It's cold down here

It has turned cold and, for anyone from the southern US, it doesn't take much temperature drop for us to start complaining. While blizzards blow and transportation comes to a standstill further North, we're usually still walking around mid-day in short sleeve t-shirts and shorts because our weather patterns usually don't turn on us until later in January, if then, and only for a short while. I've seen snow only a few times in my life and only twice when we were able to make decent snowmen. Of course, by the time the snowmen were built, we'd exhausted the lawn's supply of snow or else it was already melted away. While we may battle endless mosquitoes, dreaded humidity, and exhausting heat, it's still preferable to the icy north winds simply because it's what we're accustomed to. So, when it's cold, our cold may be anyone else's comfort level. I've seen people who've migrated from the North walk around in our coldest weather with a light jacket or none at all while my teeth are chattering and I'm muttering under my breath. People here tell me to "put some fat on my bones," but I find the cold little reason to add extra layers of fat when I can layer my clothing instead. The problem is, the layers just don't seem to do the trick.

One problem I have with the cold is TMJ, that irritable problem you sometimes encounter with your jaw (s). I suffer from it mildly but I have to watch how I sleep, make sure I don't prop my chin in my hand or talk on the phone with it pressed to my shoulder, and I have to make certain to keep my jaw relaxed in the cold. That is difficult to do because, as soon as I get cold, I grit my teeth. This, in turn, causes stress on my jaws. It's a vicious cycle.

Another issue I have are the drafts which circulate inside this older house. Depending on where I'm situated in the house, I'm either freezing or suffocating due to the inadequacies of the central air. There is no comfort zone and the thermostat regulates terribly. If you don't hit just the right mark on it, the air either stays off for too long or on forever. But, it's still better than standing out in the cold.

My last complaint is static electricity. There's something about my chemistry which encourages the creation of the stuff. I get out of a car, which I do off and on all day, and I get shocked. I walk into the post office, I get shocked. I enter a store, the same thing happens. I touch a filing cabinet, I cringe. It's so bad that I tentatively approach any metal surface and touch it with the tip of my finger before grabbing hold. This, of course, slows progress if you have others in behind you. Sometimes it's downright painful and sparks will fly, but most of the time it's just startling, therefore I'm constantly seen jerking or jumping as if I'm having a fit. And you might know everyone else thinks it's funny. Any suggestions on how to stop it?

Oops! Thought of another one. Northern drivers beware if you come to the south during winter. Southerners do not know how to drive on icy roads. We just aren't prepared. We know absolutely nothing about heaters for our engines or chains on our tires. What we do know is the number to just about anyone with a 4-wheel drive truck and, since there are plenty of hunters, there are plenty of 4-wheel drive trucks with mudder tires rambling the roads as if they're rich as Arabs with the amount of fuel they must be consuming. I must admit that they're quite generous fellows, though. If they see you in trouble, they stop to help. Come to think of it, I'm not sure if it's generosity or plain old glee at getting to put their 4-wheels to the test, especially if there's mud involved. It's probably a mixture of both really.

Don't let me make you think I don't like the cold. We often wish for snow since it's such a foreign item. We have different sunsets due to the time change. I love the quiet which comes with winter and the brightly colored deciduous trees peeking from the pines as the cold signals it's time to shed their leaves. I love the scents rising from chimneys and across the breeze. I love a reason to rotate slowly in front of those fireplaces as if I'm a chicken on a rotisserie. Since we're ill-prepared for ice storms, they're a good excuse to get out of school or work and even the occasional winds that blow tree limbs on the power lines give us an excuse to light the oil lanterns and get reacquainted. There are positives and negatives to each season, I suppose, just as there are to each region. While we may curse the cold, we're going to do the same when the heat rises beyond what we think it should. Maybe we just have to have something to complain about so that everything else seems okay. lol

I wish for you clear roads, mild winds, and days filled with love and laughter.