Ah, Spring!

Spring is in the air, the sun is finally shining, our softball team is posting losses on a weekly basis (although Bostonist went 4-4 with 2 RBI and a run scored last night), and it's the time when a young man's fancy lightly turns to thoughts of . . . safety. Yes, June is National Safety Month (along with Aphasia Awareness Month, Scleroderma Awareness Month, Myasthenia Gravis (?!) Awareness Month, Vision Research Month, and Fireworks Safety Month (we would have guessed July, but go figure)). It may seem cruel to urge caution on the populace just as warm nights and budding flowers seem to call for happy abandon, but perhaps that is why the good folks at the National Safety Council chose this month. In any event, their website is full of shocking - shocking! - statistics that will surely convince you to abandon risky behavior at all costs (Bostonist's favorite: "45% of injury-related deaths happen to workers while off the job." Could this be because workers spend about 45% of their waking hours off the job? We can't say, but best to be careful). The news of late offers some object lessons in the importance of safety: there are weird, foreign STDs in our city, so practice safe sex (even though April is Sexually Transmitted Diseases Awareness month); there are also careless drivers all over our roads, so wear your helmet when cycling (although May is national Bicycle Safety Month, December is Drunk and Drugged Driving Prevention Month, and Drive Safely Work Week is in October); and, appropriately for Safety Month, ultimate fighting is too dangerous for Boston (and snide political commentary is too dangerous for Somerville). But the weather really is beautiful, with highs this weekend promised to be in the 80s (!) and rain practically banished from the Commonwealth until next week at least. So get out there are enjoy springtime, but BE CAREFUL.

Photo courtesy of flickr.com / user: Daveybot