I spent a good part of the day decorating the house for
Christmas. I also spent a good deal of time shovelling snow. We are gripped by
an evil bitch of a winter storm, with high winds, low temperatures and 20 to 30
CM of snow. It is a winter wonderland if you don’t have to go outside at all.
I used to revel in winter, give me lots of snow, cold and I
would play or work outside with hardly any complaints at all. I don’t know what
happened; perhaps I have become too used to warmth and comfort. Perhaps I have
visited places in the world that are warm all of the time just a little too
often. I don’t know why, but pretty much from the first hint of winter I am
counting down to the first hint of spring.
It’s a pretty stupid attitude for someone that lives in a
place that has seen snow in every month of the year. I made a pact with myself
that this year I will attempt to recapture the joy of winter. Today was the
first test, and I have to admit that I failed miserably. I made sure that the thermostat
was set to “Ken WARM” and kept checking it
throughout the day. I sat in front of the TV with hot tea or hot chocolate,
covered with a blanket and a warm dog on my lap. I was warm, but not warm
enough to suit myself.
Every now and then I would reluctantly get off of the couch,
pull on a few layers of coats, a pair of boots and shovel the drifts that had
built up since the last time. I have one more opportunity to embrace the season
before I go to bed tonight. Can you call it “embrace” if you attack it with a
shovel?
I will frolic in the winter wonderland tomorrow; tonight I
will snuggle under the covers and dream of white, sandy beaches.
