I don’t ski, I prefer flowing peasant skirts to itchy turtlenecks and I dry heave at the sight of inflatable Christmas lawn decorations. But winter’s here, so I’ve got to make the most of it.
Before you call me a Scrooge, please note that I’m doing my best to think positive. In fact, I even managed to put together a list of a five wintery things that don’t suck. No “chestnuts roasting on an open fire” here – just simple joys that keep me going from December until March.
Actually, that’s more like early May, because you never know how long the snow will fly in Erie.
1. Flavored, holiday-themed coffee creamer
Call me a sucker for marketing, but if Coffee Mate slaps a candy cane on the label and calls it “holiday macchiato,” I’ll be first in line. I always abandon my preference for black coffee and dump in the caramel apple or peppermint mocha creamer for the winter months.
There’s a certain urgency about holiday coffee creamers – get it now, or it’ll be gone by February! – when we all know that the flavor usually ends up assimilating into the company’s normal line of flavors within a year. Nevertheless, I indulge.
2. Hockey season
Ever since I attended a Pittsburgh Penguins game over fall break, I’ve been intrigued by the sport. Since then, I’ve impressed my friends at the bar by dropping phrases like “Gordie Howe hat trick” in an oh-so-cavalier fashion. I swear I’m a pacifist at heart, but when Deryk Engelland takes a swing at someone, I just can’t help but release my inner Roman gladiator.
3. Winter food
Although they’re always delicious, ham and mashed potatoes don’t taste nearly as good in July. Neither does homemade soup. Why? The world will never know.
4. Bundling up
Go ahead, make fun of my ear-flap hat. Same thing goes for my faux-fur-lined puffy vest. You won’t hear me when I tell you they keep me warm and toasty, since your ears will have flaked off from frostbite. Abby – 1, freezing temperatures – zero. I am a champion.
5. Christmas home movies
I’ll never pass up an excuse to laugh at my dad’s old, thick-lensed glasses that took up half of his face, or my sister’s and my matching Lion King pajamas. In our defense, Nala print flannel was so in vogue at the time.
Perhaps the most warming thing of all about winter is its tendency to make you stay inside with the ones you love. And that’s enough to make me tolerate – if not moderately enjoy – the season.
