Warm weather plays tricks on my mind

Now that the weather seems to have switched to spring for good (ignoring the snow on the ground Monday morning), my mind has jumped forward to all the fun things I want to do this summer.

Add in my impending income tax refund and I feel like I’ve won the lottery and just have to cash in my check. Never mind the pittance that is my tax refund is all but already spent.

With warmer weather, I start thinking about summer festivals and concerts and just doing things outside.

Last week my oldest and I got milkshakes in what I hope I hope to be a recurring theme over the course of the next several months. Milk shakes always perk things up.

Every year I create a list of things I want to do that year. And most years I have to roll several things over. The last two summers I had to roll “skydiving” into the next year. I’m hoping to actually be able to cross it off my bucket list this year.

Many people think my desire to skydive is a bit peculiar — especially when coupled with my completely rational fear of spiders. In perspective: Plunging to my death is not a concern ... but spiders freak me out.

I’d also like to run with the bulls in Pamplona. But that first requires that I get to Spain, which is a rather lofty goal since the furthest I’ve traveled away from home in the past two years is a trip to Rochester in October.

I like to travel. I miss New York City and have been jonesing for a trip to Washington DC since I was leaving the city in April of 2011. I’d also like to find my way back to Ohio this year to visit my alma mater. Haven’t been there in about a decade.

DC, NYC and Ashland, Ohio were all on my “to-do list” in 2012. And they all rolled over to 2013. Let’s hope they don’t roll over to 2014.

It’s not that there’s not a lot of fun things to do right here in Western New York. But I have always suffered from wanderlust.

Over the past couple years, I’ve really fallen in love with taking photos of everything I do. Maybe it’s due to the popularity of that hobby on the Internet. More likely it’s that my phones have had pretty decent cameras on them and as such, I always have the capability of taking cool photos in the palm of my hand.

My latest phone has a 3D camera. I thought it was gimmicky and didn’t expect to use it but have been surprised at just how cool it is. Needless to say, I have a nice collection of 3D photos now and really look forward to taking 3D photos over everything this summer.

Of course, I have to remind myself that it’s not summer yet. And my tax refund is not really comparable to lottery winnings. But the dreamer in me is excited.

Scott Leffler is a newspaper columnist and former radio talk show host. Apparently that makes him part of the problem for which positivity is the only solution. Follow his tweets @scottleffler.

Man of many hats

Just one of many Sabres hats.

I wear a lot of hats.

That’s not a metaphor, although it is true in that sense, as well. No, I literally mean I wear a lot of hats.
I’ve had a love affair with baseball caps since a young age.

I don’t recall how old I was when it happened, but I was told in my youth that people in baseball caps never amount to anything. I decided then and there that I would be successful — while wearing a baseball cap.

The majority of my hat arsenal is comprised of Sabres hats. Blue and gold mostly, although I do have a few of the black and red variety. In all, I have nine Buffalo Sabres hats. Some were gifts, but most of them I bought myself.

I wear them during hockey season. And football season. And baseball season. I’m not sure when cricket season is, but I wear them then, too.

Yes, I wear other hats, but mostly, I like to stick to the Sabres ones. They’re the ones I’m the proudest of. My hockey runs deep.

I like to travel, at least to the degree my budget allows me to. I’ve worn my Sabres hats in almost every city I’ve been to. A week ago, it was Washington, D.C. And sitting in the Air and Space Museum having lunch, my girlfriend pointed out another guy in a Sabres hat. Instant connection. We ended up running into that guy and talking very briefly. The conversation went something like this:
“Nice hat. Go Sabres.”

A couple summers ago, I wore a Sabres hat to Toronto when I ran into a guy in a Maple Leafs jersey. Suffice it to say, he was not nearly as impressed with my hat as the guy in D.C. was. In fact, I recall getting into somewhat of a verbal altercation with Toronto guy. I generally try to steer clear of altercations, but he was speaking ill of my team. And, really? He’s a Leafs fan.

A few years ago, I wore my Sabres hats in Philly. Also, Boston, New York, and Cleveland. You get the picture. I'm a Sabres fan all the time. Everywhere I go.

I always find it interesting this time of year how many people have Sabres hats. Seems to be a lot more Sabres hats (and T-shirts and jerseys, etc.) in early to mid-April than there are in, say, mid-November.
Some people get upset with the “bandwagon” effect that comes with any playoff run. I don’t really mind at all. I like suddenly having something in common with almost everyone in Western New York.

I haven’t bought a new baseball hat in well over a year. It was a Sabres hat. A green one. Two, actually. I was at a game with a friend and I found a green Sabres “slug” hat, so I bought it. Then I found a green hat with the original logo on it. So I had to buy that one, too.

I'd like to buy a new one soon. I'd really like for it to say “Buffalo Sabres — Stanley Cup Champions.” Hopefully they’ll make one like that.

The new gold ...

Seems everyone this days is giving gas away as part of a promotional package. Buy a car, get free gas. Buy a boat. Get free gas. Buy a burrito, get gas. Well ... kind of.

Anyway, people aren't interesting in money, jewelery, or even gold. Diamonds aren't a girls best friend any more. Give 'em gas.

Even the Florida lottery has added gasoline to their list of prizes.

A lottery spokesperson said, “Once a week for the next two months, the second-prize winner in the latest lottery promotion, Summer Cash, will win free gasoline for life. And some people think that is a better deal than the game’s first prize, a quarter of a million dollars. ”

Actually, they'll be getting a $100 gas card every other week for the remainder of their life. That's $50 free dollars in gas a week. Or just over 10 gallons. Not that grand of a prize, really. Especially since later this year it will be just under 10 gallons ... and will likely quickly diminish.

Funny thing is, people don't notice that the value of the prize isn't nearly as good as the first place prize ... the quarter million dollars. They just hear free gas and go gaga.

The price of gasoline, of course, makes up a little bit of the price of just about everything; the food we eat, the stuff we buy ... and of course the places we go.

But keep in mind, it's only a portion of the cost of those things.

With the price of gas at $4.20 a gallon, and assuming, 20 miles per gallon, it's 21 cents a mile. Or $101.01 to get from my home in Lockport to my favorite vacation destination, Washington, DC. Round trip makes it $200 (give or take).

Two years ago, it would have only been $100 for gas for the same trip.

Of course, while on vacation, you'd spend a bunch of money on a hotel, tourist attractions, trinkets, etc. Let's say $1,000.

So add the gas in, and you've got a $1,200 vacation. As opposed to what would have been an $1,100 vacation if gas were $2.10.

Are you really going to skip your vacation over $100?

We need to stop treating gas as though it were gold. Otherwise, it might end up at $1,000 an ounce. And then we really couldn't afford to go anywhere.