Tuesday in the Frozen Tundra that is Ohio:

It’s freezing once again here in Ohio.  I swear it’s like we live at the North Pole these days.  And yes, yes, I know, I live in OHIO….I know we get “winter” here, but seriously?  ALASKA is warmer than Ohio this winter.  That’s no joke, I have a Facebook friend in Alaska that posts the temp there all the time and even she’s WARMER than we are.  NO FAIR I say!

However, Ohio’s “Deep Freeze” does have some benefits I hear, so I thought I’d share some of those benefits with you so perhaps we together can find some silver lining in all of this madness.

#1 - Apparently these temperatures could ward off some of the tree killers we have here in NW Ohio, Example:  The emerald ash borer and the fungus that causes sudden oak death.

#2- Colder Temperatures force insects down further into the ground, causing the soil to be better fertilized and therefore more productive in the coming growing season.

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So those are good things….some things that are not so good (if you notice, my list of GOOD things could use to be a little longer to balance things out…feel free to email me some other benefits and I’d be happy to add them to my list if you know of any!!)

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#1 - Frozen noses, toes, fingers, nose hairs!

#2 - My poor puppies go outside and their pee freezes before it hits the ground and it hurts their paws to touch them to the cold ground.

#3 - My electric bill is $400.00. (NO JOKE)

#4- My Mercury GROANS at me when I try to start it.  Poor thing.

#5 - Parents have spent so much time cooped up in their houses with their children; some are contemplating “eating their young”.

#6 - People apparently drink a TON of milk to stay warm and make banana sandwiches, because every time I go to the store, there’s never any milk, bananas or bread.

#7 - Frozen pipes = no showers, no toilets…= smelly people who have to use the restroom.

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On days like this, I like to close my eyes and dream of the feeling of sand between my toes.  Close your eyes with me won’t you…let me take you with me....

With your eyes closed, I want you to imagine the following:

There’s a faint smell of fish in the air, not the kind that makes you want to be grossed out, but the kind that is mixed with seaweed and equal parts bad as it is good.  You can hear the sound of waves hitting the sand and feel the cool breeze coming off the water, mixing with the heat coming up off the sand.  

A seagull squawks off in the distance, while you catch a whiff of Sun Tan Lotion waft up from a couple of teenage sun bathers not far from where you stand.  A volleyball game hails some hooting and hollering….someone shouts “MINE” and “GOT IT” and you smile as you wish, like me, you were more coordinated and had the beach body of Kerri Walsh Jennings or Misty May-Treanor.

Are your eyes still closed?  Do you have the hankering for a hot dog from the boardwalk, or some saltwater taffy?  Can you feel the weight of your over sized sunglasses on the bridge of your nose?  

Can you picture the vivid color of your beach towel of choice? (mine’s varying shades of bright and glorious blue/teal).  Can you hear the rumble of a couple Harleys in the distance?  In your mind, do you have your sand castle built?  

Can you feel that sunshine giving some color to your pale Ohio skin?

When life starts to get too cold, and summer seems too far away, I like to use the TWO things God gave me that help combat the winter blues, and that’s my IMAGINATION and the blessing of MEMORY.

Where can the use of yours take you today?

Luv,
~HeatherLynn~

{btw - all the pictures in this post are my own!  Nice to find good use for them.}