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

There is no joy in Beantown nor in GH, as my beloved Red Sox fell to the Cleveland Indians by a final score of 4 - 5 last night. Red Sox starting pitcher Rick Porcello was not on his game and the Indians had his number as baseballs were leaving the yard, as though drawn to the outfield seats like moths to a flame. We'll get them today @ 4:00 p.m. EDT.

Earlier yesterday, the Blue Jays handily dispatched the Rangers by a lopsided score of 10 - 1. Rangers' ace Cole Hamels was definitely not on his game as the Blue Jays could do no wrong. Game two today @ 1:00 p.m.EDT.

The first game of the NL post-season series between the Dodgers and the Nats is later today @ 5:30 p.m. EDT. I'm rooting for the Dodgers just because.

Finally, the Cubs return to post-season action tonight against the Giants as they open their post-season play @ 9:00 p.m. EDT. As a Die-Hard and long-time Cubs fan, I have just one wish.

Yesterday was a mostly quiet day here at the PE. No trains, a walk with STWD, and rainy weather that kept me indoors reading. I never played with the girls so as not to disturb Mary's work. I sing and play too loud for her to concentrate. The index goes out today and then I can get back to my regular schedule after assisting in the final editing. I did manage to finish a large-print novel in about three hours.

Mary has been taking early morning walks without me and the intrepid one so that she can put in a full day of indexing. I get up and stumble through the morning rituals in my usual slow and steady fashion. Not that I am literally slow, but she is all the way downtown and back before I have even focused my eyes. Sugar is ambivalent. She likes to have both of us together on the morning safari, but she can also be easily persuaded to take it easy. She will also be disappointed that she will be done with the morning pill ritual for her insect bite. I have been using almond butter to disguise the pill. Sometimes I wonder if she is like my grandmother's old dog who only ate cooked ground sirloin,

We do have a chiropractor's appointment later this afternoon. I think I've been spending too much time in our Michigan basement with its low ceiling height. I have to mostly walk around in a bent over fashion down under, as the ceiling is about six feet and I am about six feet four inches tall. I am going to ask the doctor to give me a good working over.

We have a current temperature of 67° under cloudy skies. The NWS has forecast that there may or may not be T-storms right about now, but I have neither seen nor heard any evidence of them. STWD is sleeping soundly next to the bed, so I am going with her forecast. The NWS has also forecast today's high will be 68° with a 50% chance of showers off and on throughout the day. This being GH, who knows.

The trains may or may not pass by too. They generally run on Mondays and Wednesdays, but Fridays may or may not be on their schedule. I guess I'll know later.

The sun will rise today @ 7:49 a.m. and set @ 7:14 p.m. Ciao.

Good morning or good evening, wherever you may be. It is just past 6:30 a.m. in "The City."

I really am going to make this blog short so that I can finish before the sun rises @ 7:48 a.m. That same sun will set later today @ 7:16 p.m.

The NWS is forecasting a 50% chance of T-storms for later today, so naturally, the skies will be cloudy all day. Ye Hah! Our high temperature is also forecast to be 76° too.

Good news for those of you who are Cubs' fans and not Mets' fans. The Giants defeated the Mets last night in the NL Wild Card game by a final score of 3 - 0. The Giants come to Wrigley field Friday for the first game of their playoff series.

Tonight, my beloved Red Sox travel to Cleveland fort their first playoff game. The Blue Jays also travel, in their case to Texas, to face the Rangers.

Trainspotting yesterday was very fulfilling. At 10:10 a.m., locomotives 2019 and 2057 motored through our fair city at a relatively high rate of speed for the RSTL. In tow were 11 CHCs, two DBTCs, one GTC, and four DWTCs.

Later @4:20 p.m., the same locomotives rolled through, but I only know that they went through, I don't know about what type nor how many cars were in tow.

Why so you ask? Because Mary and I had just arrived @ Sporty's for some adult libations after my solo visit to the book club. I must note that my pie, pictured below, was a smash hit drawing rave reviews from everyone in the club.



Of course, now, the pie plate is empty. So you'll have to accept my opinion. I did save a piece for Mary and she too pronounced it super.

Speaking of super, before I left for the book club, I made a version of Coleslaw for lunch that both Mary and yours truly pronounced outstanding. I left out Mary's personal favorite ingredient, celery seeds, that I think have been making previous efforts taste too bitter.

Speaking of outstanding efforts in the kitchen, Mary tried a new recipe for vegan meatloaf that turned out great. The taste was excellent, but it may be necessary for her to get a food processor to more effectively blend the ingredients. The jury is out at this time.

I revised my paper cutting jig for our desktop pads and the new design works great. No need to buy pre-made refills as we can use the leftover paper from the indexing projects which we have in abundance. I also added a second coat of paint to the lid for the cold frame.

Today, Mary will continue indexing, I'll hopefully play with the girls and then read the Grand Haven Tribune. If the T-storms the NWS has forecast come to pass, STWD will be in her hide-e-hole again today. Me too. Ciao.

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

What is it that they say about it not being over until it's over? Well, it is over for the Orioles, as they lost to the Blue Jays on a walk-off home run that gave the Blue Jays a 5 - 3 win in the AL Wild Card game last night. Tonight, the Mets face the Giants in the NL Wild Card game @ 8:00 p.m. If I had a choice, I'd like to see the Giants win so that the Mets don't get past the Wild Card game. Call it sour grapes that come from 1969, but that's how I feel.

I took the morning safari with STWD yesterday because Mary had already gone out for a walk so that she could get home and get back to work. That's okay because I walk slower and it gave both myself and the intrepid one a chance to smell the flowers so to speak. We picked up the newspaper and then we continued on from there.

I had to edit the index for Mary yesterday to help get it out to the publisher by the new Friday deadline. We had lunch and then I got down to the serious business of baking an apple pie. The resulting pie is my best effort to date. I haven't tasted it yet as I plan to take it to the book club meeting later this afternoon. Here is a picture of my pie.

The crust turned out great and the pie should be delicious if it tastes as good as it looks.

I did manage to finish The Wright Brothers in between editing and pie baking. The book gave me new insights into the Wright brothers and their contribution to aviation.

I put in only a few minutes with the girls yesterday. So much to do, so little time to spare.

Today, I have more things planned before the rain/T-storms begin in the late afternoon. The NWS has forecast the rains to begin about around 2:00 p.m., so I'd best take an umbrella to the book club along with my pie.

I expect that the rains later today and on Friday will preclude my doing any weed killing on the lawns of the PE. Oh well, there is always another day.

I should be able to get in some time with the girls and watch the trains pass by on the RSTL. Along with the book club meeting, that's a full day for me. I may have more editing to do, but I don't know yet.

We did go out to the favorite watering hole for dinner last evening. I got an advance on my salary for working on the index.

The current temperature is 63° under mostly cloudy skies. Later today, the high is forecast to be 77° under cloudy/rainy skies.

The sun will rise @ 7:47 a.m. and set @ 7:18 p.m. Ciao.

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

It is officially here, the Wild Card contests open tonight in Major League Baseball. The Blue Jays and the Orioles square off @ 8:00 p.m. in a battle of 2nd and 3rd place teams from the AL East, to determine the Wild Card winner for the AL. The winner of that game plays the Texas Rangers on Thursday, 10/6, while my beloved AL East champion Red Sox meet the AL Central champion Cleveland Indians. that same night.

Tomorrow night, the NL Wild Card teams, the Mets, and the Giants, face each other for the chance to face the Cubs on Friday, 10/7,  @ a time to be announced. Also on that same night? the NL West champion Giants and the NL East Mets play, also @ a time to be announced. Confused yet?

Good trainspotting yesterday. @ 12:40 p.m., locomotives 2019 and 2057 rolled through on the RSTL heading south in the lead of eight CHCs, six DBTCs, one DWTC and one GTC.

I had to wait until 4:14 p..m. to view those same locomotives heading north. In tow were 19 CHCs, 15 DBTCs and three DWTCs, all fully laden judging by the shaking of the manse.

Mary was upstairs getting bleary-eyed as she had to pick up the pace on the index that was originally due Monday of next week, but which the publisher called from India to ask if she could have it ready by this Friday, as the author will be attending a conference in a few weeks and they need to get the book into print. As is all too often the case, lack of prior planning on their part constitutes an emergency on our part. I have had to stop my planned and unplanned activities to assist. Sigh, I 'm retired?

The current temperature is 56° under mostly cloudy skies with just a hint of fog. Today's high has been forecast by the NWS to be 74° under partly cloudy skies. I had plans to get the weed killer on the lawns of the vast PE, but with the sewer construction @ our neighbors and the 80% chance of T-storms on Wednesday afternoon, I am putting that on hold. The weed killer needs 48 hours of no rain to be effective. Plus, with the need for my services on the index, I just don't have the time. Sigh.

We did take a long walk with STWD yesterday morning because we needed to get out and about. In between the appointment at the chiropractor and the safari, we had a nice lunch of vegan ham sandwiches and leftover scalloped potatoes. Dinner followed a post-chiropractor stop @ JWs. Mary crafted a very tasty faux tuna casserole for that.

I did get in a few minutes of time with the girls yesterday morning, but not as much as I desired. I worked a crossword from the Grand Haven Tribune and read more from The Wright Brothers too. It is likely that I'll be soloing to the book club meeting @ the Tri-Cities Historical Museum on Wednesday afternoon as Mary soldiers on with the index.

Once the sun rises today @ 7:46 a.m. today, we'll get to the morning safari long before we see the sunset @ 7:20 p.m. All of the above activities will leave little time for pleasure reading and playing with the girls. Ciao.

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

This should be a short blog, as I don't have much to report about what happened in GH yesterday.

We took a long morning safari with STWD and then returned home so that I could assist in the kitchen and Mary could prepare our lunch of veggie hot dogs and I could prepare my latest version of Coleslaw. We enjoyed both. Somewhere in there, Mary put her vegan ham roasts into the Crockpot™ and then went upstairs to do some indexing. I watched just enough of the Lions/Bears game to satisfy my need for NFL football, and then I repaired to the man-cave for those aforementioned planned activities.

I revised my paper cutting jig for our desktop notepads and put the first coat of paint on the lid for the cold frame. It felt great to use a large number of tools while listening to WGVU, the Real Oldies station out of GR.

Mary informed me through the open outer doors of the man-cave that she was off to the medium-box grocery store for some desired/needed items. That was fine with me because I was happily working in the man-cave.

I returned upstairs to find that she was just arriving home and then she returned to her office to sort out a problem with the latest index. Our CA based IT guru assisted Mary by phone and in short order, the problem was solved. I'm not sure of the chronology, but it is close enough.

I spent some time reading in the afternoon along with the reading I did late last night, I am up to page 315 out of 473. This being a large-print edition, I should finish later today or Tuesday, just in time for our book club meeting on Wednesday.

Later in the afternoon, Mary came down to prepare a side dish of scalloped potatoes that was based on a recipe that we recently got from the internet. They turned out wonderful as did the vegan ham roast. The potatoes are a keeper and of course, the ham always was. Mary allowed the hams to cook in the Crockpot™ for the time specified in the recipe and so they were also great.

Sports news is rather brief. The Cubs defeated the Reds 7 - 4 and await the winner of the NL Wild Card contest on Friday. The Cubs ended the regular season with a record of 103 - 58,

The Tigers crashed and burned in their final game, losing 0 - 1 to the cellar-dwelling Braves. That loss ensures that the Tigers will be watching the playoffs from their couches @ home. What will become of Tigers' manager Brad Ausmus? Did the players save his job for another year? We should know soon.

My beloved Red Sox fell to the Blue Jays @ Fenway Park by a score of 1 - 2. The Sox await the winning Indians for a game on Thursday, time to be announced.

In pro-football, the Lions fell to the Bears by a score of 14 - 17. Both teams are now 1 - 3 in the NFL Central.

Today, I need to call the Four Pointes Center for Successful Aging, if we don't get there in person, in order to make an appointment for a hearing check  later this month. Neither Mary nor I can hear as well as we would like, so it is time to get checked and make whatever accommodations are deemed appropriate.

Otherwise, Mary has to work on the index and I have to read. I never got to play with the girls yesterday, so I'd also like to get to that activity.

We show a current temperature of 58° under fair skies. There is no rain in the forecast from the NWS and so I may get to that lawn repair that I'd like to do. I need a few days of no rain to allow the weed killer to take effect. I can plant grass seed after two additional weeks have elapsed. Today's high is expected to be 69° under partly cloudy skies. If the forecast from the meteorologists @ WOOD TV/Radio is accurate, we are in for a warm up later this week.

The sun will rise @ 7:45 a.m. and set @ 7:01 p.m. Ciao.

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

I think I'll start with the morning's activities because a chronological flow seems natural to me.

We took the morning safari to the GHFM, where STWD and I stayed outside as Mary perused the various fruits, vegetables, and flowers for sale there. Mary purchased a head of red cabbage, a couple of sweet potatoes, and a bouquet of flowers that look nice in her office. I can always count on her to brighten up any living space. She is far more creative than me. I tend to be more on the practical side, so I go for utilitarian rather than aesthetic.

As an example, here is the bouquet that she picked out @ the GHFM sitting atop our dresser in a vase that we purchased many years ago during a trip to Assisi in Italy. Underneath is a runner that she created during a class at the local library using inks and burlap. I enjoy the beauty, but I am not by nature creative when it comes to this type of visual activity. I am more creative as a writer and a musician. I guess that that is a good way for us to complement each other.

On the other hand, I can be creative in the kitchen, within a limited range. I like to bake or cook things using fresh fruits and vegetables. So after our morning safari, I made applesauce using some of the apples that we bought last weekend. Mary has labeled the outcome "Apple Smash" rather than calling it applesauce due to the chunky nature of the finished product. Mary did the smashing, I like to peel the apples the old-fashioned way by paring them with a knife as my grandmother taught me many, many yeas ago.

Yesterday's sports news was mixed. The 5 - 0 in the Big 10 Wolverines of Michigan were victorious over the Badgers of Wisconsin by a final score of 14 - 7. However, three missed field goals were also part of the game, so Head Coach Jim Harbaugh is planning a kicking contest for this coming week. No surprise there. Michigan visits Rutgers next Saturday @ 7:00 p.m.

The Spartans of MSU fell to 2 - 2 after a late rally by the Hoosiers of Indiana made the final score 24 - 21 in OT. As I like to say, "Not good, not good." The Spartans host BYU next weekend for a 3:30 p.m. clash.

The Huskies of NIU visited Muncie, IN yesterday and came away with their first win, 31 - 24 over the Cardinals of Ball State. The Huskies visit Western Michigan next Saturday for a 6:30 p.m. game.

The Cubs are in what some pundits have termed spring training mode as they are not going out of their way to be winners at this time, opting to give some regular players some rest and some bench players some playing time. They fell to the Reds by a score of 4 - 7. The Cubs play the Reds again today @ 3:10 p.m.

The Tigers were losers to the Braves yesterday by a score of 3 - 5. With the loss by the Orioles, the Tigers had a chance at a Wild Card berth, but things are not looking good. as they fell to 1.5 games back in that race. The Tigers face the Braves later today @ 3:10 p.m. Unless a miracle occurs, the Tigers will be watching the post-season on TV.

My beloved Red Sox lost to the Blue Jays by a score of 3 - 4. The division champion Sox still have a shot at home field advantage, but it is tenuous at this time. The Sox play the Blue Jays again today @ 3:05 p.m.

For those who are still paying attention, the 1 - 2 Lions visit the 0 - 3 Bears in a Central Division game @ 1:00 p.m. EDT.

We didn't accomplish much yesterday. We walked quite a bit and visited some stores downtown so that Mary could add to her fall wardrobe. She has many lighter weight tops, but not so many fall-weight ones. We picked up two additional fall-weight tops and an additional nightshirt for her.

Then we were off the Post for some libations and football before heading home. Mary had been wanting hot dogs of the veggie variety, so those became dinner.

I did get in some reading time, but that was about the extent of my ambition yesterday. I never got to playing with the girls after expending my energy reserves on peeling apples and going walkabout.

Today I have some plans in the man-cave and then I'll set aside some time for the girls and more reading. I am currently reading a large-print edition of The Wright Brothers, authored by David McCullough, for our book club meeting @ the Tri-Cities History Museum next Wednesday. I like the way McCullough writes, and in large-print, it is even more enjoyable for a man of a certain age.

Yesterday's weather was crisp and cool with some rain spritzes during the day. We have a current temperature of 54° under partly cloudy skies. Today we expect a high of 67°under cloudy skies. No significant rain is in the forecast until Wednesday evening @ 60% into Thursday morning when T-storms may develop with a 40% probability.

The sun will rise today @ 7:44 a.m. and set @ 7:23 p.m. Ciao.

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

If there were trains on Friday, I didn't see nor hear them, so like that proverbial tree in the forest, if I wasn't here to hear or see them, did they actually pass through on the RSTL? We were out quite a bit yesterday, so it is possible that the trains happened, but who can say with any degree of certainty because mine is the only opinion that counts.

The weather yesterday was spotty. The rains tried to come many times, but the only time they came in earnest was about this time yesterday and then in the early evening. As you may have surmised, it was not a dark and stormy night nor day. It was mostly to partly cloudy. We had a high temperature of  68° that has fallen to a current temperature of 59° with partly cloudy skies. Today's forecast from the NWS calls for a high of 66° with a 40% chance of showers and perhaps T-storms in the a.m. hours that will clear out by afternoon. The sun will rise in a few hours @ 7:43 a.m. and set @ 7:25 p.m.

A side note, Hurricane Matthew is now a category 5 storm with wind speeds of 160 mph! Matthew is expected to hit Jamaica and that will be the biggest hit the island has ever taken. It was 1988 when Hurricane Gilbert hit the island with deadly results and Matthew is possibly stronger. The storm is expected to hit the north end of the Island, so the capital city of Kingston may only see heavy flooding as the storm delivers more than25 inches of rain.

Sports news yesterday was all positive, at least for my favorite teams. The Cubs defeated the last-place team in the NL Central, the Cincinnati Reds, by a score of 7 - 3. That gives the Cubs a division-leading total of 102 - 57 as they await the second season. The Cubs and the Reds play again this afternoon @ 4:10 p.m.

The Tigers are still in 2nd place in the AL Central with an overall record of 86 - 73. Their Wild Card fate rests in the hands of another AL team, the Blue Jays, who lost to my beloved Red Sox last night. The Tigers defeated the once mighty Atlanta Braves last night by a score of 6 - 2. Those two teams play again tonight @ 7:10 p.m.

Speaking of my beloved Red Sox, they did defeat the Blue Jays last night in an AL East game to stay atop their division with an overall record of 93 - 67. David "Big Papi" Ortiz drove a ball over the right-field fence to break a 3 - 3 tie and power the Sox to a final score of 5 - 3. The Blue Jays are just .5 games ahead of the Tigers in the Wild Card race. The Sox meet the Blue Jays again tonight @ 7:10 p.m. with a chance to improve the Tigers chance of making the playoffs.

Since I am talking starting times for really big games, the 4 - 0 Wisconsin Badgers come to the Big House in Ann Arbor, MI. today to face Jim Harbaugh's 4 - 0 Wolverines @ 3:30 p.m. This will be a real test of  both teams in a Big 10 matchup.

The 2 - 1 Spartans of MSU travel to Bloomington, IN to face the 2 - 1 Hoosiers @ 8:00 p.m. The Spartans were drubbed last week, so they have something to prove this week. We shall see.

The 0 - 4 Huskies of NIU travel to Muncie, IN to face the 3 - 1 Cardinals of Ball State, also @ 3:30 p.m. The Huskies have fallen on hard times this season in the Mac 10. I don't know what to predict for an outcome.

Meals yesterday were a super lunch and a so-so dinner. The spicy tomato loaf sandwiches were complemented by Mary's tasty rice and peas salad. The chili we had for dinner was based on a new recipe that Mary wanted to try, but even with the best ingredients and my assistance, it was only filling and not all that exciting. I don't like spicy chili, but I do like tasty chili, and this recipe did not deliver. Mary plans to augment this batch to make it more palatable, but I am betting that she will not be adding this to her personal recipe file.

Today we are going to stay in after  the morning safari, I plan to read and play with the girls while Mary works on the index. My part is done for now. Ciao.