Very nicely done, Kanthima!  Thanks for sharing, Dave!

Enjoy the rain... we have around five inches of white gifts from above stacking up here in the northern mitten, the temp is hovering around freezing, and more gifts are expected to arrive in fifteen minutes.  County plow just went up the road and the next-door neighbor is vigorously plowing and scraping his driveway.  Bleah!

Make it a great day, All, and stay safe!

Pete
in Michigan

Mornin' All!

The grey blanket is comfortably ensconced atop the sky here in the northern mitten, although there are indications of an edge to the northwest. No leakage at the moment, although we did have some graupel followed by large white flakes earlier on.  WW's are torn between "meh," and panic in the streets, but most of the noise is directed at Saturday and Sunday, which are probably good days to stay home....

Whatever the weather, we'll weather it, so stay positive, test negative and stay safe!

Pete
in Michigan

Good Evening, All!!

The sun is over the yardarm, it's time to splice the Main Brace, and celebrate being alive.  For Karl's "issues," here's a theme song to go with things:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XgCHOrF5ryY

We have rain, staggering high winds and copious quantities of white gifts from above in the forecasts for the next couple of days here in the northern mitten, so I'll try to beat the rush and wish all a very Happy Thanksgiving filled with good food, good people and trains running on time. 

Stay safe!

Pete
in Michigan

Very sad news, Greg.  Thanks for letting us know.  My condolences to his family and friends.

Pete
in Michigan

Good evening all! 

The sun just slipped below the western horizon here in the northern mitten, the grey blanket has come off, the wind has died down considerably and Opening Day appears to be ending in Peace.  One division member sent me a couple of photos to explain his absence at the Division meeting... 145 lb, 8 point buck that will feed him and his family for a while....

Railroad time here is still governed by Hip Issues, but the x-ray has been taken and the medicos will let me know....  Make it a great day, All, and stay safe!

Pete
in Michigan

Morning, All! 

"Mixed conditions" here in the northern lower, with a couple of inches on the deck, the driveway coated in white, and on the other side of the Bay between seven and eleven inches reported so far.  They can keep it! Temp now is 31 here, and hopefully rising....  Apparently a good quantity of black ice is also out there....

Slow down, turn the headlights on so the tail lights are also visible, and stay safe!

Pete
in Michigan 

Goooooddd Afternoon, All!!  It is bright and sunshiny here in the northern mitten, although there are indications of clouds on the western horizon.  Most of the Major, Heavy Duty Big-Time seasonal outdoor is done, as the snow tires went up on the second car this morning.  I have five yards of road gravel arriving tomorrow, so I should be able to fix the "drop off" where the new asphalt met the dirt road to the shed a couple of years ago, but that area is not used in the winter, so....

The Muse is beginning to return, so there is hope for actual progress on the railroad, too, which is Good! And we've returned to Op Sessions up here, which is also motivating.

Best wishes to all trying to navigate the new insurance stuff....

Make it a great day, All, and stay safe!

Pete
in Michigan

Evening, All!

Hope all of our friends on the north side of the dotted line have had a Happy Thanksgiving, that those of us on the south side of the line have enjoyed Columbus/Indigenous People's Day, and that all of us have enjoyed some aspect of the U.S. Navy's 250th anniversary.  Anchors Aweigh!!

The slice and dice ceremony on my face this morning appears to have gone well.  A one-cut process, stitching up with stuff that will eventually dissolve, and an overcoat of "cement."  That loosely translates to ACC....  Apparently means I can shower, but not swim or immerse the face in anything wet for a couple of weeks.

Make it a great day, All, and stay safe!

Pete
in Michigan

Congratulations, Jim!  Note that the contest is you against you, not you against everybody else. And nobody on the Judging Committee is playing God... they're using a printed matrix of standards to figure out what you did and how well you did it.  Treat it as a Learning Experience and you'll be surprised at the results.  Gerry Leone's "What I Learned" article on the NMRA website is worth the read.  Good stuff, and it's pure Gerry....

Keep going!

Pete
in Michigan

Good afternoon, All!

As has been mentioned, it's hot here in the northern mitten, and with the temps now over 90 and the humdiddy running around 40%, it qualifies as a "scotcha" where I grew up outside Boston.  Bleah!  Lots of admin, mostly done, and working through issues related to selling the store building later this year.  Bleah!

Oh, and the Good News is Good!!  I just turned 77, and can therefore treat myself to a doughnut and some ice cream today!  Oh, to be young again and tying into Mom's chocolate birthday cakes!

Make it a great day, All, and stay safe!

Pete
in Michigan

Mornin,' All!

75, feels like 75, headed for 85, air quality is the pits (Canadian smoke) and humidity is 60% here in the northern mitten this morning.  Good day to stay inside with the air filters ON....

Nice video find, Karl!  that was one of the WWII predecessors of my beloved P-3 Orion, which didn't enter the fleet until 1960 or so, and in which we were camped on top of Ivan's submarines all over the world in the 1970s and later.  And he knew it....  The P-3 in the USN is now long gone and replaced by the P-8 Poseidon.  Time flies....

Spent the weekend downstate at the Huckleberry Railroad's Railfan Weekend with my HOn30 modular group showcasing the Maine Two-footers.  Good time, we put on what I think was a good show, and unfortunately, I'll have to miss the NNGC in Collinsville this year.  Sigh....

Make it a great day, All, and stay safe!

Pete
in Michigan

Afternoon,' All!!


84, feels like 93, and the humidity is at 74% (or so "they" say) here in the northern mitten. Work your own math, but hot and horridly humid come immediately to mind.  Good day to have the A/C on and cranking!  Karl's description of last night's festivities failed to mention that the line of bright red radar images pretty well covered Lake Michigan with a very thick coating.  Yikes!  No major damage here, and have power (OK with that!) , but I have eighty bazillion little bugs stuck on my west-facing office window....  I think they're mayflies, but I don't Know that....  Camera doesn't react well when I try to focus on them.... 

As to Karl's bear pic, I had a large muskrat on the deck yesterday afternoon, but he disappeared before I could put down the bag of groceries and grab my camera.  And today's offering was an enormous skunk in the back yard, who disappeared into the smoke bush before I could get an image....  Times
 are a'changin!'

Make it a great day, All, and stay safe!

Pete
in Michigan

Good afternoon, All! 

73, might hit 77 and gloriously sunny here in the northern mitten.  The Canadian Smoke with which we were "favored" over the last few days even reached downstate, where I attended the NMRA National Convention. Overall a good show, and different than others we've seen.  New "model" might work....  Another medically indicated N.A.P. may well be indicated, as the bills are now paid, the laundry has had a go of it, and the groceries for the next couple of days have been laid in.  House plants still need water, though.  Hopefully the Motivation will still be there after the fatigue is gone!

Make it a great day, All, and stay safe!

Pete
in Michigan

Good afternoon, All, and Happy Fourth!  It's 87 here in the northern mitten, feels like 92 and is "mostly sunny," or some such.  Hum-diddy is listed as 52% at the airport, so you work the math....  Bleah! Good day to be on the Bay or downstairs.  I need to go get changed to go to dinner at friends' home, and figure out what to do about the "Don't Bring Anything except an appetite" instructions the hostess has issued....  May go with a taste of local grape that they can serve, save, or use when the train group shows up in the fall.  Hmmmm....

Fireworks demos are fine here....  Can't see the ones in town, but I get lovely groups from folks across the Bay, and I have a couple of neighbors who share their industrial strength shows with the world... one up the road who does it from his driveway (not smart as the hot stuff lands in the trees) and one down the road who does it from the very end of his dock (far brighter idea).

Be positive, test negative, and stay safe!

Pete
in Michigan

And a very Happy Canada Day to All!  Partly cloudy, warm and humid here in the northern mitten, and lots of appointments lined up.  Hopefully some bench time later on.

Make it a Great Day, All, and stay safe!

Pete
in Michigan