It's 30 below!

This is the existence i've dreaded for the last few months. maybe even since i moved here. possibly since i first thought of moving here.

After ten minutes outside, my scarf is frosty and i can't feel my fingers and toes. There's ice on the INSIDES of the doors and walls of the house.

But i'd forgotten! I'd totally forgotten how clear the air seems when it's this cold, how everything sparkles when it's coated in ice, the beautiful angle of winter light, the way snow muffles everything like a blanket, the way untouched snow glitters, and reminds me of being a kid and walking around in winter, of the icy eternity of prairie in winter and how much respect i have for it, and how much bigger and older and more important it is than this foul city and the people crawling all over it.

And, i'd forgotten how much more of a pleasure it is to arrive, when you've worked hard to get there. I walked into the drag on saturday to pick up food not bombs and was so pleased to see so many people i knew, and so happy to just sit down with them, and the cold outside, rather than being oppressive, just made me enjoy their company even more.

Maybe i'll be less excited when it's 40 below. But so far, so good.