Good morning or good evening, wherever you may be, It is just past 6:30 a.m. in "The City." I decided that sometimes discretion is better than getting up at 2:00 a.m. or 3:00 a..m, so I didn't. We have a current temperature of 43° as we wend our way towards today's high of 62° However, this will be a mostly rainy day that allows me to take the morning safari with STWD between 9:00 a.m. and 11:00 a.m. with the winds blowing us up and down the streets.

I wish that the city would insist that the people who tore up the sidewalk at the corner had to fix it more expediently. With the rain today and the falling temperatures expected by the end of the week, it will now be more problematical. Plus, with the closure of the sidewalks near the public safety building, it is very difficult to get downtown. I know that most people pay scant attention to the walkers in town, but for Mary and myself, the sidewalks are a must have.

I did get those additional outdoor chores done yesterday. I am down to just a few that need to get done before the snow flies. I should be okay, but there are predictions of snow for later this week, south of GH. Sigh. Mary is extra busy, so I'll have to do the chores by myself which takes me, not surprisingly, twice as long. Since there is a prediction for one to three inches of snow on Saturday and gusty winds tomorrow, I'll have to fit those additional chores in on Friday.

I did get in some time with the girls yesterday, so that was all good. I also got more of my novel read and additional pieces placed around the edges of my jigsaw puzzle, also good.

Today after the morning safari with the intrepid weather dog, I'll do some additional reading, puzzle solving, and probably leave out the play with the girls since I need to rest my thumb joint. I have an Irish Jam session on Saturday afternoon, so I want to be well rested.

Since Mary has a webinar today that I/we don't want to disturb, I'll keep Sugar quiet and out of Mary's hair downstairs while in my Lay-Z-Boy. It's a tough job, but somebody has to do it.

No trainspotting yesterday, so there will likely be trains today.

Cubs manager, Joe Maddon, earned the Manager of the Year award in the N.L. yesterday in his first year with the team. This is his third Manager of the Year award. Previously he won two with the Tampa Bay Rays in 2008 and 2011. Now we await the possibility of a baseball trifecta if pitcher Jake Arrieta wins the N.L. Cy Young Award.

The sun will rise on that previously mentioned rainy/windy day at 7:40 a.m. and set before the rains taper off at 5:18 p.m. With luck, I should be able to get the bags of leaves out to the curb later this evening. I'll just have to be careful since they are on the porch. Ciao.