Seasons

One of the things my German friends and acquaintances tell me they would miss if they lived in California are seasons.  Now mind you, Silicon Valley ain’t LA: we do have season.  We have colorful fall leaves in October and November, we have rain in late fall and winter, we have tulips and daffodils in spring – and what says spring more convincingly than daffodils and tulips? – and then we have the hot days of summer.

Love it, enjoy it and then leave it: winter (here near Truckee in the Sierra Nevada), pic: http://serene-musings.blogspot.com

But somehow they don’t seem to count in the minds of the Germans.  As long as you are not freezing cold for at least a few weeks somehow they do not accept it as winter.  And if you don’t have winter, then, it appears, you don’t have seasons.  For me the rain and short days here are more than enough for me to get mix  fix of seasons.  I once established the rule for a decent climate the following way: I have to be able to go to the trash container (about three steps from my back door) barefeet any time – day or night – any day of the year.  If that is a given, the weather is acceptable.

I am frequently asked whether I don’t miss the crisp freshness of a brilliant nippy fall day or the beauty of a sunshiny snowy winter day and my answer generally is “naw – you know – not really.”  I can certainly appreciate either – for a day or two – but not for weeks.  The more important issue is that the brilliant, nippy fall days, just like the sunshiny snowy winter days are but a legend.  There is one per year, sometimes two, sometimes none but by and large they are a fidget of our imagination.  One such day, especially if it is a weekend day and can therefore be duly enjoyed – is remembered for years, talked about and conjured longingly and lovingly.  The reality is quite different: rain, freezing cold, endless gray days, fog (no after two days it is definitely no longer romantic), slippery ground, storms in one word: yuck.

If I need a snow fix: there are the Sierras, drive there, enjoy for a few hours or days, drive home to a place safe from snow and all the inconveniences associated with it.

Man, I have become such a Californian 🙂