It has been a BITCH of a winter.  There.  I said it.  I have never seen so much snow, ice and sleet in my life.   Yesterday, for instance, we had freezing rain a majority of the day.  Trees would crumple under the weight of the heavy ice.  The meteorologists call it an ice storm, but I call it “sneet”.  It’s an ugly snow-sleet … a.k.a. sleet’s bastard sibling.

I used to be a hearty Iowan.  I could brave the snow and elements with ease.  Blizzard schmizzard.  Then I moved three hours south to Kansas City where I lost my heartiness and acclimation to cold temperatures.  If KC even gets the slightest dusting of snow, I feel like I’m living in the tundra.

There’s been one small highlight to this winter.  On Xmas Eve, I made the trek back home to Des Moines in a blinding rainstorm.  (Yes, I know, no good can come of that.)  The nanosecond I pulled in to my folks’ driveway, it changed to snow.  It snowed for 36 hours straight.  For once, it was kind of nice to be stranded because I didn’t have any particular place to go.  I got reacquainted with my parents.  I got to sleep in my childhood bed.  And I discovered there was an endless supply of frosted Xmas sugar cookies and Chardonnay.  Score!

A week ago, I flew in to Indy for work in the middle of a winter storm.  While the entire Eastern seaboard was shut down, somehow our flight managed to make it there (and back) unscathed and sans delay.  It was a Valentine’s miracle.

Typically, I always plan some sort of exotic getaway in the cold winter months.  It’s a mandatory escape plan.  This year I went to Orlando for New Years.  It was a record-breaking 28 degrees the day I left Orlando.  Bitter, party of one.  I mean … bitterly cold, party of one.

Spring cannot come soon enough.  I’m done with Snow-mageddon … or Snow-pocalypse or whatever cutesy name they’re calling it today.   Although at the rate we’re going, I’m still going to be shoveling until April.