I feel that a defining part of my personality is that I cannot stand winter. I find everything about it extremely unpleasant: the cold, that awful thing called windchill and snow (especially snow). People are always surprised by my hatred of winter since I am from Pittsburgh. Their reaction is always a question of, "Aren't you used to it by now?" In a word, no. No, I am not used to winter. In fact I think where I am from gives me the right to hate it.
Hating winter kind of runs in my family. I was over the whole sledding and building a snowman thing by age 8. I think I have only ever owned two snowsuits in my life. I have been to Seven Springs, but I have made sure to stay bundled up inside with a hot chocolate, enjoying a nice game of bowling with my family. My mom hates winter, along with my aunt and my grandma. We also accidentally taught my four year old brother to say, "I hate winter"... Oops.
I know a lot about negative temperatures, snow piled high everywhere and road conditions so bad you cannot drive for days. I'd like to think of myself as somewhat of a snow expert and so I thought I would pass my wealth of knowledge onto you lovely readers.
The first thing you should know about surviving the snow is that you should never leave your place of residence under any circumstances. This rule applies while the storm is happening and stays in effect until the last snowflake has evaporated from the streets. So, you have to be ready to hunker down. Instead of rushing to the grocery store to buy bread and milk, I recommend making a mad dash to buy some things to keep your place homey while you camp out there for a while. These essentials include hot chocolate mix, cookie dough and a snack of choice. No need for dinner when you can live off cookie dough in a raw or baked variety. Your grocery list should also include fleece blankets, fuzzy socks, and slippers. Slippers save lives in the winter. Also, if Snuggies are more your style, they can easily be substituted for fleece blankets.
The final item on your list should be activities to keep yourself occupied during your stay-cation. These activities could include anything from movies to those fun new adult coloring books or you could find a great show to binge-watch. For example, my roommates and I watched the entire first season of "Downton Abbey" in a seven-hour session.
It's very simple to survive the snow. All you need are warm drinks, sugary food, and a television. And, if you're lucky, some great friends to spend the weekend locked in your apartment with.
