Good morning! Yeah, it’s Friday! Three weeks to Grilled Cheese Day 🧀. A mix of rain and snow flurries and 34 degrees at the Elm Ave Park & Ride – CDTA. ❄ Above freezing here but I saw a sander come through while I was walking down to the park and ride.🚚 There is a north breeze at 10 mph. 🍃. Temperatures will drop below freezing at tomorrow around noontime. ☃️

I was on the fence about walking 🚶 down to the express bus 🚍 but ultimately I decided it wasn’t raining or snowing all that hard. It turned out not to be too bad for walking and I got some free exercise out of it. Just going to be one of those rainy ☔ Fridays.

Today will rain and snow, becoming all rain after noon. 🌧 High of 41 degrees at 3pm. Five degrees below normal, which is similar to a typical day around March 11th. Northwest wind 10 to 13 mph. Chance of precipitation is 90%. Total daytime snow accumulation of 1 to 2 inches possible. A year ago, we had cloudy in the morning, which became mostly sunny by afternoon. The high last year was 45 degrees. The record high of 81 was set in 2012. 7.0 inches of snow fell back in 1887.❄

I guess rain ☔ is a good thing, as it will keep things from getting too dried out, and thaw out the ground for all the farmer 🚜 types that want to sling manure. 💩 Lots of mud though. I think they are getting wet snow in the Adirondacks 🗻 which means it will be longer before it melts away up there. It will happen though, as spring 🌸 always comes eventually and it will be ninety degrees out and humid. Beach weather!🏖

The sun will set at 7:10 pm with dusk around 7:38 pm, which is one minute and 9 seconds later than yesterday. 🌇 At sunset, look for even more rain 🌧 and snow 🌨 and temperatures around 37 degrees. There will be a west-northwest breeze at 14 mph. Today will have 12 hours and 16 minutes of daytime, an increase of 2 minutes and 55 seconds over yesterday.

Tonight will rain and snow, becoming all snow after 10pm. 🌧 Low of 27 degrees at 6am. One degrees below normal, which is similar to a typical night around March 21st. Blustery, with a northwest wind 14 to 24 mph, with gusts as high as 40 mph. Chance of precipitation is 80%. New snow accumulation of 1 to 2 inches possible. In 2018, we had partly cloudy. It got down to 30 degrees. The record low of -04 occurred back in 1875.

Tomorrow will have a chance of snow showers before 8am. Cloudy, then gradually becoming mostly sunny 🌞, with a high of 39 degrees at 3pm. Eight degrees below normal, which is similar to a typical day around March 3rd. Breezy, with a northwest wind 21 to 23 mph, with gusts as high as 38 mph. Chance of precipitation is 30%. New snow accumulation of less than a half inch possible. A year ago, we had cloudy in the morning, which became mostly sunny by afternoon. The high last year was 43 degrees. The record high of 80 was set in 1938. 2.7 inches of snow fell back in 2005.❄ Looking ahead to Sunday, sunny, with a high near 54. West wind 6 to 8 mph. Typical average high for the weekend is 47 degrees.

At some point this weekend I should go to JC Penny and see if they have any dress shirts that I like 👚, so I have enough for next week. I haven’t heard back from John yet about going over to his house, it also depends if I get a cold. Still thinking about doing some hiking or skiing 🎿 this weekend, it depends on how things go. I’d rather save some money now if the weather isn’t great and do things around home if it looks cloudy and cold. Maybe also I want to unpack my camping gear, and start loading up the cans 🍾 and glass 🥫to take to the recycling center.♻ I also need to clean out my refigerator, dump the food waste into compost, and clean the containers for recycling.

I signed up for defensive driving 🚘 on April 15th. Cost has gone up to $25, makes me want to think about doing an online class in future years. I’ve been thinking about readjusting my insurance or shopping around – it’s gotten a lot more expensive in recent years ever since I increased my liability insurance a few years back. 💣

Later that week maybe on the 17th or 18th of April, right before Good Friday, I will probably head up to the Adirondacks to camp ⛺ and fish.🎣 I am increasingly leaning towards doing a trip heading up NY 30, spread out over a couple of days, maybe spending one night near the St. Regis Canoe Area, ending the long weekend at Brasher State Forest. All depends a lot on how much snow they have up there, and what I feel like doing. A Central NY trip, fishing the Chittenango Creek and Genegantslet Creek, visiting different state forests could be fun too, but I kind of want to get up to the Adirondacks. I should study the stocking schedules, 🐟 so I know where would be a good place to fish.

In four weeks on Good Friday, April 19 the sun will be setting at 7:42 pm,🌄 which is 31 minutes and 56 seconds later then today. In 2018 on that day, we had cold, partly cloudy, rain showers and temperatures between 44 and 34 degrees. Typically, you have temperatures between 60 and 39 degrees. The record high of 92 degrees was set back in 1976.

Looking ahead, Grilled Cheese Day 🧀 is in 3 weeks, Earth Day 🌎 is a month away, Pack Rat Day 🐀 is in 8 weeks, Memorial Day Weekend Starts 🏕️ is in 9 weeks, Average High is 80 🏖 is in 3 months, Dog Days of Summer 🌻 is in 15 weeks, Labor Day Weekend Begins 👨‍🏭 is in 23 weeks and Autumn 🍂 is in 6 months.

Good morning! Happy Thursday. Today is the first full day of spring. Next Thursday the Average High is 50 󞀮 Mostly cloudy skies and 38 degrees at the Elm Ave Park & Ride – CDTA. ☁ There is a south-southeast breeze at 7 mph. 🍃. Nice morning walking down to the Park and Ride. Temperatures will drop below freezing at tomorrow around 11 pm. ☃️

Definitely seems like the weather has moderated a bit and the walk to the express bus was pleasant. 🚏The bus was on time. Hit some traffic going into city on the old 787 but I really don’t have that many complaints. I’m not driving. Kind of gray though for sure. I thought the news on NPR 📰 was kind of depressing 😔 but what bleeds leads. I guess. I think the democratic party 🎉 is shooting itself in the foot 👣for 2020 but that’s to be seen.

Lately I’ve had very few complaints about the bus service 🚍, the buses are nearly always on time ⌚ it close to it. The real time bus info has gotten better in recent years as drivers properly key 🔑 in the block numbers 🔢 into the buses and the radio GPS units work better. Transit information ℹ in Google Maps 🌐 has gotten better in recent years.

Definitely nice not having to wear a suit and tie to work today. 👔I could walk down to the express bus 🚶 and it’s a lot more comfortable and more myself than the alternative. It just makes for a much more relaxing day and easier to walk during my lunch hour.

Today will rain likely, mainly after 2pm. Cloudy 🌧, with a high of 46 degrees at 2pm. Typical for today. South wind 7 to 10 mph. Chance of precipitation is 60%. New precipitation amounts of less than a tenth of an inch possible. A year ago, we had cloudy in the morning, which became partly cloudy by afternoon. The high last year was 37 degrees. The record high of 78 was set in 1921. 6.0 inches of snow fell back in 1905.❄

The sun will set at 7:09 pm with dusk around 7:37 pm, which is one minute and 10 seconds later than yesterday. 🌇 At sunset, look for rain showers 🌧 and temperatures around 43 degrees. There will be a southeast breeze at 7 mph. Today will have 12 hours and 13 minutes of daytime, an increase of 2 minutes and 55 seconds over yesterday.

Tonight will rain. 🌧 Low of 35 degrees at 6am. Five degrees above normal, which is similiar to a typical night around April 3rd. Southeast wind around 6 mph becoming north after midnight. Chance of precipitation is 90%. New precipitation amounts between a half and three quarters of an inch possible. In 2018, we had cloudy. It got down to 27 degrees. The record low of 2 occurred back in 1875.

Tomorrow will rain and snow, becoming all rain after 9am. 🌧 High of 42 degrees at 3pm. Three degrees below normal, which is similiar to a typical day around March 16th. West wind 9 to 16 mph, with gusts as high as 26 mph. Chance of precipitation is 90%. New snow accumulation of less than a half inch possible. A year ago, we had cloudy in the morning, which became partly cloudy by afternoon. The high last year was 45 degrees. The record high of 81 was set in 2012. 7.0 inches of snow fell back in 1887.❄

I thought 💭 about turning off the heat 🔥 in my apartment but it still gets fairly cold at night and the start of the weekend is expected to be pretty cold. But soon I should be able kill it for the year, well until November most likely. Looking forward to the fresh air in the morning and also getting out, camping, traveling and exploring again.

As I noted yesterday, the Pine Bush Dinner was fascinating but depressing last night. 💥There are so many dangers out there in the world 🌍, especially impacting people of color and the poor. And there are no good solutions but to do everything you can to avoid getting into those situations – social class isn’t as guaranteed as one might imagine.😩 Maybe I should live more of a high consumption life for today but I see so many scary storm clouds in the distance tomorrow. ☁ At least the lasagna was really good and I could take a bunch home to reheat for lunch. 🍲

I sat out back for a while when I got home last night. 🌕 The full worm moon was nice although I didn’t stay out back for long as with the breeze it wasn’t that warm. It’s still March. By the pink moon next month I’ll probably be able to sit out back for longer and enjoy the night 🌃. Inside it was a very comfortable 62 degrees for sleeping. I just wish it was a bit warmer to enjoy the fresh air with the windows open.

Ever since I retired my Facebook account more and more people are talking about missing it. 💻 I don’t know if I’m now popping up in people’s feeds more now that I’ve stopped posting there or people are just noticing my absence. That said I really enjoy not being bombarded with so much news 📰 and memes, and so much divisiveness. I like the solitude that is my blog. If I see something worth sharing on Facebook I can always embed it in the blog – a venue that is free of advertising – and I control the placement of content.

The bathroom sink was plugged again yesterday but I poured in some drain cleaner and it’s moving again. 🚿 Plumbing has always been problematic in my apartment, I always keep a plunger handy for the bath tub and drain cleaner for the sink. Part of living in an affordable apartment is not everything is perfect.

It looks like like Sunday will be the best weather for the weekend. 😎 Saturday, a chance of snow before 8am, then a chance of snow showers between 8am and 11am. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 37. Breezy, with a northwest wind 22 to 25 mph, with gusts as high as 45 mph. Chance of precipitation is 30%. Sunday, sunny, with a high near 54. Typical average high for the weekend is 47 degrees.

People where asking if I was thinking about going camping this weekend ⛺, which would be more of a possibility now that my niece’s birthday party is postponed 🎂, as she has a cold. But I’ll think I’ll wait and save the money until it’s a bit warmer. I might go to John’s house on Saturday 📃 or maybe a hike out to Five Rivers Environmental Education Center 🌲and Sunday do a bigger hike somewhere there isn’t much snow. I’d like to get up to the Adirondacks to camp but I’m waiting for the snow to go up along NY 8 East Branch before I head up that way. 🗻

This autumn I’m still considering my options for a fall trip.🍁West Virginia sounds appealing as does the national forest in Southern Ohio, although the later is a lot longer trip. 🌎I do like the Monongahela National Forest a lot, and I could see spending more time around Dolly Sods and the Cannan Mountain. 🗻 On the other hand I kind of want to spend some time poking around Western NY, it’s been a while since I’ve spent much time out there.

Looking ahead, Pink Moon 🌕 is in 4 weeks, Easter 🐰 is a month away, Average High is 70 🐮 is in 8 weeks, Independence Day 🇺🇸 is in 15 weeks, August 🌻 is in 19 weeks, State Fair Opens 🎡 is in 5 months, Average High 70 🎑 is in 6 months and Last Sunset After 7 PM 🌆 is in 28 weeks.

Good morning! Happy Spring 🌷! Well in about nine more hours, although today will feel very spring like for sure. Six weeks to May 🕊. Black flies would approve of this message. Partly sunny and 34 degrees in Delmar, NY. ⛅ Calm wind.Temperatures will drop below freezing at Friday around 10 pm. ☃️

Definitely enjoying the sun this morning. ☀ Going to be a modestly mild and sunny last day of winter into spring. 🌷 Colder Friday into Saturday though, I heard lake effect snow ❄ squalls in Central New York then. But even if we get some here I’m not expecting any real accumulation, and even the relative cold isn’t stressing the heating system much or jacking up the bills.

Winter officially bites the dust according to the calendar 📅 two minutes before the Save the Pine Bush Dinner starts at six o’clock in the evening. 🍲 Should be an interesting dinner on the bomb trains 💣 with a leading author coming to speak 🔊 about the horrific train 🚉 explosion in Quebec. 🔥 For once in March I think I will be able to make it to the dinner. Doesn’t happen often. I broke out some of the Pine Bush February dinner lasagna left overs for lunch on Monday and it was so delicious. The whole office was talking about the wonderful smell. 👃

Today will be mostly sunny 🌞, with a high of 53 degrees at 4pm. Seven degrees above normal, which is similar to a typical day around April 3rd. Awesome way to kick off spring. Light south wind increasing to 8 to 13 mph in the morning. A year ago, we had cloudy in the morning, which became mostly sunny by afternoon. The high last year was 37 degrees. The record high of 78 was set in 2012. 7.0 inches of snow fell back in 1944.❄

The sun will set at 7:07 pm with dusk around 7:36 pm, which is one minute and 9 seconds later than yesterday. 🌇 At sunset, look for mostly clear skies 🌄 and temperatures around 48 degrees. Talk about a nice spring evening. There will be a south breeze at 10 mph. Today will have 12 hours and 10 minutes of daytime, an increase of 2 minutes and 54 seconds over yesterday.

Tonight will have increasing clouds ☁, with a low of 34 degrees at 4am. Seven degrees above normal, which is similiar to a typical night around April 6th. South wind 8 to 11 mph. In 2018, we had partly cloudy in the evening, which became cloudy by the early hours of the morning. It got down to 25 degrees. The record low of negative one occurred back in 1956.

Tomorrow will rain likely, mainly after 2pm. Cloudy 🌧, with a high of 47 degrees at 4pm. March showers 🚿 bring mud. One degree above normal, which is similiar to a typical day around March 22nd. South wind 10 to 14 mph. Chance of precipitation is 60%. New precipitation amounts between a tenth and quarter of an inch possible. A year ago, we had cloudy in the morning, which became mostly sunny by afternoon. The high last year was 37 degrees. The record high of 78 was set in 1921. 6.0 inches of snow fell back in 1905.❄

Last night 🌃 was pretty with the full moon 🌕 but too cool ❄ to sit out back and enjoy the moonlight. Definitely very bright 🔆 out with the moonlight 🎑 last night. I went for a nice walk around the super block past the high school 🚸 which was nice. Almost never see anybody out walking 🚶around the nine o’clock hour. I did see a bunch of deer. I do think that the winter weather has finally moderated a bit – and certainly tonight will be really nice – although I’ll be done with Pine Bush Dinner too late for my evening walk 🚶.

Queens 👑 night was good but I thought the Fooe 🍲 and drink 🍻 at Brooklyn Night was better. A lot more people there tonight but I was careful to moderate my drinking and drank lots of water 💦 when I home 🏡. It wasn’t too bad of a day at work.

I am enjoying my respite from Facebook. 💻 I think I might use 👤 the site again in the future 🔮 but I think my use will be greatly reduced. 📴 I want to give it a bit of time. I could see using my Facebook page going forward to supplement and promote my blog rather than syndicating everything there. Fewer really good posts might drive more traffic. 🚥

Maybe post occasional articles on social media about my blog, kind of the best of type thing. 📝 I still think though I’m moving away from the proprietary social media platforms to focus more on the blog where I have full control 🎮 over content, layout and formatting. I can even use the blink tag if I want. I’m also experimenting with doing more embedding of social media I like into the blog, as that might avoid the nasty comments that I get from my liberal friends every time I post something in support of the second amendment. 🔫

Finally finished and submitted my taxes. I did okay, I should be able to cover my state taxes with the federal refund in getting 💲 and it looks like when it’s all said and done I won’t have to pay a state fine for underwitholding. I’m considering doing maybe $50 quarterly payments to state tax and finance to avoid problems in 2020 tax filing, although honestly I may be okay 👌 next year as I’m doing an increased deferred comp. I might even have enough money left over this years tax return from the federal refund to pay for a small part of the car insurance 🚙 bill. The Trump tax cuts did save me some money which was nice. Of course I’m not in debt, have a mortgage or pay property tax so I don’t get those big deductions the SALT folks complain about.

Ultimately I think a lot about money and investing these days because I really want to own my own land and live off grid,🏡 hobby farm, get out of the city and to a state where there is a lot more freedom. 🐮 The problem is all those things cost a lot of money and opportunities for good work 👷 in outlying areas is pretty limited. Cheaper land prices and cheaper living though are the upsides. I want to enjoy my life today but minimize waste and excess to the greatest extent possible and devote as much of my effort towards a better tomorrow. While I’m still young and making decent money at work 💰 I should be doing everything I can to make it work for a better tomorrow for me.

I do really like the big jacked up truck my neighbor has. I don’t know if it’s his or a friend but I keep seeing it parked outside. It’s an F-250 on 40 inch wheels and a high lifter kit I believe. 🚚 Gorgeous truck I must say, but not a pretty boy mall toy.😍 Makes Big Red look tiny. I doubt I would lift my truck again because I’m so future oriented again but I could see eventually going for a 3/4 ton truck like that for hauling materials and getting too and from my off grid cabin. 🏡

Lots of sun but cold on Saturday. 😎 Saturday, partly sunny, with a high near 38. Breezy. Much better on Sunday. Sunday, sunny, with a high near 56. Typical average high for the weekend is 47 degrees. Saturday doesn’t look all that great, but Sunday looks much more spring like. I am thinking I want to spend most of the day on Sunday in the woods hiking and exploring, maybe after unpacking my camping gear from my truck, and starting to go through that. If not, I guess I could do that later in the week.

Looking ahead, there are 6 weeks until May 🕊 when the sun will be setting at 7:55 pm with dusk at 8:26 pm. On that day in 2018, we had partly cloudy, rain showers and temperatures between 74 and 43 degrees. By May, I definitely plan to be getting out a lot of weekends on road trips and camping more.🏕 Black flies aren’t an issue in the Adirondacks until late May. Usually around then the stock the Sacanadaga River,🎣 which could make some good fishing, especially if I decide to camp up off of that Pumpkin Hollow Road.🎃 Typically, the high temperature is 65 degrees (at least in Albany). We hit a record high of 86 back in 2001.

Looking ahead, May 🕊 is in 6 weeks, 8:30 PM Sunset ️⛱️ is in 11 weeks, Primary Day 🗳️ is in 14 weeks, Altamont Fair Opens 🎡 is in 21 weeks, State Fair Opens 🎡 is in 22 weeks, September 11th 🇸 is in 25 weeks, More Night then Day 🌌 is in 27 weeks and Inauguration Day 2021 👴🏻 is in 22 months.