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

I've recently returned from a sojourn to the back forty with GTWD and STWD and all is well here in GH as the new year gets underway. The current temperature is 32° under mostly cloudy skies. The clouds will give way to sunny skies and a high temperature later today of 38° with windy conditions.

We are looking good until Wednesday when the wintry temperatures return and we see a high temperature of only 22°. Along the way, we'll have a 50% chance of showers on Monday evening and 41° and foggy conditions when the kids go back to school on Tuesday. We'll only have a couple of days in the next 10 when the temperatures drop into the teens and there is only a slight chance for precipitation, All good by me.

GH had its 2nd annual New Year's Eve Ball Drop last night. According to WOOD TV/Radio, everything went off without a hitch and the crowds appeared to be larger this year due to good weather and the cancellation of the ball drop in GR. In addition, the fireworks that accompanied the celebration were heard but not seen by Mary and I. At our age, we no longer need to see the festivities, as we know that the new year turns with or without us as witnesses.

I did get another quarter in change yesterday for my collections. This one was N. Dakota with the Denver mint designation for 2016 that depicts President Theodore Roosevelt. I am still missing both "D" & "P" quarters for South Carolina and the "D" quarter for Illinois from the year 2016, Oddly enough, I am still missing the South Carolina 2016 quarter and the 2015 Delaware quarter for my National Park Quarter collection. I'll keep looking unless some kind person in another location, like Chicago, finds these and sends them to me. Hint, Hint.

We had a nice dinner at the Double Deuce yesterday afternoon. We allowed GTWD to roam free for the first time since we adopted her. We were out for approx. one and one-half hours and when we returned, GTWD was watching from her regular station on the back of the living room couch. We discerned no wreckage from a scrum between her and her big sister, STWD, and the house seemed none the worse for wear. In other words, all good.

Today, regretfully, I have to take down our Christmas tree and pack the ornaments and other decorations away for another year. I'll also have to wave a fond farewell to the radio stations that have been playing Christmas music 24/7. Sigh.

I plan to do little else. I shouldn't read as I am experiencing some symptoms of eye strain from too much reading yesterday.

It is worthy of note, that as of today, the gasoline taxes and vehicle registration fees increase here in Michigan for the first time in many years. The gasoline taxes will increase by seven cents per gallon and the vehicle registration fees by 20% for both cars and trucks. Those increases are part of a package that the legislature in Lansing passed to help pay for road improvements. I'm okay with the increases as long as the money goes to the roads and not some pet projects of the various legislators. We'll see as the MI legislature is famous for misdirection of funds. Typically, the GOP-dominated legislature was willing to raise fees on vehicle registrations and taxes on gasoline but not on income. Hmm.

The sun will rise today @ 8:16 a.m. and set @ 5:20 p.m. In addition, the change to 2017 increased the length of the day by one second. I have to decide how I want to spend my extra time from now on. Ciao.