The beginning of Spring

The image above is rainy Roger Dean Stadium, Jupiter, Florida, March 12, 2010.


Astronomically, Spring usually begins around March 21.

The Earth is tilted on its axis, relative to the plane of its orbit around the Sun. Sometimes our northern hemisphere is tilted toward the Sun (that's our summer) and sometimes we're leaning away from the Sun (our winter.)

In between, we find Spring and Fall.

So around March 21, the Sun reaches the celestial equator on it's slow slide higher in the sky. That's the official beginning of Spring, the Vernal Equinox.

But this week I got to attend my first Spring Training games of the baseball season. While we focused on the Cardinals and Mets, we got to see other teams, too.

Monday: Mets 11, Marlins 2
Tuesday: Astros 8, Mets 4
Wednesday: Nationals 4, Cards 6
Friday: Red Sox v. Cards Rainout

The image at the top is rainy Roger Dean Stadium, Jupiter, Florida, March 12, 2010.

("Sometimes you win, sometimes you lose, sometimes it rains. Think about that for a while." Ebby Calvin "Nuke" LaLoosh in the movie "Bull Durham")

So for me and Barbara, experiencing game-time temperatures in the 70's, our Spring began this week.