patchwork blue
I don't hate cold weather, nor its snow, what I do hate is overly dry skin, constant cracked feet and itchy hands, a whole-home humidifier shut off weeks early to cut energy costs.
I like this time of year. Blossoms on trees, longer hours, the promise of summer and all its warmth on my doorstep. One casualty of remote work has been a significant decrease in the amount of time I spend out of the house. There's an extra effort involved, even simple things like a trip for groceries or a walk mean coordinating around when it's time to shower. Going out usually means trying to spend several hours out, and outside doesn't come inside. The windows stay closed for reasons of allergy and overall cleanliness.
I've learned to live with this; I was once someone who slept in their day clothes, now the thought squicks me out. I don't mind being in the house or on the furniture after coming in from outside, I know that's commonly shared with most folks removing their shoes at most before tromping around the house covered in whatever comes in from outside. Spending a decade living with someone who can't relax without a clean environment has changed me in some pretty fundamental ways.
I still choose it, I still choose him and our weird little life together. There are concerns about the future, how we'll manage to keep up rituals as we age and our bodies don't work the way we always want them to. A problem for tomorrow and not something I feel the need to hedge strongly against in the moment. For now I make hay while the sun shines, enjoy my station in life, admire a snow-covered late spring morning of patchy blue skies and what might be literally a million-dollar view.
Something cool about getting older is the realization that life never really goes the way you expect. I'm not even sure what I expected my life to be fifteen years back, I was far too busy living in the moment with my friends, with a stupidly good job for someone my age. I never expected I'd own a home, have someone I call my husband, be on a senior leadership team, hell, even that I would own a Subaru, let alone a car at all. But I have continued to call Colorado home, and though I have visited many wonderful and beautiful places, I suspect this will always be my home - insanely dry climate included.