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

Phew, it's finally over, Coast Guard Festival 2016 is now in the history books and we survived. The usual crowds descended on our little city for the carnival, the craft fair, the crowded streets and the closing fireworks that lasted about 1/2 hour. Hopefully, all of the people who came to our little corner of the world went away happy, healthy, and satisfied. I know that the staffs @ the various food vendors and venues in GH are enjoying their tips. They earned them.

We know that the festivals, attractions, and beaches are the lifeblood of a tourist town. The tourists are the reason we enjoy a wide variety of restaurants in "The City." The staffs of those restaurants make about 40% of their earnings during the summer months, especially during the festivals. Parking was @ a premium and the local GH, Ottawa County, and MI State law enforcement officers did a great job of crowd control.

Mary and I opted to stay home during the parade yesterday morning getting STWD out before the parade for the morning safari as the crowds descended. Later, we watched the fireworks from the window in Mary's office. I went to bed and Mary stayed downstairs to watch the exodus of cars and people @ the end of the fireworks. Sugar repaired to her hide-e-hole for the duration,

I can't say that I was busy yesterday because I sat and read the newspaper while Mary did some indexing. I had done my initial highlighting early yesterday morning, but I have much more to go. This is what my workload looks like before I get a reduction in my part of the indexing endeavor. A pile of papers, an erasable pen, and the requisite pink highlighter.

We did walk to the Post yesterday afternoon, but walking made the journey possible. If we had had to park a car in GH, we probably would have spent more time trying to park than enjoying the sights and sounds. On our way home from the Post, we heard the Scottville Clown Ban­d™,­ the self-proclaimed "Big Noise from Scottville", playing in the music tent behind the GH Eagles aerie.

The Scottville Clown Band is always the last attraction in the annual Coast Guard Festival Parade and they are generally the loudest and most well-attended attraction @ the Eagles. I offer this link to a past Coast Guard Festival parade https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OV1Ca4-SkS8 as evidence, along with this picture that Mary took on our way home. The Clowns play @ festivals all across Michigan and their members are doctors, police officers, bankers, and realtors who live in over 14 other states across the USA! Their many show-stopping numbers, including The Stripper, are the hit of all of the festivals and parades as their tour bus follows them. As you can see, they have a style all their own.

My teams had a mixed day yesterday. The Cubs won 4 - 0 over the As in Oakland. Jake Arrieta was once again his dominant Cy Young Award winning self and the Cubs are now 68 - 41 in the N. L. Central, with a comfortable 10.5 game lead over the Cardinals, who lost. The Cubs and the As conclude their series this afternoon @ 4:05 p.m.

The Tigers also won their game, a nail-biter, over the Mets, 6 - 5. That still finds the Tigers in 2nd place in the A. L. Central, with a record of 61 - 49. They trail the Indians who won. The Tigers and the Mets conclude their series today @ 1:10 p.m.

My beloved Red Sox are once again adrift. They fell to the Dodgers by a score of 1 - 3 to stay in 3rd place in the A. L. East, with a record of 60 - 49, 2.0 games behind the Orioles who lost to that other team from Chicago. The Red Sox and the Dodgers conclude their series this evening @ 7:10 p.m.

The Caps were defeated by the Midwest League Eastern Division-leading Bowling Green Hot Rods, 3 - 7. The Caps are still languishing in 3rd place with a record of 20 - 20, 7.5 games behind the Hot Rods. Those same two teams play this afternoon @ 5:05 p.m.

Today holds the promise of more watering for me after the morning safari with the intrepid weather dog. She is resting calmly in the bedroom next door following her harrowing day of crowds and fireworks yesterday. This is the last of the noise generating events in GH. I'll get back to highlighting after I finish this blog and then Mary and I can get on with our respective retired and semi-retired lives.

The sun will rise today @ 6:42 a.m. and set @ 8:57 p.m. Ciao.