Thursday, November 13, 2008

Over the 200-day hump!

As I sit here in my bed, bundled up with my brown jersey knit sheets and bright red goose-down comforter, I think longingly about my future home. I don't know where it will be at this point, but it WILL be warmer. I never thought that I would be someone who moved from one place to another because she couldn't take the heat (or lack thereof) - I never thought weather patterns were THAT important to a given location. Then I moved to upstate New York.

This area is gorgeous, I will not argue against that point. The river is just 5 minutes walking from my apartment. Fall is one of the most beautiful (albeit short) seasons of the year. The small town ambiance is refreshing on days when you need to start your car 15 minutes early, leaving it running while finishing up the last emails at work, before slowly creeping your way home along Highway 11. The store owners know you by name and remember your orders, and people honk at you because they are saying "hello," not because you are doing something irritating or annoying. 

Sounds like paradise, right? Except for that tiny detail called SIX MONTHS OF WINTER. I miss the sunshine and warm weather, the ability to walk around barefoot outside and the feel of luscious blades of green stuck between your toes (without fearing frostbite). I miss the days of lounging in a neighbor's pool while sipping on a frozen drink, closing your eyes beneath the blanket of the air that encases you in summer-lovein' freedom. I am a child of the sun who made the mistake of living in Winter Wonderland.

Sure, snow is pretty. But when it falls from October-April... that's just a bit much for me. It is ANOTHER gray day for me. Forecast? Chance of sun on Sunday (and yes, I appreciate the irony of that) - in a week of solid gray. Mixture of rain, freezing rain, sleet and snow. Few things are colder than rainy 35 degree days. Oh wait, except for January-February here when the HIGH is around 0 degrees. 

But... (for there is always a but)... today is the first time I am over that 200-day hump! I have just 199 more days of living in this arctic region. Just 199 more days of waking up with goosebumps racing up and down my body and the windows of my apartment steaming up as the thin pieces of glass attempt to keep the persistent chill from entering my warm home. 199 more days of living off cups of coffee, tea and diet hot cocoa, bowls of soup, oatmeal and grits, and plates of hot sandwiches, pasta dishes or homemade pizza. 199 more days. About 169 of them will be wintery ones... giving me 30 days of random "Indian Summer" weather that teases the summer souls like me with warm breezes zipping through our hair. 

199 more days. Take one down, pass it around.... oh wait, wrong song.

1 comment:

Aly said...

You have to subtract out the week that you come down here for Spring Break...we should have nice weather! :)