Dreary Weather
I am totally spoiled when it comes to cold weather. I grew up in New Hampshire and as most of you are aware, the cold, icky, wet weather in the Northeast lasts a majority of the year. Spring does not usually kick in until late April, the summers get unbearably hot until the cool, wet fall weather picks up in mid-September, which slowly turns to winter in late December, and so it goes. I remember having white Christmas’ when I was younger and seeing the snow flurry down on the deck with our decorated tree in the foreground, but less white weather around Christmas time as I grew older and moved from high school to college.
When I would visit Ryan in California during my long Christmas break from Wheaton (they gave us the whole month of January off), I would wear shorts and flip-flops every day because the sun was always shining and the air always warm.
Now that I am living in California, I have become accustomed to wearing a t-shirt and jeans everyday, unless the temps get close to 80 or 90, in which case I’ll wear a tank-top and shorts and almost always flip-flops. Jackets are part of your outfit here, and never really worn to keep you warm. It does rain in the winter time and sometimes it comes down hard for days on end, but then all the mountains turn to a lush green the minute the rains cease and it almost makes the dreary downpour worth while. I have grown accustomed to it being warm and enjoy the 70 degree weather, so when it gets any cooler, I tend to bundle up.
I used to have really thick skin when it came to going outside in 50 degree weather in New Hampshire. My mom and I would break out shorts and flip-flops the minute the skies cleared and the sun started to warm the ground and melt some of the snow that was still all over. We made the most of the sun, whether the temps were high or not. These days, if it is not 70 degrees, I ditch the flip-flops, shorts and tanks and go to sneakers, jeans and a t-shirt with a sweater in hand. I feel like such a wimp.
I was home for Thanksgiving last year and while it was sunny and mid-70s in California, I somehow thought that it would be the same in New Hampshire…I was sorely mistaken. I packed light because I did not want to check a bag and the lovely blouse I chose to wear for Thanksgiving dinner was not even made of cloth, but two layers of a white netting and I must say, I was freezing! It constantly drizzled outside the whole time I was there and I wore my pea coat everyday, even in the house! My mom and older brother made fun of me. I used to be like that, making fun of my husband (boyfriend at the time) when he would bundle up in my house when he would visit me for the holidays. But now I fear my blood has thinned. I can not help it, I get cold so easily now.
Today it has turned surprisingly dreary. The past few days, the temps have dropped from the 99 degrees it was a week ago, to the current 65 and rainy. I woke up with a killer headache, which I am blaming on the wet weather. My back gets really tight when it rains, as if I am already 70 years old with stiff bones. The headache was constantly on my mind (excuse the pun) and as a result, I was all over the place this morning, not able to follow my routine and thus forgot to grab a coat from the closet before leaving the house, despite thinking about it while getting dressed.
Right now I am sitting at my desk at work and am fortunately not experiencing the ick that is outside due to the lack of windows. But Fridays are the days Ryan and I meet for lunch at our favorite spot, Pomodoro, and we both get spaghetti and meatballs. I dread going outside, running from car to restaurant, but know that the final destination is a steaming bowl of noodles.
