Two women seeking equality in a state where some couples are more equal than others.

Tuesday, February 10, 2015

MI Love/Hate: Winter

I have been a very bad blogger lately. Or really, I just haven't. I apologize to any readers who might have been saddened by my lack of posts. I've been working pretty crazy hours trying to get all of my students ready for their upcoming ACT (plus a couple preparing for the GRE). The last several days have been prioritizing/survival mode.

But I have a moment now, and I want to share with you something that probably won't surprise most of the Michiganders.

I have a love/hate relationship with winter. As someone with a pretty significant case of Seasonal Affective Disorder (where shorter days and lack of sunlight cause mood changes), fall and winter are seasons I dread. However, this year I'm taking a vitamin D supplement, and it has really helped with that. Feeling better in that area has allowed me to reflect on my other feelings about winter.

I love falling snow - if I don't have to be out in it, or even if I'm not going very far in the car. I love the fat, lazy snowflakes, and even the clustered, chunky ones that seems to coat the air with their heaviness. I even love the snow showers and dustings - lately I've found a certain amount of pleasure in my gut feelings about what type of snow we'll have and how much. I find it zen to stare off into them and appreciate how they will cover the greyness and muck in a blanket of soft purity, at least for a few hours. I like the cooler nights where I can sleep with a mountain of blankets and a cat behind my knees without overheating. Sometimes I even like the days that are cool or cold but sunny; something about the juxtaposition pleases me.

And then there are days. I hate driving in snow. Michiganders should know better how to manage slippery roads. They just don't, and Detroit drivers aren't great to begin with (although many of you will say that Boston or DC is worse, those places have reasonable mass transit that offers an alternative, and as such are disqualified). I hate the muck that comes when we haven't had new snow to cover it, and the ice that causes so many of us to slip awkwardly. I hate the days when the wind sears or the temperatures are so low that no matter how well I dress for the weather, the air burns my nose, throat, and lungs. I hate the gloominess, being stuck inside so much, and worrying that my checks will be reduced because of snow cancellations.

In the end, I am mostly thankful for winter. It reminds me that I have strength, and it gives me something to look forward to. In a month or so, my spring bulbs will (hopefully) start to poke their ways out of my patio pots, the sun will come out more often, and the air will freshen up. It will be April before I know it, a time to scheme to visit the Horticultural Gardens at MSU, the Detroit Zoo, even just the tiny park up the street from my apartment. Soon, and very soon, it will be time for asparagus and spring greens, followed by strawberries and then a whole host of other fruits and vegetables. And maybe even an announcement that my marriage does count, after all, in the state my heart belongs to.

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