rain, rain, rain, rain, rain, rain, rain, rain

It has rained, or snowed, for the past three weeks without stopping. It's a constant driving rain which seems to have washed away all the joy out of the new year. There is a bit of wind mixed in, to make sure that anyone that was okay with the rain or snow, is just as uncomfortable as the rest of us. The sky has been either grey or black and the sun has only made its presence felt by making the clouds look omnious and poopy. At least the sun is there. Without those glowing grey clouds, I wouldn't know that it was there at all.

Normally, I am not a person that gets depressed by the dreariness of the winter weather, but I know that many people are having a rough time right now. I can hear it in your emails and I have talked to several people on the phone that sound a bit down. It's just a rough spot at the wrong time, for many of you, and for others it's just early onset cabin fever. A wet, grey day means another day of staying indoors. It means having to wear clothes that you don't care if they get wet when you do go out. It's not very exciting stuff.

The first day or two of indoor living is pretty easy and you can find a lot to do and it's sort of romantic to have a reason to be inside. Soup sounds good. So does hot tea, cocoa, coffee or grilled cheese sandwiches. Comfort foods that make you feel warm and dry. Those first few days of indoor living lets you watch TV and not feel guilty about it. You also feel pretty motivated to get some indoor stuff done that you have been putting off; organizing papers, cleaning out closets, rearranging your CDs. It's a healthy few days. But after the fourth or fifth day, you are running out of things to do and you are pissed that you are tracking in mud and that all of your nice clothes are getting soaked and uncomfortable to wear. If it's raining, that means it's not snowing, so you can't really go out and do anything "fun". The rain is too cold to screw in and skis just don't respond the same to rain as they do to snow.

Leaving week one and entering week two, you have had it. There is just nothing on TV, you could care less about laundry, tracked in mud just sits there, filing papers or putting food back in the fridge is just not going to happen. You're depressed. Nothing sounds good and motivation is hard to come by. Friends call you and they sound depressed too. No one wants to admit that they are, but you can hear it. Odd that this sort of malaise would overcome us so soon after the festive season where everything was so chipper and optimism was at an all time high.

Leaving week two and entering week three... Sleeping 14 hours is a no brainer. You find it hard to get out of bed after 12 solid hours. If you have a day off, why get up at all.

We are an active animal. A curious animal and an animal that likes to see change from time to time. In the summer, four weeks of 100 degree heat gets pretty old, but it's not as depressing as winter rain. That's because you can still go outside and have a good time. The day isn't 6 hours long, so you have more time to do nothing, if you wanted too. Summer rain is actually a blessing and it's always a good day when it does.

We need space to roam. Things to do. Places to visit. We need conditions to be optimal so we can do something... Anything. So here are some ideas for all of you experiencing weird winter weather...

1. Learn how to cook. Not cookies. Try to learn how to cook something that requires several hours and several steps to complete. Bread, for example.

2. Learn how to sew. This was mine last year and it's not as easy as you think,let me tell you. You can find a good, basic sewing machine just about anywhere. Learn how to make a shirt or how to make a thick comfy robe that you can walk around and be depressed in.

3. Learn a language. Take this time to learn French(the most common language in the world), German, Spanish, Japanese or English(the hardest). Perhaps some of you could refresh your math skills... this just might be for us weird math people.

4. Start writing. As many of you that have started blogs or that send me clips of your work, I think that many of you could start putting that talent to the test. No more simple line stories. Get a good idea and start rolling with it. When you see my first book, you will see that I started out writing pretty simple stuff and it took me a full six months to a year before any of my writing was where I wanted it. Some of you could take it seriously and actually do something with it.

5. Yoga. I can't stress enough how yummy this is. It's been a while for me, but I miss it a lot. It feels good, improves balance (which most of you need) and it's easy... well, not at first, but it gets better.


I think any of these ideas will validate the short winter days and make the spring time that much more enjoyable. Sadly, winter months are no longer for going outside with a sled in one arm and booze in the other. It's time we view winter as the time we should update our person. Time to download the newer, faster version of yourself. Perhaps you will find something in that Cat in the Hat day that will make your future more exciting and less depressing.

Or maybe the gods hate us and are making us pay... Build an ark, fill it with the animals you like to eat, the people that make you laugh, the people you like to screw, the people with some talents that you don't have... then prepare for the cruise of a lifetime... now isn't that exciting?