Tuesday, January 5, 2010
Has Anyone Seen My W.S.K.?
Okay, I’ll admit it—I’m in a slump. Have I mentioned that I hate winter? I know I had a Winter Survival Kit around here somewhere, but I can’t seem to lay my hands on it…sure wish I could remember what was in it… (note to self: compile WSK next October, before slump has a chance to set in)
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Winter Survival Kit #1: Daydreams. Lots of them. Aqua water, fine sand and sea breezes blowing at about 78 degrees. Winter Survival kit #2. Just do it. Get dressed in a down coat, wrap a scarf around your neck, yank on a hat no matter how silly it looks, plug your I-pod into your ears and walk. Every day. Fast. Look around you, notice how the snow drapes over the mailbox, at the little birds that aren't afraid of the cold...at the ice cracking on the pond down the street. Anything. Then write about it.
ReplyDeleteCan only daydream about #1. #2 worked for me last year. I'm hoping it will this year too.
I do so miss my walks—thanks for reminding me, Liza.
ReplyDeleteDown coat: check
Scarf: check
A hat no matter how silly it looks (and I have just the one—a shearling mountain man hat with ear flaps): check
i-Pod: check
It’s the stepping out into what has consistently been 5-25 degrees cold...
Stop whining: check
Just do it...
*checking forecast for the next few days*
Oh, I needed to read this! The fog lifted and we saw the sun today for the first time since Boxing Day. Must get out and walk more. Might I suggest that you tuck a camera into a warm pocket of your down coat? Maybe you need to trade your pen for a paintbrush for a while...
ReplyDeleteWell, Deb, I could take a picture of the manure they’ve been spreading on the acres and acres surrounding our house and for 2 miles down the wind-tunnel-of-a-road we live on...
ReplyDeleteChance of snow forecast for most of the week. (Oh, stop the whining already, Bridget)
You’re right, of course—
Get the paintbrush wet: check
Hot toddies. Definitely hot toddies. They'll warm you up, for sure. :)
ReplyDeleteThat's so funny. Did you know my husband's name is Todd? and he is...
ReplyDeleteHot Toddies: check
That.Is.Perfect.
ReplyDeleteAnd way too funny!
I'm still laughing--and so is Toddie!
ReplyDeleteMight I suggest picking up a novel to read that has a summer theme?
ReplyDeleteTanning booth?
Pretend all that snow is really sand?
Ah, screw all of that, you and Todd jump on a plane to Florida for a weekend!!
Summer theme novel: check
ReplyDeleteTanning booth (substitute full spectrum lighting): check
Snow-denial/sand-enhanced imagination: check
Florida (substitute Caribbean) vacation: on hold
Thanks for the warm suggestions, Scott.
I feel the exact same way. I've got the winter blahs for sure. We have snow forecasted for the next week too, and negative double digit temps. Aye! But the hot Toddie joke just cheered me up. I'm having a good laugh.
ReplyDeleteSimon is always so clever, but he had no idea how much mileage we’d get out of the Toddie.
ReplyDeleteCheer up, Susan, only 107 days till spring.
I love the idea of a hot toddie. It helps that the first time I was offered one was when I was in high school, touring the Swiss Alps, and the waitress who proposed it was incredibly pretty. :)
ReplyDeleteThe hot toddie/Toddie is undoubtedly my favorite idea. That’s one I can definitely do every day. (Probably the Alps wouldn't hurt)
ReplyDeleteWe all get bit by the black dog at this time of the year. Last year at about this time, I was the skipper of a 47 foot sailing catamaran in the British Virgin Islands, accompanied by wife, both daughters, son-in-law, nephew, nephew's wife, and nephew's 18 month old son... and we were anchored in Machioneel Bay, Cooper Island, just southeast of Tortola, sipping pina coladas on the beach in 85 degree sunshine. Now THAT is a cure for the bite of the black dog!
ReplyDeleteSadly, the recession doesn't permit a repeat performance... so I'm freezing cold and depressed, like everyone else :(
Norm,
ReplyDeleteThat’s a very happy visual—I can picture myself there (well, in my own sailboat, with my own family; but we could all meet up for drinks on the beach later).
Do you find that looking at pictures helps, or does it only magnify your current misery?
Well, as a sailor, I do have the advantage of looking forward to the next sailing season, so it does provide some hope. I occasionally go down to where the boat is hauled out, sitting on jackstands, and I go aboard for a few minutes to make sure all is OK... but it just seems so wierd to be below decks, with my breath freezing. I don't think it helps all that much. It gets really bad around mid-February, when I could bite someone's head off... but by mid-March, I'm usually working on the boat, getting her ready for the upcoming season, so the black dog backs off a bit.
ReplyDeleteI've been a cyclical depressive all my life; it's decidedly genetic. My Dad suffered from it (although being of the previous generation, he described it as 'having nerves'), and my younger daughter suffers from it, like me. Thankfully, we're both chemically augmented, and it helps quite a bit.
Norm,
ReplyDeleteI’m dreading mid-February—trying to get a grip on my synapses before they go all wonky.
Several years ago, after prolonged and very difficult circumstances, I desperately needed some serotonin reuptake inhibitors. It helped immensely, in that I was able to cultivate better coping skills while pharmaceutically enhanced. When, I came off them, I managed to keep on a moderately even keel, employing those skills, but I still struggle. When I start to slip (and sometimes it’s more like a headlong plunge), my husband shakes the pill bottle and I regroup for a bit.
I found that writing my novel helped a lot—kept me from unhealthy compulsive thought patterns that send me spiraling.
I really do need another project…
Oh mh goshin agoodness. I just read your post. (sorry, I hope I am not intruding). My firends make fun of me, even when I phone them. They say, "Hello, I hate winter", because I have said it so much. It looked unusual to see someone else write it. But,,more importantly, I have looked at you paintings and I at first thought they were photographs. May I drop in from time to time and read also.? Glenn
ReplyDeleteNo intrusion at all, Glen. I'm glad to commiserate with anyone in the ‘I hate winter’ camp. Wish I had something cheerier to write about, but feel free to stop by anytime. (and I’m glad you like my paintings…)
ReplyDelete