Good morning or good evening, wherever you may be, across the nation and across the world. It is just past 7:30 a.m. in "The City."

The current temperature is 67° under clear skies. The sun will rise today @ 7:04 a.m. and set later @ 8:26 p.m. Between now and 5:00 a.m. Thursday, the NWS has issued three advisories and/or statements. We have a Beach Hazard Statement in effect. That means that north of Holland, high/strong-winds and rip currents currents preclude swimming in the "Big Lake." So, while the surf may be up, people are strongly encouraged to avoid the water and walking on the piers, as big waves will be washing over them. Photo -Op anyone?

In addition, there is a Small Craft Advisory in effect, also until 5:00 a.m. Thursday. Winds of 20 - 30 knots will cause waves that may reach four to seven feet in height. Small craft, inexperienced sailors, and ships without a good crew and a good captain well seasoned should not leave the dock. Gosh, what a great time to once again insert Gordon Lightfoot's The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald from YouTube™.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9vST6hVRj2A 

But wait, there's more! There is also a Lakeshore Flood Advisory in effect until 5:00 a.m. Thursday too. 20 - 30 mph winds with gusts possible to 35 mph will propel waves of four to seven feet, just like that Small Craft Advisory. Erosion of shoreline properties will be a major concern.  Yes indeed, Photo-Op! This was the summer that I was going to go swimming in the "Big Lake", but so far, the weather has deterred me. Sigh.

Oh, there is a 40% chance for T-storms tomorrow evening in the forecast too.

I'll endeavor to keep my Special Kitchen Statement short this morning. I baked an excellent Banana-Zucchini Bundt bread/cake yesterday morning. Our Senior Staff Photographer used our Smart-Phone to capture a pic of the end result.

I have it on good authority that the taste, texture, and moistness is perfect. I also tasted my bread, and it is indeed excellent.

What a perfect way to segue to what came next. Mary got a call from Justin @ The Camera Shop in Muskegon that her Olympus TG-6, weatherproof and waterproof camera was in at the store. Mary has been wanting one of these cameras, in red, since she saw an early version at a macro-photography session earlier this year. So, we had to get there. It is an excellent camera that can photograph with microscopic detail and is able to work underwater and in all kinds/types of inclement weather. Somehow, I don't see Mary in a boat or on a surf board, but if she were so inclined....

I also learned how to set my Olympus E-M10 III to take pix in black and white. Justin is very patient with us newbies and he made the difficult internet and instruction manual explanation much easier to comprehend. Now all I have to do is give his information a try.

As we drove to and from The Camera Store, I took some pix of my own. Not in black and white, but I liked the results nonetheless. I even captured a flock of birds overflying the highway.

 

Small birds, big sky!

As you know, I love industrial pix.

Technically, The Camera Store is in Muskegon Heights.

One side note, I spent nearly 45 minutes this early morn, reclaiming the kitchen from last night's dinner preparation. Mary is a "Kitchen Magician." She can make a meal out of almost anything, but often, her clean-up skills are not on par with her cooking abilities. This time, her always excellent down and dirty pasta sauce was found on the walls, the stove-top, and the nearby appliances. It was a challenge, but I was up to the task and the kitchen once again sparkles in readiness for today's adventures. 

I'd better make the baseball report shorter today.

The Cubs used a stellar performance by Yu Darvish to overcome the Mets in NYC last night, 5 - 2. The Cubs and the Mets meet again tonight @ 7:10 p.m. EDT, when Kyle Hendricks starts for the Cubs.

My beloved Red Sox were powered to their own win, 10 - 6, over the Rockies, by a record-breaking, 478 foot home run off the bat of Jackie Bradley Jr. Once and former Sox 2nd baseman Dustin Pedroia was in the dugout sporting a massive knee brace and using crutches following his latest bout of knee surgery. I think his career is over, but... The Sox and the Rockies play again tonight @ 8:0 p.m.

The Tigers still can't score runs. In spite of an excellent performance by starter Spencer Turnbull, the final score still favored the Indians, 1 - 10. The Tigers and the Indians play @ Comerica Park again tonight when Jordan Zimmerman gets the call @ 7:10 p.m.

The West Michigan WhiteCaps fell to the Ft. Wayne TinCaps last night, 0 - 1. The Caps move on to Lansing, MI for tonight's game against the Lugnuts @ 7:05 p.m.

Today, I have that follow-up appointment @ the orthopedist in Muskegon regarding my yak. I'm hoping that the decision is to try that additional procedure that can improve my quality of life. We'll also be making what has become a regular stop at that big-box arts and crafts store in Norton Shores. You can never have too many paint colors. Ciao.