I never doubted that I was a winter person. At least when faced with the ultimatum of living in a place that's too cold or too hot, it was a no-brainer: of course, too cold! Hot weather is horrible. You have to take 4 showers a day just to not feel disgusted in your own skin. Most of your clothes become unwearable and everyone starts becoming very insecure about their bodies. Skin cancer is everywhere.
But perhaps I was guilty of romanticizing wintriness because I grew up in a place where it just plain rained all the time. Getting snow was something of a rare treat. Well, we've had way more snow up here this January and February than in previous years combined, I'm pretty sure. And I think snow fatigue is setting in.
The worst are the mornings because you wake up cold and you know that you have to walk all the way to school. Even if you take the day off and stay in your room, your toes are probably going to be icy as you sit at your desk and feel that draft wrap itself around your ankles. Or you could stay in bed, but then you'll fall asleep and accomplish absolutely nothing. You don't even want to get dressed because you're tired of wearing turtlenecks and scarves. It's like your neck is begging to be liberated from all this scratchy woolliness. But sorry neck, I can't grant you that wish.
When you finally do make your way outside, your whole body tenses up, especially your upper back and neck area. Your muscles are probably going to be sore from all this. Maybe that can substitute the visit to the gym that I was never going to make anyway? If the soundtrack of crunching snow and salt isn't that aurally pleasing, you could listen to music to pass the time. But you better have a good playlist ready because you're probably not going to be taking your phone in and out of your pocket to change songs since your gloves make your hands useless, and taking them off is just inconvenient.
At last, you're at school or wherever you wanted to go! But now, you're overclothed. Those leggings under your jeans that kept your thighs toasty warm now feel like sausage casings defrosting on summer's window sill. Your thick socks and boots mean that your feet will be swampy all day. Your scarf is just one more thing that you're probably going to lose unless you have your head on straight.
Oh but what's this above? It's children having a gay old time sledding down the hills! Let's go join them! But oh wait, I don't have a sled. What's that you say? Wrap a garbage lid in plastic and make one yourself? I'm qualified to do that! Except nobody wants to go with me, not even my roommates. I guess I could go by myself... if I had that irresistible urge to be the saddest sight in a 5 mile radius.
But I'm not just going to hate all day. Winter storms and polar vortexes do have their perks. Like that hot shower in the morning that stops your teeth from chattering. Or snow days that wipe out that terrible Thursday when you have a stack of classes in a row. Or how nice snowflakes look when they're backlit by streetlights outside your window. Or how a few inches of this white stuff can magically become your guilt-free excuse to not go out at night and instead, just read that book you've been shelving for too long or that movie that you've always meant to watch. Now that I think of it, Janus and her wicked stepsisters have probably been a big boon to introverts everywhere.
Yeah, still a winter person.
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