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

It's a done deal. The carpet has been ordered and the house is slowly settling back into a non-regular regular rhythm. Mary and I concurred on the need to carpet the entire manse and so we stopped in at the carpet store yesterday, put down our money, and then moved on to the furniture store.

I should note, that it will take seven to ten business days for the carpet to arrive and then about two and one-half days for the carpet to be installed. Meanwhile, the state of confusion will continue to baffle Sugar and us. Sigh.

At the furniture store, we chose a replacement for the bistro table in the media room and a pair of La-Z-Boys to replace the existing seating. It will take about six to eight weeks for all of the items we ordered to be ready, but at least we are done with that part of our adventure.

We have a current temperature of 56° under mostly cloudy skies. Today's high temperature is forecast by the NWS to reach 79 sultry degrees under partly cloudy skies. Sunday the temperature is forecast to reach only 69° with an 80% chance of T-storms in the ayem. If there are any weddings scheduled for Saturday in Central Park, they should go off without a hitch, no pun intended.

Sports news was mostly good yesterday. The Cubs picked a good time to right the ship versus their NL Central foes, the St. Louis Cardinals, by a slim margin of 3 - 2. John Lackey gave up two runs early and it took some astute base-running by Anthony Rizzo to set up a sacrifice RBI fly by Jason Heyward, but the Cubs pulled it off. Unfortunately, they are still in 3rd place with a record of 26 - 27. The Cubs and the Cardinals play again this afternoon @ 2:20 p.m.

The Tigers romped over that other team from Chicago by a final score of 15 - 5. The Tigers are now in 3rd place with an AL Central record of 26 - 28. The Tigers and that other team play again this afternoon @ 4:10 p.m.

My beloved Red Sox fell to their AL East rivals, the Baltimore Orioles, 2 - 3. That gives the Sox a record of 29 - 25, good enough for 3rd place in their division. The Sox and the Orioles play again tonight @ 7:15 p.m.

The Caps eked out a win over the Lansing Lug Nuts, 1 - 0.  The Caps 37 - 17 record in the MWL East gives them a solid three-game lead over the Dayton Dragons. The Caps and the Lug Nuts play again tonight @ 7:00 p.m.

Once we returned from our errands yesterday, I spent a couple of hours on the front porch with Abaegael playing and singing. Ginger would have been there too, but she was tired after a bath and grooming following daycare.

Mary finally got her climbing plant for the gardens from The City Farmer. She had tried to pick it up the day before, but it was apparently on an unexpected road trip with the greenhouse manager. I don't think that Mary has named her plant yet, but if she does, I'll post the name here.

Otherwise, we plan to do very little today as John completes the removal of the nails and detritus from the old carpeting in the downstairs. We are going to walk with the fur-children later this ayem, but not too far, as STWD is unable to walk very far these days when it gets warm. Like most of us here at the PE, Sugar is getting up in years. Ginger being younger, slows some, but she is mostly ready to go.

The sun will rise @ 6:07 ayem and set @ 9:19 p.m. Ciao.

Good evening or good morning, wherever you may be. It is just past 9:00 p.m. in "The City."

We have a current temperature of 65 - 68 degrees, depending on the source you consult. In either case, that's under fair skies. Tomorrow, the skies are forecast to be sunny with a high temperature of 74°. Saturday, the high is forecast to be 78° with partly cloudy skies and a 20% chance of rain.

The sun will set this evening @ 9:18 p.m. and rise tomorrow @ 6:07 a.m.

As of now, the downstairs area of the manse is a mess, nee a disaster. The carpeting has been ripped out and carted away in preparation for the refinishing of the hard pine floors that have been in the manse since it was built in 1903 or 1904. The floors need some serious work that will take several days and may necessitate our vacating the building to allow for the various finishes to dry. I'm having serious doubts about the wisdom of this endeavor. I spoke with Mary and we agreed to talk about it more in the ayem. In short, I am in favor of our original plan "A", which called for carpeting the entire upstairs and downstairs. We'll see how I feel in the ayem.

I have to water again tomorrow to ensure the continued survival of the flowers and vegetables in the vast gardens of the PE. I did get the lawn mowed today, so at least that's off my list.

I also got in some time with my Irish drum today and I think I have a good start on a cohesive rhythm pattern. I also played with Ivy, my 12 string and we sounded good too.

Unfortunately, the Cubs are now into June and the danger of a 2017 "June Swoon" is upon us. Was last year's World Series win a fluke? I dunno, but right now, I am worried. The Cubs are playing like a bad baseball team The Cubs are off today after losing @ San Diego yesterday 1 - 2. They return to the "Friendly Confines" tomorrow to face the Cardinals, the 2nd place team in the NL Central, @ 2:20 p.m.

Speaking of bad baseball teams, the Tigers did manage to beat the very weak Royals yesterday, 6 - 5. That win still leaves the Tigers with an AL Central record of 25 - 28, also good for 3rd place. The Tigers are off today before meeting that other team from Chicago @ Comerica Park @ 7:10 p.m.

There is some joy in "Beantown as my beloved Red Sox defeated that other team from Chicago yesterday, by a score of 4 - 1. That gave them an AL East record of 27 - 24, good for 2nd place. Unfortunately, the Sox are not off today and they are currently losing to the Orioles, 1 - 7 in the 7th inning. The Sox and the Orioles play again tomorrow @ 7:05 p.m.

The Caps are playing the Great Lakes Loons tonight and the Caps are down 1 -2 in the 7th inning. They have an MWL East record of 35 - 17, good for 1st place and a one-game lead over the Dayton Dragons. The Caps and the Lansing Lug Nuts play tomorrow @ 7:00 p.m.

Trainspotting was odd this week. On Tuesday, I heard the train heading south @ 12:25 p.m. I did not see the passage. Oddly, yesterday morning, the train passed by the manse on the RSTL heading north. Locomotives 2057 and 2019 were towing 15 CHCs, 11 DWTCs, and 19 DBTCs.

Today, Ginger and I spotted the same tandem of locomotives heading south @ 10:00 a.m. In tow were four CHCs, five DBTCs, one DWTC, and two GTCs. Later in the afternoon, we spotted the same locomotives @ 4:34 p.m. towing 13 CHCs, 13 DBTCs, and one DWTC.

So, in the ayem, we'll make a final decision and then work from there. Ciao.

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

The current temperature is 54° under mostly clear skies. Later today, after the sun rises @ 6:09 a.m. and long before it sets @ 9:16 p.m., we are expecting a high of 64° under partly cloudy skies. There is a 20% chance for a stray T-storm, but that forecast is good enough for John to continue outdoor work on the front porch of the manse.

Later this evening, I'll be off to the art gallery around the corner for another drawing lesson. I have been working on my own over the holiday weekend, and I feel I am doing well, but I am in need of additional guidance.

Mary has been hard at work in the kitchen creating additional batches of tofu jerky and other dishes. Her recent creation of hash for brunch is an example of using two recipes to make another recipe that turned out better than either individually. Two of her recent Reuben burgers became part of a hash recipe that was supposed to use tempeh, but which we both think turned out better using the Reuben burgers instead. We ate the balance of the burgers for dinner.

I spent some time watering in the gardens yesterday to ensure the continued survival of our new plantings and veggies.  So far, they are looking good. Today, we have a few errands to run and that means that Ginger will be @ daycare for part of the day. She seems to like it, so we feel better about it too. Sugar is fine with just being home alone.

Sports news yesterday was mostly bad. I said yesterday that the Tigers are a bad baseball team, but at this point in the MLB season, I have to apply that label to the Cubs too. A team that won 103 games last year en route to the World Championship, based largely on the strength of their pitching and solid hitting is floundering this year. They are struggling to stay @ the .500 mark. With 50 games already played, the Cubs have a record of 25 - 25 in the NL Central following their loss to the Padres yesterday, 2 - 5. I mistakenly named the Dodgers as the Cubs' opponents yesterday, but a change of scenery made no difference. A loss is a loss and mediocrity is mediocrity. The Cubs hope to change their ways tonight in San Diego @ 10:10 p.m. Not exactly a June Swoon in May, but cause for concern.

The Tigers had one bright spot in their dismal season yesterday. They defeated the 2015 World Champion Kansas City Royals, 10 - 7. The 21 - 29 Royals have lost many of the players from that 2015 team to free-agency and the Cubs may face similar prospects this year. Sigh. The Tigers are still in 4th place in the AL Central with their current record of 24 - 27. They once again get to play a team worse than themselves in Kansas City tonight @ 8:15 p.m.

My beloved Red Sox fell to that other team from Chicago yesterday, 4 - 5. The Sox are still in 2nd place in the AL East with a record of 27 - 23, but they need more consistent pitching in spite of the solid return of David Price from the DL for the first time this season yesterday. The Red Sox face that other team again tonight @ 8:10 p.m.

The Caps lost to the Dragons yesterday 2 - 4. The Caps still maintain a one-game lead over the Dragons in the MWL East with a 34 - 16 record. The Caps return to the playing field tonight against the 25 - 25 Great Lakes Loons in Midland, MI tonight @ 7:05 p.m.

Otherwise, there is little of consequence on tap for today. Errands, drawing class, playing with the girls and my bodhran and walking with the fur-children will consume much of our day. Ciao.

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

I just have to start with the weather and the forecast from the NWS. My DTWS is reporting a current temperature of 73° under sunny skies, using as its source, the FPMS, whereas the NWS in GR is reporting 66°, with partly cloudy skies. In either case, it is an absolutely gorgeous day here.

We started our morning by feeding the fur-children and then I took STWD for a walk, solo. Mary stayed behind with GTTSD in preparation for her first ever Memorial Day Parade here in GH.

My feet, and Ginger, nearly ready to go.

Ginger eagerly enjoying the parade.

By and large, Ginger acquitted herself very well, even receiving pets from some of the children viewing the parade.

What would be a Memorial Day Parade without the usual cast of veterans from our own local Sgt, Alvin Jonker VFW Post #2326? Also represented was our own local Charles Conklin American Legion PoOst #28.

An assortment of Jeeps was there to carry the participants part of the way

All ages and

All styles!

The dignitaries were followed by the local Grand Haven High School Marching Buccaneers Band.

The Color Guard for the band.

The Band

Of course, as befits our status as Coast Guard City USA, the "Coasties were there too.

Indeed

The Hooligans provided an aerial flyover as part of the remembrances of those lost to the wars.

A solo flyover

The same, looking onto the sun

A formation flyover.

Lastly, what would be a local parade without a John Deere tractor?

Looking Good!

Sports news yesterday included a crash-marred Indy 500 race that was stopped a few times due to some horrendous crashes including one early in the race that involved pole sitter Scott Dixon. His car was nearly torn in half, but the "Safety Cell" for the driver and the SAFER barrier walls that are primarily used at oval tracks like Indy, allowed all of the drivers to walk away from their respective crashes. The 500 was won by Takuma Sato or Sato San, as 2nd place finisher Helio Castroneves called him Sato is shown here in his winning entry, picture courtesy of Dorron Cummings of the Associated Press.

Elsewhere in sports, the Cubs once again fell to the Dodgers 4 - 9. to fall to 25 -24 in the NLCentral and 3rd place. The Cubs finish their series with the Dodgers today @ 4:40 p.m.    

The Tigers are a bad baseball team. They lost once again to that other team from Chicago by a score of 2 - 7 to fall to 23 - 27 and 4th place in the AL Central. The Tigers play the Royals tonight @ 7:15 p.m.

My beloved Red Sox lost to the Mariners 0 - 5 to become a 27 - 22 team in the AL East, three games behind the division-leading Yankees. The Red Sox move on to face that other team from Chicago @ 2:10 p.m. with David Price retruning from the DL for the first time this season. 

Good news from the Caps as they defeated the Dayton Dragons 2 - 1 to end the day with an MWL East record of 34 -15, two full games ahead of the Dragons, whom they play again today starting @ 2:00 p.m.

As noted, we walked the fur-children and I watered the gardens of the vast PE. Mary made a brunch of extremely tasty corned beest hash and she is now in the kitchen doing some batch cooking. I was playing with my bodhran Irish drum and Ivy, my 12 string guitar prior to bloggong, so life is good. Ciao.

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

Yesterday was a busy day here on the PE. John finished the railings of the front porch and Mary and I gardened in the back-forty. I planted three new rose bushes, moved several other perennials, and watered all the new plantings. Mary assisted by mowing the vast lawns of the PE and designating the various planting sites for the roses and the transplantations.

Naturally, like all things related to the PE and other activities, the various tasks took longer than expected. That means that John's hopes for an end to the painting will wait until Tuesday and the gardening took longer than either Mary or myself had planned. Oh well, that's the "Way it is" as Walter Cronkite used to intone at the end of the CBS Evening News many years ago.

I was smart enough to wear my yak brace to avoid further stress on my yak. Mary was surprised, but I can learn. In another surprise for Mary, I went downstairs yesterday morning to feed the fur-children and ate a banana without being coaxed or prodded. Tastes evolve.

Mary got busy in the kitchen yesterday after gardening and after I washed what seemed like an endless supply of dirty dishes and utensils. She made a batch of vegan Reuben Burgers that incorporated numerous spices and steaming of the burgers for one hour. Unfortunately, the water boiled away and left stains in the large pressure cooker that we use for many cooking tasks. I spent about 20 minutes earlier this morning removing the majority of the stains with steel wool. There are still some marks, but they will not affect usage for other meals. In addition, I washed the various trays of the food dehydrator that she used to make another batch of tofu jerky with a very different marinade that is much better than the last attempt. By the by, the burgers taste superb. I also made another batch of my world famous Coleslaw. That awaits another meal.

Sports news yesterday was mixed. The Cubs lost another game to the Dodgers, this time by a score of 0 - 5. That loss dropped the Cubs back into 3rd place in the NL Central with a record of 25 - 23. The Cub's' bats have gone to sleep on the West Coast. Plus, their pitching has been sleep-walking too. The Cubs and the Dodgers play again today @ 4:10 p.m.

The Tigers woke up long enough to snatch a win from that other team from Chicago, 4 - 3. That win gives the Tigers an AL Central record of 23 - 26, still good enough for 3rd place. The Tigers play that other team again today @ 2:10 p.m.

My beloved Red Sox kept up their winning ways with a 6 - 0 win over the Mariners. That gives the Sox a 27 - 21 record in the AL East, but still only good enough for 2nd place. The Sox play the Mariners again today @ 1:35 p.m.

The Caps finally lost one, this time to the Dayton Dragons, 2 - 5. That loss still allows the Caps to remain in 1st place in the MWL East, one game ahead of the Dragons. Both teams play again tonight @ 7:00 p.m.

Speaking of sports, as Howard Cosell used to say many years ago, the Greatest Spectacle in Motor Racing is still scheduled for today @ 12:19 p.m. That assumes that the rains hold off and allow pole sitter Scott Dixon and the other 32 drivers to take to the track and try to avoid mistakes that lead to crashes and delays. I'll be in the media room to watch if everything goes as planned.

We have a current temperature of 58° to 62° depending on the source consulted. The NWS is forecasting a 60% chance for T-storms this morning. Otherwise, not much is on tap for today. More reading, more batch cooking for Mary and more walks with the fur-children. The sun will rise @ 6:10 a.m. and set @ 9:14 p.m. Ciao.

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

I've been playing with Abaegael for the last hour or so, just because I can. I enjoy my alone time with any of the girls at this hour of the day. Mary never interrupts me at any time unless there is something pressing that needs to be handled, but I like to be undisturbed sometimes, no fur-children and no extra things to get in the way.

But I digress. I had great hopes to keep this blog shorter than most, but that's not how it is turning out.

I baked a great loaf of rye bread yesterday while I was doing the laundry. I like baking and in this case, the end result, after a misfire, was the best loaf of dark rye bread I've ever baked. Great taste, great texture and two-thumbs up from all critics. I forgot to take a picture, but take my word for it, this really is a great loaf of bread.

The Cubs fell on hard times last night in LA, losing to the Dodgers 0 - 4. As has become the case too often this season, Jake Arrieta wasn't effective. Coupled with a lack of offense and the loss dropped the Cubs to 25 - 22. However, they are now in 1st place in the NL Central, one-half game ahead of the Brewers and one full game ahead of the Cardinals, both of whom also lost. The Cubs play again today in LA LA land against the Dodgers @ 7:15 p.m. EDT.

The Tigers are still not faring very well. I heard one of their announcers state that the Tigers need to improve their pitching. Ya think? The Tigers fell to that other team from Chicago, 2 - 8. to drop to 22 - 25 in the AL Central, still good enough for 3rd place. The Tigers and that other team play again today @ 2:10 p.m. EDT.

My beloved Red Sox had a good day as they defeated the Mariners yesterday 3 - 0. That moves the Sox to 26 - 21, good enough for 2nd place in the AL East. The Sox and the Mariners play again tonight @ 7:00 p.m. EDT.

Really good news for the Caps and their fans. The Caps defeated the Dayton Dragons 7 - 5 yesterday in 12 innings to move to 33 - 14 in the MWL East, two full games ahead of the Dragons. The Caps play the Dragons again tonight in Dayton @ 7:00 p.m. EDT.

John is making progress on the painting of the front porch. However, being the perfectionist that he is, it is taking longer than he anticipated. We are grateful for his attention to detail. Plus, he is a good test subject for my bread baking efforts. In short, it's all good.

We have a current temperature of 54° under partly cloudy skies. Later today after the sun rises @ 6:10 a.m. and well before it sets @ 9:13 p.m., the NWS is forecasting a high of 73° under mostly sunny skies. Sunday's high will be similar, but the chance of showers increases to 80%. Good for our gardens, but not good for picnics nor auto racing.

Speaking of auto racing, it is a good thing that the organizers of the "Greatest Spectacle in Motor Racing" the Indianapolis 500, set aside a rain day on Monday when the temperatures will be in the upper 70s and the chance of rain/T-storms is only 10% as compared to the 80% chance on Sunday.

Otherwise, today we will be walking with the fur-children, perhaps to the farmer's market and also taking a short trip by car to the City Farmer for some additional flowers and things for our gardens. John will be by to paint more before taking a couple of days off for the Memorial Day holiday. Ciao.

 homeGood morning or good evening, wherever you may be. It is just past 3:30 ayem in "The City." You may be wondering why I'm using this odd form of a.m., but it is the way that Burt "B.S." Levey used the term in Toly's Ghost.

At 3:30 a.m., all is well, to borrow from the olde Town Criers. We have a current temperature of 57° under cloudy skies. I was out with Ginger around 3:00 ayem, and it was quite pleasant. Later today after the sun rises @ 6:12 ayem and long before it sets @ 9:12 p.m., the day will be partly cloudy with only a 20% chance of more showers,

We are getting closer to this olde house being somewhat more complete. John sealed the holes under the sinks and finished the weather stripping of the door leading to the deck. He also power washed the front porch and railings in preparation for repainting. Now all that is left is some minor carpentry and hand scraping before painting.

We made it to our chiropractor's appointment and so I continue to improve the condition of my baking yak and Mary got a good tune-up.

The Cubs eked out a victory over the Giants by a slim 5 - 4 score last night. That finds the Cubs with an overall record of 24 - 21 n the NL Central, still only good for 3rd place, one-half game behind the Brewers and the Cardinals, with their records of 25 - 21 and 23 - 20 respectively. The Cubs and the Giants play again today @ 2:20 p.m.

The Tigers slightly righted the ship against the Astros last night with a 6 - 3 win over the Astros. However, that still finds the Tigers in 3rd place in the AL Central with a 22 - 23 record. The Tigers and the Astros play again tonight @ 8:10 p.m.

My beloved Red Sox defeated the Rangers, 9 - 4 last night. However, that victory still leaves them in 3rd place in the AL East with a 24 - 21 record. They play the Rangers again tonight @ 7:10 p.m.

The Caps moved up to sole possession of 1st place in the MWL East with a solid win over the TinCaps, 5 - 0. That gives the Caps a one-half game lead over the 2nd place Dayton Dragons with the Caps record of 31 - 14. The Caps and the TinCaps play again tonight @ 6:35 p.m.

Today we are off to Holland for several errands. A stop @ the car dealer for regular service, a stop @ Teerman's for an exchange and a purchase, and a stop @ the frame store to pick up our framed newspapers that proclaim the Cubs victory in the 2016 World Series. They will look great on our living-room wall.

John will be by while we are out to attempt to finish the front porch preparations. Ginger will be going to daycare for her own well-being while we are on our extended errand trip. Sugar will be going along to the groomer/daycare center before we leave her @ home. Sugar will be getting a pawdicure there.

I plan to read more, draw more, play with the girls more and generally try to do very little. Mary will be driving and I'll be navigating when our GPS isn't explicit enough. Ciao.