Opening Day!

 

Opening day

 ---A field of dreams, dreams of grass and a white ball in a cloudless blue sky.

It's a  beautiful day for baseball.  

In reality, the weather on opening day may be overcast, maybe rain or even snow, winter parkas and wind chills. But that doesn't matter.   It's baseball  season again.

 What about March Madness? What about hockey and basketball?  Those are winter games.

Not today.  Today is Opening Day of the 2024 Major League Baseball season. Is it true what they say, that life begins on Opening Day?

And today, the  Chicago White Sox will be playing their home opener against the Detroit Tigers at Guaranteed Rate Field.  The  first pitch is set for 3:10 p.m. CDT.

 According to AccuWeather, it will be mostly sunny and 51 degrees, wind WSW 10 mph. 

Today everything begins again.

Play Ball!

 

Spring Equinox

 

 

 

 

The spring equinox will be on  March 19 at 10:06 pm in Chicago.  This marks the beginning of astronomical spring. Do you feel the March wind in your hair?  It could be raw and wintry, or maybe balmy and breezy...

Put the hats and scarves away. Open the windows!   No, maybe not today.

What is the  March Equinox anyway?  Here's how EarthSky explains it---

 

 The March equinox – aka the vernal equinox – marks the sun’s crossing above Earth’s equator, moving from south to north. Earth’s tilt on its axis is what causes this northward shift of the sun’s path across our sky at this time of year. Earth’s tilt is now bringing spring and summer to the Northern Hemisphere. At the same time, the March equinox marks the beginning of autumn – and a shift toward winter – in the Southern Hemisphere.

You can read more about the equinox from EarthSky here.  

Our ancestors celebrated spring, the signs of new green and the increasing light of our days.  There will  be gatherings at Stonehenge, and other ancient sites.

 In Chicago, they dyed the river green on March 16 for St.  Patrick's Day, and people were out wearing green.  

And on the spring equinox there will be photographers taking photos of the rising and setting of the sun between the tall buildings along the East-West grid of the streets of Chicago---a sight they call Chicagohenge. 

Here are some breathtaking photos of Chicagohenge from Spring 2022.  Happy Spring! 

The Moods of March

Oh yes, March is a moody month--days of sun, days of overcast gray...A chill in the shade, and warmer in the sun. A cold front coming through,  bringing rain and maybe even snow.  The next day, a sweet warm breeze. 

 

And there is no blue quite like that March blue sky--the clarity!  The light on the new green leaves.

After the time shift, there is more light in the evenings, now. Sunsets after 7 pm.   And dark at 6am, and the streetlights are still on.  But we are counting down the days to the equinox on March 19---astronomical spring!  

 

March is tulips and  daffodils.

March is primary voting and Saint Patrick's Day parade! 

March is the Green Chicago river for Saint Patrick's Day

March is  Spring and Chicagohenge.

March is buds on the branches, and spring training baseball!  

The warmer than average February is also bringing us an early spring, which also means pothole repair season, construction season, and allergy season.

And 4 years ago today on March 11 2020, The World Health Organization declared a pandemic emergency with COVID-19.  Do you remember how everything changed?  Remember who was President then. Remember how many people died. Remember the lock downs, the fear and uncertainty.  

 

We have learned a lot, and things have changed since then, but the plague is still with us.  Now is the time to get the updated vaccine.  Or a booster, if you got the updated vaccine last fall.

 

March is also the start of  severe weather season---storms and even tornadoes---and we could still get snow, even  in April! 

 

As they say, March is many weathers....

Crocuses and snow for the snow moon!

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 The new moon on  February 9  that marked the Lunar New Year is a full moon, now.  It's the second full moon of 2024---the snow moon! 

Yes, there have been big snows in  February in past years,   this year there has not been so much snow. 

Chicago's fleet of snowplows are ready and waiting. There is one called "Skilling It" named for beloved meteorologist Tom Skilling, who is retiring at the end of February.

According to Tom Skilling, the combination of El Nino and a warming climate have made this is the warmest February in 153 years!   

And there are crocuses blooming in sunny yards already.  Leaves of daffodils, buds on the the magnolias and the ginkgo trees. 

This early springlike warmth is tempting to go out and work in the garden,  but it is really too early to plant things.   Don't cut back last summer's flower stalks--there are still insects hibernating in them.  Cover those peony shoots, for now. 

Yes, I saw crocuses blooming on Friday morning--February 23.  Then, clouds and a cold front in the afternoon. And in the evening, snow falling for the snow moon!

 

 

Happy Lunar New Year!

  

The new moon on February 10 marked the start of the Lunar New Year---the year of the Wood Dragon in the Chinese zodiac.  Lunar New Year  is a spring festival--feasting and dancing, exchanging wishes for prosperity, good health,  and good luck.

There are more spring festivals coming.   There is Mardi Gras on February 13, Valentines Day on February 14.  And pitchers and catchers report on February 14 and 15!  

And everywhere here there are signs of spring---buds and new leaves.  There is  more light every day. Since the winter solstice, we have gained  1 hour and 23 minutes of daylight!

Early Spring for a day

 

Sun and Sunday, February 4th. The groundhogs have spoken.  It was overcast in Woodstock, Il and Punxatauny, PA, so they did not see their shadows. This means an early spring. With blue sky, sun and temperatures in the 40's it feels like Spring for a day, today.  

I hope whatever you do today--running errands, riding a bus, walking your dog,  let the blue sky and sun be with you. Look at the signs of spring around you. 

Here are the buds on the magnolias. Here are the first green leaves of the daffodils.  Soon, the crocus flowers, and the red shoots of the peonies....

Groundhog Day!

Hooray, hooray, it's February, and about halfway between the winter solstice and the spring equinox!

 

 

February 1 and 2 was and still is celebrated as a pagan holiday---Imbolc, the beginning of the end of winter. There would be feasts and gatherings, preparation for spring and growing season. The flower of Imbolc is the snowdrop, one of the first flowers to emerge in the lengthening and warming days. 

 

This holiday is also known as Candelmas,  a Christian festival that falls 40 days after Christmas. It is a festival of light, again to mark the longer days.

But in these times, February 2  is best known as Groundhog Day. People gather to celebrate Punxutawney Phil, in Pennsylvania, and Woodstock Willie, in Woodstock Illinois, where the movie Groundhog Day was filmed.  

 

So, will we have an early Spring, or  six more weeks of winter?

 

If the groundhog sees his shadow, there will be six more weeks of winter.  Why? Sun and clear sky, the ground is colder.

 

No shadow means overcast, and the ground is warmer, and early spring!