I do not like Northeast winters.  I won’t use the word hate since it is such a strong word.  But on second thought, I hate Northeast winters.  I am definitely not a fan.

The Tuesday before Thanksgiving was a beautiful day – dry and not too cold.

As the day drew to a close, this was the view I had.  Life is good.

Then I went to bed and this was the view I woke up to.  Life is not so good.

And I knew winter had arrived early.

Why do I not like (okay, HATE) northeast winters so much?

– I hate wearing bulky clothes.  I don’t mean I like running around naked.  I mean I am happiest in a tank top and shorts.

– I hate wearing all the layers in the winter and feeling like a sausage.  A stuffed sausage.  No pun intended, Pinot and Lokie.

– I hate wearing scarves, hats and mittens.  

(I just realized I am using the word “hate” too much when I was trying to avoid it.  I don’t want to be a hater.  Forgive me).

– I’d rather sweat than freeze.

– I’d rather run around in flip-flops than in thick thigh-high socks and boots.

– I’d rather go to the beach, than ski down a slope (skiing and I don’t mix.  As a ballet dancer, I naturally turn out.  Have you ever tried skiing down a slope turned out?  I don’t recommend it).

– Snow is only pretty when it first falls.  Then it becomes slushy, dirty and wet (did you know snow is wet?) and gets inside my boots, soaking my socks and making me miserable and wet.

– Snow always messes up my plans.  This is great if you are a kid and get a snow day, but not so great when I have a million places to be and can’t get there because I can’t get my car out of the driveway.

– I don’t like (see, I avoided the word hate this time) wearing turtlenecks, or in fact, having anything around my neck.  I once cut the neck out of a turtleneck my mom gave me because it was choking me, therefore defeating the entire purpose of a turtleneck.  My mom never gave me another turtleneck again.

– I don’t like driving when it is snowing hard and when the roads are slick as ice and slippery.

– I don’t like shoveling snow.  Okay – I’ll admit that it’s usually Jim that shovels snow but I know he doesn’t like it either so I don’t like it for him.

– I hate (oops, slipped again but this time I really do mean it) that it gets dark so early.  I need sunshine and daylight.

– I worry about all the feral cats that are living out there in the snow and freezing cold.

– I worry about all the poor dogs that careless or heartless people leave tied up outside to freeze to death.

– I worry about the ducks and swans and any and all wildlife that I see out there in the cold.

– I spend too much time in the northeast winters worrying about poor animals out in the freezing cold that I become a less productive human being.

There are many more reasons why I am not a fan of northeast winters.  If you love northeast winters, then please tell me why and try to convince me to like it even a little bit, because if the weather so far is any indication of the winter we are about to have, I may just up and run away to Hawaii.

I know I keep threatening to run away, but this just might be the year that I really do!