If this is your second Colorado winter, trust me here: This year has the normal winter. Last year's pattern of snow followed by snow followed by snow followed by, for variety's sake, a blizzard preceding more snow was the odd one. Normally, Mother Nature likes to throw in a few sunny days into the “snow-blizzard-snow” pattern, mostly to keep us guessing.

Then again, yesterday's wintry interlude might still have been too much for some. Perhaps it set a flashback into motion, remembering with dread last year's “I'm trapped in my house, my car is buried under snow, and all I have to eat are stale Pop Tarts and a can of ‘potted meat food product.'” Then I would suggest the Pepsi Center to help put your mind at ease; they are at least trying for a warmer climate with their Mile High Dreams Gala - Havana Nights.

Proceeds will be going towards charity, and this is a chance to hobnob with the players of the four teams that fill the Pepsi Center on a regular basis. You'll also get a chance to play casino games, dance to Salsa, and bid in a silent auction. The fun starts at 7 p.m., and bear in mind that the dress code is “cocktail or Cuban Dressy.” Which means you can either dress up a bit with a suit and tie, or you can dress in military fatigues like Fidel Castro.

Actually, you have a variety of Castros to choose from now; you could also dress out as Raoul! Or you could even dress in a baseball uniform from the 40s; it's a common myth that Fidel, before he was a revolutionary and dictator, tried out as a left-handed pitcher for the New York Yankees. While not true, that hasn't kept modern baseball contracts from including the “anti-dictatorship clause,” requiring that players refrain from ruling their homelands with an iron hand once their baseball career is over. Hey, it's what keeps Barry Bonds from taking over San Francisco in a steroid-infused rage.

Meanwhile, way up north, the Colorado Eagles have some home ice action, taking on the Arizona Sundogs at 7 p.m. Now, I've made fun of the Sundogs a lot, most especially because of their mascot Burnie the Sundog. Sun Burnie? Why not just say “Hey kids, melanoma is cool!”? But I think it's time I tried to help the Sundogs out. I will do so by proposing mascots for other CHL teams that are much more inappropriate. That way Burnie won't feel left out. So for tonight's opponent, I would suggest “Grabby the Colorado Eagle.” Grabby, with cartoonish glee, swoops down and grabs pets and small humans and carries them away to the magical land of Grabby's lunch. How cute is that?

Hey, you forgot about Burnie the Skin Cancer Dog for a moment, right? I think I'm onto a winner here.

Last but not least, I want to some basketball teams; namely the men of Colorado Christian University and the women of Metro State. They advanced to the next round of their bout with March Madness, and for their next match in the RMAC Shootout (yee-ha), each one will be facing Nebraska-Kearney. Coincidence? Yeah, probably. Have fun in Pueblo next weekend kids!

And have fun tonight, CCU women's team. I would have thought their season was over, but their schedule has a match against Oklahoma Wesleyan on the books tonight at 6 p.m. So I don't know if this is an actual game or the first ever Division-II game of Horse. Either way, wish them well at the CCU Event Center in Lakewood.

As the saying goes, if you don't like the weather, wait ten minutes and it'll change. And as the saying should go, if you don't like the annoying saying trotted out every time the weather changes, punch the guy saying it in the neck. Actually, don't, please? Just enjoy the weather when you can, and thanks for reading!

Slide show: Rox vs. D-Backs in Cactus League play