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

We have a current temperature of 70° under clear skies, as of now. By 10:00 a.m., the chance of showers/T-storms increases to 50% here in GH. However, in Detroit/Dearborn, where we are headed, that percentage increases to 100% by 3:00 a.m. then tapers off by 10:00 a.m. before increasing again @ 2:00 p.m. for a few hours. Phew, that's a long-winded way of saying that driving will take longer than we would like.

Trainspotting yesterday was semi-complete, in that EMD GP 38 locomotive #2018, was soloing as it passed through @ 11:10 a.m. on the RSTL. #2019 was towing only a lone BC and three DBTCs as it headed south. At 2:45 p.m., the same locomotive headed north towing 11CHCs, and this time, a single DBTC was bringing up the rear. As I said, a semi-complete and semi-requiting trainspotting.

Sports news was in many ways much better. None of my teams lost games, however, the 2nd placeTigers lost a game in the AL Central with their 4 - 3 victory over the Orioles last night. That's because the 1st place Indians were busy winning their game over the Twins. The Tigers now are a full six games behind the Indians. The Tigers and the Orioles play again tonight @ 7:10 p.m.

The Cubs were the first team to 90 wins in the major leagues this year. Their victory came @ the expense of the Astros, 2 - 0 as the Cubs improved their NL Central 1st place record to 90 - 50, 16 full games ahead of the Cardinals who won. Kris Bryant hit a two run homerun in the top of the 5th for the only runs scored or needed by the Cubs.

Starting pitcher Jon Lester was superb through seven innings before being relieved in the bottom of the 8th by Hector Rondon. Rondon is just two games off the DL and his once-sore shoulder is obviously healed, as his fastball was clocked on the gun @ 98 mph. The Astros failed to score in the bottom of the 8th, and then the Cubs failed to tally any runs in the top of the 9th. Closer Aroldis Chapman took over in the bottom of the 9th and his fastball was clocked on the gun @ 104 mph as he struck out the Astros to seal the victory. The Cubs and the Astros play later today @ 1:05 p.m.

My beloved 1st place Red Sox hammered the 2nd place Blue Jays in Toronto by a final score of 13 - 3 in an AL East matchup. That gives the Sox a full two-game lead over the Blue Jays. Xander Bogaerts and Hanley Ramirez both homered as former Tiger Rick Porcello notched his 20th victory. Every starter for the Sox reached base at least once in the game. The Sox have a record of 79 - 61 in the AL East. Both teams play again this afternoon @ 1:10 p.m.

The Caps and the South Bend Cubs' MWL East playoff game was suspended by rain last night after seven innings. They will resume play in South Bend today @ 4:05 p.m. Whichever team loses is done for the year.

Today we'll take the morning safari and then pack the car for our trip. We'll drop STWD @ camp before setting out. If the forecast from the NWS is correct, we'll be driving in the rain much of the way.

That's all for now. No additional activities are planned. The sun will rise @ 7:19 a.m. and set @ 8:02 p.m. The forecast for Sunday from Bill Steffens, Chief Meteorologist @ WOOD-TV and radio in GR, calls for sunny skies and a high temperature of 73°. Same for Monday. Ciao.

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

We went to the KIA dealer yesterday to have our 2013 Soul serviced and came home with a 2016 Soul with all the bells and whistles. I think the only option that we didn't get was a high-performance sound system. That's okay, though, as being of a certain age, Mary and I couldn't appreciate one anyway. Now I have to study the owner's manual to see what the way too many bells and whistles and extra features are intended to do. Mary does appreciate the built-in GPS system, the extra airbags, and the backup camera that will take her some time to get used to.

In baseball news, there only two changes that occurred since yesterday, the loss of the Caps to the South Bend Cubs by a score of 2 - 6 in their 2nd 2016 MWL East playoff game which ties the teams @ 1 - 1. They play again tonight @ 7:35 p.m. Otherwise, the Cubs and my beloved Red Sox remained static in the standings, while the Tigers dropped to six games behind the winning Indians. The Tigers just can't catch a break.

To recap, the 1st place NL Central Cubs play in Houston tonight @ 810 p.m. The 2nd place AL Central Tigers are @ home to play the Orioles tonight @ 7:10 p.m., while my beloved 1st place in AL East Red Sox, are in Toronto to play the 2nd place Blue Jays. I can safely root for the Tigers, as the Orioles are just one game in back of the Red Sox. I must also root for the Twins because they are playing the 1st place in the AL Central Indians, who now lead the Tigers by six games.

Otherwise, we didn't accomplish much yesterday. Dinner @ the favorite watering hole followed the extended stay @ the KIA dealer. Mary did get more of her craft stash organized too.

Today we have to visit the bank to check our safety deposit box for some things to deal with the car purchase and my Post membership. Plus, we have to prepare the PE for a visit from Mary's brother, Ed, after we return from the morning safari with STWD. Ed will be here next week. We won't be doing anything to the PE that is out of the ordinary.

Our current temperature is 67° with foggy conditions. Today's high is forecast to be 81° with 73% relative humidity. As we drive to Detroit/Dearborn on Saturday, there is a forecast from the NWS for T-storms @ 50%. That forecast applies to much of the state. Sunday's forecast for the day game we plan to attend is 74° under sunny skies in Detroit. The forecast for our return trip on Monday is very similar. All good.

The sun will rise today @ 7:18 a.m. and set @8:04 p.m. Ciao.

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

Here is a one-half trainspotting. I observed the passage of EMD GP 38 locomotives 2019 and 2057 as they rumbled south @ 11:33 a.m.on the RSTL, towing 10 CHCs, one in red primer and another in safety orange. In addition, there was a lone DBTC and a single GTC that was bringing up the rear. We were @ the book discussion club in the mid-afternoon, so I never witnessed the northbound run

We had a good time @ the book club and talked about the books we had read over the summer, the places we had visited, and the upcoming plans we had for the future. In addition, we decided that the organization of the meetings would take a different direction for future meetings. All in all, a good time that stretched to nearly two hours. We stopped at JWs for dinner and then headed home.

The baseball news yesterday was once again mixed. The Cubs never shook the cobwebs from their slumbering lumber and so they lost an NL Central game to their northern nemeses, the Milwaukee Brewers, as the Cubs fell by a final score of 1 - 2. The Cubs remain solidly in 1st place, 15.5 games ahead of the 2nd place Cardinals, who lost to the 3rd place Pirates. The Cubs are off and traveling today before playing the Astros Friday night @ 8:10 p.m.

The Tigers lost an AL Central game to that other team from Chicago, 4 - 7. That leaves the Tigers in 2nd place with a division record of 75 - 64, 5.5 games behind the Indians, who won. The Tigers are off today as they await the arrival of the Orioles for a Friday night game @ 7:10 p.m.

My beloved Red Sox triumphed over the Padres in San Diego by a score of 7 - 2. That gives the Sox a division leading record of 78 - 61, one full game over the Blue Jays, who lost. The Sox' primary third baseman, Travis Shaw, in a bid to keep his job, went three for six with a home run and three RBIs. His likely successor, recent call-up Yoan Moncada, had the job for four days, before striking out seven times in a row.

Shaw had a rough summer @ the plate and that is one reason Moncada got the call-up from the Sox triple-A affiliate, the Pawtucket Red Sox. Maybe as Shaw says, he needs to feel the pressure, feel as though his back is against the wall to perform @ his best. The Sox also have a day off before traveling to Toronto to play the Blue Jays Friday night @ 7:07 p.m. A win there moves them up, a loss moves them back to a statistical tie with the Jays.

The Caps opened their MWL East playoff series against the South Bend Cubs with an overtime win, 3 - 2. The Caps travel to South Bend for a 2nd game tonight @ 7:05 p.m.

The current temperature is 71° under cloudy skies. The forecast from the NWS is for a high today of 78° with 86% relative humidity. It was warmer yesterday and that led to a downpour in the evening that negated any need to water the gardens of the PE until at least Saturday morning when the NWS is predicting a 90% chance of T-storms. We are planning to travel to Dearborn that day to see a Tigers game on Sunday and an exhibit @ the Henry Ford Museum regarding the Beatles.

We'll drop STWD @ camp on our way, but I am never happy when our baby is away from me and the threat of T-storms looms. We'll survive, Sugar and I, but it will be trying for both of us.

Today we are off to Holland for a scheduled service appointment @ the car dealer. Mary also  needs a few spices while we are in Holland.  The morning safari should go off without a hitch, but I expect it to be short due to the heat and humidity. Kyle Underwood @ WOOD-TV and radio says that the worst of summer wil be over by Sunday. I'll take a wait and see attitude on that.

The sun will rise @ 7:17 a.m. and set @ 8:06 p.m. today. Ciao.

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

We had a hot and humid day yesterday, but that changed temporarily last evening when the rain clouds gathered overhead and the skies opened up. Mary was downstairs and called me down from the media room to watch the storm clouds develop. The winds increased and ebbed several times as the lightning flashed and the thunder crashed and drove STWD to her hide-e-hole. We sat on the front porch of the PE until the rain drove us indoors. Naturally, that means that I won't have to water the gardens today.

We have a current temperature of 70° with fair skies prevailing at this time. Later today, the T-storms are forecast to return in the late-late evening and into the early morning hours on Thursday. That forecast comes with a 60% probability. The high temperature for today is forecast to be 82° with the relative humidity remaining high. The showers return for Friday and Saturday, but we also expect the temperatures to cool into the more comfortable low to mid-70s.

Fabulous news, the new mattress is here! It is exactly as hoped for, so far. Able to fit up the stairs and through the doorframes, soft and firm, supportive and yet forgiving for my baking yak. Plus, the delivery which had been promised for the period between 9:30 a.m. through 11:00 a.m. came as promised.

I took the morning safari with the intrepid one solo, as Mary had her regularly scheduled chat session. Once I had returned from my solo safari and since Mary was chatting, I went to the man-cave to add some making tape to the lid for the cold frame. I just have to paint it now. Afterward, we ate lunch before departing on our errands. We made several stops during our afternoon travels. My new glasses were ready, but needed a bit of tweaking, but so far, they are a definite improvement over the previous pair.

Since we were in Spring Lake, we continued on to Coopersville for some groceries at Off The Tracks. This store is an outlet for overstock items or items that are nearing their sell-by dates. We didn't need much, but we had recently read of a plan to collect groceries in a box and donate them during the holiday season. We decided that need has no season and so we could and should do this on a regular basis.

As we were passing through Spring Lake, the local food pantry there had a sign that read. "Please consider donating peanut butter and jelly." A perfect opportunity to pick up some things that those less fortunate than ourselves needed for school lunches. We were able to get some canned vegetables and peanut butter and we picked up those items along with our own desired groceries. We capped off the box with some grape jelly from the big grocery store in Spring Lake and a huge box of Kelloggs Rice Krispies™ from home that we had purchased earlier. We stopped in at Stan's Bar in Spring Lake and enjoyed some adult beverages before returning home.

We regularly try to donate to the pantry in Spring Lake or other pantries in West Michigan. We'll drop the box off in Spring Lake today and also get another small tweak to my glasses. It will be a win-win for everybody.

Otherwise, Mary says that she has one small thing to complete in her reorganization efforts and then she is done. She says that she noticed that my work bench in the man-cave needed some organization too. I replied that it may, but I like the organized confusion that prevails down there, so I have no plans to alter that situation soon.

Baseball news yesterday was not so good. The Cubs fell by a lopsided 5 - 12 score to the Brewers. That gives them an NL Central 1st place record of 89 - 49, still good for a 15.5 game lead over the 2nd place Cardinals who defeated the 3rd place Pirates who are 21 games behind the Cubs. The Cubs and the Brewers play tonight @ 8:10 p.m.

The Tigers fell on hard times, losing to that other team from Chicago in an AL Central game, 0 - 2. The Tigers are still in 2nd place, 4.5 games behind the losing Indians, but also nine full games ahead of that other team. Those two teams play again today @ 2:10 p.m.

My beloved Red Sox have once again reclaimed a share of 1st place in the AL East with a 5 - 1 win over the Padres in San Diego. The Sox are now tied with the losing Blue Jays with identical records of 77 - 61. Clay Bucholz is back in the starting rotation for the Sox with the uncertain injury status of fellow pitcher Steven Wright. Bucholz walked none and recorded six Ks as Jackie Bradley Jr. and Chris Young hit back-to-back home runs to seal the deal. The Sox and the Padres play again tonight @ 9:10 p.m.

That starting time is one hour earlier than last night due to the curfew that applies to the airport in San Diego. Flights cannot land nor take off after 11:30 p.m. PDT, due to the location of homes near the airport. If the game started at the usual time and/or ran into extra innings, there would be a chance of their flight to LA being unable to depart.

We won't be getting up too early, as we have no specific plans for today with one exception. We are scheduled to go to the Tri-Cities Historical Museum for a meeting of the monthly book discussion club this afternoon. There is no particular book to discuss for this meeting, but we can select one for next month during the meeting.

I'm almost there. The valances for my music room are next in Mary's craft queue. Now that she has organized her crafts, many things should be forthcoming over the next weeks and months. I have a couple of outdoor chores in my queue, but those don't have a schedule other than to get them done before the snows fly here in GH. The harvests continue in the gardens as tomatoes abound on their vines.

Lest I forget, Happy Birthday Adam! That's 42 for you. I remember you and I taking our sojourns on my off day to allow your mother to sleep when you were just a young lad. We had some great adventures that I remember fondly, even if you don't. I remember the day you were born as though it was yesterday. One good thing about being a certain age is that your memory of things from long ago gets clearer as time passes. Enjoy your day!

The sun will rise today @ 7:16 a.m. and set @ 8:07 p.m. Ciao.

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

This is what happens when I stay up late to watch a PBS concert special featuring Graham Nash playing many of the familiar, and some not so familiar songs from his many affiliations over the years. He wrote then all, and that in itself was/is impressive. You know the songs, Bus Stop, Marrakesh Express, Teach Your Children, Wasted in the Way, Cathedral, Immigration Man, just to name several. Nash's songbook with The Hollies, who took their name from Buddy Holly, CSN, and his solo efforts are/were voluminous. This concert was rebroadcast in anticipation of the release of Nash's new book entitled, Wild Tales: A Rock and Roll Life, on September 17.

This specific concert was recorded in 2015 and Nash at age 74, still sounded great. He was accompanied on guitar and vocals by Shayne Fontayne, who has played with Sting, Bruce Springsteen, and CSN as a lead guitarist/vocalist. Fontayne sang with Nash and his efforts on guitar were nothing short of fabulous. I thought for those of you who are still fans of the Hollies, CSN, or just Graham Nash might enjoy the lengthy YouTube NPR Tiny Desk Concert™ video featuring Nash and Fontayne on acoustic guitar and vocals that I linked to below. I wish I could be anywhere near as proficient as either man.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GTXqKSMv8Lc

I'm going to keep the sports report brief. Cubs W, 7 - 2 Brewers, 1st NL Central, 89 - 48, same tonight @ 8:10 p.

Tigers 5 - 3, that other team, 2nd, AL Central, 4.5 < Indians, L. Tigers/that other team tonight @ 8:10 p. 10 > that other team.

Beloved Red Sox, L Padres. 2nd AL East, 1.0 < than Blue Jays, L. Sox @ Padres 10:10 p. tonight.

Caps off, 5th place. Playoffs tonight @ home SB Cubs. This version of the Caps is different than the first half version due to promotions to AA level or above. Chances? Anybody's guess.

A nice segue to the current book I am reading, The Bullpen Gospels, by Dirk Hayhurst, himself a veteran of seven minor and two major league teams. I am enjoying the book so far and the tiny bit of knowledge that I have garnered to date helped to shape my comments regarding the Caps playoff chances.

I finished painting the storage bench for the mud room and it is now back in place, to complete its drying,

We walked quite a bit yesterday between the morning safari and a trip downtown for dinner @ 22 Below. All told, I covered nearly five miles. It was after that dinner stop when I settled in for the 9:00 p.m. concert featuring Graham Nash.

Today, a mattress delivery, multiple errands including picking up my new glasses, a stop in Coopersville, and the morning safari await.

The current temperature is 75° under clear skies. Today's high is forecast to be 83° under partly cloudy skies with 79% relative humidity. Tomorrow through Friday, the chance of showers increases from 40% to 80% according to that same source. We shall see.

The sun will rise @ 7:15 a. and set @ 8:09 p. Ciao.

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

Yesterday got off to a slow start and then picked up speed as the day progressed. We had a bagel with a schmear accompanied by a cup of tea before it was time to take the morning safari with STWD. I returned to water the gardens, harvest some additional tomatoes, start the laundry, and then put the first coat of paint on the storage bench from the mudroom.

I came in for a short respite and then returned to the vast lawns of the PE to apply a second coat of paint to the storage bench. Lunch was a salad with garden-fresh tomatoes, which also included some tofu baked with nutritional yeast all covered with homemade ranch dressing. Then I got the privilege of cooking the kale I had recently harvested from our gardens and finishing the laundry while watching the Cubs game. Mary did not escape, as she was completing the organization of her craft stash.

We walked downtown and stopped @ our favorite watering hole for dinner and then slowly meandered our way home. We collectively repaired to the media room for a Hallmark Channel™ romance movie and by then I was ready for bed. I tried watching a car show, but I was too tired to make it until the end. I'm betting that they finished the cars they were working on and made a tidy profit too.

Speaking of sports, the Cubs game was still on when we got  to the favorite watering hole and it took the Cubs 13 innings to defeat the Giants, 3 - 2. The Cubs now have a record in the NL Central of 88 - 48 good for a first place lead over the winning 2nd place Cardinals of 16.5 games and 19 games over the losing 3rd place Pirates. The Cubs and the Brewers play this afternoon @ 1:10 p.m.

The Tigers had to work for it, but they beat the Royals in Kansas City by a final score of 6 - 5 in an AL Central game. The Tigers are still in 2nd place, 5.5 games behind the winning Cleveland Indians. The Tigers journey to Chicago to play that other team @ 4:05 p.m. today. The Tigers enjoy a full nine-game lead over that other team who managed a win over the hapless Twins, the cellar-dwellers in their division.

My beloved Red Sox fell out of 1st place in the AL East following an 0 - 1 loss to the As in Oakland. They should have saved some of the 29 runs they scored in the first two games. The Sox are now one game in back of the victorious Blue Jays. The Sox are in San Diego to play the Padres today @ 4:05 p.m.

The Caps lost a squeaker to the Great Lakes Loons by a score of 0 - 1. The loss kept the Caps solidly in fifth place in the MWL East with a record of 32 - 36. They play the Loons today @ 2:05 p.m. in their regular season finale, before taking the day off. The Caps open the playoffs against the South Bend Cubs on Wednesday night @ 6:35 p.m.

I'm taking the day off today after the morning safari. I have to reassemble the storage chest and move it back into the mud room, but that's the limit of my ambition on Labor Day. I plan to play with the girls, read and watch baseball all afternoon. Mary has a tad more organizing to do today and then she says that my valances will get finished.

The current temperature is 62° under clear skies as we drop to the overnight low of 59°. The first hint of rain/T-storms in the forecast is on Wednesday @ 50%. The NWS is also forecasting showers/T-storms on Thursday and Friday with a 50% - 60% chance.  The sun will rise today @ 7:14 a.m. and set @ 8:11 p.m. as the curtain rings down on the tourist season in GH. Ciao.

Good morning or good evening, wherever you may be. It is just past 6:00 a.m. in "The City."

Yes, I got a late start on this blog.  Like much of yesterday, time got away from us.

Oh well, that allowed us time to get downtown, twice and then to stop at the Post.

Speaking of the Post, Mary got a call from Sally yesterday morning that was eerie to me, because I had this weird semi-dream that Sally had called and that we should call her yesterday. George Noory would find that a fascinating tale.

Sports news yesterday was once again a mixed bag. The Cubs lost by a final score of 2 - 3 to the Giants. Jake Arrieta was outdueled by Madison Bumgarner, who silenced the Cubs' bats. That means the Cubs have an NL Central record of 87 - 48, 16.5 games ahead of the 2nd place Cardinals and 19 games ahead of the 3rd place Pirates, both of whom lost.  The Cubs and the Giants square-off again today @ 2:05 p.m.

The Tigers took it on the chin from the Royals in Kansas City by a score of 2 - 5. That loss still finds the Tigers in 2nd place with an AL Central record of 73 - 62, but they are now 5.5 games behind the winning Indians. The Tigers and the Royals play again today @ 2:15 p.m.

My beloved Red Sox once again whooped it on the As in Oakland by a score of 11 - 2. That moved the Sox into a statistical tie with the losing Blue Jays in the AL East with identical records of 76 -59.

Former Tigers' pitcher Rick Porcello was once again terrific as he flirted with a perfect game. Mookie Betts became only the second player in Red Sox' history to hit 30 plus home runs and 100 plus RBIs before he turned 24. Those numbers are so far in this still to be completed season. Mookie is in rare company with the late Hall of Fame outfielderTed Williams being that other player. Hanley Ramirez got home run #20 as David "Big Papi" Ramirez got three hits and two RBIs, Many of the Sox' players batted twice in a seven-run 3rd inning. The Sox and the As play again today @ 4:05 p.m.

The Caps had a split yesterday in their MWL East games against the Great Lakes Loons. They completed the rain-suspended first game by a winning score of 4 -3 but dropped the regularly scheduled nightcap by a score of 1 - 2. That gives the 5th place Caps a record of 32 - 35. They play the Loons again today @ 2:05 p.m.

Our meals yesterday were cold cereal and hot oatmeal for breakfast, spicy tomato loaf sandwiches with a side of cottage tofu for lunch, and a Mary-modified casserole that included more of the spicy loaf with grated zucchini from our gardens, nutritional yeast, canned tomato sauce and vegan cheese. Not the way the recipe started out, but definitely a keeper.

I got in some time with Susanna, my ganjo yesterday too.

Today, Mary is certain that she will get her reorganization completed. I'll be watering after the morning safari. Then I plan to get to that painting that was on my personal to-do list yesterday. Somewhere in there, I must watch the Cubs' game and eat something to keep up my strength.

The current temperature is 56°  under clear skies. We anticipate a high-temperature today of 79° under mostly sunny skies. There is no rain in the forecast from the NWS until a 50% possibility of T-storms Thursday morning.

The son will rise today @ 7:13 a.m. and set exactly 13 hours later @ 8:13 p.m. Ciao.