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

We have a current temperature of between 76° per the NWS and 80° per the DTWS. In either case, it is warm here in West Michigan with fair skies. There is also a Beach Hazard Statement for Ottawa, County issued by the NWS due to the windy conditions that are producing high waves on "The Big Lake."

Later today, the NWS is forecasting a high temperature of 81° under partly cloudy skies. Our next chance for significant precipitation is in the form of rain/T-storms @ 50% on Tuesday and 80% on Wednesday. We shall see.

I had to water yesterday so that the lawns and gardens of the PE didn't perish. Right now, our veggies are looking fine, but the lawns are looking parched and brown. I'm watering the backyard lawn in hopes that Ginger won't entirely kill it before fall.

Major announcement! Mary and I had a collective fail for dinner. My homemade sausage buns turned out inedible and Mary's Polish sausages turned out likewise. In addition, the Coleslaw that I made, while edible, was not up to my usual world-class standards. In the case of my sausage buns, the use of potato starch versus potato flour is the likely reason. Mary's sausages? We don't know. Mary has very few failures, but when she and I do, they are doozies.

Mary did redeem herself with the sloppy Joes that she finally made for our dinner and some tofu bacon she made for another purpose. Mary has assured me that dinner tonight, whatever it may be, will be a vast improvement. The sausages and the buns have now been consigned to the ash heap of history, to paraphrase Vladimir Lenin.

Sports news yesterday was mostly good, depending on your perspective.

The Cubs righted the ship and beat the Rockies 7 - 5 on the strength of four home runs and some solid RBI producing hits. Jake Arrieta, in his shortest outing this season, lasted 4 1/3 innings, surrendering five hits, and four earned runs while striking out three and walking three. One baseball pundit opined that Arrieta should pursue free-agency this winter and take the money from any other team willing to pay him. Brutal? Maybe, but right now, Arrieta is not a Cy Young caliber pitcher and should not be looking for the kind of money his agent will be expected to demand.

The Cubs are now @ 31 - 31 in the NL Central and one game behind the Brewers in a very weak division. The Cubs and the Mets meet tonight @ 7:10 p.m. in NYC.

The Tigers pounded my beloved Red Sox, 11 - 3 en route to a 29 - 32 record and 3rd place in the AL Central. The Tigers have the day off today before hosting the D'Backs @ Comerica Park Tuesday night @ 7:10 p.m.

Conversely, the Sox were pounded by the Tigers 3 - 11. That loss gives theSox an AL East record of 34 - 28 in a strong division. The Sox trail the 1st place Yankees by 3.5 games. The Sox don't have the day off as they host the Phillies tonight @ Fenway Park @ 7:10 p.m.

The Caps had a great day in front of the kids as they defeated the Dayton Dragons 9 - 2 to move to 42 - 21 and a solid hold in the MWL East division with a full four game lead over the Dragons. The Caps and the Dragons close out their series today @ 12:00 p.m.

We'll be taking the fur-children for an abbreviated walk later this morning. The warm temperature expected today is too much for STWD. Even Ginger slows down in the heat. I hope to try again soon on those sausage buns. I also need to powerwash the deck. I'd like to continue reading and get in some time with the girls too. Like yours truly, Mary has a need to redeem herself in the kitchen along with some crafty things.

I also have an appointment to have a few hairs cut today.

The sun will rise today @ 6:04 a.m. and set @ 9:25 p.m. Ciao.

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

Wow! I'm listening to CoasttoCoastAm on WOOD Radio with guest host Richard Syrett sitting in for regular host George Noory. Syrett's guest is Psychic Sloan Bella. Her specialty is being a conduit for otherworldly beings and deceased spirits. She was just asked to tell the listeners about John Lennon and his early demise and was asked about whether Lennon would have reunited with the Beatles. She said he would have, but that it would have been on a personal level, not as a band. In addition, she said that Lennon was taken early for a reason that we can't know, but that his work here was finished. Go figure and believe what you wish.

Yesterday, we took an early walk with the fur-children and then dropped off Ginger at doggie daycare for the afternoon. Since the weather was exceptionally pleasant, we did a few errands and then we were off to the Feast of the Strawberry Moon on Harbor Island. We can now take that activity off of our collective  "Bucket Lists."

While we were there, Mary got the chance to buy some handspun, hand dyed yarn from a vendor with a booth there. The vendor, Apple Cart Creations, http://applecartcreations.com, raises their own "Wool on the Hoof", as we like to call sheep.  While the proprietors of Apple Cart Creations do own a farm and raise sheep, they do not shear their own animals, preferring to leave that to professional shearers. However, they do spin the wool into yarn and dye it themselves. At any rate, Mary assures me that the cost for the yarn, $10.00 per skein, is great and may be a good enough reason to return again next year.

For those of us not color color-blind, the yarn is green in hue.

"Wool on the Hoof" miniatures.

Since this is an event staged by reenactors portraying people in the U.S. in the early part of our existence as a colony and a nation, there were many people who were dressed as people would have dressed during that period. including Native Americans.

Also worthy of note, was the presence of a Town Crier as he would have appeared in the colonies of that period.

Complete with bell and announcements to be read.

No period correct reenactment would have been complete without a village blacksmith plying his trade.

Also, in addition, no recreation of the time period would have been complete without a few canoes and cannons.

One of several.

Fortunately, the large cannons, when fired, had no projectiles.

Nor, did the small ones.

You can't have a festival of this type without Buskers entertaining the crowd. In this case, we watched a pair juggling and involving an audience member in their act.

With clubs in front and behind her, she survived.

You also can't have a festival without period-correct music.

I knew some of the players from other activities around "The City."

As I noted earlier, the weather was beautiful, albeit a tad on the windy side, as some of the vendors could attest.

Yesterday in sports was mostly good, except that he Cubs are finally experiencing their annual "June Swoon." Beginning June, 2, they won five in a row over the Cardinals and the Marlins before they began their swoon against the Marlins and now the Rockies. They have since lost four in a row including yesterday's 1 - 9 drubbing by the Rockies. The Cubs strong pitching of last year seems to have become much weaker this year. Along with sporadic hitting and run-scoring, the Cubs are floundering. They have a current sub .500 record in the NL Central of 30 - 31, still good enough for 2nd place. The Cubs hope to right the ship this afternoon against the Rockies @ 2:20 p.m.

The Tigers were drubbed by my beloved Red Sox yesterday by a score of 3 - 11. That leaves the Tigers still in 3rd place in the AL Central with a record of 29 - 31.

Conversely, my beloved Red Sox hammered the Tigers, 11 - 3 to move to an AL East record of 34 - 27, but they are still in 2nd place as the Yankees continue their winning ways and remain in 1st place in a strong division, by three games over the Sox.

The Caps defeated the Dayton Dragons last night by a score of 5 - 1. That gives the Caps an MWL East 1st place record of 40 - 21. The Caps and the Dragons play today @ 1:00 p.m. on "Kid's Day" at the Fifth/Third Ballpark.

We have a current temperature of 70° under clear skies with breezy/windy conditions. The winds in the backyard are not strong, but those in front of the manse are blowing @ 15 - 25 mph according to the NWS. Later today, we'll experience a high temperature of 82° under partly-cloudy skies. The sun will rise @ 6:05 a.m. and set @ 9:24 p.m

Today, Mary plans to knit more and do some other crafty type things after our morning safari with the fur-children. I plan to read more after I water the lawns and gardens of the PE. I had other things planned, but they can wait for another day. I read last evening on the front porch of the manse as Mary made dinner, another pizza in a cast iron pan. It was great and still a keeper.

I also plan to do some indoor chores and some baking today too. I am planning to try a recipe for hot dog buns that I recently downloaded. Ciao.

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

Let's keep this one very short.

Current temperature, 59/61° under clear skies. Today's high 79° under sunny skies with windy conditions and a 5% chance or rain.

Cubs lost to the Rockies 3 - 5, fell to 30 - 30 and 2nd place in the NL Central, Next game @ 2:20 p.m. today.

The Tigers and Red Sox played last night. The Tigers fell to the Sox 3 - 5 while the Sox beat the Tigers 5 - 3. The Tigers are now in 3rd place with an AL Central record of 29 - 31. The Sox are in 2nd place in the AL East with a record of 33 - 27. Both teams play again tonight @ 7:15 p.m.

The Caps fell to the Dragons in an MWL East matchup by a score of 3 - 4. The Caps still have a 2 game lead over the Dragons with a record of 39 - 21. Next game tonight @ 7:00 p.m.

We got up late yesterday and then walked with the fur-children after lunch. Mary and I ran some errands and then ate a light snack at Double Deuce. Home to be greeted effusively by Ginger and then Mary sat down to knit while I went upstairs to read and watch car shows. I finished my latest book, Say Nothing by Brad Parks a short time ago. I liked it. The book was technically due Friday, so I'll have to pay a small fine, but it was worth it.

Today we may go to Harbor Island and see the reenactors at the Feast of the Strawberry Moon. We have had the opportunity for several years, but somehow we have never made it. Right now, we still don't know. Otherwise, nothing is on tap after the morning safari. I might do some baking after I water the vast lawns of the PE, but that's about it.

The sun will rise @ 6:05 a.m. and set @ 9:24 p.m. Ciao.

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

It is only fair outside with a current temperature of 55° to 59° under partly cloudy skies. Later today after the sun rises @ 6:05 a.m. and well before it sets @ 9:22 p.m., the NWS has forecast a high temperature of 72° under sunny skies. There is no rain in the forecast, so I'll be watering the new grass seeds that I sowed yesterday in what may be a futile attempt to reverse the damage to the lawns of the vast PE caused by the fur-children.

GTTSD and I only observed the southbound passage of the train on the RSTL. Locomotive 2019 was soloing @ 11:45 a.m. and towing 16 CHCs and three DBTCs. We were out in the afternoon and I do not know if there was a northbound run.

We traveled to Muskegon to view that exhibit of photographs at the Muskegon Museum of Art. We learned that the museum is actually the owner of an extensive collection of these photographs by Edward Curtis, dating back to the early 1900s when the head librarian of the Hackley Library in Muskegon made the decision to purchase one of Curtis' 20 volume encyclopedic picture and information collection. The pictures were and are truly amazing. In addition, we made a quick stop at the Hackley Public Library next door to the museum. The library has tours of what is an amazing library/facility which we will try to attend at a later date.

Sports news yesterday was once again 50/50.

The Cubs fell to the Marlins 5 - 6, dropping to 2nd place in the NL Central with a record of 30 - 28. The Cubs meet the Colorado Rockies tonight  8:05 p.m.

The Tigers topped the Dodges 4 - 0 to move back to .500 and 3rd place in the AL Central with a record of 29 - 29. The Tigers and the Dodgers play this afternoon @ 1:10 p.m.

My beloved Red Sox were crushed by the Yankees 0 - 8 to fall to a 2nd place record of 32 - 26 in the AL East. The Sox play the Yankees again tonight @ 7:05 p.m.

The Caps fared much better as they crushed the Great Lakes Loons 9 - 2 to stay atop the MWL East with a record of 39 - 19 The Caps meet the Loons again tonight @ 7:00 p.m. before welcoming the 2nd place Dayton Dragons on Friday.

Mary made a terrific vegan lasagna for dinner last night while I was on the front porch of the manse. She found a recipe for vegan ricotta cheese on the internet that was perfect as an accompaniment to her own vegan pepperoni. This one is a keeper.

After dinner, I was tired, so I walked the fur-children and then moved up to the bedroom to listen to the Cubs fall to the Marlins. I made it through the 1st inning and then I was gone. I awoke to the post-game interviews regarding the reasons for the Cubs' loss.

Today we hope to stay in. I'll be reading and Mary will do some batch cooking. I have several books to read that are due on Friday, so I'll be reading the most important one that I can't renew due to a hold and trying to renew the others at the library on Friday if there are no holds on those.

We will be walking with the fur-children and then Mary plans to watch the Senate hearings starting @ 10:00 a.m. I'll try to ignore those.

Ciao.

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

This one will be short because I want it to be.

As of now, a current temperature of 52° under clear skies, will lead to a sunny 72° later today. There is no rain in the forecast from the NWS for the foreseeable future. That means that yours truly will be watering again today. Accompanying that lack of rain is the sad status of the grass of the PE. Ginger has had a negative effect, to say the least. Astroturf anyone?

Sports news yesterday was a 50/50 proposition.

The Cubs behind Jake Arrieta cruised to a 10 - 2 win over the Florida Marlins. Solid hitting by Anthony Rizzo and Jason Heyward allowed the Cubs to win their fifth straight and remain in a tie for 1st place in the NL Central with the Brewers. The Cubs have a record of 30 - 27 and they play the Marlins again tonight @ 8:05 p.m.

The Tigers once again fell below .500 @ 28 - 29 in the AL Central, with a 3 - 5 loss to the Dodgers @ Comerica Park. As I've noted before, the Tigers are not a good team. They are at best a mid-pack team destined for a spot on the couch @ home for the 2017 playoffs and World Series. Is the rotund lady singing Brad Ausmus' tune again? The Tigers and the Dodgers play again tonight @ 7:10 p.m.

My beloved Red Sox nipped the Yankees 5 - 4 in an AL East matchup to pull within one game of the front-running Yankees. The Sox have a record of 32 - 25. The Sox and the Yankees play again tonight @ 7:10 p.m. A win by the Sox gives them a virtual tie for 1st place with the Yankees.

The Caps fell to the Great Lakes Loons yesterday afternoon by a 1 - 3 margin. The Caps still have a two game lead over the Dayton Dragons in the MWL East with a record of 38 - 19 The Dragons come to town for a four-game series starting Friday. The Caps and the Loons play tonight @ 7:00 p.m.

Not much else happened yesterday. We walked the fur-children and I made some baked tofu nuggets. Mary watched her computer reboot itself from yet another software update and sent out an invoice for a recently completed index. I went to my drawing class too. We did not get into the car yesterday, but we will today as we travel to Muskegon and the Muskegon Museum of Art to join our book club for an exhibition of Edward Curtis' photos.

The sun will rise today @ 6:05 a.m. and set @ 9:22 p.m. Ciao.

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

Let's start with several pieces of good news.

John is done with the downstairs floors. Now we await the arrival of the carpet and its installation followed by the arrival of the new furniture for both up and downstairs.

Mary crafted her latest version of veg-a-roni and vegan Italian-style faux sausage. The latter she incorporated into a delicious pizza with vegan mozzarella cheese substitute Sunday night. This pizza, made in a cast-iron skillet and baked in the oven, is a keeper. Here are some pictures of the preparations and the finished product.

The freshly risen dough in the cast-iron skillet.

Sauce and pepperoni in place.

Cheese on!

Just out of the oven.

Sports news over the last couple of days was was generally good.

The Cubs swept the Cardinals over the weekend and then took game one from the Marlins last night by a score of 3 - 1 behind some excellent pitching by newly promoted pitcher Eddie Butler and his reliever, Mike Montgomery. The Cubs took over a share of 1st place with an overall record in the NL Central of 29 - 27, good for a tie with the 30 - 28 Brewers. The Cubs face the Marlins again tonight @ 8:05 p.m @ "The Friendly Confines." Looks like the dreaded "June Swoon" may not happen.

The Tigers were off yesterday and they travel to meet the Rockies in Colorado tonight @ 7:05 p.m. The Tigers are in 3rd place in the AL Central with a record of 28 - 28.

My beloved Red Sox were also off yesterday. They travel to NYC to meet the 32 - 22 AL East-leading Yankees tonight @ 7:05 p.m. The Sox are in 2nd place with an overall record in the AL East of 31 - 25.

The Caps likewise were off yesterday. They still hold a two-game lead in the MWL East with an overall record of 38 - 18. over the Dayton Dragons. The Caps are home today @ 11:00 a.m. to face the Great Lakes Loons.

We accomplished several tasks in Holland yesterday afternoon after dropping GTTSD at daycare. We made stops at The Seasoned Home for some spices, the KIA dealer for some touch-up paint, Bed, Bath and Beyond for a replacement canister of CO2 for my "Soda Stream™ and tried to buy a mirror frame. That last effort failed. We finished our day @ our favorite watering hole, picked up Ginger with minutes to spare and then home to collapse. I took the fur-children out and then I moved upstairs to watch some TV before heading off to bed.

Speaking of Trainspotting, I saw locomotive 2057 heading south @ 12:25 p.m. towing 11 DBTCs, and eight CHCs, Later on, our way home from Holland, I saw the same locomotive heading north @ about 4:40 p.m., but the number of cars is in question.

We have a current temperature of 54° under mostly clear skies. Sorry, Steph I didn't go outside, so I didn't get any pictures of the constellations. Maybe tomorrow.  The sun is expected to rise in a little over one hour @ 6:06 a.m. and set later tonight @ 9:21 p.m.

Otherwise, I have another drawing class tonight @ 6:00 p.m. I am looking forward to improving my skills, but I haven't had a chance to practice this week due to the upheaval at the manse. Ciao.

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

I was outside with GTTSD @ 2:20 ayem and the T-storms that were in the forecast from the NWS for later today were not in evidence. In spite of that forecast, the skies were more clear than partly cloudy. I guess that the only hope I have is that the current forecast for T-storms between now and 6:00 ayem comes to fruition. I just heard the first rumblings of thunder @ 3:30 ayem, so maybe. The current temperature is a very comfortable 68° and the roads are quiet here in GH. That is always true at this hour of the morning. The only cars on the road are from late-night revelers or workers heading home. So, I may or may not be watering in the vast gardens of the PE.

Yesterday was a four-win day for my teams.

The Cubs defeated their NL Central rivals, the St. Louis Cardinals, by a final score of 5 - 3. All of those runs came courtesy of home runs by Javier Baez, a solo shot, and Kyle Schwarber, a Grand Slam. Those homers put the Cubs over the top en route to their victory and a 27 - 27 record.  One day earlier, a pundit had suggested that Schwarber should be sent down to the minors for some additional coaching. That may still be true, but perhaps being moved to the 9th spot in the batting order by manager Joe Maddon helped. It will be day to day.  The Cubs and the Cardinals play again tonight @ 7:55 p.m.

The Tigers once again stuffed that other team from Chicago by a final score of 10 - 1. The Tigers are almost even up in the AL Central division with a 27 - 28 record, good enough for 3rd place. The Tigers and that other team play again today @ Comerica Park @ 1:10 p.m.

My beloved Red Sox once again defeated the Orioles @ Fenway Park, this time by a score of 5 - 2 in their AL Central matchup. The Sox have a record of 30 - 25, good enough for 2nd place. They play the Orioles again today @ 1:35 p.m.

The Caps had a nice game in the MWL East with a win over the Lansing Lug Nuts by a score of 7 - 3. The Caps now have an overall record of 38 - 17 and a three-game lead over the 2nd place Dayton Dragons. The Caps and the Lug Nuts play this afternoon @ 1:00 p.m.

Elsewhere, we walked the fur-children and then worked in the vast gardens of the PE. Mary directed and I planted her climbing vine, which I have subsequently learned is named Major Wheeler. The people at The City Farmer tell us that Major Wheeler should do well with minimal care and full sun.

I spent some time in the man-cave yesterday preparing the new shelves for the pantry and then installing them. I think that they turned out great, but Mary needs to study them for a day or so to decide on the best way to organize the pantry with appliances and foodstuffs. I also cleaned up in the man-cave and tossed out some things that I would have saved in days gone by. This is another attempt @ the minimalist approach that Adam will appreciate. My part is done.

Mary prepared an extraordinary beest and then a batch of barbecue sauce that she used as part of the marinade for her latest batch of vegan jerky made from that beest. I like the taste, but she thinks she used too much cayenne pepper. I think Adam would like this batch too.

John is having trouble with the fuel pump in his truck, so he never made it back yesterday to finish his floor work. I know that the pump is in the fuel tank and requires dropping an empty tank to replace that pump. I also know it is a difficult job from experience in another life. I don't often miss that part of my life. However, there is a 1971 Chevrolet Monte Carlo near here that is in apparently mint condition, which would make a great project car if I had the stamina of that other life too. Sigh.

Today, we have no plans to speak of and that is fine by me. A short walk with the fur-children, some playing with the girls, and some time in the kitchen.

I am hearing rain drops outside the WW and feeling the wind blowing through the WW too, so there is a front coming through. One can only hope. I haven't checked, but I'm betting that STWD is cowering in her upstairs hide-e-hole as she senses that change in the force.

The sun will rise in a few hours @ 6:06 ayem and set @ 9:20 p.m. Ciao.