The Damn Winter Sun

I love it here. I really do. But I make no secret to the people that I know that it drives me nuts to hear all the complaints about the weather. I will make it no secret with any readers now as well. I am from New Jersey, USA, where your skin begins to melt in the summer and your moisturizer freezes in the winter the second you walk outside (no kidding, every pore gets a little tingly "pop"). The truth is, the weather is not all that bad here. Blasphemy!

I know, I know, it rains. Well...it rains in New Jersey too. That's what helps to make it the Garden State. The Scots would have you believe that it rains every day here. Nope. It doesn't. And even if it does rain every day, the sun usually peaks out as well at some point. It never ceases to amaze me that people will stop on the street to chat and I'll say, "isn't it lovely out," and they will reply, "too much rain. Did you hear it last night." I can never make the connection between how rain in the night ruins the beautiful day in front of you right now.

Don't get me wrong. When it rains for days and days and days and it is dreary and icky, I, too, hate the weather. But that really doesn't happen that often. Plus, I believe we humans are pretty much water proof. Add to that the ability to put on rain gear, and you have it made! No one likes to get caught out in a storm unprepared, it can be miserable and getting wet can make you chill to the bone in the time it takes one gust of wind to come through. But mostly, you can be prepared. By the way, I recommend Paramo gear. It is ungodly expensive, but worth every dime. I have one of the smocks...it cost the same as a small cottage, but I don't regret it now. One day I'll save up enough to buy a pair of the trousers!

So, why the rant today? I am usually not a ranter, so I'll blame it on the short days we are having. We have had some beautiful sunny days here and in the absence of rain and general weather to complain about, I heard someone complain about the sun. No lie. In fact, the quote was "the damn winter sun."

It was about how low in the sky it is just now and how it makes driving difficult. True? Yes. Significant? Yes. Worthy of planetary damnation? No!

I bit my tongue. Oh, so hard did I bite it. And, I walked away. When there are only 8 good hours of daylight, I think you should embrace every last bit of light, not damn the sun for it's position in the sky. In my head I said, "You just drove a mile...walk! Walk I tell you, walk!"

It simply runs deep here. It is the very culture to complain about the weather--good and bad. I spent my first year here disagreeing with people about how the weather was actually quite mild and how I liked a good, windy day. They all looked at me like I had five heads, two of them with tentacles and one of them with horns. Now I just give a sympathetic head nod and continue my journey. I am the foreigner. This is their land. I need to adjust and let them be who they are.

Quietly, I will tell the sun that I am on it's side.