I've Just About Had It....

"Due to social anxiety and inclement weather conditions, outside is closed until further notice."-

Nick.@SocialExtortion

January Doldrum

I hate January.

It's not even the tons of snow and dangerously freezing weather that we have been hit with lately. It's the time of the year when everything feels...stagnant. The holidays are over, its time to get back into the groove of things and its always a time for re-evaluation. And who really wants to do that? We always seem to be in a holding pattern in January; holding out for spring and waiting for the new year to begin or holding out for something more.

I read recently that Jan 6th is the most depressing day of the year. "Blue Monday", as it has been dubbed, is said to bring on terrible depression in some. With winter's dark and shortened days, the excitement of the holidays now come and gone and those additional pounds and bills piling up, it's easy to see why January is a least favorite month among people. In the beauty industry, it's the month to focus on Health and Wellness which goes along with the New Year and the New You philosophy. That's a positive way to look at things, but then there's the reality that says January sucks. Plain and simple.

A British Protein drink Maker claims that they analyzed over 2 million tweets over three years for negative language and concluded the Jan 6th date. Scientists do NOT agree.

“There is simply no science to support that statement,” says Dr. Gail Saltz, a psychiatrist and TODAY contributor. “The idea that you can cull negative words from tweets and then from that conclude that it is the most depressing day of the year sounds absurd from a science standpoint.”

Either way, I have concluded that January is the red headed step-child of the calendar year. With it's miserable weather and insincere "fresh new outlook" mentality, January can go pound sand for all I care. Bring on the ground hog, the Super Bowl, Valentines day and much more hopeful time of year because love cures all! Sorry January but you're time has come.

Just Like Donald Trump says, "January, you're fired."

Snow Job

We survived!

The Blizzard of 2013 was not a bust like I thought it was going to be. It was exactly the power packed punch that the media meteorological gods predicted that dumped over 2.5 feet of snow around here. 

The thing is, this ain't our first time at the "historic" storm rodeo.  We are hearty New Englanders  and when it was all over we came out to inspect the impact. Suburban inlanders, like me, handled the snow fall quite well, considering we never lost power in this part of the state. We rode out the storm in the lots of  food, TV, movies and warm comfort of our homes. WE were lucky. 

Our coastal counterparts were not so lucky. Out of power since Friday, flooding and severe winds caused expensive damage to most coastal areas. There were tragedies. Like the dangers of carbon monoxide that tragically took three lives, including that of a 14 year old boy. Just tragic.

So today, we go back to business as usual, but it's nothing usual at all. The freezing rain that is falling right now reminds us of the dangers of two feet of snow topped off with freezing rain that turns to ice. Especially on our roof tops. As I said, we are used to this and I have to say the state handled this storm beautifully. The Friday afternoon driving ban made things much easier for travel when it was lifted by 4PM Saturday and the media and the Commonwealth kept us updated as the storm progressed. 

As for me? It's off to work now. See that snow bank above? 

I gotta go shovel it.