It’s here—the season we all love to hate. But this is the year I’m changing my attitude! Sure I would love to be in sunny Florida where winters bottom out in the 50s for a solid day or two, but this year I’m going to embrace the refreshing New England climate and learn to love, like, tolerate winter and all it has to offer. You should too—here’s why:
- Snow is pretty. It’s pure and white and mesmerizing to watch the millions of unique flakes dancing down from the sky. It blankets the outdoors in a sheet of peace and tranquility. At least until it turns into black slush, corrodes your car, ruins your shoes and makes you feel like you live in a freezing cold ash tray. But it does start off pretty.
- Beanies are super stylish. Even in L.A., where the temperature doesn’t dip below 70, people wear beanies simply because they are cool. I mean, given the choice, I’d rather just move to L.A., but whatevs.
- There is something so cozy about basking in the warmth of a roaring fire with a hot toddy in your hand as you warm up from a chilly day. Of course there would be no need to warm up if you didn’t, in fact, live in the frozen tundra, but that’s beside the point; fires rock.
- You can hibernate. Winter is a built-in excuse to never have to leave your home. People would start to ask questions if you stayed indoors all summer long, but in the winter—no one cares. You can go weeks without having meaningless conversations with your neighbor about the weather. Hermits rejoice!
- Shoveling burns calories. It also breaks backs, but hey, at least you can be skinny when you’re in your wheelchair. Silver linings, people.
- Skiing provides quality family time. What shows a mother’s love more than trapping her child in a chair, 50 feet in the air, on a dangling wire and forcing them to converse with her? Ahh…the magic of family bonding.
- Snow shoeing! Generally I find walking to be a pretty easy activity. So why not take it up a notch by adding 7 layers of clothing and strapping what are essentially large tennis racquets onto your feet? I always wondered what boxers felt like in those sauna suits—now I know!
- No yard work!! Because that’s what happens when everything that was once alive and beautiful is now dead and buried in three feet of snow.
- Last, but certainly not least…snow days! A surprise day off…for teachers. Nothing brings a smile to my face quite like a house full of over excited children flying down piles of frozen water on plastic rectangles. It’s almost worth not getting out of school until July. Almost.
Clearly there is a lot to love about winter. In fact, I’m not sure why I didn’t create this list years ago (perhaps my fingers were frozen). Three cheers for…flights to the Caribbean!