Exactly why is winter "harsh" in MN? (mattress, living in)

[lepoisson]

I used to think "cold weather, no big deal". Until I moved to the Midwest from the South.

In the South, I used to be able to slip on a pair of junk shoes to go out to check the mail, get in trash, get something from the car, or running out for a few errands (most of my time would be spent inside or in a warm car).

But when there is snow/ice, and it's in the negatives, layering up and putting on boots is 100% necessary.

The trade off is that summer is much more enjoyable. Summers are miserable in the South from May (sometimes earlier) until early September. In the upper Midwest, summers are only really terrible for parts of July and August. I currently live in Missouri, and we've got highs in the upper 70s/lower 80s all week. Where I used to live in the South... highs of mid to upper 80s. I remember needing AC in North Carolina in October one year.

[BryaninMSP]

Originally Posted by lepoisson

I used to think "cold weather, no big deal". Until I moved to the Midwest from the South.

In the South, I used to be able to slip on a pair of junk shoes to go out to check the mail, get in trash, get something from the car, or running out for a few errands (most of my time would be spent inside or in a warm car).

But when there is snow/ice, and it's in the negatives, layering up and putting on boots is 100% necessary.

The trade off is that summer is much more enjoyable. Summers are miserable in the South from May (sometimes earlier) until early September. In the upper Midwest, summers are only really terrible for parts of July and August. I currently live in Missouri, and we've got highs in the upper 70s/lower 80s all week. Where I used to live in the South... highs of mid to upper 80s. I remember needing AC in North Carolina in October one year.

I prefer the cold winters to the brutal summers, personally. I find it's easier to warm up than to cool down. In a previous career I had to spend a lot of time in Alabama and spent a miserable week in Clanton, Ala., training a sales team and going from business to business helping them sell advertising. It was 94 and the humidity was as close to 100% as it can be without raining. I was miserable, and everyone there was telling me I should have been there the week before when it was "hot."

[Apple Tree]

Originally Posted by BryaninMSP

I prefer the cold winters to the brutal summers, personally. I find it's easier to warm up than to cool down.

Me too. This will sound crazy to a southerner, but I have a much easier time being active in 25 degrees than in 100 degrees. Like I said before, if I could just get rid of rush hour snowfall, I would not mind winter at all. But same can be said for other great cities like DC, Boston, and Denver.

[asitshouldbe]

It's not brutal unless you are unprepared and must stay outside for extended periods. Dress well and you will be fine!

As much as I dislike winter we have had some horribly hot and humid days that I wished for cold weather, (not winter).

[Mr. In-Between]

Dress for it, and don't let it get inside your head. Just ignore it. If you keep telling yourself, "oh my god it's so cold it's so cold oh my god I'm freezing," well... yeah, you're going to feel cold. Put it out of your mind, and you'll be surprised at how soon you won't even notice it. I used to regularly hike the state parks in -20 weather, and was perfectly comfortable. It's all a question of having the proper clothes and the proper state of mind.

[mn shutterbug]

You can always put on more clothes but there is a limit to what you can remove and still go out in public.

[lepoisson]

Originally Posted by BryaninMSP

I prefer the cold winters to the brutal summers, personally. I find it's easier to warm up than to cool down. In a previous career I had to spend a lot of time in Alabama and spent a miserable week in Clanton, Ala., training a sales team and going from business to business helping them sell advertising. It was 94 and the humidity was as close to 100% as it can be without raining. I was miserable, and everyone there was telling me I should have been there the week before when it was "hot."

I agree with you. I can't stand doing anything outside when it's 95F and humid. At least when its 10 degrees, I can do stuff outside if I'm bundled up.

My only issue is wind. Wind ruins everything when it's super cold.

[my54ford]

Originally Posted by Ghengis

one good thing about the cold is, as the frozen dead begin to accumulate on top of the snowbanks (where the plows have pushed them), they don't begin to really start smelling really bad until late April.

Have to cart the stiffs off and feed them to the hogs

[asitshouldbe]

Originally Posted by lepoisson

I used to think "cold weather, no big deal". Until I moved to the Midwest from the South.

In the South, I used to be able to slip on a pair of junk shoes to go out to check the mail, get in trash, get something from the car, or running out for a few errands (most of my time would be spent inside or in a warm car).

But when there is snow/ice, and it's in the negatives, layering up and putting on boots is 100% necessary.

The trade off is that summer is much more enjoyable. Summers are miserable in the South from May (sometimes earlier) until early September. In the upper Midwest, summers are only really terrible for parts of July and August. I currently live in Missouri, and we've got highs in the upper 70s/lower 80s all week. Where I used to live in the South... highs of mid to upper 80s. I remember needing AC in North Carolina in October one year.

100% necessary??? HARDLY!!! You are not native to the area, obviously. I have never worn boots to do anything minor, like check the mail or taking out trash or running errands. Only wear boots for snow removal or outdoor activities.

[Kamsack]

I grew up in Kentucky but am very heat intolerant and always wanted to move north so got the chance and moved to the Grand Forks ND-East Grand Forks MN area. Our area is quite a bit colder than in the Twin Cities. And the Red River valley is infamous for wind and ground blizzards.

That said I can easily tolerate temps to -10F without any trouble. I dont work outside and like many your time outside is mostly to get the mail, run to/from the grocery and other stores and from/to work. In those situations, I just wear a light jacket and walk back and forth. I dont wear gloves or a hat...I can deal with a little cold fingers and ears....but those of course are for brief times. Wearing regular tennis shoes are fine for me. Now of course, if outside for longer periods for snow blowing or shoveling then of course I put on clothes to do that job....usually snow pants, layered clothing/hat/gloves as I have a 3 car wide garage driveway and it takes a while, not withstanding shoveling the very heavy snow plow remains.

For short errands, not worth the time and trouble to get all bundled up only to die of heat inside a store.

I dont do heat.... tolerance is very low..... 80 and higher are just horrible for me....