Sinister Minister

I know I've mentioned it before, but at A&P we're old friends (family really) with more than a few traits in common. We have comic-tragic taste in men. We drink (preferably the brown stuff). We get maudlin. We dwell on/in the past, revisit all the old bastards and losses and triumphs and television shows. These are year-round pursuits, sometimes blissful, but in winter, the grave sorts of reminiscences seem denser, joy and its memory scarce on the ground.

This past week, the first of March, it snowed in both of our homes, Memphis and New York. And as various weathermen clucked the phrase, "in like a lion, out like a lamb" over and over again, I began to feel anxious. At root, or after much repeating, it's a pretty sinister, strange saying, which is appropriate, because March is a pretty sinister, strange month with its inconsistent weather and Caesarcide. So, without getting into the sordid details of my March (with the damn Ides still to come!)...I'll say: friends—lay low, self-care, set your clocks forward, feel free to be a mess. In a matter of weeks, this spell will lift and we can start wearing shirtsleeves and eating at outdoor tables again. Blame March. Stay up.