In the winter of ’08 there were times when I feared I’d freeze to death. That was the first winter after it became hazardous to drive to town for such things as heating fuel and a job to pay for it. Actually since Landlady still had a pack of dogs and was paying me to care for them, I often had money but no good way to convert it to necessities.
The following fall, when Claire lived here, we spent a lot of time at the local thrift store and I became obsessed with stockpiling warm clothing. There are still stacks of unused sweats in my storage shed; it’s kind of stupid.
It’s now Spring, the time of cold mornings and warm afternoons, and I start out all layered up and gradually strip to a t-shirt by noon. The cast-offs end up everywhere and I’m constantly rounding them up. As evenings progress I usually start piling layers on my back again.
This all came to mind this morning when I woke in a t-shirt and wasn’t very cold. Still in a pre-caffeinated state, I actually found myself halfway to the chicken yard before I realized I was outdoors, wasn’t wearing anything warm – and wasn’t very uncomfortable.
Woo hoo! This is the best time of the year! Of course Spring is also the season for wind, and they’re promising 60-mph gusts today…
And here in the sorta-Northwoods, I was outside with my winter coat unzipped. Still on, but unzipped. Two of the five snow shovels went back into storage. Spring is coming…