It is that time of year: the gray skies are moving in, the temperature is dropping, ice and snow are covering the ground, the lakes are freezing. Winter is no longer coming, it has finally arrived. You begin to wake up with frozen toes. Leaving your bed becomes the hardest part of every day. Showering will no longer be nice and relaxing because the second you hop out it is a race to put your clothes on before you practically freeze to death. Suddenly the clothes you once wore regularly are no longer warm enough and must be layered over. You go outside for five minutes and your hair is frozen, ears bright red, nose like Rudolph. Thinking you can run to the dining hall without a jacket is the biggest mistake you will ever make. And not wearing snow boots is an even bigger one. Out here in Wisconsin, we take winter very seriously. I have personally seen ski tracks going through 5-inch snow on the sidewalks. Sconnies don’t mess around.
You will learn to layer clothes like no other. You will never leave the dorm without at least three pairs of socks, two pants, and three layers of shirts. And on top of it all will be that intense winter jacket that is twice your size and makes you look like a marshmallow. With your new turtle shell zipped all the way up from your feet to your nose you will be unrecognizable to friends and outsiders alike. Once, however, you will inevitably make the grave error of going out without a jacket. No matter how much alcohol is consumed, the so-called “alcohol jacket” will be no match for a Wisconsin winter.
Blue lips, teary eyed, frozen haired, and full body shivering, you will spot me as well as my peers trudging out way to classes through the harsh winter and snow. Starbucks is not only a haven for basic white girls, but now for everyone that does not want their internal organs to freeze and shut down. Iced coffee and ice cream are only consumed by the toughest of the tough. Diets during this time of years consist of scalding hot soup and whatever cheap restaurant will deliver to the dorm. Hunger is no longer the primary instinct. It has been replaced by the need to stay warm.
There is no more “walking” outside, only running because it is too cold to be outside for that amount of time. And the brave ones that still walk outside look like terrible ice skaters. You will catch people slipping and sliding on the sidewalks, myself included, due to a lot of ice and a dangerously low amount of salted streets. New shortcuts through different buildings will reveal themselves to you and those extra seconds inside will save you from frostbite. The Uber surge prices skyrocket because nobody wants to walk anywhere. The buses are jammed pack with frozen students. Being cold is no longer a question, it is a lifestyle.
But who am I kidding, we go to Wisconsin. We know how to handle the winter. You will catch us walking out on the frozen solid Lake Mendota embracing our inner Elsa, trekking through snow storms to College Library, and running without jackets to the Kollege Klub.
