FamiLee Life

Minnesota Cold(s)

As you may have noticed, I have not been very active on the blogging front lately. Aside from being busy (okay, overwhelmed) at work, I have been plagued by this darn cold that has slowly worked its way through my coworkers and friends. On Saturday, it finally got to me. It's relatively benign compared to the flu, but it has slowly been wearing me down. It began with some sinus congestion, then fatigue. Now, I have a hacking cough that keeps me from getting a good night's rest. It's really an annoyance more than anything. Better than the flu, I suppose. Last winter, there was such a panic over the flu shot shortage. This year, we have worries over the Avian flu. So, I got a flu shot in late Fall - hoping it would keep me sick-free all winter. I also have been devoted to the neti pot (for sinus irrigation) which is believed to help prevent colds and such. But, alas, I was still struck by this bugger.

I also want to comment briefly on Minnesota attitudes about weather (the "other" cold). I heard on the news last night that this is the warmest month of January on record in Minnesota. How about that. Usually, we hear the opposite sort of news, such as "It's the coldest day on record since 1941."

Living in Minnesota means talking about the weather. It's not just a conversation starter like in other states. It is a topic as worthy as politics, hollywood gossip, and finances. Everyone has a view on the weather, specifically cold weather. On the one hand, folks are quite devoted to Minnesota life. For example, there are many who says that you have to embrace the cold to survive winters. They make no qualms about the cold, short summers, etc. Take my friends over at the Art Shanty Projects. That is embracing. On the other hand, Minnesotans have a bit of a chip on their shoulder in which they feel the desperate need to prove how good a life it is up here - despite the cold weather. Folks can get quite defensive about the cold jokes thrown at us by the rest of America (except maybe North Dakota). Rather than just say, "yeah, it's cold but you learn to live with it," we often add all the virtues of Minnesota living. It's as if we have to prove something more. Consequently, we are a city/state of -estness. We love to say we have the most theater seats per capita outside of NYC, we have the best regional theater, we have the largest mall in America, we have the most lakes in the country, etc.

Me? I say we just take the former position and enjoy living the good life up here. Meanwhile, I am gonna keep cursing at this cold until it is beaten out of me.