Sláinte!

By Sean McVeigh

It has been a long, cold winter. Even if you set aside the two massive snowstorms we endured this year — and I do not say that lightly — it would still qualify as a tough one. For months, the wind has been relentless. If you had any plans to be outside for more than ten minutes and didn’t want to regret your life choices, you’d better have had a hat and a serious pair of gloves. And even then, you probably regretted it anyway.

I have made my lack of faith in our meteorological prediction capabilities pretty well known over the years. While they both seem like perfectly nice guys, I now trust Lee Goldberg and Mike Woods about as far as I can throw them — unless they are out there delivering the forecast like Amanda Seyfried in “Mean Girls.” And my phone’s weather app changes its mind more often than my wife when we’re trying to decide what to have for dinner.

With all of those caveats on the table, I hesitantly dare to say: it looks like there may be an end in sight.

It is not entirely clear yet — it never is — but this Saturday, Rockaway’s St. Patrick’s Day, might just be that pivotal turning point. And honestly, I cannot think of a better choice.

Rockaway’s St. Patrick’s Day is so much more than just a parade. Even during the mildest winters, the day has always served as a hinge point in the year. It is the true harbinger of spring. This year, the shift feels like it might be a bit more pronounced.

I’m not saying we’ll be slipping into flip-flops and boardshorts just yet, but it will feel awfully good to put that puffer jacket away for a few months.

It won’t take much. This winter has really beaten us down. We are scarred. It felt like we were in the clear a few weeks ago, and then a historic snowstorm came barreling through to remind us who’s in charge.

Once or twice over the past few months, we’ve gotten a glimpse — a little sun and temperatures creeping into the 40s. That tiny treat brings the whole peninsula outside. The schoolyards fill with kids in shorts, and the boardwalk is suddenly packed with people trudging through piles of slush as if it isn’t even there.

If we are blessed with sunshine and temperatures in the 50s, I honestly can’t imagine what will happen to this place. It might actually be too much for people to handle. And on top of it all, daylight saving time begins Sunday, giving us an extra hour of light each night. We are so close.

I, for one, have my Irish sweater ready to go. I can’t believe I’m saying this, but I hope it’s too warm for it. I hope I am a sweaty mess on Saturday because I wildly overdressed. That would be a St. Paddy’s Day miracle.

As I write this, a lovely freezing rain is coming down, and I just turned up the heat. Winter, apparently, is not going down without a fight.

Only time will tell.

Either way, here’s to a great Rockaway St. Patrick’s Day. May the sun shine warm upon your face, may the wind take the day off, and when we see each other on Saturday, may we finally declare winter defeated. At least until next year.

Sláinte!