Early snow, cold, a winter preview?
When it comes to snow and winter in Minnesota, there are two types of people. Those who embrace the snow and cold and love it, and those who don’t love it at all, and basically dread it coming.
I am one of the latter.
I came to this realization while driving home in a mini-blizzard from Mapleton after attending the Blue Earth Area vs. Maple River Section football game on Saturday, Oct. 28.
A game where, sadly, the Buccaneers lost the battle to the Eagles, and where I sadly froze my tushy.
Yes, tushy. It’s a word. You can Google it. It is a polite word for one’s posterior.
It was plenty cold on the frozen tundra of the Mapleton football field. In fact, I believe it was much colder than the real frozen tundra of Lambeau Field in Green Bay the next day. Except that icy spot under Kirk Cousins’s right foot.
And yes, visibility became very poor on the drive home from Mapleton as the snow got heavier and heavier. It only let up a bit when I returned to the city limits of Blue Earth.
Yes, I realized with a shock that winter had arrived in Minnesota, four days before Halloween and the start of November. My neighbor says he saw 17 degrees on his thermometer the next morning. The cold and wind continued right through to Tuesday, Halloween Day, and all the little ghosts and goblins (and unicorns and princesses) had to bundle up and brave the cold.
Although, I have to admit, the wind went down, the sun came out and it wasn’t all that bad.
But it sure wasn’t good.
The winter loving people were happy and think this portends a nice snowy and cold next few months. Some of them like the look of the snow-covered landscape. Others enjoy snowmobiling, skiing (downhill and cross country) or snowshoeing.
Or even just building a snowman, I guess.
Others of us just think of having to snow blow and shovel.
Then there are those others who don’t care one way or another, because they are shortly leaving Minnesota for their winter home in Florida, Arizona or somewhere else nice and warm.
I know what you are thinking. You think I should note that just because there was a little blast of winter last week for Halloween, it doesn’t mean that winter is here and that it is going to be a long, cold, snowy one. November and even December could be pretty nice, with no snow and no really long cold snaps.
Yeah, that could happen. Or not.
I blame my aversion to snow and cold to my having been born and raised in southern California – the suburbs of San Diego. Somehow, it has just been tough to get reacclimated to winter in Minnesota – even after nearly 50 years. And that even included a stint of five years of living in North Dakota, where winter can really be something and blizzards can last for days.
Oh, I have tried both downhill and cross-country skiing and used to do a lot of it. Even some snowmobiling. And once or twice I tried ice fishing, but it is very tough for a California boy to be comfortable going out on a frozen lake.
So, I know, there are a couple of solutions to this issue. I could move to Florida, but they get hurricanes. California has earthquakes and too many people. Arizona is going to run out of water.
Or I could just change my attitude and enjoy a little winter in Minnesota. That is pretty much what I have tried to do. Enjoy the snow and embrace the cold. And hide out in the toasty warm basement man cave and watch TV.
And hope there is just a nice bit of snow around Christmas, and not so much the rest of the winter.
Enjoy this nice fall weather…if you can call it that … while we can.