January 19, 2016

This is a difficult time of the year for me. I live in the Salt Lake City valley, which is nestled between the Wasatch and Oquirrh Mountains. It is beautiful, blue skies, fluffy white clouds,  picture perfect almost, and I love living here except in January. January, the darkest, coldest and dreariest month of the year.  January, the month of the year when we have to deal with the “January inversion”.  What is a “January inversion” you ask….it is when everything (pollution, emissions from cars) gets trapped in the valley due to the cold.  It is hazy, cold and most days we are under a warning for air quality.  There are a few ways to escape it and for most people that means going to higher elevations and skiing.  At the ski resorts the weather is blue skies, no haze and a little warmer temperatures.  For us that don’t ski, we just pray for a storm that will clean things out.  You add into the equation that it is after the holidays and the “post holiday” blues have set in, the nights are long, it is cold and spring seems forever away, throw in a couple of experiences from years past that still affect me and the anxiety that I have been dealing with lately and it is a recipe for some pretty bleak days.

 

Now I am not one to dwell on the negative, or I try not to, so I have learned a few coping skills to deal with the “January inversion.” I light my summery candles, put on my capri pants and flip flops and grill hamburgers and make potato salad.   Michael and I talk about things we want to do when the temperatures start to warm up like boating trips and camping trips. Last year we planned our trip to Texas in May. We plan to visit the boat show in February. We usually try to plan a weekend getaway for our anniversary in March. I try and force myself to get out and go to the gym.  I love cuddling under a fleece blanket and getting lost in some of my favorite book series like Divine Creek Ranch by Heather Rainier and Lusty Texas by Morgan Ashbury, reading and re-reading those series are like “comfort food” to my soul. I also like to turn on the music and listen to what my children call the “oldies”…..Bruce Springsteen, the Eagles, John Cougar or Bob Seger. I try to remember all the reasons why I love living where I do and I also try to remember what a dear friend tells me all the time….this doesn’t come to stay, it comes to pass.

 

But there is one thing that I do every year and that is……count the days until spring!!!!