Ahhhh!

I woke up this morning to find this outside my window! I am officially screwed. For the uninitiated, that is snow. It's in the mountains...and we're not that far away. It's only a matter of time before the icy hands of Father Winter are clutching at my paper windows. Dang it!

Yes, it is starting to get colder here. I was told that Autum would progress peacefully along, the leaves would start to change, and then, in Mid-November, it would one day suddenly become very, very cold and stay that way for the next four months. Well, they weren't lying.

It has officially gotten cold here. Literally one day it was nice and comfortable, and the next day my nipples were permanently hard. The hallways and bathrooms at the schools are like iceboxes. I half expect my urine to freeze in mid-stream while I'm going. Luckily, the teachers' room has a heater (it's nice to be a little higher up on the totem pole). Whichever students survive the winter get to progress to the next grade. My apartment has no such thing heater, though. I instead have a device called a kotatsu that is basically a coffee table with a heating implement and a removable top. You turn it on, toss a big blanket over it, and basically don't move much for four months. I am also going to buy a kerosene heater to heat the house, but I don't know how effective it will be. Even if it doesn't warm you, though, it's guaranteed to flood your home with the rich, soothing aroma of kerosene, or your money back. I'm planning to move all my stuff to the "warm" side of the apartment and just pretend that the extra rooms don't exist for the Winter. Too dang cold.

But, I'm kind of excited for the cold. I truly hate snow and ice and winter-related things if they are too intense. I prefer San Francisco-style winters: nice and brisk, but your car won't be sliding down the hill either. I think this will be a good hardy test for me. If I make it through alive, I will try to make another post to tell you how it was. See you in four months...