The Yearly End of Layering!

Ok so, I've spent almost three years living in New York City and I still haven't gotten used to the cold weather.  I'm a Florida boy, you see.  Born and raised where t-shirts, shorts and flippies (TSF) are the norm.  I'm used to having a Christmas day with a high of 72 and rain clouds hovering.  A cold front, for us, means getting down to 50 for two days.

Now one may say, "Why move up north if you can't handle the cold?"  To you I say, "Piss off!"  I'd been on several ski trips, in my youth, to Colorado and Montana where to temperature would frequently be in the single digits or less.  This is what I, more often than not, looked like on those trips:

The difference is that it's easier to layer, on a vacation trip, where you're never that far from the hotel.  Here in New York we walk everywhere so, when you leave the house, everything that you need (books, computer, extra clothing, etc.) comes with you because you're usually gone for the entire day.   It's hard to move through the crowded streets when you're loaded down and looking like you're moving into a new apartment everyday.  

Trying to wear extra layers for the cold presents its own challenges because, you've got to have room in your bags to put the extra layers when you do, finally, get inside somewhere.  Only clothing stores have fitting rooms large enough to change in and they aren't very keen on you using them just take off your long johns.  Most restaurants don't have bathrooms large enough and you don't want anything hitting the floors in most diners or bars.  Plus when you DO get the layers off if you don't have room, you wind up carrying them around anyway.  You may as well still be wearing them.

But then comes a morning like this one.  Where you wake up and it's just beautiful out!  The high is going to be over 70, for the third day in a row, and you realize that spring has FINALLY sprung!  You start to put away the heavy clothes because you realize that you won't need then for another eight months and breathe a sigh of relief.  You see how beautiful the Big Apple is and remember why you moved here in the first place.  

Ok so, that's a lie.  The weather isn't really why I moved here but, it's a nice bonus when spring comes around.  It's not quite TSF weather but, it's getting there.  Anyway, I should take advantage of it and get outside.   

Until next time...