It’s finally autumn. Two weeks ago, we had 90 degree weather. It was so hot, they had to cancel the Twin Cities Marathon. It’s the hottest it’s been in October in Minnesota. That lasted for several day, but what climate change? *waves hands*
Now, it’s a balmy 46 feels like 39, and I have my fake fur throw blanket on my legs. It’s cozy, and it makes me happy to look outside and see the leaves changing colors. We had a torrential rain last night, which we needed.
I used to not appreciate autumn. I didn’t NOT like it, but it was the blah season before my favorite season ever. Seriously, winter is S tier. The rest didn’t even rate.
The reason why: I am allergic to everything. Everything. I step outside and I can’t breathe. That’s hyperbole, but not by much. I like to say that the outdoors is fine as long as there is glass between us.
I hate spring and summer. HATE. It’s the beginning of me being wheezy and/or drippy. If I get bit by a mosquito (of which there are so. damn. many), it would swell up to the size of a grapefruit. One time, I was in Taiwan in the summer. Everyone drove scooters, and I would ride behind other people. Mosquitos love me and will ignore other people to attack me.
Side note: This was an issue between my father and me. Mosquitos left him alone, so he did not believe me when I said that I was bitten. Thanks, Dad.
Anyway, back to that summer in Taiwan. I was getting bitten all the time. At one point, I had huge, swollen bites all over my legs. It looked gross, and Ifelt miserable. The last time I got the allergy test where they prick your leg a million times and it swells like a balloon (oh wait, just me?). There were roughly forty pricks and after ten minutes, they had all swelled into each other. It was one, hot, throbbing (and not in a good way) massive welt.
Side note: When I was a kid, I had to get allergy shots every week. My mother did not explain what was happening. She just drove me to the clinic. I got the shot. Then we had to wait twenty minutes to see what happened. Inevitably, it would swell up and be hot–making me miserable. Then we would leave. After several years, I just stopped going.
It wasn’t until much later that I realized (or rather, Googled) what was going on. In a nutshell, they were injecting me with allergens. The theory is that you desensitize someone to allergens by poisoning them with it little by little. Am I biased? Hell, yes. I also didn’t understand why my brother didn’t have to go through the torture. He told me later that he had tested as being beyond help.
My point is that I’m allergic to everything. Everything! My joke is that I’m allergic to everything under the sun–including the sun. There are weird pockets in my allergies, but for the most part, it’s across the board. so of course the spring and summer are my two least-favorite seasons.
You would think in Minnesota, this wouldn’t be a big deal. We hav a a lot of cold and snow. In the last decade or two, though, people have slowly morphed into complaining about winter. I don’t know if it’s because they’ve become more extreme (thanks, climate change!), because we have more ‘noobs’, or a combo of both, but it seems as if no one likes winter at all.
I have often joked that I have opposite-SAD–except it’s true. And it’s not ‘oppoosite’ SAD; I just call it that to be facetious. SAD is seasonal affect disorder, and theoretically can mean any season. In reality, though, most people mean it to mean being depressed in winter.
That’s my time to shine! Starting now, I become more alive. As the temperature drops, my spirits rise. Once it hits belowv zero, I’m in my element. It’s funny because Gav from RKG is a Vikings fan. He’s been one since he dated a woman from Minnesota. In the latest podcast, he said that he’s coming to MN for the Vkes/Packers game on New Year’s Eve. This is a man who hates being cold. HATES it. He was talking to Rory and saying in a wondering tone, “They heat the stadium! And the walkways in downtown!”
Yes, because you would die otherwise. That was my immediate response, along with, “You poor sweet summer child.” He asked for tips on what to do to survive the cold in Minnesota. I thought, “Don’t come.” I wasn’t being snarky, either. If you are not used to winter and have never been in below-zero temps, yeah, this is going to be quite a shock.
I love it. I love walking outside and being able to see your breath. I love the feeling of crystals forming on my nostril hairs. K and I are polar opposites. She is from Florida and loves the heat. I am from Minnesota and thrive in the cold. When we went out in the summer, I would be lethargic and snappish. I would grump at her as she larked about, stars in her eyes.
On the other hand, when we went out in the winter, I was the one who skipping around and being all perky. She was the one shivering and hunkering down, trying miserably to survive. One time, we were in her car waiting for her car to heat up and she snapped, “Doesn’t the cold make your spine crunch?” Well, no, no it doesn’t.
This was back in the days when smoking was just freshly made not allowed inside. In Minnesota, that meant you had to smoke in the freezing cold. The bar we went to the most had a roaring fire to huddle around as you smoked–and that was it. Not much comfort on a night of -20.
I love winter because I don’t have to worry about heat, allergies, or anything like that. I can luxuriate in the cold, marveling at how alive it makes me feel.