Good morning! What day is it? Save the Pine Bush Dinner Day, of course. Currently partly cloudy, clearing to the east and 47 degrees with a 6 mph north-northwest wind.

More important than the weather is the fact that the Save the Pine Bush Dinner is at 6 PM at the First Presbyterian Church on Chestnut St in downtown, across the street from the Alfred E. Newman State Office Building. Tonight’s featured speaker is Albany County Executive Dan McCoy. Should be a very interesting couple of hours but I may be late due to work.

People ask why I spend so much time blogging about the weather. I think Simon and Garfunkel got it right with  I can gather all the news I need on the weather report.

Today will have a chance of showers, mainly after 4pm. Partly sunny, with a high near 64. That’s a little more optimistic then WNYT’s forecast. Light and variable wind becoming north around 6 mph in the morning. Chance of precipitation is 30%. New precipitation amounts of less than a tenth of an inch possible. That’s about 20 degrees above normal. This time of year I like days 20 degrees above normal but not so much mid-summer unless I’m at the Potholers. The record high of 82 degrees was set back in 1990.

Tonight the sun will set at 7:04 pm with darkness around 7:32 pm, which is 1 minutes and 10 seconds later than yesterday. For the first time this year, we will have more daylight then darkness with 12 hours and 1 minutes of daylight, an increase of 2 minutes and 54 seconds over yesterday.

Tonight will have occasional showers, mainly before 4am. Low around 45. South wind 9 to 14 mph becoming light after midnight. Winds could gust as high as 25 mph. Chance of precipitation is 100%. New precipitation amounts between a tenth and quarter of an inch possible. That’s about 19 degrees above normal. The record low of -1 degrees was set back in 1916.

There are 1 month, 6 days until Earth Day when the sun will be setting at 7:46 pm. The average high temperature for Earth Day is 61 degrees, with a record high of 86 in 1985.

Today in 1968, General Motors produces its 100 millionth automobile, the Oldsmobile Toronado. That front wheel drive car was the first American front wheel drive car of mass-production. It used a chain drive and was the basis of many airport limousines and the popular GM motor homes of the 1970.