Tropical girl in the winter

My sister-in-law Fran (from Minnesota) said that the only way you can enjoy winter is to do the fun winter things like skiing. Unfortunately, there is no way to ski here in Tokyo as it hardly snows, and when it does, they say it lasts a day at the most. So without the fun winter things to do, I am left with a list of things I do not like about winter.

1. Winter clothes. In general, people (myself included) look bigger and frumpier in layers of winter clothes. Most coats come in drab gray and black, as if people just want to blend right in with the drab landscape. Having lived in the tropics for most of my life, I do not have a collection of winter clothes or a winter fashion sense. Socks are a must (and hubby insists that we must wear two pairs of socks on each foot to keep sufficiently warm). I miss how free my feet feel in my sandals.

2. Dry flaking skin. Sure it's not snowing outside but it sure looks like you've been snowed upon with skin flakes. Cold weather dries out the skin but so do the indoor space heaters. Hubby is amused that I keep lathering myself with olive oil from the kitchen.

3. It's uncomfortable to do anything - bathe, bike, hang laundry, walk, wash dishes, etc. The cold stings your face and makes it hard to breathe. It makes your ears turn red and causes chilblains on your toes (makes them itchy and swollen). This discomfort makes you just want to stay indoors all day.

4. Some indoor buildings have their heat turned up so you have this ongoing dance of putting on and taking off your different layers.

But life must go on, and so tropical girl has come up with her own coping strategies. One of the first things I bought was a cloth cover for the plastic toilet seat. My tushy doesn't like being shocked early in the morning and the 100 yen cloth cover was worth every yen I paid for it. I also invested in a hot water bottle -- this one comes in a nice furry pouch. Put this hot water bottle under the blankets and it keeps your toes warm. We are lucky enough that the sun shines right into our house every morning and warms it up by a few degrees. On some days, it is actually possible to open the window and sun my legs to get my much needed vitamin D. That is my absolutely favorite spot of the house. Can't wait for Spring!

Small comforting things in the winter -- a hot water bottle with furry cover