Good day, sunshine.

Today's joie de vivre is that first warm day in the winter which reminds you spring is just around the corner.

It's the sight of those hopeful folks in shorts who clearly are jumping the gun but can be admired for their forward-thinking anyway.

It's the downtown which seemed to have woken from its hibernation and the hipster crowd who've returned to their places outside the coffee shop, lazily stumming guitars and carrying on quiet conversation. Even the hipster dogs have taken their place back on the sidewalk, sniffing alongside storefronts and looking all together pleased for having found such hip, progressive owners.

It's the ice cream shop which opened up its doors a few weeks early on account of the weather and the steady stream of patrons going in for their first dish of mango ice cream.

Like most people with a pulse, I'm a firm believer in new beginnings, and spring, if anything, is just that. I have long thought that New Years was oddly placed on January 1st. Who can be hopeful and resolute towards change in a time of year so dark and cold? If the new year began when things were actually looking new, maybe I'd have more success with that whole self-improvement thing.

This warm spell we had today will likely not last. The groundhog saw his shadow, after all. But warm days remind us (or tease us) about warmer days ahead... and I can't argue with that.