Good morning or good evening, wherever you may be, across the nation and across the world. It is just past 3:45 a.m. in "The City", where the current temperature under cloudy skies is a brisk 54°. With a slight wind out of the northwest @ six mph, it feels more like 52°,

The NWS has continued those advisories and/or statements until 5:00 a.m. today. Those are a Beach Hazard Statement for Allegan, Mason, Muskegon, Ottawa, and Van Buren counties, with conditions considered hazardous for swimming, though who would want to swim in the icy waters of Lake Michigan is beyond me. 

And, that Small Craft Advisory from St. Joseph to Manistee will also expire as the winds abate.

I can finally report some good news on the baseball front.

While the 31 - 37 Cubs still wallow in 4th place in the NL Central, they swept the 1st place in the NL Central, 35 - 34 Pirates last night with a come from behind, 7 - 2 win. LF Ian Happ nearly hit for the cycle, winning pitcher Marcus Stroman looked strong, and OF/1st baseman Cody Bellinger returned from his rehab starts in Iowa to lead the onslaught. As I noted before, this is not a strong division.

The Cubs take the field again today at the Friendly Confines at 2:20 p.m. EDT, when they meet the 43 - 25, 2nd place in the AL East Baltimore Orioles. Kyle Hendricks, 1 - 2, will be on the mound for the Cubs.

The 4th place in the AL Central Tigers finally managed to right the ship, at least for one game, as they defeated the 1st place in the AL Central Twins last night, 8 - 4. Sadly, the Tiger's pitching staff is in shambles in spite of the win going to starting pitcher, Matthew Boyd. 

If it seems as though the Tigers have a large number of pitchers on the IL with arm problems this year, that's because they do. Tommy John surgery and other types of orthopedic procedures seem to be the norm for the snake-bitten Tigers. The Tigers are once again in Minnesota tonight @ 8:10 p.m. EDT to face the Twins with the pitcher to be TBD. That says it all, I think. 

Finally, my beloved, 34 - 35, last place in the AL East Red Sox are home tonight to face the 39 - 30, 3rd place in the AL East Yankees, as Tanner Houck takes the ball from manager Red Sox Joey Cora for a 7:05 p.m. EDT start. Sadly, for all the teams in the AL East, the 1st place Tampa Bay Rays, 50 - 22, are running away with the division. Like the Cubs, my beloved will have to wait until next year. 

Otherwise, yesterday afternoon, I made my first batch of vegan sausages in many months. We had some for dinner and they were great. Today, I hope to get back to my studio for more painting etc. Mary is nearing the end of her 896-page dystopian novel, Deluge, by Stephen Markley. She is loving it, but I'm sure that the weight of the book is more than enough for her and most others. 

I am reading a short novel entitled The Bookshop on the Corner, by Jenny Colgan. It is a fun read with no negatives, at least so far. 

Our collective ear-read is a book entitled A solitude of Wolverines, by Alice Henderson. It is filled with many plot twists and is the first in a series with Alex Carter, PhD, as its heroine. It is set in the wilderness of Montana. We like it!

That's enough for one blog. Ciao.