Good morning! Where did May go? Today is the final day of May and it’s raining again. Two weeks to Flag Day. The sun better come out by then so I can hang up my flag. Rain and 60 degrees in Delmar. There is a south-southeast breeze at 5 mph. The dew point is 54 degrees.

The month left much like it started – fairly cold and wet. I’ll have to keep an eye out for mildew in the apartment and get out my good friend, bleach. I’m sure they are saving the heat for June, preferably with a lot of sun, so I can spend my time at the beach. I don’t mind the rain that much on a work day.

While I was a few minutes late leaving the apartment, I decided to walk down to the Park and Ride. I always build in quite a margin for my time, so I was fine. But I shouldn’t do this regularly because if I miss it, I have to walk a mile back to the local bus.  It wasn’t a bad walk, and indeed I made it to the shelter right before the skies opened up. Then it poured. The bus was on time, and I made it to work without issue.

Today will have showers and thunderstorms, mainly after 5pm. Some of the storms could produce small hail and gusty winds. Mostly cloudy, with a high of 75 degrees at 4pm. One degree above normal. Maximum dew point of 58 at 12pm. South wind 5 to 13 mph. Chance of precipitation is 60%. New rainfall amounts between a tenth and quarter of an inch, except higher amounts possible in thunderstorms. A year ago, we had mostly sunny skies and a high of 83 degrees. The record high of 92 was set in 2013.

The sun will set at 8:26 pm with dusk around 9:00 pm, which is 48 seconds later than yesterday. At sunset, look for mostly cloudy conditions with thunderstorms around and 69 degrees. The dew point will be 56 degrees. There will be a southwest breeze at 5 mph. Today will have 15 hours and 6 minutes of daytime, an increase of one minute and 18 seconds over yesterday.

Tonight will have showers and thunderstorms before 1am, then isolated showers between 1am and 2am. Some of the storms could produce small hail and gusty winds. Patchy fog after 5am. Otherwise, mostly cloudy, with a low of 54 degrees at 5am. Two degrees above normal. Maximum dew point of 56 at 6pm. Southwest wind around 5 mph becoming calm in the evening. Chance of precipitation is 60%. New rainfall amounts of less than a tenth of an inch, except higher amounts possible in thunderstorms. In 2016, it got down to 57 degrees with mostly cloudy skies. The record low of 35 occurred back in 1945.

As previously noted, there are 2 weeks until Flag Day when the sun will be setting at 8:34 pm with dusk at 9:09 pm. On that day in 2016, we had mostly sunny skies and temperatures between 77 and 47 degrees. Typically, the high temperature is 78 degrees. We hit a record high of 96 back in 1892.

Saturday I’m getting the oil change, and hopefully it will go well. I will ask but I’m sure they know what the proper filter and oil for a GM truck is. It is the most produced vehicle in America when you include the Sierra. It will be a lot easier then having to find that filter and oil, pay for that expensive sixth quart of oil, then have to return the used oil. And it’s just one less thing to worry about screwing up. I’ve always done it myself, but this time I’m taking it to the mechanic that my parents recommend. I just hate the worry and mess of doing it myself, and I think compared to the cost of buying those stupid little bottles of oil, having a professional won’t cost that much more.

This weekend I want to get some clear coat to cover the spots where the paint is chipped in the wheel well to hold off wheel well rot, that is common in the second generation Silverado trucks you see around. Probably just get some rattle can clear-coat stuff and apply it to the places with paint chips in the wheel well during the weekend, after sanding off any rust. It doesn’t have to be perfect, because nothing is perfect on the truck, and nobody looks that carefully in the wheel well. I think I still have a few years before wheel well rot kicks in on my 2011, but I’m sure it will happen, as it seems to a problem on all the GM trucks. I try to keep the wheel well clean, especially the drains,  and maybe I will eventually put on fender flares, although I’m not sure if they are worth the money. And I like the wheels sticking out, even if it means it throws a lot of stones, salt, and slings a lot of mud — which isn’t legal in all states.

Maybe do some fishing on Saturday evening. I have some other projects I want to work at home too. I want to wire up a switch and a light under the passenger seat in my truck, as I’m tired of looking for things under the seat in the dark. I do need to buy a switch. I also want to order those color-changing lights for my truck, to wire them up maybe this weekend or next — at least before the Fourth of July Holiday. And then that’s the last wiring project I plan to do for a long time, I promise. A lot depends on how rainy the weekend will be, and it doesn’t look.

The following weekend is the first week of the Gas Up. I am still thinking of going out there on Saturday, getting some ice cream, and then camping in a tent up in one of the state forests out that way. Nothing is set in stone, and I’m holding out for the weather forecast the following weekend. Tent camping might be fun for a change, just not so far back that it would be a challenge to carry the propane tank back in the woods. Maybe 200 feet from the road, in an isolated, well hidden location.

Have a great day!