Balsam Swamp is a sprawling state forest that stretches almost 5.5 miles east-west across 4 towns. The area is very rural, and the landscape surrounding the State Forest is predominantly forested. Balsam Swamp State Forest is comprised of a mix of native hardwood forests, hemlock swamps, and conifer plantations. There are no designated recreational trails on the forest, but there is ample opportunity for self-guided day hikes to explore the diversity of habitats represented on this State Forest. Additionally, the western section of Balsam Swamp State Forest is adjacent to Five Streams State Forest to the south.
The main attraction of this forest is Balsam Pond. The impoundment is approximately 152 acres and is a popular destination for fishing and paddle boat sports. Balsam Pond is a warm water fishery that contains a mix of largemouth bass, smallmouth bass, chain pickerel, yellow perch, brown bullhead and sunfish. Tiger muskellunge have been stocked in the past with the last stocking occurring in 1995. However, there have been very few reports of anglers catching any of the adult tiger muskies. A shallow gravel boat launch is suitable for launching small fishing boats.
A small rustic camp ground is also located at Balsam Pond. Camping spaces are available at no cost on a first-come, first-serve basis and there is no running water or electricity. A fire ring, outhouse, and picnic table are provided for each camping space. A sign on Balsam-Tyler Road in Pharsalia designates the entrance to the boat launch and camping facility. This is a carry-in carry-out facility. Please do not litter.
Politics these days has gotten much too angry lately. Why do people have to hate others who live differently then themselves so much?
We all have different priorities and values. Some people view some rights more important then others, some prefer freedom over safety on certain issues. Some people believe certain activities should be legal others believe they should be banned.
There needs to be more respect for people who are different then you. Not everybody is of the same race, gender, creed, sexual orientation, or religious belief. Some people live in cities, some in suburban areas, and some in rural areas.
As a society, we would be better off if people took a deep breath and said, while I disagree with you, I understand where your coming from. People who are different then you are not stupid or ignorant, but instead just have different values.
I wish more often people would say, I disagree with you but I respect you for having different experiences and views.
Good evening! Mostly cloudy and 37 degrees in Delmar. ☁ There is a northwest breeze at 7 mph. 🍃. Temperatures will drop below freezing at tomorrow around 7 pm. ☃️
It’s a nice evening 🌃 for me evening walk after a rainy start to the day. I’m wearing my old boots 👢 as my new ones are bothering my ankle in part because they’re not broke in. I got the higher ankle boots to protect my ankles but they’ve not worked out good. I’m hopeful though. I will wear them to work on non session days but keep my old boots for walking around town until they are fully broke in.
Christmas Party 🎉 at work was good, but odd with the holidays come and gone and people busy with session things. The bananas 🍌and oranges 🍊I brought went quick but I brought much too much milk 🥛. I kept the extra milk in the fridge and brought it home and froze it. I’ll thaw it when I run out of milk. It’s odd as the last holiday party was pre COVID but I still wore my muzzle 😷 during most of the party. I was thinking with all that spare milk I need hogs. 🐽 Maybe some day. But first my investments have to grow.
Tonight will be mostly cloudy 🌥, with a low of 33 degrees at 3am. 16 degrees above normal, which is similar to a typical night around April 5th. Northwest wind 5 to 7 mph becoming calm in the evening. In 2022, we had cloudy skies in the evening, which became light snow by the early hours of the morning. It got down to 16 degrees. The record low of -12 occurred back in 1878.
Tonight will have a Full 🌝 Moon with 99% illuminated. At 8 PM, the moon was in the east (86°) at an altitude of 37° from the horizon, some 251,906 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 July 16th. Buckle up for safety! 💺 The Wolf 🐺 Moon is on Sunday, January 22. The darkest hour is at 12:02 am, followed by dawn at 6:54 am, and sun starting to rise at 7:26 am in the east-southeast (121°) and last for 3 minutes and 22 seconds. Sunrise is 6 seconds earlier than yesterday. 🌄 The golden hour ends at 8:11 am with sun in the southeast (128°).Tonight will have 14 hours and 44 minutes of darkness, a decrease of one minute and 7 seconds over last night.
Tomorrow will be mostly cloudy 🌥, with a high of 41 degrees at 1pm. Eight degrees above normal, which is similar to a typical day around March 3rd. Light north wind becoming northwest 8 to 13 mph in the morning. A year ago, we had cloudy skies. The high last year was 31 degrees. The record high of 56 was set in 1915. 7.2 inches of snow fell back in 1994.❄
I decided against turning the heat on tonight ♨ as it’s not going to be super cold but I can see the writing on the wall – I’ll need at least a little heat come tomorrow. Still January. The warm weather pattern is breaking down thought still going to be relatively warm by historical standards. I just can’t wait until it’s warm enough to have the windows open 🔲 for the summer season and it’s easier sleep. 🛏 That said, I do better going to bed before nine most days.
In four weeks on February 3 the sun will be setting in the west-southwest (248°) at 5:12 pm,🌄 which is 33 minutes and 50 seconds later then tonight. In 2021 on that day, we had snow showers, mostly cloudy and temperatures between 30 and 24 degrees. Typically, you have temperatures between 33 and 15 degrees. The record high of 57 degrees was set back in 2016.
I was looking at the January 6th memes on Facebook 🤜 thinking what a tragedy the whole thing was all together. So many lives and families ruined for the sake of stupid politics. People who chose a life in politics often loose their lives and their freedom in America 🇺🇸. We like to pretend that’s not true but I would argue that those who die for their country without pay or benefits are the true American heros. While I think the whole rigged election thing was sham – Biden won fairly under the various state and federal rules in effect in 2020 – you got to respect anyone who raises their voice based on their convictions. But I would argue personal and family well being is far more important than the country as a whole. Making money 💵 to put food on the table 🦃 is more important than any ideological belief you may have.
Looking ahead, Make Your Dream Come True Day 🏡 is Next Friday, Save the Pine Bush Turns 43 🦋 is a month away, Clean Your Computer Day 🧹 is in 5 weeks, 5:30 PM Sunset 🌇 is in 6 weeks, St. Patrick’s Day 🍀 is in 10 weeks, 7:30 PM Sunset 🌇 is in 13 weeks, Cinco de Mayo 🤠 is in 17 weeks, National Nude Day 👱 is in 27 weeks, Average High 70 🎑 is in 34 weeks, September 🍎 is in 34 weeks, Labor Day Weekend Begins 👨🏭 is in 34 weeks, Autumn 🍂 is in 37 weeks, Buy Nothing Day 🛍️ is in 46 weeks, December 🎄 is in 47 weeks, Saint Nicholas Day 🎅 is in 11 months, Bill of Rights Day 📜 is in 49 weeks and Days are Getting Longer ☀️ is in 50 weeks.
There are 215,430 acres or 337 square miles of abandoned coal mines in Pennsylvania.
92,231 acres are dry strip mine, 6,710 acres are strip mine filled with water. 86,317 acres are coal mining refuse, 722 acres of it is currently burning. Underground coal fires burn on an additional 2,609 acres.
Good morning! Yeah, it’s Friday! A January 6th, holiday party day at work. I skipped my morning walk 👣 due to the rain and my ankle being sore from the new boots 🥾 and because I need to go to the store and get milk, bananas and fruit for the holiday party.
Rainy start to the day, and 39 degrees at the Delmar, NY. ☔ Calm wind. Temperatures will drop below freezing at tomorrow around 8 pm. ☃️
Shopping 🛒 first this morning and then I’ll catch the electric bus 🚍 ⚡ downtown. I swear the electric buses are always the hottest buses to ride, which isn’t great for bringing milk on 🥛 but I think it will be okay. I thought they used diesel heaters on the electric buses but it turns out to be all just heat pumps moving waste heat and resistance heating. They keep adding more and more electric buses.
Today will rain, mainly before noon. 🌧 High of 40 degrees at 4pm. Seven degrees above normal, which is similar to a typical day around February 28th. Light and variable wind. Chance of precipitation is 80%. New precipitation amounts between a tenth and quarter of an inch possible. A year ago, we had cloudy skies. The high last year was 36 degrees. The record high of 71 was set in 2007. 12.7 inches of snow fell back in 2002.❄
I keep penciling ✏ in my ideas for Mission Fifty, my plans for my life at age 50 and how to get there. I have been doing a lot of research into financial literacy and how to make a better budget and minimizing expenses on things that really don’t bring you joy. 💵 Mission Fifty isn’t primarily about money but having adequate resources and spending them in ways that is meaningful to you is key to living a good life. 🚜 I’m in a position where I can turn my life around if I only do the right thing for myself and don’t get distracted by silliness like consumerism and politics, the two things that destroy so many lives – things we should remember on this January 6th, a day when thousands of lives were tragically sacrificed for politics. 😔
Solar noon 🌞 is at 12:02 pm with sun having an altitude of 24.9° from the due south horizon (-46° vs. 6/21). A six foot person will cast a 12.9 foot shadow today compared to 2.2 feet on the first day of summer. The golden hour 🏅 starts at 3:52 pm with the sun in the southwest (232°). 📸 The sunset is in the west-southwest (240°) with the sun dropping below the horizon at 4:37 pm after setting for 3 minutes and 22 seconds with dusk around 5:08 pm, which is 59 seconds later than yesterday. 🌇 At dusk you’ll see the Full 🌝 Moon in the east-northeast (61°) at an altitude of 9° from the horizon, 251,819 miles away. 🚀 The best time to look at the stars is after 5:44 pm. At sunset, look for rain 🌧 and temperatures around 40 degrees. There will be a calm wind. Today will have 9 hours and 15 minutes of daytime, an increase of one minute and 5 seconds over yesterday.
I am hopeful that it will clear out for the evening 🌃 walk. Assuming that I can do it with my ankle being such a sore mess. I also need to go shopping 🛒 this evening – I’ll do it after work as I’m parked 🅿 at the Park and Ride. Then my pantry will be set for a while.
Tonight will be mostly cloudy 🌥, with a low of 32 degrees at 5am. 15 degrees above normal, which is similar to a typical night around April 2nd. Northwest wind around 6 mph becoming calm in the evening. In 2022, we had cloudy skies in the evening, which became light snow by the early hours of the morning. It got down to 16 degrees. The record low of -12 occurred back in 1878.
Tomorrow will be mostly cloudy 🌥, with a high of 40 degrees at 12pm. Seven degrees above normal, which is similar to a typical day around February 28th. Light west wind becoming northwest 5 to 9 mph in the morning. A year ago, we had cloudy skies. The high last year was 31 degrees. The record high of 56 was set in 1915. 7.2 inches of snow fell back in 1994.❄
Tomorrow is Mom’s 75th birthday 🎂 party up in Saratoga so I’ll be joining them for that. I want to get my steps 👣 in and also I’m doing some demographic research on voting patterns that I’m interested and will likely go down to the library 📚 for that and to return books.
Looking ahead to Sunday, sunny, with a high near 36. ☀ Northwest wind around 6 mph becoming calm in the morning. Typical average high for the weekend is 33 degrees.
Sunday I’m going to try Macy’s and Boscov’s and try to get two more dress shirts 👨🏻💼 for work and then visit John Wolcott mid day and the Pine Bush 🌲 in the afternoon. Some point I also need to go to the laundromat maybe Sunday evening or Monday after work.
As previously noted, next Friday is Make Your Dream Come True Day 🏡 when the sun will be setting at 4:46 pm with dusk at 5:15 pm. On that day in 2022, we had partly cloudy and temperatures between 39 and 25 degrees. Typically, the high temperature is 33 degrees. We hit a record high of 71 back in 1932.
AirBNB, Travel and Staying in Random People’s Homes. 🏡
Lately they’re has been a lot of promotion of an article about how to find secret cameras in AirBNB homes. I get it, you own a house and your renting it out, you might want to make sure nobody is destroying your property while your gone. But I think it’s generally just creepy to be staying in some random person’s home or even a hotel. While I sometimes stay in hotels or other people’s houses for work, it certainly would not be my choice if I could avoid it during travel.
I just much prefer to be camping in the wilderness then in any urban area. I like to be able to have fires, make as much noise as I want, stay up late. Chances are except for walking back in the woods and getting caught on some random hunters’ game camera, no one is going to be watching me, and I won’t be sitting on some person’s sofa with bed bugs or who know what ever else you might find in someone’s house. If I spill something in the wilderness, and I can’t fully clean it up, it doesn’t matter, as it will either rot or get eaten by the wildlife.
