Good morning or good evening, wherever you may be, across the nation and across the world. It is just past 5:45 a.m. in "The City." The current temperature is a very comfortable 62° under cloudy/rainy skies although it feels more like 60° with a wind out of the southwest @ 14 mph. That strong wind is the reason for our current Small Craft Advisory that is in effect from St. Joseph to Manistee until tomorrow morning @ 8:00 a.m. when it will be superseded by a Gale Watch that will remain in effect until sometime tomorrow night. 

The Small Craft Advisory will see wind speeds of 15 - 20 knots with gusts possible up to 30 knots and waves from 3 - 6 feet in height. The Gale Watch will have wind speeds of 20 - 25 knots and possible gusts also up to 30 knots. However, those wind speeds may produce wave heights up to 8 feet in height! The surf on the Third Coast is up!

Our high-temperature today will peak @ 63° before we drop to a more sprinter-like 38° overnight. My DTWS is displaying a current barometric pressure of 29.06" of Hg and rising, while the NWS is reporting 29.42" of Hg and falling. The sun will rise in a couple of hours @ 7:06 a.m. before setting @ 8:25 tonight. IN between there is a strong chance for showers/T-storms after 11:00 a.m. today.

Yesterday provided proof of my boast about my most recent apple pie. It was indeed my best yet! Flaky crust, a solid and just the right sweetness filling of Granny Smith apples made sweet by brown sugar, cinnamon, and nutmeg. Mary says that she can keep the apples coming if I can repeat the success of this pie.

Did I mention that Baseball is life! Well, if I didn't let me state for the record that it is indeed life itself, as it truly may be the one constant in life that remains pure and good through wars, recessions, inflation, and pandemics.

As proof, I cite the two dingers hit in Pittsburgh yesterday by the newest Cubs outfielder, Seiya Suzuki, to go with his lone weekend home run for a total of three. He now has eight RBIs in this young season, as the 3 - 1 Cubs defeated the 1 - 3 Pirates in Pittsburgh, 2 - 1 yesterday. 32 yo LHP Drew Smyly notched his first win as a Cub. Today's game begins @ 12:35 p.m. when RHP Kyle Hendricks goes for the Boys in blue!

Both of my other teams, the 2 - 3 Boston Red Sox and the 2 - 3 Detroit Tigers played each other yesterday and will play again today @ 1:10 p.m. EDT as RHP Nathan Eovaldi hurls for the Sox and LHP Eduardo Rodriguez, a former Red Sox pitcher, throws for the Tigers. 

I only took that short walkabout with STWD yesterday as Mary and Ginger traveled farther. However, while the Dynamic duo was out and about, I did some yard work and I was assisted by Mary upon her return. We decided that some time on our back patio was in order and I took along my trusty Olympus DSLR camera to record the sights to be found in our own backyard. I got some shots of the local flora and fauna while I was out.

A lone flower from the local flora.

 A bouquet of these nearby flowers.

Our own Stars of the Snow near our deck.

These daffodils were opening as we watched. 

Unlike today's skies, the clouds were scattered and the sky was, wait for it, Sky Blue!

One of the local denizens in the back-forty. The cutest dog on the planet!

Havenhenge survived the long winter months and the heavy snow cover.

Today, we have a spa appointment for Ginger this afternoon and I have some indoor chores and kitchen work to do too. Mary is happily cross-stitching and ear reading. Since it will be rainy today, staying inside and doing some indoor activities is a good choice. Ciao.