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

The sun will rise this morning @ 6:04 a.m. and it will set later @ 9:26 p.m., just like yesterday.

According to the NWS, the current outdoor temperature is 51° under clear skies, while my DTWS shows 52º on the front porch and 51º on the deck. Also according to the NWS, winds of 5 mph make it feel like 49°.
  .   
The forecast from the NWS calls for today's high to be 74º under sunny skies with a relative humidity index of 47%. That 72º mark is 6º warmer than yesterday's high temperature. Currently, no rain is falling and there is a 5% chance for rain today. The overnight low tonight is forecast to be 56º.

According to my DTWS, the barometric pressure is 29.77", while the NWS is reporting 30.39". Generally, those readings, indicate clear weather ahead. If the NWS forecast is correct, there is no significant rain event on the horizon.

Brunch yesterday was a variation on pigs in a blanket. Instead of animal-based hot dogs, Mary used vegan hot dogs and in lieu of biscuits, she used corn tortillas. Otherwise, they were just as you remember them. Dinner was pitas stuffed with a barbecue tofu filling that was very tasty. Also ala Mary.

We didn't get much accomplished yesterday. Mary finished her book in spite of my constant interruptions. We collectively finished the Friday crossword puzzle and also collectively installed the screen in the north-facing window of the foyer. It was a fight that required three hands, but we were successful. Good whole-house airflow is now part of our non-A/C household. I did get to some music yesterday along with my own reading along with some collective indoor chores. I guess we did more than I remembered.
 
Since I was outside every now and then, I just had to take some additional pix of our flora.

A bit out of focus, but this is one of the flowers on our Major Wheeler planted near the deck. A Major Wheeler is a honeysuckle that produces many blooms all spring and summer that are unique to this plant

One view of the only rose currently blooming in Mary's rose garden.

A totally different angle of the same bloom.

The focus on this flower turned out much better.

As did the focus on this one.

One of the begonias to be planted today.

Same begonia, different focal length.

 I feel like an optometrist. Is it clearer in # 1 or # 2?

At any rate, today should be a bit more laid back than yesterday. Yes, there will be more reading, more music, more coloring, etc. But no, there won't be any physical activity other than those aforementioned plantings. Ciao.

Good morning or good evening, wherever you may be, across the nation, and across the world. It is just after 3:00 a.m. in "The City."

The sun will rise this morning @ 6:04 a.m. and it will set later @ 9:26 p.m., just like yesterday.

According to the NWS, the current outdoor temperature is 49° under clear skies, while my DTWS shows 51º on the front porch and 50º on the deck. Also according to the NWS, winds of 6 mph make it feel like 46°.
  .   
The forecast from the NWS calls for today's high to be 72º under sunny skies with a relative humidity index of 44%. That 72º mark is 6º warmer than yesterday's high temperature. Currently, no rain is falling and there is a 0% chance for rain today. The overnight low tonight is forecast to be 49º.

According to my DTWS, the barometric pressure is 29.77", while the NWS is reporting 30.37". Generally, those readings, indicate clear weather ahead. If the NWS forecast is correct, there is nor significant rain on the horizon.


I used the hedge trimmer that we inherited from Steph and Adam to trim around some of the plants that are overgrowing our vast gardens. Not to overdo, I put every other physical activity on hold until today.

I took the time to read more and finish the Thursday crossword puzzle. Today, we have some planting to do, but that shouldn't take long, and then we are once again in kickback mode, with one exception.


I hope to get the screen in the front window today, but between the planting and that, I'll have used up my regular daily allotment of energy expenditure.


Otherwise, more music, more reading, more Outlander, and more coloring. Ciao.

Good morning or good evening, wherever you may be, across the nation, and across the world. It is just after 3:00 a.m. in "The City."

The sun will rise this morning @ 6:04 a.m. and it will set later @ 9:25 p.m., just like yesterday.

According to the NWS, the current outdoor temperature is 52° under clear skies. My DTWS shows 53º on the front porch and 54º on the deck. Also according to the NWS, winds of 9 mph make it feel like 51°.
  .   
The forecast from the NWS calls for today's high to be 69º under partly cloudy skies with a relative humidity index of 57%. That 69º mark is cooler than yesterday's high temperature. Currently, no rain is falling and that should continue throughout the day today and for the next several days. The overnight low tonight is forecast to be 48º.

According to my DTWS, the barometric pressure is 29.68", while the NWS is reporting 30.30". Generally, those readings, indicate clear weather ahead.

I was able to witness both of the trains on the RSTL yesterday. At 10:30 a.m., MMRR EMD GP38-2 locomotives 2019 and 2025 passed by heading south, towing seemingly empty cars in their wake. Those cars included 19 CHCs, 13 DBTCs, one DWTC, and one GTC.

Later, @ 4:09 p.m., I watched as those same locomotives passed by heading north, towing 12 CHCs and 11 DBTCs.

We utilized the grocery pick up service from that big-box nearly everything store in GH, Meijer. The process was similar to that of the smaller grocery store, but also different in some subtle ways. One good thing, the shopper was able to fill the majority of our order and we now have more cleaning supplies than before. Since we were out, I took along my camera and took some shots of the area.

Sadly, the spaces for pick up were unoccupied yesterday afternoon, a testament to the belief that the pandemic is over.

A curve is always a good shot.

People not really observing the six-foot social distancing requirement, most without masks, as they await their turn at Pronto Pup™.

A nice shot of our inner lighthouse.

Local restaurants are open for business.

Young people walking alongside the dunes at the waterfront with no masks in evidence.

The American Legion is still not open for business. 

 We are seeing a trend towards people believing that the pandemic is over. So, the chance for a continuation of the first wave of the Covid-19 virus spread is just around the proverbial corner.

What can I say except that Mary and I will not be among those ignoring the social distancing rules nor going out without a mask on our faces?

Sadly, our illustrious POTUS has no plans to curtail his campaign activities, as he will be holding rallies in several states that are showing spikes in the number of Covid-19 cases. In fact, his campaign is having people sign waivers that state that the campaign is not responsible for any infections incurred at one of the rallies. If it isn't a problem, why is that pledge necessary?

In addition, in his continuing zeal to have the biggest and best, no matter what, he stated that his campaign has received hundreds of thousands of requests for tickets to his upcoming rallies. Unfortunately, those rallies will be held at indoor venues, the worst possible places to congregate without social distancing and masks. 

Good news though, the POTUS has moved his rally planned for Tulsa, OK from Friday, June 19th, also called Juneteenth. This day was named Juneteenth by African Americans to honor the emancipation of slaves in TX. The POTUS changed the date to Saturday, June 20th, to show he is being considerate of the feelings expressed by numerous African American aides on his staff. Numerous African American aides? Yeah right.

Oh well, it looks as though life will be a constant struggle for people in the know or people who give a care about their health and the health of others.

We gave Ginger a pawdicure yesterday after our lunch, which was a Chicago style vegan hot dog on a poppy seed bun with a side of Coleslaw, as seen in this pic.

No animals were harmed in the making of this meal.

Later, we watched another episode of Outlander with dinner, which was Mary's homemade pasta sauce with TVP over chickpea spaghetti noodles. Ginger still doesn't like chickpea pasta.

Today should allow time for more crossword solving and more reading of a book I just started entitled, The End of October by Lawrence Wright. The story involves a doctor's visit to a country ravaged by an unknown or novel virus. I guess I just can't get enough. Mary will continue her adventures in the US National Parks as she continues to read a book by Nevada Barr entitled Track of the Cat. Ciao.

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


The sun rose this morning @ 6:04 a.m. and it will set later @ 9:25 p.m.

According to the NWS, the current outdoor temperature is 53° under clear skies. My DTWS shows 55º on both the front porch and the deck. Also according to the NWS, winds of 5 mph make it feel like 51°.
  .   
The forecast from the NWS calls for today's high to be near 70º under mostly sunny skies with a relative humidity index of 61%. That 70º mark is cooler than yesterday's high temperature. Since we still don't have A/C, the lower  temperature and RHI is welcome. Currently, no rain is falling. That should continue throughout the day today and for the next several days. The overnight low tonight is forecast to be 47º.

According to my DTWS, the barometric pressure is 29.62", while the NWS is reporting 30.22". Generally, those readings, indicate clear weather ahead.

It took two days, but the trains finally finished their appointed rounds on the RSTL. At 10:18 a.m. Wednesday, the southbound run of MMRR locomotives 2025 and 2019 were observed towing 15 CHCs and three DWTCs. Like the man on the MTA in Boston, it never returned, that is until yesterday, when those same locomotives were seen heading north @ 7:53 a.m., towing 16 CHCs, 15 DBTCs, seven DWTCs, and one GTC. Will there be another run or two today? Stay tuned to this space.

Here's the Kingston Trio from the late 1950s singing their hit MTA.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7Tc1GUXxr2o

We managed to wrangle Ginger and STWD yesterday afternoon. The intrepid weather dog only had her nails ground, while Ginger was subjected to more intensive grooming. I think we did a good job overall. Today, she has to have her nails ground. She won't be happy, as she was at her grooming limit yesterday. Fortunately, she is a small dog.

Later, I made some vegan Italian meatballs which we had for dinner along with some Coleslaw that I grated, but for which Mary made the dressing following Grandma's old recipe. If we ever find Grandma, we'll have to thank her.

We were supposed to receive that planter for the front porch display yesterday, but it never came in spite of the email that told us it would be here by 8:00 p.m. Oh well, the delivery people are probably overwhelmed right now.

We completed the crosswords from Tuesday's edition of the still very thin Grand Haven Tribune. The paper was filled with descriptions of the razing of Chinook Pier's mold-infested buildings and the lamentations of owners of the businesses that used to be located there. Most of those businesses have been relocated to quarters elsewhere, but they miss the camaraderie of each other's company during their summer business season.

In addition, there was a story of the restaurants that are reopening here in GH. Lots of precautions, but we can't see ourselves going to them in spite of the outdoor seating that is now being touted. There are still other issues for people of a certain age like ourselves.

Today, we hope to finish grooming Ginger and that's about it. We have a few reservations to cancel, some mail to read and answer, and a crossword to solve, but that's about it. Ciao.

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

According to the NWS, the current outdoor temperature is 58° under clear skies. My DTWS also shows 58º on both the front porch and the deck. Also according to the NWS, winds of 16 mph make it feel like 54°. Early yesterday, the winds seemed to make no difference. Go figure.
  .   
The forecast from the NWS calls for today's high to be near 70º under clear and sunny skies with a relative humidity index of 63%. That 70º mark is 6º cooler than yesterday's high temperature. Since we still don't have A/C, that lower RHI is welcome. Currently, no rain is falling. That should continue throughout the day today and for the next several days. At least the rain from yesterday precludes a need to water today. The overnight low tonight is forecast to be 56º.

According to my DTWS, the barometric pressure is 28.24", while the NWS is reporting 29.81". Generally, those readings, which are rising, indicate clear weather ahead.

The sun will rise this morning @ 6:05 a.m. and it will set later @ 9:24 p.m.


A Small Craft Advisory is in effect until 10:00 p.m. tonight. West winds of 10 to 20 knots with gusts up to 25 knots and waves 3 to 6 feet are possible from St Joseph to Manistee. Conditions will be hazardous to small craft. Inexperienced mariners, especially those operating smaller vessels should avoid navigating in hazardous conditions.

A Beach Hazard Statement also remains in effect through this evening. High wave action, strong currents, and dangerous swimming conditions are expected. Piers may be heavily swamped by waves in Mason, Oceana, Ottawa, Allegan, Van Buren, and Muskegon counties.

I miss my editor. I had Ellen to read and edit my work when I was teaching, but for my own personal work, I actually never had an editor. I used to edit for Mary when she was indexing, but I am now doing my own editing and all too often, I don't find mistakes until the next day in my blogs. Oh well, I hope you can overlook my various faux pas'.

In between the rain events yesterday, I took some pix of our vast gardens and their surroundings. I think some of them turned out nicely, including one of the first rose of the season that now resides in our living room. That pic was taken by our Senior Staff  Photographer using my Olympus DSLR camera set for closeups.

Once the first rose was cut, this blossom was left behind.

In the vase, two roses from Mary's rose garden, the white rose is from a JFK rose that we have transplanted several times.

As the vines in our garden grow, they are slowly subsuming this frog we got from Debbie and John several years ago.

These begonias await the planter that should be arriving today.

No matter what name I choose, I know that I'll get it wrong. So here is a "Tree Man" planter in the vast gardens.

In the back of the vast gardens is this bench we REclaimed last year from a person who was giving it away. The bench is near the St. Francis statue in the far reaches of the vast gardens.

I like to think that our vast gardens do offer peace. This was also reclaimed from the man who was giving away his unwanted garden decorations. It is located near our deck.

As I've mentioned before, nature quickly reclaims her space.

We finished our indoor chores yesterday and watched three, count em three, episodes of Outlander.

Mary got creative in the kitchen for dinner last night and we had bean enchiladas. Next time, I'll have to make some rice to go inside, as that's one of the ways that I like them.

Today, Ginger needs further grooming, but that's about the extent of our planned activities. Mostly reading, crossword solving, more Outlander, and doing nothing. Ciao.

Good morning or good evening, wherever you may be, across the nation, and across the world. It is just after 3:30 a.m. in "The City."

According to the NWS, the current outdoor temperature is 74° under cloudy skies. My DTWS also shows 74º on both the front porch and the deck. Also according to the NWS, winds of 25 mph make it feel like 74°. I guess that the current temperature is high enough that the winds make no difference.   
The forecast from the NWS calls for today's high to be 76º under skies that will become more cloudy as the day wears on with a relative humidity index of 84%. That 76º mark is a full 11º cooler than yesterday's high temperature. We still don't have A/C, but we are hopeful that someone will give us an estimate as we have a confirmed appointment with a contractor for next Wednesday, the 17th.

Currently, no rai is falling. However, as the day unfolds, the chance for precipitation and/or T-storms increases from a 20% chance @ 6:00 a.m. this morning up to 80% this afternoon.

Given what the temperature was like yesterday, the NWS forecast for an overnight low tonight of 57º is amazing.

According to my DTWS, the barometric pressure is 28.86", while the NWS is reporting 29.44". Generally, those readings indicate foul weather and the NWS is forecasting those storms/T-storms for later today.

The sun will rise this morning @ 6:05 a.m. and it will set later @ 9:24 p.m.

A Gale Warning remains in effect until 2:00 a.m. Thursday morning. South winds of 20 to 30 knots with gusts up to 40 knots and waves 5 to 8 feet are expected. Waves will be building to 5 to 8 feet from St Joseph to Manistee. Strong winds will cause hazardous waves that could capsize or damage vessels and reduce visibility. Mariners should alter plans to avoid these hazardous conditions. Remain in port, seek safe harbor, alter course, and/or secure the vessel for severe conditions.

A Wind Advisory remains in effect until 8:00 a.m. today. South winds of 15 to 25 mph with gusts up to 45 mph are expected for Mason, Oceana, Muskegon, and Ottawa counties. Gusty winds could blow around unsecured objects. Tree limbs could be blown down and a few power outages may result.

A Beach Hazard Statement also remains in effect through Thursday evening. High wave action, strong currents, and dangerous swimming conditions are expected. Piers may be heavily swamped by waves in Mason, Oceana, Ottawa, Allegan, Van Buren, and Muskegon counties. Strong currents can pull swimmers into deeper water and high waves can sweep people off piers. Swimmers should remain out of the water to avoid hazardous swimming conditions and should not venture out on piers.

I got my new glasses yesterday and they are great! The fit is excellent, the correction is perfect, and they look great too. I highly recommend Eye Care One in Spring Lake!

Since we were in Spring Lake, we took two side-trips. The first was a stop at the Spring Lake cemetery. while the second took us to nearby Fruitport. There, we visited their local cemetery. For some, that may seem like an odd, maybe even macabre place to visit, but the "residents" are quiet and the markers, the trees, and other fauna are very photogenic. So, I took some pix that caught my eye.

The opposite side is a "Smiley Face."

We wondered why they hadn't put their name in code.

Wooded and peaceful.

Shadows and light, a nice contrast.

Part of the cemetery mausoleum built-in 1960.

A long-distance shot of the mausoleum.

Part of the section set aside for children.

A long view of the children's section. So sad and yet, so peaceful too.

I dunno, just caught my eye.

Water levels remain very high in the local lakes and waterways.

Our fully open swinging bridge over the Grand River with the Verplank Dock in the background

Mary's roses are beginning to bloom in the vast gardens.

Today, we have very little planned. A crossword to solve, some indoor chores to do, some reading to pursue and some music to be played. But, no watering! Oh, more Outlander to be watched too. Ciao.

Good morning or good evening, wherever you may be, across the nation, and across the world. It is just after 4:00 a.m. in "The City."

According to the NWS, the current outdoor temperature is 65° under clear skies. My DTWS shows 67º on both the front porch and the deck. Also according to the NWS, light winds of 6 mph make it feel like 65°. Today's high temperature is forecast to be a sultry 88º under skies that will become more cloudy as the day wears on, with a relative humidity index of 67%. That 88º mark is a fill 11º warmer than yesterday's high temperature and we still don't have A/C.

As our day unfolds, the chance for precipitation increases from a 0% chance this morning @ 8:00 a.m. up to 100% by 11:00 p.m. tonight. That precipitation will take the form of T-storms.

According to my DTWS, the barometric pressure is 29.27" and falling, while the NWS is reporting 29.85", also falling. Generally, those readings indicate foul weather is coming and the NWS is forecasting those T-storms for later today.

The sun will rise this morning @ 6:05 a.m. and it will set later @ 9:23 p.m.

A Gale Warning will be in effect from this evening @  8:00 p.m. until 2:00 a.m. Thursday morning. South winds increasing to 40 knots early tonight will continue into tomorrow. Waves will be building to 7 to 10 feet from St Joseph to Manistee. There will be a lull in the wind on Wednesday before winds out of the west increase to Gale Force once again Wednesday evening. Waves of 6 to 10 feet are expected north of Holland and 4 to 6 feet to the south of Holland. In addition, the Gale Warning will impact lakeshore communities from St Joseph to Manistee. Strong winds will cause hazardous waves that could capsize or damage vessels and reduce visibility.
 

We are still on the waitlist for an estimator to give us a bid from the A/C contractor. They are apparently very busy. I wish that there was a simple fix, but our A/C system was manufactured over 21 years ago and uses Refrigerant-22. As of 2010,  Refrigerant-22 is no longer made due to the very real possibility of damage to our atmosphere. So, the entire system needs to be replaced.

I mentioned yesterday that I was going to Spring Lake to get an eye exam and new glasses. That visit went very well and I should have my new glasses this afternoon. Since I was in Spring Lake, I avoided having to turn on to busy Savidge St. and took the alley to the road that runs behind Stan's. The parking lot for Stan's and several local businesses was jammed. As George Takei, Mr. Sulu from Star Trek might say, Oh my!. In fact, here he is intoning his catch-phrase.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c5Y25FT7DxE

What can I say, numerous epidemiologists were quoted in an article that Mary found saying that they would not go into places, especially restaurants and bars, that are packed. Needless to say, but I'll say it anyway, sorry Professor Dodds, Mary, and I will not be going to Stan's anytime soon.

By way of information, Professor Jack Dodds was an English and writing professor that Mary and I both had back in our formative years. He was famous for saying that if something is obvious, you don't have to say it and if it isn't, saying so won't make it obvious, or words to that effect. He was also famous for tossing a dictionary in the direction of a student who dared to say that she/he had come across a word for which he/she didn't know the definition. We both quickly learned to say, as Dr. Dodds got ready to toss that dictionary, "But I looked it up and it means..." He was a great teacher of writing.

I was glancing at my bulletin board and noticed a quote that I had written down months ago from naturalist, John Muir. He said, "Of all the paths you take in life, make sure a few of them are dirt." Adam and Steph used part of their recent weekend to follow those words as they traversed some trails at a river restoration site in Chicago. The pictures that Adam sent reminded us of our own Hemlock Crossing County Park.

That same glance reminded me that I am still one coin short of completing my collection of nickels, a 2009 D. So if you come across what has turned out to be a rare 2009 D nickel, please help fund my collection and send it to yours truly. It seems that the US Mint stopped minting those nickles in large quantities that year.

Otherwise, today will be a good day to read and stay cool and then pick up my new glasses. The fur-children will not be pleased, but they would be even less pleased to be on a walkabout in the nearly 90º heat. Ciao.