As I’m sure many of you are more than well aware, parts of Australia are currently suffering through some of the coldest days we’ve had in years (coldest day since 1949 here in Sydney town). While this can certainly prove difficult to motivate oneself to do much of anything during the day or when rugged up at night, I’m sure we’ll all agree that the most impractical facet of winter is getting up in the morning.
No matter how hard I try to convince my waking mind that my blaring alarm means it’s time to get up and not that it’s an hour warning for more sleep, I just can’t best my waking self. You have to understand that waking Tesla is cunning; far smarter than my waking mind. I recall waking one morning, many moons ago, and was shocked to find myself outstretched on the cold tiles of my room with my hand on the alarm button. I have no recollection of doing this, but that was the first day that I decided to set two alarms, knowing full well that putting my alarm clock on the other side of the room wasn’t enough to outsmart my waking self.
Nowadays, matters are made worse by my easily reachable iPhone. My alarm wakes me up, I switch it off and then I always seem to make the rookie winter mistake of checking the outside temperature. My body is warm, the room may well be warm, but if my iPhone tells me that there’s a single-digit temperature outside waiting to slap me across the face, I generally respond with phrases that are inappropriate to repeat here.
I really think we should look to bears for inspiration of how to deal with winter: that is to say, sleep the whole season away. Doubtlessly, there are people out there who love, flourish or simply have bodies that are more attuned to the cold. They can stop the world from slipping into anarchy during the coldest months while the rest of us are tucked away in warm slumber.
Many years ago, I used to be regularly asked what my favourite season of the year was, and for years I would say that it was winter. Y’see, I believed that in winter one could simply put on more clothes to avoid feeling cold, whereas in summer you could only take off so many layers before you were arrested for public nudity. I’m convinced the logic is still sound, but the practical reality is that I don’t function well in either of the extreme seasons: if it’s too cold, it distracts me or keeps me in bed, if it’s too hot then I’m uncomfortable and, likewise, unable to concentrate properly.
So, with this in mind, the more moderate seasons are where it’s at for me: give me autumn or, better yet, spring months any time over their harsher siblings. At least in those warmer months I’m less able to use the weather as an excuse for sleeping in or lacking in motivation and have to come up with new and more exciting excuses.
What I want to know from you is what your favourite seasons are and why… better yet, give me your tips for surviving the winter months and how you solve the problem of getting out of bed on the coldest of mornings.
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Interesting topic for today’s blog! I. Hate. Winter. I have poor circulation as it is, so when the cold hits, I suffer from cold toes, fingers, ears and nose… ALL THE TIME. Regardless of layers. I’ve heard that ‘you can layer it on in winter, but you can’t take off more clothes in summer’ argument before, and frankly, it doesn’t matter how many clothes I put on, it makes no difference to my body temperature. Even my office is bloody cold - somebody apparently decided to set the thermostat to accommodate Mr. Freeze, so I pretty much wear a scarf and coat indoors at all times. Not even kidding.
And considering I have to be up at 6.30, and out of the house by 7.20 most mornings, I’m sure you can sympathise with my struggle to get up when my alarm goes off. I’ve now found that the only way to get myself out of bed is to actually make my room warm for when I wake. If it’s cold out, I simply retreat under my luscious warm doona, so now I set my little radiator on low the night before, and when I wake in the morning, my bedroom is actually a respectable temperature. That’s not to say I jump out of bed first thing… of course I get to sleep 5 more minutes…okay, maybe 10.
Anyway, as you can probably tell, I can rant about how much I hate the cold for a long time, so let me wrap it up! I was raised in the desert, and thrive on the heat… so bring on summer… Mmmm, I feel warm already
Sounds like whoever set the thermostat in your office doesn’t want a productive environment! I’m usually the first in the office and tasked with turning on the heater: a thankless task to be sure, but one that is rewarded by increased productivity. I was born in a cold location, so don’t really have the same excuse for hating winter…
I hate winter. I love a good 30 degree day. Bring on the heat!
yea i slept until 1:30pm today. never want to leave those warm bed sheets. i recommend the snuggie. fights the chill whilst being fashionable at the same time!