February

As a boy I remember playing golf in early February. OK, it wasn't every year and we had to chip the ice off of the holes to putt, but we DID play golf. Ever since then I've viewed February's arrival as a harbinger of Spring. That view was reinforced three seasons ago when Sally and I first rode our bikes to the grocery store in February. Again, there was ice to deal with and it was hardly balmy, but we rode.

Sally and I rode the bike trainer in the basement yesterday afternoon. The temperature outside was in the low 20's, with a fall into single digits forecasted. But that was last month, when it was still January. It's February now. Although inclement weather will undoubtedly appear, we are gaining nearly three minutes of sunlight per day and winter has passed its zenith. Optimism reigns!

Perhaps I am unduly affected by the news that Megan and AJ are planning a September wedding. They seem very happy, which makes me happy as well. With their nuptials in the offing and Evan and Angie's to follow in June, we shall be in a celebratory mood for months to come! Huzzah!