Tuesday, April 28, 2009

The Grass Greener with Other Seasons

We've had four straight unseasonably hot days now, with the temperature hovering between the high eighties and the low nineties for four days straight, and with this sneak preview of summer, I am reminded why given the choice between the heat of summer and the cold of winter, I'd take the cold of winter any day.

Now it's possible that this is just a matter of "the grass being greener on the other side of the fence"; and come next January I'll be whining about how much I detest winters with its frozen toes and short days, but let me at least rationally sort this out. So here's why on a whole, I prefer winter:
  1. You can always add layers to make you warmer. There are only so many layers you can remove (i.e. you can't remove your skin when it gets unbearably hot).
  2. Insects, bees and wasps are plentiful during the summer. 
  3. Home-specific season comfort favors winter over summer. Huddle in front of the fireplace with a hot cup of cocoa at home when it's cold. We don't have a pool, and the though of huddling in front of the air conditioner doesn't seem to have the same aesthetic feel.
  4. Cooking warms the house and hot food helps warm the body in the winter. Yes, in the summer, you can barbeque and expose yourself to searing heat while it's 90 degrees and humid. And did I mention the wasps and bees?
  5. Odors are much worse in the summer heat. Between Sophia's diaper champ and the city odors, we're dealing with some awful scents.
  6. Given that I do a lot of walking during my commute, I need to deal with sweat-soaked-through shirts at work. And the eternal question - do I dare wear short-sleeved shirts to make my walk to work bearable, even if it means committing a workplace fashion faux pas?
So that's my short list. I'll fully concede that for summer, I appreciate the longer days and waking up to sun. Plus, I'm not a skier, so the summer avails me to vacations at the beach which are far preferable than anything I could do locally during the winter.

The truth of the matter is, I'd be very happy with perpetual spring weather. 

1 comment:

nz said...

There you go being ornery again. What is it now ... SADD???