Good morning or good evening, wherever you may be. It is just past 1:00 a.m. in "The City", on this, the first day of my 67th year. My thanks to all of my friends and family for making my birthday one I will long remember. 

I went to the Flashback Cinema™ yesterday at the Grand Haven 9 theater and saw one of my all-time favorites, Airplane! This movie starring Leslie Nielsen, Robert Hayes, and Julie Hagerty and a host of old-time TV actors like Lloyd Bridges, Robert Stack, and Peter Graves is a send-up of all of the disaster movies of the 1970s and 1980s and is based on the "straight" movie. Zero Hour. Plus, Kareem Abdul Jabbar gets a cameo in this Airplane!. All of the old TV actors in Airplane! were asked to play their roles as though the movie was not a comedy. 

The role in Airplane! was a departure for Leslie Neilsen who had played straight dramatic roles in earlier movies. This movie cost him more of those roles but launched him on a new career trajectory as Lt. Frank Drebin in the TV series, Police Squad, and a host of movies based on this character.

In addition, I learned that several other movies on my list of favorites will be showing soon, including a John Wayne western Rio Bravo. While perhaps not a great movie in the traditional sense of great westerns like John Ford's The Searchers, I still watch it every chance I get. 

In the pantheon of westerns made by Wayne, Rio Bravo, which also starred Dean Martin, Walter Brennan, Angie Dickinson, Rick Nelson, and Ward Bond, this film directed by Howard Hawkes, was a chance to see John Wayne at his swaggering best as he cleaned up a town beset by problems caused in part by a rich cattle baron and his no-good brother. 

Dean Martin plays a sheriff's deputy with a drinking problem that began over his lost love of a woman two years before Wayne's character Sheriff, John T. Chance, comes to town. Angie Dickinson plays a lady gambler with a shady past who cleans up her image and becomes the love of Chance's life. Walter Brennan plays a cripple who minds the jail and Rick Nelson is a young gunslinger who assists Wayne in the cleanup of the town and of Martin's character, Dude. Maybe you have to be a fan of John Wayne westerns, but this movie is a must see for me. 

My only wish is that the Flashback Cinema series brings The Quiet Man, another Wayne film but not a western or war picture, in for a showing on the big screen. The Quiet Man shot entirely in Ireland, is a great chance to see John Wayne play, well, John Wayne, as a former professional boxer who emigrates to Ireland and vanquishes his personal demons and wins the heart of an Irish lassie played by Maureen O'Hara. I'd watch that movie over and over again if I could.

But I am way off on a digression, so I'll be quick

The Cubs drubbed the Pirates, 17 - 3, in an NL Central game, to move to a season high 12 games over .500 with a record of 72 - 60 and keep them 3.5 games ahead of the 2nd place Brewers and six games ahead of the 3rd place Cardinals. The Cubs were led by rookie Ian Happ who got his 20th home run and four RBIs along with some great catches by John Jay and some terrific base running by Javier Baez. Happ joins fellow Cubs, Anthony Rizzo, Kris Bryant, Willson Contreras and Javier Baez in the 20 or more home run club this year. The Cubs entertain the Braves tonight @ 8:05 p.m.

My beloved Red Sox stayed on a roll as they defeated the Bluejays, 7 - 1 to move to a 1st place record of 76 - 57, 5.5 games ahead of the Yankees whom they face tonight @ 7:05 p.m.

The Tigers pulled another rabbit out of their collective hats yesterday as they defeated the Rockies, 6 - 2 to remain solidly in 4th place in the AL Central with a record of 58 - 74, 5.5 games ahead of that other team from Chicago. The Tigers are home today to face the Indians @ 1:10 p.m.

The Caps look like they got their groove on again as they defeated the South Bend Cubs in South Bend, 2 - 0 in an MWL East game. The Caps have a record of 43 - 21 in the 2nd half of their season and face the same South Bend Cubs tonight @ 7:05 p.m.

I think it's time to wrap up this long winded blog and tell you that the current temperature is 68° under mostly cloudy skies as we head for today's high-temperature of 73° under partly cloudy skies.

I plan to assist Mary with the indexing today after I get back from an early P/T appointment @ 8:00 a.m. I anticipate that I'll be giving the fur-children an early breakfast and then I'll be off. Mary has an appointment at the chiropractor this afternoon. '

The sun will rise @ 7:08 a.m. and set tonight @ 8:20 p.m. Ciao./

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

Well., I made it. I am now in my 67th year of life. For me, that's a milestone, as I've had my share of health issues over the last several years. Still, I am thankful for all of the good times and the great people in my life, especially Mary. When you marry, the usual vows include loving someone through the rich and poor times, through sickness and health, and for better or worse. I enjoy the better, am still waiting for the rich, at least monetarily, and I am working on the health part.

Would I change anything? Perhaps, but sometimes the choices we might make could turn out worse. So, I think I'd just leave things as they are and say thanks for all that I have, a wife who loves me, a son and daughter who are good, caring people, and a couple of dogs who are crazy but loveable. Plus living in GH is a gift every day.

The current temperature is 61° under clear skies. I was outside with Ginger around 12:00 a.m. and like Goldilocks' porridge felt to one of the three bears, the temperature was just right. Later today, after sunrise @ 7:07 a.m., the temperature will rise to a beautiful, almost San Diego-like, 75° under sunny skies. Later tonight, the sunset will occur @ 8:22 p.m.

I went to my orthopedist appointment yesterday and that actually went well. I wish that I could have heard something other than my sacroiliitis will get better with time, P/T, and doing my home exercises/stretching. But my knees are doing okay in spite of the usual post-injection pain.

I just finished editing a section of the latest index. It was the longest/largest part and required due diligence from me on a second pass. Mary is downstairs right now and when last seen, she was doing cross-stitch on our Christmas tree skirt that she has dedicated herself to finishing by Christmas this year. When it is done, it will be great, but the effort to make it is more than I could muster. I'll stick to cooking, baking, playing guitar, reading, etc.

Baseball news was mostly good. The Cubs sounded great on the radio as they defeated the visiting and fading Pirates in an NL Central game, 4 - 1. Jake Arrieta was on the mound and he felt like he didn't have his best stuff. Still, the end result was good. He was well supported by closer, Wade Davis and the offensive output from Ben Zobrist, Kris Bryant, and Anthony Rizzo.

Speaking of Rizzo, he made a 3.5 million dollar donation to the Anne and Robert Lurie Children's Hospital through his foundation, which will go towards building the Anthony Rizzo Family Foundation Wating Room. Rizzo was diagnosed with Hodgkin's lymphoma when he was in the minor leagues and he appreciates the need for comfortable surroundings when receiving treatments.

At any rate, the Cubs now have a record of 71 - 60, and they are 3.5 games ahead of the losing 2nd place Brewers who fell to the winning 3rd place Cardinals who won the game 10 - 2. The Cubs and the Pirates play again tonight @ 8:05 p.m.

My beloved Red Sox took another game from the Bluejays, 3 - 0, as they held tightly on to 1st place in the AL East with a record of 71 - 60, four games ahead of the 2nd place Yankees. The Sox and the Bluejays play tonight @ 7:07 p.m.

The Tigers once again sounded hopeless as they lost to the Rockies, 3 - 7. The Tigers are still in 4th place in the AL Central with a record of 57 - 74, 4.5 games ahead of that other team from Chicago. The Tigers play the Rockies again today @ 3:10 p.m.

The Caps had the day off.

Ginger and I were outside yesterday morning as the southbound train approached. We came in as the train passed by the manse on the RSTL with locomotive #2057 towing seven CHCs five DBTCs, and two DWTCs. I heard the same locomotive go by in the afternoon @ 4:00 p.m. I don't believe that any cars were in its wake as it headed north.

Mary and Ginger took a long walk yesterday morning while STWD and I took a leisurely stroll to The Bookman for the Tuesday edition of the Grand Haven Tribune. Of course, Sugar was rewarded for her efforts with a doggie treat while we were there. We are both feeling our age at this point, so that was about all the energy we had to expand. I also watered when I got home, but the gardens are nearing the end of their vegetable production.

We couldn't decide what to have for dinner last night, but once I suggested that perhaps instead of French toast for breakfast, we could have grilled cheese sandwiches for dinner, Mary took it from there and made some super grilled cheese and tomato sandwiches. Comfort food at its best.

Today I plan to go to the movie theater and see Airplane, the movie. I will enjoy my usual humongous bucket of popcorn and my regular ginormous cherry cola. Mary will be working while I enjoy myself. I hope you will enjoy this promo for the movie that I found on YouTube as much as I'll enjoy the movie this afternoon.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZZGk9NtgcQY

I plan to enjoy the beginning of my 67th year and do what I want when I want. Ciao.

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

We have a current temperature of 59° under partly cloudy skies. I was out with Ginger around 1:30 a.m. and the rain that the NWS threatened, but which never happened yesterday, was not in evidence. I wish I could say the same for the unfortunate people in TX.

The NWS is forecasting a high for today of 75° under partly cloudy skies after the sun rises @ 7:06 a.m. and long before the sunset @ 8:24 p.m.

No trainspotting yesterday, to paraphrase Jimmy Buffett, maybe one or two come today.

Sports news yesterday was all positive.

The Cubs easily defeated their NL Central division rivals, the Pittsburgh Pirates, 6 - 1 behind a solid pitching performance by Mike Montgomery and great defense by Javier Baez. In addition, Anthony Rizzo had another great game at the plate. The Cubs now sport a 1st place record of 70 - 60 and a lead over the idle Brewers of 2.5 games. The Cardinals have also cooled off and they lost to the Rays and fell to 5.0 games behind the Cubs. The Cubs and the Pirates meet again tonight @ 8:05 p.m.

My beloved Red Sox eked out a win over the Blue jays, 6 - 5 to move to 74 - 57 in the AL East and a lead over the losing Yankees of 3.5 games. The Sox and the Bluejays meet again tonight at an odd starting time of 7:07 p.m.

The Tigers were also victorious as they also eked out a win, in the case of the Tigers over the Rockies, 4 - 3. That win gives the Tigers a strong 4.5 game 4th place lead over that other team from Chicago in the AL Central. The Tigers have a record of 57 - 73. The Tigers and the Rockies meet again tonight @ 8:40 p.m.

The Caps seem to have righted their ship as they defeated the Bowling Green Hot Rods, 3 - 1 yesterday to move to 42 - 21 in the MWL East and a 3.5 game lead over the TinCaps. The Caps are off today and then they travel to South Bend, IN to face the South Bend Cubs @ 7:00 p.m. on Wednesday.

We started our day early with a visit from the reupholsterer who gave us some samples and a quote for the chairs in the foyer/flower room. Now, all we have to decide is what fabric/color to use.

We did more indexing/editing yesterday and we are almost there. We finally got the final changes to the source material and so we can now button-up the index and I can get to the final edit.

I made it to my P/T appointment yesterday and that went well. Mary went to the grocery store while I was rehabbing.

I also started the book for our book club, Michael Twitty's The Cooking Gene. In this book, renowned food historian, Michael Twitty, offers a fresh perspective on our most divisive cultural issue, race, in his illuminating memoir of Southern cuisine and the food culture that traces his ancestry, both black and white, through food, from Africa to America and slavery to freedom. I've just gotten started, but so far the book is very interesting.

I nearly forgot to mention our dinner last night. Mary created a twist on her tried and true recipe for Spaghettirole Casserole that used diced green peppers, diced onions, diced vegan sausage, courtesy of our mini-food processor along with crushed tomatoes to make what became a delicious recreation. I liked it. I had to rewash her now antique mushroom-shaped casserole dish when I unloaded the dishwasher because its shape does not allow the dishwasher to get it totally clean. That's OK because I got to enjoy the meal last night.

Today, I have an appointment with the orthopedist for the first of five knee treatments. I am sure we will also discuss the progress of my P/T for the sacroiliitis, for which I am currently receiving therapy.

I have to make a stop at the library to pick up some books that are on the shelf for me.

All of that is after the morning safari with the fur-children. Ciao.

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

What can I say, it is late or early, depending on your perspective. I hadn't planned on being up, but you know what the ephemeral "They" say about the best-laid plans.

I didn't go outside with Ginger or STWD because Mary was already on the job downstairs. That's OK with me.

What a sad day in baseball news. I had to reach all the way into the "A" level minor leagues of Major League Baseball to find a winner, the Caps, the "A" level affiliate of the Detroit Tigers, to find a win. The Caps won their MWL East game over the Bowling Green, KY Hot Rods, 8 - 5 yesterday afternoon. That win gives the Caps a record of 41 - 21 and a 2.5 game lead over the 2nd place Ft. Wayne, IN TinCaps. The Caps are home tonight to once again face the Hot Rods @ 7:00 p.m.

The Cubs once again found a way to snatch defeat from the jaws of victory. They were cruising along with a three run lead when the 5th inning got in the way. A shoestring catch by the Phillies rookie outfielder, Rhys Hoskins, and a triple play set the tone as the Phillies came roaring back in the bottom of the 5th. Then an error and some timely hits led to a final score of 3 - 6. The Cubs are still in 1st place in the NL Central with their record of 69 - 60, but fell to a 2.0 game lead over the winning  Brewers and a 4.5 game lead over the losing Cardinals. The Cubs are home tonight to face the Pirates @ 8:05 p.m.

My beloved Red Sox once again had their bats fall asleep as they couldn't outscore the Orioles in an AL East game. The Sox fell, 1 - 2 and saw their 1st place record slip to 73 - 57 and also saw their lead over the 2nd place and winning Yankees narrow to 2.5 games. The Sox travel to Toronto to face the Bluejays tonight @ 7:07 p.m.

The Tigers can't even beat the last place team in their AL Central division, that other team from Chicago. The Tigers fell 1 - 7 to move them to 56 - 73 and only a four game lead over that other team. The Tigers travel to Colorado tonight to meet the Rockies @ 8:05 p.m.

The weather here in GH is, as usual, erratic. We had a few drops of rain early last evening and we are anticipating showers beginning around 2:00 a.m. today and continuing in earnest until around 11:00 a.m. We shall see. A current temperature of 64° under cloudy skies portends that the forecast from the NWS may be, and I stress may be, accurate. The sun will rise later this morning @ 7:05 a.m. and set later tonight @ 8:25 p.m.

We are nearing the finish line on the index. I am logging way too much chair time in my office as I edit, which is not doing my hip or my yak any favors.

Steph and Adam pulled out yesterday morning and headed back to the Windy City. They had a good time and we all enjoyed just relaxing. It will probably be next spring when they return. Busy schedules have a way of intruding on life when you are young, working, and not retired. I feel as though we paid our dues to get where we are.

We have more to do on the index today. Mary has some additional changes to make and I have about 50 pages on which to do a final edit. One good thing about this index is that it is a catalog and so the entries are somewhat easier to follow, I think.

We will take the morning safari, weather permitting, and then settle in to do some serious reading and editing. Ciao.

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

I was out with the fur-children around 2:00 a.m. and there was just a smattering of rain falling and the skies were cloudy. The temperature, as reported by the NWS in GR, was 63°. Today's high is forecast to be 76°, also under cloudy skies. The sun will rise @ 7:04 a.m. and set @ 8:27 p.m.

I edited yesterday while Mary worked on the main index. Now that I have all of the files to electronically peruse, things went much more smoothly. We have more to do, but we are in the home-stretch, I hope.

Adam and Steph stayed at the manse again Friday night and then spent much of their day yesterday either lazing on the deck or front porch or going walkabout here in GH. They wanted to relax and we left them to their pursuits.

I got in some time with the girls and rewrote some music into my personal format. I am always changing/rearranging the songs to suit my pleasure.

The baseball news yesterday was 3/4 good.

The Cubs crushed the Phillies in an NL Central versus NL East game, 17 - 2. The Cubs had a huge 7th inning in which starting and winning pitcher Kyle Hendricks got two hits, one of them a double. Anthony Rizzo got two home-runs and five RBIs in the game to bring his season totals to 30 home-runs and 90 RBIs. Tommy LaStella also got two home-runs in the game and Kris Bryant also went back-to-back with Rizzo on a home-run. Given the power outage that plagued the Cubs' hitters Friday night, this was over the top. The Cubs have a 69 - 59 record, good enough for 1st place and a three game lead over the winning Brewers and four and one-half games over the winning Cardinals. The Cubs and the Phillies close out their series today @ 1:35 p.m.

My beloved Red Sox were thoroughly outplayed by the Orioles in an AL East loss, 0 - 7. The Sox are still in 1st place by three and one-half games over the winning Yankees. The Sox have a record of 73 - 56. They play the Orioles again today @ 1:35 p.m.

The Tigers went to Chicago and played that other team in a game plagued by rain. The Tigers won the AL Central game, 6 - 3. That win gives the Tigers a solid hold on 4th place, five games ahead of that other team from Chicago. They play today @ 2:10 p.m.

The Caps got back on track and took their MWL East game from the visiting Hot Rods, 3 - 0. That win gives the Caps a record of 40 - 21 and finds them one and one-half games ahead of the TinCaps. The Caps and the Hot Rods play this afternoon @ 1:00 p.m.

The kids will be heading back home this morning. They have had a good time and they can now get back to their work-a-day world. Mary and I can get back to retirement and indexing respectively. I have some reading to catch up on for our book club and also some additional indexing to do. Mary has the bulk of the work to do on that index. I may or may not get into the kitchen today after the morning safari. Ciao.

Good morning or good evening, wherever you may be. It is just past 4:30 a.m. in "The City."

As is often the case, I am listening to Coast to Coast AM in the early AM, with guest host Jimmy Church sitting in for regular host, George Noory. What's new this morning? Is President Trump concealing the evidence of UFOs? Why has there been no reporting of various "False Flag" operations like the controlled demolition of the World Trade Centers on 9/11? How do you explain how/why an oil painting from the 1930s entitled Mr. Pynchon and the Settling of Springfield depicting life in the 17th century, by Umberto Romano, shows a Native American sitting in a canoe staring at a cell phone? Why is the government manipulating the weather?

The UFO cover up under President Trump is to conceal a secret military program. The World Trade Centers were demolished on the orders of former VP Dick Cheney to help his former company profit. The Native American in the canoe staring at a cell phone seven decades before the first modern cell phone was introduced has been explained by historians as the man looking at a mirror or a piece of metal. The government is manipulating the weather to the benefit of "Big Oil" and Big Coal." Oh, somehow, George Soros and the former POTUS are also benefitting from all of the hysteria over Global Climate Change caused by the media and the hoax that is being perpetrated on the American people and the world's population as a whole.

Tell that the last one to the people in Texas and Louisana who are directly in the path of the "Government Created" Hurricane Harvey and the 20 to 50 inches of rain that will fall in parts of Texas, that the rain, flooding, and resulting multi-billion dollar property damage is all in their collective minds. I could go on, but Mary is right, "We don't need all, we just have all." What this show is highlighting is that the title of the Edgar Winter's Groups' third album, They Only Come Out at Night is apropos when it comes to the audience for Coast to Coast AM.

But I digress. I was outside with Ginger around 3:00 a.m. and the current temperature according to my DTWS with its information received from FPMS, is 54°, while the NWS is reporting 52° under clear skies. Worthy of note is that Kyle Underwood of WOOD TV and Radio in GR is telling us that the low in the 40's expected inland will not happen here in GH. Instead, we can expect lows in the 60s. Well, I'm going with my personal backyard observations and the temperatures from my own DTWS. It is in the mid-50s here. Today's high will reach 75° according to Underwood and the NWS, but as we all know, it is always cooler or warmer on the shores of the "Inland Ocean" the "Big Lake", Lake Michigan. Oh. the sun will rise @ 7:03 a.m. and set @ 8:29 p.m.

Have you noticed that I have been avoiding the baseball news? Well, that's because it was mostly bad.

The Cubs dropped a one-sided game to the Phillies last night. The Cubs managed one run, a "Moonshot" home run by Kyle Schwarber in the top of the 1st inning. Sadly, Cubs' starting pitcher Jose Quintana surrendered six earned runs. four walks, and nine hits in his five innings of pitching. The Cubs never got it going. Fortunately, the standings in the NL Central didn't change as both the 2nd place Brewers and the 3rd place Cardinals both lost. The Cubs are still in first with a record of 68 - 59. The Cubs and the Phillies meet again tonight @ 7:05 p.m.

My beloved Red Sox fell hard in their game against their AL East rivals, the Orioles by a  lopsided score of 3 - 16. The Sox were never really in the game, starting pitcher, Rick Porcello, was ineffective, and the Orioles benefitted from five errors committed by the usually sparkling defense of the Sox. At any rate, the 1st place Sox have a record of 73 - 55 and lead the 2nd place losing Yankees by 4.5 games. The Sox and the Orioles play this afternoon @ 4:05 p.m.

The 4th place in the AL Central Tigers were looking good through most of their game against that other team from Chicago, with Justin "JV" Verlanderer striking out eight before his relief corps surrendered the winning run on a walk-off single, as the Tigers lost the game, 2 - 3. The Tigers play that other team again tonight @ 7:10 p.m.

One lone bright spot was the MWL East win by the Caps over their division rivals, the Bowling Green Hot Rods, 3 - 1. The Caps held on to 1st place by 1.5 games over the Ft. Wayne TinCaps. The Caps and the Hot Rods play tonight @ 7:00 p.m.

Elsewhere, we traveled to Holland to pick up our framed pictures, which we hung later yesterday in what has been renamed the "Flower Room", AKA the foyer of the manse. I baked more basil/zucchini biscuits using my crops. after I mowed the vast lawns of the PE along with some edging with the line trimmer. I harvested the potato crop and netted 5/12 pounds of potatoes for my efforts, while Mary was chatting and Adam and Steph were riding the dune trails near Silver Lake, MI.

Today, more indexing for Mary and I and more relaxing for Adam and Steph. Ciao.








CAps and the

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

I wasn't going to blog as I was busy working on the index, but I realized that I needed more information/PDF files than I have, so I'll have to wait until later this morning to ask Mary. That's OK by me.

I went to my P/T appointment and I have a long way to go. But, there is light at the end of the tunnel and I doubt if it is a train. I have more "Homework" from my physical therapist to help to get more range of motion in my ailing hip. I should do the prescribed exercises regularly, but I get lazy when I am feeling OK. My bad.

Baseball news yesterday was upside down.

The 1st place in the NL Central Cubs fell to the last place in the Central Reds, 2 - 4. The Cubs have an NL Central record of 68 - 58, while the Reds have a last place record of 54 - 74. Jake Arrieta pitched well, but Pedro Strop surrendered the runs needed for the Reds win. However, the Brewers and the Cardinals also lost, so there was no change in their relative positions in the division. The Cubs go on to Philadelphia to face the Phillies tonight @ 7:05 p.m.

My beloved 1st place in the AL East Red Sox fell to the Indians 6 - 13. Chris Sale was not on his game and the Sox' bats couldn't make up the difference. The 2nd place Yankees were defeated by the Tigers, 6 - 10, so the Sox maintain a 4.5 game division lead. The Sox welcome the Orioles to Fenway tonight @ 7:00 p.m.

Speaking of the Tigers, their 4th place position in the AL Central didn't change, as that other team from Chicago also won. The Tigers are 55 - 71 and in the final game of the three game series against the Yankees, there were three bench-clearing brawls, both managers were ejected as were five players, including Miggy, along with a bench coach in a battle of beanballs and hit batsmen. It was an ugly game. The Tigers are off to Chicago to face that other team tonight @ 8:10 p.m.

What's up with the Caps? They still have a hold on 1st place in the MWL East, but their lead over the TinCaps is only a slim 1 1/2 games, as the Caps fell to the South Bend Cubs, 2 - 5. The Caps are home tonight to face the Hot Rods @ 7:00 p.m.

Two trains came by yesterday. The southbound run in the morning occurred @ 9:00 a.m. as MMRR EMD GP 38-2 locomotive #2057 rolled through on the RSTL. In tow were six DBTCs and three DWTCs.

Later @ 1:06 p.m., that same locomotive rolled by heading north towing three CHCs, 10 DBTCs, and three DWTCs. In both cases, the horn-happy engineer was at the throttle.

Adam and Steph came in for a couple of days. Since we don't have all the sections of the index, we can't finish the final version until early next week so we'll have time to visit. However, we still have some work we can do on the index, so that will be part of our day after the morning safari.

We have a current temperature of 56° under clear skies. Today's high after the sun rises @ 7:01 a.m . will be 71° under sunny skies. There is no significant precipitation in the forecast from the NWS until Sunday. The sun will set @ 8:30 p.m. Ciao.

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

I was outside with the fur-children around 2:30 a.m. and it is quite cool, in fact, the NWS is reporting the current temperature as 55° under partly cloudy skies. I won't have to water today as I did it last night, plus, the NWS is also forecasting a 30% chance of showers later this morning. So either way, I am covered. The high-temperature today will reach all the way up to 69°, also under partly cloudy or rainy skies. The sun will rise @ 7:00 a.m. and set tonight @ 8:32 p.m.

Baseball news yesterday was a half and half proposition. The Cubs won over the Reds, 9 - 3, taking advantage of pitcher Mike Montgomery's six strong innings and Kyle Schwarber's three-run home run as they cruised to a season high 3 1/2 game lead over the losing Brewers in the NL Central. The Cardinals are 4 1/2 games back following their win. The Cubs and the Reds play again tonight @ 7:10 a.m.

My beloved, 1st place in the AL East Boston Red Sox, handily defeated the Indians and their ace pitcher, Corey Kluber, 9 - 3, as Drew Pomeranz notched his 13th win and pitched a scoreless game, in which the only run tallied by the Indians was off of his reliever.  Mitch Moreland got a solo home-run and that seemed to set the tone for the night.

Unfortunately, center fielder, Jackie Bradley Jr., was placed on the 10-day DL with a strain in his left thumb that he received in an awkward slide into home in the previous win over the Indians. Sox' manager, John Farrell, moved several players around in the outfield and the Sox acquired Rajai Davis from Oakland to shore up the outfield. Bradley Jr. was just heating up at the plate and his play in centerfield was excellent, as always. The Sox and the Indians play again tonight @ 7:10 p.m.

The Tigers are only worth a short mention as they are still a bad baseball team, a team that lost to the Yankees last night, 2 - 10. There were no bright spots. The rotund lady is singing manager Brad Ausmus' swan-song as the Tiger's season draws to an ignominious close. The Tigers have a record in the AL Central of 54 - 71, now only five games ahead of that other team from Chicago. The Tigers and the Yankees meet again today @ 1:10 p.m.

The Caps are still in 1st place in the MWL East with a slim 1.5 game lead over the Ft. Wayne TinCaps. The Caps fell 1 - 2 to the South Bend Cubs last night and they play the same team again tonight @ 7:10 p.m., hopefully with better results.

I didn't do much yesterday after I returned from the morning safari with STWD and Ginger. Mary and I switched places at  The Bookman, and then she and STWD continued on to the groomer so that the intrepid weather dog could get herself tuned up for a visit from the kids. Sugar was not happy as she is not much into baths and other grooming activities. Plus, Ginger didn't like seeing Mary and Sugar vanish into the distance and kept stopping to look back. I came home and spent most of my day working on the latest indexing project and by about 5:30 p.m., I was toast. I have more to do today, as does Mary.

I will be going for more P/T this afternoon and now that I have a specific diagnosis, I can get a more tailored approach to my treatment. Otherwise, I will be editing.

That looks like enough, for now. Ciao.

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

I was outside with Ginger and STWD around 1:15 a.m. and the current temperature of 69° under partly cloudy skies felt very comfortable. In fact, if it were like this all the time it might get boring Or not. I am now old enough that I can do without the ice and snow that is part and parcel to West Michigan, but which is also part of the charm of living in the Midwest. One of those love/hate things I guess.

Later today, the high temperature will return to 69° after dropping into the 50s overnight. Did it rain here yesterday? No, but according to one report, we had a rainbow over the beach @ Grand Haven State Park. I thought you needed rain to have a rainbow so I assume that there must have been some at that location. At any rate, there is only a 10% chance of further precipitation for the foreseeable future. However, I have limited plans for further watering as the gardens are reaching their productive lifespan. So, a few plants will receive more water and I'll be harvesting the potatoes very soon.

We made it to the orthopedist yesterday and I got mostly good news. I don't have a problem with my hip joint. I do have mild arthritis in my hip, but at my age, that isn't surprising. What I actually have is a condition called sacroiliitis, a condition that can mimic the symptoms of lower back pain and manifest itself in the same areas. Surgical treatment is generally not warranted, however ice, some form of anti-inflammatory medication, which the doctor prescribed, and specific therapy from a physical therapist are the best treatments. Fortunately, I have P/T appointments already scheduled. As near as I can tell, sacroiliitis is difficult to diagnose, unless you are a doctor. So much for my online efforts.

Yesterday in baseball was interesting. The Cubs were struggling behind John Lackey and fell behind in Cincinnati early in their game. However, in the bottom of the 7th, the Cubs who were behind 4 - 6 at the time benefitted from several walks, some timely hitting and some terrific base running to pull ahead, 8 - 6 with a four run outburst. They added five more in the top of the 8th to extend their lead, finally winning 13 - 9. Broken bats abounded too. Kris Bryant was hit on the hand, and will likely get today off to rest and get treatment for the resulting confusion.

The Cubs now lead the NL Central with an overall record of 67 - 57, 2.5 games ahead of the Brewers who defeated the Giants late last night in San Francisco, 4 - 3. The 3rd place Cardinals lost to the Padres earlier, 4 - 12 to fall to 4.5 games back. The Cubs and the Reds play again tonight @ 7:10 p.m.

From their lofty, 1st place position atop the AL East, my beloved Red Sox manhandled the Indians last night, 9 - 1 to remain 4.5 games ahead of the Yankees, who also won their game against the Tigers, 13 - 4. The Sox and the Indians play again tonight, also @ 7:10 p.m.

Speaking of the Tigers, they never got it going against the Yankees from their not so lofty 4th position in the AL Central, losing to the Yankees, 4 - 13. The Tigers and the Yankees return to the field tonight @ 7:10 p.m.

The Caps must have used up their supply of momentum on Monday as they lost their MWL East game to the South Bend Cubs last night, 0 - 3. The Caps still have a 2.5 game lead over the Hot Rods, who lost to the Dayton Dragons 0 - 12. The Caps and the South Bend Cubs play again tonight @ 7:00 p.m.

We have more work to do on the index and I'll be getting a head start in the next few minutes. The index is due on Friday, so we have to get cracking. Therefore, once Mary returns from walking STWD to her grooming appointment later this morning, she will join my efforts.

The sun will rise this morning @ 6:59 a.m. and set tonight @ 8:34 p.m. Ciao.

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

I went to bed very early last night, awakening only long enough to hear my beloved 1st place in the AL East Red Sox fall apart in the late innings as they lost to the 1st place in the AL Central Indians, 4 - 5. One low point was an injury to the home plate umpire, Hunter Wendelstedt, when a warm-up pitch from the Sox' Joe Kelly escaped the catcher's mitt and hit Wendelsted in the head. He left the field and was replaced by another umpire, leaving the crew to work with only three umpires. Sadly for the Sox, there were still enough to allow the Indians to win. The Sox and the Indians play again tonight @ 7:10 p.m.

The Cubs were off yesterday in the NL Central but still managed to maintain a 1st place lead of 2.5 games over the winning Brewers and 3.5 games over the idle Cardinals. The Cubs are in Cincinnati tonight to face the Reds @ 7:10 p.m.

The Tigers were mercifully off so that their hold on 4th place in the AL Central was maintained with their record of 54 - 69, six games ahead of that other team from Chicago. The Tigers are home tonight to face the Yankees @ 7:10 p.m. Hopefully they can help the Red Sox with a win over the Yankees.

The Caps had an early game yesterday in the MWL East and defeated the Bowling Green Hot Rods, 7 - 5. The Caps now lead the Hot Rods by 2.5 games and welcome the South Bend Cubs to the Fifth/Third Ballpark tonight @ 7:00 p.m.

Two trains passed by on the RSTL yesterday. Both had a lone locomotive, #2057, in the lead. At 8:58 a.m., that locomotive towed four DWTCS, three DBTCS, and a mix of old and new CHCs, that were variously graffiti-covered, bright orange, and red, with one in battleship gray.

At 3:46 p.m. that same locomotive passed by again, towing nine CHCs, and 11 DBTCs.

I spent a goodly amount of time before my early bedtime yesterday perusing and editing the latest indexing project. I got to one point where I couldn't see straight and so I knew it was time to stop. I have more to go.

I did take some time to play with Blue and to sing a new to me Irish song that I heard about the other day and I can honestly say that I sounded good on Blue and singing. Just one man's opinion.

I took the fur-children out twice yesterday morning, and then Mary did the morning safari. My aching hip will be diagnosed this morning at the orthopedist and hopefully, I'll have a treatment plan in place by the end of that appointment. I don't have a feeling for the results of the appointment, but I can't continue as I am. Mary will accompany me to that appointment and ask the questions that I always fail to ask. Plus, we can have lunch at the hospital salad bar.

Otherwise, I am one newspaper and crossword puzzle behind and Mary still has more indexing to do.

The current temperature is 74° under mostly cloudy skies and it felt very muggy when I was out with Ginger around 2:00 a.m. The NWS is forecasting T-storms this morning with a 60% certainty, which are supposed to continue in earnest until 1:00 p.m. However the high temperature will only be 73°.

The sun won't be eclipsed today after it rises @ 6:58 a.m. and long before it will set @ 8:35 p.m. Ciao.

Good morning or good evening, wherever you may be. It is just past 12:00 a.m. in "The City."

This time for sure. By that I mean that I'll be keeping it short, or at least shorter than usual, I hope. How's that for equivocation?

I spent the afternoon in the kitchen baking zucchini biscuits with basil and nutritional yeast and homemade buttermilk that used powdered soy milk as its base. It worked perfectly and the biscuits came out great. I followed the biscuit baking with some vegan Italian meatballs, with homemade pesto. In both cases, the basil was from our garden as was the zucchini for the biscuits.

I did have to interrupt Mary's work and send her to Health Hutt to get some TVP, textured vegetable protein for the meatballs because I failed to check to see that I had all of the things I needed for my cooking/baking. My bad. I would have gone to Health Hutt myself, but I am still experiencing difficulty walking due to my hip. The morning safari with the fur-children was challenging enough.

Once I was done in a very hot kitchen, the biscuits had to be baked @ 500°, I sat down to rest. Mary came down and made some cucumber salad with one of our numerous cucumbers and served that with the vegan sausages I made yesterday. Dinner was my vegan Italian meatballs, served on my zucchini, nutritional yeast and basil biscuits topped with Mary's down and dirty mushroom gravy. Of course, I liked dinner, because anything with gravy on it is good with me.

Sports news yesterday was 100% positive. All of my teams won.

The Cubs had to make their fans sweat until the bottom of the 10th inning before a couple of wild pitches loaded the bases and Alex Avila nailed a two RBI single to ice the win over the Bluejays, 6 - 5. Javier Baez received an honorable mention from his manager and his teammates for some heads up base running and newly acquired catcher, Rene Rivera, got his first hit as a Cub in his first at-bat. The Cubs now have an NL Central record of 66 - 57, good enough for a 1st place lead over the 2nd place Brewers of 1.5 games and 2.5 over the 3rd place Cardinals. The Cubs are off today and play @ Cincinnati Tuesday night @ 7:10 p.m.

My 1st place in the AL East, beloved Red Sox, dispatched the 2nd place Yankees @ Fenway, 5 - 1, to move to 71 - 52 and a 5 game lead over the Yankees. The Sox travel to Cleveland to face the Indians tonight @ 7:10 p.m.

The 1st place Caps righted their ship in a big way, defeating the 2nd place in the MWL East Bowling Green Hot Rods, 15 - 4. That gives the Caps some breathing room as they now lead the Hot Rods by 1.5 games. Those two teams play today @ 11:35 a.m.

Along with Mary, once I was done with my kitchen activities, I repaired to my office and continued my work editing the latest index. It is tedious work for both of us. I'd finally had enough and sat down in the media room to watch The Untouchables starring Kevin Costner. After I was done with my viewing, I took both of the fur-children out for their late-night duty calls and then I locked us in for the night. Mary was finishing watching Pride and Prejudice, I believe, when I returned upstairs with the snack she prepared for me. Now she has gone to bed to fortify herself for another long day of indexing. I'll be there soon.

The current temperature is 71° under partly cloudy skies. Today, we expect a high temperature of 78°, also under partly cloudy skies. For people in the Tri-Cities area, seeing the eclipse will be a challenge. The sun will rise @ 6:57 a.m. and the eclipse will begin shortly after 1:00 p.m. and will peak at between 75% and 85% between 2:10 p.m. and 2:30 p.m. The sun will set for sure @ 8:37 p.m. Ciao.

Good morning or good evening, wherever you may be. It is just past 4:30 a.m. in "The City."

I will attempt to keep this one short as my lower yak along with my left hip are achy this early a.m.

A current temperature of 64° under clear skies prevails as we head for today's high of 81° under sunny skies. Monday, the NWS is forecasting a 50% chance of a.m. T-storms that will limit the effect of the solar eclipse that day. Tuesday, the day I have to travel to the hospital for my orthopedic appointment for my hip, the NWS is forecasting a 100% chance for T-storms. The sun will rise later today @ 6:56 a.m. and set @ 8:38 p.m.

I made the vegan sausages yesterday. They taste great, as usual. STWD and I took the morning safari to The Bookman so that I could get the Grand Haven Tribune, which is mostly advertising, and also so that the intrepid weather dog could get her daily treat. Mary and Ginger went another direction. Later, that pair went all the way to the waterfront to see the annual Art on the Waterfront and the annual sidewalk sale on Washington Ave, downtown.

I stayed back to do some editing, which is probably why my yak is aching as I logged too much chair time. That is the impetus for my abbreviated blog this morning.

The Cubs were the only bright spot in yesterday's sports news as they won their NL Central inter-league game over the visiting Bluejays, 4 - 3. That gives the Cubs a record of 65 - 57 and a two game lead over the winning Brewers and two and one-half games over the losing Cardinals. Rookie Ian Happ got an RBI single in the 1st and a solo home run in the 4th along with scoring the tie-breaking run in the 6th on Javier Baez's single. Jose Quintana looked good for the win. The Cubs and the Bluejays play today @ 1:20 p.m. to close out their weekend series.

My beloved Red Sox fell to the Yankees last night, 3 - 4,  in a battle between the 1st and 2nd place teams in the AL East. That leaves the Sox alone in 1st place with a record of 70 - 52, 4.0 games ahead of the Yankees whom they play again today @ 1:30 p.m.

The Tigers? As usual, they fell off the rails and lost the game to the visiting Dodgers, 0 - 3. Some pundits might say that starting pitcher Michael Fullmer looked good and that the offense let him down. If you need a bright spot, that's all you've got. The Tigers are still mired in 4th place, six games ahead of that other team from Chicago. The Tigers will try to find another way to lose a ballgame today.

To paraphrase from that old Paul Simon song Fifty Ways to Leave Your Lover there was a parody song written about the hapless Cubs of another era entitled, 50 Ways to Lose a Ballgame, that seems to apply to this year's version of the Tigers. At any rate, the Tigers "welcome" the Dodgers again today @ 1:10 p.m.

The Caps fell once again in the MWL East 1 - 3 to the Hot Rods to fall to a slim one-half game lead over the Hot Rods. The Caps now have a record of 36 - 18 and those teams play again this evening @ 5:05 p.m.

Otherwise, more indexing to do, more cooking is possible, and more of whatever needs to be done. As of necessity, I'll be taking an abbreviated safari with STWD this morning before settlling in. Ciao.

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

So much for the forecast from the NWS. I was outside with the fur-children @ 3:00 a.m. and it had rained. How much? I dunno, but there was enough to make the deck and the driveway wet, so. We have a current temperature of 66° under mostly cloudy skies. I guess that mostly cloudy means that it rained. Today's high will reach 77° under what has been forecast to be sunny skies. We shall see. The sun will rise @ 6:55 a.m. and set @ 8:40 p.m.

The day yesterday was filled with activity. I accomplished several things on my to-do list. I replaced/repaired the weather strip on the inner back door. I installed and tested the new doorbell. I tested and approved the new LED lights in the closets. And finally, I cleaned the fur-children's carpet damage with nothing more than warm water and my wet/dry vacuum. Phew, I was busy.

Mary kept busy most of the day too, working on the latest index. Part of that effort is on my desk right now and I have more to assist with today and Sunday. I may also get into the kitchen to do some quick cooking too.

The sports report is only one-half positive, and that's a maybe.

The Cubs dispatched the Bluejays in an interleague game yesterday afternoon, 7 - 4. Javier Baez sparkled on defense, with a grab at the shortstop position that became a much needed out, while on offense he nailed a two RBI home run. Baez joined Kris Bryant, Anthony Rizzo, and Willson Contreras on the 20 home run list for the Cubs. Jake Arrieta was once again solid as he plays for the expected big payday in this his free-agent season. Unfortunately, the Cubs also had to place pitcher Jon Lester on the 10-day DL with "Shoulder Fatigue. The Cubs held tight onto 1st place in the NL Central with an overall record of 64 - 57 and a 1.5 game lead over the winning Cardinals and 2.0 games over the losing Brewers. The Cubs and the Bluejays play again this afternoon @ 1:20 p.m.

My beloved Red Sox have won 13 out of 15 tries in the last two weeks. The Sox' offense has returned to the dominant force that it was early in the season and Andrew Benintendi has once again found his hitting stroke. Perhaps the addition of Rafael Devers to the major league team has helped to spark the offense. At any rate, the 1st place Sox defeated the 2nd place Yankees in their AL East matchup last night, 9 - 6 to go to 70 - 51, 5.0 games ahead of the Yankees. Both teams play again tonight @  7:10 p.m.

The Tigers, well they are the Tigers. They lost again to the NL West-leading Dodgers, 5 - 8. The Tigers also placed pitcher Anibal Sanchez on the DL with a hamstring injury. At this point in the season, nothing will change for the Tigers anyway. They have a 4th place record of 53 - 68 in the AL Central and they are still going nowhere but home in the post-season. The Tigers and the Dodgers play again today @ 4:05 p.m.

The Caps are also showing fatigue, losing to the Bowling Green Hot Rods 0 - 4 as the Caps bats were once again silent in their MWL East game against the  Hot Rods. The Hot rods have now moved to 1.5 games behind the Caps, tied with the Fort Wayne TinCaps for 2nd place. The Caps and the Hot Rods play tonight @ 7:35 p.m.

As noted, I will be in the kitchen and I will also be assisting with the indexing today. We'll make the morning safari to The Bookman for the weekend edition of the Grand Haven Tribune and then return home to get to work. The fur-children will assist by being quiet and out of the way. Ciao.

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

Not surprisingly, I am listening to Coast to Coast AM, with host George Noory, who is interviewing Liz McIntyre. a cyber security expert, regarding ideas described in a recent book written by Katherine Albrecht entitled Spychips. That book details the upcoming shift to RFID technology, Radio Frequency Identification, a technology that would/will eliminate many cashiers' jobs in grocery and department stores because products with RFID chips will be able to be scanned and the cost deducted from a person's credit or debit card at the check out kiosk. Plus, there is a possibility of having a personal RFID chip implanted into a person that would contain all of that person's personal information, such as their name, address, SSN number, and banking information. The chance to be personally "Hacked" by an identity thief would increase exponentially. Scary stuff, indeed.

The answer to whether I had missed the northbound train run on Wednesday was answered yesterday morning @ 11:04 a.m. as MMRR locomotive #2057 passed by on the RSTL towing two CHCs, and two DBTCs. To borrow from Porky Pig, That's All Folks!

I was outside with Ginger around 1:00 a.m. and the weather was calm and comfortable. The current temperature is 71° under cloudy skies. We had a good storm overnight yesterday with thunder and a goodly amount of rainfall. Today, the high will reach 73°, with clouds in the morning and sun in the afternoon and only a 20% chance of additional showers. We had a severe weather warning from the NWS yesterday afternoon, that was to include hail, high winds, and more rain. As usual, that warning was premature and we didn't get any of those. That's life here in West, MI. Later this morning, the sun will rise @ 6:54 a.m. and set tonight @ 8:42 p.m.

I just finished filling out another in my long line of rebate requests. This one was offered under the auspices of the Michigan Energy Smart Program and was made available to us through a mailing that came with our electric bill from the Grand Haven Board of Light and Power. While $15.00 may not seem like much, I'll take that anytime for only the cost of a postage stamp.

Sports news yesterday was on the negative side. The Cubs and their ace pitcher, Jon Lester, surrendered nine runs in the bottom of the 2nd inning. Lester threw a total of 46 pitches, 40 in the 2nd inning alone as he surrendered seven earned runs and the Reds scored nine total in the 2nd alone en route to a win and a 10 - 13 loss for the Cubs in the NL Central. Lester left the game after 1 2/3 innings with an injury to a muscle and will be evaluated today.

The Cubs staged a home run derby, launching four in the top of the third, with Ian Happ, Kris Bryant and Alex Avila going back to back to back and adding more later from Javier Baez and Kyle Schwarber. However, the Reds staged their own home run derby and the rest is history, as is often said. Even with that loss, the Cubs hung on to 1st place, one game ahead of the Brewers and one and one-half games ahead of the Cardinals. The Cubs welcome the Toronto Bluejays to the Friendly Confines today @ 2:20 p.m. EDT.

My beloved 1st place in the AL East Red Sox, were off yesterday before they welcome the 2nd place Yankees to Fenway tonight @ 7:10 p.m. The Sox have a record of 69 - 51 and a four game lead over the Yankees, who won yesterday.

The Tigers were mercifully off yesterday. They welcome the Dodgers to Comerica Park tonight, also @ 7:10 p.m. The Tigers are mired in 4th place with a record of 53 - 67 in the AL Central, eight games ahead of that other team from Chicago.

The Caps fell off the rails for the second straight game, losing to the last place Dayton Dragons yesterday, 1 - 3. The Caps still have a strong hold on 1st place in the MWL East with a record of 36 - 16, but they lost to the Dragons who have a record of 17 - 36. I guess the Dragons were able to summon the strength to play the Caps very hard. The Caps travel to Bowling Green, KY to face the Hot Rods tonight @ 7:35 p.m.

Our carpet has been repaired. The spot needs to dry for 24 hours, but it should be fine. Plus, we learned the best and safest way to spot clean a little spot caused by the fur-children. A little warm water and a wet/dry vacuum and we will be good to go.

We had dropped Ginger off at daycare and grooming before we set out on some errands yesterday. After picking up some food for STWD, we traveled to the hospital so that I could get those X-rays on my hip and have them ready for the doctor on Tuesday. My hip joint is still painful and walking is a challenge beyond a short distance.

We made it to the mall for a bedspread and also to the big-box home center for some items. Then a stop for libations before picking up an excited Ginger and heading home. Mary washed the fur-children's "Jewelry", their collars, harnesses, and leashes. The fur-children felt naked without their bling.

Today, Mary has to index and I have to rest after the fur-children accompany us on the morning safari. Ciao.

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

I was outside with the fur-children @ 12:30 a.m. and according to the NWS, the T-storms should have begun just about 12:45 a.m. As of now, @ 1:30 a,m,. there is a light rain falling. The extremely muggy temperature is currently 78° under very cloudy skies, so maybe. The T-storms are supposed to abate for about one hour and then return in earnest again about 3:00 a.m. I am at the ready here in the Weather Center with my trusty Weather Window to my right and STWD nearby, so if anything happens, I'll be one of the first to know in GH and so will you, my loyal readers.

Speaking of watering, our crops are still doing well, although the harvest of tomatoes is waning @ the end of their growing season. Potatoes are due any day now. In addition, our giant hibiscus, "Pink", will be blooming her dinner-plate sized flowers on another few days. Our gardens, both vegetable, and flower are doing great due to my constant watering and attention.

Sports is another matter altogether.

The Cubs eased past the Reds last night, 7 - 6 in an NL Central game. They play again today @ 2:20 p.m. The Cubs have an overall record of 63 - 56, allowing them to remain in 1st place, 1.5 games ahead of the Brewers and 2.5 games ahead of the losing Cardinals.

My beloved Red Sox also eked out a win over their opponents, the Cardinals, 5 - 4. That gives the 69 - 51 Sox a solid hold on 1st place in the AL East by 4.5 games over the winning 2nd place Yankees. The Sox are off today before they welcome the Yankees to Fenway Park on Friday @ 7:10 p.m.

Once again, I wish I had good news regarding the Tigers, but I don't. They were pounded by the Rangers last night, 6 - 12 in an effort to cost manager Brad Ausmus his job @ season's end. The Tigers tied the score in the bottom of the 2nd inning, went ahead in the top of the 3rd, but then allowed the Rangers to tie it up again in the bottom of the inning as the Rangers went into cruise control. Two runs in the top of the 9th were all that the Tigers would add en route to that lopsided loss. The Tigers are also off today before meeting the NL West division leading Dodgers, who are 30 games over .500 in the NL West, Friday night @ Comerica Park @ 7:10 p.m.

The Caps dropped another game to the lowly Dayton Dragons last night, 0 - 7, in an MWL East game. The Caps are still solidly in 1st place with a record of 36 - 15 and they play the 16 - 36, last-place Dragons, again tonight @ 7:00 p.m., hopefully with better results.

I have one-half of a "Trainspotting" from yesterday. I observed the southbound passage of EMD GP 38-2 locomotive # 2057, once again solo, as it passed by on the RSTL. In tow were 11 CHCs, one DWTC, and two DBTC. Did I miss the northbound run later in the day? I dunno.

I rode my bike yesterday and the results were mixed. Post-riding, I felt fine. However, long term, I found my hip aching. I called my orthopedist earlier in the day and arranged to have an X-ray of my left hip before consulting the doctor next Tuesday.

We had the technician from the cable/internet provider out yesterday to exchange our modem. His efforts seem to have helped the sporadic dropping of the WiFi signal here in our nearly 114-year-old manse with its two-stories. solid oak woodwork and thick plaster walls. If the relief proves to be only fleeting, we may have to invest in a high-powered WiFi router, as the one we are paying the cable company for is likely too weak for our large expanse. Sigh.

I forgot to mention that we traveled downtown and bought a new tablecloth that was on sale for 1/2 off! Plus, I got my new winter jigsaw puzzle, a topographical depiction of the Great Lakes. It will go well with our map motif in the living quarters when I finish it and have it framed. Another plus, we got a coupon in the mail that gave us 20% off on a single item at that same store, so I got to once again enjoy my frugality.

Today, I will continue to assist Mary in her indexing efforts after walking the fur-children between the raindrops later this morning. Otherwise, I have nothing pressing on tap. I started a new semi-non-fiction book entitled Haunted Baseball, written in 2007 by Mickey Bradley and Dan Gordon. I heard about this book on  Coast to Coast AM one night. I plan to read excerpts from the book from those sections that are of most interest to myself.

The sun will rise today @ 6:52 a.m. and set @ 8:43 p.m. Ciao.

Well, it is 3:45 a.m. The T-storms began about 30 minutes ago and STWD joined me due to the thunder. The rain is falling as forecast by the NWS. Surprise! Most of the morning and into early afternoon, the NWS is forecasting showers/T-storms. I won't have to water!

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

I was outside with the fur-children around 2:30 a.m., one at a time, and the current temperature is a muggy 63° under partly cloudy skies. I could see some stars, but many more were obscured. Both fur-children did their duty, but Ginger barked at someone who was in the driveway and on our neighbor's deck for a brief period. I probably should have called Public Safety, but I really didn't want to cause a further disturbance nor stay outside explaining what I had seen. Probably my bad, but there you have it.

Let's get on to what is really important. My beloved, 1st place in the AL East, Red Sox, defeated the 2nd place in the NL Central, St. Louis Cardinals, 10 - 4. A highlight of the game was a rare 5-4-3 Triple Play that started at the "Hot Corner" with rookie third-baseman, Rafael Devers. I decided that I just had to share the video courtesy of MLB™. 2016 Cy Young winner Rick Porcello, has too often looked like the Rick Porcello that I remember from the Tigers. However, last night, he was solid and supported by that triple-play as seen in the link below.

http://m.mlb.com/news/article/248592892/red-sox-turn-5-4-3-triple-play-vs-cardinals/

In any event, that win keeps the Sox 4.5 games ahead of the 2nd place Yankees. The Sox play the Cardinals tonight @ 7:10 p.m.

The Cubs, well, they are still the mysterious Cubs, at least to me. Starting pitcher, Kyle Hendricks, was solid through six innings, recording six strikeouts and yielding no earned runs. Once again, the chance to gain ground in the NL Central over the 2nd place Cardinals, who were soundly defeated by the Red Sox, was lost. The Cubs' bats are once again in the deep-freeze as they fell to the Reds, 1 - 2. The Reds are @ the bottom of the NL Central with a record of 50 - 70. As I've often noted, the Cubs find a way to lose to teams that they should and must defeat. Sigh. The Cubs and the Reds meet again tonight @ 8:05 p.m.

The Tigers are still a bad baseball team that in all likelihood will cost their manager, Brad Ausmus, his job at season's end. The Tigers fell to the TX Rangers, 4 - 10 to stay solidly in 4th place in the AL Central with a record of 53 - 66. Tigers starting pitcher, Justin, "JV" Verlander, fell victim to the heat in Arlington, TX, and says that the possibility of being traded is always on his mind. There is one rumor that he may OK a trade to the Houston Astros. Verlander would have to approve that trade, but he does want to play for a winner, which the Astros are, with their 1st place 73 - 46 record in the AL West. The Tigers continue their futile quest for a victory tonight in Arlington against the Rangers @ 8:05 p.m.

I got on my bicycle yesterday and rode for about 10 minutes. I didn't feel any pain in my hip, but when I got up earlier this morning, I felt like I'd ridden 10 miles. Sigh. At any rate, I will continue my efforts today.

The appliance repairman came with the new parts for the clothes dryer yesterday and had the machine up and running within about 45 minutes. As he said when he supplied the original diagnosis, "I've been doing this for a long-time."

I discovered a flaw in the recently installed carpet in my office/music room/weather center/blog-central. We'll have to call the carpet store for a return visit as it appears to be more than a minor snag.

I made it to my final drawing class last night and worked with colored chalk for the first time. I like my results.

I finished that novel that Mary had recommended to me, My Italian Bulldozer, by Alexander McCall Smith. I enjoyed the book immensely. What's not to like about a writer, a bulldozer, fine wines, and Tuscany? I highly recommend this book to my loyal readers.

I did take the time to make those vegan sausages yesterday. We had some for lunch and they were excellent. Mary used one of our numerous cucumbers to make a tasty salad as a side.

Today, we plan to take the morning safari with the fur-children and then return to the manse so that Mary can work and I can do as little as possible. I will once again try my bike for exercise.

We expect a high today in the lower 80s, according to WOOD TV/Radio Chief Meteorologist, Bill Steffen, along the shores of the "Big Lake." It will be warmer inland a forecast 85°, around GR. The chance for precipitation/scattered T-storms on Thursday is still 90%. If I can avoid watering until then, I should be good to go until the weekend. Our gardens are still producing and the fruits of our labors, so to speak, are just great. The sun will rise @ 6:51 a.m. and set @ 8:45 p.m. Ciao.

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

I hadn't planned to get up and blog, but Ginger did when I got up, and so the rest is history. We were both outside in the back-forty under cloudy skies around 2:00 a.m. where the current temperature is 65°. Later today after the sun rises @ 6:50 a.m. and well before it sets @ 8:46 p.m., the NWS has forecast that the high-temperature today will be 80° under partly cloudy skies with 71% relative humidity. Our next chance for significant precipitation is Thursday when the NWS has issued a forecast for T-storms with a 90% probability.

I made vegan Italian-style meatballs before I left for my P/T appointment yesterday. Mary says they are fine, but I don't think they are my best effort. Too much water, not enough browning. The taste is fine, the texture, not so much. We did have some of them for dinner.

Speaking of my P/T appointment, I got pushed and pulled and rode the stationary recumbent bike for 10 minutes. My therapist says I should ride my personal bike for a similar 10 minutes today and then every day, or every other day, depending on how my hip feels. I'll see him again on Friday to get more therapy.

I made it to my haircut appointment yesterday after I got back from my solo safari with STWD. I was able to make it two blocks with only limited pain in my hip, so perhaps I'm improving. Riding my bike may be the way to find out.

I got a few pages read yesterday and that was about it. I also played with "Blue", my Ovation™ six-string guitar and my playing was good. My singing, only so-so. I still need more strength in my left hand though.

Mary is still slogging her way through the latest index. Many pages of tedium.

I was able to observe the latest passages of the train on the RSTL. Locomotive # 2057 was soloing on the morning 11:19 a.m. southbound run towing one CHC, one DWTC, two GTCs, and two DBTCs. Later, @ 4:00 p.m., I watched the northbound run as # 2057 once again soloed towing 14 DWTCs, three CHCs, and two DBTCs.

The sports news yesterday had only one bright spot. The Cubs clobbered the Reds last night, 15 - 5 in spite of a shaky start over the first few innings by starting pitcher Jose Quintana, who lasted until the sixth inning before being relieved by Mike Montgomery. Montgomery hit a double to help the cause and Kris Bryant and Anthony Rizzo both hit home runs. Jon Jay nearly hit for the cycle, just missing a late inning home run to cap his excellent performance last night.

The Cubs also announced that shortstop Addison Russell is improving but that there is no definitive date for his return. The 1st place in the NL Central Cubs have a record of 62 - 55, 1.5 games ahead of the idle 2nd place St. Louis Cardinals, who travel to Boston to face my beloved Red Sox tonight. The Cubs and the Reds play again tonight @ 8:05 p.m.

Since I have the perfect segue, let me note that the Red Sox are in 1st place in the AL East with a record of 67 - 51, good for a 4.5 game lead over the idle Yankees. The Sox open their series with the Cardinals tonight @ 7:10 p.m.

The Tigers are lower on my list because they are a bad baseball team. They lost to the sub-.500 TX Rangers yesterday, 3 - 7. to stay mired in 4th place in the AL Central. I wish that I could be like the announcers who seem to always be able to find something positive to say about the Tigers, but I can't. They are just marking time. I think that they should have started the trading of older, highly-paid veterans, two years ago, to get themselves ready for the future. Coulda, woulda, shoulda. Sigh. At any rate, the Tigers and the Rangers play again tonight @ 8:05 p.m.

The final piece of bad news concerns the 1st place in the MWL East, Caps, who dropped a game to the Dayton Dragons last night 4 - 7. That loss wouldn't so bad if the Dragons weren't a team with a 15 - 35 record in that same division. The Caps and the Dragons play tonight @ 7:00 p.m.

Otherwise, I have my last drawing class for the summer season tonight @ 6:00 p.m. I have to find something that I like to take along as a subject. I may take our branded milk bottle with some daisies from our garden. I like both so they would be a logical choice. I'll make a game time decision.

Mary has a chat and indexing on tap for today. I have to read and do a couple of crossword puzzles along with my bike ride and the morning safari with STWD. I may also get to that cooking I didn't have time for yesterday. So many zucchinis, cucumbers, green peppers, and tomatoes, so little time. Ciao.

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

Where shall I begin, to tell the story of how great...Oops, I was channeling again. Channeling can be fine, but sometimes, you have to have better source material than Love Story to work from.

At any rate, Cubs Win! Cubs Win! Cubs Win! They handily defeated the AZ D'backs by a final score of 7 - 2 to once again move into sole possession of 1st place in the NL Central with an overall record of 61 - 55. That's one game ahead of the Cards who saw their eight game winning streak snapped by the Braves. In addition, the Cubs are now two full games ahead of the Brewers, who won their game against the Reds, the Cubs next opponent, tonight, @ 8:05 p.m.

Ian Happ, Javier Baez, and Kris Bryant all homered, with Baez getting three RBIs with his blast. Bryant is on his own streak, having gone 9-for-11 in the three game series. Cubs manager, Joe Maddon, says that Bryant is "Locked in." As the reigning NL MVP, Bryant is once again the reason that the Cubs may yet contend in spite of the injury to Willson Contreras. The Cubs face the Reds tonight @ "The Friendly Confines" @ 8:05 p.m.

The Tigers once again snatched defeat from the jaws of victory as they fell to the Twins, 4 - 6 to stay mired in 4th place in the AL Central with a record of 53 - 64. Yes, dear readers, the Tigers are still a bad team. Can Tigers manager Brad Ausmus survive their ineptitude? Somehow, I doubt it.  The Tigers are in TX tonight to face the Rangers, who are bad, but not as woeful as the Tigers, @ 8:05 p.m.

My beloved 1st place Red Sox eked out a win last night over the 2nd place in the AL East Yankees, 3 - 2. It was two rookies who keyed the win. Recently promoted third baseman, Rafael Devers, the Sox' top prospect is no longer the top prospect, he has arrived. He was the first left-handed hitter to hit a home run off of the fireballing pitcher Aroldis Chapman since 2011. Devers won't be 21 until October and he has moved through the Sox minor league system very rapidly.  His homer tied the game so that the Sox' other rookie, left-fielder Andrew Benintendi could drive in the winning run for the Sox, who are now 5. 5 games ahead of the Yankees as they await their next opponent, the Indians, for a makeup game @ the unusual starting time of 6:05 p.m. The Indians will only be in town for this one game before the Cardinals come to town for a two game series @ Fenway starting Tuesday night.

The Caps were once again winners as they defeated the visiting Great Lakes Loons yesterday afternoon by a score of 6 - 1. That gives the Caps an MWL East record of 35 - 13, 3.5 games ahead of the 2nd place TinCaps. The Caps welcome Mary's sentimental favorites, the Dayton Dragons, to the Fifth/Third Ballpark tonight @ 7:00 p.m.

I got in some time with the girls yesterday and I think my playing was great. However, I am still having trouble with bar chords due to a lack of hand strength in my left hand. I guess I have to use my exercise tool more frequently.

Otherwise, I have an appointment for physical therapy today and also an opportunity to work in the kitchen crafting some vegan sausages and perhaps some baked tofu cubes. Mary will be busy indexing while I will be out this afternoon for that previously mentioned appointment and a much-needed haircut.

The current temperature is 63° though it feels like 59° under mostly cloudy skies. Today's high is forecast to be 78° under partly cloudy skies. The NWS has forecast a 60% chance for T-storms both Wednesday and Thursday. As always, that is always an iffy forecast on the shores of the "Big Lake." The sun will rise this morning @ 6:49 a.m. and set later tonight @ 8:48 p.m. Ciao.

Good morning or good evening, wherever you may be. It is just past 12:30 a.m. in "The City."

What a reversal of fortunes. The Cubs used a terrific offense and timely relief pitching on Friday to power their way past the AZ D'backs 8 - 3, despite John Lackeys serving up a gopher ball. Last night, the same team took the field and Jon Lester was locked in a left-handed pitching duel with the D'backs Patrick Corbin until the top of the 6th.

At that point, the D'backs Adam Rosales singled to lead off the inning. Then, following a groundout that moved him to second, the Cubs intentionally walked Paul Goldschmidt to set up the double play. Instead, recent D'backs' acquisition from the Tigers, J.D. Martinez, drove a double off the right-field wall to spark a four run rally and the D'backs never looked back en route to a 6 - 2 win. That loss dropped the Cubs to 60 - 55 and tied them with the winning Cardinals for 1st place in the NL Central. The Cubs and the D'backs play their rubber game today @ 4:10 p.m.

The Tigers are still not a good team in spite of a late rally that included a walk-off home run by Justin "J-Up" Upton, that gave the Tigers a 12 - 11 win over the Twins and a solid hold on 4th place in the AL Central with a record of 53 - 63. The Tigers and the Twins play again today @ 1:10 p.m.

My beloved Red Sox trounced the Yankees yesterday, 10 - 5. Rookie left-fielder, Andrew Benintendi, hammered two three-run home runs, as he continued his August surge. The Sox were also assisted by a strong start from pitcher Drew Pomeranz. The Sox now lead the 2nd place Yankees in the AL East by 4.5 games. The Sox and the Yankees are the featured game tonight in Major League Baseball's Sunday Night feature game @ 8:05 p.m.

The Caps fell to the Loons yesterday in an MWL East game, 0 - 3. The Caps are still solidly in 1st place with a 2.5 game lead over the 2nd place TinCaps and they welcome the kids to "Family Day" today @1:00 p.m. against those same Great Lakes Loons.

I spent a large portion of my day in the kitchen yesterday making a batch of my world-famous squash-kale soup to which I also added celery, green peppers from our garden, and mushrooms. My brief sample indicates that my earlier harvest of the kale proved that I still have it. I also used my new kale stripping gadget that sped up the process, a little.

I was also able to use the food processor to chop the onions, the celery, and the green pepper to speed up the process. However, the soup-making activity is still labor intensive, but worth the effort.

I followed up my soup making by sauteeing another green pepper and quartering tomatoes that were combined from our gardens with the spice blend that I also created. Mary assisted with the sauce preparation. The spice blend was combined with tofu to make a vegan bolognese sauce for the penne pasta that along with some garlic bread became a tasty dinner. We traveled to JWs for a quick libation and Ginger was free to roam the manse. She did great and it looks like her new-dog anxiety is a thing of the past. In fact, I took her crate to the man-cave to seal the deal.

Oddly, while STSD, Sugar the Sous Dog, got bored with the kitchen activities and went upstairs to sleep after a few snacks, her understudy at the sous dog position, Ginger, was there the whole time and provided much-needed assistance/support. I bottled and froze five quarts of my world-famous soup.

Also worth y of note, is that I stood in the kitchen for nearly three hours and got my usual lower back ache but did not aggravate my hip flexor tendonitis. The short walk to JWs accomplished that after my kitchen stint. Go figure. I guess that that is information that the physical therapist will find useful during my Monday appointment.

During most of my kitchen efforts, Mary was upstairs printing out the final pages for the latest index. I'll be assisting with that later today. I hope to be sitting for that. With luck, I'll also be able to read the weekend edition of the Grand Haven Tribune and work the crossword puzzle contained therein.

The weather yesterday produced a morning shower that will preclude my watering today and also foster the growth of the veggies in the gardens of the vast PE. Our tomatoes are nearing the end of their productive period, but the green peppers are doing fine. The cucumbers are still producing prodigiously as are the kale and the zucchini plants. Our potatoes are also nearly ready for harvest.

We have a current temperature of 60° under clear skies. Today's high is forecast to reach 77° under mostly sunny skies with relative humidity. The chance for additional precipitation today is only a paltry 10%. However, the chance yesterday was only 20%, so.

The sun will rise today @ 6:48 a.m. and set tonight @ 8:49 p.m. Ciao.

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

I'm up because I am. Actually, I got up when Ginger jumped on the bed around 11:30 last night and so I took her out to do her duty, which she did. Now I'm with you, as someone once said.

I also decided to stay awake and listen to the end of the Cubs' game. They are in AZ and so what is 10:00 p.m. there is 1:00 a.m. here. The Cubs are ahead of the D'backs right now because they took an early 3 - 0 lead before starting pitcher John Lackey surrendered a two out two run homer in the bottom of the 5th before the Cubs added two more in the top of the 6th when Kyle Schwarber and Alex Avila homered to move the score to 5 - 3. When I last checked, the Cubs had scored three more and they won the game 8 - 3. to move to 60 - 54 in the NL Central. The Cubs are still in 1st place in the NL Central with a 1.0 game lead over the 2nd place Cardinals, who won, and two games over the Brewers, who lost. The Cubs and the D'Backs play again today @ 8:10 p.m. EDT.

A few tidbits of Cubs news. Catcher Willson Contreras will miss four to six weeks, or more, with a moderate injury to his hamstring. He was quoted as saying that he won't come back @ 85% because as one of the announcers noted, Contreras plays "Like a maniac", meaning that he plays all out and can't play with caution. So, it is now week to week. Lackey didn't last long after that home run. Kyle Schwarber had the terrible, season-ending collision last year in game four of the season that tore up his knee ligaments. He didn't come back until he World Series last year and then he had a heroic role in that magical season.

The Tigers still are not a good team, as they lost to the Twins, 4 - 9 in an AL Central game. The 4th place Tigers are better than that other team from Chicago and so they are in 4th place, but only six games better than that team. The Tigers and the Twins play again today @ 6:10 p.m.

My beloved 1st place Red Sox fell to the 2nd place in the AL East Yankees by a score of 4 - 5. That loss moves the Sox to a record of 65 - 50 and still finds them 3.5 games ahead of the Yankees whom they play again this evening @ 4:10 p.m.

The Caps got two wins yesterday in the MWL East with an 11 inning win over the Loons in that suspended game and then a 6 - 0 win over the Loons in the regularly scheduled nightcap. That gives the playoff bound Caps an overall record of 34 - 12, 3.5 games ahead of the 2nd place TinCaps. The Caps and the Loons play again tonight @ 7:00 p.m.

On Wednesday, I received my latest free T-shirt in the mail. This one is another in the MI Awesome List series that I qualified for by jumping on an email offering from the sponsor. I love free things.

Photo courtesy of Mary's photos.

John finished up yesterday and the appliance repairman came by to tell me that the dryer needs a new bearing on the drum, which he had to order. Even though he didn't offer, I asked about the belts and he said that it wasn't a usual item to replace with the bearing, However, when you consider that the labor to replace the belts, which are over 20 years old, is the same as that for replacing that faulty bearing.

That's much like changing a timing belt on a car and also replacing the water pump, which requires that the same parts be removed to replace the pump when it fails, which it inevitably would. The repairman comes back next Tuesday or Wednesday to complete the replacement of the bearing and the belts.

Mary did some indexing yesterday after we had a late breakfast and after the fur-children had their morning safari. I did, in fact, give up on that book I was reading and switched to a book that Mary had previously finished and recommended, entitled My Italian Bulldozer, by Alexander McCall Smith. I was hooked by the opening pages, something that didn't happen with the previous book I tried to read.

I discovered that what I thought was a yak problem is more likely to be an injury to my hip flexor tendon, commonly called hip tendonitis or hip strain. The cause is usually a problem with the walking or striding gait or a sports related injury. Since I am not participating in sports, the cause is obvious. Or, I could have hip bursitis which is treated in the same fashion. Of course, my information comes from WebMD™ so I will need my physical therapist and my orthopedist, who can order an MRI, to confirm my diagnosis. But at least I have a better idea of the problem. My gait has been affected by being a tall person in a short person's world and by my back surgery for stenosis.

We have a current temperature of 66° under partly cloudy skies. Today's high is forecast to reach 74°, also under partly cloudy skies. The sun will rise @ 6:47 a.m. and set @ 8:51 p.m. No precipitation is in the forecast from the NWS.

Today, Mary has work to do, I have some cooking to do, and we have the morning safari with the fur-children. I also want to read more and rest my injured hip. Ciao.

Good morning or good evening, wherever you may be. It is just past 4:30 a.m. in "The City."

The weather was strange yesterday. In spite of the low probability for showers/T-storms, yesterday evening, the NWS was actually correct, for once. We had a goodly amount of rain, quite a bit of thunder and lightning, and I got the fur-children out just before it all began.

As of now, we have a current temperature of 66° under partly cloudy skies. Today, the sun will rise @ 6:46 a.m. into those partly cloudy skies and the high temperature will reach 72° with 81% relative humidity. Later tomorrow night, the sun will set @ 8:52 p.m

John is nearly finished with the painting in the media room and my office. He still has to rehang the ceiling fan that nearly fell from the ceiling, the fan that started this latest round of home repairs/painting.

I spent some time doing those indoor chores that I mentioned in my previous post and learned that the appliance repairman should lease space from John's office here in the manse. While the repairman isn't here as often as John, he visits regularly enough to keep our old but serviceable laundry and kitchen appliances in working order. As Mary says, repairs are less costly than buying new and they also keep the old appliances out of the landfill. I guess that's a win-win.

The Cubs may have gotten some good news on their day off. Cubs' President Theo Epstein updated the media and by extension Cubs fans, on the condition of starting catcher Willson Contreras. He will be on the DL for rehab for a minimum of two weeks and maybe up to a month or more. Epstein did not speculate on whether the injury to Contreras was season-ending. Contreras has been a major part of the Cubs offense over the last several weeks.

However, the recent trade for catcher Alex Avila from the Tigers looks prescient right now. In addition, the Cubs will recall rookie catcher Victor Caratini from their AAA affiliate in Iowa to back up Avila. The Cubs are in AZ tonight for a game against the D'backs @ 9:40 p.m. As of now, the Cubs are still in 1st place in the NL Central with a record of 59 - 54, one game ahead of the 2nd place Cardinals who have won six in a row and two games ahead of the 3rd place Brewers.

The Tigers lost another one to the Pirates, 5 - 7. They are still in 4th place in the AL Central with a record of 52 - 62, nine games ahead of that other team from Chicago. The Tigers welcome the Twins to Comerica Park tonight @ 7:10 p.m.

My beloved Red Sox were off yesterday, but the 2nd place Yankees, the Sox' next opponent tonight @ 7:05 p.m., lost to the Bluejays, 0 - 4 to fall to 4.5 games behind the idle Sox.

The Caps game with the Great Lakes Loons was suspended last night after nine innings with the score tied @ nine all. That game will be resumed today @ 6:00 p.m., before the regularly scheduled game against the Loons @ 7:00 p.m. The Caps have a 1st place lead in the MWL East of  32 - 12, which is 3.0 games over the TinCaps.

Elsewhere in the manse, I didn't get to make my soup. Instead, I tried a new vegan recipe for vegan gyros. To make those, I also had to make an extraordinary beest, some home made Mrs. Dash™ and with some timely assistance/rescue from Mary, I was able to create a very tasty lunch and add another dish to our rotation. Mary has to tweak the recipe a bit, to make it more user-friendly, but the final result was excellent. In addition, if Mary had not arrived to pull my cooking out of the proverbial fire by making the home made Tzatziki sauce, I would never have survived.

Otherwise, we took the fur-children for their morning safari and then Mary settled in to do some indexing which I had the chance to assist with as I added some page numbers and plurals for things that can be counted, a basic rule in indexing.

We did get to the chiropractor yesterday afternoon, but Ginger's final tryout before her crate goes into storage was delayed since John was here painting. I also tried to get Ginger to go out around 3:00 a.m., but like often happens with her big sister, STWD, she wouldn't go.

Today, more indexing, more cooking, and more reading. I've given up on the latest book I was reading as it just wasn't working for me. Ciao.

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

Let's get my pleasure trip out of the way, as I am feeling the need, the need for speed! Yes, Mary was OK with my going to the movies yesterday and so I went to the local theater and got my senior discount, Eleanore would have been proud, along with a huge tub of popcorn and a ginormous
Cherry-Pepsi, and settled in to watch Top Gun.

As expected, the movie hooked me right from the start and never let go. Tom Cruise, Kelly McGillis, Val Kilmer, Anthony Edwards, and in a minor role, Meg Ryan, were all there to fuel my "Need for speed!" Since I liked it so much, I decided that another link to the movie from YouTube™ was in order so that everyone else could sate their own "Need for speed!"

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5AA_qdGveP0

At any rate, I now have to wait through Jurassic Park and Smokey and the Bandit, before my birthday wish is granted and Mary and I can see Airplane, the movie. To whet your collective appetites, here is another link from YouTube™.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hmJiZ8VcfD4

But enough about me and my great day. Let's instead switch to the world of sometimes Major League baseball.

The Cubs managed to drop two of three to the Giants in San Francisco and somehow remain in 1st place in the NL Central, with a record of 59 - 54, a scant 1.5 games ahead of the surging Cardinals and the Brewers. The Cubs also placed starting catcher Willson Contreras on the 10-day DL with what appears to be a hamstring injury. Plus, the team also placed relief pitcher Koji Uehara on the DL with a strain in his neck.

The only bright spot in yesterday's game was a solo home run off the bat of Alberto Almora Jr. which was the only run the Cubs scored. Kyle Hendricks looked good, the relief corps, not so much, in the 1 - 3 loss. The Cubs are off today before heading to AZ to meet the D'backs for a weekend series beginning @ 9:40 p.m. Friday night. The Cardinals and the Brewers have games today and could close the gap to 1/2 game.

The Tigers behind the Justin "JV" Verlander of old, hammered the Pirates 10 - 0. Verlander was masterful and the Tigers' bats came to life in the lopsided win. Still, the 4th place Tigers are a woeful 52 - 61 in the AL Central and lead the last place team, that other team from Chicago, by nine games. The Tigers and the Pirates meet again this afternoon @ 1:10 p.m.

My beloved Red Sox continued their winning ways with an 8 - 2 win over the Rays. The 1st place in the AL East Sox are off today before they travel to NYC to meet the 2nd place Yankees on Friday night @ 7:05 p.m. to begin a weekend series, four full games ahead of those Yankees.

The Caps, as previously noted, were off yesterday and they begin a series @ the Fifth/Third Ballpark tonight @ 7:00 p.m. against the Great Lakes Loons. The Caps have an overall record of 32 - 12 in the MWL East.

Otherwise, not much was happening. We walked with the fur-children to Central Park to allow time for some work in the manse Sadly, we were reminded that Wednesday morning is the day that the crews from the GH Public Works department mow the lawns, trim the edges and blow away the debris in what seemed a never ending cacophony of two and four cycle noise. Ginger was nonplussed, while STWD was shaking the whole time we sat across the street awaiting the chance to enjoy the park.

We returned to the manse and I mowed the vast lawns, pulled some weeds, edged the lawns and watered the veggies to complete my outdoor activities before I went to the movies. I also continued my great spider hunt.

Today, while my hip joint is still achy, I plan to begin my bike riding rehab stint with a two block ride and also do my homework exercises to increase my range of motion. Plus, some indoor chores, some soup making and a trip to the chiropractor to see if he can assist with my rehab activities are also in the cards. Mary derives great benefit from the chiropractic visits, so that is all good.

We have a current temperature of 63° under partly cloudy skies. I was out with Ginger around 2:00 a.m. Today's forecast from the NWS calls for a high temperature of 79° under partly cloudy skies with a chance of scattered showers in the evening. The sun will rise today @ 6:45 a.m. and set tonight @ 945 p.m. Ciao.

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

I hadn't planned to get up and blog, but Ginger had other plans. She and I were outside @ 2:50 a.m. and she did her duty. I guess if I had to get up and do my duty, why should I think that she wouldn't?

We made it to the P/T appointment yesterday and it went better than I expected. I learned or maybe relearned some things that I already knew. My flexibility is less than it should be and when coupled with my back surgery from several years ago, I had/have developed a stoop when I walk. As the chiropractor said to me recently, this world wasn't made for me or any tall person.

Our basement has a floor to joist height of about six feet, that like the space from the floor to the bottom of a car on a hoist is just about six inches too few for me. Almost everything in this world is built for that mythical six foot tall, 170-pound male. So, tall people like me, or shorter than average women are at a distinct disadvantage. The world was apparently built for most women like Mary, in other words, someone who is five feet six inches tall, perhaps with the exception of most kitchens and their cabinets, which are even too tall for me. I do like the nine-foot ceilings in the manse though.

But I digress. The therapist checked my various ranges of motion and told me that I didn't have the ability to move my left leg to the "neutral" position, with or without pain. My right leg does have that ability. So, the therapist prescribed an exercise that I can do at home to improve my range of motion and hopefully, relieve the source of my pain. Plus, I can begin to ride my bike again, something that I have sorely, no pun intended, missed. So, I'll start slowly with short rides and work up to longer distances as time goes by. As of now, it does not seem that there is an urgent need for any imaging until I can get my orthopedist to order a scan when I see him for my knee treatments later this month.

I don't know why I torture myself. I fell asleep listening to the Cubs once again lose a game to an inferior team, the San Francisco Giants, by a final score of 3 - 6. That loss still allowed the Cubs to remain in first place in the NL Central, 1.5 games ahead of the losing Brewers. But to suggest that a team that won over 100 games last year, the Cubs, can lose to any team, anytime, is being disingenuous. If the Tigers are a bad team, so too are the Giants and that makes them a team that the Cubs should defeat regularly, no excuses. The Cubs and the Giants play again today @ 3:45 p.m.

Speaking of the woeful Tigers, they once again lost to the Pirates, another bad, sub .500 team, by a score of 3 - 6. In this case, I have no expectations that the Tigers should be able to defeat the Pirates as the Pirates aren't as bad as the Tigers nor the Giants. Still, why should the Tigers be able to charge Major League money for a Minor League level game? Just saying. The 51 - 61 in the AL Central Tigers and the Pirates play again tonight @ 7:10 p.m.

My beloved Red Sox are once again playing good baseball. They defeated a team with a winning record in the same AL East division, the 3rd place Tampa Bay Rays, by a score of 2 - 0. Since the 2nd place Yankees fell to the less than stellar, last place Bluejays, the Sox now have a full four game lead over the Yankees. The Sox are not perfect, but they are at least a Major League caliber team. The Sox and the Rays play again tonight @ 7:10 p.m.

Since I was talking about minor-league baseball earlier, let me state that the West Michigan White Caps, AKA the "Caps", defeated the Lake, County, OH Captains yesterday in what was not a pitching duel, by a final score of 15 - 7. The Caps are the "A" level affiliate of the Tigers and so their success may bode good things for the Tigers in a few years. The Caps now have a 2nd-half record of 32 - 12  in the MWL East and are off today before they welcome the Great Lakes Loons, the "A" level affiliate of the Los Angelos Dodgers on Thursday @ 7:00 p.m.

I may or may not go to the theater to see Top Gun in all of its jingoistic glory this afternoon. Mary needs help on the index and I am willing to forego my attendance if she needs me to. However, on my birthday, August 30, I will be in the audience for Airplane, the movie, starring the late Leslie Nielsen. A chance to see one of my all time favorites on my birthday is just too good to pass up. In either case, a gigantic bucket of popcorn and a ginormous cherry-cola await.

I just had to include this clip from Top Gun to illustrate my point.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KPxDoFbsvWA

I made it to my drawing class last evening, and I like to think that I am improving. However, the chance to do something that is outside my normal activities is the best part of that activity.

I need to marshal my resources and mow the vast lawns of the Palatial Estate. Even in my less than perfect condition, and knowing that I can't hurt my hip any further, should allow me to accomplish that task. Then I can be off to the movies.

STWD is still doing fine and so we have dodged another bullet caused by her recent altercation.

I nearly forgot to mention the passing yesterday of one of my "Guitar Heroes", Glen Campbell. His ability to play placed him in the pantheon of the truly great players in history. Mary forwarded this You Tube clip of a performance that showcased his talents. Many other great players, such as the late Chet Atkins, were in the group to witness Campbell's virtuosity as he played what became his signature song, Gentle on My Mind, a song written by banjo virtuoso, the late John Hartford. Here is the link that Mary sent to me for your enjoyment.

https://youtu.be/ETkzK9pXMio

I guess that that old song by the Righteous Brothers, Rock and Roll Heaven about having a Helluva band, is truer than ever now. What the hey, here is a link to the Righteous Brothers performing that song.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5FHA1HqJoYg


We have a current temperature of 67° under partly cloudy skies. Today's high is forecast by the NWS to reach 78°, also under partly cloudy skies. The sun will rise @ 6:44 a.m. and set @ 8:55 p.m. Ciao.