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

I was wondering if it was time to change my signature sign in, you know the one that has opened my blogs for years now. Nah, I like it just the way it is, it just feels right.

At any rate, I am done with my highlighting. 513 pages of pink highlighted and blue commented pages are now on Mary's desk and not on mine. I finished up yesterday afternoon. That too feels right.

Yesterday was a good day if you don't consider the humidity. The cloud-cover through much of the day made being outside to water around 7:00 a.m. delightful. However, part of the day was another story. I just stayed in after our walk with the fur-children. Mary went to her haircut appointment and then settled in to do some indexing.

We have a current temperature of 71° as we drop to an overnight low of 67°. The NWS has downgraded the rain in their forecast for today to a 30% chance of isolated T-storms. I suspect that that means those T-storms will be isolated someplace other than the PE. We all know what that means. Today's high is forecast to be 82° after the sun rises @ 6:52 a.m. and long before it sets @ 8:44 p.m.

I'm getting ahead of the spiders this year. I am torn, as some spiders are beneficial, but these are the Brown Recluse variety that made Mary sick last year and actually caused me to get a slight rash from their bites. So in this case, it was them or us. They are losing the battle.

John came by yesterday to install our new storm-door in the back. We had picked it out and paid for it the day before at the big-box home center and then John picked it up with his trailer yesterday. In addition, he installed our new flag-pole holder on the front of the manse. I like seeing the results of his efforts on both projects as I don't have to do them. Adam is right, my time is better spent and my back thanks John too.

Baseball news yesterday was interesting. My beloved, 86 - 36 Red Sox had the day off before welcoming the 3rd place, 62 - 59 Tampa Bay Rays, to Fenway @ 7:05 p.m. The Sox have a 10.5 game lead over the 2nd place Yankees in the AL East. In addition, the Sox have two players who may be the AL MVP, J.D. Martinez and Mookie Betts. Both men are having stellar seasons, albeit in somewhat differing ways. Can anyone say co-MVP?

The 50 - 72, 3rd place Tigers, well once again, they were the Tigers, as they lost to the 2nd place, 57 - 63 Twins in an AL Central match-up, 8 - 15. I'm not sure that that score indicates an even match-up, given the overall weakness in the AL Central. Or, you can be positive and say that all the teams are evenly  matched. You could say that, if the teams in the AL Central didn't play inter-divisional and inter-league games. The Tigers try again to win @ the Twins home field tonight @ 8:10 p.m.

The 70 - 50, 1st place in the NL Central Cubs have a 3.5 game lead over the 2nd place Brewers following a 1 - 0 win over the 61 - 61, 4th place Pirates in Pittsburgh. Jon Lester tossed a shutout and recorded 8 Ks, with Ian Happ getting the lone tally on a 3rd inning home-run. In addition, as is often the case, Javier Baez sparkled in the field as he took an 86.1 mph throw from catcher Willson Contreras, to catch the speedy Starling Marte as he slid into 2nd. Can anyone say MVP in connection with Baez' name?

Cubs manager, Joe Maddon, said that Baez positions himself perfectly before receiving the throw from the catcher which allows him to tag the runner in one smooth motion. Of course, Contreras' high-velocity throw helped a lot too. The Cubs and the Pirates continue their series tonight in Pittsburgh @ 7:05 p.m.

The MWL East, 4th place Caps, fell to the 73 - 50, 2nd place in the MWL East, Lansing Lug Nuts last night, 2 - 3. The Caps and the Lug Nuts play again tonight @ 7:05 p.m.

Today, I have plans to do even less than yesterday. No watering, no highlighting/commenting and no distractions. I will be feeding the fur-children and going for a walk to The Bookman for today's edition of the Grand Haven Tribune with STWD, but that is about it. I have some pleasure reading to catch up on and also some play-time schedule with the girls, my neglected stringed friends. Mary has work to do. Ciao.

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

I awoke a short time ago and tossed and turned. So, I got up to get somethings, like this blog, accomplished. That being said, let me jump right in and give you the facts dear readers, just the facts, well mostly, with some of my personal opinions thrown in.

We have a current temperature of 73 muggy degrees, as we drop to our overnight low of 69°. After the sun rises @ 6:50 a.m., the skies will be mostly cloudy, partly due to that smoke from the western wildfires, and the 20% chance for showers today. The forecast from the NWS for Thursday still shows a 50% chance of showers/T-storms. Here's hoping, says the guy who is in charge of watering everything on the PE. The sun will set tonight @ 8:47 p.m.

Baseball news yesterday was .250, in baseball parlance. Three out of the four teams that I follow went down to defeat, the notable exception were my beloved, 86 - 35, 1st place in the AL East, Red Sox, who eked out a 2 - 1 win over the 65 -57, 2nd in the NL East Phillies. Rick Porcello returned to form, striking out 10 over seven innings, as Brock Holt sealed the deal with a pinch-hit home -run as he stepped in for Porcello. The Sox and the Phillies play again tonight @ 7:05 p.m. as Nathan Eovaldi takes the hill.

The still 1st place Cubs looked flat, as they fell to the 2nd place Brewers, 0 - 7. The Cubs still have a two -game lead over the Brewers in the NL Central. The Cubs and the Brewers play again today @ 2:20 p.m. EDT.

By way of information, the Cubs' $126 million dollar man, Yu Darvish, is nearing a rehab start. He threw a simulated three-inning game yesterday and according the Cubs, looked and felt good. Brian Duensing, who is also on the DL did some long tossing to test his ailing shoulder. Best of all, Kris Bryant took some ground balls before the game and may be back soon.

The 50 - 70, 3rd place in the AL Central Tigers, fell to that other team from Chicago, 3 - 6. That other team is in 4th place in the division. Those two teams take the field in Detroit @ 1:10 p.m. EDT today.

The 60 - 60, now 4th place in the MWL East, White Caps lost to the 56 - 63, Ft. Wayne, IN TinCaps last night, 1 - 5. The Caps return to the field tonight to face the 72 - 49, 2nd place Lansing Lug Nuts @ 7:05 p.m.

Trainspotting yesterday was easy. A single locomotive, # 2025, was seen traversing the RSTL both north and south. At 9:27 a.m., #2025 was towing 10 CHCs, nine DBTCs, many of those were extra long, one DWTC, and one GTC, heading south.

At 2:05 p.m., #2025 was heading north, towing one CHC and five DBTCs.

We got out yesterday for my P/T appointment and for a short trip to the grocery store after we walked the fur-children. That walk didn't last long due to the lousy atmospheric conditions and the high humidity that accompanied the 85° temperature. During our grocery trip, we made a stop at Stan's for adult libations before we came home to one of my favorites, grilled vegan hammish and cheese sandwiches accompanied by tomato soup. What's not to like for a man with simple tastes.

Mary took our camera to the back-forty to take some pix of the various plantings out there with her macro lens. I've included the ones that I like below.

Mary's pink is in full bloom.

I especially liked this pic of her Hobbit door behind the geraniums.

The first flowers on our mums.

Our water pump and its flower bucket.

I especially liked the composition of this shot looking through our backyard flower garden into our neighbors.

Today, Mary will be indexing and I'll be lazing. I have more highlighting to do and I'll get on that now. Ciao

Good morning or good evening, wherever you may be. It is fast approaching 6:00 a.m. in "The City", where the sun will rise @ 6:49 a.m. and set later tonight @8:48 p.m. In between the skies will be sunny and the high temperature will reach 85°!

I did a lot of highlighting this morning and so I am well ahead of where I need to be. In fact, I am 60% done! That means that I can go to my P/T appointment this afternoon and then do as little or as much as I care to do.

Yesterday, I worked hard in the vast yard and gardens of the PE, harvesting the potato crop and removing the dead grass and replacing it with mulch that not even Ginger can kill. As time goes by, I will replace the balance of the grass in their play area. As proof of how hard I worked, I took some pictures of the potatoes and my mulching efforts. I estimate that there are about 20 lbs. in the bag.

It sure feels like 20 pounds! All of that from the potatoes that went to seed last year.

In the foreground, is the now empty potato patch. That's followed by the newly mulched play area and backed up by Mary's plant that she named Pink, due to the dinner-plate sized pink flowers that only bloom in mid to late August.

I don't know where this tomato plant came from, but along with some green pepper plants, I found it on my front porch one day and planted it where the cold-frame used to be. She is doing so well, that I already see tomatoes on her.

The last piece of blueberry pie. I'll be making an apple pie next.

We made a stop at the local Restore Store and I got some things that should accomplish my goal of anchoring the basket of our built-in laundry hamper. Mary got two outdoor vases.

The only trainspotting I did yesterday was to see MMRR locomotive #2025 heading north That was odd for a Monday morning, towing one DBTC, four CHCs, and one DWTC with a green anti-corrosive stripe around its mid-section.

Not much was happening in baseball news yesterday, other than the Tigers taking one from that other team from Chicago. Two mediocre teams going home in the fall.

Today, P/T, and that's about it. Mary will be indexing and we'll be walking the fur-children. Ciao.

Good morning or good evening, wherever you may be. It is just past 1:30 a.m. in "The City."

I hadn't planned on being up, but when you sit down to watch a thrilling baseball game, like the one I watched as the 68 - 49, 1st in the NL Central. The Cubs have a three game over the 67 - 54, 2nd place Brewers, who will be the Cubs' opponent on Tuesday @ 2:20 p.m. EDT. I watched as David Bote came to bat in the bottom of the ninth inning, with two outs and the bases loaded. Bote drove the ball to straight-away center-field and rounded the bases with his fist in the air to the cheers of Cub's fans. When he reached the plate, his teammates tore off his jersey and celebrated with him. What can I say, Cubs Win!

My beloved, 85 - 35, 1st place in the AL East Red Sox, have a commanding 9.5 game lead over the 2nd place Yankees. In addition, the Sox are 50 games over .500 for the first time since 1946! What else happened that year? Oh yeah, some guy named Captain Ted Williams, returned to the Sox from his WWII service as a fighter pilot. Williams is the last player to hit .400 for an entire season.

At any rate, the Sox swept the 5th place, 35 - 84 Orioles as Chris Sale returned from the DL and recorded 12 strikeouts in the 4 - 1 decision. The Sox have a day off as they travel to Philadelphia for a game against the 65 - 52, 2nd in the NL East Phillies @ 7:05 p.m. EDT.

The 49 - 69, 3rd place in the AL Central Tigers, actually won a game over the 54 - 63, 2nd place Twins, 4 - 2 in a very weak division. The Tigers don't get a day off as they welcome that other team from Chicago and their 42 - 75, 4th place in the AL Central record, for a game tomorrow night @ 7:10 p.m.

The 3rd place 60 - 58 Caps, lost a MWL East game to the 4th place Ft. Wayne, IN TinCaps, 2 - 5. The Caps play the TinCaps again tonight @ 7:05 p.m. EDT.

I did a little picture taking over the last couple of days, surprise, and so I've chosen a few that I think show promise and growth in my nascent photography skills. I guess my loyal readers can judge for themselves.

I took this pic with Mary's macro lens following a walk with STWD on Saturday. These mushrooms appeared in our neighbor's lawn following a recent rain shower.

Since I was out there, I took this pic of an almost hidden rose in our newly added parkway garden.

I've been watering this Gerbera Daisy for the entire summer and we have been rewarded with may flowers like these.

This multi-faceted planter is being held "Captive" on the front porch of the manse.

The first flowers on our shared driveway Hostas.

I like to think of these Black-eyed Susan's as volunteers that sprouted among our Irises near the deck. I have been watering them too.

Speaking of volunteers, these potatoes grew from some leftover tubers in what is now Mary's rose garden. They are the first of our potato crop this season. More potatoes to be harvested in the next few days.

Otherwise, I am doing well with my highlighting chores. I am on page 223/512, or 43% done.

I convinced Mary that one more big-box stop was in our plans for yesterday. She says that that is her last visit for awhile. I got what I wanted and that's all that matters.

I finished my latest novel, The Escape Artist, by Brad Meltzer, late last night. It was good, but not great in my opinion. I'd not read any of his works before and I may try another just to confirm my diagnosis/opinion.

We have a current temperature of 69° under clear skies, as we drop to the overnight low of 62°. The NWS is forecasting showers/T-storms for Wednesday thru Friday @ anywhere from 40% to 60%. We shall see. The sun will rise today @ 6:48 a.m. and set tonight @ 8:49 p.m.

Otherwise, I have to continue my highlighting and Mary has to continue her chunking and indexing. Ciao.

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

My original plan was to get up around 5:00 a.m. and go down to the city beach to see the Perseid Meteor Showers. However, I was awakened about 12:00 a.m. by Mary with an invitation to come to the Media Room to watch her favorite show, The X-Files. In addition, she had whipped up some vegan French onion dip and opened a bag of potato chips. As has been opined by many, "What's a fella to do?" She had also made an executive decision that neither of us should be wandering around in the dark to attempt to photograph those aforementioned meteor showers. So, here I am.

Speaking of the Perseid Meteor Showers, with the exception of the risk of injuring ourselves, the weather would have been perfect. I know this because I was downstairs a short time ago to let the fur-children out and the skies are indeed clear with a current temperature of 67° as we drop to an overnight low of 62°. The sun will be rising @ 6:47 a.m. and setting later @ 8:51 p.m. The next chance of significant precipitation is in the forecast from the NWS, wherein they are projecting a 60% possibility of  T-storms on Thursday.

Yesterday was a good day for Red Sox fans, like yours truly, as the 84 - 35, 1st place in the AL East Red Sox took two from the 35 - 83 Orioles, 5 - 0, and 6 - 4. J.D. Martinez hammered two home-runs, #s 36 and 37, in the second game to lead the majors. The Sox hope to sweep the Orioles today @ 1:05 p.m. EDT, when Chris Sale returns to the mound from the DL.

The 48 - 69, 3rd place in the AL Central Tigers, were just being themselves, as they fell to the 2nd place in their division, Twins, 3 - 4. The Tigers try again today @ Comerica Park @ 1:10 p.m. EDT.

The Cubs, well they have a 1st place 67 - 49 record in the NL Central, following their 4 - 9 loss to the visiting 60 - 57, 3rd in the NL East, Washington Nationals. Jon Lester is hasn't won since the All-Star Break, and surrendered all nine Nationals runs in just 3 2/3 innings. Anthony Rizzo got his 1,000th career hit in that loss. The Cubs and the Nationals are on national TV tonight @ 8:05 p.m. EDT.

The MWL East White Caps managed to improve their record to 60 - 57 and remain in 3rd place following their 3 - 1 win over the 33 - 63, Ft. Wayne TinCaps. The Caps and the TinCaps play again today @ 1:05 p.m. EDT.

Otherwise, not much was happening yesterday. In the late afternoon, we sojourned to the big-box most everything store, that Mary detests. However, it is the only place she can get some of the things she needs in her larder. By the time we were out of there, Mary was ready to do harm to anyone who got in her way. I have to agree. We made a stop @ JWs on the way home, where we encountered a large group of people who were on some sort of pub crawl. They were loud and obnoxious, or so it seemed to this curmudgeon.

We came home to sandwiches and salad and then I retired to the Media Room for another viewing of one of Mary's other favorites, War Games. I fell asleep and Mary finally went downstairs to read.

As previously noted, I got up to go to bed and that's where I was until I was awakened by the strains of the X-Files intro music. I was sucked into Mary's alternative universe for three episodes and then I'd had enough, so here I am. Ciao.

Good morning or good evening, wherever you may be. It is just past 11:30 p.m. in "The City."

We had a great day today, unless you count the unplanned watering session here at the PE. We were planning that trip to The Camera Shop for those aforementioned questions and camera accessories, when I noticed that some of the plantings were looking a might droopy. That meant that although we had just returned from our morning walk with the fur-children, I had to take time to thoroughly water all of the thirsty vegetables and flowers. Oh well, at least I can skip that for today.

But back to our day. We made our stop at the The Camera Shop, but had also decided to continue to the town of Hart. MI further north, for some apples and other items that we don't grow here at the PE. On the way up, we made a pit-stop at one of Michigan's roadside rest areas. Unlike some rest areas we have visited in Illinois, this one also had a short 10-minute trail behind it. 

That trip netted us some nice pictures.

Much better than we had expected.

One of the picnic tables in the woods near the rest stop.

What can I say, just very inviting.

It is amazing the things you notice when you take the time to look.

Mary walked right by this mushroom that was growing in the path until I pointed it out. She then took this great pic.

I asked her to snap this pic of a burl growing on one of the trees along the trail.

What would be a rest stop without a spot for the fur-children of all the visitors.

 We finally made it to the fruit-stand in Hart to buy those apples and things.

We decided as we were leaving that we'd take the back roads home, rather than the very busy, by Michigan standards, Rte. 31 that we'd traveled on the way north. We did make a stop at the Ace Hardware™ store in Hart, but they didn't have what I was seeking. But, Mary did take a picture of yours truly there.

I had never been in a hardware store that wasn't of the big-box type that was this large.

The less-populated areas we also saw/visited, included New Era, MI, Rothbury, MI, and Shelby, MI, where we visited a newly opened yarn store. Mary bought something there and I took her picture, a rare occurrence.

Before we left Shelby, I took this pic of a flower-covered bicycle that sat outside the adjacent floral shop.

Sometimes, photo-ops are where you least expect them.

We finally continued our journey, that ultimately found us back on Rte. 31. We made a stop in Spring Lake @ Stan's and then came home to the impatiently waiting fur-children. While STWD is never a concern, in the past, we have taken Ginger to daycare to avoid any problems. She is getting to be a big girl and she was totally behaved during our nearly five-hour absence.

The temperature today was on the warm side, but not bad overall. We have a current temperature of 72° as we drop to the overnight low of 63° under mostly-clear skies. Tomorrow, the high temperature forecast from the NWS is 82° under mostly-sunny skies. The sun will rise tomorrow @ 6:46 a.m. and set later @ 8:52 p.m.

Tomorrow night/early-morning, we are hoping for clear skies, as it is peak-time for the Perseid Meteor Showers. One of the things I bought at The Camera Shop was a tripod that should facilitate taking some pictures if we can find a spot without the light-pollution that is all around us. Here's hoping.

Baseball news today/tonight was all good. My beloved 82 - 35, 1st in the AL East Red Sox, thumped their rivals, the 36 - 81 Orioles in a divisional game, 19 - 12. That win included some fireworks off the bat of Andrew Benintendi, who hammered a 3-run home-run to put the Sox ahead 14 - 10 en route to the win. The Sox play the Orioles again tomorrow in a make-up game @ 1:05 p.m.

The 67 - 48, 1st place in the NL Central Cubs, eked out a close-one over the visiting, 59 - 57, 3rd in the NL East Nationals, 3 - 2. The Cubs and the Nationals play tomorrow @ 4:05 p.m.

The 47 - 68, 3rd place in the AL Central Tigers, defeated the 53 - 62 2nd place Twins, 5 - 3. Wow, a win following that disastrous 0-fer West Coast road trip. The Tigers are home again in Comerica Park to face the Twins again tomorrow @ 6:10 p.m.

The MWL East, 59 - 57, 3rd place Caps, defeated the 75 - 41, 1st place Hot Rods, 2 - 0. The Caps are off to Fort Wayne, IN to play the T53 - 62, 4th place TinCaps tomorrow night @ 7:05 p.m.

We have work to do tomorrow, so we will walk the fur-children and then stay home and keep busy. Ciao.

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

Let's begin with an abbreviated weather report, courtesy of the NWS. We have a current temperature of 67° under partly-cloudy skies which will lead to today's sultry high of 85°, also under partly-cloudy skies. There is no precipitation in the forecast for several days, so if the rains of yesterday have proven insufficient, I'll be watering the vast lawns and gardens of the PE. The sun will rise in a few hours @ 6:45 a.m. and set later @ 8:543 p.m.

The 1st place in the NL Central, 66 - 48 Cubs, now have a two game lead over the 2nd place Brewers, following the Brewers loss to the Padres, 4 - 8. The Cubs are home today in The Friendly Confines, to face the 3rd place, 59 - 56 in the NL East Nationals @ 2:20 p.m. EDT.

My beloved 81 - 35, 1st place in the AL East Red Sox, fell to the 4th place in the AL East. 52 - 62 Blue Jays, 5 - 8. Mookie Betts achieved "The Cycle", which in baseball means that he got a single, a double, a triple, and a home-run. Not enough though, as Rick Porcello couldn't stem the tide. The Sox are in Baltimore tonight tonight to face the 35 - 80 Orioles @ 7:05 p.m. EDT.

The, 47 - 68, 3rd in the AL Central Tigers, were mercifully off yesterday, so they couldn't lose. Tonight they are home in Comerica Park to meet the 53 - 61, 2nd place in the AL Central Twins @ 7:10 p.m. EDT.

The 58 - 57, 3rd place in the MWL East Caps, fell to the 1st place in the MWL East, 75 - 40, Bowling Green Hot Rods, 1 - 3. The Caps are on the field again tonight in Bowling Green to once again face the Hot Rods @ 7:35 p.m. EDT.

We got up late yesterday following our big night out and so we didn't do much other than individually walk the fur-children. I went as far as The Bookman with STWD, while Mary and Ginger went to and through Duncan Woods. Mary brought the camera and took some spectacular pix. However, until she shares them on her blog, you'll have to take my word for it.

Today, probable watering, spider patrol, and walks with the fur-children. I will also continue my highlighting. I'm on page 109 of 512 as of 6:30 a.m. Sigh. Mary will probably be starting the index itself and we are supposed to go to Muskegon Heights and visit The Camera Shop. We have questions, as always, but we are also picking up a mount for the camera and I'd like to get a lightweight, compact, and portable tripod too. Ciao.