Deck in the Tundra

Ya know...I posted about my deck before and I just happened to be going through some photos that I have saved and I found this one. You can probably guess that we don't spend extended periods of time lounging on the deck November-March or April...(depending on the severity of the winter). If you were to pan left a little bit more, you'd see the elementary school and beautiful little ridge that I mentioned in that earlier post. And...if you jerked your head and neck around to a hard left, yes...you'd spy the butt end of Wal-Mart.

So what's the point of this post anyway? Although it's around 85 outside right now, I know that living in Minnesota, the truth of the situation is that winter WILL COME. Winter, with its shoveling, getting stuck, salt on the roads, snowbanks, plugging in cars, long underwear, short days, dark mornings and short days, will be here before we know it. I know that I'm future trippin' a bit here folks, but I think I've become a bit of a weather weenie since we moved back here a little over five years ago. I've come to recognize that I don't like the cold like I once did.

I can remember romanticizing winter as a young man. I loved the cold nights when snowflakes drifted lazily down to earth. I lived for days when I could go outside, play in the snow, crawling in and out of the serpentine wormholes that we created in our massive snow forts. Snowball fights were legendary battles, pitting the boys of 4th Ave. with their evil foes, the kids from 5th Ave. I also have fond thoughts of leaving early on a Saturday to play hockey outside all day until after dark at the public rinks. We would go in the warming houses only to visit the bathroom and eat a quick lunch.

But...switch to the present day...Ever since I moved away from Minnesota, my blood has thinned and I am no longer the hearty winter lover that I once was. Don't get me wrong...I still love hockey. My blood bleeds maroon and gold and I cheer for the Golden Gopher hockey team with all of my heart. I also love cheering for the Wild. But, this being outside in the cold...and loving it...it's gone, vanished, vamoosed, high-tailed out of the building, bye bye, outa here!!!

I lived on the west coast for a few years, Korea for seven, and bounced back and forth in the Philippines for extended periods. The west coast was nice... I really liked it, but occasionally forgot what month it was, since it all seemed the same to me. Korea could be cold...sometimes the wind was outright bone chilling, but on the whole winters were comfortable. Sometime during that span of time, my blood thinned. I became a wimp.

J and I have talked on and off for a long time about what we want to do in retirement. We do want to go back to the Philippines. I love the Davao area and am very comfortable there. Maybe it's the romantic thought of sitting on the beach...swimming... diving...doing nothing in the blessed warmth there. It's a long time away... A long, long, long time away. Until that time, we will plan our vacations back to see Lola and the rest of the family every two or three years. I will be in my livingroom, looking out, surveying the snow and the frozen pond, and counting the days until we hop on the plane and plop ourselves back on the beach.

Yeah...Yeah...I know it's summer and I'm already bitching.