Rain and snow mixes.

Skinny jeans.

Amazon charging me $$$ to watch seasons of the (original) Mary Tyler Moore Show.

These are a few of my LEAST favorite things from Winter 2020-21.

The start of spring around these parts is looking incredibly promising, though.

Let’s focus on this weekend, which includes the official 1st day (that’s Saturday, March 20th), when temps are supposed to reach almost 60 degrees and the sun will be making an extended appearance, shall we?

You’ll probably want to open the windows at home and let some fresh air in. Beyond that I would highly recommend squashing any impulses to do actual spring cleaning and instead motor over to Gansett for some al fresco eats and strolling by the water.

I mean, we do live in the Ocean State after all, so why not take every single chance you can to enjoy it? (Seriously: Can you imagine living somewhere you never get to see the ocean up close ? Or not ever having the option of walking on the beach?)

As far of open air dining in Narragansett, my top pick has to be Trio on Kingstown Road, which is walking distance from the Sea Wall, for dinner on Saturday night or lunch on Sunday.

We were there the other day for lunch and had the patio all to ourselves, which was no surprise because it was freezing cold. (We also encountered a dreary rain and snow mix on the drive home that day.)

If you want to make sure you get a table this coming weekend or even next week (bet they’re gonna be on a lot of wish lists), you’ll want to call them in advance or use Open Table to reserve seats.

If you’re one of the many RI’ers who are obsessed with Crazy Burger (people go insane over their burgers and fries, they also offer meat free options for those of us who eat plant based) over on Boon Street, you’ll be thrilled to pieces to know that they are open right now for takeout.

You could always carryout and eat somewhere scenic in the vicinity.

PS — I was an enthusiastic fan of their other (now-defunct) restaurant that was situated on the ground floor of a classic beach house inn. It was called Bed & Bistro and I still miss it.

Another spot you’ll want to bookmark for Instagram photos is the exterior of a furniture refurbishing business on 2549 Boston Neck Road in Saunderstown that’s rather cheekily called The Strip Joint.

While everyone else is trying to capture The Towers (gotta say it’s challenging if you’re working with an I-phone camera) or the Point Judith Light (ditto), you’ll garner bonus points for capturing this under-the-radar Rhody rustic gem (see my photo above from 2018) and uploading it to your permanent page or IG Stories.

As always, if you wind up patronizing any of these businesses because you read about them here, please let them know that you heard about them via PattyJ.com.