In general, people seem to dislike February. It’s very cold, it sits in a lull right between the happy winter holidays and the first signs of spring, and it contains Valentine’s Day, which is often disliked due to capitalism and sadness. I don’t think I’d be wrong to assume most people wish they could just “skip” the end of January and the month of February in order to get to March, which they mistakenly view as “almost spring.”
Well, I think that’s sad. Winter has a lot to offer in terms of fun, and for the sake of your happiness, I’d like you to take advantage of it while it’s still around. We have only a few weeks left before March, at which point winter cannot be made fun anymore. Not even by me. It’s just too much at that point; there’s no getting around that.
Everyone can enjoy what remains of winter in their own way, but I’ve assembled some suggestions in case they might be helpful.
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Stay Home for an Entire Weekend
Can you imagine? Pick a weekend and write in your calendar: STAY-AT-HOME WEEKEND. Accept no invitations for any out-of-home activities. Stock up on everything you might need: dog food, human food, toilet paper, toothpaste, tampons. Maybe you can buy a new set of warm pajamas? (You don’t need any new pajamas, but it might still be fun.) You can read, watch movies, stay under a blanket, do at-home yoga, try an hour-long meditation. You have an entire weekend to be warm indoors, why not go a little crazy?
Consider Ice-Skating
Wouldn’t it be fun to go ice-skating? The beauty of this option is you just have to consider it. Google places to ice-skate nearby. Say to a friend or lover, “Maybe we can go ice-skating sometime?” They’ll say, “Oh yeah, that would be fun.” Maybe next weekend …
Cancel a Plan Because It’s “Just Too Cold”
It’s not socially acceptable to cancel a plan during summertime because it’s “just too hot,” even though you might want to. It is, however, socially acceptable — and even somewhat kind — to cancel a plan because it’s “just too cold.” Who wants to go out in this cold? Neither of you. What a relief.
Have Hot Cocoa and Take a Walk
Bundle up, make or buy a large hot chocolate with whipped cream, and walk around somewhere. Your neighborhood, a park. See beauty in the leafless trees. Feel the cold air in your lungs. Think, I’m glad I added the whipped cream, even though when I first read this suggestion on the internet I thought, “I’ll probably do this, but I don’t need the whipped cream.” Turns out you do.
Come In From the Cold and Take In the Warmth
You see it in the distance — the door to which you’re headed. Your body is in pain from the bitterly cold air, but it won’t last much longer. Your pace quickens; your keys are positioned in your hand. And then it happens.
What a satisfying feeling to come in from the cold. Remember to observe this uniquely wintry pleasure sometime in the next month or so.
Stand Outside While It’s Snowing and Look Up
This will take only a minute. Next time it’s snowing, go outside and stand there looking up. Watch the snow fall into your face. Let your eyes blur. Catch a snowflake on your tongue. Breathe in the snow air. Soon you’ll have to move on to other things — work, your family, the group text — but for now, you’re just standing, taking full advantage of the fact that you’re alive and it is snowing.
Buy a New Sweater on Sale
You might think, Eh, winter’s almost over. Do I really need to buy this new sweater, even though I love it and it’s on sale? I do understand your thought process. But yeah, I think you should get the sweater. There’s still winter left, and I think you’re gonna like having it.
Go Somewhere That Has a Fireplace
A restaurant, a bar, a cabin, the lobby of a hotel. The open house of an apartment for sale. Get creative!
Feel Yourself Thaw When the Car’s Heat Kicks In
God, isn’t that just the best? Next time you’re in your car feeling like you want to die because it’s so fucking cold and now you have to drive somewhere, remember to notice the moment when your car’s heat gets going and your body begins to untense. Then you’re just driving, listening to the radio, not in any cold-related pain. As with many things, I think we too often remember the cold part and not the warm part of this.
Cook an Elaborate, Warm Dinner
This is going to be very enjoyable for you, I can tell. Google something like “best warm winter dinners,” pick one that sounds really good and more elaborate than you would typically attempt, and start making it at like 4 p.m. on a day you don’t have work. Maybe you can even make yourself a dessert? God. This is going to be great.
Feel Comfortable Under Your Covers
Remember how awful it is to sleep during the summer? Sweaty, impossible. You wake up exhausted, feeling disgusting, tangled in sweaty sheets. Not so during the winter. During the winter you sleep cozily in flannel, you pile blankets on top of you, you spoon with your bedmate. You wake up during the night and the air is cold, but you are warm, in the fetal position, under the friendly weight of your hypoallergenic, down-alternative comforter. Sleep is vastly better during wintertime, and — lucky for us — we’re in wintertime right now. Remember that tonight.