A little early, I think, for our first dust storm of the year, but when the wind came up late yesterday afternoon and I looked at the sky and saw the clouds with that ominous brown tint to them I knew something was up, and it was. They’re saying with the El Nino forming out in the Pacific that we usually get a more active monsoon season, but that’s still a few months away. Definitely a little early for dust…

At first I was under the opinion that Red Sox broadcaster Jerry Remy’s decision to return to the microphone and join partner Don Orsillo in the booth was the right thing to do, but now I’m not so sure. You read this Boston Globe column and juxtapose it against everything that a baseball telecast ought to be – entertaining and fun – and it just doesn’t work for me anymore. There’s no question it’s a tragedy, and while it’s Jared, not Jerry, who’s in jail waiting on his murder trial, I think some of the soul-searching Remy should be doing ought to include whether it’s best for all to just move on. There’s little question the days of the lovable, fun-loving “RemDawg” are over, and Remy should do the right thing and turn things over to someone who doesn’t carry the kind of baggage he does.

Will Tiger Woods play at Augusta? I’ve got to believe that while Tiger would do almost anything to compete in the Masters, he’s also fully aware that Augusta National is one of the toughest to walk over a four-day period, and by playing he risks injuring himself further and perhaps not being able to play any of the majors this year. He may indeed still decide to give it a try, but it wouldn’t surprise me if he takes a full month off and gets ready for The Players in May with an eye towards the U.S. Open at Pinehurst in June.

So our first dust storm blew in, leaving a thin film of dirt on everything I had cleaned last weekend – the Tiki bar, the barbecue, the patio. And come this morning there will be a brown film on the stairs and sides of the pool that will need to be swept. Still, the evening colors were beautiful, especially through the soft light of a Pinot Grigio: