[img]958|left|||no_popup[/img] Dateline Boston — All week long I had the topic of my essay in my head. It was perfect. Simple, straightforward, to the point. Until now, when I actually started typing it out. More on that at the end. For now, here’s what was in my head all week:
I love Boston weather. We have 4 distinct seasons; well, at least 3½. Yes, some are longer than others, but each one brings with it an interesting mix of sun, wind, rain and temperatures. Boston weather is never boring, that’s for sure. I’ve heard it said in other places, but in Boston, it’s really true: if you don’t like the weather, wait a minute; it will change.
In the fall, the air turns cool and crisp. The wind blows the leaves off the trees. The colors are gorgeous: red, yellow, orange. Fall lasts from the end of September to the end of November.
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Next comes winter. Ah, winter. You never know what you’ll get in Boston. You can count on winter lasting anywhere from November to April. I’m not kidding. Six months. That’s how long I wear my long johns, anyway. Sometimes there’s a lot of snow, sometimes not much at all. You can count on the cold, however. It’s always cold. Really cold. I’ll never forget the year, I think it was 2003, it was so cold that school was cancelled. No snow; it was too cold to snow. The newspeople said that if you went outside without gloves, you would get frostbite in 5 minutes. I didn’t leave the house all day.
In New England, if it snows a lot, sometimes school is cancelled. We call that a “snow day.” I remember when I was a kid, there was no better feeling than getting up on a winter day, looking out the window at the beautiful snow, and finding out you didn’t have to go to school. Now I’m a teacher, and guess what? We get snow days! This winter we had 4 snow days. They came at a very opportune time, as I had just moved into a new apartment. I used the snow days to unpack and organize.
Winters in Boston are gorgeous. The snow blankets the trees and streets, sparkling like fairy dust. I don’t drive, so I don’t worry about shoveling my car out. All I do in a snowstorm is watch TV and drink hot chocolate.
After winter comes spring. Spring in Boston lasts anywhere from 3 days to 2 weeks. You can tell it’s spring when the weather reaches between 50 and 70 degrees and it rains a lot. That’s spring.
Moving on to summer. Ah, summer in Boston. It happens suddenly. When yesterday was 55 degrees and today is 80, you’ve crossed over into summertime. It comes without warning. One day you’re wearing a fleece jacket (not uncommon for springtime in Boston), the next, a tank top and shorts. Summer is hot and humid, and we have terrific thunderstorms.
Yes, I love the 4 seasons we have here in the East with all of the variations of weather. I wouldn’t want to live anywhere else. They’ve got earthquakes and wildfires in California. Hurricanes in Florida. Floods in Mississippi. Tornadoes in the Midwest. Nope, we don’t have to worry about any of that extreme weather here in Boston.
As I Was Saying
…and that’s where I was in this essay, when a tornado warning appeared on the TV screen during my afternoon show. A tornado warning in Massachusetts. Unheard of. The warning was extended from 4 o’clock to 5:15. To 7 o’clock. To 9 o’clock. Then the governor declared a state of emergency for the state. My town didn’t get a tornado, but we did get a pretty crazy thunderstorm.
I guess that sums up weather in my state; You never know what’s going to happen. Sometimes that makes it hard to pick out your clothes in the morning, but it keeps you on your toes. Flip-flops, or boots?
Ms. Campbell may be contacted at snobbyblog@gmail.com
