Monday, March 18, 2013

Winter...going, going...

ROSEMARY HARRIS: Okay - it's not gone just yet. And my husband keeps reminding me that it once snowed on Easter Sunday (dang, let's hope that doesn't happen, it would ruin my new patent leather Mary Janes!)

As much as I love spring - and I will be yakking about garden ideas on Wednesday - I will miss winter. (Although I won't miss even the little bit of shoveling that I do myself. That's my house below and it has far too many paths the snowplow guys can't reach!)

I can't imagine living any place that didn't have four distinct seasons and apart from hosting my birthday, my husband's, Christmas, Hanukah, Kwanzaa, New Year's, the Oscars, the Philly Flower Show and Mardi Gras, winter's the time we get to wear great big sweaters and tall boots. Scarves. We can generally eat and drink with reckless abandon since who's going to see it under all those layers?? Thick soups, hot chocolate - go for it! Roberta's cassoulet, Jan's toffee candies - count me in.
But it isn't just the food.

So here they are, The Top Five Things I Will Miss When Winter Finally Ends5 - Wearing my black Uggs around the house. They've been the unofficial signal that I'm home and I aint goin' nowhere.
4 -  Collecting kindling and bringing in firewood. I always feel like Olivia Walton when I do this and - go figure - I love it.
3 - Irish Coffee. Where has this drink been all my life? It's probably fattening, right?
2 - Snowshoeing. My new fave activity (to counteract the Irish Coffee.)
..and the top thing I'll miss when winter ends
1 - Sitting by the fire with Max the dog and a good book.

What about you gals?

HANK PHILLIPPI RYAN: What I'll miss about winter? Ah, sweaters. Big mufflery scarves. I love my plaid flannel "lounge pants."  I love sitting in the big chair with a book and a big fluffy blanket. And yes, indeedy, my black uggs. And no, Irish Coffee can't be fattening. Can it? I mean--it's hot. So any calories would, like, automatically burn off.
Sigh. It is going by awfully quickly, though...

HALLIE EPHRON: I confess, there's not a lot that I will miss about winter.
I'll miss a little:
Homemade soups -- split pea, minestrone, white bean and tomato, black bean and cilantro,
whatever's in the refrigerator...
Roast chicken with roasted veggies.
Medium-dry sherry before dinner.
My wonderful warm quilt.
Yes, my Uggs -- like having permission to wear my bedroom slippers in public.
Not having to shave my underarms? I know, TMI.


ROSEMARY: Sherry before dinner...that's so civilized. I saw that in a movie once...;-)

RHYS BOWEN: Winter, what's that? Oh, you mean snow and stuff. I may well experience a tiny bite of it next week when I'm in Colorado Springs. But being a total wimp, we escape to Arizona for the winter where we enjoy blue skies, the pool, desert sunsets, eating outside. Having grown up in England in a huge house with no central heating I could not wait to escape from winter. Even California is too dreary and wet. I don't mind crisp mountain snow and hot chocolate and big roaring fires, but when we were home in December it seemed that every time I wanted a big roaring fire it was a spare the air day.
But we do make soups in the winter months, and I have oatmeal for breakfast. And Irish coffee is good any time!

LUCY BURDETTE: I'm with Hallie and Rhys, there isn't enough appealing about winter to make me want to endure the pain. Yes, the snowstorms that hit New England looked spectacular in photos. And I wished I could be there--for about a day. Otherwise, it's a Key West winter all the way for me--where we whine a little if it drops below 60...I'll stop yakking for fear I'll get stoned:).

JULIA SPENCER-FLEMING: I've got a pair of snowballs with your names on them, Rhys and Lucy.
I'm laughing at all the Uggs - my pair is tan. We New Englanders know Uggs are for wearing inside, not outside! What do I miss about winter? Definitely the stews and soups. I love winter root vegetables in almost every form. I'll miss what I think of as December snow; when it falls in fat flakes and everything looks so beautiful covered in white. Of course, by mid-March it's all gritty and lumpy, and I can't wait for it to finish melting.
I miss our woodstove fires, even though keeping them stocked is a P.I.T.A. Ro, maybe I'll try to think of myself as Ma Walton next time I'm hauling boxes of wood upstairs. And I'll miss my cold bedroom, which necessitates sleeping tucked in close to Ross. You know which state has the lowest divorce rate, right? Massachusetts. I'm convinced it's because New England spouses have to stick together for body heat.

DEBORAH CROMBIE: We had our little Texas experience with real snow over Christmas--it lasted almost a WEEK! And boy, was I tired it... But I do love our fires, and playing outside with the dogs on a crisp day. And I adore soups. The first nip of autumn in the air and I'm making some kind of hearty soup. Wait, I take that back. The first thing I do is get out the fluffy down comforter.
One more thing--bare trees against the backdrop of winter sunsets.


ROSEMARY: I was about to add that like Ross apparently, my hubby also generates a fair amount of heat but Hallie would say TMI!
Besides, body heat seems to be a distant second to - UGGS! What about the rest of you..what will you miss?

She claims not to be adventurous - but we don't believe her for a minute. Make sure to stop by tomorrow when the adventurous Dana Cameron visits. She'll be giving one lucky commenter a signed copy of her lastest, Seven Kinds of Hell.

22 comments:

  1. You mean there’s something to miss about winter? Let me think about that for a moment. Hhmmm . . . .

    Okay, I’ve given it all the thought it deserves, and there is absolutely nothing I'm going to miss about winter. I don’t need snow and ice to snuggle, the quilt never leaves the bed anyway, and rainy days can be just as deserving of a fire in the fireplace. There are lots of delicious soups still to make and Irish coffee is yum no matter when you have it, so bring on the sun and those warm spring days. I am so ready for the daffodils . . . .

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  2. I miss everything about winter, because we (mid-Atlantic) don't seem to get one anymore!

    I love a fire in the fireplace. We lit a grand total of one this year.

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  3. Ro, it looks a lot like you're reading at atlas in front of the fire! Actually, not so odd, knowing how far you seem to travel from time to time.

    I'll miss the cold crisp sunny air after the snowstorm. There's nothing like it. And I'm a fourth-generation Californian.

    We're supposed to get 6-12 more inches tomorrow. Sheesh. One day before Spring.

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  4. Yes, Reds...if you are in New England prepare for anywhere from 2-14" overnight and Tuesday!!!!! So you won't have to miss Winter yet. We will probably have a nice fire in the fireplace and read! Dee

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  5. We're expecting a little snow today in Wisconsin, too. I'm going to miss a cold bedroom with flannel sheets and my electric blanket. I sleep so much better in a cold room. I'll also miss cuddly cats. Both cats will hop onto a lap and paw at my belly until I lift up the hem of my shirt so they can crawl underneath. They only do it when it's cold, though.

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  6. Say it aint so (more snow) And Good eye Edith. That was an atlas. I'm headed to Mozambique this fall!

    Well if there is one more snow I'll get some more writing done in the next week or so...while I'm wearing my Uggs and drinking Irish coffee.

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  7. Right about now, I admit, I'm ready for spring, although I hear we're expecting snow on Friday.

    I do love winter and I love snow. There's a very distinct "quiet" that comes with snow and I still find it quite magical.

    But I am happy to live where we have four seasons.

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  8. Miss about winter? MISS about WINTER? Are you kidding? Is this a joke? I can't believe you'd even ask the question with another snowstorm looming, my home, yard, and spirit drowned, limp and frozen in this miserable winter of '12-'13. MISS ABOUT WINTER? AAARRRRRRGGGGGGG.

    Well, maybe the fireplace.

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  9. In March, with another snowstorm on the near horizon, this sure is a tease of a question, Ro.

    When spring comes, I will not miss my boots, which I've been forced to wear too many days since December.

    I will not miss my parka. In fact, I'm sick to death of it.

    But I will miss my winter hat.

    It's black. Reversible. Cashmere on one side, fleece on the other. I bought it for $15 at a holiday craft sale from a woman who makes hats out of old sweaters. It's a pleasure to don, even after wearing it day in and day out since November.




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  10. Ro, what an adorable dog!!!!!!!!!!!
    It's a sign winter is leaving here, because the mourning dove is singing on some roofrop in this Manhattan roof maze and as it does every spring, it makes me believe spring is alllllmost here! Thelma in Manhattan

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  11. I hate winter. Nothing about it appeals to me. I make soup all year round. Winter brings lots of stress: I am not supposed to shovel snow, plus it is too easy for me to slip on the ice and get hurt AGAIN, people drive like maniacs...

    And there is just something abnormal about having to put on extra clothing in order to go outside!

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  12. OMG, Hallie--I'm so glad you brought up the TMI thing! Because not having to shave regularly is on my list of things I'll miss too...

    I'll also miss the way the morning light shines into my living room. As soon as the trees leaf out, I'll be in shade.

    Wearing my scarves. I've become quite the expert knotter.

    Boots.

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  13. Rosemary, I'm going to Tanzania in the fall! Wanted to make a side trip to Mozambique, but my husband's not going for it.

    My favorite things about winter are also warming soups, roaring fires, and snuggling, usually under a thick down comforter. And lots of hot tea. But I had promised myself to buy a pair of Uggs slippers, and forgot. They don't really go on sale, either.

    What I won't miss, although we barely had any snow this year, is shoveling our 300'-long driveway. It's a good workout, but still.

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  14. If we put my head instead of your head and took away the dog,we'd look just the same..

    ANd I cannot believe it's gonna snow again.

    But Thelma--we saw doves, too! Two of them, of course, since they always are in pairs. So adorable.

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  15. Hank, if we put your head on my shoulders would that make me tall, thin and gorgeous - 'cause I'm in!

    Karen, where in TZ are you going? hubby and I have been there many times.

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  16. I just checked the forecast - 8 to 14 inches in my part of southern Maine! I'm blaming you, Ro - clearly your Ode to Winter has lured the Cailleach into giving us all another dose.

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  17. I love winter. I even moved to Montana five years ago so I would be sure to have snow !! This year has been a very dry winter for my little part of the state, though it did snow yesterday. I love warm, cozy throws and reading while watching the mountains from my windows. I love warm boots and gloves, comfort food, and knowing that Spring will come, eventually.

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  18. Rosemary, we're going on a photo safari, Ngorogoro, Serengetti, and lots of other stuff I can neither pronounce nor spell.

    Can we talk via Facebook? I'd love to hear what you think about our proposed itinerary.

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  19. Morning light -- Lisa Alber, we have that, too, and it's my favorite spot to have my morning coffee. Like a cat curled up in the sun.

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  20. I won't miss winter, at all! I'm sick of it by this time, especially this year with all these darn blizzards. We finally got a couple of 60 degree days in KC, just as Ben and I left for Boston and another blizzard.

    I can bake and make great soups any time. I've always got quilts and shawls around. And Irish coffee's good any time of year. As far as TMI goes, Hallie--just give up sleeveless tops and you're free in the summer also.

    And I'm so glad to be back online. I've missed my dear Reds and Reds backbloggers. More computer woes for weeks. Last night, I received my new laptop, and I'm thrilled to be back in touch. xoxoxo

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  21. I love winter clothes... all of them -- big sweaters, long woolen scarves. The hat hair I could lose but, I'm sorry, the beautiful hats will always trump.

    I love making homemade chicken soup in the winter. Despite paralysis this is something I can still cook with a lot of help, so whenever Auntie-Mom comes to visit we (she :) make it.

    Winter doesn't last long in Arizona, all the more reason to get myself back home to Massachusetts.

    xo

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