Winter’s On the Way

We took a car trip out to Oneida Lake last week. The weather was wonderful- bright, sunny, and warm.

There were fewer boats on the lake than is usual during summertime; a lone sailboat glided across the lake while most of its companions were moored to piers and covered with tarp. Young folks were riding their beach bikes, perhaps for the last time before the beaches close, and seagulls lounged on the picnic tables that are, as yet, still unturned and will be for another few weeks. (We always overturn our picnic tables for the winter because the heavy snow piles so high on them that they often crack and break from the weight). It was a great day to enjoy a pleasant autumn day. The autumn season is too brief, in my opinion.

I’m seeing geese making their V formations already. It makes me a little nervous. I think we New Yorkers all sense that winter will come early, last longer, and be colder this year. I do love winter– the glistening snow that whitewashes the houses and streets, the cozy days of baking zucchini bread and the smell of cinnamon in the house, the sheltered evenings of family and pets cuddled and reading together. But I dread the winter heating bills. Paying those bills is far worse than anything Old Man Winter can throw at us. So although I look forward to those lovely snowy days and cozy nights, I am not eager to see my money fly out the window, to the power company. The pleasures of winter come with a double-edged sword.

When I drove out from Utica to Oneida Lake, we passed by many properties that had enormous piles of cut and stacked wood. Some piles were as high as the garages that supported them. I gulped; I still have no woodstove, and seeing those stacks of wood and knowing what lies ahead this winter made me long for one all the more!

It’s been said that the changes of seasons keep you sharp. I think it’s true. Our comfort levels here in Upstate New York are vastly different than the luxuries of the constant Bermuda climate, for example. We move at a quicker pace up here, and the real reason is because we can’t let winter’s cold freeze our pants under us. And we’re so busy in the summertime because, well, because we know those winter heating bills will soon be in our mailboxes.

It was good to get out to the lake, to take in the last big breath of lake air, to bask in the last bright sunbeam of autumn sunshine, to enjoy the comraderie of fellow New Yorkers taking in their last outdoor lakeside activity, all before winter’s blast drives us indoors.