Air We Go Again

Things I look forward to about winter during another 90+ degree late summer day, the sixth in a row

• Cozy sweaters
• Sweatpants
• Wool socks
• Slippers
• A pot of soup or stew, bubbling away for hours, filling the house with nourishing smells
• That same soup for lunch the next day, when it tastes even better somehow
• Scarves
• Mittens
• Comfy knit hats
• Christmas decorations
• Old Christmas movies
• New Christmas movies
• Christmas TV specials
• Christmas-themed cooking shows
• Christmas music
• Christmas cookies
• Eggnog
• A fire in the fireplace
• A fireplace on television
• Deep-fried turkey
• Morning coffee that warms my soul rather than making me feel like I’ve just stepped out of a sauna
• Tracking an incoming storm
• Getting up early, layering up, and heading out for a jog before the snow starts falling
• Planning an impromptu holiday when a blizzard keeps us inside
• Waking up the next day and seeing, out the window, a landscape of uninterrupted glittering white
• Cozying up under a blanket on the couch after the sun sets at 4:30, because what else are you supposed to do?

Things I will curse when winter actually arrives

• Snow removal
• The people who refuse to do snow removal, creating patches of impassable sidewalk
• Coming in from snow blowing somehow both cold and sweaty at the same time, and also stinking of gasoline
• The snow melting, refreezing, hardening, turning to slush, and getting dirty with mud and dog piss
• The terrible cold moment between getting out of the bath or shower before you can get into your robe
• Being late the first time leaving the house after a snowstorm because you forgot to clear off your car
• Freezing your fingers off trying to air up your tires, low from the cold, at the gas station while six big trucks lumber angrily behind you

But hey, at least with one of these, that last one won’t be so bad, right?