Although I live in the far northern part of the country, I’ve always hated cold weather.
I’m not a fan of snow and don’t enjoy skiing, snowmobiling or sledding.
I’d rather not need to bundle up in layers of sweaters, boots, wool coat and gloves just to step outside. I’m aggravated by spending hours shoveling the sidewalks and plowing the driveway. We get so much snow that I am constantly required to dig out the mailbox and shovel a path for the dog to walk. Anytime I want to go anywhere, I first have to brush snow off the car, scrape ice off the windshield and let the heater run for fifteen minutes. I spend a fortune attempting to heat my home. We get such brutal winter weather that the furnace runs for eight straight months at maximum capacity. I schedule professional maintenance for the heating system every fall and replace the filter every month, just trying to keep it operating at peak efficiency. With the furnace blasting, the air in the house becomes terribly dry. I then deal with static shock, frizzy hair, chapped lips and dry skin. We never get even a glimpse of the sun, so my skin is as pale as paper. It’s impossible to look attractive in winter. My goal is to retire and move far enough south to get by with a heat pump. An electric heat pump acts as an air conditioner in the summer and reverses operation to provide heat in the winter. It’s only effective until the outside temperature drops below freezing. I plan to live in an area where that isn’t a problem.