I’ve been debated for using terms like “Florida chilly.” I guess you’d call that a retronym for what I knew as “chilly” until moving away from Michigan. And, at least until I get the other peninsula state out of my system, I’ll call that “Michigan chilly.” Point being: 50 degrees feels different to me in Michigan than it does in Florida. I may even dress the same there as I might here for the same temperature, but it’s all about perception. Down South, I always felt the chill a bit more.

For example, this last weekend it was in the low 50s. Such a forecast would have kept me inside watching TV more often than not in good ol’ FLA. But, as a born-again Michigander, I walked around without a care or a coat in the sun-warmed air. Downtown Royal Oak crawled with people doing the same. It’s all about perception.

Today’s temperature is expected to near 70 degrees. I expect to see people walking around in shorts.

But enough about the weather. Some recommendations:

• See 300, the movie New York Times‘ reviewer A.O. Scott called “stupid.” (Rising to his taunts, 300 called Scott funny looking.) The film is beautiful, relentless and bloody, an excellent example of what I call a “big” movie. My only criticism is that it seemed to attract lunkheads who think it’s OK to use a mobile phone in a theater. The same lunkheads had brought young children to an extremely graphic, albeit stylized, R-rated movie. I hope seeing such carnage doesn’t lead to those kids growing into lunkheads themselves.
• Sign up for eMusic. If you like off-the-beaten-path artists, like I do, you’re remiss not to subscribe, like I was. Plus, you get 25 tracks just for kicking the virtual tires.
• Don’t underestimate the body slam of a young child. You’ll regret it, like I do. It won’t happen again.

That’s all for now. I have a sunny day to explore.