Midges are gone. Mowing begun. Kids are practicing softball. Summer vacations are being figured out. Last of the kids' church choir meet the first suntan lotion slathering. Flower beds to fix. No jacket on the way to work this week. I still think it's going to snow one of these days.  •  Silly …

Took a holiday week. Planned to do a lot of work and didn't. Rain. Cold. So I napped and watched baseball instead. Watched the newer Tron. But the universe is coming back into order as the Red Sox, while still in fifth will move up this weekend, passing other sluggish AL East teams. The election …

So right now I am leaning towards voting for the Grits. Never have before. Reason? Iggy is turning out to be no flake and, frankly, Jack announcing a "doubling of pensions" is a wee bit irresponsible. We have solid pension plans in Canada and I am aware of how much that costs when I look at my pay …

Cold rains washed away the last of the sidewalk ice yesterday. With two full years now past since the deepest depths of the recession, it even has a feel like things are going to be different this year. This summer, I do things. Not like last summer. This year I will rearrange the shed. To make it …

It got warm and then it got cold. The river froze again into a mirror. People are skating miles offshore. Ice sailing boats speed smoothly at sunset. There should be another word for this other season. If there is Indian summer what is the name of the time between the thaw and sugering time …

Previous celebrations: 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010. Not only is it already too late to start sprouting your asparagus seeds for 2011 planting but baseball is being played. It's that close.

There should be a holiday for the end of February. Not a first signs of spring party like St. Patrick's or Easter but a "screw you winter" one. Die winter die carols. That sort of thing. What would we do? People already lose it and take axes to iced sidewalks in a fit of winter hate. We would have …

It was "Truck Day" this week and so by extension this is Truck Week. Is February Truck Month? It's not a bad idea. The beginning of the end of winter. You can see it in how the sun melts the road cover even if you can't feel it in a skip in your step. A few short weeks are left. Lawns shall be …

I could tell you the child's name. I could tell you how and maybe even when the virus shifted from human to human but why bother you with details. But in the end the snow falls outside, Oprah is on on a hundred channels and I got a fever. Fevered, I write. Next week its February.  •  I never knew …