That is so true, gave me a good LOL. I don't wear a coat half the winter.

Nancy

I grew up in Ohio and went to college in Michigan, so I can relate. DH grew up in a freezing Jersey victorian and wears shorts around the house year-round. He'll be outside with the dogs in a foot of snow with a parka, boots and shorts LOL.

I also hate wearing coats and only do so when the wind-chill is really bad.

Sue

Annie, that reminds me I had to laugh at something you said in a thread about jeans. You said you have LLBean lined jeans but they're way too hot to wear indoors. I live in them all winter!

What a giggle. Yeah, my son from CA won't come to Philadelphia in January because he might have to endure weather in the low 30's.

When I went to Syracuse U I had swimming in gym class. By the time I got to the next class in another building, my damp hair was frozen solid.

Oh, I see now! So that's why you won't come to our hot and humid North Carolina, Annie? LOL! Y'all are hardy folk up there in Michigan, aren't you?

Teresa

Teresa, any temperature above 80 and I melt. I just hate it, I'm hot, crabby and uncomfortable. I hate summer even in Michigan!

My theory is that I can always put more clothes on but there's only so many you can take off. LOL

annie

Annie, I am like you. Give me the cold over the hot any day. However....I am sick of THIS particular winter. Too much cold, and too much precipitation. I want spring. then skip summer and go right to fall.
Sher

LOL Annie.

I can't handle hot OR cold, that's why I live in coastal CA. Last time I visited my family in Maryland it was freezing cold. I did not want to go outdoors at all. Then the summer visit to Austin was sweltering. I think I did a bit better with the heat than I did with the cold. The cold makes my nose run non-stop, my eyes tear up and turn red. I seem to do better in desert-dry cold like in Vegas or Reno.

When I was a teenager I think I had blood sugar issues because I would regularly semi-pass out in the heat.

The coldest I have ever been was winter in Florida about 10 years ago. I getting my Scuba certification in December--duh! It was 27 degrees and I didn't have a wet suit. It was okay while in the heated pool, but every time I had to get out and the cold air hit me...OMG!

I know what you mean. People here start to complain about it being cold when the temperature drops below 32°. Having lived in Northern Ontario where 40 below is not uncommon, I never think that it is cold here. Most years I don't consider what we have as even winter. Just a long fall or early spring. Annie, just be thankful you live in Michigan. I think that there are a few other States that are colder. I don't remember Michigan being much different than Toronto in the winter, but I do remember getting a bit more snow there.

I don't mind this bitter cold all that much. I'm with you Annie, I start to hate the weather when it begins creeping over 75. I can't stand heat and humidity. There's nothing wrong with the cold if you dress appropriately, a good coat, good boots and mittens preferably over gloves. Had the dogs out for a walk this morning, it was 3 deg.. (-16C.) then we (Ben & PIP) got in the car and drove over to PetSmart for a look-see because it's their favorite store, over to Home Depot etc.
BTW I found a brand new Down filled winter coat, Eskimo style fur rimmed hood, made in Canada at Value Village and it only cost me $25. I couldn't believe my luck. It's toasty warm.

I say we northerners need a road trip down south. Both linda's meet at my house, we grab Annie, Nancy and Sherri and go to Cathy's, Donna's or Shauns. Who did I miss?

I am stitting here wearing long undies, a t-shirt with sweats over it, heavy socks and sneakers.I have had it with cold, snow and shoveling. The dog can't walk so a trip to PetsMart is his outing as he is bored. No squirrels or rabbits to chase in the garden as they are bedding down too.

Don't get me wrong, I hate heat and humidity unless i can sweat freely and not care. I hate over heated homes/office. My house is at 68 day/62 night. But I am getting too old for -15F with windchills of -45.

Hey, it could be worse. Embarass MN has a high of -40F yesterday.

LOL!!!! That is funny! We went to Michigan every year when I was a kid - in the summer, thankfully!

As long as my feet are warm, I'm good. I wear hubby's "hunting" socks around the house. I wanted that blanket with the arm holes but Santa didn't bring it - LOL.

So you call them snowmobiles up there - good to know!

I always feel like the "uglies" in January. Dry skin, hair, unshaven legs...(to keep warm, of course:)

Annie,
Your post was very timely (and very funny!). Last week we went to visit Mom back in Detroit. As a lark, we drove up to the Leelanau Peninsula. It was beautiful (and very snowy)! And as I was determined to think like the Michigander I used to be, I refused to think of the 20 degree weather as anything but "balmy"!

Hilarious!
But seriously, put me in the group that can stand the cold MUCH better than the heat/humidity. Sheesh! I wilt at 80+ degrees with 80% humidity!

Mittens, coat, scarf, silk long johns, all needed accessories if you ask me!

Alexa

True about the heat and humidity. You can't be a wimp and live in South Florida during the summer!

Okay Peppi, I just went in the guest room and all is ready. And I'm sure Beau won't mind if I tell you where his "secret" bed is (as he calls the sofa bed). But, you know the drill.

I'm another who would rather shiver than sweat. I never feel worse or more lethargic than in humid weather. Somehow I feel more trapped in the house with the AC than with the furnace running.

Right now our high temps are predicted to be about 20 degrees (F) below normal. My office is comfy. When I get home I wrap myself up in my old afghan, put on heavy socks and I'm fine.

I'm always glad when the days get longer and the sun is still out when I leave work. Right now I just make a beeline for home and hunker down.

That is so funny, Annie, and yet so true! LOL

I don't like to shiver....at all....PERIOD. I don't like to sweat, either, but I'd rather sweat than shiver like I have been the last month!

-20, -30, -40....it is irrelevant. Once it gets this cold, it all feels the same!

One more day of this arctic blast and the temps will start rising. By Tuesday they predict it will be in the mid +30's! YAY, that's 65-70 degrees warmer than it has been all month!

(Now, where's my suntan lotion....)

Linda

Wow, mid 30's? Here they say next Tuesday is a high of 21 with a low of 15F. I'm only 40 miles from The Lake, so we get that Lake Effect snow too, we've gotten 67 inches so far this year and 54 of that was in December, we set records I guess this year.

Linda, you're gonna have a HEAT WAVE! In the 30s I'd be wearing a t-shirt and turning the furnace down. (snicker)

Annie

Loved this Annie -- made me laugh, and I promptly sent it to my friend who grew up in Michigan, and she loved it too!

Thanks for the smile...
Emily

It is all relative. My sister in Fl. is complaining of the cold, and I had to do a double take yesterday when I passed a graveyard and saw the green tent and folding chairs. Upstate Nyers take the cold in stride, but the outdoor funeral even gave me pause (it was just over zero that morning).
How the heck did they ever dig the grave???
Jo

Jo, it only freezes down about the first foot or foot and a half, if you can chip that away, you can dig under it. Yeah, really. that's why root cellars work so well.

It's official, 72 inches of snow so far this year and still coming down. We needed the moisture after last August's "desert", so I'm not unhappy, the Lake levels are actually UP for a change, which means ground water levels are being replenished.

Mother Nature knows what she's doing, we just might not like it, LOL.

Annie

I do OK in the heat...as long as I have air conditioning.

It started snowing Dec. 17, our neighbor measured 96" by New Years and we've had 10 or 12 inches since. We're in a snow belt but what's odd is they've been socked just as bad down below. And it snowed (a lot)when it was really, really cold, which is also odd.(And guess who had to shovel it?)

Now we're into the January Thaw, but it's barely above freezing, so a slow melt and no flooding, thank goodness. After the Thaw comes Feb. and Mar.... Snow Season, lol.

Still...nothing like the bitter cold winters we spent in the Midwest when I was a kid. brrrrrr.....

I lived in Michigan (Standish, north of Bay City) in the 60's. I remember so much snow that they piled it down the middle of the streets in town and eventually it got so high you couldn't see the traffic on the other side.

When I got married and moved to New England, I wasn't phased by the snow/cold. But now that I'm older, I don't like shoveling the snow so much. So we moved to Cape Cod. I tell my brother who lives further north that we live in Florida compared to him lol!

Although we get snow at times, winters are milder for us because of the ocean.

Annie, I'm like you - I hate the heat and humidity of summer. I just wilt.

seagrass

One thing I like about the budget crunch is they are using less salt on the roads this year. Making heavy use of my 4-wheel drive button.

So cold I don't have to tie Dolly up. Just let her out and she gets busy, has a short run, and then back at the door begging to come in where it is warm.

An interesting counter claim to global warming is the Russians that say a new ice age has arrived.

I've seen colder in my life but not often. Looks like the south is getting a real blast of cold. Was it Christmas Day in '83 I remember Tampa FL being 19 F. with ice on the roads?

: )
lyra

Thank you for reminding me that I hate heat and humidity. I am so cold, cold, cold at the moment. I know many of you are having far colder weather than I am, but I'm still freezing. When I drive, I take turns sticking the fingers of each hand up against the heater.

I have to warm my mugs, bowls and plates in the MC so they don't suck the heat out of the food. The inside of the MC is vented outdoors and it's like the inside of the fridge in there.

I just saw my neighbor go by, out for a jog. More power to her! Okay, I needed to whine because I am cold!

I grew up in the White Mountain region of northern New Hampshire. My family moved "south" to the NH Seacoast area when I was in HS. DH & I built our 1st home in southern Maine (lived there 20 yrs) and now we're back in NH.

Like Annie, I am far more comfortable in the cold than in heat & humidity. I love the outdoors, so it kills me from late July through August to have to barricade myself indoors with AC. I get up super early in the summer so I can walk the dogs, go berry or fruit picking, and enjoy other outdoor activities before the heat sets in. The past two years because of Triple-E threats (mosquitos carrying disease) we've been warned to curtail early evening outdoor activities.

Last week was really cold here -15 w/out wind factor. But I didn't find it intolerable. We had little wind on the coldest days, and it's the wind that gets me.

The only time I got really cold was last month when the ice storm came through & we were out of power for a couple days. All the furniture, rugs, floors, seemed to suck up the cold when we were without heat. No matter how much I layered up, I couldn't get comfortable.

I just came in from shoveling about a foot of new snow. It was fluffy "Hollywood" snow. I don't mind that. Come March when it's usually the wet, heavy, sleety stuff, I have had it with winter and snow removal.

March is my worst month. Seems to go on forever...seems like 2 months. Mud season. Dirty snow. We're not in winter, but not out of it either. I would actually consider a trip to Florida in March.

I had to scrape ice off my car to see to drive to work today... anyone want to remind me what state I live in again please?

Yeah, Bobby, I've been hearing about that. Too bad for the folks who paid for a warm escape. It's as cold there as it is here, although I'm sure you will recover faster than we will.

We're having a bit of a warm up. This means there is slush on the roads. I discovered that the windshield squirter thing in my car is not working! I filled the "tank", but no dice.

Ah well, spring will be back one day.

Bobby I know!

I took little Ricky Dog out to go potty early this morning and I heard *crunch* *crunch* *crunch* - it was the frozen grass as he walked on it! hahaha!

It was in the 30's this morning. Brrr!! But I love it.

dedtired (Pam?)... I've had that happen in a few cars too. On my previous one the motor just broke. The one before that, the hose came unhooked... and I've seen the holes blocked up with wax before too! Can you hear the pump when you push the button? I've never liked those things anyway... they do more to smear the dirt than to clean it off.

I'm not enjoying the weather so much right now... I'm a FL native and this is crazy. Maybe if it happened more I'd be used to it, but I'm a sissy now. Great time for soup and hot chocolate though. The only thing good about this is that the bottled water I keep in my trunk felt like it came out of the fridge this morning! I hope Jasper isn't a kitty popsicle when I get home tonight... the heater in my apartment hasn't been working very well. At least he's got a fur coat on!

I need to go look at 'lectrik blankets!

Bobby -- I went out at lunch today, and voila, the squirter was working. We had a warm-up in the weather and I guess it unfroze. While I was out I checked my tire pressure. They were all very low, so I put air in them and filled my gas tank, too. So my car is feeling much better now.

Hope Jasper is doing okay. Cats just curl up tightly and seem to do fine in the chill. Hope you do, too.

Yes -- Pam!

Having lived for a few years in Fl, I have to say, the cold is almost worse for them. I mean, I grew up in CT and now live in upstate. We have 4 seasons, cold, colder, really cold and not cold. We're pretty much used to it. But in Fl, it can go from 75 one day, to 30 degrees the next.
Much harder to get used to.
Jo

LOL, Jo. Grandpa used to say that Michigan was 9 months of winter and 3 months of bad sledding....

Hey, it's 28F now and the sun is shining, but it's supposed to get down below zero again this weekend. Ah well, my tank heater is keeping the water clear for the stock and Makayla and I can bake something. Cookies seem to make winter so much better. (grin)

Annie

I think that would be "Cold enough fer ya?"
:)

This is great, I'm going to change Michigan to North Dakota and send it to my Californian sister.

The only one I'd quibble with is the snowmobiles. I hate the creatures, but I live in the country and based on the awful noise, they start just fine at 30 below (and colder)!

Ann