Getting through it

Today is January 28. Two of my friends have their birthdays on this day, and it's a Monday. My baby brother's driving around somewhere in Detroit, and I am thinking about joining a gym and getting a puppy, in that order.

We had another hilariously fun winter weekend. On Friday night we went skiing, as we seem to do every week these days, and on Saturday we went to a 'winter party' where some friends shovelled out a rink on their pond and my hubby went ice fishing. There was a bonfire and red wine was enjoyed. There was food, and nice bunch of new people to hang out with. There were also 4 lovely dogs, bounding around in the snow getting to know each other, which sent us over the edge in our dog/no dog debate. Yesterday hubby went ice fishing again, and I stayed home to clean the house, which was much less heinous than you'd think on a nice sunny winter day.

Winter is funny. I always feel like I hate it so much when it's happening, but I can't imagine not having one. I think it would screw up my biorhythms completely. I am a person who needs four perfect seasons: spring for new flowers and exploration, the smell of wet dirt, seeds sprouting in the basement and the sound of running water in the gully by our house. Summer for snorkelling in clear northern lakes and making friends with the bass, cold beers and late afternoon barbecues on docks, bare feet and fresh veggies from the garden. Fall for putting everything to sleep and working like the ant in Aesop's fable, cooking up comfort food for the wood stackers, getting itchy knitter's fingers and pulling out the warm clothes like old friends from the steamer trunk. And now we have winter, which means firewood, shovelling fun paths around the yard, deer tracks all over our property, that clear clear light that you get at no other time of year, skiing, and looking forward to nothing more in the world than a cup of hot chocolate and a rented movie. I don't even think I'm a person who really needs to go south during the winter, though certainly a week of beachcoming, diving for shells and coral, and a poolside bar does sound easy enough to take.

We're getting through this winter. It makes us feel tough and secure to see the end in sight, to start noticing that the days are getting longer and we're still ok. We're not depressed yet. When depression starts to creep in, it's easy enough for us to dress up, load the skis into the car, and outrun it on the slopes. Also, skiing is on t.v., as is hockey, which are the only two sports I can stomach watching (the former more than the latter).

Another sign of spring: I bought my vegetable seeds the other day. I found this terrific local seed company - Greta's Organic Gardens - which offers a good selection of organic heirloom seeds. I ordered them online, and POOF! they were at my house in 24 hours. It was a miracle. I've never seen such fast service. Check them out at www.seeds-organic.com. I am still looking for kale seed, and I still need to buy potato sets and onions, but I've got the bulk now and most importantly, I have the things that need to be started soon (tomatos, peppers). So soon the grow-op will be put back together, I will clean out the kitchen in the basement, and get going on those early birds. I am going for rows in the garden for the first time this year, and I'm trying to use companion planting to squeeze in as many things as I can in my short-ish season. I need to find another spot for squash and melons, though, because they take up more than their fare share of space. I also have a long, short, plastic greenhouse that hubby brought home for me one day by surprise, which I'll use for the peppers, tomatos, basil, etc. to get them out into the dirt a bit earlier.

But for now I'm happy to be without the gentle pressures of gardening, renovations, and week-end getaways. I'm happy enough with the cleaning and the skiing and the winter parties and the hot chocolate.