If you live in the Midwest, have friends in the Midwest, or follow any of the national news outlets, you know it’s cold here. Well, cold may be an understatement. It’s a polarvortexpalooza here. Do you know what a polar vortex is? I didn’t before yesterday, but I sure as hell do now. Come to think of it, hell sounds pretty toasty warm right about now.
For those of you who, like me, are not so sciencey, a polar vortex is when the equivalent of an arctic hurricane breaks free from arctic climates due to a warming trend. Point in fact, yesterday Chicago set record breaking cold temperatures at sixteen below. Alaska? Well, our friends to the North were enjoying a balmy day in the thirties. What the what?! It’s topsy turvey time!
Yesterday was also the scheduled return to school for likely hundreds of thousands of kids across the Midwest. Sad trombones for all the parents who needed to make arrangements with the news that schools were closing due to the extreme temperatures. More sad trombones cause they’re closed again today.
But you won’t hear any complaints from me. Nope, nosiree. I am in a warm home, the pipes are all internal, so nothing is in danger of freezing, and we made certain to take a trip to the grocery store on Saturday with the forecast looking so grim. Suzy Freaking Sunshine here!
Do you hate me yet?
I guess I see the flip side of this cold coin and that just makes me happy. Yesterday my boy had an all day play date with the upstairs neighbors. It was a roving play date, so the three little ones would spend a couple of hours here, them tromp upstairs and spend a couple of hours there. Us two moms just marveled at how well the kids were doing, all the fun they were having. The day ended with an impromptu sleepover for the boy upstairs. He ran down to collect his pajamas, tooth brush, a couple of books, and an Angry Birds toy from Christmas.
I went to bed at 8:30, tucked tightly under a wool blanket made from sheep that graze on a family friend’s home in Massachusetts.
Sometimes life is good, and when it is, I like to revel in it. Right now, life is very good indeed.
Today calls for more of the same. I’ve already fed a second breakfast to three happy ice campers. They are downstairs playing doctor with stuffed animals and making just enough noise so I don’t worry what they’re up to, but not so much where they’ll wake the baby who is napping happily. Later will be cheese pizza for lunch and a mid-day showing of Star Wars.
Right here, right now, I am living the life. Warm, safe, happy. My fridge is full, my kids are smiling, and I put all the Christmas decorations away yesterday. Yep, it’s cold outside. Bitter, frigid cold that if I stop to think about will lead me to my fear of climate change that always freaks me out. So right now, I won’t think about that. Right now, I’m just going to enjoy the life I have.
I am one lucky lady.
Stay warm, folks. Be safe. Most of all, be grateful for what you have.
Mary Tyler Mom 