It’s finally that time of year here in Happy Valley!
No, I don’t mean when the students leave and we can all breathe a little easier as we navigate downtown.
I mean, when winter is finally gone.
The beginning of last week – April 20 – was the first time all year when the long-range weather forecast showed not a single day with a low temperature in the 30s. Or, worse yet, the 20s. In fact, there were only three days over the 14-day forecast on April 20 when the lowest temperature was in the 40s – Saturday and Sunday this past weekend, and May 6 with a 49 degree forecast. How exciting!
As I write this it turns out we did have those 40-degree temperatures during the evening and morning hours of this past weekend, and the long-range forecast now shows next weekend may have some 40-degree nights/mornings as well. But, on the plus-side, the low temperature on May 6 is only 54 degrees.
Granted, I understand back on Feb. 2 Punxsutawney Phil prognosticated six more weeks of winter, but April 20 was more than 11 weeks past his prediction. That’s almost double six weeks. Not to mention that spring had supposedly sprung four weeks before that as well.
A situation that was beginning to get me a little concerned. My wife and I spent many years living in Orlando earlier in our lives, and more than 25 years after returning to Pennsylvania, I still haven’t adjusted to cold weather. I did make two trips to the South during this winter to get out of the cold, but that’s clearly not enough for me.
Not only that, as much as I despise cold weather and have an aversion to it, I really am sick of my winter wardrobe after this many chilly months. The sweatshirts, sweatpants, sweaters, wool socks, insulated jackets, down vests, boots and other thermal clothing I’ve used all winter take up an inordinate amount of space in my closet and around the house.
Not to mention washing winter clothes takes longer – more loads – and uses much more space than spring, summer and fall washes. And laying sweaters flat to dry is not only time-consuming but tends to use up a lot of the flat spaces around the house. However, it does add some humidity to the indoor air!
In any case, therein lies the beauty of the arrival of consistent warm weather. I can do that one final wash of all those winter clothes, then fold and put away a good bit of it knowing I won’t have to wear them again until November. And no, I don’t use moth balls. Although, just writing that does remind me of long-ago cedar closets and that unforgettable smell. If I don’t see Gore-Tex written on an article of clothing until Thanksgiving I’ll be a happy man.
And with the arrival of warm weather I get to break out my shorts. As I mentioned, my wife and I lived in Orlando for years, and long pants were for work use only. As soon as you were off work you were in shorts. When we did move back north – in the middle of a winter – it was obvious shorts were OK for inside-use only. I went out for a few runs in freezing temperatures and soon came up with my personal rule for shorts in Pennsylvania: only above 45 degrees. Another reason the coming 50-degree-and-above temperatures are welcome.
Now, with the loss of cold weather I will miss my garage functioning as a secondary refrigerator. And being able to get ice-cold water from the tap. But I won’t miss having to remember to turn the shower on five minutes before I get in just so the hot water will make it there.
Speaking of my garage, I have a somewhat inaccessible “storage corner” behind the trash bins which alternately houses either the snowblower or the lawnmower. With no freezing temps in sight the snowblower has gone back into the corner, and the lawnmower is out – and has already been used twice.
One final thing I do enjoy about the advent of warmth is my wallet saves a few dollars – at the expense of the gas company. Not only do we not use much heat once the temperatures get above 50 degrees, but I turn off the pilot light and the gas line to our fireplace. Since we long ago switched out the gas water heater to electric, we can go several months using no gas at all and only paying the flat $17 or so “customer charge.”
All of which is to say, as much as my wife likes and appreciates all the seasons for the various gifts they bring, I am happy winter is finally gone. Open the windows, get some fresh air, and get ready to navigate downtown a little more easily!
