WEDNESDAY MARCH 1ST, 2023 - WELCOME TO MARCH

 WEDNESDAY MARCH 1ST, 2023 - WELCOME TO MARCH

Yes, it is the first day of the third month of the year.

Let’s see.

The full moon in March is on March 7th.  It is called the “Worm Moon” (among other names).  That might be for the earthworms that the robins gobble up in spring.  Another view was that the beetle larva emerges from their winter hibernation (and looks like worms) - so, when the full moon comes out the worms come out!

It is also called the Lenten Moon.  Easter is defined as the first Sunday after the first full moon after the Vernal Equinox.  Since this full moon is before the Vernal Equinox it is still in the Christian season of Lent.  

March is named after Mars - the Roman God of War.  It used to be the first month of the year (thus at that time, the eighth month was OCTober, and then the tenth month was DECember).  

Special dates in March.  Spring or vernal equinox is on March 20, 2023 - (and if you want to be precise it is at 4:24 p.m.)

Daylight Savings Starts on Sunday, March 12th at 2:00 a.m.
The hour from 2:00 to 3:00 a.m. on that day is the safest hour in the United States (in most areas that hour is gone but in some areas - like Arizona - it still exists)

The Ides of March - the term was in Shakespeare’s Play Julius Caesar.  Basically, it is the middle of the month - March 15th.

Pi Day - March 14.  If you remember your high school math the decimal value of Pi to two decimal places is 3.14.  March 14 marks Pi Day, an annual celebration of the mathematical sign pi. Founded in 1988 by physicist Larry Shaw, March 14 was selected because the numerical date (3.14) represents the first three digits of pi, and it also happens to be Albert Einstein's birthday.  A friend who has a pyrotechnics background shoots off handmade fireworks on the closest Saturday to Pi Day

St. Patrick’s Day - On St. Patrick’s Day, everyone is Irish!!  It is on March 17th.  For many years, I marched in the New York City St. Patrick’s Day parade with Quinnipiac University.  Wear your green (or be wary of being pinched)!!

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For sports fans - “March Madness” college basketball tournament kicks off.  There will be office pools.  Some analysts suggest a loss of office productivity during the first week of March Madness as fans are checking scores and seeing if their teams are moving on.  There are some upsets - especially in the first week as a 12-seeded team will knock off a 5-seeded team.  But by the finals, it generally will be the top teams in the nation.  

March Madness has 64 teams.  In the first week, that gets cut to 32 and then to sixteen; in the second week that gets cut to the elite eight, and final four.  In the third week, it goes from four to two and then from two to the champion.

In college hockey, the teams start working towards the “Frozen Four”.  (My former school, Quinnipiac University, has been ranked #1 or #2 most of the season in men’s hockey, and in women’s college hockey, my former school has been in the top ten all season long)

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In weather, March is a transition month.  As the sun warms the northern hemisphere there are changes.  An old expression is “In like a lion and out like a lamb.”

March “comes in like a lion and goes out like a lamb” means that the weather is generally cold at the beginning part of the month of March but the weather is warmer at the end of the month. 

Tornados start occurring in March. Texas is the “champion” (dubious title) with an average of 151 tornadoes a year. Kansas averages 93 tornadoes a year, and Oklahoma averages 67 tornadoes. 

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NATIONAL PEANUT BUTTER LOVER'S DAY - March 1, 2023  

I like peanut butter (I’d say “I love peanut butter” but when I say “Love Wins” - that might confuse people about what “love” is.).  I eat a knife full of peanut butter right out of the jar - frequently with a little butter.  I recognize it as being a problem for me and I currently don’t have any peanut butter in my apartment.  

I greatly prefer the crunchy-style peanut butter.  Do you like peanut butter?  Do you have a preference for creamy or crunchy?

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TEXAS INDEPENDENCE DAY - March 2, 2023 - National Today

“Texas Independence Day on March 2 commemorates the signing of the Texas Declaration of Independence on the same date in 1836. Inhabitants of Texas proclaimed independence from Mexico and established the Republic of Texas with the signing of this declaration by over 59 delegates.”

(So, what are you doing to celebrate Texas Independence Day?)

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WHAT IF CATS AND DOGS HAD OPPOSABLE THUMBS? DAY - March 3, 2023

What If Cats and Dogs Had Opposable Thumbs? Day is annually observed on March 3. On this day we ask ourselves a very critical question: what if the most commonly domesticated animals in our lives could mimic some of the genetics of their owners? Imagine a world in which your dog could open the door knobs. Or, your cat could open a tin of tuna by herself, since you are always running late. Hilarious or scary? We’re still deciding. In the meantime, let’s continue to indulge in our imagination.

Hmm - you could really teach your dog to “fetch” (bring me a snack, Fido)!!

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MARCH FORTH - March 4, 2023 - National Today

MARCHING MUSIC DAY - March 4, 2023 

I’m combining these two days - the first is more of a motivational day - “March Forth and Do Something” - but the second also relates to “Marching Fourth”.

(As an old band person, I was also tired after this month - I think all band people get tired after a “march of 31 days”!!!)

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MARCH FIFTH - BLUEBONNET PHILHARMONIC ORCHESTRA CONCERT

Yes, it is concert day.  It is a matinee concert at 3:00 p.m. at Klett Auditorium at Georgetown High School.  Our orchestra is a volunteer group of people who like to play music.  And - the concert is FREE!!  (Yes, FREE - we do ask for a contribution, but you don’t need to make one).  Our orchestra members do pay annual “dues” to belong.  There are some expenses for a director, music, and renting a truck to move our percussion pieces back and forth from storage.  

We are playing familiar movie themes - music from:

Beauty and the Beast

Pirates of the Caribbean

Leia’s Theme - from Star Wars

Yoda’s Theme - from Star Wars

Night on Bald Mountain - featured in the Fantasia movie

It will be about an hour long - no intermission - no tickets to buy, come and bring your family, sit wherever you want and enjoy a great concert.

May your month of March be like a lamb for the whole month!!

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LOVE WINS

LOVE TRANSFORMS

KAREN ANNE WHITE, ©, MARCH 1, 2023