Do you love cold weather? (Minneapolis: earthquakes, quality of life, to live)

[Wellstone]

i don't mind snow but i hate the cold.
stay inside as much as possible

[Jodie603]

I'm struggling with the weather here. I've lived here 3 years, having relocated from the Mid Atlantic East Coast where a cold day in the winter is in the teens and we have a very long spring and fall.

The cold is one thing - living in relative solitary confinement for 4-5 months of the year when everyone is inside hibernating is another. I've had natives tell me they don't see their friends and neighbors between fall and spring - it's like everyone goes underground.

I'll probably stay another year and move on. It's a great place to live if you're a hardy Minnesotan used to this weather and you have tons of family and friends to get you through the winters. However, for a single transplant over 40, I feel like Thoreau living on Walden Pond - winter life is way too solitary.
Jodie

[green_mariner]

Originally Posted by Jodie603

I'm struggling with the weather here. I've lived here 3 years, having relocated from the Mid Atlantic East Coast where a cold day in the winter is in the teens and we have a very long spring and fall.

The cold is one thing - living in relative solitary confinement for 4-5 months of the year when everyone is inside hibernating is another. I've had natives tell me they don't see their friends and neighbors between fall and spring - it's like everyone goes underground.

I'll probably stay another year and move on. It's a great place to live if you're a hardy Minnesotan used to this weather and you have tons of family and friends to get you through the winters. However, for a single transplant over 40, I feel like Thoreau living on Walden Pond - winter life is way too solitary.
Jodie

I'm going to sound insensitve, but, why not just go outside and enjoy the winter activities. If it was that cold, I would just put on more clothes and go ice skating or participate in some other winter activity, if it were me anyway.

[marmac]

Originally Posted by pirate_lafitte

I'm going to sound insensitve, but, why not just go outside and enjoy the winter activities. If it was that cold, I would just put on more clothes and go ice skating or participate in some other winter activity, if it were me anyway.

Perhaps being a southerner your perception of cold is different than many Minnesotans.

25-30 degrees? Most Minnesotans aren't complaining.

single digits for highs? kinda takes the enjoyment out of ice skating and other activities.

You mentioned snow ball fights as part of your memory.

Most winter days the temps are too low to make a snowball.
March is the best time for making snowballs/snowmen.

[Isaysos]

Originally Posted by pirate_lafitte

I'm going to sound insensitve, but, why not just go outside and enjoy the winter activities. If it was that cold, I would just put on more clothes and go ice skating or participate in some other winter activity, if it were me anyway.

Yes, the most joyous part about winter is going out, starting your car, and scraping ice off your windows when its 10 below zero and the wind is blowing at 40mph. You can play outdoors all you want if you want to develop hypothermia and frost bite. There are many weeks in Jan and Feb where it is harmful to your health to go outside for more than 5 minutes. You can bunldle up all you want, but theres a point where even the moisture on your eyes and in your lungs feels like its going to freeze

[green_mariner]

Originally Posted by Isaysos

Yes, the most joyous part about winter is going out, starting your car, and scraping ice off your windows when its 10 below zero and the wind is blowing at 40mph. You can play outdoors all you want if you want to develop hypothermia and frost bite. There are many weeks in Jan and Feb where it is harmful to your health to go outside for more than 5 minutes. You can bunldle up all you want, but theres a point where even the moisture on your eyes and in your lungs feels like its going to freeze

I don't have a car, so I wouldn't know.

I am aware of bodily fluids having it hard in the cold. What I wonder is how do children in places like Siberia play outside in the middle of winter(colder than an Mpls winter) and do just fine? Not saying fluids won't freeze because there is a danger of that. With that said, I read books about people in places like Russia and hear of children playing hockey in temps as low as -40 F.

[moving123456]

Originally Posted by Isaysos

Yes, the most joyous part about winter is going out, starting your car, and scraping ice off your windows when its 10 below zero and the wind is blowing at 40mph. You can play outdoors all you want if you want to develop hypothermia and frost bite. There are many weeks in Jan and Feb where it is harmful to your health to go outside for more than 5 minutes. You can bunldle up all you want, but theres a point where even the moisture on your eyes and in your lungs feels like its going to freeze

I was outside for multiple hours snowmobiling every week last winter during January and February.

[Isaysos]

Originally Posted by moving123456

I was outside for multiple hours snowmobiling every week last winter during January and February.

Even when it was 20 below? Maybe that sounds like fun to you, but to me: No thanks!

[Ghengis]

I live on acreage in the country.
I don't own a snow mobile, but do have snow snow-shoes which are fun. Unfortunately we rarely get enough snow to make them necessary.
I've long ago retired the down-hill skis, but we can still explore the woods in our sorrels.
We have a garage and only occasionaly (<-20) need to plug the cars in. We both park outside during the day at work or the park-n-ride and have never had any problems with our cars starting. There's a cell-phone and/or On-Star if we did.
I love walking outside at night or early in the morning when it's cold, pausing and hearing the stillness that only a winter landscape can bring.
The stars seem especially bright and close in the winter.
Bon-fires at the burn pit with snow falling, a couple of beers and a bottle of root-beer schnapps can't be beat.
Oh, there is the hot-tub, and the metal fire place on the patio.
Winter is what you can make of it.
I like the winter, a lot.

[slamont61]

I'm a transplant to Minnesota and expected to HATE the extreem cold. I was wrong. Winter here is almost easier to deal with than in areas where the temps get cold then warm then cold again. Winter in Pittsburgh was miserable that way. Here it gets cold and stays cold, and it's a great place if you enjoy winter activities. Most of us get used to it and deal with it. We don't really get much snow in Mid-Winter when the cold is constant, most storms are early and then later.