Good Bye Winter Already

Leaving the shelter of my bed, a space so hollowed this morning to the contours of my body that leaving it feels cold, cruel, darkened and uncomfortable. I touch my toes to the floorboards, inhaling as deeply as I can, breathing in the last of nighttime pleasure, as sunlight and cold floorboards illuminate my still not so morning eyes. A thin promise, in subdued tone, weeds out of the crevasse of winter, cold now falling off my bones as I wrap my hand around a cup of coffee so black its endlessness stretches across my tongue, temptingly narcotic as it saturates my taste buds.

My sneakers are looking achingly lonely and mud – caked from yesterday, as I dare the thought of what is going to be the difference in temperature (this morning) as my sorry little ass braces the thought of whether or not to venture out the comfort of my front door. This winter cannot possibly end soon enough for me. It is -20 degrees here in Cold Spring NY this morning, with 40 mile an hour winds. (Not exactly a paradise in my book)


Perhaps an extended yoga practice today would be a more suiting ritual, as frostbite on cheeks ( I have experienced that one before) never serves one as an added benefit to running in the cold. It is the top area near my cheekbones that always give me the concern.

 By now, you all know how much I love beginnings. And sometimes I can deal with endings too, because they usually lead to new beginnings. In-betweens, however, are impossible to wrap my head around, and after watching fifty - one winters come and go, I am certain that January / February is nothing but an endless in-between.  (the in-between of winter and final spring’s arrival)

Growing up in New York, I learned from a very young age that mid - winter meant still stuffing yourself into your puffy winter gear long after that winter gear has lost its luster. In fact, by soon to be mid - January, everything has lost its luster. The snow is no longer magical—it’s just cold and very persistent. There must be some important reason for the lasting of winter to even exist—and if anyone can think of one, I hope you’ll let me know. Otherwise, I will be eagerly ticking off the last days of January in hopeful anticipation of then speeding through February in hopeful notation of a very early spring. (And I do mean, a VERY early spring, please!) 

The thought of taking my mid life crisis to Europe at this juncture (today) simply drowns me in warmest pure fantasy; in the dark hush of my office space today I will sharpen that thought, keeping warm and spying through travel magazines passionately embracing the thought, maybe, hhmmmm, of an Autumn 2014 trip to Europe with my husband. The passion resonating through that smells, tastes, feels, and sounds like it would be truly earth shatteringly delicous. Groupon today will hold the key to a quick flyaway to Florida for next month, to escape, however briefly, the severity of this ungodly cold NY.