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

The current temperature is 36° under mostly-cloudy skies with windy conditions. Today's high is forecast to reach, wait for it, 36°, under mostly-cloudy skies.  The sun will rise today @ 7:57 a.m. and set later @ 6:00 p.m.

A Small Craft Advisory is effect until 7:00 a.m. Wednesday morning. Northeast winds becoming north @ 15 to 25 knots creating waves of 2 to 5 feet are expected from St Joseph to Manistee. Higher waves will gradually work into the nearshore waters today as winds become more northerly, but the highest waves will remain out over the open lake. Conditions will be hazardous to small craft. Inexperienced mariners, especially those operating smaller vessels, should avoid navigating in hazardous conditions.

The highest waves in the nearshore waters will be near Big and Little Sable Points, which are just south of Pentwater and near to Luddington. Big and Little Sable Point are home to two of the estimated 247 lighthouses once on the shores of the four Great Lakes that Michigan touches. Of those 247, about 100 are considered working today, according to the Great Lakes  Lighthouse Keepers Association. Amazing what you can learn with a little research.

Yesterday was such a beautiful day, 53° in Holland versus the 36° we'll see today, that Mary and I decided to travel to Holland and visit the Herrick District Library there. We didn't actually go for the collection, although that is quite large, we went to see the statues outside that portray some of the characters like the Scarecrow, the Tin Woodsman, the Cowardly Lion, Dorothy, and her little dog,  Toto on the Yellow Brick Road. all from the book by L. Frank Baum, The Wonderful Wizard of Oz.

Baum spent summers in Holland @ Macatawa Park on the shores of Lake Michigan. It is said that those visits inspired that famous book and its characters. Across the street from the Herrick Library, in Centennial Park. Plans call for the planting of thousands of annual plantings to create a living mosaic of the cover of The Wonderful Wizard of Oz.

So, a beautiful day meant picture taking with my trusty Olympus DSLR camera. Here are some with the characters and Mary.

A rare photo of Mary with  the Cowardly LIon.

Follow the Yellow Brick Road!!

From any angle.

If  he only had a brain.

Or some courage.

And her little dog too!

You want what?

Tell it to the monkey!

 A visit to the Herrick Library required a perusal of the collections, which included this card catalog of newspaper obituaries.

An amazing collection.

A relative? I don't know.

Mary can't go anywhere that has a bench without the obligatory shot of yours truly on said bench. This one was dedicated by the Laukitis family, from Holland.

As you can see, the weather required only our vests for warmth.

Truer words were never spoken.

While the fair city of Holland is nice, as is the Herrick Library, there is no place like home, and home is where the heart is. Our hearts call Grand Haven home now and we love GH and the Tri-Cities area.

Today, I am off to my monthly Coffee and Coloring session at our own Loutit District Library. I am working on several things, but it is the chance to color and learn from the Coffee and Coloring coordinator, Kerry Fitzgerald, the Assistant Head Librarian @ Loutit and a terrific colorist in her won right, that makes these sessions a must. Here is a link to her Facebook™ page that shows her talent. Enjoy.

https://www.facebook.com/kerry.fitzgerald.1048

While we were in Holland, we picked up some ingredients to make a tasty vegan Chili Mac that Mary made for dinner. I like the taste and so I proclaim this one a keeper. No animals died  in the making.

Today should be pedestrian. Once I get back from colooring, we can  take the fur-children for a walk and then settle in for some TV viewing. Ciao.