Monday, January 23, 2012

Why I Like Winter, Reasons 1-3


Those who know me well might be scratching their heads at the title to this blog. Most people would say I do NOT like winter. And they would generally be right. This Texas gal has been living in Boston since 1995 (minus two glorious years back in Austin for grad school). Everyone says, “Oh, you’ll get used to the cold.” Well, I’ve been through over a dozen winters. I’d say I’m used to them by now. But it hasn’t made me LIKE them. Winters are dark. They’re cold. They’re slushy and drippy and gritty and generally just nasty. I’m used to winter. But I still don’t like it.

Yet I’ve started to accept that Boston is home. We’ve been here for a while, and will likely stay a while longer. The Texan in me hasn’t been able to consider Boston my permanent home yet, but that’s just me taking a trip down the river Denial. It’s time to start liking winter. So I’m trying to talk myself into it. I suspect this will be a multi-part series before I’m truly convinced…

So here we go:  reasons I like winter…

1.     Snow truly is beautiful. It’s beautiful as it’s falling. It’s beautiful piled up on branches, fences, and the gingerbread trim of the lovely old homes along the Arboretum. It makes everything look nicer. 
2.     Snow is fun to play in. The dogs love it. It’s like catnip for our dogs; a local dog-walker referred to it as canine cocaine. Hmm, the dogs always come in with it all over their noses… The girls like playing in it too. We have an amazing sledding hill across the street in the Arboretum, and we were out there this morning getting in a few runs before the rain washed the snow into slush puddles. Up until MeToo slid nose-first into HeyMama’s parked sled, we were having a blast. Then we just had a bloody nose and the urgent need for some calming cups of hot chocolate…
3.     Snowclouds make for magical nights. There’s something special about those evenings when it’s not snowing, but the clouds are hanging low. The ambient light (aka urban light pollution) reflects back and forth off of the clouds and snow, and the sky faintly glows. The clouds and snow help damp the ambient city noise (aka urban noise pollution), and the night is quiet. It’s a treat to go out with the dogs, look out over the snow-covered woods, and just drink in the quiet under the pink-gray sky.


Ok, that’s all I’ve got for now. My goal for this winter is to come up with at least 25 reasons. Perhaps in the process I can fall in love with winter.

Why do you love winter?

6 comments:

  1. well, I kind of (selfishly) like winter because it removes a lot of the pressure I feel in nicer weather to be taking the kids all sorts of places, and spending as much time as possible outside. Don't get me wrong, I love outside time and a trip to the library as much as the next gal, but I also like looking out the window, deciding it's no good driving/walking anywhere in THIS kind of weather, and turning over the morning to remaining in pjs, watching more than our usually tightly moderated 1/2 hour of tv, lounging around the house and not feeling like I should be DOING SOMETHING. It's kind of like the get out of jail free card for lazy parents like me :)

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    1. Yeah, we've been enjoying more screen time lately, too. The girls love it, and I get a little more time to get stuff done without interruptions every 90 seconds!

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  2. Here are some good things at our house:

    It's still football season.
    Lots of cool holidays and traditions (I smell a heart punch in your future).
    Paint dries super fast, great for renovations or general art activities.
    Snow angels (HM and MT will probably dig this one more next year).
    Snow Days.

    There are five more. Pick and choose at your leisure.

    -Kathy

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    1. Hmm, more good suggestions. The girls are definitely dabbling in snow angels and enjoying them. And the only reason we didn't come home today with a heart punch is because the craft store didn't have a good one. You DO smell a heart punch in our future!

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  3. Go skiing. It's the best reason for winter that I know of, and I've only done it once!

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    1. Janice, I've tried skiing. No dice. It's actually a great topic for a future post. Just because I CAN ski doesn't mean I WANT to...

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