Good morning or good evening, wherever you may be, across the nation and across the world. It is just after 6:30 a.m. in "The City."

The current temperature is 37° under partly-cloudy skies with winds of 14 mph that make it feel more like 29°. Today's high is forecast to be 38° with 16 mph winds. But, with those 16 mph winds, it won't feel all that warm. If all goes according to plan and the forecast by the NWS proves accurate, Thursday's high will be 52° with a 90% chance for rain. Unfortunately, the forecast  also calls for temperatures in the 30s and 40s for at least the next week!


The Small Craft Advisory has returned from 8:00 a.m. this morning until 2:00 p.m. this afternoon,  West winds around 15 knots with gusts up to 25 knots and waves 3 to 5 feet are expected. expected from Holland to Manistee. Conditions will be hazardous to small craft. 

The sun will rise today @ 7:52 a.m. and set later @ 7:54 p.m

Speaking of Holland, for the first time in 91 years, the annual Tulip Time Festival in Holland has been canceled, as the Coronavirus pandemic claims yet another victim. This event which annually draws over 500,000 visitors to Holland, usually brings an additional $48 million in revenue to the area.

The Tulip Time Festival relies heavily on volunteers, many of whom are like 45% of the visitors to the festival. Those volunteers, like ourselves, are in the age group most vulnerable to the Covid-19 virus. The festival overcame an early spring one year that became what some locals have dubbed "Stem Fest". Sadly, this year there will be no Tulip Time Festival in Holland!

Michigan Governor, Gretchen Whitmer, has ordered all schools and public libraries in Michigan to be closed for several weeks and all bars and restaurants will be allowed to only serve carry-out patrons. This is serious! The US, along with the rest of the world is seeing some severe downturns to the markets.

As a retired teacher, I can only imagine what it must be like trying to plan lessons that will be delivered over the internet. In some states, there are estimated to be as many as 25% of the students who have no internet access. Along with that fact, some of those students with younger siblings and working parents will become de-facto babysitters, thus limiting the time they can devote to lessons, especially if those siblings are also expecting to use the computer. That doesn't take into account the parents who will be working from home and therefore also need the computer.

In what is possibly a bit of good news, the planets Mars, Jupiter, and Saturn will offer a triple-treat this week, what some are calling a Planet Palooza!. I hope that this video from NASA will play for you and give you an idea of what to expect later this week. Sorry about the commercial that helps pay for the video on the Weather Channel site.

https://weather.com/science/space/video/mars-jupiter-saturn-offer-triple-treat-this-week

I finished another book yesterday, but I didn't get to reading the Monday edition of the Grand Haven Tribune nor take time to work the crossword. However, there are several good things about Social Distancing. You take time to finish your federal and state taxes. You get to spend more time with your fur-children and they appreciate their walk-time with you. You almost get started on a Jigsaw Puzzle that you've had in the closet for two years. And, you do more work in the kitchen.

Unfortunately, many small-businesses will be taking a huge hit to their revenues and the workers at those businesses, many of which are bars and restaurants, will not be able to provide seasonal jobs for college-age workers and others who count on the annual boost to their income.

Here in GH for example, one bartender that we know once estimated that more than 50% of his annual income came during ""The Season", that time between Memorial Day and Labor Day, when tourist towns see a huge influx of visitors who spend copious amounts of money like those proverbial Drunken Sailors!.

Today, I hope to read that newspaper, do some cooking in the kitchen, and of course, walk with the fur-children. STWD is like me, she can't go as far as she used to go, but her mind is willing even if her flesh is not. 

Otherwise, not much is happening. Sadly, there is no baseball! Ciao.