"Happy" Winter

Steve, the burnout who does weekends for the ski patrol in exchange for being able to stay in a yurt?

 

When I was running marathons, I never minded winter. By the time I went a couple of miles on a 15-degree morning, I could go forever with a good top and maybe even shorts.

Now, any involvement in winter sucks. Two years ago I went back north for a football game in December. By the time the game ended it was 10 degrees; in my estimation, it might as well have been 100 below.

 

My Ohio Players and Siouxsie & The Banshees albums are on their way to kick your ass.

 

Even better than that, it's the shortest day of the year. Therefore, before you know it, I won't be doing 12-20 miles entirely in the dark every morning for much longer.

 

No but you have to mow the lawn
When it is cold and you shovel snow, you get warmed up.
When it is hot and you mow the lawn, you get hotter.

Shoveling snow > mowing lawn

 

I have a guy. Haven't mowed a lawn in 30 years.

 

Nice for you 1 percenters.

 

Here's a hint... fuck something up bad enough, you probably won't be asked to do it again

Then again, I never shoveled snow when I lived in the great white north, either. Figured it would melt eventually.

 

On my street, myself and my neighbor across the street, the only one I know well, mow our own lawns. He has a riding mower, my lot has too many trees and tree roots for that. But everybody has a snow blower. After a snowstorm is when you get to meet the other husbands, as we take turns clearing out the fire hydrants.

 

Snow is to go visit if you want to go play in it. Mowing grass is for making your kid sweat.

 

When you grow up in the Northeast or Midwest (I'm from New York), I think you just accept that it gets cold in the wintertime. That's life, you're taught, and you should just man up and deal with it. Like several on this thread, I ran a few marathons and had no problem running in the cold.

But then I lived in south Louisiana for a few years. That completely changed me. I discovered that "It gets cold in the winter" was not a truism, but a lie. It doesn't have to be that way! There are places in this country – with the same currency and TV programming – where it never gets cold!

When I moved back to New York for another nine years, I just could never accept the cold as "just the way it is" as readily. Then I lived in L.A. for five years, and was perfectly content to think that I'd left winter behind forever. If I wanted to ski, for example, then I could easily travel to the snow/cold by choice (a reasonable drive or short flight from L.A.), and then return just as quickly to my warm home when the "winter" fun was over.

Three and a half years ago I moved to Chicago because that's where my business partner lives. Ouch. I've been able to get back to running in the cold. But I don't like it. At all. And if I can move back to where it's warm – all other things being equal – then I will do so.

But hey, if you love the cold, then more power to you. You do you. It's just not for me.

 

True story: I had a relative who experienced dire financial trouble - lost a home and then was struggling to pay his rent and other bills.
I and many others were giving money to help.
With him, his wife, three teen-age daughters and a young adult male living in the residence, he hired someone someone to do the yard work.
And he had a better DirecTv package than I did.

I stopped giving money.