Good evening! Clear and 20 degrees in Delmar, NY. There is a north breeze at 8 mph. 🍃. The current wind chill is 8. There is a dusting of snow on the ground. ☃ Things will start to thaw out at Friday around 11 am. 🌡️

It was pretty bitterly cold ❄ after going out with some of my colleagues after work and having some drinks and wings 🍻 and then waiting for the bus to go home. 🚍 The 49 cent wings – ten for $4.90 are a great deal 🍗 and are really good tasting at Public House 42. Plus my colleagues picked up the tab for my birthday 🎂 which was really nice of them to do. I offered to pay but they were really nice. I don’t go out much but it was nice especially at the new Pinto and Hobbs where it was pretty quiet. I hate drinking beer where the crowds and noise are so loud you can’t hear a person five feet away. Even Public House 42 was pretty quiet, they were playing Peter Paul and Mary for a walk.

Tonight will be clear 🌃, with a low of 6 degrees at 4am. Nine degrees below normal. Maximum wind chill around -1 at 5am; North wind 3 to 8 mph. In 2019, we had light snow in the evening, which became mostly clear by the early hours of the morning. It got down to 1 degrees. The record low of -12 occurred back in 1965.

There was at least one if not two homeless people on the street last night at the bus stop. 🚏Seemed like an awful cold night to be on the street. I’ve spent a few single digit nights in the wilderness in the single digits but that’s with warm clothes, a rip roaring fire 🔥 and my propane heater in a hot tent 🎪. The homeless action network was giving out blankets and tarps to the people and probably asking them if they wanted to go to the shelter. One was asking if anybody had keys 🔑 or a knife🔪 to open 🔓 the bag that they were blanket they got came in. I said no because I didn’t know if my key would be sharp enough and I didn’t want to have it stolen and not be able to get in my own house. 🏡 The guy flagged down the homeless van and got in any they helped him open it.

Just reminds me how privileged I am even if it seems like I have very little money 💵 in my bank account at the end of the month. My rent check was withdrawn yesterday. That’s good, I hopefully won’t get evicted for at least another month. 🏡 Done so much damage to my landlords building 🏢 although not all of it is my fault – it’s had moisture problems since I moved in and things were old and thread bare ready to wear through. Plus my muddy boots and gear didn’t help. That said, over the past 12 1/2 years I’ve paid like $80k in rent, always on time and only called the landlord over a handful of times. 💰The rent check cleared while I was drinking to remind me how poor I truly am.💸 At least it was my birthday.

The Snow ❄ Moon is on Sunday, February 9. The darkest hour is at 12:09 am, followed by dawn at 6:44 am, and sun starting to rise at 7:14 am in the east-southeast (114°) and last for 3 minutes and 10 seconds. Sunrise is 57 seconds earlier than yesterday. 🌄 The golden hour ends at 7:56 am with sun in the east-southeast (121°). Tonight will have 14 hours and 7 minutes of darkness, a decrease of 2 minutes and 16 seconds over last night.

Tomorrow will be sunny 🌞, with a high of 32 degrees at 3pm. One degree above normal, which is similar to a typical day around January 31st. Light and variable wind. With the sun it will feel even warmer. Next week might be closer to 50 on Monday. A year ago, we had cloudy skies in the morning, which became light snow by afternoon. The high last year was 28 degrees. The record high of 56 was set in 2013. 11 inches of snow fell back in 1966.❄

Tooth cleaning appointment in the morning. 🦷 I should have done a better job at flossing over the past six months but I’ve been busy and I’m sure I’ll get yelled out gently by my dental hygienist. He’s actually a good guy and very friendly and just tries to nudge me to better dental health. Figuring I didn’t take care of my teeth for a long time it’s good I’m at least getting regular cleanings now.

In four weeks on February 26 the sun will be setting in the west (259°) at 5:40 pm,🌄 which is 36 minutes and 19 seconds later then tonight. In 2019 on that day, we had mostly sunny, snow showers and temperatures between 24 and 15 degrees. Typically, you have temperatures between 38 and 20 degrees. The record high of 63 degrees was set back in 1976.

After I got home I researched the Rensselaer Biotech facility that is supposed to be one of those mechanical biological treatment facilities 🚮that shreds mixed garbage and supposedly breaks it down into compostable materials and recoverable metals. I think the biggest concern is it will process mixed waste rather than source separated organics. I’d rather see much higher prices on mixed waste and that sent to landfills with a priority on source separated organics recovery and dual stream recycling. ♻ Having more bins is a pain but it may be necessary for clean waste recovery.

Looking ahead, February Save the Pine Dinner 🦋 is in 3 weeks, Average High is 40 ☀️ is in 5 weeks, April Fools Day 🤡 is in 9 weeks, Pink Moon 🌕 is in 10 weeks, Tax Day 💰 is in 11 weeks, Earth Day 🌎 is in 12 weeks, Latest Sunset 🌆 is in 21 weeks and Inauguration Day 2021 👴🏻 is in 51 weeks.

🇺🇸🦅Only 113 days remain until the start of Memorial Day Weekend!🦅🇺🇸