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

For most people, this is probably a regular time to get up on a weekday, and way too early for a weekend. For me, this is rather late, considering my regular schedule and the fact that I am retired. Mary has been thinking about retirement too, but every time she does, another interesting book crosses her path and she is drawn back into the world of professional indexing.

Speaking of indexing, Mary has more to go on the current index, so I have been doing some of my regular chores here on the PE as well as walking the fur-children and doing some of the cooking too. I just have to remind myself that standing on my feet for too long is not, repeat not, good for my yak.

Yesterday, I started my day with watering, as I just never know if the forecast from the NWS will actually mean what they say. Naturally, it rained later in the afternoon and into the evening. It was a good thing that I took the fur-children out when I did.

I walked with STWD to The Bookman for the Friday edition of the  Grand Haven Tribune and then Miss Ginger and I walked downtown to the bank so that we could both make a withdrawal. Ginger waited patiently to receive hers until it was time to leave and then she wanted immediate access. Overall, she was a good walking companion.

I came home and started lunch. Once again, I made another of my kitchen "Bests". a large bowl of rice and a stir-fry of soy curls, julienned carrots, sliced celery, sliced portobello mushrooms, re-hydrated garlic and onions, and bean sprouts, mixed with with my "Secret Sauce." It tasted great and with the able assistance of my newly promoted Sous-Dog first-class, Miss Ginger, I had a great time.

Mary arrived for lunch and she enjoyed my efforts and "suggested" that since I was in the kitchen, I should consider making my famous vegan Italian meatballs. So after lunch, I did that too. All of that is a roundabout way of saying, I have no plans to do more in the kitchen today. I will have to walk the fur-children, but that keeps me in motion so that's a good thing.

We have a current temperature of 67° under cloudy skies. In fact, the NWS is forecasting a 60% chance of scattered T-storms this morning, followed by showers until about 3:00 p.m. EDT. The NWS has also forecast that today's high will reach 76° under cloudy-skies once the sun rises @ 7:01 a.m. and well before it sets @ 8:31  p.m.

Oddly enough, when I was walking the intrepid weather dog yesterday, the northbound run of the train came by on the RSTL. I think it was the second-half of the run that occurred the day before. On Thursday, MMRR locomotive #2025 rolled past heading south towing nine CHCs @ 12:50 p.m. EDT. Yesterday @ 11:15 a.m., that same locomotive rolled slowly past STWD and I heading north, towing four CHCs, seven DBTCs, and two GTCs.

In light of my interest in the passage of the trains and our shared interest in photography, Mary once suggested that I should call the railroad and ask them their schedule for the trains. Somehow, with the cargoes that they carry in those dreaded tank cars, I don't think that is information that they will share with a random caller.

We had our tickets for that Sunset Photo Walk  in Muskegon yesterday, but with the forecast from the NWS calling for cloudy/rainy skies along the lakefront, we opted not to go. No sun, so no sunset. We may have to go to the Pere Marquette Park in Muskegon and do our own Sunset Photo Walk in the future. Unfortunately, as neophyte camera enthusiasts, we won't have the expertise of the Olympus camera rep nor Justin from The Camera Shop to guide us. However, we still plan to go to the Hemlock Crossing County Park on Sunday for the Prairie Wildflower Walk scheduled for the afternoon, weather permitting.

We should be able to get the index into the ether today and then we can relax and enjoy the balance of our weekend. I will be editing after Mary finishes her efforts before a final edit by both of us.

I'm getting long-winded, so I'll just mention that the words that I wrote in my previous blog were prophetic. My beloved 1st place Red Sox lost to the 3rd place Rays yesterday, 3 - 10. The 1st place Cubs eked out a win over the last place Reds, 3 -2, on the strength of a home-run by David Bote and a walk-off, 10th inning home-run, from Daniel Murphy. The 3rd place Tigers fell to that 4th place other team from Chicago, 3 - 6. The 4th place Caps lost to the 3rd place Loons, 0 - 8. To use a very trite phrase, "That's the way the ball bounces."

Today, walks with the fur-children, indexing and editing, and more crossword solving from the weekend edition of the Grand Haven Tribune, which publishes the Sunday puzzle from the Los Angeles Times. I like Monday's easy puzzle the most.

By the by, I mentioned earlier that the NWS had forecast scattered T-storms for GH this morning. Well, the not far-off sound of thunder and the current view out the WW confirmed that forecast. By the by, this storm is another gully-washer and STWD is in her hide-e-hole. Ciao.

Good morning or good evening, wherever you may be. It is just past  3:00 a.m. in"The City."

In baseball news yesterday, all of my teams won! The 73 - 63, 3.0 games ahead of the 71 - 58 Brewers in the NL Central, 1st place Cubs, looked like world beaters as they upended the 56 - 72, 5th place Reds, 7 - 1. Of course, the Cubs are supposed to win those games, but on any given day, all of the teams in the Major Leagues™ are capable of winning.

Starting and winning pitcher, Cole Hamels, went the distance, recording his 4th straight win since joining the Cubs. This seems like the perfect place to insert a clip from YouTube™ from one of my favorite baseball movies, Field of Dreams. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yxzq9BLE5Hg,where

This is the scene where Kevin Costner as Ray Kinsella, and James Earl Jones as Terence Mann, are attending a Red Sox game in Fenway Park.

And don't forget, this other scene from Field of Dreams, wherein James Earl Jones, as Terence Mann intones the lines, "People will come Ray." "The one constant through all the years Ray, has been baseball." https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7SB16il97yw

What more could a Red Sox fan want, unless it is the movie, Fever Pitch, that shows Jimmy Fallon as a die-hard Red Sox fan and his new-found girlfriend, Drew Barrymore. So, I'll add that clip too.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uKaldffU02c

This was the first complete game by a Cubs' pitcher this year! Hamels got support from Javier Baez, who hammered a 481 foot home run that left the ballpark. In addition, Anthony Rizzo also drove one deep, that traveled 434 feet, and added two more runs to Rizzo's RBI total.

In other Cubs' news, Daniel Murphy got two hits and two RBIs in the game. Sometime starting pitcher,Yu Darvish, is happy to have a diagnosis on his sore pitching arm too. Darvish did not respond to questions about the 2019 season and evaded a question about a possible retirement at only 32 years of age. Cubs and the Reds play again today @ 2:20 p.m. EDT.

My beloved, 90 - 39, 1st in the AL Central, Red Sox, upended the 1st place in the AL Central, 73 - 54 Indians, 7 - 0. The Sox travel to Tampa to play the Rays tonight @ 7:10 p.m. EDT.

The 53 - 75, 3rd place in the AL Central Tigers, dumped the 4th place team in their division, that other team from Chicago, 7 - 2. They play again tonight too @ 7:10 p.m.

The 65 - 64 MWL East 4th place Caps, squeaked by the 55 - 73, 8th place Dayton Dragons last night, 5 - 4. The Caps welcome the 54 - 74, Great Lakes Loons to the Fifth/Third Ballpark tonight @ 7:05 p.m. Oddly, the Loons overall record of 55 - 73, still allows them to be in 3rd place in the MWL East because of their 2nd half record of 30 - 30.

I was busy yesterday. I walked both of the fur-children to allow Mary a chance to index non-stop. I came home and peeled apples to make applesauce and more importantly, another pie. I feel as though the best things I make in the kitchen come from the oven. After tasting my latest pie, I am certain. Here are some pix of the pie in progress.

I had already made the pastry-dough, following the recipe I like from  Mary's copy of the Fanny Farmer Cookbook. I was ready with my rolling mat.

Large enough for the bottom crust after rolling.

Ready for the top crust, with all the apples, brow sugar, flour and cinnamon mixed in.

My signature Pi symbol is now on top and the pie is ready for 50 minutes in the pee-heated oven @ 425°.

Done and ready to be eaten once it cools.

Mary also took some pix earlier this morning., She was attempting to get the moon and Mars, but too many trees near the back-forty made that nearly impossible. Still, I'll share a couple of her pix too.

We have a current temperature of 64°, one degree greater than the anticipated low for this morning. The NWS is forecasting today's high to be 75° with a 70% chance for showers that may begin as early as 2:00 p.m. EDT. The showers taper off later, but return as T-storms on Saturday morning, I have my fingers crossed regarding our Sunset Photo Shoot, but I also would like to avoid watering too.

The NWS has issued a Beach Hazard Statement from 8:00 a.m. today until late Saturday afternoon. four to eight foot waves and 15 - 25 mph winds means that the Red Flag will be flying on the shores of the "Big Lake."

Otherwise, Mary continues to index, I will once again walk the fur-children and try to stay quiet while Mary works. I'd play with the girls, but when I do, I start to sing and Mary can't block out the lyrics of songs she knows. 

The sun will rise today @ 7:00 a.m. and set later @ 8:32 p.m. Ciao.

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

The NWS is showing a current temperature of 63° under mostly clear skies. The high today is forecast to be 76°, very comfortable, especially in light of the 56% relative humidity that is also in that forecast. The low-temperature this morning s supposed to be 60°. I know that it felt great when I was out with the fur-children around 2:30 a.m.

We still have a beach hazard warning in effect until this evening, with five to nine foot waves and wind speeds up to 30mph! Today's high after the sunrise @ 6:58 a.m.is forecast to be 76° under mostly sunny skies. The sun will set later @ 8:36 p.m.

Speaking of the sun setting, the 71 - 53 in the NL Central Cubs, fell to the 52 - 74 in the AL Central Tigers last night, 1 - 2. The lone Cubs' run came on, wait for it, a solo home run off the bat of Anthony Rizzo while on his knees. As you may have noticed, there is a trend with the Cubs lately, they can't score runs. With that in mind, the Cubs acquired Daniel Murphy, a career .299 hitter from the Washington Nationals. He is expected to play tonight in Detroit when the Cubs and the Tigers play @ 7:10 p.m. The Cubs certainly need some punch in their lineup.

In that vein, the Cubs regular third-baseman, Kris Bryant took batting practice before the game last night and said his ailing shoulder fells much better. He should soon be ready for a rehab start or two in the minors.

Meanwhile, the Cubs regular shortstop, Addison Russell, is nursing a couple of injuries ofhis own, a bruised thumb and also a sore shoulder of his own. He is s tough kid who has been playing with the pain for a while this season.

Also on the injury front, the much-maligned, Yu Darvish, he of the $126,000,000 six-year contract, was finally diagnosed with regard to his ailing right pitching arm. He has a "Stress Reaction" in his right elbow, the one on which he had Tommy John surgery a few years ago and also a muscle issue. According to those in the know, it takes six-weeks of no activity to allow a "Stress Reaction" to heal. So, that means that Darvish will not pitch again this year. He hasn't pitched since late May. So much promise when he was signed last winter, so little reward. Maybe next season. Maybe.

My beloved, 88 - 39, 1st in the AL East Red Sox, fell to the 73 - 52, 1st in the AL Central Indians last night, 3 - 6. They play again tonight @ 7:10 p.m. in Fenway.

The 63 - 64, 5th in the MWL East White Caps, fell to the 55 - 71, 8th place Dragons last night, 4 - 7. The Caps and the Dragons go at it again tonight @ 7:05 p.m.

I espied the northbound run of locomotives 2019 and 2025 has they passed by @ 11:57 a.m. on the RSTL layout yesterday. I don't know if there was a southbound run earlier while I was out at the big-box everything store. At any rate, the passage included four CHCs, and six DBTCs.

Mary was outside with the fur-children earlier, and she took some pix of the moon. I don't know what they indicate/represent, but they are interesting.

The moon through the trees to the southeast.

Same

Same

Mary was shooting southeast, but she doesn't know what this is. Neither do I.

As such, it is probably a good thing that we are scheduled for a class on Friday evening at The Camera Shop, but there is also that forecast for rain with accompanying cloudy skies that same evening. So this class, entitled Sunset Photo Walk with Olympus, is iffy at this time.

Today, I have my next P/T appointment for my left-shoulder. It is mostly feeling better, but more therapy is a good thing. I plan to ride my bike at this time since the temperatures will be much more conducive to that endeavor. I'll return home to continue work on that picnic blanket that I am making and read more of my novel. All of that after a walk with the fur-children. Mary will continue working on the index. Ciao.

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

I awoke last night to sound of thunder, how far off I sat and wondered, started humming a song from 1962. Oops, once again I was channeling, this time Bob Seger and the Silver Bullet Band and their hit song, Night Moves. That being said, of course I am going to link to YouTube™ for my enjoyment, and hopefully, yours too.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BFRVegQZ_r0

Speaking of night moves, I got up to find that STWD had repaired to her upstairs Hide-e-Hole due to that sound of that thunder. We have a current temperature of 69° under rainy skies. When I got up, we were experiencing what used to be called a "Gully Washer." The rain was pouring down on the manse and the entire PE, at what can best be described as a ferocious rate. No cars were plying the streets of GH and all that rain that hasn't fallen for weeks came in one big downpour.

After the sun rises this morning @ 6:57 a.m. and well before it sets @ 8:37 p.m., the NWS is forecasting additional T-storms. In fact, the NWS has also issued a Beach Hazard Warning through Wednesday evening. That means that the waves on the "Big Lake" will be high and the danger to swimmers has brought out the Red Flag that means that strong currents, especially near man-made structures, like our newly reopened South Pier will occur along with rip-currents that challenge the strongest swimmers, thus endangering their lives and the lives of any would-be rescuers.

Two foolhardy people lost their lives when they chose to ignore the Red Flag warnings and lost their lives near the South Pier. The Red Flag warnings have been the subject of several columns in the Grand Haven Tribune recently, with some citizens opining that although they are doing crazy things, the chances they take are at the their own risk. That would be fine if it wasn't up to the Grand Haven Dept. of Public Safety and concerned citizens to attempt their rescue due to laws and human decency. Alas, all we can do is warn people and move on.

Yesterday in baseball was a slow day. My beloved, 88 - 38, 1st in the AL East Red, dropped one to the 72 - 52, 1st in the AL Central Indians, 4 - 5. At least when the Sox lose, they lose to a solid team like the Indians. The Sox and the Indians play again tonight @ 7:10 p.m. EDT.

The 71 - 52, 1st in the NL Central Cubs, open a series tonight in Detroit against the 51 - 74, 3rd in the AL Central Tigers, also @ 7:10 p.m. The Cubs have been struggling to score runs lately, so perhaps the chance to feed off of the Tigers' pitching staff is just what the Cubs' hitters need.

The 63 - 63, 4th in the MWL East White Caps, took one from the 53 - 73, 6th place Lake County, OH Captains last night, 3 - 1. Tonight is 10-cent hotdog night @ the Fifth/Third Ballpark when the Caps welcome the 8th place, 53 - 73 Dayton Dragons @ 7:05 p.m.

I continued work on our picnic blanket yesterday. When we chose the fleece for the two-sided blanket, the Cubs on one-side and my beloved Red Sox on the other, the idea of no sewing required to put those fleeces back-to-back using knots was appealing. Unfortunately, even with Mary's assistance, it has been a struggle. I may finish tying the knots around the edges today if all goes well.

Mary continued to work on that index. It is hard work due to the subject matter and the numerous end-notes. She'd had enough by early afternoon and so we traveled south to pick up some additional flagstones for our back-forty path. This will be installed when John comes by to assist. I know my limitations. In addition, the remaining grass will be removed and the bare areas will be covered over with mulch to accommodate the needs of the fur-children.

Today, while Mary works, I am off to the big-box nearly everything store for some shopping. If I could index, I'd trade Mary. Oh well, a man's work is never done. At least I won't have to water. Ciao.

Good morning or good evening, wherever you may be. It is just past 10:30 p.m. in "The City."

Yes I know, I am early by my usual standards, but I am ready for bed, as I often am on a Sunday night, and so I am going to wrap up this blog quickly, I hope.

We have a current temperature of 73° under mostly clear skies. Tomorrow after the sun rises @ 6:56 a.m., the NWS is forecasting a high of 85°. They are also forecasting a 40% chance for showers in the evening. That may or may not lead to T-storms on Tuesday morning. At this time, the NWS has given that an 80% probability. If all goes well, the watering I did this morning should be enough until Thursday. The sun will set tomorrow @ 8:39 p.m.'

We had a great day today. We individually walked the fur-children and then I settled in to do some reading on my latest novel. Eighteen Acres, by Nicolle Wallace. Ms. Wallace worked as the Communications Director in the George W. Bush administration, and she is currently an anchor for MSNBC news. She has written more novels since Eighteen Acres was first published in 2011. So far, I like it.

Mary continued her work on the index and then we broke for a quick trip to the Weaver House, a part of the Ottawa County, MI Park System. The Weaver House was open today from 1:00 - 4:00 p.m. for tours. The house was built in 1901 and has two stories with four rooms on each floor. The house was given to the Ottawa County Park System as part of the Grand River Green Way, with the stipulation that the house not be sold. It was extensively upgraded following a period during which it was allowed to deteriorate. Ottawa County had a decision to make, either raze the house, or renovate. Thankfully, they chose to renovate and the Weaver House is now available for gatherings such as luncheons and weddings. The home and the site are a wonder to behold.

While we were there, we took many pictures of the exterior and interior spaces. I'll add some of those pictures here.

You can see why people choose to have their weddings at the Weaver House. The grounds are spectacular.

Included in the modest rental fee, is a fully functional kitchen.

Some of the fixtures are new, while some date to the early 20th centuryfor many years.

The upstairs is open, but is not part of the rental. However, this room on the second floor contains items that belonged to the Weaver family. Mrs. Waver lived in the house for many years and these are examples of her crafting abilities. These and the one in the following picture are excellent examples of Crewel Embroidery.

According to Mary, very nicely done.

The Weaver House is actually situated on a dead-end road, and along the way, lives an artist who created this unique sculpture.

Traffic is never heavy on this road,

I nearly forgot. One of Mary's many photographic pursuits is a series she calls Jack on Bench. In this case, she unintentionally photographed me in a silhouette-style with the light coming from the window behind me. I like it!

I'll keep the sports news brief. The Cubs fell to the Pirates, 1 - 3 and they are off until Tuesday when they play the Tigers, who won, in their game over the Twins, 7 - 5.

My beloved Red Sox lost one of the few they have lost this season to the Tampa Bay Rays, 0 - 2.

The Caps took 10 innings, but they lost to the Lake County Captains, 4 - 5.

Otherwise, I grilled out today, making corn, zucchini, portobello mushrooms, and one of my vegan sausages. A great dinner to be sure. I did some indoor chores and then I sat down to watch inane TV.

Mary is doing what I believe is needlepoint right now. Ciao.

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

The sun rose into partly-cloudy and foggy skies @ 6:55 a.m., before today's high reaches 81° and the skies clear to being sunny and bright. It looks like Tuesday is our next chance for T-storms, which the NWS has forecast @ 100% in the morning. We shall see. None of that precludes me watering again today.
Baseball news yesterday was .500, or 50/50. My beloved 88 - 36, 1st place in the AL East Red Sox, took another game from the 3rd place, 62 - 61 Tampa Bay Rays last night, 5 - 2. The Sox and the Rays finish off their series later today @ 1:05 p.m. EDT.

The 51 - 73, 3rd place in the AL Central Tigers, actually won a game over the 2nd place, 58 - 64  Twins, 7 - 5. Since neither team is going anywhere but their respective couches this fall, it was a meaningless win and loss for both teams. They play again today @ 2:10 p.m. EDT.

The still, 1st place in the NL Central, 71 - 51 Cubs, once again tried to win a game with a single home-run, this one off the bat of Ben Zobrist. Sadly, while that worked for the first two games, Cubs' starting and losing pitcher, Tyler Chatwood, gave up all the runs the winning Pirates would need in a 3 - 1 victory. Chatwood cannot seem to get the ball over the plate, so I wonder where he will be playing next season. The Cubs and the Pirates finish their weekend series today @ 1:35 p.m. EDT. The Cubs have Monday off before traveling to Detroit to face the Tigers on Tuesday night.

The 62 - 62, 5th in the MWL East Caps, dropped a 2 - 4 decision to the even worse, 52 - 72, Lake County, OH Captains, 2 - 4. Those two teams play again tonight @ 7:00 p.m. EDT.

I walked to my Irish Jam Session yesterday and had a good time. About one-dozen players worked our way through many favorites, with whistles, mandolins, fiddles, and guitars.

Once Mary had finished her indexing chores for the day, we walked to the waterfront to see the art show there. We didn't buy anything, but I did take some nice pictures, going, while there, and on the way back. Of course, the way home included a stop at our favorite watering hole for a pitcher of beer.

I'm not sure on the year of this Porsche, Adam may know, but it was a beautifully restored car.

As usual, the arr fair was crowded, even at this late hour.

Tomorrow is the day that a portion of our currently one-way street becomes two-way. Mary and I give it less than six-months before it reverts to one-way status.

Adjacent to the art fair, is the Grand Haven Marina, million dollar boats were there in abundance.

Parked in front of our favorite quartering hole, was this exquisite mid-50s Ford.

No reason, I just liked the shot.

I almost forgot, this is the flower memorial to the Gold-Star families, those families who have lost a loved-one in a war, and the Blue-Star for service members currently serving.

Before we left, Mary put some pizza dough in a bowl to rise and when we returned, she chopped up many vegetables and baked a delicious dinner. I just finished cleaning up the remains of our dinner a little while ago.

As I write this, I am looking out the WW into the patchy fog that is hanging over our fair city. The fog will burn off as the day warms. In fact, the NWS has forecast a five-degree warmer day than yesterday,

I plan to water this morning and then do some grilling while Mary has to keep indexing. Other than a walk with the fur-children, I anticipate a day of rest. Ciao.

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

I wish I could say that I got up for a particular reason, but sometimes you just become awake and then you might as well get up and not disturb your spouse. In our case, Mary has a unique ability to wake up, do some small thing, and then fall right back to sleep. I envy her ability to do that, but alas, I have never been able to accomplish that feat.

We have a current temperature of 68° under clear skies as we fall to the overnight low of 62°. Along with today's forecast high of 84°, there is a 20% chance for additional showers. That was true yesterday and we actually got some much needed rain. The sun will rise today @ 6:53 a.m. and set tonight @ 8:42 p.m.

Today marks day two of the reopened South Pier at the mouth of the Grand River here in GH. The pier has been closed for two years for renovations to the concrete structure that had eroded over many years. Constriction progress was slowed by the weather and sometimes high waves of the Big Lake. Part of the reopening celebration was a a two hour picnic time on the pier. No food was provided, but the chance to picnic there was offered anyway. No, we didn't go and "enjoy" the crowds that always descend on the pier in tourist season. We'll wait until after Labor Day for that opportunity.

In addition, our famous "Catwalk" will be reinstalled sometime this fall after it too was removed, renovated, and readied for re-installation. That part of the project called for additional funding, raised through generous local donations. Our pier and catwalk are major tourist attractions, like the coal scuttle.

Ginger and I witnessed only the southbound run of the train as it traversed the RSTL layout yesterday @10:00 a.m.. I don't think there was a northbound run later in the day. We saw MMRR EMD GP 38-2 locomotives 2025 and 2019 towing 17 CHCs, three DBTCs, and one DWTC with a green anti-corrosive stripe around its mid-section. As Jimmy Buffett intoned in his song No Plane on Sunday, with regards to a trip to the Caribbean Islands he loves so dearly, "No plane on Sunday, maybe one come Monday." Actually, he was describing the U.S. bound plane running on "Island Time." At any rate, he noted that there would be, "No plane on Sunday. maybe one come Monday." So, I'll just add this YouTube™ selection of his song here. Hope you enjoy my brief sojourn down memory lane.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nJzXvK9niw4

Baseball news yesterday was eerily similar to Thursday's results. Well actually, that is only partially true, as the Cubs, my beloved Red Sox, and the Caps all won their games, while the Tigers, as usual, lost theirs.

The 71 - 50, 1st place in the NL Central, Cubs, took a 4.5 game lead over the 2nd place Brewers, with a 1 - 0 victory over the 4th place, 61 - 62 Pirates. Cole Hamels didn't have his best "stuff", according to Cubs' manager Joe Maddon, but with the aid of a home-run off the bat of Kyle Schwarber and a record-tying seven double-plays, the Cubs netted the win. While the Cubs' record in the NL Central doesn't rival the record of my beloved Red Sox in the AL East, I'll take it. The Cubs and the Pirates square off again tonight @ 7:05 p.m. EDT.

Speaking of my beloved, 71 - 59, 1st place in the AL East Red Sox, they too have a commanding lead over the 2nd place Yankees in their division, following a 7 - 3 win over the 3rd place, 62 - 69, Tampa Bay Rays. As usual, Jackie Bradley Jr., was a human highlight reel. He contributed two RBIs, and a spectacular catch in center-field, a ball that was hit by the Rays Tommy Pham and which had a 74% chance of being a hit. Bradley made the not-routine catch, look routine as he robbed Pham, like he has done to so many others. The Sox came from behind to win the game. The Sox and the Rays play again tonight @ 7:10 p.m. EDT.

The 50 - 73, 3rd place in the AL Central Tigers lost another game to the 2nd place, 58 - 63 Twins, 4 - 5. I'd like to say there was bright spot, but there wasn't. The Tigers and the Rays play again tonight @ 7:10 p.m. Nuff said.

The MWL East, 4th place Caps, got a 5 - 0 win over the 2nd place, 73 - 51 Lansing Lug Nuts last night. The Caps are off to OH to play the Lake County Captains. tonight@ 7:00 p.m.

I was busy in the kitchen yesterday, both early in the morning and later in the morning/early afternoon too. In the early morning, I was able to save our lives by clearing out some "science experiments" that were in the refrigerator, which I often refer to as the "Ice Box." I often call it that because that's how my depression-era father used to refer to the one in our kitchen many years ago. At any rate, I discovered some things in there that had a label from January of 2017, or which had been put away for future use/consumption and then forgotten. I even tossed out a failed experiment that I made in trying to replicate HP Steak Sauce™. While I didn't get all of the "Ice Box" cleared, I made a nice dent.

Since I was done with my highlighting duties, I decided to make some vegan sausages and vegan Italian meatballs. If I do say so myself, and I often do, these are my best ones to date. I'm not sure why, but they turned out better than past incarnations. Maybe it is just experience. We had some of the sausages for dinner along with some home-made applesauce that I had made and frozen last fall. I now have room for more applesauce in the freezer.

Mary too was busy, indexing another of those indexes from HE double hockey sticks and later doing some of those famous indoor chores that I often reference. I was upstairs in the media-room, too tired from my day's activities to stay awake for long.

Today is the third Saturday of the month, so I am off to my Irish Jam Session at the Loutit District Library this afternoon @ 1:00 p.m. Mary will be cursing and continuing her efforts on that index from HE double hockey sticks while I am jamming. I'm certain that Ginger and STWD will keep her company. Ciao.