Day 771: When it’s cold outside

Yesterday, I asked the blogging question “Am I blue?”

And then, for much of the day yesterday, I was blue.

When it’s cold outside and relentlessly snowy, I can be blue. Also contributing to my blueness yesterday was

• snow covering my car and the driveway when I went outside, because our “Mr. Plow” was stuck somewhere else,
• my panicking about being late on a day where I was the On Call social worker to my hospital’s Primary Care Practice,
• having to drag my boyfriend and son outside to get me shoveled out ASAP (with some help from warm neighbors), and
• my realizing that — despite my goals for non-judgment and acceptance — I am done and beyond over-done, with New England winters.

And something I’ve learned — no matter what temperature it is outside or inside — once you realize you’re done with something, it’s more difficult to tolerate.

Lots of things went wrong yesterday, when it was cold outside. For example, the ATM machine at the hospital decided to keep $40, as a tip for its services:

In addition to that cold and greedy ATM machine, I saw all this yesterday, when it was cold outside:

It was warm inside, yesterday, when I allowed myself to feel it.

 I took photos of two people who LOVE the winter, hoping I would catch their enthusiasm for when it’s cold outside:

That’s Mark and Julia, who’ve appeared in this blog before, when it’s been different temperatures outside. It’s always warmer, inside, when they’re around.

When it’s cold outside, I like to demonstrate how cold it is with pictures. And I just took some new photos to show you,  this morning. However, my computer is not sensing my iPhone through the cable extension. Maybe that’s because I’ve dropped my iPhone in the snow, one too many times, when it’s cold outside.

When it’s cold outside, I need to come up with alternate solutions for problems. So, I just emailed myself these photos:

  

“When it’s cold outside” is actually a line from a song I loved, during the 1980’s.

Anybody want to guess what song that is?

Would it help you to guess if I included a few more of the lyrics?

Spare a little candle
Save some light for me.
Figures up ahead
Moving in the trees.

Darkness on the edge
Shadows where I stand.
I search for the time
On a watch with no hands.
I want to see you clearly
Come closer than this
But all I remember
Are the dreams in the mist.

Going to California with my son in four days seems like dreams in the mist to me, right now.

But that’s NOT a dream.

Neither is “These Dreams,”  by Heart (warmly playing here, with lyrics, on YouTube):

Gotta go back out there this morning, when it’s cold outside.

Heart-felt thanks to Mr. Plow (for plowing this morning), my son Aaron, my boyfriend Michael, my neighbors,  Mark, Julia,  Heart, all those who brave the cold, and to you — of course! — for visiting today, no matter what it’s like outside.