Classic Rant #195 (February 16, 2010): Antidote to Snow: Batter Up!

We received more snow today. Mostly mush, but having it fall on top of what we already have is like pouring salt on an open wound; it is going to hurt no matter which way you turn.

We have gotten a lot more snow than we normally get. I think in my part of the world, we have already reached and exceeded the average for the winter--and there is still 12 days more in February, the full month of March and the beginning of April to deal with.

We will all dutifully dig out, and make the best of it. But there is one antidote to all the white stuff that makes us see light at the end of the tunnel:

Spring training!

Yes, Major League Baseball's spring training camps in both Florida and Arizona are both just about ready to open. Early camp is already open to those players who like to report early.

The regular season is less than two months away!

Baseball represents so much more than any other sport on the American landscape. It represents renewal, nostalgia, and yes, a bit of tedium, as the season plays out over a six-month span.

But it also represents the summer, the heat, the humidity, the sun, sunburn, tans, bikinis ... in other words, heat.

During the summer, as we watch our favorite team make a go for the World Series--won by my team, the Yankees, last season--we will look back at the winter of 2009/2010 without too many fond memories.

But it will be behind us, as we bask in 90 degree heat.

And that is the best thing.

The sweat on our brow will not come from shoveling snow in an endless flurry of disgust; it will come from the sun pulsing on our bodies.

And that type of sweat I kind of like.

So shovel your snow, and be careful about it, but also think that in just two months, this will pretty much be history ...

And "Play Ball!" will be the rallying cry, not "Go Out and Clean the Driveway!"

I can't wait, can you?