John Boyd Thacher State Park

John Boyd Thacher State Park, is situated along the Helderberg Escarpment, one of the richest fossil-bearing formations in the world. Even as it safeguards six miles of limestone cliff-face, rock-strewn slopes, woodland and open fields, the park provides a marvelous panorama of the Hudson-Mohawk Valleys and the Adirondack and Green Mountains. The park has volleyball courts, playgrounds, ball fields and numerous picnic areas with nine reservable shelters. Interpretive programs are offered year-round, including guided tours of the famous Indian Ladder Trail. There are over 25 additional miles of trails for summer hiking and mountain biking, and winter cross-country skiing, snowshoeing, hiking, and snowmobiling.

http://nysparks.com/parks/128/

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Second half of August 🎪

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So it would seem as time marches on so quickly. Altamont Fair is underway. Tomorrow it’s off to the Adirondacks and it should be a nice day and hopefully Friday won’t be too cold and wet. Got some books to read on Friday, I’ll toss in the heater in case I want to warm my hands.

Good morning! What day is it? A a happy Pseudo Friday for Me Day, of course. Rain and 65 degrees in Delmar, NY. ☔ There is a south-southeast breeze at 6 mph. 🍃. The dew point is 63 degrees. The skies will clear around 3 pm.

Out walking 🚶 this morning, red kidney beans cooking down on the stove 🍲 to enjoy with maple syrup up at camp this weekend. Thinking cold black coffee ☕ this morning, cream of wheat with chia seeds, yogurt, lemon 🍋 maybe a touch of stevia and some cherries 🍒 to get the day started. And maybe some of the red beans with maple syrup for protein. Save the rest for camp. 🏕

Today will have patchy drizzle with a chance of showers before 10am, then a chance of showers between 10am and 2pm. Mostly cloudy 🌦, with a high of 79 degrees at 4pm. Three degrees below normal, which is similar to a typical day around September 1st. Maximum dew point of 69 at 2pm. South wind around 7 mph. Chance of precipitation is 30%. New precipitation amounts of less than a tenth of an inch possible. A year ago, we had mostly sunny skies. The high last year was 87 degrees. The record high of 97 was set in 1936.

I’m on the fence about taking Blackie 🚵 to work today. I don’t think it’s going to rain but there is always the chance. On the other hand, I kind of like taking my bike to work, doesn’t add much time but it’s free exercise especially the ride back home 🏡 and saves on the bus 🚍 fare. Food Festival is today, so I’ll have to take Howard rather than ride across the Plaza at the end of the day and they’re a risk of thunderstorm ⛈. Time wise it doesn’t make much difference, but I also don’t want to be too tired when I get packed tonight. Plan is to leave by around 8 AM or so tomorrow, though not too early as I’m not sure when Samdill Farm Stand opens, though I want to hit that on the way up. 🌽 🥦

Solar noon 🌞 is at 1:01 pm with sun having an altitude of 61.2° from the due south horizon (-9.6° vs. 6/21). A six foot person will cast a 3.3 foot shadow today compared to 2.2 feet on the first day of summer. The golden hour 🏅 starts at 7:19 pm with the sun in the west-northwest (283°). 📸 The sunset is in the west-northwest (290°) with the sun dropping below the horizon at 7:58 pm after setting for 3 minutes and 4 seconds with dusk around 8:26 pm, which is one minute and 29 seconds earlier than yesterday. 🌇 At dusk you’ll see the Waxing Crescent 🌒 Moon in the west-northwest (291°) at an altitude of 1° from the horizon, 252,188 miles away. 🚀 The best time to look at the stars is after 9:05 pm. At sunset, look for partly clear skies 🌄 and temperatures around 77 degrees. The dew point will be 67 degrees. There will be a south breeze at 5 mph. Today will have 13 hours and 55 minutes of daytime, a decrease of 2 minutes and 33 seconds over yesterday.

Tonight will have patchy fog after 5am. Otherwise, mostly cloudy 🌆, with a low of 64 degrees at 5am. Three degrees above normal. Maximum dew point of 68 at 6pm. Light south wind. In 2022, we had cloudy skies in the evening, which became mostly clear by the early hours of the morning. It became somewhat humid as the night progressed. It got down to 62 degrees. The record low of 40 occurred back in 1979.

Tomorrow looks beautiful with only a slight chance of showers and thunderstorms after 4pm, as it’s summer. ☀️ Partly sunny, with a high near 81. South wind 5 to 9 mph. Chance of precipitation is 20%. Then Thursday night it turns wetter with showers and thunderstorms likely. Hopefully late enough, it won’t impact my evening. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 66. Southeast wind 6 to 9 mph. Chance of precipitation is 60%. New rainfall amounts between a tenth and quarter of an inch possible.

Plan is to leave early 🌅 hopefully around 8 AM or 9 AM, then head north with the first stop to top off my tank in Rotterdam, then Sandil’s Farm in Tribes Hill for veggies 🥦 🌽 then to Walmart in Johnstown for a few groceries and supplies 🛒, then maybe Rogers Orchards 🍎 for fresh apples, then up hopefully to the House Pond Campsite. By noontime, I want to get camp set up 🏕 , inflate the tube, and get floating in the East Branch, as it might be the warmest day. Then in the evening, ride up to Potholers and cool off in the Potholers. 📻 I’ve downloaded several podcasts and Youtube videos to listen to while up at camp.

Come Friday, it’s a bit of a wet start. 🌧 Showers and thunderstorms likely before 2pm, then a chance of showers and thunderstorms between 2pm and 5pm, then a chance of showers and thunderstorms. Partly sunny, with a high near 78. Southwest wind 6 to 13 mph. Chance of precipitation is 60%. New rainfall amounts between a quarter and half of an inch possible. Maybe not a washout. Then Friday night, a chance of showers and thunderstorms before 8pm. Partly cloudy, with a low around 55. Chance of precipitation is 30%. New rainfall amounts less than a tenth of an inch possible.

I got from “Salt, fat, acid, heat : mastering the elements of good cooking” by Samin Nosrat from the library 📚 and plan on reading it on Friday morning. ♨ I think I will pack the heater, so I can warm up next to it in case it’s cold. Also going to pack the screen tent, 🎪 as it’s been such a wet summer and I’m thinking it could be buggy. 🐜 By evening it shouldn’t be too bad, might go for a nice ride on Blackie 🚲 along Piseco-Powley Road with the headlight as I get back late, as sunset is around 8 PM. Maybe too cold to swim, but who knows. 🌆

A picture perfect weekend after we get past Friday on tap. 😎 Cool but sunny. Saturday, mostly sunny, with a high near 74. Maximum dew point of 56 at 1pm. Sunday, sunny, with a high near 84. Maximum dew point of 64 at 7pm. Typical average high for the weekend is 82 degrees. I am thinking I want to ride most of Piseco-Powley Road and hike back to Goldmine Stream Falls or maybe Sand Like on Saturday. Sunday, maybe the Potholers and then end the day in Little Falls, exploring Moss Island and the Herkimer Home, and riding the Erie Canal Trail. I am not planning to get home until dusk, so I will have the full afternoon and evening. I am undecided if I’ll bring the kayak, I’m actually leaning against it at this point. 🛶 Paddling the Mohawk River might be fun but I can see more on Blackie on the bike trail.

Today in 1916, the Migratory Bird Treaty between Canada and the United States signed. 🐦 It was designed to save Migratory Birds by giving them international protection for the first time by placing limits on hunting and other means of taking. It became a center part of protecting the flock of birds, requiring duck stamps among other things.

In 1989, a solar flare from the Sun creates a geomagnetic storm that affects micro chips, 😎 leading to a halt of all trading on Toronto’s stock market. Sometimes the sun isn’t so nice, not that we’ve had much of it recently but hopefully tomorrow and most of the weekend, bar maybe a few hours of showers on Friday morning. We are though overdue for a big solar storm, and that could be very disruptive to every day life across the world, as the power grid gets shutdown and radio networks go dead during the storm.

Also, in 1993, Debian Linux is announced, 🐧 it would become the basis of many forms of Linux like Ubuntu Linux, which is currently what I run on my home computer. 👨‍💻 I’m not sure I love the direction Ubuntu has been going lately with the snaps, but I do like the XFCE window manager and I don’t know if I want to change over to a totally new distro, having to reinstall everything. Maybe eventually when I get a new laptop when my current one wears out — it’s now going on 7 years old, and while I don’t care it’s getting old but I do worry physical components wear out after a while. That said, I don’t carry it around as much now as I use my phone for most things.

And in 1966, the House Un-American Activities Committee begins investigations of Americans who have aided the Viet Cong. 🏵 The committee stated to intended to introduce legislation making these activities illegal. Anti-war demonstrators disrupt the meeting and 50 people are arrested. A long time ago now — but it reminds me a bit of the War in Iraq when I was young with Bush as President.

As previously noted, there are 2 weeks until Average High Falls To 79 ️Degrees ⛱️️️ when the sun will be setting at 7:35 pm with dusk at 8:03 pm. On that day in 2022, we had rain and temperatures between 90 and 66 degrees. We hit a record high of 98 back in 1953. The 1953 heat wave!

West Towards Burnt-Rossman Hills

Halfway through August 🍂

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This summer seems to have faded away so quickly. Some of it has been the many rainy weekends, some of it was the ease of catching the free nature bus to Thacher Park, some of it was the anxiety over everything, and just the odd times we all live in – working downtown more days a week.

It’s not to say that there weren’t any memorable moments. Camping and remote work in the spring time in Spectulator. Hiking Watch Hill. Juneteenth Weekend at Piseco-Powley. Hiking along the Stoney Creek to Wilcox Lake. Summer vacation and the Finger Lakes Trail. Many weekends at Thacher Park. The heat wave eating clams and swimming at the Potholers.

The days go by so quickly it seems. I try to explore new places and create new memories but sometimes there isn’t a lot left to explore nearby. Plus with the solar panel on my truck, I prefer to just set up camp, sit back and just stay in one location once camp is set up.

Labor Day will come and then it will be back to working downtown five days a week. I was hoping the mask mandate would be done at the library but I guess that is back for now, so I’ll probably avoid going down there but I assume at some point Delta will burn its way through and things will return to normal.

Autumn can be pretty. It’s a quiet year for me and I’m hoping to get to West Virginia come mid October. Enjoy the leaves, do some small game hunting. And those nice the long autumn nights with yummy meals with the chill of the night.

Those forty inch jeans 👖 don’t really fit anymore and are so baggy

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I really need to get some new jeans that are better fitting though I only got this pair a few months ago, not realizing what was despite the warnings I was given. Especially because the Salvation Army shirt I got is so nicely fitting. Still I’m hesitant to invest in a new clothes of any expense as I know what I’m up against in a culture that prioritizes low quality calories, excessive sugar and fat. I’m good but the social pressures are so bad, and it can be lonely eating things that are actually half decent for you.

Good morning! Happy Tuesday. Rain and 66 degrees at the Elm Ave Park and Ride. ☔ There is a north-northeast breeze at 5 mph. 🍃. The dew point is 66 degrees. The skies will clear tomorrow around 2 pm.

Too rainy 🌧️ for the morning walk and I wasn’t moving fast enough to catch the earlier bus 🚍 downtown. The rain let up and I walked down to the later express 🚏but in part I delayed as I didn’t really want to do laps in the Plaza in part because that would add another time up and down the eighteen flights at work and I didn’t want to do that. Lousy excuse but I’m still not doing elevators at work.🛗 It’s stupid, I’m not afraid of the state elevators and I’m sure the state police 🚨 would come and rescue me when the elevator breaks down but I like the exercise of climbing 🧗‍♂️ all those stairs. The worse thing that could happen is I get trapped in the elevator with the head of the Assembly Republicans and after a few awkward seconds maybe talk about deer 🦌 hunting or something in the wilderness.

Morning was eggs 🍳 with a bunch of onions, spinach, and peppers. Lots of fiber and protein there. Had a few cups of coffee ☕ though I really should cut back on the fluids as I’ve been having to piss a lot due to 6000pall the water I’ve been consuming from the watermelon 🍉, zucchini 🍆, egg plant and the fruit 🍏 I’ve been eating. Last night was breaded egg plant with panto breadcrumbs using egg as a glue, with a sauce made from tomatoes, jalapeños, onions and Italian spices and a bit of dried Parmesan on top. Broccoli 🥦 on the side. It was good in the broiler all crispy.

Today will have showers, with thunderstorms also possible after 3pm. 🌦 High of 71 degrees at 3pm. 11 degrees below normal, which is similar to a typical day around September 24th. Maximum dew point of 69 at 2pm. 🏖️ Northeast wind around 6 mph. Chance of precipitation is 80%. New rainfall amounts between a quarter and half of an inch possible. A year ago, we had mostly sunny skies in the morning with a few breaks of sun the afternoon. The high last year was 87 degrees. The record high of 96 was set in 1959.

Another work day today, then one tomorrow, then it’s off to camp in the Adirondacks. 🏕 I’m not sure how nice Friday will be and Saturday looks chilly up north, but I might end up bringing both the heater and bug screen, along with tarps. 📚 I’m sure Lynne is going to ask if I want to go to the Guilderland Meeting regarding the Senior Home Development in the Pine Bush 🌲 but I’ll see if I can get out of that because I don’t feel that great, and I’m tired of attending meetings regarding the Pine Bush, yelling and screaming and being mocked in the press. 📰  I really have other priorities, and I’d like to get books from the library and get packed for camping. I doubt I’ll leave before early on Thursday morning, but if I get ready, it’s less to do tomorrow. Pine Bush stuff is kind of important, but I don’t want to be on the forefront, and so many of these hearings and being shoved down by the town board is kind of boring. Plus I have salmon 🐟 to cook up tonight with spinach, and I’m looking forward to that on this rainy night.

Solar noon 🌞 is at 1:01 pm with sun having an altitude of 61.5° from the due south horizon (-9.3° vs. 6/21). A six foot person will cast a 3.3 foot shadow today compared to 2.2 feet on the first day of summer. The golden hour 🏅 starts at 7:20 pm with the sun in the west-northwest (284°). 📸 The sunset is in the west-northwest (290°) with the sun dropping below the horizon at 7:59 pm after setting for 3 minutes and 4 seconds with dusk around 8:28 pm, which is one minute and 27 seconds earlier than yesterday. 🌇 The best time to look at the stars is after 9:07 pm. At sunset, look for rain 🌧 and thunderstorms 🌩 and temperatures around 70 degrees. The dew point will be 67 degrees. There will be a calm wind. Today will have 13 hours and 58 minutes of daytime, a decrease of 2 minutes and 32 seconds over yesterday.

Tonight will have a chance of showers and thunderstorms before 1am, then a slight chance of showers between 1am and 2am. Mostly cloudy 🌧, with a low of 65 degrees at 4am. Four degrees above normal. Maximum dew point of 68 at 6pm. East wind around 5 mph becoming south after midnight. Chance of precipitation is 40%. New rainfall amounts between a tenth and quarter of an inch, except higher amounts possible in thunderstorms. In 2022, we had mostly clear skies. It got down to 58 degrees. The record low of 41 occurred back in 1972.

In 1969, the Woodstock Music Festival Opens on Max Yasgur’s dairy farm in Bethel, 🎧 🎸🎷 much to the distaste of his neighbors and fellow community members. 🐮 I’m sure he just thought of it as a way to make some money on a wet, muddy field that wasn’t growing much hay or silage that year due to the weather. He used to run the largest dairy farm in Sullivan County. Of course, they cut his milk contract in subsequent years, and was forced out of the dairy business. His son would go on to be the Sullivan County Clerk some years later. And the farm became a tourist destination in recent years. 🗑 The hippies trashed the land more then Yasgur could have ever expected, to say nothing of what they did to the neighbors. And he just wanted a little money from the hippies, and expected after the weekend, the muddy field could be tilled up and put back in production.

On this day in 1970, President Richard Nixon completes the break from the gold standard by ending convertibility of the United States dollar into gold by foreign investors. 💰 Much was made out of it, but truth be told the US hadn’t been pegging it’s currency to gold since the 1930s and by the 1960s the value of the US currency had grown with the size of the economy and inflation, it was getting harder and harder to come up with enough gold to settle the currency, especially as investors sought more gold as a hedge of growing inflation as the sixties slid into the 1970s. 📈 Truth be told, regardless had the gold standard ended or not, the gas crisis would have still occurred, and it would have done a lot of damage to economy, though a lot of that was baked in after the sixties, and all the post-war expansion including the baby boom and the construction of the Interstate system which produced a enormous boom that was petering out by the seventies as major legs of the system were finalized. 🛣

Cool but sunny this weekend. 😎 Saturday, mostly sunny, with a high near 75. Maximum dew point of 58 at 2pm. Sunday, sunny, with a high near 84. Maximum dew point of 64 at 4pm. Typical average high for the weekend is 82 degrees. Actually, Sunday will be fairly warm and muggy. But Friday the high is only 66 degrees with rain showers. I am going to bring my heater up north I guess this weekend, along with the screen tent as the bugs may be bad. 🎪 I wasn’t sure if I was going to bring my kayak up north, but Sunday could be a very nice day for kayaking on the Mohawk River around Moss Island, 🛶 especially if I do a bike ride first. Although do I want to spend more time at the Potholers at Piseco-Powley? 🏊‍♀️ Decisions! 🤔

Looking ahead, there are 11 weeks until Halloween 🎃 when the sun will be setting at 5:51 pm with dusk at 6:19 pm. On that day in 2022, we had partly cloudy, rain showers and temperatures between 64 and 37 degrees. Typically, the high temperature is 56 degrees. We hit a record high of 75 back in 2019.

When Big Bay turns north to Piseco Lake it becomes too shallow to navigate

A Monday morning as we enter the second half of August 🌅

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The morning today is surprisingly dark but we’re losing daylight quickly this time of year and more clouds and rain drops then I would have expected from the initial forecast. I’m up and going a bit earlier than normal but it’s good to get a jump on the weekend and I was going.

Good morning! Monday’s come back around again. Mostly cloudy with a few rain drops 💧 and 63 degrees in Delmar, NY. ⛅ It’s raining out again, so shocking. Calm wind. The dew point is 59 degrees.

Out for the morning walk 🚶. After breakfast 🥣 and a shower 🚿 I’m thinking I’ll take Blackie 🚵 to work. Saves $2.60 in bus fares plus it’s a nice ride and it won’t be too hot or rainy today. Tomorrow it will be back on the express bus 🚍. I think taking Madison Ave from the bike path rather than Howard and Green and riding across the Plaza roads. 🚘 You’d think Howard would be a quiet side street but with all the parking garages it’s not and lower Madison has less traffic then you’d expect even at rush hour. Oatmeal soaked overnight with blueberries and chia seeds plus a little Greek yogurt for breakfast. Egg plant for dinner tonight. 🍆 I tried the oatmeal overnight thing on Saturday for the pancakes mix today doing it for actual cold oatmeal to eat this morning.

Today will be partly sunny 🌞, with a high of 80 degrees at 4pm. Two degrees below normal, which is similar to a typical day around August 28th. Maximum dew point of 63 at 9am. Calm wind becoming west 5 to 8 mph in the morning. Good morning for riding Blackie 🚵 to work. A year ago, we had partly cloudy skies in the morning with some clearing in the afternoon. The high last year was 82 degrees. The record high of 97 was set in 1988.

Solar noon 🌞 is at 1:01 pm with sun having an altitude of 61.8° from the due south horizon (-9° vs. 6/21). A six foot person will cast a 3.2 foot shadow today compared to 2.2 feet on the first day of summer. The golden hour 🏅 starts at 7:22 pm with the sun in the west-northwest (284°). 📸 The sunset is in the west-northwest (291°) with the sun dropping below the horizon at 8:01 pm after setting for 3 minutes and 5 seconds with dusk around 8:29 pm, which is one minute and 26 seconds earlier than yesterday. 🌇 The best time to look at the stars is after 9:09 pm. At sunset, look for rain 🌧 and temperatures around 74 degrees. The dew point will be 63 degrees. There will be a calm wind. Tomorrow will have 13 hours and 58 minutes of daytime, a decrease of 2 minutes and 33 seconds over today.

It was a nice weekend ☺ but it came and went so quickly. Pretty evening up on Bennett Hill 🌇 and it was nice seeing the folks. 👪 My pantry is well stocked 🍏 and I was able to get some more reasonably well fitting clothes at the Salvation Army. Biking in the Pine Bush was nice and being able to use Blackie 🚵 to run to the bank and Walmart when I needed to without having to fire up Big Red. 🛻 I’d like to get some Balsamic Vinegar today and the nice thing about bicycle commuting is I can just stop along the way. 🛒

Tonight will have showers, mainly after 3am. The rain could be heavy at times. 🌧 Low of 65 degrees at 5am. Four degrees above normal. Maximum dew point of 63 at 7pm. 🏖️ Calm wind becoming north around 5 mph after midnight. Chance of precipitation is 80%. New precipitation amounts between a quarter and half of an inch possible. In 2022, we had mostly clear skies. It got down to 58 degrees. The record low of 48 occurred back in 1964.

Back in 1962, Two gunmen hijacked a mail truck in Plymouth, Massachusetts, ✉ and made off with $1.5 million. Kind of a crazy story, they dressed up as construction 🚧 workers, barricaded off Interstate 495, took the unmarked mail truck 🚚 at gun point 🔫 never to be seen again, leaving the Massachusetts State Police 👮 and the FBI with no answers. Everybody says it was an inside job but one seventy years nobody knows what happened to the money, 💵 back when it was real money and just a typical retirement account.

A picture perfect weekend on tap. 😎 Saturday, sunny, with a high near 81. Maximum dew point of 60 at 3pm. Sunday, sunny, with a high near 87. Maximum dew point of 63 at 11am. Typical average high for the weekend is 82 degrees.

Unfortunately Friday looks to be a bit wetter in the morning ☔ and cooler with a high of 68 up north but Thursday will be closer to eighty and sunny 🌞 so I’m thinking about spending some quality time up at the Potholers 🏊‍♂️ this weekend before summer is done, followed maybe on Sunday with paddling around Moss Island in Little Falls 🛶 and riding some of the bike trail out that way.

And now something to look forward to next Monday is World Mosquito Day 🐞 when the sun will be setting at 7:50 pm with dusk at 8:18 pm. On that day in 2022, we had hot, partly sunny and temperatures between 88 and 70 degrees. Mosquitoes have been bad this year, I might bring the mosquito tent 🎪 when I head north this weekend. Typically, the high temperature is 82 degrees. We hit a record high of 98 back in 1916.

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What’s for dinner? Or how English makes for unhealthy eating 🍽

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It might sound strange to inform dinner guests that the main components of the meal will consist of sweet corn, peppers, onions, zucchini, and chopped apples, accompanied by chicken and brown rice.

English has transitioned from a time of nutritional deficiencies to a focus on protein as the primary element of a meal, encouraging people to concentrate on and consume the most protein during dinner. Nonetheless, nutrition experts emphasize that vegetables should constitute the larger portion of any meal, comprising at least one-third, if not more, of your plate. The combination of fruits and vegetables should encompass half to two-thirds of your meal. Protein sources such as meat and fish, as well as whole grain carbohydrates, should constitute less than a quarter of your meal.

One reason for meat being considered the central element rather than a side dish might be due to the time required for its preparation. Many types of meat demand an extended cooking period involving cutting, seasoning, baking, or grilling. On the contrary, what are often referred to as “sides,” particularly fresh vegetables, necessitate minimal cooking. It seems counterintuitive to make the less labor-intensive portion of the meal the focal point.

However, it might be more logical to reframe the approach to eating around the sides, rather than the conventional centerpiece. Encouraging discussions around healthy plates could lead to a more nutritious diet. For instance, envisioning a meal as sweet corn, peppers, and broccoli with a side of steak or hamburger might be beneficial. This approach could guide individuals to establish appropriate portion sizes and prioritize their meal components. While the term used for the evening meal might seem insignificant, it can profoundly impact one’s perspective.

Zucchini spaghetti is pretty darn good! 🍝

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How did I not know such a thing before today? I heard of spiralizers but never used one. I’m very happy with my decision to hop on my bike, ride and get a zucchini spiralizer at Walmart rather than go to Indian Ladder Farms for apples today. The store bought apples are fine – probably any of the ones Indian Ladder at this point has been stored in nitrogen for the past year and would quickly spoil. In two weekends I’ll likely bike out to Indian Ladder.

Good afternoon! Clouds and sun and 76 degrees at the Delmar. 🌥 Probably a thunderstorm will come through before this blog post is done. There is a west-northwest breeze at 7 mph. 🍃. The dew point is 67 degrees and getting muggier as the thunderstorm approaches. The muggy weather ends tomorrow around 1 am. 😓

Black is great for a quick run to the grocery store 🛒 like this morning when I ran to Wally World to get a spiralizer for the zucchini that I wanted to try making zucchini lasagna out of. 🍝 With some of excess zucchini and tomatoes made an excellent lunch without all the carbohydrates to crash my blood sugar in a few hours. The spiralizer made excellent zucchini spaghetti, and used the food processor for the tomatoes plus some onions, jalapeños and Italian spices, a frying pan plus some parmesan up top. Good meal 🍴 for lunch. I do want to try zucchini bread next, using whole wheat flour and oatmeal along with stevia, cinnamon and olive oil – also maybe some grapes or other fruit mixed in for flavor. 🍞

What can I say, Blackie 🚵 is such a slow dog 🐶 on the paved bike trails Erie Canal Trail but awesome on gravel and light mountain biking on horse and easy to moderate mountain bicycle trails. It gets blown by the road bicycles like your standing still on the paved bike trails, with a continuous pace and top gear. ⚙ But then it’s so much fun on the gravel and even gated haul roads on the background where you’d shred road bike tires. Not so wonderful in deep mud or even in deeper sands like in parts of the Pine Bush but those crawl gears are awesome for crossing the rough terrain. Blackie on asphalt likes to go around 10 mph though on gently slopping terrain, it can easily do a constant 13-15 mph but road bikes blow by at 20-25 mph. It’s kind of the tractor on the interstate experience.

This afternoon will have isolated showers and thunderstorms. It’s summer. Mostly sunny 🌦, with a high of 79 degrees at 2pm. Four degrees below normal, which is similar to a typical day around September 1st. Maximum dew point of 67 at 12pm. West wind 7 to 10 mph. Chance of precipitation is 20%. A year ago, we had cloudy skies. The high last year was 79 degrees. The record high of 98 was set in 1947.

Yesterday was a good day, checked off basically everything on my list besides the spiralizer which I got today. ☑ Got a lot of groceries at the Stanton Farm Stand 🍑 though the Pennsylvania peaches they had where a bit disappointing. Their sweet corn 🌽 was excellent along with their tomatoes. 🍅 No good clothes at Goodwill but not unexpected. Mountain biking in the Albany Pine Bush Preserve, 🦋was great though some of the trails were rougher than I expected and the deep sand wasn’t great in spots though that’s partly my fault for not airing the tires down more but I didn’t want pinch flats. 🚲 I did find a nice pair of shorts and long sleeve shirts at Salvation Army for $20 which fit my smaller size nicely 👍👕 and I mentioned it to Linda when I was visiting John and she gave me some of his old shirts which fit well too. Going to need to buy smaller jeans 👖 and in the fall should keep an eye on Salvation Army for dress clothes 👔 and maybe some new ties but I’ll probably end up buying much of that new at JC Penny. For me it’s not a money 💵 thing at this point but I’d rather keep good clothes out of the landfill and support needy people. 🏚️ Plus there is some unique stuff there, especially their ties.

Visiting John was nice though he was largely out of it due to sedatives for pain he’s on. 🧓 Rode some of the Erie Canalway which was crowded and the weather hot and sticky 😰 and the constant blow by of road bikes 🚲 was kind of obnoxious. I prefer more solitude and less spandex as I ride my slow as shit mountain bike. Got most of the supplies and food I needed at Walmart, had dinner – zucchini and onions again, followed by yogurt and frozen fruit with lemonade 🍋 and retired to bed 🛏.

Tonight will have a Waning Crescent 🌘 Moon with 6% illuminated. At 12 PM, the moon was in the southwest (221°) at an altitude of 70° from the horizon, some 249,616 miles away from where you are looking up from the earth. 🚀 At the state speed limit of 55 mph, you’ll make it there by February 19th. Buckle up for safety! 💺 The moon will set in the northwest (307°) at 7:04 pm. The Sturgeon 🐡 Moon is on Tuesday, August 29.

The darkest hour is at 1:01 am, followed by dawn at 5:30 am, and sun starting to rise at 6:00 am in the east-northeast (69°) and last for 3 minutes and 6 seconds. Sunrise is one minute and 4 seconds later than yesterday. 🌄 The golden hour ends at 6:39 am with sun in the east-northeast (76°). Tonight will have 9 hours and 57 minutes of darkness, an increase of 2 minutes and 30 seconds over last night.

Tonight will be partly cloudy 🌃 , with a low of 60 degrees at 4am. One degrees below normal, which is similar to a typical night around August 20th. Maximum dew point of 63 at 6pm. Northwest wind 5 to 7 mph becoming light and variable after midnight. In 2022, we had cloudy skies in the evening, which became partly cloudy by the early hours of the morning. It got down to 54 degrees. The record low of 44 occurred back in 1941.

I don’t think I’ll get to Indian Ladder today 🍏 with rain storms around, and because I got a good ride doing a quick trip out of Walmart on Blackie. 🚵‍♀️ But soon in a bit I’ll head out to my parents house for Sunday dinner and to do my wash then do a quick hike up Bennett Hill. 🏔 Then get home, and unpacked. And ready for the upcoming week.

In four weeks on September 10 the sun will be setting in the west (278°) at 7:16 pm,🌄 which is 45 minutes and 46 seconds earlier then today. In 2022 on that day, we had mostly sunny, patches of fog and temperatures between 83 and 56 degrees. Typically, you have temperatures between 77 and 55 degrees. The record high of 96 degrees was set back in 1931.

Looking ahead, 6:30 Sunrise 🌇 is in 4 weeks, Constitution Day 📜 is in 5 weeks, October 🎃 is in 7 weeks, Average High is 65 🍂 is in 8 weeks, Average Night Below Freezing 🌌 is in 3 months, 7:15 AM Sunrise ⌛️ is in 17 weeks and Christmas Eve 🎅 is in 19 weeks.

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A busy Saturday ahead 🫑🚵 🛒🧓

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My day explained in emoji lol. There is much to do today though first I’m pausing at Five Rivers Environmental Education Center for a walk and nature observation until 8:30 when I head back home.

Good morning! Partly sunny 🌞 and 57 degrees at the Five Rivers Environmental Education Center. Calm wind. The dew point is 55 degrees.

I could have walked 🚶 in the neighborhood this morning but I was thinking with Blackie 🚵 the ride to Five Rivers Environmental Education Center 🐸 is but twenty minutes away and it’s been a few weeks since I’ve been out here. Figured check out the cows 🐮 and the farm landscape on Meads Lane and see what Meads has for sale. 🍅 Those heirloom tomatoes look good. It looked like they had some nice flowers 🌻 but I can’t eat that. And freezer beef 🥩 something to keep in mind but not for today. 🐦 Time is tight at Five Rivers though by 8:30 need to be back on the road to be home before nine 9⃣ to shower 🚿.

Breakfast was oatmeal and banana pancakes 🥞 topped with Maine blueberries 🫐 and sugar free syrup. Decided to experiment using night before oatmeal – I let the oatmeal soak in water overnight in the fridge to let it expand and soften before blending with the mixer today, and also added some stevia for sweetness (unneeded) and also some vanilla for a vanilla flavor (also probably not needed). Chia seeds for protein. Fresh coffee ☕ with milk and I added a glob of fat free plain Greek yogurt. Good breakfast.

Lunch today is going to be good ol spike your blood sugar with couscous 🍚 mixed with chia seeds, edamine and chopped red onions. On the whole not so bad as I included protein, fats and fiber as the edamine is unshelled and couscous cooks 🧑‍🍳quickly unlike brown rice or anything whole grain. I treat chia seeds as a band aid for all wrong in my diet lol but they’re kind of fatty too. 🩹 Time is tight and I’m out of cooked rice. 🕒 Looking at the label for couscous it really is junk food though at least it is fat and added sugar free. But all carbs no vitamins at all except a tiny amount of iron. But it’s done in five minutes after boiling water 💦 which cooks the edamine.

Today will have showers likely and possibly a thunderstorm, mainly after 4pm. Otherwise, partly sunny 🌦, with a high of 80 degrees at 2pm. Three degrees below normal, which is similar to a typical day around August 28th. Maximum dew point of 68 at 6pm. Light southeast wind becoming south 5 to 10 mph in the morning. Chance of precipitation is 60%. New rainfall amounts between a quarter and half of an inch possible. A year ago, we had mostly sunny skies in the morning, remaining cloudy in the afternoon. The high last year was 79 degrees. The record high of 99 was set in 1944.

At nine 9⃣ I plan to shower 🚿 and load Blackie into Big Red. 🚲 Gas up Big Red ⛽➡ 🛻 and at ten o’clock drive out to Stanton’s Farm Market in New Scotland 🫑 to see what they have. Peaches, hot peppers more zucchini and sweet corn 🌽 are on the short list. Bringing a cooler with ice to keep things fresh. Then visit Goodwill in Guilderland to see what they have for clothes that might fit me well with my smaller size. 👕👖 I’m not that hopeful, they’re small and I’ve heard their men’s section is tiny and they’re over priced – often no cheaper than new at Walmart. Then mountain biking in the Albany Pine Bush 🚵 which is allowed on preserve trails. Nothing crazy, no jumping steps or roaring through the preserve, just a nice easy ride for observing nature. 🔭

Solar noon 🌞 is at 1:01 pm with sun having an altitude of 62.4° from the due south horizon (-8.4° vs. 6/21). A six foot person will cast a 3.1 foot shadow today compared to 2.2 feet on the first day of summer. The golden hour 🏅 starts at 7:24 pm with the sun in the west-northwest (285°). 📸 The sunset is in the west-northwest (292°) with the sun dropping below the horizon at 8:03 pm after setting for 3 minutes and 6 seconds with dusk around 8:32 pm, which is one minute and 24 seconds earlier than yesterday. 🌇 The best time to look at the stars is after 9:12 pm. At sunset, look for rain 🌧 and thunderstorms 🌩 and temperatures around 72 degrees. The dew point will be 67 degrees. There will be a south breeze at 7 mph. Today will have 14 hours and 6 minutes of daytime, a decrease of 2 minutes and 28 seconds over yesterday.

After one o’clock I want to run up to Salvation Army in Schenectady off of Central Avenue. 👖 They have a much bigger selection and are much more affordable. I used to go there when I was starting out my career for affordable dress clothing. 🕴🏻If time doesn’t allow I’ll go there after visiting John Wolcott but it makes sense to go before due to the location and trip route, plus I saw online they often close early due to a lack of staff. 🧓 Then visiting John Wolcott. He’s been home from the hospital for nearly two weeks but he’s not doing that great I’ve heard so time is precious. Then depending on time and the weather and the order I visit Salvation Army a possible bike ride from Five Mile Reservoir or the Erie Canal Trail in Niskayuna. 🚲 Might be raining ☔ by then. Then Walmart or another grocery store in search of pearl onions and another big bag of sweet onions, plus frozen fruit, frozen spinach and kale.🛒

Tonight will have showers and thunderstorms, mainly before 10pm. Some of the storms could produce small hail, gusty winds, and heavy rain. Patchy fog before 1am, then patchy fog after 2am. 🌧 Low of 65 degrees at 5am. Three degrees above normal. Maximum dew point of 68 at 6pm. 🏖️ South wind around 7 mph. Chance of precipitation is 80%. New rainfall amounts between a tenth and quarter of an inch, except higher amounts possible in thunderstorms. In 2022, we had cloudy skies. It got down to 59 degrees. The record low of 43 occurred back in 1957.

Yesterday rode to work 🚲 after riding to my dentist appointment 🦷. My teeth are in excellent shape for age forty, though I was worried 😯 after all that ice cream 🍦, lemons 🍋 and hot peppers 🌶️ out in the Finger Lakes with reduced milk 🥛 consumption but more Greek yogurt. After work rode to Voorheesville for 32 miles ridden for the day. 🚲 Nice evening, beautiful out at the Voorheesville Park 🏞 before heading out past the high school and library then back on the rail trail.

Tomorrow I’m thinking 💭 about riding out to Indian Ladder Farms to see what they have in stock 🍏, probably apples from last year but I wonder what else. Looking forward to fresh apples come the autumn from sure from Indian Ladder. Signed up for their newsletter 📰 last night. Then out to the folks house 👪 though in Big Red and not on Blackie for that. 🛻

As previously noted, there are 2 weeks until National Dog Day 🐩 when the sun will be setting at 7:41 pm with dusk at 8:09 pm. On that day in 2022, we had humid, partly cloudy and temperatures between 83 and 62 degrees. Typically, the high temperature is 81 degrees. We hit a record high of 98 back in 1948.

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