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Monday, March 3, 2014

Can March be here already?

Parked here on the south Texas coast for the last month, we have had the luxury of smelling the sea air, hearing the sounds of the waves, and experiencing a much different weather style than most of the population here in the USA. As I read again about further snow storms and frigid cold temperatures, I gaze about our environment, listening to the heater come on and off and realize just how fortunate we are to be here, even if it is cold and blistery outside. Oh we have our own set of turmoils, but they pall in comparison. We aren't shut down because of impassable roads, although the drive across the bridge in 40+mph winds can be dicey. Our landscape is white, but white with sand not snow. We don't shovel it and we don't slip in but we do bundle up in it, but to a lesser level, as the winds off the water along with the temperatures in the 40's can be biting. And these very same winds are actually able to rock our solidly built RV. How odd that feels. Somehow, however, it doesn't seem to be at all comparable. The fog accompanies all of this which gives an eerie cast to everything but it does not compare to the brightness of the moon shining on shimmering white snow in the dark of the night. Yes, each has it's ups and positives and each has it's downs and negatives, but the real test is, can we live in today wherever we are to the best of our ability?
 fog rolling in
 Danny with his new b/day toy

We will be staying here in the area until after Spring Break as we are bringing the two younger grands down to visit the last half of Spring Break. Sure hope that the weather breaks a little for them. If it doesn't they will be playing baseball/softball in the COLD and then beaching it in the COOL of spring rather than the heat normally found at this time of year. We have quite a few things that we can do with them, but not put up a tent for them to sty in. Reservations were hard to come by and we got one at a beach but the RV parking is not where you can also put up a tent. 

After this we are rather at loose ends without plans. Where we end up is anyone's guess.

February was our birthday/anniversary/Valentine's Day celebration month. Rather than try and get everything on the appropriate day we started celebrating the month of February early in our life together. We had gotten rather lax in the last few years as we were always somewhere else: Peace Corps mostly. This year was different. We took a weekend trip down to Port Aransas to see if we wanted to spend the month on the coast. Danny was looking to give me "a beach experience". I love the beach but not to the point where I am on the beach for the whole day. What I really like is the sounds and the smells associated with the beach. On the way down we stopped and did some shopping in Houston, well Sugarland actually. My how that place has grown. It is now a huge complex of high end establishments. In the end it was actually difficult to keep the actual dates straight. in order to recognize the days as they occurred. What a challenge that was, but a good one. 

Now we are into March and with it comes to mind "beware the Ides of March". Just what does this mean? According to online sources the Ides of March is actually MArch 15 on the Julian calendar. It is the day when Julius Caesar was assassinated and was also a religious celebration day. In the ancient Roman calendar, March was the beginning of the new year and the significance of the "Ides of March" is that it was the first full moon of the new year, and as such, the date was not always on the same day. So how does this relate to the phrase being on my mind at different intervals? The phrase is associated with a sense of foreboding - do I have that? If so, then about what? I have no idea but when I started to look it up I was actually looking for an idea for a rug much for March. Oh well, that's the way things turn in the real world and I have learned something new.