It's a comfy 14 degrees outside today. It was 11 degrees when I left the house at 7:30 this morning.
I work with one particular attorney who hates nothing more than to hear others complain about the weather. He says to me today "I don't understand...why...when people know that winter is sometimes wet, sometimes cold, sometimes windy...why they still complain about it - as if they didn't expect it." I said "for the same reason that people complain that they have to get up early, even though they've been doing it their entire lives." Knowing that an unpleasant thing is going to happen doesn't make it any more pleasant when it actually does happen. Nothing can ever prepare you enough for something that is going to suck.
And let me tell you, in case you happen to live in Arizona or Los Angeles or Florida, how VERY unpleasant 11 degrees is, since I know that you folks don't know anything about it. I grew up my entire life on the west coast, and even in the coldest places I've been in Oregon, I don't think I ever felt 11 degrees. I'm sure to those in Siberia or Alaska, or even Canada, 11 degrees is laughably warm. But for me, still a newcomer to the east coast, it is not okay for it to be this cold outside. It is an inhuman cruelty of nature. And it's not even 0 yet.
My friends here at work tell me that the midwest is seeing record lows. Something like 45-50 below zero??? NO. How do people live in that? It's no wonder all those states are so conservative leaning! I'd be a bastard too if I had to endure that kind of cold.
Speaking of the other states, I glanced over at a paper that someone was reading on the train to see this little blurb:
NEW BID TO MAKE CITY 51ST STATE
...A bill that would create a commission to study whether the city should secede from New York state will get another hearing soon — after sitting in the City Council for nearly two years.
Would it be too much to ask if we could secede from the rest of the country too? We're already on an island! Oh shoot, I forgot, most of the rest of the U.S. couldn't survive without New York's federal tax dollars! Silly me. *Sigh* I guess it's better to be a part of the U.S. than separate from it anyway. I'm sure Bush would waste no time in adding us to his axis of evil.
Posted by Maria at January 18, 2005 04:37 PM | TrackBackMy son walked to the schoolbus this morning and it was -2 degrees and that was with no windchill. When I picked him up from school today, he thanked me for making him wear his extra sweathshirt, ski hat, scarf and mittens. He complained about them as he was leaving but after that brisk little walk, he realized that his Mommy was pretty savvy with the bundle business. I've lived in the Midwest my entire life and I still complain about the temps but only when they are below 0. I also complain when the forecast is for snow flurries and I wake up to half a foot of snow. 6 inches of snow are NOT FLURRIES. Grrrrrrrrr.
Posted by: Rosemary the Queen of All Evil at January 18, 2005 05:59 PMIt was in the mid-70s here in San Diego; I had to go without a sweatshirt this morning.
Posted by: Mad Mikey at January 18, 2005 06:00 PMWould it be too much to ask if we could secede from the rest of the country too? We're already on an island!
You're already part of the way to Escape from New York....
Posted by: Mad Mikey at January 18, 2005 06:01 PMit's been nippier than usual (30-something this morning) in Houston, but it looks like it's headed right back into the 70's by the end of the week. it's been seesawing like that for the past couple of months. and my mother wonders why I'm farking sick all of the time.
I just laugh when people complain down here about the cold weather. in fact, we were being seated at Olive Garden last week and the host said, "pretty cold out there, huh?" I said, "I'm from Michigan." "oh, then this isn't that cold for you. well, I'm from Oklahoma, so I know what you mean." I just stared at him. Oklahoma? oh yeah. it's reeeeeally cold in Oklahoma, seeing as how it's one whole state away from TEXAS. jackass.
I think the worst part about winter for me when I lived in Michigan was when it was so cold that it literally took your breath away. you'd walk outside, take one breath, and feel all of the air leave your lungs. it sucked even more b/c I have asthma. bleh. can't say I miss that shit.
Posted by: girl at January 18, 2005 06:55 PMI am on the other side of the state from Rosemary and it is cold! I can't stand this. I know it's coming Maria, but I can never quite prepare for this! Between the flooding and the subzero weather, I am ready for the sun! :)
Posted by: pam at January 18, 2005 08:58 PMI was shoveling snow this morning at 6am..all so Jason could drive to work...ho hum...whoa wait a minute..I think me & this boy got to have a talk..why the fuck am I shoveling snow? haha..I still got a little bit of Georgia blood in me and it's hard on me with these harsh winters...
Posted by: Sandy at January 19, 2005 07:51 AMIt is supposed to be another mid to high-70s day.
*SIGH*
I guess it would have to come to this - sunshine - after all the rain we had...
Posted by: Mad Mikey at January 19, 2005 09:16 AMIts all relative. Humans have an incredible range of acclimation. I spent 8 yrs on the Canadian prairies where the winter averages were about 30º below water freeze and, yeah, at 11ºF we didn't even wear coats if we had to just bop down a couple of blocks to the store for smokes or beer, but now that I've been here in Florida for a year, yesterday's 36ºF felt utterly freezing.
Oh yeah, and tell your lawyer friend to go to hell, whining is an art form which he seems to understand quite well considering he's whining about whiners. :)
Posted by: cul at January 20, 2005 06:07 AMWe had a crazy ice storm last weekend and now it is in the 40s. It feels like summer time, other than the rain and lack of sun.
Posted by: geeekgirl at January 20, 2005 12:05 PMMy mother sure proved me to be a liar. She spilled the beans. My sister IS in porn and ISN'T speaking to me. Silly me.
Posted by: Geoffrey posing as Maria at January 20, 2005 02:25 PM