Good afternoon or good evening, wherever you may be. It is just past 4:00 p.m. in "The City."

I know I'm later with this blog, but sometimes I take license with my writing and do it when I feel in the mood.

Yesterday's sports news was mixed. The Cubs rallied to win over my beloved Red Sox by a final score of 7 - 4. Naturally, that means that the beloved fell to the Cubs by a score of 4 - 7. That win finds the Cubs still atop the NL Central @ 13 - 10, while the loss means that the Sox are languishing in 3rd place in the AL East, with a record of 12 - 11. The Cubs and the Sox play the rubber game of their series tonight @ 8:00 p.m. @ Fenway, before the Cubs come home to face the Phillies @ "The Friendly Confines tomorrow night @ 7:05 p.m., while the Sox are home to face the Orioles tomorrow night @ 7:05 p.m.

The Tigers were bested by that other team from Chicago by a final score of 4 - 6 yesterday. That loss put the Tigers in 4th place with a record of 11 - 12. They are winning today's game over that other team, so they should move back to .500 with a record of 12 - 12 and possibly 3rd place. They are home again tomorrow night to face the Indians @ 7:05 p.m.

The Caps fell to the Lake, County, OH Captains yesterday by a score of 2 - 5. However, they are tied for 1st place in the MWL East with a record of 13 - 9. The Caps are off tomorrow before hosting the Clinton, IA Lumberkings @ 6:35 p.m. on Tuesday.

I was successful in repairing our refrigerator's ice maker yesterday. I replaced both the ice maker and the wiring harness and voila, the machine is once again making ice. Altogether, the cost was less than $100.00 versus a service call that would have been at least $190.00!

Yesterday, I did more reading after the morning safari with STWD. Mary and Ginger took another route while Sugar and I walked to the Bookman on Independent Bookstore Day so that I could buy the Grand Haven Tribune weekend edition and Sugar could get a biscuit. We had to skedaddle home, as there was a blues band playing out front of the Bookman and that was too much for Sugar to bear.

Today, I've been reading, doing indoor chores and watching the Tigers defeat that other team from Chicago. So far, the score is 7 - 3 with the game in the top of the 8th. The Tigers have collected 14 hits so far!

Today, Mary made vegan breakfast sausages and toast for breakfast and for lunch, a salad with a vegan TVP based non-meat loaf for the main course. This recipe evolved over her last attempt and I pronounce it a keeper. Mary has completed "Chunking" the index and it is @ seven pages. The goal is 10 - 12 pages I believe, so it should be fine when completed.

Tomorrow, no plans other than to stay home, walk the fur-children, and read.

We have a current temperature of 45/46° with rain falling. That rain is forecast by the NWS to continue all day today and then off and on for the next two days. It will be chilly until we begin to warm up on Thursday.

The sun rose this morning @ 6:39 a.m. and it will set tonight @ 8:45 p.m. Ciao.

Good morning or good evening, wherever you may be. It is just past 4:00 a.m. in "The City."

Even though I didn't get around to blogging yesterday, I am still going to keep this one short.

We have a current temperature of 46° per the NWS, or 47° per my DTWS, under cloudy skies, per both the NWS & the WW.

Today, the high will reach 57°, NWS, but there is a 60% chance of rain in the late afternoon/evening. Tomorrow, Sunday, the high is forecast to reach 49° with a 90% chance of rain/T-storms. The NWS has forecast cool temperatures for the next week. Oh well, no summer uniform for yours truly.

We, well mostly me, did some gardening yesterday while Mary was @ the grocery store. Ginger was there to provide moral support after our return from their weigh-in. Sugar is like the rest of us, still struggling to shed those extra pounds.

Sports news yesterday was very mixed. The Cubs fell to my beloved Red Sox by a score of 4 - 5 in a game in which Cubs pitcher Jake Arrieta gave up five runs in the bottom of the first inning. Conversely, the beloved defeated the Cubs 5 - 4. Arrieta never looked sharp. Kris Bryant is still sharp at the plate and in the field. The Cubs and the beloved play again today @ 4:05 p.m. The Cubs and the Red Sox share the same 12 - 10 record. That gives the Cubs 1st place in the NL Central, but the Sox only 3rd in the AL East.  

The Tigers fell to that other team from Chicago by a score of 3 - 7. That leaves the Tigers in 3rd place in the AL Central with a record of 11 - 11. The Tigers and that other team play again today @ 1:10 p.m.

The Caps were victorious over the Lake, County, OH Captains, 7 - 3, in an MWL East matchup. That victory finds the Caps 1/2 game behind the South Bend Cubs with a record of 13 - 8 as compared to the record of the SB Cubs of 13 - 8. Both teams play again tonight @ 6:05 p.m.

We didn't do much yesterday. I read another issue of Rolling Stone, did some crosswords, and read more of the book for our history book club after gardening but before we went to the chiropractor. Mary chatted and went to the grocery store, but did not get more of the index written. Today, she'll have to get busy. I'll spend some time with the girls and do more reading along with some indoor chores.

The sun will rise into those cloud skies @ 6:40 a.m. and set into rainy skies @ 8:43 p.m. Ciao.

Good morning or good evening, wherever you may be. It is just past 12:00 a.m. in "The City."

Yesterday was mostly unremarkable unless you factor in a few stops. A walk with the fur-children to Chow Hound™ for a fresh supply of treats first thing in the morning. Later, there was a stop at a garden center to pick up some vegetable plants and some annual flowers. along with seven bags of Dairy Doo™ an organic soil improver. Finally,  there was a stop to pick up some glass for the top of the cold frame and a stop at the carpet store to pick up our new area rugs and yet another stop at a big-box home center for some paint. See, I told you it was an unremarkable day.

With the exception of the morning safari, all of that was after lunch and about one hour of gardening in the gardens of the vast PE. I'm tired just remembering all of that.

Sports news yesterday was mostly bad. The Bulls lost to the Cavaliers, the Cubs fell to the Pirates 5 - 6, the Tigers fell to the Mariners 0 - 8, and my beloved Red Sox fell to the Yankees 1 - 3. The Cubs have the day off before a weekend series at Fenway Pak against the beloved. The Tigers play later this afternoon against the Mariners and the beloved play once again against the Yankees.

The only good news was that the Caps soundly defeated the Ft. Wayne, IN TinCaps 8 - 2, to tie the South Bend, IN Cubs @ 12 - 8 for a share of 1st place in the MWL East.

I must have been reading a forecast from the Onion yesterday as none of my weather observations were accurate. We have a current temperature of 61° under mostly cloudy skies. Later this morning, there is a strong chance of showers and possible T-storms. Temperatures in the 50s will preclude the wearing of my summer uniform for another few days. I did get to wear it uniform for the last two days, so it is not a total loss.

Today, I am taking the day off from work. Mary will be indexing, but I'll be reading and playing with the girls after the morning safari that will likely be abbreviated due to the rain.

The sun will rise @ 6:43 a,m., and set @ 8:41 p.m. Ciao.

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

Yarn Quest 2017 began anew yesterday afternoon with a visit to Apple Knits and Purls in Muskegon, our 7th stop on the quest. I couldn't keep Mary from adding to her substantial stash there, but that's probably because I can't say much give my rather large Music Room contingent of instruments. We all need hobbies.

This is the result of her addition, a pattern for a "Fun" shawl and another part of the pattern offered on the "Quest."

We had been busy in the gardens of the Vast PE earlier in the day. Well, Mary planted some plants and watered them and I did some heavy digging to place the edging seen in the photos below. She has the vision, I supply the labor. In this case, it took longer than I had initially thought. One good thing is that the lawn continues to shrink in size. If I keep it up, I'll be able to mow the grass, in several directions, in under 10 minutes!

In this picture, you can see one of the neighborhood bird/mouse catchers who roam freely. You can also see the hole in the top of the cold frame that used to be a piece of glass that my elbow took out. 

Same cat, that Mary believes was posing for the picture, secure in the knowledge that Ginger was in the manse.

Oddly, or maybe not so oddly, the neighbor's cat, Phoebe, fell through the open hole and Mary was afraid that I'd have to rescue her. She managed to leap nearly straight up and escape unaided. Last year, that same cat had wandered into my man-cave through the outer doors and become trapped there when I failed to notice. It was at least one day later that Mary got a fright when she opened the inner door and there was Phoebe. That time, I had to pick up Phoebe and carry her outside. She hasn't made that mistake again. She learns quickly, but her usual trip across the cold frame was a new experience when she fell into in through a towel that I had placed over the missing pane of glass versus simply passing across.

But I digress. I also tilled the soil in the vegetable garden on the right side of the picture where I'll be planting potatoes, both sweet and russet types, along with some cucumbers. We had picked up some peat moss @ the big-box home center on Monday that I also tilled in, but we weren't done @ the big-box home center yet. We had to visit again yesterday to get a glass cutter for the new pane of glass that we picked up earlier @ the Restore Store™. The pane of glass started life as part of a picture frame. Today, I have to cut that glass and plant those potatoes and cucumbers while Mary works on the index.

We finished @ the big-box home center and traveled north to pick up some towels for the downstairs bathroom and some syrups for our SodaStream™ machine. We finished up our trip with the latest stop on Yarn Quest @ Apple Knits and then in GH we dined @ our favorite watering hole before heading home to the fur-children.

Sports news yesterday was a mix of squeakers, rainouts, and blowouts. The Cubs and Kyle Hendricks took a close game from the Pirates by a score of 1 - 0. Given the offensive explosion that the Cubs enjoyed the night before, this was not an offensive gem but it was a great pitching duel. The Cubs now have a record of 12 - 8, two games ahead of the Brewers in the NL Central. The Cubs and the Pirates meet again tonight @ 7:05 p.m. I was able to watch the game on MLB TV™ last night because my beloved Red Sox were rained out in their game versus the Yankees.

Speaking of the beloved, they remain in 3rd place in the AL East due to that rainout, @ 11 - 8. The game has been rescheduled for a July doubleheader. The Sox hopefully play the Yankees tonight @ 7:10 p.m.

The Tigers did win in a blowout over the Seattle Mariners by a final score of 19 - 9. In all, the Tigers and the Mariners collected 40 hits, including four home runs by the Tigers! Definitely not a pitching duel. At any rate, the Tigers are once again on top of the AL Central with a record of 11- 8, the same record that finds my beloved Red Sox in 3rd place in the AL East. The Tigers and the Mariners square off again tonight @ 7:10 p.m. @ Comerica Park.

The Caps too were part of a blowout. They defeated the Ft. Wayne, IN TinCaps by a final score of 12 - 5. to move into a three-way tie for 1st in the MWL East, with the Dayton Dragons and the South Bend, IN Cubs. The Caps and the TinCaps complete their series at Fith/Third Ballpark today @ 12:00 p.m. before departing for Lake, County, OH and a four-game series against the Captains.

Phew, what busy day in all areas of life. Mary made me eat and drink during my garden adventure or I might well have perished from hunger and thirst! I tend to work through and not notice a need for sustenance and hydration. We were free to pursue our other activities because we have a person in to do the deep cleaning that we never seem to get to. She'll be finishing up this morning,

The current temperature is 58/64° under cloudy skies. As always, the NWS is reporting temperatures from GR, 25 miles inland from the warmer or colder cities/towns on the shores of the "Big Lake." Today's high is forecast to reach 74° with a 0% chance of rain. In fact, the NWS has revised their forecast to no further days in the 50s and only a small chance of rain! It looks like it is once again time to break out my summer uniform of shorts and t-shirts on a more or less permanent basis for the next several months. Put it on the board, Yes!

I neary forgot that I saw the southbound run of the train on the RSTL @ 12:17 p.m. EMD GP 38-2 Mid-Michigan locomotives 2019 and 2057 were towing 14 CHCs, one GTC, and five DBTCs. I don't know if there was a return run as we were up north.

Today, after the morning safari, we'll finish the plantings, I'll cut and replace that broken glass before playing with the girls and reading. Mary will continue indexing. We are way too busy for our advancing ages.

The sun will rise @ 6:16 a.m. and set @ 7:56 p.m. Ciao.

Good morning or good evening, wherever you may be. It is just past 12:00 a.m. in "The City."

Yesterday was a great day. We began our quest to visit all 11 stores participating in the 2017 Yarn Quest. We made stops at six stores. They included: Grand Haven's own Needlesmith, and then we traveled on to Garen Huis and the Flying Pig Yarn shops in Holland. We stopped for lunch at the Mexican restaurant in the same plaza as the Flying Pig where we had a plate of terrific bean tostadas.

From there it was on to Country Needleworks in Jenison, MI followed by a stop @ the Threadbender Yarn shop in Wyoming, MI and finally on to the Michigan Fibre Studio in Grand Rapids. While in GR, we had an adult libation

Here is a picture Mary took of our swag from every stop.

Yarn and six parts to an 11 part pattern were our prizes for the day.

It was getting late and since Ginger had been dropped @ Doggie Daycare in the early afternoon, we had to get back to GH. We did take advantage of a sale @ Sherwin-Williams in GH that gave us 40% off on each of three gallons of paint which John will be using to repaint the front porch and garage.

We picked up Ginger and then stopped at the big-box home center for some hardware and garden supplies. We tried to get some additional food for STWD, but our veterinarian had none in stock. Fortunately, the staff @ Haven Animal Hospital called another nearby veterinarian's office where we were able to get a fresh supply. All three members of the pack were exhausted by the time we arrived at the PE.

Mary had plans to make the spaghetti with mushroom bolognese sauce but opted instead to make a veggie pizza. She used several leftover items from the refrigerator such as broccoli and cannellini beans, along with freshly sliced onions and chopped grape tomatoes topped with nutritional yeast. The pizza turned out delicious.

Before baking.

After baking.

I was watching the Cubs on TV, but they were romping all over the Pirates, so I went on to other activities. The final score was 14 - 3. The Cubs are now 11 - 8 and in 1st place in the NL Central, one full game ahead of the Reds. The Cubs and the Pirates play again tonight @ 6:05 p.m.

The Tigers and my beloved Red Sox had the day off.

The Caps took one from the Ft. Wayne, IN TinCaps 4 - 2, to move to a record of 10 - 8 and 3rd place in the MWL East, just behind the South Bend Cubs. The Caps play the TinCaps again today @ 12:00 p.m.

Mary took the day off from indexing to make the Yarn Quest and I was along for the ride.

The current temperature is 62° under partly cloudy skies after a high yesterday of 73°! Today, the high is forecast to reach 70°, also under partly cloudy skies. We plan to do some work in the gardens of the vast PE and enjoy the nice weather. Wednesday's high is forecast to be 72°, but the rain chance has been reduced from 100% to 20% before going back 90% on Thursday with a high of only 60°. We'll stay in the 50s and 60s for several more days. May maybe just around the corner, but this is Michigan.

Mary will get back to indexing after our gardening and I'll get back to retirement. The sun will rise today @ 6:46 a.m. and set tonight @ 8:39 p.m. Ciao.

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

I'm going to make this another of my KISS type blogs, given the late/early hour.

Current temperature, 44° under clear skies. High today, 71° under sunny skies. Sunrise, 6:48 a.m. Sunset, 8:38 p.m.

Sports yesterday: Cubs/Reds, 5 - 7. Cubs 1st place NL Central, 10 - 8, Rizzo HR third game in a row. @ Pirates 6:05 p.m. tonight.

Tigers/Twins, 13 - 4, 2nd AL Central, 10 - 8 Off today, home vs. Mariners tomorrow night

Red Sox/Orioles, 6 - 2, 11 hits, Betts and Ramirez go yard. 3rd in AL East, 10 - 8, 2.0 games in back of Yankees, tomorrow's opponent @ Fenway, 7:05 p.m.

Caps/Lake, County Captains, 5 - 2. Tied with Lansing, MI Lugnuts, @ 9 - 8, 4th in MWL East. Home tonight vs. Ft. Wayne, IN Tincaps @ 6:05 p.m.

Yesterday: Nice day for some yard work, only pulled some hated dandelions. Additional work will wait for today as predicted. Installed closet doors. They look and work great. Completed indoor chores. Finally tossed jigsaw puzzle and put away the puzzle table. Sad. : - (.
Played with the girls. : - ). Watched BB on TV.

Walked with fur-children. Uneventful.

Mary indexed and did some light cooking.

Today, walk to the veterinarians for the weigh-in of fur-children and pick up lo-cal food for STWD.

Possible 2017 Yarn Quest stops in Holland.

Stop @ the big-box home center for some small items.

Possible yard work in back forty of PE.

More reading in The Scarlet Sisters. Interesting so far.

Ciao.

Good morning or good evening, wherever you may be. It is just past 4:30 a.m. in "The City."

As previously noted in this space, yesterday was Earth Day across the world and specifically here in GH. I celebrated by staying home and doing some gardening here on the Palatial Estate, PE, while Mary was working on the latest index and then later traveling solo to the  GH Community Center to see the exhibits and the activities, both inside and out. While there, Mary took some pictures, so I'll include them here.

People that Mary described as "Old Hippies" serenaded people with appropriate songs. I guess that makes yours truly and "Old Hippie" when I play the girls and sing old songs. 

Outside the Community Center, wagons drawn by Clydesdale type horses were available for "Earth Friendly" rides.

The wagons circled Central Park and the riders, many children or children @ heart, were enthusiastic about the ride.

Many people are familiar with the name Clydesdale from the Budweiser™ beer commercials, and Clydesdales are a type of draft horse, so that made the term useful for a description by the drivers. However, all large horses are not Clydesdales, as that is a specific breed characterized by heavy feathered legs and bred originally in Scotland, while some are Percherons, bred in France, or shire horses, all bred to haul heavy loads.

But I digress. Yesterday's weather was great in the early hours for doing yard work and taking wagon rides. As the day progressed, the temperature dropped some but it was still great for walking, which Mary and I did to Double Deuce for dinner. 

We have a current temperature of 37° according to the NWS, while my own DTWS has a reading of 39°. According to the NWS, today should see a high temperature of 59° under sunny skies, while Monday may see 69° and sunny skies and Tuesday may reach 71°, also with sunny skies. As it looks right now, Wednesday will have a 100% chance of rain but a high of 67°! This being spring in Michigan, the weather will be mostly cool until at least Mother's Day and probably into June.

I accomplished quite a bit yesterday while Mary slaved over the current index. I mowed the unruly grass in front and back and dug out some of those pesky dandelions and other invasives. I also applied the final coat of sealer to the closet doors in preparation for reinstallation later today before I get to some additional yard work and indoor chores. Oh, I also baked another loaf of my world famous banana nut bread.

John came by to reglaze the dining room window that I have been meaning to get to for several years. I had gotten the glazing putty for another project, but I was still fixing to get ready for that window. Mary made an executive decision and had John take on the job. He was much faster and more efficient than me.

In sports news, the Cubs were victorious behind Jake Arrieta with an 11 - 8 victory over their NL Central rivals, the Cincinnati Reds. That win moves the Cubs solidly into 1st place @ 10 - 7, based on a great day for catcher Wilson Contreras who got his first of what Cubs' fans hope is many Grand Slams in his young career. The Cubs play the Reds again today @ 12:10 p.m. before traveling to Pittsburgh for a night game on Monday against the Pirates.

The Tigers righted the ship yesterday with a 5 - 4 decision over the Twins. That snaps a four-game losing streak for the Tigers. Sadly, Miggy is on the 10-day DL with an injury. The Tigers have had an early-season injury bug that will hopefully be over soon. They currently reside in 2nd place in the AL East with an overall record of 9 - 8. Without some of their key players, the Tigers are struggling. They meet the Twins again today @ 2:10 p.m.  

My beloved Red Sox once again fell victim to the Orioles @ Camden Yard by a final score of 2 - 4. The Sox are still having trouble scoring runs and their pitching isn't strong enough to hold better teams in check. The Sox have an AL East record of 10 - 8, three full games behind the Orioles and one and one-half games behind the Yankees. The Sox play the Orioles again this afternoon @ 1:35 p.m. When not wearing my Cubs or Tigers hats, I'll have my Red Sox hat on for luck.

The Caps eked out another win over the Lake County, OH Captains by a score of 3 - 2. That win moves them to .500 @ 8 - 8, still tied with the Lansing Lug Nuts for 5th place in the MWL East. They play the Captains again today @ 1:00 p.m. 

Today, I have some indoor chores to do along with those closet doors and a short stint in the back forty/gardens too. If I don't get to that today, which is likely, I'll get to it Monday. Like my former neighbor, Marshall used to say, "There is always another day when you are retired." That's mostly true, but you also have to budget your time for what is really important, like watching baseball.

I will be reading, watching baseball, and working slowly at those indoor chores after the morning safari with the fur-children. The sun will rise @ 6:49 a.m. and set @ 8:36 p.m. Ciao.