Thursday, January 15, 2004

Damn, it's cold out there

I've lived through cold weather like this before, but not since I was growing up in western Pennsylvania. January 1985 was particularly memorable: the temperature was 20 degrees below zero for a few days around the time of the presidential inauguration. It wasn't always that bad, but every winter we could count on a few weeks of subfreezing temperatures and plenty of snow. I looked forward to winter. So I'm entertained when it gets cold or snowy in New York and the city threatens to close down completely. But this current Arctic air blast is ridiculous. I actively hate the 4/5 trains now that number of people on them remains the same but they're all wearing so much extra clothing, it's even more crowded than usual. At least I'm finally getting some use out of the sweaters and warm pajamas we used to wear all winter in our old apartment. Our current place has such powerful heating that when it's above freezing outside, we're lounging in shorts like it's the middle of summer. Now that it's cold enough to run the Iditarod down Broadway, our apartment actually feels normal.

It's almost enough to make me wish for summertime heat. Almost.

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