March Madness

March is here and if you are a basketball fan that means March Madness is about to begin. I am not a basketball fan and if you are reading this blog in hopes that it is about basketball, you might as well stop here and look elsewhere. In fact, to me there is probably nothing that could drive me to the bottle (vodka, that is) faster than February in Pittsburgh, except watching endless games of basketball in March. That is true March Madness for me.

However, March is also a rather schizophrenic month. For instance;

One day the sun was shining and it was a beautiful day. That night I was star-gazing. The next morning I awoke to 7 inches of snow. It was still falling so hard I could hardly see the neighbors. By noon, the sun was shining. The sky was blue. The snow that had covered the deck railing had melted off. And the temperature was in the 40's. March Madness.

 Or the day it was 38 degrees outside. On the ground the snow was melting. In the air the snow was falling...Hard. Ten minutes later the sun was shining. March Madness.

The birds are feeling spring is in the air even if I can't find it. A bluebird has come to check out the birdhouse. A house sparrow has taken up residence. Papa Sparrow perches on top. Mama Sparrow sits inside, guarding the door. Papa Bluebird demands entrance. Flutters!...Twitters!...Squawks!; the Sparrrows prevail. The bluebirds fly off in a huff. March Madness.

The weather warms up. Across the street the snow has melted. A couple of women jog by in colorful, springy, outerwear and wave at me. I am bundled up in a sweatshirt, puffy vest, warm hat, giving my hydrangeas a spring trim. I have my snow boots on because the front of my house gets more shade than sun and I still have 3 inches of hard, crusty snow in my flower beds. March Madness?

In the midst of all this craziness today it is gorgeous! Sun! Blue Sky! 60's! Windows open! As Maggie and I go for a walk the breeze feels wonderful in my hair. Kids are all over the place.This is the kind of crazy I like! I love looking at how people dress on the first 'warm' day after living in the 20's. Shorts, T-shirts, flip-flops. Mind you, there are still piles of snow laying around. The ground is soggy and wet and cold. Who cares?

I'll just ignore the blizzard that Denver and the mid-west are getting today and that will pass through here in a couple of days. In March, you take what you get and join in the madness.