Winter in my little corner of Canada is not like winter in other places.  Our first snow usually falls in October and it continues to descend on us like flying monkeys in heat, humping the shit out of us  until March, we get a few flakes in April and occasionally a freak snowfall in May. One year when we lived in Cowtown it snowed every month except August. Now that is not to say that it bombards us endlessly over that period but we do get a lot of it. Most places get a dump of the white crap and then it warms up enough to melt it and then it snows some more and melts again and so on but here it stays cold enough through the whole season that we don’t get any real melting until spring which means what is left on the ground sometimes hangs around until well into May. Some years we suffocate under the big white blanket for up to eight months depending on the year and it’s been up to seven feet deep on our roof.

As if the snow and cold were not bad enough (and trust me they are) the long winters are usually cloudy and gloomy in this area because we are between mountain ranges and thanks to what they call an “inversion” the clouds settle in the valley and block out the sun. I can deal with cold weather but benny needs some sunshine once in a while lest she become a stark raving looney. Let’s just say it’s a good thing I don’t own a gun… or a flamethrower… or magic mushrooms.  

Many people love the winters here for the extended ski, snowboard and sledding season. Tourists and adventurers come from all over the world to frolic in our winter wonderland but for those of us who are not outdoorsy winter-folk it gets pretty fucking depressing. The only thing I am grateful for about living in this area in the winter is that at least we don’t get wind.  I’m a summer girl, I love to be outside (without eighteen layers of clothing on, thank you very much) gardening and camping and I can’t do either in the winter… though I just bought some dirt so I can at least start some seedlings indoors hoping to spring into spring with a few early starters.  It’s called denial, or Cabin Fever.

So I am left plowing (literally) through the long cold months, counting down the days from Thanksgiving to May long weekend until I can be doing the things that make me happy rather than just getting through the days. February tends to be the longest of those waiting months for me, there are two main reasons for this; first of all it is the darkest month since typically this is when the inversion is at its worst. We literally do not see the sun for weeks at a time and the endless cloudy days make me feel trapped and claustrophobic under the depressing looming gloom. The second reason February sucks sweaty wrestler anus is because we’ve already had plenty of winter already and the warmer temps of spring are just over the horizon and the anticipation of March only serves to drag the days out. I desperately yearn to see the thermometer rise above zero hoping that the worst is over but inevitably when it does so in February it is always followed by a big drop back into the negatives and yes, more fucking snow.

This February has been a welcome anomaly. We’ve had blue skies and sunshine for the better part of the month and we’ve even had a little tease of above zero days. It’s made all the difference for me… that and the vitamin D I take daily to ward off the winter psycho within. Usually by this time of year I’m thinking about going postal atop a tower with something that shoots far and fast. I find myself in a constant state of angst and losing the will to hold on. It’s like I’m on the edge of a meltdown precipice with one foot hanging off the ledge and the other on a cat shit covered linoleum floor.

It had been almost a month since the last snowfall. The sun shone almost every day, the roads were bare enough for me to take long walks plugged into mipod and my mood was as clear and bright as the big blue sky. We even took a drive out to the lake last weekend. We weren’t sure if we’d be able to make it the mile across the dyke without snowshoes but someone had ridden a snow machine across so the road was pretty compact. Once we got to the island we had to slog through close to 4 feet of deep powder to get up the driveway and to the deck of the cabin. It was a bit of an effort but well worth the energy spent. Even in winter my home away from home feels like home. If there is any way we can get it finished this year I fully intend to do some winter camping next year. I’ll freeze my ass off I know it but it’ll be worth it… at least I hope it will. Maybe winter camping would suck and I am just in denial because I miss summer and the lake so much.

Yesterday I looked around my yard and marveled that soon the sun would pack enough heat to melt the white shit and it wouldn’t be long before I could at least see my gardens. This morning I woke to eight inches of new snow and it feels like we’re starting all over in January again. We’re supposed to get up to another 18 inches in the next two days. I’m done, over it, I’ve had enough! Jack Frost you can go snowblow and then snowball Old Man Winter and I hope you both choke on it!  

Well, that hardly made me feel better at all. Maybe a glass (or six) of wine would help.  
Now if you’ll excuse me I have to go shovel the fucking driveway… again.