Cold Sunshine

Yesterday Jeff and I went for a walk on a path that is just across the street from our building at the university. It was a beautiful day, sunny and not quite as cold as it has been.

In front of Wascana Lake, all covered in snow, with Regina's only hill in the background.

I foolishly decided that "not as cold" meant "not so cold," and dressed for fashion (having brought the camera) instead of for warmth. It was -11C (12F), and it turns out that even if it has been colder than that most days, and even if the sun is shining, that is still really freaking cold. Our walk was cut short not by my mobility limitations, but by my lack of understanding of cold temperatures. I understand thermometer readings down to about 25F, as that is really the lower bound of normal northwest weather. Anything below that is just "really cold" in my mind. So I'm having to get used to the fact that there are many degrees of "really cold."

Jeff, on the other hand-- who had trouble adjusting to the subtleties of northwest weather (he never quite believed that in the mountains it could be 80F in the afternoon, then drop to near freezing when the sun went down, or that you need to bring a jacket to the coast no matter what the forecast says)-- dressed sensibly in long johns and his warmest coat and hat.

Along Wascana Lake, in the tracks of the path's snow plow

Jeff says this picture reminds him of pictures people would take of him when he was four years old. Just imagine that those snow plow tracks are regular tire tracks, and you can almost see it :)