the few, the proud, the frozen

Typically, a post about weather would be quite boring. But, I think a little ditty on Minnesota winter weather deserves a post. After all, when we talk about Minnesota winters, we are talking about life on the frozen tundra: bone-chilling temperatures, heavy snow, and the crazy people who choose to put up with it for 6 months out of the year.

The past couple of weeks have had me questioning my decision to move back here, to the land of the few, the proud, and the frozen (a sweet little motto used around these parts to describe a winter running race, but I think it applies quite well to our State's population as a whole). We've been bombarded with below freezing temperatures, many snowfalls, sleet, and ice. For the past week we've been waking up to temperatures hovering around negative 15 degrees, with the daily highs reaching a balmy negative 5 or so. Hello, folks, that is cold, even for this Minnesotan.

Poor Miles has to put up with the bundling and unbundling of about 5 layers everytime we go outside. He has so many clothes on, I can't even find his arms or hands once he's in his cocoon. He's like a tiny precious jewel wrapped in a giant mess of fleece and puffer jacket and all I can see are his eyes and the tears streaming from them as he protests the whole winter dressing routine. I would take a picture of the bundled boy, but it's just so heartbreaking to see him in that amount of distress. I can't bring myself to do it.

I am happy to say that my snowtires - the ones that we put on a little over a week ago after a minor fender bender woke us up to the reality of another season of winter driving - are working like a charm. Unfortunately, it doesn't matter how fancy your tires are, or whether you have 4-wheel, all wheel drive, or all terrain whatever, nothing is a match for black ice. So, when we received frozen rain on Monday (during a 12 hour warm-up) that turned into black ice, and then received several inches of snow on top of that, it made for a messy commute. After yet another snowfall this evening, it took me two hours to get home after work. It usually is a 45 minute round trip to go pick up Miles and then head home again.

Why do I live here again? Oh yeah, I remind myself of the goodness of being around family, the quality of life here in the Twin Cities that, in my opinion, is unmatched anywhere else, and yes, that after the madness of rush hour is over, when all is quiet, when the snow is still falling in big fat, fluffy, fabulous flakes that glitter in the glow of christmas lights lining the city streets, and you notice, while out for a quick trip to the grocery, that you do in fact, live in a land that resembles a beautiful wintry scene straight out of a snowglobe. That is reason enough.