Beware The Rides Of March

By the Australian reckoning, where seasons change on the first day of the month, I am always a sucker when I get on a bike in March and suddenly expect spring conditions.

No amount of experience seems to change the way I approach this.

And it only happens in March, really, where I await the transition from winter to spring, which seems to drag on for an interminably long time.

Every year, the gap between winter and spring seems to linger longer than ever before.

Of course, each year is a relatively shorter period of life, so all things considered, it’s actually shorter.

Japanese has a saying to describe this time of year, 三寒四温, which means three days of cold, four of warmth. I’d settle for that, to be honest, but the reality until around mid-April is that we get about a week of icy cold and a couple of days of warmth.

Today, it was a day of bitter cold. (Yesterday was even worse, having been cold, wet, and dark!)

One good thing about a day like today is that it was gloriously bright and sunny. The contrast created a blanket of mist over the Tama River. It looked mystical. And it felt like I was riding my bike above the clouds. Of course, I wasn’t able to capture on camera the beauty of what I got to ride through, which is a shame, as it was so wonderful, it was a sight that deserved to be shared.

But the air was like ice. Even though I was dressed for the warmth and it was delightfully sunny, the chill ran through to my core. Showered, in a heated room and filled with a hot meal and steaming coffee even hours later, the chill still permeates me. But it was worth it.