April 16, 2019 Night

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Good evening! Partly cloudy and 49 degrees in Delmar, NY. ⛅ There is a west-northwest breeze at 15 mph. 🍃. I sat out back for a while after my evening walk but it’s quite cool with the breeze, so I decided to head inside, take out my contacts and retire to bed.

It was kind of a crazy 😜 at times day at work. Not bad but it made the time go by relatively quickly. I decided to walk down after work and catch the bus down by the old Union Station 🚉 right before the bus gets on the expressway. Looked like bad congestion heading north out of the city but not so much heading south.

I got home, cooked up some burgers 🍔 and laid back for a while. I listened to a podcast for a while. Eventually I went for my evening walk.

Playing with the overhead truck cap lights that are now based on the newer 2835 chip, they are probably twice as bright 🔆 while consuming half the power as before. Nice starry night but cold with the breeze for sure. 🌟 I enjoyed my evening walk which I did earlier then normal as I am tired.

Tonight will be partly cloudy 🌤, with a low of 34 degrees at 5am. Four degrees below normal, which is similiar to a typical night around April 7th. Northwest wind 5 to 15 mph. In 2018, we had light drizzle in the evening, which became partly cloudy by the early hours of the morning. It got down to 33 degrees. The record low of 21 occurred back in 1971.

Tonight will have a Waxing Gibbous Moon 🌔 with 97% illuminated. The moon will set at 5:34 am. The 🌕 is on Thursday night with a mostly clear then chance of showers skies. The sun will rise at 6:11 am with the first light at 5:41 am, which is one minute and 36 seconds earlier than yesterday. 🌄 Tonight will have 10 hours and 30 minutes of darkness, a decrease of 2 minutes and 44 seconds over last night.

Tomorrow will be sunny 🌞, with a high of 62 degrees at 4pm. Three degrees above normal, which is similiar to a typical day around April 23rd. North wind 3 to 5 mph. That’s a nice change from the frigid weather it recent. A year ago, we had rain in the morning, which became cloudy by afternoon. The high last year was 45 degrees. The record high of 91 was set in 2002. 0.3 inches of snow fell back in 1965.❄

The forecast continues to call for mild but rainy weather for the Easter Weekend. 😞 Saturday, rain likely before 2pm, then showers likely after 2pm. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 69. Chance of precipitation is 70%. Maximum dew point of 59 at 6am. Sunday, a chance of showers. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 62. Chance of precipitation is 50%. Maximum dew point of 46 at 7am. Typical average high for the weekend is 61 degrees.

While I have no outdoor plans for the weekend 💦 I do think that I’ll start packing up my truck for camping season ⛺ this weekend. The weather looks pretty good in the long range so the plan would be to camp and fish next weekend in the Adirondacks. Not the latest I’ve gotten out camping for the year but relatively late. A lot had to do with the relatively cold April and the lateness of Easter 🐰 this year. Last year in contrast I was busy with volunteering with Aidan O’Connor’s special election so I didn’t get up north until the first week of May. It’s unfortunate that he couldn’t pull it off in 2018, but it’s a pretty conservative district.

In four weeks on May 14 the sun will be setting at 8:10 pm,🌄 which is 31 minutes and 13 seconds later then tonight. In 2018 on that day, we had partly sunny and temperatures between 77 and 54 degrees. Typically, you have temperatures between 69 and 46 degrees. The record high of 93 degrees was set back in 1900.

I am not totally sure about giving up owning a car in a few years 🚙 but I’m still thinking about the numbers over going car less for a few year some point in the future. Maybe a $100,000 savings over a decade by not owning a car is an over estimate, but motoring is so expensive and most of the time my truck is parked. 🅿 I just prefer to walk or use transit around town. On the other hand I sure enjoy camping in the wilderness. So I don’t know. It’s one option, especially with the ease of ride sharing, bicycles 🚲 and public transport. 🚍 I still eventually want to own land out in the country and that will involve motoring but not in New York State so it’s sometime off in the future. Been great in the markets lately and I think I have a good plan but I also realize downs are coming at some point in the market. But I’m ready to ride the bear market too.

Looking ahead, Average High is 70 🐮 is a month away, Fathers Day 👨 is in 2 months, Last Sunset After 8:30 PM 🌆 is in 3 months, Constitution Day 📜 is in 22 weeks, October 🛥 is in 24 weeks and Election Day 2020 🗳️ is in 81 weeks.

Powerline to West

Environmental and community groups detail opposition to proposed Catskill incinerator ash dump

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Environmental and community groups detail opposition to proposed Catskill incinerator ash dump

Wheelabrator Technologies, the second largest trash incineration company in the U.S., has proposed creating a large incinerator ash dump in a former quarry in the Town of Catskill near the shore of the Hudson River. The company is in the process of applying for permits from the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation.

This project would involve trucking approximately 445,000 tons of toxic ash on local roads — including U.S. Route 9W — through Catskill and surrounding communities, with trucks coming from the south and the north. The quarry site is made up of highly permeable hydrology, which is known to have extensive drainage systems and springs, adding to the likelihood of toxic ash reaching the Hudson River and groundwater. Incinerator ash like that from Wheelabrator incinerators includes high levels of heavy metals and dioxins. The ash poses a significant risk to the surrounding region’s human and natural communities as well as to the entire Hudson River ecosystem.

Notre-Dame can be rebuilt–if we let go of our obsession with “authenticity”

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Notre-Dame can be rebuilt–if we let go of our obsession with “authenticity”

The destruction of Notre Dame cathedral is lamentable. A wonderful icon has been largely destroyed by fire. However, we should not despair.

Part of the reason this loss is so upsetting is because we are immersed in a Western way of thinking that equates authenticity with preserving the original materials used to create an object or building.

But not all societies think like this. Some have quite different notions of what is authentic. Iconic buildings such as the Catherine Palace in Russia and Japan’s historic monuments of Ancient Nara have been successfully restored, sometimes after great damage, and are today appreciated by millions of people.

I think sometimes the best restorations are those that are beautiful, long lasting, and good quality. Materials and science change, and sometimes using quality, long lasting modern-materials is a better step then using ancient materials that are interior.