How to make a snowman

It has been snowing on and off the past few days and it's looking very much like last winter. December was very dreary with lots of grey, windy and rainy days.  It's was more like a very prolonged autumn without any of the beautifully colored leaves on the trees or on the ground.  I was missing the snow especially when last winter was gloriously snowy, even in December. 

But winter is now firmly here, this January.  We didn't get as much snow as last year but at least there's enough to make the whole city look nice and white and lovely. Temperatures have been kinder too.  It hasn't been too cold for me, either indoors or out.  Have I adapted better to the climate since I got here? I don't know.  Maybe. I know that I feel quite comfortable now.  Last year I was always well covered, even indoors with my long pants, long sleeved top and thick socks. Now, I can even sleep in just shorts and a tank top.  

Since closing the kitchen, we have had time to enjoy the weather.  The day we had real, thick snow, we had planned to go to the store to get some milk and butter.  Since it was snowing when we headed out, we decided to go to the store that's a bit further away.  That walk was nice since it wasn't too cold  and the was some light snow falling.  The ground was fully covered in snow and everything looked so beautiful.

On our way back, we decided to stop for awhile and make a snowman.  Would you believe I haven't made a proper snowman since the day I moved here?  Pete said to make a snowman, the snow must be at the right texture and temperature. And he's right. Sometimes the snow would crunch under your feet and that means that the snow will not stick together. You can even make a decent snowball with that type of snow.  In the past, when we had time to play in the snow, it wasn't ideal to make a proper snowman so we would just take a walk instead. Anyway, that day, we put our butter and milk carefully in the snow and spent some time making a snowman and snowballs.  

Now that we are not working or studying, we have time to enjoy the snow.  We have had some fun building small snowmen and snowball fights. It's no easy task, building the snowman.  It takes quite awhile to gather and pack enough snow to build the shapes. All the bending and rolling makes you sweaty under all your layers of warm clothing.  So too, the snowball making and the snowball fights. I guess that's one way of keeping fit in winter.

If we don't go out, I would enjoy the snow from the warmth of the apartment. I love looking out the window while it's snowing outside. Sometimes the snowflakes are big and fluffy. Sometimes they are tiny. When it's windy, you can see the tiny specks flying all over the place.  Sometimes it looks windy and cold and the snow falls in a heavy shower. And when I see people walking their dog or walking while carrying bags of groceries at these times, I do pity them and I would feel grateful for not having to brave the weather. 

Oh but the best part of cold, snowy, wintery days are coming home, shedding the layers of outerwear and changing into nice, warm clothes and having a hot cup of tea. It's even better when you're curled up under the blanket with a cat on your lap and enjoying some freshly baked buns, cookies or cake.  That's how I like my winter.

Where did the snow go?

We have been having such a mild winter this year as compared to last year.  Last winter was nice and snowy and white.  There was snow even until late winter and early spring.  I remember walking on snow a lot and had to often wear warm clothing even inside the apartment. It was really cold.  

This time, we had a few hours of snow early in December, but none after that.  I thought it was going to be another wintery, snowy December but it turned out I was tricked. The temperature rose after that and worse of all, there was a lot of rain. It felt more like fall, but without the beautiful brown, yellow and orange leaves littering the ground.  If only it was colder, we would have snow instead of rain.  

And it really rained a lot.  My sisters came to visit in the middle of December and I was really hoping we would get snow but no.  Rain came down instead.  And it was cold and grey most of the time.  Not really great weather to show off to our visitors. Needless to say, my sister didn't really enjoy the stay.  She felt it was too cold and I don't blame her.  It's no fun walking around in the rain in temperatures of 4 or 5C and in wet clothes.

Anyway, after giving up on the idea of a snowy winter, it snowed yesterday afternoon.  Pete and I had to go to town and I was lucky to have checked the weather forecast before heading out. Since it hadn't been too cold ( I have pretty much adapted to the lower temperatures ) I haven't been wearing too many layers when I head out.  But when I checked the weather forecast yesterday, I saw that the temperature could go lower than 0C.  

When I stepped out of the door, the wind blew into my face and the biting cold jolted me awake.  It hasn't been so cold this winter.  I was so glad for the extra layers and scarf that I put on.  Even Pete felt that it was cold, and for that snowman to say it's cold, you know that it's cold.  But it didn't snow when we were out.

Some time after we got home, I looked out the window and saw big flakes of snow falling down and coating everything in white. Beautiful! The balcony was full of stuff we brought home from our kitchen but there was space to stand and look out at the wintery scene.  But I couldn't stay there too long.  It got really cold in the balcony. I didn't realize one of the cats snuck into the balcony too and closed the door.  When I heard the familiar scratching noise, I opened the door and sure enough, Nymeria, the ever-curious girl was there. I picked her up and he whole body was cold.  She also couldn't stay long there.

The snow continued to fall for a couple more hours. As the sun started to set, I could see some kids playing in the snow.  I guess I wasn't the only one who missed the snow.  I guess they decided to play in the snow since who knows it would snow again.  And the kids made the best decision.  When we got to bed, there was snow everywhere. But when I woke up this morning, there wasn't a trace of snow at all.  It rained during the night and melted all the snow.  I wonder when I'll see snow again.