Moving to Ann Arbor: A crash course in the winter blues
Southern summers could be tough. Most days, there were really only three choices: stay inside, stay wet or move away.
When my husband and I moved our family to Ann Arbor, we were escaping an oppressive southern July. It was 102 degrees when we pulled out of our old driveway and 60 degrees when we pulled into our new one. The moment I stepped out of the car, I shivered with pleasure. “This is heaven,” I thought to myself. Michigan was as far north as I’d ever been.
For the rest of that first July and straight through August, I’d open the windows every morning and grin into the breeze. Down South, I knew, they were greeting a day of sticky grey skies, but in Ann Arbor, it seemed, every day was perfect.
So the first brown leaves - before school even started - took me by surprise. “We’re going to lose that tree,” I told my husband, pointing to our biggest maple. “See? It’s dying.”
“No,” my husband said. “It’s fall.”
Seriously? In September? Okay, no problem. Family and friends had teased us when we told them we were moving to Michigan. “Better stock up on firewood!” they had snorted. “Better take a parka!” Well, ha ha. I’d show them I could handle it. Three mail order catalogs later, I’d braced my family for the coming winter.
On the first cold day of that year, I bundled my daughter warmly for school. Snow pants and snow boots (even though it hadn’t snowed). Down coat. Scarf. Mittens. Earmuffs. Hat. Hood over hat. By the time I was done, she was barely recognizable.
“I’m sweating!” she cried.
I hustled her out the door. The temperature was 37 degrees.
When we got to school, I noticed that no other parent had taken the same weather precautions that I had. My daughter was the only student in snow gear. One kid ran by us in shorts. Clearly, I had overshot it.
As we shuffled past the principal, she smiled and said, “Wow.”
Eventually, the weather grew cold. Real, actual cold - the coldest cold ever.
“I can’t take it!” I’d say into the crisp air.
“I’ll never make it!” I’d say to the checkout lady at Busch’s.
“Why do we live so far up?” I’d say to my husband.
And this was only December.
By January, I’d become obsessed with spring. There were tulips in the grocery store, after all, and strawberries. Surely, warmer weather couldn’t be too far away.
“How much longer?” I’d ask our neighbors. But they either couldn’t or wouldn’t give me a straight answer. I’d beg them to tell me when winter would end, and they would only stare at their boots and mumble.
Probably they were saying, “I wish this nutty Southerner would leave me alone.”
In mid-January, our front steps iced over for the first time. When I went outside to start the car that morning, I walked two paces and slid - an elaborate, arm-flailing slide that seemed to take 10 minutes and involved a bush, a tree, a flowerpot, and our mail slot. On my way down, I actually yelled, “Help!”
An amused dog walker watched the whole thing. When it was finally over, he said, “What did you do, fall down?”
From inside my right-hand mitten, I shot him the bird. He walked away unscathed, and I sat bleeding on my front porch, tears frozen to my cheeks. I whispered to myself, “I am in hell.”
About a year later, I learned the term “seasonal affective disorder” (SAD). It explained a lot: general sleepiness, cravings for comfort food, a wintery I-can’t-lift-my-arms feeling, and my tendency to glare at our traitorous maple while muttering, “Stupid tree.”
I’m fortunate that my experiences with SAD have been mild and manageable. This is my 7th Ann Arbor winter, and I’ve assembled an arsenal of coping mechanisms that work for me.
1) My kids are growing. Now that I don’t have to strap babies into frozen car seats, I feel I’ve won half the battle.
2) I keep a list of things I love about winter: fireplaces, soup, great big sweaters, the way the trashcans don’t smell, and those crazy crows. (Okay, it’s not a very long list, but I’m working on it.)
3) I get out and walk in the weather. The exercise helps me deal with all kinds of stresses. Plus, facing the cold head-on gives me a defiant, take-charge energy. (I’m still prone to too much bundling, however. If you see a walker who’s preposterously overdressed, it’s probably me.)
4) New this year—a light therapy box. I sit near its blue glow every morning for about 25 minutes. The light is very, very bright, so for about an hour after I use it, I crash into things and confuse which of my kids is which. I feel good, though. Maybe that glow is really stimulating my mood, or maybe taking action against the blues fills me with optimism.
5) I think back to my first day in Ann Arbor. The moment I felt those cool summer breezes, I knew this was the place for me. When I'm feeling down, I remind myself that a summery heaven waits on the other side of winter. I can survive until then, as long as I tread carefully on the front steps.
Comments
brad
Mon, Feb 1, 2010 : 12:10 p.m.
Other tips: Make a sun room (better spectrum and less costly to operate than artificial light...although light boxes are good substitutes). Fill it with green plants. Put bird feeders outside the window. Borrow nature CDs from the library. If possible, change your work schedule by an hour so that you dont work from dawn to dusk. Last, take a trip up north...see the lakes...ski...SE Michigan doesnt capture the true beauty of winter.
scvertin
Thu, Jan 21, 2010 : 1:38 p.m.
I always chuckle when I hear complaints about the winters in the LP. I live in the UP (almost as far north as you can go in MI), and our winters produce 200-300 inches of the white stuff (sometimes more!) & last 5-6 months (seems like it, anyway). I don't buy shoes anymore, only sandals & boots, and the majority of my wardrobe is sweaters (need them in the summer, too). In spite of the weather, I remain a loyal Michigander.
Charlie Naebeck
Wed, Jan 20, 2010 : 10:39 a.m.
Great piece Heather! :) you'll notice that most folks who have lived here for many years or their entire life tend to try to escape somewhere warm on vacation around this time of year too. lol It is somewhat like folks in the south dealing with really hot summers for Michiganders dealing with really cold winters. :)
uabchris
Mon, Jan 18, 2010 : 4:12 p.m.
I have been in Ann Arbor for 1 year now and on my 2nd winter. I figure if I made it thru last winter(I hear it was a bad one) the rest should be ok. I love it here! Being new here I did not realize the number of people here from the South. Where are "yall" from, I'm from Birmingham, Al and my wife from Spain.
Lon Horwedel
Mon, Jan 18, 2010 : 12:04 p.m.
As a life-long northerner, here are some more good and bad: Bad: cracked finger tips; slush; chapped lips; static cling; the slow-inevitable-rusting-death of your car; wind; no daylight till 8 am, dark before dinner; vomiting kids! Good: winter goes quicker the older you get; blasting the frozen ice-snow-mud gunk that accumulates in the fender wells of your car with one swift karate kick! Keep up the good work!
mpeterse
Mon, Jan 18, 2010 : 10:09 a.m.
After 16+ years in A2 after moving here from the mid-Atlantic coast where (gasp!) there's lots of sun during the winter, I now think of the perpetual winter gray cloud cover as kind of, well, cozy. It beats getting bummed about it... Loved your piece (ALL of your pieces). Keep them coming!
JW
Sun, Jan 17, 2010 : 2:48 p.m.
Great story, Heather. I came up from Gainesville, Fla., just after Christmas, 1968. It took me five years to be able to stand Michigan winters. Now I love them! I remember also recommending a light box to one of my clients when I was working in the Counseling Service at EMU. She had seen several psychiatrists, psychologists, etc., for her recurring depression before that. After a week or so of light box therapy she was cured! It is still interesting how few people seem to know of this possible treatment of SAD.
Ron Dankert
Sun, Jan 17, 2010 : 2:22 p.m.
Great story, and belated welcome to town!
AAmom
Sun, Jan 17, 2010 : 11:58 a.m.
I really enjoyed reading your article! Thank you!
Anne R.
Sun, Jan 17, 2010 : 10:43 a.m.
The latest winter mood booster is, believe it or not, more Vitamin D. Truly, it makes you feel better! Talk to your doc or just get some at the vitamin counter. 1000 - 2000 or more a day. It's the "sunshine vitamin" so I guess it makes your body think you're in summer even though it's really winter.
ogel1209
Fri, Jan 15, 2010 : 9:47 p.m.
Heather, as a fellow Southerner, I know how you feel! I've been here for 20 years and I still can't believe how much I hate the winter. A great article. I'm going to try and add to your coping mechanisms!!!
Ann Arbor mom
Fri, Jan 15, 2010 : 7:23 p.m.
Other winter things to embrace: hot chocolate after ice-skating, wool sweaters, down coats and comforters, holiday lights in trees and bushes with a layer of snow on top. (Christmas lights in Florida palm trees are very odd.) I second the commenter who sang the praises of wool socks! I love Smartwool myself.
WSC
Fri, Jan 15, 2010 : 4:03 p.m.
Great article. If I can add one more 'must have' item for surviving winter in MI: Good, thick wool socks. Like Wigwam good! If my feet are warm then I can survive the rest.
Bob Needham
Fri, Jan 15, 2010 : 3:38 p.m.
Heather, Great essay as always. As a lifelong Michigander, can I offer a few more possible items for your list of things to love about winter? My list includes: no bugs, cross-country skiing, watching the snow fall, not having to cut the grass, and chili.
Tom Teague
Fri, Jan 15, 2010 : 3:27 p.m.
Thanks for the laughs, Heather. As a fellow southern expat living in Ann Arbor, I remember walking into the office one late-March day during my first winter here, stamping the ice off my boots, removing gloves, a heavy coat, a scarf, and a really ugly but warm hat all caked with snow, wondering how much colder it would have to get to reach Absolute Zero, and then overhearing two passing co-workers earnestly talking about how mild the winter had been so far.
spm
Fri, Jan 15, 2010 : 3:10 p.m.
Great story! I've always wondered how southerns can like long hot, humid summers, and now I know...they don't! Snowy winters are great for activities you and your family can do together like sledding that make you feel you're a kid again. Fun times.
KirQ
Fri, Jan 15, 2010 : 2:56 p.m.
Well, I'M glad you've stuck it out. Neighborhood needed you two delinquents. Glad the light box is working too - it took me 35 MI winters to discover what a difference they make! Reminds me of the STUD Texan tennis player at K College whose mom sent him powder blue moom boots for HIS first MI winter. Very thoughtful, and very funny, as all packages from home were traditionally opened in front of the masses in the cafeteria.
Patrick Haggood
Fri, Jan 15, 2010 : 2:03 p.m.
>those crazy crows You mean those are normal? Geez, that wasn't in the 'new resident' handbook. I've been getting creeped out at those things blackening the sky like locusts; afraid some opening to hell had opened up under the town or something.
Moose
Fri, Jan 15, 2010 : 1:39 p.m.
The only good thing about northern winters -- turning on the tap and getting water cold enough to drink without needing ice cubes. I suppose snow is pretty to watch falling. If only it didn't then stick to the ground...
Barb
Fri, Jan 15, 2010 : 1:31 p.m.
This is the best of the good stuff: "... the way the trashcans dont smell..." OMG, I laughed so loud. Great piece!
pvitaly
Fri, Jan 15, 2010 : 1:28 p.m.
Haha, funny article. Actually made me laugh out loud in the office. Thank you!