No, sorry to disappoint, but this it not going to be a sexy blog. I had promised my husband I wouldn’t do any as of those although I think they would be a heck of a lot of fun.
t has been so dreary since we returned from Florida. I give myself credit for being extra positive as I have been pretending that it is still warm and colorful outdoors. After sunny Florida for two weeks, it is getting impossible to ignore that I live in a gray, cold and unforgiving climate. There is nothing temperate about it!
I drove up to our lake home the other morning to check on a few things and do some cleaning. The fog was everywhere during the one hour drive. I took two of the grandchildren with me and one was whining the whole time in the car. It made me so depressed, that I stopped at a convenience store and bought them chocolate milk and ice cream at 10 in the morning - please do not tell my daughter. When we arrived at the house I gave the five-year-old a can of Pledge and a rag and let her spray and wipe down the furniture. The whining immediately ended. It has occurred to me a day later that the Pledge might contain some of that 'happy gas' - please don't tell my daughter about that either. And the good news, is that my coffee table has so much oil on it, that it should withstand an entire summer of spills without staining.
But honestly, we could not even see across the lake because the fog was so thick. Trying to be somewhat instructive, I began to ask the kids questions about basic meteorology. They knew all the answers and that lesson took about 30 seconds. We had realized the full value of fog.
It’s no wonder that people up north and in the Midwest have such a serious problem with seasonal mood disorder. The day is short and the color palate only contains shades of grey and brown - days are frequently dark and dismal. There are certainly no flowers or flowering bushes to break it up. It takes a lot of work to stay happy and active. No wonder we are so sedentary.
I think the trick to avoiding the vacation backlash, is to not get lulled into fantisizing that the vacation weather will continue when you return. I made that mistake. I sunk into the joy of daily power walks in gym clothes and reading outdoors in the shade. I rejoiced in eating colorful, fresh fruits and vegetables. I even began to think that it was almost spring up north. I will never be tempted to do that again.
Yes, the groundhog may not have seen his shadow and it may be almost 6 weeks till my daughter's birthday (when the tree buds always open), but in the meantime, I am keeping my winter clothes close by and not letting my mind drift back to 70 degree weather and walking on the beautiful Miami Beach boardwalk looking out at the ocean every day. Bah Humbug!
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