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I used to be so burly

And now I’m so tall and lanky compared to that picture on summer vacation three years ago with me wearing that second amendment t-shirt. The thing is the change was worth it, I’ve learned a lot about food and nutrition and I’m so much healthier these days, and my meals are so much filling without the hunger or extreme fullness I used to have.

Good morning! Happy Tuesday. Clouds, wildfire smoke and 69 degrees in Delmar, NY. ☁️ There is a south-southeast breeze at 5 mph. 🍃. The dew point is 66 degrees. The air quality index is 131, unhealthy for sensitive groups.

Today is the 200th Day of Year. ⏳Only 165 days remain. It will be 2024 before you know it, a fact that a lot of people are already a lot more focused on then I am. Maybe because lately the markets have been on such an upswing. 📈 I’m glad because the end of the year last year was so depressing. While there is storm clouds in the distance sometimes the storm breaks up and doesn’t hit and I’m young and I fundamentally believe that the US economy will continue to grow and if it slows too much the politicians will goose it and at least boost the markets. 🦆

Another hot and humid summer morning with the wildfire smoke 🌫 making everything look quite dull. At least there isn’t that acrid smell from the smoke currently like there was around dusk last night when I was riding back from Five Rivers Environmental Education Center. When you smell wildfire smoke it’s really not pleasant, more like smoldering PVC plastic then wood smoke. 🤮 And it kind of burns your lungs. Fortunately that’s not all the time, usually just around dusk when the air settles down.

Moving a bit slowly this morning 🛌 though I slept surprisingly soundly. I didn’t get out walking until nearly 6:40 AM as I hit the snooze button a few times ⏰ and then by the time I got downstairs, did the bathroom thing 🚽 and had some cold coffee ☕,  along with a hard-boiled egg I pulled out of the fridge, and a few carrots. 🏃 Did my walk, then came home and had some cream of wheat, fresh blueberries and Greek yogurt for breakfast with a side of some red kidney beans with a bit of sugar-free maple syrup. Black beans, farmer market tomato, mushrooms and another hard-boiled egg for lunch. Not sure yet what is for dinner, maybe brown rice and shrimp, though the shrimp is still frozen. Haven’t had that in a while.

Today will have isolated showers before noon, then scattered showers and thunderstorms between noon and 3pm, then showers likely and possibly a thunderstorm after 3pm. Some of the storms could produce heavy rain. Widespread haze. Partly sunny 🌦, with a high of 84 degrees at 2pm. Typical for today. Maximum dew point of 72 at 4pm. South wind 3 to 7 mph. Chance of precipitation is 60%. New rainfall amounts between a half and three quarters of an inch possible. A year ago, we had light rain in the morning, which became rain by afternoon. It was very sticky. The high last year was 81 degrees. The record high of 100 was set in 1953.

Payday today. 💵 Money hasn’t hit my checking account quite yet but I’m sure it will shortly. It better hit relatively soon as I will need it to pay the rent because I don’t have a lot of excess funds due to double paying my credit card 💳 and the bicycle 🚲 purchase. At least my bicycle license wasn’t expensive, only a single quarter or 25¢. It looks like they haven’t changed that fee since 1958. Next payday is during summer vacation 🏖 and it’s a three paycheck month. Good I’ll need it, lol. 😂 Today I made sure to bring deodorant into my office for after climbing the stairs. 👃

Electric bus 🚍 ⚡ downtown is well air conditioned though the way the driver is heading downtown with hard braking and acceleration it can’t be real fuel efficient. He’s pretty much on time but driving very aggressively this morning. 🔋

Solar noon 🌞 is at 1:02 pm with sun having an altitude of 68.4° from the due south horizon (-2.4° vs. 6/21). A six foot person will cast a 2.4 foot shadow today compared to 2.2 feet on the first day of summer. The golden hour 🏅 starts at 7:49 pm with the sun in the west-northwest (293°). 📸 The sunset is in the west-northwest (300°) with the sun dropping below the horizon at 8:30 pm after setting for 3 minutes and 20 seconds with dusk around 9:02 pm, which is 44 seconds earlier than yesterday. 🌇 At dusk you’ll see the Waxing Crescent 🌒 Moon in the west-northwest (296°) at an altitude of 6° from the horizon, 251,986 miles away. 🚀 The best time to look at the stars is after 9:46 pm. At sunset, look for rain 🌧 and thunderstorms 🌩 and temperatures around 73 degrees. The dew point will be 69 degrees. There will be a calm wind. Today will have 14 hours and 58 minutes of daytime, a decrease of one minute and 37 seconds over yesterday.

Tonight will have showers and thunderstorms likely before midnight, then isolated showers between midnight and 1am. Patchy fog after 2am. Otherwise, mostly cloudy 🌧, with a low of 62 degrees at 6am. One degree below normal, which is similar to a typical night around July 31st. Maximum dew point of 70 at 7pm. Another muggy evening tonight. Light and variable wind. Chance of precipitation is 60%. New precipitation amounts between a tenth and quarter of an inch, except higher amounts possible in thunderstorms. In 2022, we had light rain in the evening, which became mostly clear by the early hours of the morning. It was humid. It got down to 71 degrees. The record low of 47 occurred back in 1875.

After riding out to Five Rivers Environmental Education Center 🐸 and walking 🚶 around the preserve I spent some time reading 📖 then rode home around 8:30. Even with the new batteries 🔋 I was surprised how dim the lights were on my bike. Maybe I need to think about upgrading them eventually along with adding a better more comfortable seat. But I’m going to wait a while on that I’ve spent enough money and time on the bike for now. If the weather is decent tonight I might pick a different local preserve to visit like Norman’s Kill West or Bender Mellon Preserve. Or maybe I’ll just go for an ordinary walk down to the Elm Ave Park 🏞.

On this day in 1969, Senator Ted Kennedy from Massachusetts drives his car off a bridge and his passenger, Mary Jo Kopechne, dies. 🚘 And in 1984, there were McDonald’s massacre in San Ysidro, California: In a fast-food restaurant, James Oliver Huberty opens fire, killing 21 people and injuring 19 others before being shot dead by police. 🙏 After that, California implemented strict new gun control in that state, and there have been no more mass shootings. 🔫 Aren’t you glad, the liberal agenda has saved the world.

A picture perfect summer weekend on tap. 😎 Saturday, a chance of showers and thunderstorms after 2pm. Mostly sunny, with a high near 81. Chance of precipitation is 40%. Maximum dew point of 65 at 10am. Summer humidity but not oppressively hot and humid, especially out in the mountains. Sunday, mostly sunny, with a high near 82. Maximum dew point of 63 at 7pm. Typical average high for the weekend is 84 degrees.

I am pretty sure I’m going to take off Monday and do a three day weekend to swim 🏊‍♂️ at Mine Kill Pool and ride the Catskill Scenic Trail. 🚲 Do some camping 🏕 and get veggies at Shauls. I don’t really need that much time to pack for summer vacation in the Finger Lakes National Forest the following Friday. It’s my best chance to get away in a long time. Who knows what the rest of summer will look like. ☀ That said, I do see the weather pattern improving in the coming weeks. Or so I hope.

Looking ahead, there are 2 weeks until August 🌻 when the sun will be setting at 8:17 pm with dusk at 8:48 pm. On that day in 2022, we had hot, partly sunny and temperatures between 89 and 69 degrees. Typically, the high temperature is 84 degrees. We hit a record high of 101 back in 1933.

Looking East

It’s going to get hot out later ☀

Those lazy, hazy crazy days of summer are here minus maybe the hot dogs, pretzels and beer. Time is marching on the world changes in your forties.

Good morning! Happy Hot Thursday. To be predicted, it’s the hottest time of the year. Mostly sunny 😎with fog 🌫 around and 69 degrees in Delmar, NY. Calm wind. The dew point is 67 degrees. The muggy weather ends Wednesday around 7 pm. 😓

Another hot summer day ahead 🏖 though I’ll be spending it my air conditioned office and usually it will be cooling down by evening when I get home. Out for the morning walk before it gets too hot out. 10 1/2 miles walked yesterday, climbed up and down 36 flights of stairs in the office as usual.

Red kidney are cooking down in the kitchen, 🍲 they will be good with maple 🍁 syrup in the evening when it’s hot out. I got fresh blueberries at the farmers market which where $7 which seems much too expensive but inflation. 🔵 I’m running low on food and supplies but I don’t know what I want to buy and eat with the heat. 🛒 Next time I go shopping, I do want to get some freezer bags, as they’re good for freezing rice and also things like black beans for compact carrying while camping. They can be reused a few times too.

This morning I’m thinking just black coffee ☕ cream of wheat with the fresh blueberries for breakfast 🥣. I do need to get milk 🥛 as what I have in the refrigerator has spoiled. But not this morning. I’m also out of cottage cheese and Greek yogurt and frozen fruit.

Yesterday’s meals where too bland. Too much kale and brown rice. 🍚 Easy and healthy but bleh. Makes it easy and healthy but not so easy to keep on the diet going forward. I was really into kale for a while eating multiple pounds of week, but I’m getting tired of it, much like the tofu. Today I am doing chicken, peas, corn, black beans and red peppers for lunch. Pre-cooked shrimp 🦐 are thawing in the fridge, I’m going to mix with the brown rice and tomatoes for dinner and have red kidney beans with maple syrup for dessert. I put chickpeas in the fridge for soaking, I’ll either roast them to toss in with fresh blueberries, strawberries and raspberries with walnuts with a snack. Walnuts are good but loaded with fat, though at least it has a decent ratio of Omega 3. I might also make hummus, which I’ll either need to get tahini or sesame seeds to cook up.

Today will be sunny and hot ☀ , with a high of 91 degrees at 2pm. Seven degrees above normal. Maximum dew point of 71 at 9am. Heat index values as high as 95. Calm wind becoming south around 6 mph in the afternoon. A year ago, we had partly cloudy skies. It was somewhat humid. The high last year was 81 degrees. The record high of 97 was set in 1886.

As I’m back on the Trek FX 2 bicycle as my choice, I might try to get up to the Downtube to talk to them about potentially buying that bicycle 🚲 and doing a test ride. I’m getting tired of studying the pros and cons of bicycles and want to commit sooner than later so I can take delivery of the bike and finally be on the road, both for commuting and getting around town. I want to break the bicycle in well before heading out to the Finger Lakes in three weeks. An additional expense I overlooked was a good quality U-lock that resists bolt cutters ✂️ which is going to add $75-100 go the cost, but I might be better off getting that on the internet rather than at the bike shop. I also want to get a rear luggage rack so I can tie a small milk crate style storage containers for keeping lunch and supplies on me when doing day trips on the bicycle 🚲 in the Finger Lakes. 💸 Looking at around or maybe slightly below $50 for that. Then another under $50 for the combination of buying a very basic digit speedometer / odometers and lights both for safety and do night riding in the National Forest after watching the sun set. 🌇

Solar noon 🌞 is at 1:01 pm with sun having an altitude of 70.1° from the due south horizon (-0.7° vs. 6/21). The golden hour 🏅 starts at 7:54 pm with the sun in the west-northwest (296°). 📸 The sunset is in the west-northwest (303°) with the sun dropping below the horizon at 8:37 pm after setting for 3 minutes and 26 seconds with dusk around 9:10 pm, which is 19 seconds earlier than yesterday. 🌇 The best time to look at the stars is after 9:56 pm. At sunset, look for partly clear skies 🌄 and temperatures around 82 degrees. The dew point will be 69 degrees. There will be a south breeze at 5 mph. Today will have 15 hours and 14 minutes of daytime, a decrease of 57 seconds over yesterday.

Tonight will be partly cloudy 🌃 , with a low of 68 degrees at 6am. Six degrees above normal. Maximum dew point of 69 at 7pm. South wind 5 to 7 mph. Another sticky night sleeping 😴 with the fan roaring. In 2022, we had mostly clear skies. It got down to 58 degrees. The record low of 44 occurred back in 1979.

On this day in 1947, The AK-47 goes into production in the Soviet Union. Even after almost seven decades, the model and its variants remain the most popular and widely used assault rifles in the world 🪖 because of their substantial reliability under harsh conditions, low production costs compared to contemporary Western weapons, availability in virtually every geographic region and ease of use. ⚔ I bet it would be fun to own one someday, in a freer state when I own my own land. Probably fun for ventilating a burn barrel, lol.

A hot summer weekend ahead. 🏖 Saturday, a chance of showers and thunderstorms after 2pm. Partly sunny, with a high near 86. Northwest wind around 5 mph becoming southwest in the afternoon. Chance of precipitation is 30%. New rainfall amounts of less than a tenth of an inch, except higher amounts possible in thunderstorms. Maximum dew point of 69 at 9am. Sunday, a chance of showers, then showers likely and possibly a thunderstorm after 2pm. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 81. Chance of precipitation is 70%. Maximum dew point of 70 at 10am. Typical average high for the weekend is 84 degrees.

That said, maybe not the nicest weekend ever especially Sunday with the clouds. 🤷‍♂️ One more weekend to decide and acquire a bicycle 🚲 then hopefully get out camping 🏕 the following weekend after my dentist appointment 🦷 assuming that the weather is decent. I’m thinking Schoharie County, the Mine Kill Pool, the Catskill Scenic Trail from Grand Gorge to Stamford it maybe even beyond there. 🚲 Also maybe on the Saturday bike from Old Blenheim Bridge up and over Bear Ladder Road 🐻 then down to Fultonhsm by Shauls to get ice cream. 🍦 If I have the rack on the bicycle by then not only can I carry lunch but also get some veggies. If not both of these things are good for the following week or after summer vacation. 🏖 Pool closes Labor Day but the best bicycling and farm stand finds are certainly in September and October. 🎃

Summer vacation starts Friday July 29th 🏖 with plans to head straight out to the Finger Lakes National Forest and set up camp ⛺ by noon time. Then have all afternoon to unpack and do a nice bicycle 🚲 ride and enjoy the afternoon from the forest maybe with some fishing 🎣 and a sunset 🌇 to a start things off. Watkins Glen on Saturday to paddle and swim 🏊‍♂️, though I may want to get to the park 🏞 early to ensure parking 🅿.

Looking ahead, there are 2 weeks until Ugly Truck Day 🚚 when the sun will be setting at 8:29 pm with dusk at 9:01 pm. On that day in 2022, we had hot, humid, mostly sunny, thunderstorm and temperatures between 97 and 72 degrees. Typically, the high temperature is 84 degrees. We hit a record high of 97 back in 1991.

Wildflowers Along Cascade Lake

I’m increasingly worried about the weekend forecast 🌦️

I mean it’s good that we are finally getting caught up on the rain and the mountains are starting to look super green again after last night’s rain. Still I wish it would stop and get hot out for the holiday weekend for swimming up at the Potholers. I guess every weekend can’t be beautiful.

Good morning! Happy Tuesday. Clearing skies to the north and 59 degrees at the Elm Ave Park and Ride. 🌥 There is a west breeze at 7 mph. 🍃. The dew point is 58 degrees. The skies will clear around 10 am.

This morning I have black beans simmering on the stove. 🍲 Out doing my morning walk 🚶, I got a fairly early start and I already plan to double check and make sure the beans are done before leaving for work. 🤯 I actually want those black beans for a cold lunch today, they are perfect 👌 with a good chopped red onion 🧅 like the type they have at salad 🥗 bars. Red Kidney beans are good but better hot, except for as more of a dessert or side mixed with a little pure maple 🍁 syrup. Yum. 10 ½ miles walked yesterday. 👣

Today will have a slight chance of showers before 8am. Partly sunny 🌞, with a high of 76 degrees at 5pm. Three degrees below normal, which is similar to a typical day around June 4th. Maximum dew point of 59 at 12pm. Northwest wind around 8 mph. Chance of precipitation is 20%. A year ago, we had partly cloudy skies. It was somewhat humid. The high last year was 82 degrees. The record high of 94 was set in 1892.

Solar noon 🌞 is at 12:56 pm with sun having an altitude of 70.6° from the due south horizon (-0.2° vs. 6/21). A six foot person will cast a 2.1 foot shadow today compared to 2.2 feet on the first day of summer. The golden hour 🏅 starts at 7:52 pm with the sun in the west-northwest (296°). 📸 The sunset is in the west-northwest (303°) with the sun dropping below the horizon at 8:35 pm after setting for 3 minutes and 27 seconds with dusk around 9:08 pm, which is 29 seconds later than yesterday. 🌇 The best time to look at the stars is after 9:54 pm. At sunset, look for partly cloudy skies 🌃 and temperatures around 69 degrees. The dew point will be 57 degrees. There will be a calm wind. Today will have 15 hours and 20 minutes of daytime, an increase of 33 seconds over yesterday.

Tonight will be partly cloudy 🌤, with a low of 53 degrees at 4am. Four degrees below normal, which is similar to a typical night around June 1st. Maximum dew point of 57 at 6pm. Light and variable wind. In 2022, we had mostly clear skies in the evening, which became partly cloudy by the early hours of the morning. It got down to 53 degrees. The record low of 39 occurred back in 1970.

On this day in 1966, the United States Supreme Court rules in Miranda v. Arizona that the police must inform suspects of their rights before questioning them. 👮 Also in 1970, “The Long and Winding Road” becomes The Beatles’ last U.S. number one song. 💿 And in 1977, Convicted Martin Luther King Jr. assassin James Earl Ray is recaptured after escaping from prison three days before.

Right now, a split verdict on the weekend. 😕 Saturday, a chance of showers between 8am and 2pm, then a chance of showers and thunderstorms after 2pm. Partly sunny, with a high near 74. Chance of precipitation is 40%. Maximum dew point of 58 at 10am. Sunday, a chance of showers. Mostly sunny, with a high near 78. Chance of precipitation is 30%. Maximum dew point of 60 at 7pm. For Juneteenth, scattered showers especially late, partly sunny looking at high of 78. Typical average high for the weekend is 80 degrees. Kind of a cool weekend ahead.

I am chewing over what the best days to head out of town. 🏕 I was originally planning on taking off Friday and Tuesday for the long weekend, as I want to get up to Piseco-Powley Road early enough to get the House Pond Campsite if at all possible. But now I hear a rumor that there may be session next week, so maybe I won’t be able to take off Tuesday. Thursday now looks better.

Looking ahead, next Tuesday is Primary Day 🗳️ when the sun will be setting at 8:38 pm with dusk at 9:11 pm. I’m not sure if that’s right, it might be the following week? Not sure but there is no Democratic Primary in my town so nothing for me to do except maybe make maps up after the Conservative Highway Superintendent primary results, although with such low turn out unlikely to be very interesting. On that day in 2022, we had mostly sunny and temperatures between 82 and 47 degrees. Typically, the high temperature is 81 degrees. We hit a record high of 97 back in 1953.

Powley Bridge

Nobody knew from time to time if the plans would change 🤷‍♂️

Yesterday I got to work, sat down and banged out the first Committee Agenda of the day and was like duck I left the beans simmering in a pot at home three hours ago. I started to head home, realizing that I had just missed the bus and the next one would be in twenty five minutes. I called my mom, she swung by and turned them off and even drained them. Nice! Fortunately the beans were fine, they didn’t burn as there was plenty of water in the pot. The red beans were a bit soft like re-fried beans but still good. Mom saved the day!

Good morning! So yes, that was my end of May. It could have bad like the apartment complex down the road that was burning as I drove home from the Assembly picnic on Tuesday evening. Sunny and 55 degrees in Delmar, NY. 🌞 Calm wind. The dew point is 50 degrees.

Listening to more of Paul Simon 1972 album. 🎧 You can say we are entering a time much like the early 1970s, a time when everything will get a bit worse in the world 🌎 but you can improve your own life, focusing on making more money and being healthy while everything else in the world goes to shit. Did you see the news businesses are fleeing the cities for the suburbs again, much like the seventies? 📰 My face certainly looks more and more like Paul Simon on that album cover though I’m not wearing a heavy coat like that today in the heat. And the air conditioning is off on the bus and it’s mad hot. 😰 And I’m tired but it’s a good record.

If the plans would change
You can beat us with wires
You can beat us with chains
You can run out your rules
But you know you can’t outrun the history train
I’ve seen a glorious day

Pride month, dairy month, unofficial start to summer. 🌻 Yes it’s June and I’m ready for session to be over. Like the start of the month with many so commemorations I feel like my days are full of multi-color hot air balloons 🎈 of different things to consider. I needed to change my withholding tax so I took more out of paychecks to cover my taxes. 💵 Figure out all this doctor stuff. Used and new bicycle 🚲 should I repair or replace my bicycle. And then figuring out how to eat healthy 🍅🫑 in a time of receptions and summer picnics. 🧺 Being a political director and a deputy director of a legislative division is difficult on a diet. I have a lunch to go tomorrow and I have to figure out how to deal with the menu there. 🧑‍🍳

Truth be told, I always need something to obsess over 😟 and maybe my diet is on the grand scheme of things not the worse thing. It’s one of the easiest and most affordable things I can address, 🥦🍎 as you buy food every week and healthier options while slightly more expensive aren’t like fixing every noise on the truck or buying a homestead or getting to my retirement goals. 🥅 And it’s not like burn barrels and burning shit 🔥, much more legal, less stinky and toxic. And I like how much thinner I’ve gotten.

Today will be sunny but no so hot sun ☀, with a high of 91 degrees at 4pm. 15 degrees above normal. Maximum dew point of 57 at 11am. With such a relatively low dew point it won’t feel particularly warm. Calm wind becoming north around 5 mph in the afternoon. A year ago, we had rain in the morning, which became light rain by afternoon. It was somewhat humid. The high last year was 69 degrees. The record high of 94 was set in 1918.

The express bus 🚍 was running super early and while I was out there on time, the driver was long gone according to the map. So I’m taking the local in. I double checked to make sure the stove was off, I am leaving my lunch in the kitchen now to make sure I check before heading out. 🍳 Did some vlogging will post shortly. The local driver is so bad, he keeps slamming on the brakes and has the air conditioning off. I’m sure it works on the bus but the driver is just a jerk. 🚏

Solar noon 🌞 is at 12:54 pm with sun having an altitude of 69.4° from the due south horizon (-1.4° vs. 6/21). A six foot person will cast a 2.3 foot shadow today compared to 2.2 feet on the first day of summer. The golden hour 🏅 starts at 7:45 pm with the sun in the west-northwest (295°). 📸 The sunset is in the west-northwest (302°) with the sun dropping below the horizon at 8:27 pm after setting for 3 minutes and 23 seconds with dusk around 9:00 pm, which is 48 seconds later than yesterday. 🌇 At dusk you’ll see the Full 🌝 Moon in the south-southeast (149°) at an altitude of 24° from the horizon, 238,402 miles away. 🚀 The best time to look at the stars is after 9:45 pm. At sunset, look for clear skies 🌄 and temperatures around 83 degrees. The dew point will be 58 degrees. There will be a west-northwest breeze at 5 mph. Today will have 15 hours and 9 minutes of daytime, an increase of one minute and 18 seconds over yesterday.

It’s a get away day for the legislature , 🏎 and a nice one to boot so I expect I’ll get out at five o’clock. That will leave plenty of time to get down to the park 🏞 after work and get in around 10 miles for the day and maybe spend some time on the exercise equipment 💪 I’ve been doing some leg and arm crunches in the evening to add to the routine. I’ll probably regret taking out that salmon  for dinner with the heat but maybe I can fry 🍳 it rather than using the oven.

Tonight will be mostly clear 🌃, with a low of 61 degrees at 4am. Seven degrees above normal, which is similar to a typical night around June 27th. Maximum dew point of 58 at 8pm. Northwest wind around 5 mph becoming calm in the evening. In 2022, we had light rain in the evening, which became partly cloudy by the early hours of the morning. It was somewhat humid. It got down to 63 degrees. The record low of 39 occurred back in 1971.

I continue to get to bed too late 🛌 with the late sunsets 🌆 and my early rising often before six AM. This morning was no exception, I was up bright and early because I needed to run to the bathroom 🚽 after all those delicious beans, and because the sun was streaming into my room bright and early.

Ah, four in the morning I woke up from out of my dream
Nowhere to go but back to sleep but I’m reconciled
Ahoh, ahoh, ahoh
I’m gonna be up for a while

The rain and clouds come for the weekend. 🌧️ Dang! Saturday, a chance of showers and thunderstorms. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 65. Northeast wind 7 to 9 mph. Chance of precipitation is 50%. New precipitation amounts between a quarter and half of an inch possible. Maximum dew point of 59 at 6am. Sunday, a chance of showers. Partly sunny, with a high near 67. Chance of precipitation is 40%. Maximum dew point of 46 at 8am. Typical average high for the weekend is 76 degrees.

Yes, it’s time to rethink my weekend plans. 🏡 I don’t think I’ll head out of town this weekend even just up to Rennselearville State Forest as I had previously thought. Maybe take the Nature Bus to Thacher Park? 🚍 Or do I look at bicycles? 🚲 Go up an visit John Wolcott in Colonie? 🏞 I’m not anticipating a lot of work this weekend but projects could come in.

Looking ahead, next Thursday is 8:30 PM Sunset 🌇 with dusk at 9:05 pm. On that day in 2022, we had partly cloudy, rain showers and temperatures between 77 and 61 degrees. Typically, the high temperature is 77 degrees. Right on target. 🎯 We hit a record high of 93 back in 2011.

March 5, 2023 Night

Good evening! Partly clear and 33 degrees for the evening walk in Delmar. 🌃 There is a west-northwest breeze at 9 mph. 🍃. There are 2 inches of snow on the ground. ☃ ️Temperatures will drop below freezing around midnight. ☃️

The snow storm 🌨 that was yesterday is pretty much just as memory as the snow melts away. At least in the city, I bet it will be gone tomorrow. Just the mud left. Maybe we will get more rain or snow later in the week but I don’t think it will last. I think we are passed that based on the statistics but I know there are always outliers.

The dire emergency snowstorm really wasn’t a big deal 🌲though some tree branches came down though I don’t think many people lost power 🔌 but what do I know, I don’t really listen to the radio 📻 much for the news 📰. That said, I’ve been updating my music 🎶 collection and now I’ve moved on to the seventies with getting a John Prine record 💿 to add to my collection. Much more up to date than the Weavers.

Spent a lot of my weekend studying machine learning 🤖 and statistics and calculating. For too long I’ve struggled to fully understand Kriging in R but it finally clicked today. 🖥 Kriging is a method of predicting data on a map from known points.

Tonight will be mostly clear 🌃, with a low of 29 degrees at 4am. Six degrees above normal, which is similar to a typical night around March 24th. Northwest wind 9 to 11 mph. In 2022, we had light snow in the evening, which became cloudy by the early hours of the morning. It got down to 14 degrees. The record low of -21 occurred back in 1948.

Earlier this evening I washed off Big Red 🧽 🛻 and went to Walmart and got food and supplies. 🍏 I went there after visiting my folks out in Westerlo for lunch, and heading out there, US 9W was closed, and was detoured through Selkirk. So I ended up sitting down by the river in my truck for about a half hour at the Henry Hudson Park. 🐦 I haven’t been there in a long time, I used to go fishing down there 🎣 but with higher gas prices and everything else, not so much these days.

Tonight will have a Full 🌝 Moon with 97% illuminated. At 8 PM, the moon was in the east-southeast (108°) at an altitude of 42° from the horizon, some 251,136 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 September 12th. Buckle up for safety! 💺 The Worm 🐛 Moon is on Tuesday, March 7. The darkest hour is at 12:08 am, followed by dawn at 5:58 am, and sun starting to rise at 6:26 am in the east (98°) and last for 2 minutes and 56 seconds. Sunrise is one minute and 40 seconds earlier than yesterday. 🌄 The golden hour ends at 7:04 am with sun in the east-southeast (104°). Tonight will have 12 hours and 30 minutes of darkness, a decrease of 2 minutes and 53 seconds over last night.

Tomorrow will be sunny 🌞, with a high of 41 degrees at 3pm. One degrees below normal, which is similar to a typical day around March 4th. Northwest wind 11 to 16 mph, with gusts as high as 26 mph. A year ago, we had mostly sunny skies in the morning, remaining cloudy in the afternoon. The high last year was 25 degrees. The record high of 63 was set in 1974. 10.5 inches of snow fell back in 1887.❄

In four weeks on April 2 the sun will be setting in the west (278°) at 7:23 pm (Daylight Savings Time),🌄 which is one hour, 32 minutes and 39 seconds later then tonight. In 2021 on that day, we had cold, mostly cloudy, snow showers and temperatures between 36 and 24 degrees. Typically, you have temperatures between 53 and 32 degrees. The record high of 77 degrees was set back in 2010.

Looking ahead, Daylight Savings Time 🌆 is Next Sunday, Last Day of Winter 🏂 is Next Sunday, 7:30 PM Sunset 🌇 is in 5 weeks, Average High is 60 🌷 is in 6 weeks, Cinco de Mayo 🤠 is in 2 months, 8 PM Sunset 🌇 is in 9 weeks, Mothers Day 👩‍ is in 10 weeks, 8:30 PM Sunset ️⛱️ is in 3 months, Fathers Day 👨 is in 14 weeks, Hottest Time of the Year 😅 is in 4 months, Dog Days of Summer 🌻 is in 4 months, Last Sunset After 8:30 PM 🌆 is in 19 weeks, Work Like a Dog Day 🐩 is in 5 months, 6:30 Sunrise 🌇 is in 27 weeks, Constitution Day 📜 is in 28 weeks, October 🎃 is in 30 weeks, Average High is 65 🍂 is in 31 weeks, Repeal of Prohibition Day 🍺 is in 9 months, 7:15 AM Sunrise ⌛️ is in 40 weeks and Christmas Eve 🎅 is in 42 weeks.

Rocks Were Falling

February 27, 2023 Night

Good evening! Clouds but no snow yet and 33 degrees at the Elm Ave Park and Ride. ❄ There is a southeast breeze at 10 mph. 🍃. There is an inch of snow on the ground. ☃ ️The skies will clear tomorrow around 7 pm after the snow ends.

My thought 💭 tonight is the best laid plans don’t always work out. I was so excited that the DVD 📀 drive enclosure arrived in the mail ✉ today but when I opened it up I discovered it was for the wrong type of drive. It was only $11.50 and I can probably use the case for something else I guess.

I was so hoping to get the voter file 🗳 open that the State Board sent me on a DVD 📀 – I actually got the DVD to play on the drive installed on my computer but alas like on the work computer had previously confirmed they sent me a DVD that wasn’t properly written. I also discovered that the built in DVD drive drawer on my computer is broken but I did figure out a way to load disks by manually opening the drive and installing it after disabling the other partition in fstab.

I’m not going to go back to the board for the file. 📂 It just didn’t work out but I guess I probably wouldn’t have discovered much using machine learning to better understand voting patterns. I don’t know enough about machine learning and my computer isn’t that powerful and 318 EDs really isn’t enough to train things well especially if the districts are so blue in much of the county. Statewide data would be better but that a lot of processing.

I am going to still continue to learn about machine learning 🤖 aa I have a few books 📚 out of the library and I am going through the Stat Quest video series on YouTube. I’m sure there are many other ways I can use machine learning in statistics and map making. Plus it’s safer, no risk of running into trouble with work or building something with the voter file that isn’t allowed.

Tonight will snow, mainly after 10pm. The snow could be heavy at times. 🌨 Low of 26 degrees at 4am. Five degrees above normal, which is similar to a typical night around March 15th. Southeast wind 10 to 17 mph. Chance of precipitation is l100%. Total nighttime snow accumulation of 3 to 5 inches possible. In 2022, we had partly cloudy skies in the evening, which became cloudy by the early hours of the morning. It got down to 26 degrees. The record low of -10 occurred back in 1950.

It’s going to snow, it’s winter. ☃ Probably not good for the morning walk 🚶 but I’ll get up at my normal time and do my best to keep moving. If it’s bad out I won’t do it but I’ll at least catch an earlier bus 🚍 in so I’m in bright and early. I’ve had a 40 day run of 10,000 plus steps or 5 plus miles a day but if the weather interrupts my progress it will be but for a day or two.

Tonight will have a First Quarter 🌓 Moon with 56% illuminated. At 8 PM, the moon was in the southwest (236°) at an altitude of 65° from the horizon, some 246,871 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 September 3rd. Buckle up for safety! 💺 The Worm 🐛 Moon is on Tuesday, March 7. The darkest hour is at 12:09 am, followed by dawn at 6:07 am, and sun starting to rise at 6:36 am in the east (101°) and last for 2 minutes and 57 seconds. Sunrise is one minute and 35 seconds earlier than yesterday. 🌄 The golden hour ends at 7:14 am with sun in the east-southeast (107°). Tonight will have 12 hours and 47 minutes of darkness, a decrease of 2 minutes and 50 seconds over last night.

Tomorrow will snow, mainly before 4pm. 🌨 High of 33 degrees at 1pm. Six degrees below normal, which is similar to a typical day around February 8th. Southeast wind 9 to 14 mph. Chance of precipitation is 80%. New snow accumulation of 1 to 3 inches possible. A year ago, we had light rain in the morning with more sun in the afternoon. The high last year was 41 degrees. The record high of 63 was set in 1903. 9.7 inches of snow fell back in 1948.❄

In four weeks on March 27 the sun will be setting in the west (275°) at 7:16 pm (Daylight Savings Time),🌄 which is one hour, 33 minutes and 10 seconds later then tonight. In 2021 on that day, we had partly sunny and temperatures between 54 and 38 degrees. Typically, you have temperatures between 50 and 30 degrees. The record high of 78 degrees was set back in 1998. Days like that will be so nice but first through the snow storm.

Looking ahead, 8 PM Dusk 🌆 is in 6 weeks, Arbor Day 🌳 is in 2 months, May 🕊 is in 9 weeks, 8:30 PM Sunset ️⛱️ is in 14 weeks, Average High is 80 🏖 is in 16 weeks, World Mosquito Day 🐞 is in 25 weeks, Labor Day 👨‍🏭 is in 27 weeks, September 11th 🇺🇸 is in 28 weeks, 7 PM Sunset 🌆 is in 29 weeks, More Night then Day 🌌 is in 7 months, Average Night Below Freezing 🌌 is in 37 weeks, Cyber Monday 🛍️ is in 9 months, First Sunday of Advent ✝️ is in 40 weeks, Bake Cookies Day 🍪 is in 42 weeks and Christmas 🎅 is in 43 weeks.

Looking Up

How the hell did I end up going to Hicks Run, Pennsylvania for four nights ? ⛺

How the hell did I end up going to Hicks Run, Pennsylvania for four nights ? ⛺

That was my reaction when I printed up the camping permit today. Did I really intend to spend half of my vacation there? I don’t know, the camping permit was free. Technically I’m supposed to set up on the first night of the permit or risk forfeiting but I’m pretty sure nobody would notice either way – especially in November before regular season opens.

I honestly still don’t know if I want to go that far – it’s a long ways west and the end of next looks unsettled. The permit was free – I could always write back to cancel or just not show up, I highly doubt there is anybody else who would want the site. That said, Hicks Run isn’t that far from PA 555 which is plowed year round – and I’m not seeing any massive snow storms coming down the pike – although Lake Effect is still a possibility although I’ll be pretty far south.

The truth is that I’ve been watching the Real Appalachia channel on the YouTube and thinking a lot about the small towns in West Virginia – or for that matter elk country in Pennsylvania. Not too different. I like exploring the hollows and going somewhere that’s just different from New York. I haven’t gotten out of the state in two years now bar a brief jaunt over the border to the Green Mountain National Forest last summer. I’ve never spent much time in Elk Country PA except for passing through and that one night I covert camped years ago. Listening to those elk at 5 AM were so magestical.

I don’t have to go there if I don’t want. I’m no fan of campground camping but I expect I’ll have it mostly to myself. The second half of the week might be stormy or cloudy. That said, I’ve been studying up on scenic vistas and hikes nearby. I can always park and walk the dirt roads and trails. I’ll wear plenty of blaze orange for safety.

I still haven’t figured out where I will start my trip. I kind of want to do some time in Madison County and Cazenovia and then take NY 13 to the Finger Lakes through the Otselic Valley and Cortland. Been a while since I’ve gone that way. Maybe it’s because of the good memories of November 2020 at Stoney Pond. Not certain to be repeated. Or if could do an overnight at Long Pond then out to the Finger Lakes. But if I want to go to West Virginia then I really should head down to PA on Saturday for County Bridge campground and straight to West Virginia thereafter on Sunday via the 99. But that’s such a long drive and gas is so expensive. I only have a New York hunting license.

I really haven’t started packing yet. I should have a plan but none really exists. I need to get a lantern globe but I’m not sure where. Dicks at Crossgates? I hate both of those businesses. Walmart locally doesn’t have them although I’ve gotten it before at Walmart Oneonta. I also am very low on groceries – will need at least some to get started. I need to find my map of the Elk State Forest although I’ve been studying online. Pennsylvania has good, free maps.