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

I was going to go a different direction with this blog and I might still. However, that depends on how my general blogging goes..

We have a current temperature of 30° that feels like 26° under cloudy skies. The NWS is forecasting this morning's low to reach an actual low temperature of 28° with light snow. Later today, after the sun rises @ 7:55 a.m., the high temperature will reach 39° before the sun sets @ 5:11 p.m. and the temperature drops to the overnight low of 29°. Saturday is the 27th annual Jingle Bell Parade sponsored by the Tri-Cities Chamber of Commerce, which is scheduled to step off  @  6:00 p.m., followed by the lighting of the Community Christmas Tree in Grand Haven's Central Park. However, there is also a 100% chance for rain on Saturday, so the parade and the tree lighting will be subject to possible inclement weather conditions.

Yesterday, Mary and I stopped off @ The Bookman to purchase our annual gift for the Loutit Library. This year we chose to buy two gift books. I've added a pic that Mary took with her Smartphone while we were at the store. Each book will include a dedication in our names so that future readers will know how these books became part of the Loutit collection. Mary's book choice is the story of an immigrant mother from Mexico and her daughter as they journeyed to the US In 1994. My choice, is a story of perseverance and believing in yourself.

Pictured on the left is the book that Mary chose, Dreamers, by Yuyi Morales. On the right is the book I chose, Elbow Grease, John Cena.

We didn't accomplish much yesterday. Mary did make it to the grocery store and I made her favorite vegan Italian meatballs. Several of those became part of our dinner.

Today, I have plans to do some coloring, do the crosswords and perhaps read and listen to more Christmas music. As I've said many times, Christmas is my favorite holiday. Naturally, I had to watch a movie on The Hallmark Channel last night. That was why I thought about changing the direction of my blog, but that is going to wait for another blog. Ciao.

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

I absolutely love the holiday season, especially now that I am retired. No schedule, most often no place to be at any specific time, and the chance to pursue activities that I never seemed to find time for when I was working full time. I guess that actually applies to all of the days of the year. What's not to like?

We have a current temperature of 28° as we drop to our overnight low of 26° before the sun rises @ 7:54 a.m. and before it sets nine hours and 20 minutes later @ 5:14 p.m.

We did it, we got our indoor Christmas decorations done yesterday. Well actually, I finished up the tree last night around 10:00 p.m. when I was in my office and noticed that I had forgotten to add my John Wayne and Chicago Cubs' World Series ornaments. I immediately took them down to complete the tree.

I had Mary take some pix of the tree when it was fully adorned yesterday. I love it and the pix, so much so, that I am going to add a series of those pix right now along with some additional ones that I took last night..

This is the ornament we got at the Holland Kerstmarkt.

And this is the tree-topper that we got on a trip to downtown Chicago's Cristkindlmarket several years ago.

The ornament that Adam and Steph brought to us from Germany

Mary's arrangement of Adam's trolley and station.

You just have to have a souvenir of places you've been.

Yours truly and the fur-children enjoying some rest after decorating,

We also accomplished some indoor chores for another week. It seems that there is a never ending supply of the mundane activities of life.

I stopped reading the Grisham book that I was reading. It started to gross me out, not unlike Stephen King's Cujo did many years ago. 

I spent some time using my pulley exerciser last night. That's when I noticed that I hadn't placed the ornaments that I added last night. I am trying to bring back some of the range of motion that I've lost as the pain in my shoulder causes me to self-limit. I have to keep at it several times each day, both before and after surgery. However, after the surgery, I won't be able to do anything for several weeks.

Today, not much is on tap. I promised Mary that I'd make more of her favorite vegan Italian meatballs today. I have no reason not to, so why not? Ciao.

Good morning or good evening, wherever you may be. It is just past 1:45 a.m. in "The City."

I had plans to go to bed after waking up in my chair in the media room. Ginger, and then later STWD, had other plans. I went downstairs with Ginger and then STWD followed, so that by 1:00 a.m., they had both had their final out for the night. Of course, by then, I was awake and so, here I am.

I got started on the indoor Christmas decorating yesterday with some help from Mary. We set up our new tree and adjusted the branches so that the tree looks quite natural, in an artificial tree sort of fashion. At this point in our lives, we are quite content with a tree that won't attract the attention of either of the fur-children. Plus, this tree is much taller than the one that is now part of our outdoor decorations. I'll finish hanging the ornaments later today after I get up late. Also today, I have to do more of those indoor chores that seem to be part and parcel to my days.

Yesterday, I thought that I'd miss at least one leg of the train run on the RSTL. I was wrong. At 8:52 a.m., I sprang from my bed to watch as MMRR EMD GP-38-2 locomotive @ 2025 passed by @ heading south towing one CHC, three, DBTCs, and two DWTCs. Later, @ 3:13 p.m., we had returned home fro mour various appointments and I espied that same locomotive heading north, towing five CHCs, two DBTCs, one DWTC, and one GTC.

By the by, I don't know how I missed it. Directly across from our house, the southbound train in the morning hit a car that was parked too near the tracks. The car was damaged and the train did not stop. Even the owner  of the car was unaware of the accident. The scene was caught on the video camera of a local business. 

I'd include a link to the video of the accident, from the Grand Haven Tribune web site, but I don't know if that is legal. However, if you are interested, go to YouTube™ and search for "Train hits car in Grand Haven, MI, 11/27/2018."

Also yesterday.

Mary tried that new recipe for hammish, and it was, to say the least, a grand failure. No taste without the glaze. Mary plans to keep the glaze recipe for other hammish recipes.

We made it to my orthopedist appointment and then lunch at the hospital. I learned that I needed to get a pulley system to increase the range of motion in my aching shoulder. We purchased one on the way home and I installed it earlier this-morning. I'll put it to use later this a.m.

We also stopped in at the grocery store in Spring Lake and got some purified water in refillable bottles for our humidifier. We won't have to be incessantly recycling gallon jugs anymore.

We picked up yesterday's edition of the Grand Haven Tribune while we were out, but I have not yet perused it. I am assuming that the train hitting the car will be in today's edition.

We have a current temperature of 28° that feels like 20° with the wind-chill. No precipitation is on tap until later tonight. We have received a dusting of snow over the last few hours. The sun will rise later this morning @ 7:53 a.m. and then set @ 5:12 p.m.

Otherwise, that's about it for today. I'll add some pix of our Christmas tree once I am done. Ciao.

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

No school closings are in the offing @ this early hour. That could change, but I doubt it. We have a current temperature of 29° that feels like 20° due to the prevailing 14 mph winds. In addition, there is a Small Craft Advisory in effect until 4:00 p.m. today that has been issued by the NWS. Winds on the "Big Lake" may reach 30 knots and wave-heights could be from 5' to 8'. Later today, after the sun rises @ 7:52 a.m. and before it sets @ 5:12, we should see a high temperature of 31°. There is a 50% chance for snow-showers later this morning.

We got up yesterday morning to see that the overnight snow had accumulated to about four inches of heavy, wet snow. I went down to clear the deck and found that our neighbors had indeed been neighborly. Our neighbors to the east, Ken and Dee, had cleared part of of our shared driveway, while our neighbor to the west, Ron, cleared our front porch and used his 2-stage snow thrower to clear the balance of our driveway. I did my best on the deck and the steps to help the fur-children navigate their way to the back-forty, but my aching left shoulder precluded much on my part.

Fortunately, I have a date late in December to have that shoulder surgically repaired and an appointment today to have my knee shots. At that time, I'll ask the orthopedist about the near constant ache in my shoulder and see if he can do something between the surgery date and now. Here's hoping.

Speaking of my shoulder, I am having trouble laying down barre chords on my guitars. I am experiencing weakness that makes playing those chords harder. There are some techniques I can do in the interim, but they are stop-gaps, not solutions. Sigh.

No trains yesterday, so I am expecting some today. Ginger and I may spot the morning run before Mary and I are off to the orthopedist, but I/we may not be here for the return run.

I had Mary take some pix yesterday to commemorate our first significant snowfall of the 2018-2019 winter season. The city crews performed admirably, but that meant that they had plowed in the end of our shared driveway. We didn't get any pix of that because we got up after they had been cleared by our neighbors.

Our front porch before the clearing by Ron.

The snow is part of living in West Michigan. Plows and piles will be part of our lives for a few months.

Our deck prior to my limited clearing efforts.

I didn't get to those indoor Christmas decorations yesterday, maybe today or tomorrow. I did get to some guitar playing and singing along with some reading and those are always a pleasure to me. However, the pain in my shoulder limited my playing time.

Today, that aforementioned orthopedist appointment and then the day is open. Otherwise, we have nothing specific planned except that Mary wants to finish a recipe that she started last night. I will continue my latest novel, The Reckoning, by John Grisham, in large-print format. Ciao.

Good morning or good evening, wherever you may be. It is just past 5:00 a.m. in "The City."

I've just finished reading an article by Bill McKibbon, an American environmentalist, in the New Yorker. His words are frightening and their meaning is clear. Even if human beings make a drastic change in our lifestyles, we are in deep doo-doo! Global Warming is not a hoax, it is a reality! But, we have a president and a party bought and paid for by the Fossil Fuel Industry and their paid lobbyists, that will give new meaning to the phrase "Do Nothing Congress."

What disturbs me the most it that these people believe that the problem can be solved by more spending or simply moving people from the coasts further inland or building houses up on stilts. Do they also plan to build roads on stilts too?

What that idea fails to take into account is that the cost of moving millions of people and the logistics involved, mitigate against that ever happening. Plus, the areas that we will have to abandon are located in some of the most fertile areas for food-production on this planet, for example, California, Florida, and the Mekong Delta in Vietnam. These people have children, grandchildren, and other loved ones. Yet, they will allow $$ to overrule common sense. I have a phrase that Mary and I use to encompass this phenomenon. It is "Rule #1", which translates to mean, "We are doomed." Sigh.

Am I getting too maudlin? I plan to live many more years, but the latest projections estimate that we have a scant 12 years to entirely stop the use of fossil-fuels in order to have any impact on our long-term future. What are the odds of that happening? Record breaking heat, record breaking wildfires, record breaking hurricanes, etc .are the harbingers of things to come and the people with the power to do anything are in pre-paid denial. Sigh.

We have a current temperature of 30° that feels like 18° due to the 17 mph winds that are part of Winter Storm Bruce that is pounding the middle of the US. Locally, we are under a Winter Weather Advisory that will dump 3' to 6' of heavy wet snow on our area that will cause hazardous driving conditions, and pose health risks to people shoveling snow. In addition, there is a Gale Warning in effect until 1:00 p.m. this afternoon from Holland to GH, that will produce 8' to 12 ' waves on the "Big Lake" this morning. Of course, that means that a Small Craft Advisory is also in effect and warranted.

I've been watching out the WW. (Weather Window) and I espied two of our city plow/salt trucks go by heading west on the one-way street on which we live. At our address, the street is one-way heading east. I've also seen several trucks heading east plowing the snow. The city will do their best, but as people take to the roads later this morning, well.

As of this writing, the Grand Haven Area Public Schools and Spring Lake Public Schools have announced the closing of all schools, as have districts north and west of GH, i.e., Muskegon, Mona Shores, Fruitport, Coopersville, and Grand Rapids. Lots of accidents are being reported on area roads and expressways. It looks like most of the schools in West Michigan will be closed today.

Worthy of note, is that the end of our shared driveway has now been plowed in. If we do nothing and the temperatures drop from today's high of 35° to below freezing, which they will, that heavy wet snow will freeze on sidewalks, at the end of the driveway, and on the roads making walking impossible and driving hazardous. Yes, we now have an AWD vehicle, but that is no guarantee. The sun will rise today @ 7:50 a.m. and set later @ 5:13 p.m.

Otherwise, not much is happening. Thankfully, we have no plans to go out today. We do plan to get to those indoor Christmas decorations and that's about it. The fur-children will have to make do on their tether in the back-forty. Ciao.

Good morning or good evening, wherever y9ou may be. it is just past 2:00 a.m. in "The City."

Where do I begin, to tell the story of...Oops, I was channeling the theme song from the movie, Love Story. When I was younger, it was a great date flick because it was both syrupy and sappy., the kind of movie guaranteed to get a date to snuggle against the nearest person, hopefully, me.

At any rate, I think it is time for all of us to have something or someone to cling to, something or someone to help us all feel better about the state of the world. I like to think that song lyrics can be found in just about any place. So maybe...

But I digress. We have a current temperature of 43° as we drop down to our overnight low of 38° before rising later today to the high temperature of 39°. That's about all the good news from the National Weather Service (NWS) for this morning. As the day progresses, we will see showers this morning, and then the weather forecast goes downhill from there. We had that Small Craft Warning in effect for the "Big Lake", but that expired @ 1:00 a.m. this morning.

Unfortunately, the NWS has updated their forecast for Ottawa County to include a Gale Warning from Holland to GH, that includes wind-speeds building from our current 16 mph/13 knots, to Gale Force wind-speeds of 35 knots and above! Those wind-speeds will be accompanied by wave-heights growing from 3' to 6' up to as high as 9' to 12' on the "Big Lake"! That warning will be in effect from 10 p.m. tonight until 7:00 a.m. Monday!

In between now and then, the forecast also calls for showers later this morning and then a deterioration to a Winter Weather Advisory and that Gale Warning. In this case, because of that Winter Weather Advisory, it seems that there is a chance for 3' to 5' of snow with a the possibility of 6' in some places. That snow will be heavy, wet, and slushy and naturally produce hazardous driving conditions for the return to work commute Monday morning. I'll be safely in bedas the sun rises today @ 7:49 a.m. and before it sets later @ 5:13 p.m.

Well, the college football g-ds were not able to give the Michigan Wolverines a win over the Ohio State Buckeyes. The Wolverines were crushed, 39 - 62, with the OSU QB tossing five TD passes and adding to his Big 10 record of 41! So much for the Wolverines playing for the Big 10 championship next week against the Wildcats of Northwestern. The Wildcats won their game over the Fighting Illini of Illinois, 24 - 16, to stay atop the Big 10 West. Instead, the Wildcats will play the Buckeyes next week in Indianapolis.

The Spartans of MSU tried to snatch defeat from the jaws of victory, but they outlasted the Scarlet Knights of Rutgers, 16 - 14. A bowl bid is up in the air as of this writing.

We made it to Holland yesterday in spite of the inclement weather. We had a short respite after visiting a store in Holland and buying a quart of Holiday Nog, after which we traveled to the Kerstmarkt across town to pick up a way-cool Christmas ornament that incorporates some hot-peppers and salt in a clear-glass ornament. It should look great on our new tree.

While we were @ the Kerstmarkt, Mary used our camera to take some pix of the market and its surroundings. Here are some of those pix in no particular order.

A nice assortment at the booth where we got our new ornament.

I think that Mary just liked the weaving.

Looking east from the Kerstmarkt towards downtown Holland, MI

Lest you think that I forgot, I finished the outdoor Christmas decorations yesterday. Mary took some pix of the outcome of my efforts.

Looking eat from the PE.

Looking west from the PE.

We tried a combination of the methods that Mary and I thought would secure our Santa Claus banner to our flag pole. So far, they seem to be working.

Today, we should be able to get in the morning walks with the fur-children and then settle in to do some indoor decorating and reading. Mary has a plan to make a vegan meatloaf for one of our meals. If we get up late, brunch.

No pro football for me today and that's OK. Ciao.

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

We just got started on our Christmas decorations, so no pix, yet. However, we have gathered all of the necessary items to complete our outdoor decorating and so it is nearly done. I/we just have to interlace the garland we purchased at the big-box home center yesterday and add the red-ribbon bows and we are set to go. I should note that we have to find a way to stop our Santa Claus banner from blowing off of our flag pole. He is not alone. This seems to be a problem that happens with all of our seasonal banners. Mary has a good idea, so we'll try that today.

We are currently planning to go to Holland to check out their Kerstmarkt today. This market is similar to the Christkindlmarket held each year in Daley Plaza in downtown Chicago, just much closer to home. Wares of the season will be available for purchase. I'm hoping for a new and unique ornament for our new tree. Plus, while we are in Holland, I plan to look for some vegan eggnog. Apparently it is not something our local stores stock.

Right now, I am listening to iHeart™ radio and their Christmas Classics™ channel. I am now openly allowed to do that as it is after Thanksgiving. I love the old sounds of Andy Williams, The Carpenters, Nat King Cole, Johnny Mathis, Dean Martin, Frank Sinatra and even Elvis. What can I say, I am a sucker for the holiday season.

Today, the #4 in the BCS, Big 10 East leading, Wolverines of Michigan, travel to Ohio State to meet the #10 in the BCS, 2nd in the Big 10 East Buckeyes, @ 12:00 p.m. If all goes well the Wolverines will win today's game and then face the top team from the Big 10 East on December 1, in Indianapolis. The Wolverines opponent would be the #1 team in the Big 10 East, the Wildcats of Northwestern.

The Spartans of MSU close out a disappointing 2018 season against the visiting Scarlet Knights of Rutgers. The Spartans have closed out their season for the past two-decades against the Nittany Lions of Penn State. However, the college football decision makers have decreed that the Spartans will close out their next five seasons against either the Terrapins of Maryland, or the Scarlet Knights of Rutgers. I guess it is about TV ratings.

We have a current temperature of 46° that feels more like 41° due to the wind-chill factor. In addition, once again, there is a Small Craft Advisory on the "Big Lake" issued by the NWS. Wind-speeds of 20 - 30 knots are in that forecast as wave-heights build from 3 to 6 feet here in GH and 6 to 8 feet north of here.

We have little else planned for today. The usual walk with the fur-children and that aforementioned trip to Holland. The sun will rise @ 7:48 a.m. and set later @ 5:14 p.m. Ciao.

Good morning or good evening, wherever you may be. It was just past 12:30 a.m. in "The City." However, below, I have an update as of 6:30 a.m.

Well, another Thanksgiving Day has come and gone. But that doesn't mean that it's gone from our hearts.

Mary and I celebrated a vegan Thanksgiving Day with, to borrow a phrase, "All the trimmings!"
As you may recall, we started our preparations on Wednesday with the making of two types of vegetable broth, one for the vegan roast that Mary made in lieu a of a turkey and the other for her dressing and gravy.

All in all, we ended up with about six quarts of broth.

Each of those aforementioned dishes had no written recipe, they came straight from Mary's heart and into my stomach, but not before Mary prepared a pre-meal snack of vegan cheeses, crackers, pickles, and vegan pepperoni.

I may appear to be staring into space, but I am watching what seemed to be an endless pre-game warmup-up for rhe football game between the Lions and the Bears. The Bears, behind backup QB Chase Daniel, won the game 23 - 16.

I should mention that we had a piece of the pumpkin pie that I made Wednesday as our pre-meal snack/breakfast. True to Mary's prediction, it tasted great.

I think the best way to start the tale of our actual vegan Thanksgiving Day is to add some pix of the preparations, the meal itself, and the usual Thanksgiving Day leftovers that every family seems to have. Of course, I'd be remiss if I didn't also remind everyone of their usual post-meal moans and groans about eating too much. Frankly Scarlet...

The recipe for our vegan roast and its broth, came from a cookbook that Adam and Steph gave me for Father's Day, entitled Field Roast: 101 Artisan Vegan Meat Recipes to Cook, Share, and Savor. The recipe for the special broth was named Mushroom & Herb Stock, while the recipe for the roast was called, surprise, Mushroom & Herb Roast.

Along with the special vegetable broth, there were numerous other ingredients that Mary chopped and blended into the final product.

The roast was wrapped in cheesecloth and then tied up before being boiled/simmered and then oven roasted.

What would a Thanksgiving meal be without dressing, which starts with sauteed mushrooms following a recipe known but to Mary.

Broth, homemade croutons and those sauteed vegetables made a very tasty dressing.

You simply must have mushroom gravy to top the dressing and the roast. Mary has a secret recipe that utilized more chopped vegetables, mushrooms, and spices.

Our potatoes departed from the traditional Thanksgiving potato dish of mashed potatoes. Instead, Mary followed a recipe from The Mediterranean Vegan Kitchen cookbook for Herbed Scalloped Potatoes, Provencal Style. The potatoes came from the vast gardens of the Palatial Estate. I peeled and sliced those without further incident.

Here is the meal in place on the dining room table. I had to wait for this picture to be taken before I could "Dig in."

We ate way too much and we still have leftovers that will last for many more meals. If you look on the left side of this pic, you'll see the biscuits that Mary made from a recipe found in a cookbook entitled Vegan Diner.

Somehow, we missed taking a picture of the green bean casserole that Mary veganized. This recipe was adapted from a cookbook entitled Better Homes & Gardens: All-Time Favorite Casserole Recipes, copyright 1977. Plus, there was one thing on our table that didn't come from a cookbook. That was my favorite Thanksgiving Day side dish, Ocean Spray Jellied Cranberry Sauce©.

 

As Mary would be quick to remind, a sauce is usually more liquid than solid and is meant to be poured over something. This Jellied Cranberry Sauce does not fit that description, but I don't care.

We have a current temperature of 30° with a Small Craft Advisoryin effect until 7:00 a.m. today. Wind-speeds of 30 knots and 2' - 5' waves are expected on the "Big Lake."  The sn will rise today @ 7:47 a.m. and set later this evening @ 5:14 p.m.

Today, we hope to stay in and stay out of trouble. We will take a walk with the fur-children and that's about it. My shoulder is aching more each day and so I am limited in my ability to do much of anything. Hmmm, this looks like a good place to insert part of my addendum.

I went downstairs around 5:15 a.m. to let Ginger out and discovered that our Thanksgiving Day extravaganza had produced a huge load in the dishwasher. I proceeded to empty that appliance and then I tackled the sundry pots, pans, and casseroles that had helped us to enjoy our day. I finished washing and drying those around 6:00 a.m., but by then. STWD had arrived, so I made her go out too.

You can say with near certainty that when you have used most of the flatware and stirring/mixing utensils in the drawers, washed some of the dishes several times, and scrubbed the stove-top and the sink until they once again sparkle, that you had a great holiday meal. With all sincerity I can say, like that girl in the old Shake and Bake©™ commercial that I sure enjoyed the meal immensely, but that, "I helped!"

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BhUTboHTrO4

However, now that Thanksgiving is over, I can get to one of my little pleasures in life, decorating the house for Christmas. I'll start indoors, but I will likely get to the outdoor decorating on Monday, as the NWS is forecasting rain on Saturday morning and also on Sunday. That's OK, because I'm retired. I will do a little each day and after a few days, I'll be done.

A special aside. Mary loves to chop, cook, and be in the kitchen. She is far better in the kitchen than I, and way far better than my mother or her mother. I am genuilely glad that Mary's recipes are not passed down through the generations.
 

Prior to eating our repast, we gave thanks to people who made Thanksgiving meals special for many years, like my late maternal grandmother, Nane. However, what is most important is that Mary does what she does out of love, certainly for yours truly, but also for the sheer joy that comes from loving the simple things in life. She is secure in who she is and so she doesn't worry about traditional female/male roles. She just does what she likes to do and doesn't judge others for who they are or what they like to do. I think that's one of the many reasons that I fell in love with her over 45 years ago!

 

So my gentle readers, that concludes this update and so I'll say as I always do, Ciao.

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

We had a marvelous day yesterday, unless you count my trying to peel my thumbnail while peeling carrots. I had undertaken that task as part of the preparation for the vegetable broth that Mary will be incorporating into the vegan roast for our Thanksgiving dinner. No real damage, at least nothing that time won't cure.

At any rate, it all began yesterday with some serious planning and purchasing. Here is a pic of the cookbooks and the shopping list involved in the meal planning.

This was not an easy plan to conceive nor carry out.

Speaking of my carrot peeling, here is a pic of the broth that took the best part of four Mason jars to hold. .

It smells even better than it looks!

I also made a pumpkin pie, however, I inadvertently left out one of the ingredients. Mary assures me that although it looks a bit strange/weird, it tastes just fine.

I'd never tried this recipe before.

Since we had the oven on for the pie we also use it to complete one step in making that broth. Plus, used the oven to bake homemade croutons for Mary's dressing.

I had to ask the question, "Why do we need to dry the croutons before we soak them again?"

As we were already hard at work in the kitchen, we also brewed some additional broth for other parts of the meal. It is in the slow-cooker now and will probably be there overnight. Once again, the smell of food cooking is much better than those artificial air fresheners of which everyone seem so fond.

I got to spot both parts of the train runs on the RSTL yesterday. At 9:30 a.m., MMRR locomotive # 2025 was espied heading south, towing one, CHC, 17 DBTCs, one GTC, and four DWTCs.

Later @ 12:00 p.m., that same locomotive was seen heading north towing four CHCs, three DBTCs, and two DWTCs.

We have a current temperature of 25° that feels like 16° according to my handy-dandy wind-chill chart. That's because the wind is blowing steadily @ 10 mph! The NWS has forecast that the overnight low will be 22°, regardless of the wind. Today's high will reach 32°, but with the wind-speed reaching 11 mph, the wind-chill will be around 19°. The sun will rise today @ 7:46 a.m. and set later @ 5:15 p.m.

I hope that everyone gives thanks to the members of the military stationed around the world, helping to keep us safe. Many will have to enjoy their Thanksgiving dinners in mess-halls or tents. Also, be sure to give thanks to the people who help make today a pleasant day for all of us, people like public-safety personnel, doctors and nurses, and anyone who makes our way of life what it is. Be sure to say thanks to all of those that you hold dear too.

Today, I'll be watching football and assisting as needed in the preparation of our vegan Thanksgiving feast. Proper planning and preparation for any meal makes that meal more enjoyable for all involved. As an example, Mary couldn't decide what to make for dinner last night, so I suggested that she use some of the left-over vermicelli noodles, add some tuna and peas, and fortify the dish with some additional ingredients, She took it from there and it was delicious.

Our lunch was the remainder of the stir-fry I'd made the other day, augmented by the addition of some leeks and tamari. It too was great.

That looks like enough for now. Ciao.

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

Here is a first for an early morning. I got up around 2:45 a.m. and Ginger wasn't there. She was downstairs with Mary who let her out around 3:00 a.m. Of course, I was at my desk doing some things, so when Mary came up, Ginger had to drop in get one of the treats that I keep in my drawer. Then she joined Mary in the bedroom. She can be so predictable

We have a current temperature of 36° under cloudy-skies, that due to the 18 mph winds, feels like 26°! According the Windchill Chart supplied by the NWS, when our overnight low drops to an actual 26°, it will feel more like 11°! In addition, there is another Small Craft Warning in effect for the "Big Lake" until 5:00 p.m. today. Wind-speeds will be from 15 - 25 knots, and wave heights will be from 4 - 7 feet! The sun will rise this morning @ 7:43 and set later this evening @ 5:16 p.m. In between, the morning hours will be cloudy, while the afternoon hours will be sunny.

If you are the type of person who likes to look ahead, the NWS is predicting that the high temperature of 33° on Thanksgiving could be one of the lowest on record.

Once again, I am looking forward to Thanksgiving, as the day after may be Black Friday for merchants, you know, that day when they make a boatload of sales/profits. However for me, it is my first opportunity to start decorating for the Christmas season. I'd start sooner, but Mary has a rule about finishing one holiday before readying decorations for the next. So, I have to wait until Thanksgiving is over. Sigh.

Today, I am trying a new recipe for vegan pumpkin-pie. This requires my making and then pre-baking a pie crust before filling it with the pumpkin filling and finishing the pie. While I am doing that, Mary will be making vegetable broth of two types for her own Thanksgiving dressing and vegan roast. On Thanksgiving, I'll be available for assistance, but mostly to sit and watch her work before we consume our own dinner in the later afternoon. Since the Lions and the Bears are on TV from 12:00 p.m. until about 3:00 p.m. Thursday, I can't be expected to be on-call during that time period.

Yesterday was another visit to the orthopedist for my knees and a visit to the salad-bar in the hospital cafeteria for Mary and me. They had good old-fashioned Iceberg lettuce available, versus one of the kale blends that they sometimes favor. Along with the beets, peaches, and other toppings, we loved it.

Speaking of lettuce, the CDC, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, has issued a warning about E. coli in Romaine lettuce. They recommend that anyone who has this lettuce variety on hand should toss it out and save lives. The CDC is unable, as yet, to determine the source of the E. coli, so they are erring on the side of safety and asking consumers and restaurants to not serve Romaine lettuce. In fact, they are urging consumers and restaurants to properly clean refrigerator surfaces where the lettuce has been stored. If you don't know if your lettuce is safe, follow a "When in doubt, throw it out" philosophy.

We made a trip to the big-box nearly everything store yesterday, where we got nearly everything on our list. But, some of the things that Mary needs/wants for her dressing and roast were sold out. She plans to visit our regular grocery store today to see if they have any. Plus, she will be stopping by Health Hutt for some vegan eggnog for me. and while there, she also plans to get some dark-brown sugar for future my baking needs.

So, that's about it for today. We need to walk the fur-children, short walks most likely, and then settle in to do those cooking/baking things I referenced earlier. I still haven't read yesterday's edition of the Grand Haven Tribune nor worked the crossword and I'll be picking up today's edition while I am out with STWD. So, I will be busy all afternoon. Ciao.

Good morning or good evening, wherever you may be. It is just past 5:00 a.m. in The City."

I got up around 3:00 a.m. and let the fur-children out. Ginger was asking and STWD was just downstairs when I went down with Ginger, so out she went too.

I did the few dishes in the sink, the remnants of a very fine dinner that I'd asked Mary to make, her world-famous Spaghetti Role Casserole. We had been out to get some bread @ The Village Baker for the sumptuous Thanksgiving extravaganza that she will be crafting, along with some things at the drugstore in Spring Lake. Then we made a stop @ Stan's, where it was another of their Sunday Fun-Day afternoons. Since the woeful Lions aren't playing until Thursday, I think that the people were in more of a party mood. Country music was combined with 70s and 80s music, the kind that fits the regular crowd @ Stan's, all spun by a local DJ.

Home to feed the girls and allow Mary time to craft dinner. She had to alter the recipe slightly due to the supplies she had on hand, but I think that it was one of her best. She did use more of those dehydrates onios that we got the other day and I think that was a plus. Just one man's opinion.

She reminded me that her grocery store plans are for today, not yesterday. I believe that she has to make stops @ both the regular grocery and also @ that big-box nearly everything store. Will I be going along? I dunno.

We have plans today to plant those tulip bulbs we picked up the other day and also to transplant the mum plant from its pot on the front-porch to a new permanent location. That will be the extent of my outdoor activities today.

Yesterday, we did some indoor chores and those went well. We worked around the walking schedule for the fur-children and also around the solving of the crossword puzzle from the Grand Haven Tribune weekend edition, which is now $1.50. That price gives you access to a thin newspaper surrounding numerous ads.

We have a current temperature of 34° under clear-skies. Today's high will reach 38° with snow showers developing in the later afternoon. I'll encourage Mary to assist me with the placement of the tulip bulbs and the mum and get to the stores before the snow begins to fall.

The sun will rise this morning @ 7:42 a.m. and set later @ 5:17 p.m. In between, the NWS has issued another Small Craft Warning for the "Big Lake", from 9:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m., with 15 to 20 knot winds and waves of from 3 to 5 feet in height. I think our new Jeep Renegade™ will pull us through.

Otherwise, I plan to make more of Mary's favorite vegan Italian meatballs, read, and maybe get to that tree topper I mentioned in my last blog. That looks like enough for another day in paradise.

A sad side-note. I forgot to mention that Roy Clark one of the finest guitar players that has ever been, died on November 15 @ the age of 85. He could flat out pick the guitar and banjo, and was also proficient on drums, the piano the trumpet and trombone, along with delivering great vocal performances. I thought that it would be appropriate to include one of Clark's songs, Yesterday When I Was Young, that Clark recorded in 1964. Coincidentally, it is said the he performed this song @  the funeral of baseball great Mickey Mantle, @ Mickey's request. This is another of my favorites from YouTube™.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8xNbtnQb31c

Ciao.

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

The NWS shows a local temperature of 31° under cloudy-skies. Today, the high temperature will reach 36° under cloudy-skies in the morning and sunny skies in the afternoon. The sun will rise @ 7:41 a.m.and set later @ 5:18 p.m.

College football yesterday was a bust for the Spartans of MSU, as they fell to the Cornhuskers of Nebraska, 6 - 9. The Spartans finish up their regular season next week when they welcome the Scarlet Knights of Rutgers beginning @ 4:00 p.m. Is a bowl bid in their future? Somehow, I doubt it.

The Wolverines of Michigan dispatched the Hoosiers of Indiana yesterday, 31 - 20, in a game that saw far too much dirty play on the part of the Hoosiers. Running back Braylon Edwards was targeted by a Hoosier player who was thrown out of the game. Edwards suffered a severe concussion, but he should be OK pending further testing.

In addition, defensive end, Chase Winovich, was down on the turf when an Indiana player jumped on him and exacerbated the injury to Winovich's shoulder. Winovich has been the heart and soul of the Michigan defense all season after deciding to return this season rather than join the NFL. The Wolverines play the Buckeyes of Ohio State next Saturday @ 12:00 p.m.

In baseball news, Javier Baez of the Cubs finished 2nd in the NL MVP contest, behind Christian Yelich of the Milwaukee Brewers.

I had a great time at our well-attended Irish Jam session yesterday. Lots of players and a good sized audience. Did I mention that that extended session played havoc with my own aching shoulder?

While I was jamming, Mary was learning more about taking pictures with her Macro Lens at the Camera Shop in Muskegon. She then proceeded to Hemlock Crossing County Park and learned about sand and other things. While she was there, she took some fabulous pix of sand, flowers, and believe it or not, water on some of those plants. In close-up detail, the shots look great. I've chosen a few of her pix to give a flavor of what can be done with diligence, patience, a god eye, and the right equipment. Don't forget, if you click on any pic, they get much larger.

I just like this one.

I like how the background takes a backseat to the leaves of the plant.

Sky through the mostly leafless trees.

No real need for a caption. Just notice how the water is beading on the leaves.

Details, details.

Likewise on the water beading.

Sand in close-up detail.

Thousands of years of wind, rain and sun turn rocks like these into sand.

Today, Mary plans to do her Thanksgiving grocery shopping. She has been diligently making a list and checking it twice to be sure that her menu planning will include all of the necessary ingredients for a scrumptious vegan Thanksgiving feast. As long as I get Ocean Spray™ jellied cranberry sauce, everything will be fine. However, I believe that she also plans to have dressing, green beans, smashed potatoes and mushroom gravy, biscuits, and of course, a vegan roast. I can hardly wait.

Today, I have some work to do in the creation of a tree-topper for our outdoor Christmas tree. I have some ideas, but I'm not sure how they will turn out. Only time will tell. If my ideas don't work, Mary has some ribbon to make a bow for the tree. That's all folks. Ciao.

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

I shall attempt to keep this blog brief. Whether I am successful or not depends on my ability to be succinct.

I made another stir-fry yesterday, but it was not up to my usual standards. The tofu was too thick, there wasn't enough tamari, and I forgot to add the onions. It was tasty, but pedestrian. Oh well, better luck next time as the pundits are wont to say.

We have a current temperature of 37° under cloudy-skies, which will continue into the daylight hours. Today's high will also be 37° under cloudy-skies with a 55% to 65% chance for snow-showers until 9:00 a.m. The sun will rise before then @ 7:39 a.m. and set this evening @ 6:19 p.m.

In between, Mary has a camera class in Muskegon from 12:00 p.m. to 1:00 p.m., while I have my regular monthly Irish Jam session at the library from 1:00 p.m. until 3:00 p.m. I am hoping that the warmer temperatures will make my short walk to the library safer on clear sidewalks.

We got out yesterday for walks with the fur-children, but although STWD and I made it to The Bookman, she came away unrequited treat-wise, as they were busy getting ready for the annual City of Grand Haven Night Light. Each year, the merchants in our city turn on the Christmas lights and other eye-catching displays along Washington Ave. Our local radio station, WGHN, plays seasonal music and hot-chocolate and freshly-roasted chestnuts offer a warm reprieve from the chill. We are too old to take in this event, preferring to stay in and warm with our memories.

Today, the MSU Spartans travel to Nebraska to play the Cornhuskers @ 12:00 p.m. The Spartans ae favored by only two-points against a not very good Cornhusker's squad. The Spartans are also coming off a 6 - 26 loss to the Buckeyes of Ohio State last week. The Spartans have an overall record of 6 - 4 and a record in the Big 10 of 4 0 3. Their bowl chances don't look good this season.

The Wolverines of Michigan are home this week against the Hoosiers of Indiana @ 4:00 p.m. Last week, the Wolverines crushed the Scarlet Knights of Rutgers, 42 - 7. The Wolverines have an overall record of 9 - 1 and 7 - 0 in the Big 10. Their bowl chances look excellent this season as their only loss was to the Fighting Irish of Notre Dame in game one, 17 - 24. The Irish have an overall record of 9 - 0. Since that first game, the Wolverines, under head coach, Jim Harbaugh, have been unstoppable.

The Huskies of Northern Illinois University tee it up Tuesday night @ 7:00 p.m. against the Broncos of Western Michigan. The Huskies have an overall record of 7 - 4 and are 6 - 1 in the Mid-American West Conference. while the Broncos have an overall record of 6 - 5 and a Mid-American West Conference record of 4 - 3. .

So that looks like a wrap as they say in the movie business. Ciao.

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

We have slick roads and a current temperature of 37° that will drop to our overnight low of 36° before the sun rises @ 7:38 a.m. and well before it sets @ 5:20 p.m. In between, there is a Winter Weather Advisory in effect until 10:00 a.m. this morning. Snow has tapered off for now, but will return in earnest between 5:00 a.m. and 10:00 a.m., adding to those slick road/hazardous driving conditions.

In addition, once again there is a Small Craft Advisory in effect until 1:00 a.m. Saturday. Current winds of 15 - 25 knots will build overnight to 30 knots producing waves on the "Big Lake", Lake Michigan, of four to eight feet! Sadly, the people on the East Coast did not escape the bad weather and the storm out there has produced traffic gridlock in New York, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania. Traffic on the turnpikes was at a standstill and so far, eight people have died due to accidents on the slick roads!

Sometimes, it would be great to be like these children from the African country of Eritrea, as they experience snow for the first time. Here they are in a clip from Twitter©. Hope you appreciate their glee as much as I did.

https://twitter.com/i/status/1061259750598434816

It is tough to go on with that disaster weighing on my mind, especially when you couple that disaster with the wildfires plaguing the West Coast. Over 60 people are known dead and there are many more missing. Over 9,000 firefighters are battling the blazes that are of undetermined cause. However, the drought-conditions have caused the ground to draw moisture out of the air, making the battle even more difficult.

It appears that we didn't buy a new AWD (All Wheel Drive) Jeep Renegade™ any too soon. What was supposed to be a mild winter has begun in earnest in November and may continue until March of next year! Adam decided that he needed a larger vehicle to replace his Mini Cooper, so he went out yesterday and bought a Jeep Renegade™ with all of the bells and whistles. He described the process of buying the car as a prime example of the "Hurry up and wait" syndrome that is common to the military. In that case, a soldier is ordered to go from point A to point B with all due speed, and then sit and wait for hours for additional orders. In the case of buying a car, one thing leads to another and another and so on.

I am currently listening to Coast to Coast AM as the host, George Noory, speaks to his guest, Christian Wilde, regarding the health benefits of turmeric, a commonly used spice in scrambled tofu, on roasted vegetables, on rice, and in soups. Turmeric contains curcumin and gives yellow rice its color. It is also used in making mustard.and giving that condiment its yellow color. Worthy of note is that the human body has a difficult time absorbing curcumin. Health benefits include lowering blood pressure, reducing the risk of heart-disease, treating cancer and arthritis, along with the possibility of treating Alzheimer's Disease. In short, turmeric is a powerful anti-oxidant that can be an effective anti-depressant. Who knew?

Speaking of cooking, I made more of my soy-curl jerky yesterday along with a variation on my vegan sausage recipe. In the case of the sausages, I substituted sage for the paprika and oregano and used a generous amount of re-hydrated onions in place of half the regular, one-cup of red beans. We had some of those sausages for dinner along with a salad dressed with an oil and vinegar homemade dressing that Mary wanted to try. I liked both. Here is a pic of our dinner.

For Adam, the 50s group, The Kingston Trio, had a song titled MTA aboout a man who never returned. Here is a version of that song from YouTube™. I think it applies to car buying too.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MbtkL5_f6-4&list=RDMbtkL5_f6-4&start_radio=1

Ciao.

Good morning or good evening, wherever you may be. It is just past 3:45 a.m. in "The City.

This may sound/read like many of my previous blogs, but once again, I was sleeping blissfully when I was awakened by Ginger asking to go out. I went downstairs with her and she did her duty. I waited for STWD to arrive, but she was not coming down to join us. Ginger went unrequited in her desire for a midnight snack and so we came upstairs after I emptied the dishwasher and did the dinner dishes. Dinner was another of Mary's specialties, bean enchiladas. Is it possible to have more than one thing as a specialty? I dunno, but I liked the enchiladas all the asme.

I wanted to go on a road trip to take some pix of industrial sites, so we set out to go east towards Coopersville, MI, a small farming village originally incorporated in 1871. As the small village grew, the City Council decided to chang the village's designation from a village to a home rule city, approved by the electorate in 1966. Thus, the City of Coopersville, MI was born.

We traveled east and finally stopped in the parking lot of a local, yet nationally franchised store, across from a huge industrial plant that seems out of place in this rural setting.

These stores are located throughout Michigan and across the USA!

Returning to why we were on our road-trip, I got out the camera and utilized two lenses, my zoom and my telephoto, to take pix of things that I found interesting.

I took this photo of a garden-tractor in the parking lot that will be unwanted until next spring.

I thought that this tractor looked devilish from the angle I was shooting.

I think that I captured the industrial and the natural perefectly.

Here too.

This plant seems out of place in this rural setting.

Once I had sated my desires for industrial pix, we set out to continue our journey to Coopersville's "Downtown." We hadn't originally planned to stop at Across the Tracks, the store that specializes in foodstuffs that are going out of date or which are in an overstock level of supply. However, we did stop and we found another package of dehydrated inions that sell for upwards of $26.00 on that internet purveyor of almost everything. We got a same-size package for $7.00! Being dehydrated, the onions last virtually forever. We use the onions in many recipes, including my famous vegan Italian meatballs and Mary's also famous vegan pizza.

An amazing little store.

Since we were in Coopersville, famous for the Coopersville and Marne railroad and the annual Del Shannon Car Show, we had to take some pix of the rolling stock of what is now a railroad that caters primarily to tourists.

These two coaches hearken back to the days when this railroad served passengers daily in West, MI.

The rolling-stock is "maintained" by volunteers from the area.

Diesel and steam locomotives.

 As a memorial of our visit, I took this shot of the Coopersville Hardware and Feed store.

Along with this pic of the local Clock Tower.

Yes, it was just past 3:30 p.m. on a crisp fall day.

A final pic from Coopersville was taken by Mary to memorialize the first "Road Trip" taken by our new car, Renee, nee Rene, a perfect female name for a bright green car.

Mary framed this shot perfectly, capturing one of the rail-cars of the Coopersville and Marne Railroad.

Time to head towards home, including a stop in Spring Lake for adult libations at Stan's. Since the flowers that we grow in the vast gardens of the "Palatial Estate" are currently on hiatus, Mary had to go across the street and buy some flowers for our "Flower Room." A visit to the Spring Lake Florist and she was set to go. She arranged the flowers, twice, then placed them on the table in our flower room and then took this pic.

Hydrangeas surround the lone Gerbera daisy. in the arrangement.

We have a current temperature of 26° under clear-skies as we drop to the overnight low of 24°! Later today, the skies will remain clear as we top out @ 35° with a 60% chance for snow-showers in the late afternoon/evening. The sun will have risen by then @ 7:37 a.m. and it will set @ 5:20 p.m.

We should be able to get out for a walk with the fur-children today as we didn't go yesterday due to the ice-covered sidewalks. We have no specific plans today as we accomplished our indoor chores yesterday before setting out on our photo trip. We still need to get to the final organization of the spice cabinets, but if we don't, there is always another day. Ciao.