Extremes

On Sunday morning, the sky was completely clear and the sun reflected off the snow; it was intensely bright. It was also intensely cold this weekend—not a weekend for leisurely strolls or even walks for exercise, but rather efficient, goal-oriented, survival walks: get coffee, get food, get back to the room. Quickly.

We’re capable of adapting to very cold weather. Our bodies will naturally start to burn more calories in order to generate enough heat to keep us warm, but it doesn’t seem to happen very quickly or easily—at least not if you live indoors. I’ve read that you can deliberately adapt to cold weather if you prompt your body by regularly showering with cold water for a couple of minutes. (My interest in this is extremely limited.)

I do notice sometimes in March or April, when I walk outside to get the mail or take out the garbage, that even though there’s snow on the ground I don’t feel like I need a jacket. It certainly feels cool, but 40F in October does not feel the same as 40F in March. Somehow, gradually, I become more acclimated to the cold over the winter. Maybe it’s from shivering in the car before it gets warmed up, or short dashes outside when it’s too much trouble to put on a heavy coat. Maybe it’s from getting up in the morning when the floors are still cold.

However it happens, it happens over time, by degree and with a little discomfort. Even the extreme effort of showering with cold water takes more than one session to adapt. But maybe there is a counter-intuitive comfort to be found in the discomfort, knowing that simultaneously there are deep, quiet changes happening, too.