Winter

I have often complained to The Powers That Be (TPTB) when seasons don't comport themselves as they should. Case in point, two weeks ago, when we in Indiana were faced with temperatures around 65°F. I can understand why some people enjoy the warm weather. But for me, winter here should be cold, and often snowy. Warm weather like that feels wrong -- either a portent of a world gone awry, or a bill which will be paid later (with a cold summer, for instance).

So, let me be clear: the past week or so has been an ideal Indiana winter. It's ranged from normally cold (highs right around freezing) to quite cold (highs in the single digits). That's about right for this time of year. Plus we've had a few solid snows, with perhaps 1" or 2" each time. That's not much, but it's appropriate for this time of year.

Today was sunny and cold, with a high around 20°F. We caught only the fringe of the snowstorm that wrought havoc out east, with maybe 1" of new snow, atop an existing 2" or 3". In other words, it looked and felt like January outside. Sure, I was cold; still am. But that's the way it's supposed to be right now.

If we get snow in April, I'll complain just as much as when it's 60° in January. But for now... I'm content.

Miscellaneous Bits

So:

• Cal really stunk, didn't they? I was pretty crushed. I had several friends over to watch the game. At the start, they made it their mission to mock Cal, and my fandom, just because I was so darn worked up over it. By the 3rd quarter I think they were too embarrassed for me.
  Still and all, I don't think it's an argument that we got 'what we should have'. Nobody knows how the Rose Bowl would have played out with Cal vs. Michigan, and I think we'd match up well with them. We'll never know though.
  
• Quick review of Sideways: loved it. Haven't laughed that hard in a long time. Verdict: A winning and winsome comedy. 8 out of 10 stars.
  
• Quick review of The Aviator: it had many great moments but was only a decent movie. Cate Blanchett took on a tough role and did quite well with it. Leo DiCaprio was not great, but was much better than I had expected. There are some great moments in the movie. But ultimately, it plays like an encyclopedia article, not a story. Verdict: Less than the sum of its parts. 6 stars out of 10.
  
• Quick review of my new iPod: it's got a great design. Compared with iTunes, the software needs some work. But I'm lovin' it.
  

Enough for now. More later.