Why I Love Winter

Yes, I know you all think I'm crazy, especially given today's record high. But those of you who have been around me since the end of baseball season know that I am quite fond of the December thru February months.

With that being said, I have been woefully mournful of this premature end to Winter '08-'09. Why, do you ask? Why am I walking around with puppy dog eyes and a pouty face in this gorgeous weather? It is because last winter, I did something that I had wanted to do since I was 18 - I learned to snowboard. And because I didn't completely hate it (in fact, one might say that I love it), I purchased a gorgeous snowboard. And boots. And bindings. And they all look so pretty together. A 13-year-old even told me that my board was "pretty sweet" whilst in line for a lift at Cascade last season.

And I have had the opportunity to use said gorgeous board three times this winter. Three. That's it! And one of the times hardly even counted, as I got 5 runs in (plus 3 hours in the lodge bar... [lift tix + beer / runs ratio = $8.89]). And that was the day that Christy got hurt while rescuing me from the saber-toothed zebra gator and we discovered that my bindings, although slick and shiny, can be less than reliable at times.

At any rate, part of my thought process in purchasing the gorgeous board set-up last winter was the rationalization that I would be able to "earn" the value back by using it 10 times in one winter and thereby saving $ on rental fees (that can run $30-$50 per day) . BUT when the board sits in my apartment, leaning against the wall and collecting dust and making my eyes water whenever I look at it, I cannot 'earn' back any of the money I have put towards this aesthetically pleasing investment. Darn it.

Why snowboarding, you ask? Well, I have never been one for sports. Ok, I have never been one to consistantly stick with sports for a prolonged period of time. I have a bike and rollerblades that I use somewhat frequently in warmer weather. I was part of a softball team this past summer. I'm always up for a pick-up game of football (mud or otherwise). But I've never had one sport that I enjoyed enough to commit myself to, until I tried snowboarding. I now want to do things on a snowboard that I never thought I'd be able to do, like go off jumps (without getting a concussion). It's quite strange for me, as I cannot recall many things I have felt such a passion to learn.

A few of the other reasons I love winter: Snow is gorgeous. It makes everything look clean and new. I don't mind driving in the snow. I LOVE to shovel the snow (really)!

One of my favorite times is right after a big snow, when the city is quiet and nobody is really going anywhere, and those who do choose to travel usually do so by walking down the middle of the road, because the sidewalks haven't been cleared yet. It is at this time that people are neighborly and greet each other with a smile. It is on days like these where we realize that there still are things left that are beyond our control, no matter how much we try to fight them.

So there you have it. [I apologize that the ending to this post is a bit abbreviated, perhaps I will fix it later.] A friend pointed out to me today that tomorrow's forecast is for rain/snow mix, and it will be in the 30's again by the weekend, with flurries predicted for Sunday. This helps a little, but my longing for the 99 inches of snow Milwaukee beheld last year can hardly be quelled. And so, I will wait. (At least I have 21 Brewers games to look forward to in not too long...)