Friday June 30, 2017

Blog time 1145 at Panera

Today is the last day of my favorite month, June. Do most folks have a favorite month?

It was almost seventy when I left this morning. Humid and it looked like rain but I did not encounter any.

Same old boring news but several stories in the London papers I found interesting:

It has been 20 years since the UK returned Hong Kong to China. I spent five enjoyable days R and R in Hong Kong in 1964. The island was still British. We could not visit mainland China. Traffic control in Hong Kong was performed by the famed Gurkha’s of the British Army. I had several suits made in HK. Toured famous HK harbor, took the ferry to Kowloon a small piece of land that the British controlled on the mainland.

It was reported in the Daily News that NASA has denied running a child slave colony on Mars.

Today ENR, engineering news record, commented on the proposed budget for the Civil Works section of the US Army Corps of Engineers. The budget proposed major cuts to major waterway projects like locks and harbors. Michigan badly needs a new lock at the Soo. President Trump keeps talking about major infrastructure improvements but the cuts to the Corps budget don’t support this.

The President talks about having the private sector finance the infrastructure improvements. Is this a good idea? Indiana just fired the private company that had a contract to design, build, operate and maintain a section of interstate. The project was two years behind schedule. The State’s DOT will take over the project.

A simple way to finance roads and bridges is to just raise the gas tax. Yet nary a word from the Administration.

Afternoon activities, took Ms P on her walk, rearranged our basement storage racks and spent some time removing spider webs from our front entrance.

I sent a check to the Alpena Sports Hall of Fame for a membership. I just received a copy of the HOF book. Very interesting.

Nancy grilled chicken and veggies for dinner tonight. Very good. Took a walk around the block and then watched an episode of Midsomer Murders.