I am not a fan of winter. The only thing it brings are cold and terrible roads to drive on.
For some context; I live and work in two different towns, in a section of southern Sweden that we call Österlen. It is a beautiful place to live most of the time, with pockets of nature that is heavenly to hike in. But there are also a LOT of open fields, and that is part of the problem with the one time of year I really wish I lived somewhere else.
We don’t get a proper winter very often, only every few years, but when it comes it wreaks havoc on everything, but mostly the roads. It’s hard to imagine if you have never seen it. I have had conversations with people from the North of Sweden, where they get a lot more snow, and they laugh at the ‘weak and pampered southerners’ who get weather warnings and undrivable roads if they get 3-4cm of snow. Well, they laugh until they have spent a proper winter down here.
Because the amount of snow we get is not the problem, not really. The problem is that the snow does not fall to the ground and stays there. Around here it snows sideways 99% of the time. The real problem is not the snow, it’s the storm-level winds that accompany it. The result is roads that blow closed only moments after the plows have been through, packed snow making any driving a very bumpy ride with risks of bouncing both off the road and into the wrong lane if you come at it too quickly, and visibility that doesn’t stretch past your own hood. A 15 minute drive to or from work ends up being 30-45 minutes of dread.
It also means that the trouble isn’t over just because the snow stopped falling. Because of how open the landscape is, all of the snow that has fallen on the fields lining the road, ends up being ON the road, with the fields more or less bare. It is a mess for the people trying to keep the roads clear, and it’s hell for the people who have no choice but to drive on them.
So yes, winter is definitely my least favorite season.
Anyway, just needed to get some of my frustration off my chest. I hope that you all have a wonderful day, and stay crazy Moonrays.
~Luna
