Life Below Zero

     Well, we sure picked the winter to arrive in Colorado!  The past few days have seen some of the coldest temperatures on record, and it is not unusual for the thermometer on the car to read -15 degrees when I take the girls to the bus stop at 6 am.  There's a winter weather alert for our area this morning due to high winds, blowing snow and a wind-chill factor down to -20.  We're very grateful to have a home to rent, but our tolerance for the cold is being tested as the boiler has been shutting down due to frozen pipes and other problems I haven't been able to figure out.  Most mornings we wake up to the thermostat showing 54 or 55 degrees Fahrenheit,  and I'm getting used to rising before 5am to light a fire in the fireplace so at least the living room is a little warm for Daphne and the girls when they get up.  I'm not complaining really - we're just learning how 'mountain folk' manage to survive and thrive up here.


I've been compiling a running list of what it's like to live life below zero:

1. When going outside for any reason, always wear every piece of warm clothing you have in your possession.  It's tempting to think, "I'll be in my warm car"... and then you see three cars on the side of the road that have spun-out on the ice - and the owner standing outside trying to figure out how to get his/her car back on the road.  Kind of embarassing if you're only wearing your pyjamas and a winter coat!

2. Steps to filling up your car at the gas station:

a. Get out of the car, swipe your credit card, try to push the buttons with your gloves on but the machine can't detect through the gloves.
b. Take off your gloves and push the buttons again... and then see on the screen "operation timed-out".
c. Start all over again - by which time you can't feel your nose or fingers anymore.
d. Get the pump running, jump back in the car and wait until you hear the "clunk" that tells you the tank's full.
e. Get out of the car and put the hose back in its place, jump back in the car, then realize that in your hurry to get warm again you forgot to close the gas cap.
f. Get back out, close the gas cap, jump back in the car and drive away.

3.  Dixie.  For some reason, when it's well below zero and the wind is blowing snow across the porch, Dixie doesn't seem inclined to go outside to "do her business".  Can't figure that one out.  I actually shoveled a pathway (see shoveling snow below) from the front door, around the deck and out to the yard to simplify her life, but she doesn't appreciate all my hard work.  So we have little yellow stains in the snow right outside the front and back doors.  She has a little 'jacket' that Nicole bought for her, and she's content to wear it 24/7 - indoors and out of doors.  Actually, she's adapted pretty well to life in the mountains.

4. Shoveling snow. After shoveling the driveway a couple of times, I now understand why 'real' men buy a four-wheel all terrain vehicle (like a motorcycle on steroids) with a snow plow on the front.  If you don't shovel the snow when it's fresh and light, you'll have to shovel snow AND a layer of ice that's formed beneath the snow.  At 8,800 feet in altitude, you can work up a pretty good sweat - even below zero.

5.  Conversations.  Start every conversation - whether at the bank, with the cashier at the grocery store, with acquaintances you meet - with the sentence:  "Boy, it sure is cold outside!"  And you end every sentence with, "Stay warm!"   Easy for you to say, you've got a boiler that works!

We love living in the mountains!