Just came home from a day of walking around in sunlit goodness. Oh, i absolutely forgot about how much i love march. Ahead, I see nothing but goodness: late night walks with soft summer breezes, lazing on hammocks in the sun, patio-sitting, hikes, bike rides, oh my god! rollerblading!, lying on the grass, walking outside without five minutes of hat/mitten/scarf/boot preparation! sandals! tank tops! skirts!

And it�s the greatest in march, cause it just stretches in front of you�. six months of warmth. We don�t have to deal with the desperation that always tinges August and September evenings when you know it�s almost over.

The best thing is that the tiniest bit of warmth feels soooooo good. Right now, memories of the Pain of Winter are still fresh, so every ray of sunlight feels like a miracle. This is why I�ve spent the last week joining millions of Canadians in running around wearing sandals and shorts in weather that�s going to feel like an Arctic blizzard come October.

incredulous southerners: What are you DOING?!? WHERE ARE YOUR CLOTHES?!

idiotic Canadians: What? It�s, like, plus five! Plus, picking chunks of ice out of my birkenstocks is FUN.

Eventually, we forget about what cold really is, and we start whining about being �freezing� when it�s 20 degrees. I think it�s kind of like that endorphin thing that kicks in after women finish labour, so they don�t go and get their tubes tied the moment the baby pops out.

Except that we�re talking about winter, and we need to forget about how bad it is so we don�t all pack up en masse and move South (30 million of us! We could take florida for sure!). Moronic presidents also prevent this migration.

With winter, it�s a gradual forgetting process. In March, we hate it. We hate the snow, the cold, and the ice. But by September, we�re having fond thoughts of snowboarding and sparkling white landscapes. We look longingly at wool sweaters and envision snuggling under fluffy duvets. Suddenly winter seems somewhat bearable. Message to my future self: IT�S LIES! One perfect ski fun, and one gorgeous crisp starlit night do NOT make winter a good thing.

The worst part is, I KNOW this whole march thaw is all a tease, and i KNOW winter isn�t over, and i KNOW that there�s going to be at least one more blizzard this year, and I. Can. Not. Take. It.

Rahr.

9:32 p.m. - 2003-03-27