COOL

This winter, having not once worn ice cleats or shoveled my driveway, and only once having worn my blimpy down jacket, I was comforted by the tease of winter that winked at us a week or so ago. We had snow, which is what I anticipated more of when I moved to Alaska nearly three years ago. It’s reassuring when what you think is going to happen actually happens. Even if you thought it was going to be kind of bad, it’s still reassuring. You know what I mean.

That little bit of snow, which is all gone where I live, in town, got me thinking about why I like living here so much, even if climate change cut the snowfall nearly in half this year. I like being here because it’s still cool – cool enough year-round to enjoy hot soup and to wear a black turtleneck (cotton, silk, wool, depending on the outside temperature).

The latter becomes increasingly important for reasons that I won’t go into, but as I approach the new 50 (or maybe now, it’s the new 40) . . .

You know what I mean.