After a beautiful afternoon winter walk in the freshly fallen, crisp white snow you come in and warm up with a glass of mulled wine in front of a roaring log fire. Then gradually remove each other’s clothes off and enjoy fucking in front of the fire, flames casting shadows as if licking each other’s skin.
It sounds perfect doesn’t it. Sadly, that isn’t the reality of winter for me. Getting up on those cold dark mornings, going out into the frost and scraping the ice off my car isn’t my idea of fun. Nor is standing on the cold platform waiting for my train before sharing a carriage with people coughing and spluttering. Then there’s the walk to work never knowing which is the better option, should I bury my face in a scarf and steam my glasses up with my breath or let my face freeze in the icy wind.
Once I’m at work after the cold, dark, lonely walk I get to shiver at my desk for the next eight or so hours. I work in a beautiful listed building, it’s something that’s straight out of the bank scenes in Mary Poppins, I’m privileged to work somewhere so wonderful yet it is so damn cold. We take it in turns to huddle around the electric heater before I return to my desk near the huge, draughty windows wishing for a glimpse of the clear blue sky and yet all that’s there is the various shades of grey of the neighbouring buildings.
Then when I finally get to leave it’s dark again, the streets are busier and noisier now but it’s the same journey back home again. Biting wind, snuffles on the train and scraping ice off my car before the drive back home. It’s there I get to jump in the shower and attempt to warm myself up, each drop of water feeling like a red hot needle piercing my skin. Finally I get to feel a little more human again but this pattern repeats day in day out like Groundhog Day.
Is winter something I enjoy? Not at all, I yearn to see daylight, I yearn for the feeling of the sun warming my skin. I’ll be so happy when I start seeing the first buds of spring appearing because I know my favourite time of year will be on its way at last.
Jo
Oof – yeah. It sucks to work in places that aren’t heated!!! There’s no central heating in Korea, and the folks who clean school buildings every night open all the windows to let fresh air circulate, so the hallways and bathrooms are always freezing!!! The school decides an arbitrary date to start heating buildings, so there were days when my students would all be wearing their winter coats in the classroom because there was no heat in single digit weather. No fun.
Cammies on the Floor
I do so like your first scenario, it’s how winters should be done. But I’m with you in disliking the cold and the darkness.
Molly
Yep, as Mrs Fever commented on my post, adulting in the winter is not fun.
Mollyx
Indigo Byrd
Sending you some sunshine Bee. Look out for a visual cheer up on Twitter. Indie x