Seriously. When?
I was at a Power of the Pen competition today. The school district that hosted us called off for weather yesterday, and the coordinator warned us that it might be cold in the building today, since the heat had been off all yesterday.
I took extra care thinking about what I’d wear, and put on a silky thermal shirt under a wraparound sweater. I was very, very glad. I ended up judging in one of the science classrooms in the corner of the second floor. It was so cold that my ballpoint pen stopped working when I laid it down for too long. I ended up storing it under my leg whenever I wasn’t actually writing with it, and my body heat kept it warmed up.
During the awards ceremony in the auditorium, my co-coach (and sister-in-law) took the down vest I wasn’t wearing (props to the thermal shirt, yo) and draped it over her legs. This was in addition to wearing her winter coat and gloves.
I had packed a lunch, since I wasn’t sure whether the concession stand would have anything left by the time I was done judging (in addition to all the writers that would have been there before me and their coaches, there was a wrestling tournament at the school). I don’t mean to brag, but I had the best lunch there. I’d packed a thermos full of really hot chili, and when I opened it up, it was still hot enough to melt the shredded cheese I brought along. Besides tasting wonderful, it kept me warm for an hour afterward.
I’m looking forward to the day I won’t require chili and down vests. I’m usually okay with winter. But this year, boy oh boy. I really want it to be spring.
Anybody else?