tigers lost to the Twins, 6 - 8. My beloved Red Sox dropped one to the Yankees, 1 - 5. The Caps were victorious over the Bowling Green Hot Rods, 4 - 3.

Today, I have some outdoor work to do after the morning walk with STWD. Planting some new plants in our gardens, painting on Mary's decorator door, and something else that I've forgotten. Maybe it is continued work on the final wind chime that I am making. We got the new plants at a local nursery that we'd never patronized before. I must get in more time with the girls too, but that's almost an automatic thing.

The sun will rise at 6:15 a.m. on a partly cloudy day with a high temperature of 79°. Later, the sun will set at 9:24 p.m. Ciao.

Good morning or good evening, wherever you may be. It is just passing 2:00 a.m. in The City." This blog is either very late, as I missed yesterday, or it is very early the this hour. I guess the choice is yours.

Why did I miss yesterday? No specific reason, I just failed to arise in the wee hours. For me that's a good thing, as I often wake up and can't get back to sleep. That means that when I get the chance to sleep in, I do.

But I digress. Part of the problem was that I stayed up late Wednesday evening to watch the heartbreaking loss of the boys in blue to the Cardinals, 5 - 6. They had already come from behind when they suffered the all too common fate of a loss to the Cardinals. That came about on a two run homer off the bat of Jhonny Peralta, a former Tiger. Next up, that other team from Chicago. Speaking of the Tigers, they had back to back wins over Seattle and Minnesota, with scores of 5 - 4 and 4 - 2 respectively the last two days. They face the Twins again today. My beloved Red Sox closed out a short series with the Marlins, by sweeping them with a 6 - 3 win on Wednesday. Yesterday, they were off. Next up, the Yankees. The Caps lost to the Lake County Captains on Wednesday 1 - 6, and then were rained out yesterday.

Fifth Third Ballpark is not that far from here, but the weather is a world away it seems, as we had no rain.

Speaking of rain and the weather, the skies threatened yesterday, but no rain fell. Today, it will be mostly sunny, also the same for Saturday. The next chance for rain is Sunday with a.m. T-storms. I'll have to wait for STWD's forecast to be sure. Temperatures are on the rise, heading into the upper 70s and lower 80s. Good for tomatoes. All of this is a round about way of saying that I'll have to water the vegetable gardens on the PE later this morning.

Were there trains? Yes, but I only heard them on Wednesday, with the northbound train in the afternoon composed of heavily laden DBTCs according to Mary. I was in the man-cave talking to Adam on the phone when the northbound run passed by. I was here all day yesterday, and didn't hear any trains pass through.

I got most of my regular chores done yesterday, so today I plan to walk with STWD, read, and that's about it. Mary wants to go to Holland too. The sun will rise at 6:14 a.m. and set at 9:25 p.m. Ciao.

Good morning or good evening, wherever you may be. It is just past 4:30 a.m. in "The City." The weather forecast for today, mostly cloudy with a high of 74°. No precipitation is in the forecast until Saturday. Winds are expected to be light, with a prediction for a high pollen count until, yes, Saturday. Right now it is 54°.

No trains were spotted today.

In sports, the boys in blue took both games from the Cardinals yesterday, 7 - 4, and 5 - 3. That gives the boys a record of 45 - 37, but they are still in third place behind those same Cardinals. Payback for the games they lost to the Cardinals in the past. The Tigers lost to the Mariners, 6 - 7, for an overall record of 42 - 41, also good for third place. My beloved Red Sox beat the Marlins, 4 - 3. That leaves them at 40 - 45, for a fifth place position in their division. The Caps defeated the Lake County Captains in an afternoon game, 3 - 0

I was a busy chef in Mary's kitchen yesterday. I made a blue berry pie, pictured below with a slice missing. Applesauce was needed, so that was part of my kitchen activities too. Later, Mary made dinner, but before she could, I had to be her Sous Chef and chop some peppers, onions, and mince some garlic. Then after she put the dinner in the oven, I got to clean again. Lastly, after dinner, I had to clean up, again. Truly, a man's work is never done.

I have more to learn about photography, but my pie turned out great.

I also spent time in Central Park last evening, for a concert sponsored by the local Downtown Development Authority. 

If you know me, the emphasis is on free.

The band was good, but the VW bus parked across the street was a nice view too.

Nice restoration.

I thought I'd borrow a page from Mary's blog, so....

Actually, I got my shot just as she did, by accident. 

Finally, since I was on Washington on the way home, I thought I'd get a shot of the menagerie from that side. 

You can just see the rear of the PE in this shot, looking north.

That was enough for one day. For someone who wasn't going to do much, I failed at my own agenda. Maybe today. The sun will rise at 6:13 a.m. and set at 9:26 p.m. Ciao.

Good morning GH. It is passing 5:00 a.m. in "The City", so I can't really say good evening to the majority of my readers anymore.

In sports, I tried to stay awake for the game between the boys in blue and the Cardinals, but alas, I didn't make it. No matter, the rain delay only delayed the inevitable, as the boys lost to the Cardinals, 0 - 6. The Tigers found their offense for at least one day, as they hammered the Mariners, 12 - 5. My beloved Red Sox had the day off. The Caps slipped by the Captains of Lake County, 3 - 2.

The weather yesterday was muggy. STWD and I took the morning walk solo, as Mary slaved over an indexing job that I've heard includes end notes, the bane of her existence. Would that that was all that vexed people. Mostly I did nothing until later in the day. I did harvest the kale and some green beans which I also cooked, but that was about it. The girls and I played together too.

Trainspotting returns. The southbound run of our little slice of the railroading world rolled by about 10:45 a.m. The regular cast of locomotives towing 10 CHCs and two DBTCs. The same pair of locomotives, in reverse order, rolled back north at 2:59 P.M., towing 15 of the DBTCs,  this time heavily laden, and two box cars.

We finally made it out to the grocery store later in the afternoon. I returned the cans. We forgot the shopping list, but still managed to get everything that we needed and nothing that we didn't, unless you count the blueberries that were on sale. I wanted a change in the morning with my yogurt and cereal.

Returning once again to the weather, we had some T-storms last night. I guess that they were related to the storms that delayed the baseball game in Chicago. Today, the boys and the Cardinals have a double header, with the early game a make up for a previously rained out game, That's at 1:20 p.m. Tonight, the second game is at 8:05. In days of yore, they would have been back to back games. Sigh.

Today, I plan to do very little. Mary will continue on the bane of her existence, STWD will sleep after her morning walk, and that's enough for me. I may make some applesauce, but that is about the extent of my ambition.

The sun will rise at 6:12 a.m., on a cloudy morning with the chance of rain 75% at 9:00 a.m. The balance of the day should be cloudy, but dry.

I am certain that I can find something to do if I so desire. The sun will set at 9:26 p.m., and that will put an end to the day. Ciao.