The Cold is slowly seeping in. Frosty windshields. Covering plants at night. Wearing long johns and socks to bed. The kitties cozying up with us in bed every single night. The seasons are changing again and we have been subconsciously following suit. Next to Fall, Winter is my second favorite season–the cold burst of air that numbs my hands and face and toes still makes me giddy (can this word ever be used to describe me?) with excitement.
Things I’m looking forward to this Winter:
– spending time with family
– excessive eating
– winter light — makes me feel like I’m in a Dutch painting
– reading books by the fire
– running in the snow (the idea always sounds like a good one, but the reality always proves different, so let’s just say hiking in the snow for now)
– staying in a cabin (especially better in the winter)
– leggings + uggs (you know, just to wear around the house…cough)
– baked goods
– shades of white. and then a pop of color from the most unexpected thing/place/bird/plant/coat
– bars and restaurants with fireplaces (any recs?)
– crunchy snow sound
– frozen waterfalls
– ice cream. weird, I know. but i love ice cream, especially in the winter. ice in my veins, I guess.
– that feeling you get when you walk into a warm building after being outside in the frigid cold, like you are defrosting.
– cozy sweaters (and baggy potato sack sweaters. because I love a good potato sack outfit)
– snow days / pretending to work on snow days but really playing in the snow while casually checking email every so often so as not to be too suspicious. not that i would ever do that…
– sitting against bed, reading something, warming feet by heater vent. winter reading in general is the best.
– visiting museums / touristy dc spots bc there are rarely ever any tourists (nothing like summer anyway) and it feels like a ghost town, which is awesome. also getting spicy hot chocolate at the national museum of the american indian.
– looking through our ornament collection (we try to pick up an ornament whenever we travel — it’s always fun going through our collection and reliving all the memories)
– a weekend trip to NYC (is it weird that I love visiting NYC when it’s cold? again, less people)
– the two cardinals that seem to love the tree beside our deck and appeared every time it snowed last Winter. I hope they come back.
– crisp crisp air. the kind that burns.
– boots, especially my xtra tuffs. i love taunting slush puddles in them. i know one day I will pay for this.
– hot (alcoholic) drinks like “hot toddies” and “mulled apple cider” and “irish coffees”
– end of season sales/holiday sales/pre-holiday sales/anything on sale. go capitalism! (note: this past weekend we checked out the REI sale and I was kind of sad I didn’t find anything. Sly’s words of comfort: “You don’t always have to find something to buy every time there’s a sale.” I wish this were not true).
– snowboarding and ski-huts
– the rare warm(er) day — because it’s always such a pleasant surprise and appreciated a million times more when bookended by cold, winter days
– soups
– trips to the jimjilbang. ps, best time to go is a friday night. make sure to get the hard-boiled eggs (opened by cracking on each other’s head) and the shaved iced dessert. and NEVER go the day before a groupon is about to expire. never.
– sparkly lights, reflecting off the snow
I could really go on and on and on, but I know most people hate Winter. Personally, I don’t get it. I mean, it’s not like I don’t ever feel cold (I just like it I guess?) and certainly I don’t want to wear a sweatshirt every single time I go to the beach (cough, SF), but cold, “crappy” weather is kind of awesome. I know it’s not yet officially Winter. The leaves are still red and some late bloomers are still falling and I’m still enjoying everything Fall (except pumpkin ale). But ask me again in a couple months when I’m posting pix of vintages swimsuits and tropical getaways.
Pretty sure I will still be loving Winter.
PS: Should I just move to Alaska already?
PPS: Kitties make the best feet warmers.
PPPS: How is next week Thanksgiving?
