The second or third or fourth cruelest month of the year has arrived as March 2009 dawns. I think that February, December, and either January or September are more cruel, but it is difficult to say for sure. March offers the promise of spring nearing but it also can deliver more powerful slugs of winter. I believe if I were in Arizona or maybe even merely Colorado I would have a more positive attitude about March. But things are improving, albeit a little too slowly for my liking. Average daily temperatures rise from 31 degrees to almost 38 degrees; the average normal daily high temp rises from 39 to 49; the average normal low temp goes up from 17 to 25; and the length of day grows from 11:16 to 12:27, an improvement of 1 hour 11 minutes.But at a point where winter is way too old and the signs of spring cannot begin soon enough. Sure there is a presence of the color green in the grass on the ground and a few more birds can be seen and heard, but the trees and other vegetation remain in slumber and the wind still blows quite fiercely and regularly to continue to numb the spirits. But news and images from far away offer greater hope and optimism, giving one hope the long winter is nearing its end and warm temps and leaf laden trees are getting closer to becoming a visibility reality one can experience firsthand. If its happening in places not that overwhelmingly far away, it will be happening here soon. But not soon enough.
My just ended week was one of extraordinary ordinaryness. I managed to drive the White Knight twice for some distances earlier in the week, but it was a struggle and difficult. For the most part I stayed home. Trips that used to take minutes now have their time length quadrupled and more. I did go out to the DQ thrice for meals or a dairy treat. I was distressed by the ending of The Rocky Mountain News. I have been a reader of that paper for over 20 years, and I think back to reading it in July '83 when I was in Denver for two weeks to attend "Pizza Hut University". I favored the Denver Post for a long time over the News, but the Post has declined in the last decade and that drove me to the Rocky. I also think the Rocky did a much better job on local news, opinion, and sports; all which made me feel more like a local resident which is what I had become by the late 90s.
That connection only strengthened in the last few years as I regularly read the Rocky almost on an everyday basis for the last decade. I will deeply miss the publication and all its content. I can get most all information nowadays from the 'net, but I like to go out and enjoy a pop and a sandwich more than occasionally, and newspapers are my companions on my outings. I got the Saturday Denver Post (first time its been published since early '01) and it was better than I expected. I hope the editors and writers in the Post step up their product and show regular improvement in the coming months. I cannot wait to get out of the windtunnel dump of a city I now live in and not be subjected to its horrid paper, the truest epitome of a waste of trees. I only get it on Sundays and primarily for the ads as its content is insufferable and an utter bore.
Baseball is back with spring training games on daily for the first time ever in my life. The MLB network will be telecasting 1-3 games daily except during championship week for college basketball in the second week of March. It is a nice plus to have and an enjoyable way to spend the idle hours of which I am largely overwhelmed with.
I even had a visitor today (SAT 2/28) as Todd came over to watch the Utah/BYU hoops game and spend a couple of hours with. The weather was nice with virtually no wind and cool temps, but it was fully sunny so I left the front door opened and raised the blinds in the kitchen to light up the inside more fully. He has to leave for three weeks starting early next week as part of his Air Guard responsibilities, so I won't be seeing or hearing from him until sometime in the final eight days of March. He is not happy about this but he realizes its part of his deal, of which he has to be part of for about another eight years, poor guy. He told me a few months back that he largely hates and despises his job, and merely tolerates it. I have been there and am grateful I have been able to escape the grueling depression that accompanies jobs like that, but its not much better to be in a position and mindset of economic insecurity, something that has defined me all my adult life except for brief interludes.
After Todd departed around 5:15, I watched the start of the Avalanche / Rangers game but it was a blowout early and I switched over to watch college hoops between Wyoming & Air Force. I tuned into the SDS / TCU game but drifted off into a nap for about an hour. The rest of the evening I surfed the 'net before retiring shortly after midnight.
I have a concern about my youngest brother and the precipitious drop and disappearance of his blog writing. I know he is very busy with his parenting and household responsibilities but I wonder if there are some problems and challenges, perhaps with his health, that are keeping him even more busy than usual. I also read there is a chance - how much who knows - of my second brother leaving Colorado with his family and relocating to the East Coast, Maryland in particular. I understand his job is ending finally after a few false starts with a final plant shutdown with his work ending. Jobs are in extremely short supply everywhere -- the giant looming black cloud on my horizon makes me so aware of that -- so he may have a connection to getting a job back there as his chances in Colorado would be overwhelming difficult at his age like most. I guess if a relocation happens it will be in mid to late summer before school starts up again for his daughter.
Sunday was warmer even yet as the temperature reached 63 degrees, the warmest its been in these parts since around the 20th of November. Winds remained light overall but skies were mostly cloudy with just a few instances of sunshine. I talked on the phone with Matt twice during the day, and watched "For a Few Dollars More" before going out in mid-afternoon to get the Sunday papers and have a root beer float at DQ. I returned home around 3:30 and spent the rest of the afternoon and evening relaxing, watching my Sunday television favorites: 60 Minutes and Brothers and Sisters along with a Will Farrell SNL review. Dinner consisted of some spinach and fishwiches.
The upcoming week offers nothing really different than the last eight, but it will be nice to have the nice weather continue later into the week, although the wind is expected to return and roar before too long. I will struggle to make it to Wal-mart for some groceries, and I want to go sit in the sunshine and relax while reading my papers at least once during the week. I will also go to park and walk around a little with this nice weather. Beyond that, its just purgatory.
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