5 reasons I can tolerate winter, and 5 things that make me pout

The good:

1. February is a short month.  We're almost halfway there.  Spring happens in March.  That is next month.
2. Twice this week so far, I caught the 5:20 train home from work, and it was still light when I left the office building
3. Running in nasty winter weather makes me feel like I'm a super hardcore athlete
4. With all the moisture in the ground, when the snow finally melts, you know there's going to be lots of green!
5. I've got great boots and a great poofy winter jacket

 The not-so-good

1. My black pants seem to be covered in "slush splash" and I think yesterday I might have ripped one of them walking in the snow
2. Dirty snow doesn't look as pretty as freshly fallen snow
3. There are still a few houses on the big hill on our street that haven't shoveled their sidewalks, so twice a day I risk breaking my neck walking across 3" of packed ice
4. Our street is so narrow and the snowbanks so high that we have to do a 3-point-turn just to back out of the driveway
5. Far too often I take off my boots and promply step onto a hidden puddle of dripped slush in my bare feet.

This is Why You Need a Marshmallow Puffy Jacket and Sorel Boots in Boston

Last week Boston got pounded by Blizzard #2 of the season. Unlike Blizzard #1 where I got my first grown-up snow day, this time I was considered "important enough" and had to come into the office. Here is the view of the Arborretum from our front porch.



To get to work, I walk up and down a gigantic hill to the train station. Most of the sidewalks were not yet shoveled. Trees were dropping branches right and left. I got pelted in the eye with a chunk of snow and was momentarily blinded (imagine that- everything went white) and then spent the rest of the morning with mascara smeared all over my face.

This is why puffy jackets and good boots are so essential for Boston winters. I found my boots, brand new Sorels, at a thrift store for $20. And my down puffer North Face jacket? Originally I bought it in college (I went to school in Western Mass). When I moved to New York, I gave the jacket to my big sister in Colorado, because no New Yorker wears a jacket that makes them look like the Michelin Man, no matter how cold it is. And then I moved to Boston, and my very dear sister re-gifted the jacket back to me. Best gift ever, too.



After the blizzard, despite the snow and all the related hazzards while walking to work, the next day was absolutely beautiful.

One Reason I like Boston better than New York-Winter Preparedness

Since I moved to Boston from New York last March, I am most excited about a few subtle changes that have made my life so much more bearable here, especially in the winter. Namely, practical shoes and weather-appropriate attire.

In New York, one of my New Year's Resolutions was to not walk to work in high heels. Yes, I was lucky enough to live within a 12 minute walk of my office building (quicker if I timed the walk-signs perfectly). And yes, I would walk to work and back in high heels, thus necessitating a Resolution to wear flats to work.

So, I compromised with flat dress shoes. Not tennis shoes or practical walking shoes, but high-heels without the heels. I'd jump over puddles and walk on snow, and my little feetsies would absolutely freeze in the winter because I couldn't wear more than nylon stocking socks.

Now, I commute to work by train, with a 10-12 minute walk on either side. And I wear warm, practical shoes. Sometimes even sneakers. When there is snow, I break out my Sorel boots. Did I even own boots in New York? Only black leather zip up boots with a 3" heel. This is exactly my point- in Boston, people wear practical shoes and boots in the winter. In New York, the selection of winter boots for sale are practically all a) leather b) uninsulated (but sleek) and c) with pointed toes and high heels. My heels (the bones, not the shoes), arches, and cold feet are forever thanking me now that I'm a proud Boston resident.

Also in New York, I had a stylish black dress coat. Sleek, fitted. And thin. Obviously, too tight to throw a few wool sweaters and fleeces under that baby either. Not so good for a Northeast winter, but very elegant. Just like all the other New York women wore too. I had a winter jacket with a hood, but a hat would have messed up my hair too much. Ear muffs- perfectly acceptable. But a big ole' furry wool hat that actually keeps your head warm? No New York Lady would dare look that silly.

Since I moved to Boston, my hair has remained in a pony-tail since the weather dipped below freezing. The other day I wore TWO hats out in public. I now own (and wear) long underwear, and hardly remove my company-issued LL Bean fleece jacket. Sometimes I think I should just wear my jammies underneath my fleece jacket, which has now become my new Boston-winter uniform. I wear wool socks to work, and every winter morning, I bundle up into an unrecognizable snow-woman before my trek into the cold. I am far from sleek, and nothing close to stylish. Buy for the most part, I manage to stay toasty enough in all of my bulky layers.

Not to say I'm loving Boston winters, but after spending 5 winters in New York, I realized that I unnecessarily suffered through cold, slush, city blocks, and other hazards to my overall comfort and warmth. And why? All in the name of being a fashionable New Yorker. Now, I've happily traded my pointed-toe "walking" dress shoes and thin coats for some honking clunky shoes and poofy jackets. Score two points, Boston.

March.. in like a Lion.

Breakup on March 1, Snowstorm on March 2.  Rough start to the month

Fortunately, we've got Daylight Savings, Spring, a trip to Madison, a visit from Mom, and, of course, my birthday all coming up.  So as the saying goes, out like a lamb.  

Central Park in February

I brought my camera on a run again... this time it was sunny, crisp, and beautiful

Guggenheim Museum with a blue sky background.  No matter how cold the winter can get, I always appreciate the sporadic days of mild sunshine to help you remember that spring always follows

Pond at the very North end of Central Park

I'd been running past these ice sculptures for weeks now always meaning to stop and take a picture.  You'd think you were up somewhere up in the woods... not just across the road from 11oth and Adam Clayton Powell Boulevard, Manhattan, New York.  

We've had a lot of snow so far this winter, so there is probably about 20 different layers of ice melted and frozen here.  The ice sort of wrapped around and curled as it froze, as if it were a stiff blanket draped off the corner of a bed

Out and about the town

The Art Students League of New York on 57th and 7th Avenue.

Bryant Park, including the new BofA tower in the background, at 42nd and 6th Avenue.  During the 2 months we were in the new office before moving to BNP Paribas building, my commute doubled.  If I hit every "don't walk" light, it took me about 27 minutes.  Then again, I could still walk to work. 

Ah, good ole' Times Square taken from 42nd and 7th Avenue.

All the news that's fit to print at the New York Times building, at 42nd and 8th Avenue

The mail must go through.  Post office at 34th and 8th Ave