SAD in the IE (Riverside, Palm Springs: buy, living, move)

[Forever Blue]

I honestly don't mind being cozy at home for a few days, but after 3 days in a row, I like to be out too.

I love walking around the mall on a rainy day.

[deathegg88]

Holy Crap, a few days of clouds and a little rain, and you have SAD ????
Yep,,, only in CA!

[dweej]

Originally Posted by NewportBorn

Hows the smog with the rain?

Surely its better

Luckily, there is no smog in Temecula...rain or shine! So I guess to answer your qestion- it's super .

[Twinkle Toes]

No smog in the Coachella Valley, but a little rain in La Quinta today. But it's not all gloom and doom - the sun is still shining. It's actually kind of cool looking - dark clouds on one side of the valley and sunshine on the other. It looks like a David Lynch film out here today!

[phloxy]

To the OP--hope you feel better soon. Good on you for getting out there for a bike ride. Exercise is great for lifting your mood and shifting the way you feel. Hope wife and baby come home soon. It's so sweet that you miss them so. If you're sensitive to light and it affects your mood, it's no wonder you miss it so quickly. I visited Yosemite over Christmas, and I made sure I walked out to a meadow every day the sun was out to soak it up because the cabin I stayed in was mostly in the shadow of a mountain, so it seemed "dark" even on very bright days. If I didn't do that, I'd be wrestling with depressed feelings even though I was in a very sunny place.

I'm actually trying to get to California to *treat* my SAD, though. Northeasterners are at the peak of SAD right now. Temps here (Finger Lakes region of NY) are finally "warming" into the 30s (even 40s for a day or two recently), and the sun has been out here and there. You'd think a national holiday had been declared seeing people out and about so much! After week after week of overcast skies and single-digit temps in the Finger Lakes, I think even people without SAD are feeling pretty depressed from the winter.

[Twinkle Toes]

Originally Posted by phloxy

To the OP--hope you feel better soon. Good on you for getting out there for a bike ride. Exercise is great for lifting your mood and shifting the way you feel. Hope wife and baby come home soon. It's so sweet that you miss them so. If you're sensitive to light and it affects your mood, it's no wonder you miss it so quickly. I visited Yosemite over Christmas, and I made sure I walked out to a meadow every day the sun was out to soak it up because the cabin I stayed in was mostly in the shadow of a mountain, so it seemed "dark" even on very bright days. If I didn't do that, I'd be wrestling with depressed feelings even though I was in a very sunny place.

I'm actually trying to get to California to *treat* my SAD, though. Northeasterners are at the peak of SAD right now. Temps here (Finger Lakes region of NY) are finally "warming" into the 30s (even 40s for a day or two recently), and the sun has been out here and there. You'd think a national holiday had been declared seeing people out and about so much! After week after week of overcast skies and single-digit temps in the Finger Lakes, I think even people without SAD are feeling pretty depressed from the winter.

Gosh Ploxy, I don't know how you do it! I always wonder when I see the news and people in regions with a lot of ice, snow and cold weather, how they manage to live in that environment! I know I couldn't do it.

[phloxy]

Originally Posted by Twinkle Toes

Gosh Ploxy, I don't know how you do it! I always wonder when I see the news and people in regions with a lot of ice, snow and cold weather, how they manage to live in that environment! I know I couldn't do it.

I guess it's been a matter of being born here and growing up in it, then you start your life, and before you know it, you're a resident and it's just the way things are. Been on the east coast for all 36 yrs of my life really. Of all the places I've lived, upstate NY is especially brutal. I've lived in the Finger Lakes for nearly 10 yrs total. (I moved away and came back, even!)

I'm an outdoors kind of person. I like to walk places, and I'm a runner. I do manage to run outdoors year round, and I like the toughness it instills in me. The winter just lasts a little bit too long, though. All the cold with sunshine would be all right, I think. It's the clouds that seem to make it bad. The summers here are absolutely glorious (although the lakes are still almost too friggin' cold to swim in, even at the height of summer!).

If I can make it to CA, I intend to spend time doing winter stuff in the mountains, probably even snowshoe backpacking since I love those kinds of physical challenges. But with nearly half of my life possibly over, I hope I will get a chance to spend a chunk of time in a mild climate now, too. I've had extended stays in SoCal and elsewhere, and I can really feel the difference psychologically.

[integrity_first]

I absolutely love it when it rains in the IE / high desert!

It means I can enjoy two of my favorite activities - off-roading and shooting.

The rain makes for great traction on the trails and reduces the dust, which makes riding with buddies safer since your vision isn't compromised as much.

The rain also makes shooting more fun because the fire danger subsides and I don't have to worry about starting a fire.

Yep, rain is a win/win for me! Get out there and live life

[carmac]

Originally Posted by chuck22b

Hmm, it looks like there is a little break in the rain.... I'm gonna go for that bike ride

You sound like my husband!! He gets sad in more ways than one when he can't go out and ride his bike!

[carmac]

Originally Posted by pll

All of you need to quit complaining.

I'm not complaining...I LOVE this weather! It sure beats our summers here! My husband isn't real happy with the rain though cause he can't go bike riding! But we are both definately 'winter people'!!