Comments on: Cold

By: Dave

Dave — Fri, 09 Feb 2007 16:43:14 +0000

I think most normal people would go for a mug of mulled cider, tea or cocoa. But of course some of the Society for Creative Anachronism types, who like to drink gruited ale out of drinking horns, heat it up in cold weather as they did back in Mid Evil Tymes. The most authentic way to do that, I’m told, is to insert a red-hot poker for a few seconds. (You just want to warm it, not boil off the alcohol!)

By: Beer Activist

Beer Activist — Fri, 09 Feb 2007 15:12:14 +0000

When I was a kid, I used to walk to school up hill in the snow both ways…

Actually, I have in fact been riding my scooter in the recent cold weather. My face gets pretty frozen cause I have a 3/4 helmet that is open to the air, whereas a full helmet that closes around the neck would completely block the wind and keep my face much warmer.

As usual though, my rationale for not getting the full helmet is related to my favorite topic. Scootering home in the cold makes the beer taste so much better at the end.

By: Dave

Dave — Thu, 08 Feb 2007 04:07:55 +0000

Only 10 minutes? Goddamn.

The wind can be daunting below ten degrees F – it probably helps to have a woodlot to retreat into. I find myself taking longer walks than normal in this kind of weather, though, in part because the air is easier to breathe, and in part because snow is such a rarity these days, i feel an urge to take in as much of the snowy landscape as I can.

By: leslee

leslee — Thu, 08 Feb 2007 02:24:27 +0000

I heard on the radio last week that the average person spends something like 10 minutes per day outdoors. That seems insane to me. Although in the last few days I’ve hardly spent much more than that, mainly given my work schedule. Also it has been too cold to go out without major preparation. Monday I walked up to town to get coffee and though I was covered from head to toe in a down-filled coat and wool scarf and hat, I thought my nose would freeze off. Very windy. Still, it was good to get outside!

By: Dave

Dave — Wed, 07 Feb 2007 15:21:38 +0000

robin andrea – Yeah, I always wondered how the hell girls could stand to wear dresses in cold weather. I guess I figured that was just one of the many & mysterious ways in which they differed from boys. :) For my part, my legs — especially my knees — are among the most cold-sensitive parts of my body. The last few days I’ve taken to wearing two pairs of long johns, one over the other.

Agreed about the need to make people fall in love again with each season, but I’m not sure how to do that. More nature- and place-blogging might be one small but significant part of the puzzle.

Laura – That’s one problem I don’t have – getting out of bed in the morning. I’m such a coffee addict, I usually can’t wait to get up!

I have a theory that the sexiness of fur coats depends upon deeply ingrained bestial/shamanic impulses, but I’ll save that for another time.

Evan – I shudder to think that anything I do might be cool, but yeah, I do still go sledding and I don’t understand why that’s seen as a kid’s thing, when adults can go skiing and skating. I will say that I can no longer sled lying down without my back complaining, so I sit on the back and steer with my feet. I even use an insulated cushion that straps to my belt. So maybe it’s just that sledding doesn’t look pretty when people my age do it.

Zhoen – Maybe you should wear goggles? I have glasses, so I don’t have to worry about my eyeballs freezing, just going blind when the glasses stem up and freeze. That’s why I don’t go cross-country skiing too often.

By: Zhoen

Zhoen — Wed, 07 Feb 2007 13:13:28 +0000

I blame the editorializing of the weather. Anything but 75-85 and sunny is weather to be warned about and apologized for. I pine for the days of meteorologists getting exicited about changes, storms, cold, extremes. “Take a coat” or “Take an umbrella” was advised, but without the additional – “What a horrible day, only 60, and with rain!” Sheesh.

I felt like my eyeballs were going to freeze yesterday morning, but otherwise, I enjoyed my mile of walking out in the icy wind.

By: Evan

Evan — Wed, 07 Feb 2007 05:34:09 +0000

There’s something cool about adults that still do “a bit of sledding”!

My favorite winter thing during college was to go to a stand of trees that was poorly drained and iceskate around them, weaving in and out, cutting cattails in half with the steel blades.

By: Laura

Laura — Wed, 07 Feb 2007 04:36:08 +0000

I agree that all this cold is wasted with no snow – what’s the sense?

I love to sleep in a cold room with the covers drawn tight – don’t love it in the morning though as it makes it even harder to get up and go to work.

I saw the most ridiculous woman at work today – wearing a waist-length fur coat coupled with the shortest of skirts – hello! it’s like ten degrees out! Why not save the innocent woodland creature and wear pants!

By: robin andrea

robin andrea — Wed, 07 Feb 2007 03:08:13 +0000

I love that your parents sleep with their windows open in the coldest temps. We do too (thanks for your comment about that on our blog). When I was growing up in NJ in the 50s and 60s, I remember walking to school through snow and frigid temps. Girls were not permitted to wear pants to school then, and I didn’t always have the most appropriate attire for warmth. I spent the first hour in school trying to thaw my fingers and toes. It had to be a full-blown blizzard to close the school down. I think we all need to be a little tougher, spend more time outdoors, and fall back in love with every season. The cold is beautiful, if you’re ready.

Love your pics, especially that top one. Wow.

By: Dave

Dave — Wed, 07 Feb 2007 00:14:22 +0000

qrr – The fearmongers are at work here.
Yeah. Notice how they always come from Canada, too, these bad air masses? They’re just like terrorists, infiltrating across our borders.

Rebecca – Well, there goes my image of the rugged Mountaineers! Interesting about the calendar situation. I wonder if it’s the same her in PA? I should ask a teacher.

Sorry to hear about your frozen pipes. I had a bit of a scare this morning when nothing came out of the tap in the bathroom, but I propped the door of the vanity open and it thawed within five minutes. I think the fact that they’re PVC rather than copper pipes might help them thaw out quicker – but it’s a good thing I don’t have to take a blowtorch to them!

marja-leena – I’ve started noticing increased sensitivity to cold myself, at the youthful age of 40. But the other thing is, the cold snaps don’t last as long as they used to. If it stays down cold for more than four days, one gets used to it, but anymore the temperature fluctuates so much that one doesn’t get a chance.

beth – The truth though is probably that people who grow up in equatorial regions are the toughest – that’s where the most diseases are. You either develop a strong immune system or you die as a kid.

That doesn’t mean that the cold might not have salubrious effects as well, though. Who am I to argue with the Icelanders? (I wouldn’t. They’d kick my ass.)