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The whole "long underwear" thing, is a bit overplayed; you really don't need for the vast majority of the winter. Only when temps dip into the single digits,. or when you're going to be outside for many hours, are times when you might consider wearing it. You;ll find yourself sweating quickly if you wear long underwear when it's in the 30s...
Unless temps are in the single digits the vast majority of the winter. LOL
As time has worn on and the novelty of winter has worn off, the big issue for me in Chicago is the length of winter. I still don't mind even the worst of the cold December - February. That's when "winter" is supposed to be, so I can't live here and not expect to be cold then. But what has gotten old is that as the days start getting longer and the calendar says March, April and sometimes May, it's often still pretty damn cold.
That's the flip side of living where it's warm most of the year... I don't like 90 degree+ heat (ever!) but I understand it during the summer months. It's when it's getting toward Halloween when I really start getting irritated! Or worse, "unusually" (as the weather folks call it) warm weather for Thanksgiving or Christmas.
I remember one January when we were living in the San Bernardino Mountains (it does get very warm up there!) we had 3 weeks of 90's!!!
Oh, that aint right!
Oh well, that's Southern California... we get our weird heat waves.
I remember many moons ago swimming in our neighbors pool during Christmas vacation. But that's back when I was a kid, and of course it was just fun!
My wife and I moved from the South (ie South Carolina, Kentucky) to Minneapolis two years ago. The transition wasn't as bad as I thought it would be, or as bad as many would have me believe it would be. Quite a pleasant surprise honestly. Bottom line here is you must to take winter weather seriously (much like in 98 degree, 90% humidity summer weather in South Carolina or Kentucky). Up here you must dress appropriately when it gets seriously cold outside there was no way around it. If its 5 degrees for a high in January you better respect it. I could also tell a distinct difference from 0 degrees to 15 degrees to 30 degrees with the later feeling balmy it was really weird and I never thought I would ever be able to say that. Other than that winter here is similar to what winter was like in Kentucky but with much less ice and freezing rain. I actually had to make more of an adjustment moving from South Carolina to Kentucky than I did moving form Kentucky to Minnesota. Adjusting to snow wasn't so much an issue as it was adjusting to driving in snow. Eventually you realize that you can't be speed racer on slippery roads and common sense kicks in. I also found an appreciation for 4-wheel drive and having good ground clearance. We have no regrets, and love the way winter is engrained into the culture here. Back home when it hit 40 degrees everyone was ready to call it quits and you wouldn't see any activity (recreational) until spring. Here people are active year round. When winter gets long right about the end of Feb/ early March we take our winter vacation to either Mexico, California, or the Carribean.
Last edited by sandlapper; 12-07-2011 at 10:11 PM..
I moved from Arkansas to Minnesota mostly to get away from red state mentality into a state that is mostly politically and culturally blue, but still rural. Yay, that made a very positive difference in my daily life!
I also moved because I just couldn't live through another Arkansas summer. It does get hot and humid even in Northern MN, but only for a month or less. Again, what a positive difference!
Each to his or her own, but for me the move was a wonderful, positive change.
After 15+ years of Florida i'm liking Canadian Winters.
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