Milk Maid

Putting the BRRR in November

This week has really put the BRRR in November!

I’m definitely not ready for the short, cold days. It’s dark at 5 p.m. and it’s been unseasonably cold.

First of all, I’m not a fan of Daylight Savings Time. It leaves us all in the dark. Second, according to weather.com, our average high temperature for November 8 is 41 degrees Fahrenheit, not 30 degrees. It’s pretty amazing how fast the snow boots, heavy winter jackets, hats, gloves and warm clothes can be dug out of storage.

When I was retrieving my winter garments, it was almost like they were laughing at me saying, “I knew you’d be back.” If it was December, I’d be less cold to the frigid temperatures.

But, it’s only the first week of November and I feel like winter is stealing the last of our potential nice fall days. While feeding my calves last night, I came to the conclusion that winter is selfish. Like every season, there are things that I like and don’t like.

Throwing snowballs at my brothers, walking on fresh snow, Christmas, jackets made for calves, cozy sweaters and hot chocolate are some of things I like about winter.

A lot of people enjoy outdoor activities like ice fishing, snow mobiling and more. If you are a winter lover, don’t be offended but I think your favorite season is selfish.

One reason why winter is selfish is because it takes up so much time to navigate through winter. It takes longer to drive from here to there. It takes longer to get your car to start and it takes longer to get dressed for the elements.

Forgetting any kind of winter wear boots, a hat, gloves, thermal garments will have you moving faster outdoors than you ever thought possible.

This week I even brought out the calf jackets. They are insulated coats that we put on our baby calves to help keep them warm and growing during the cold winter months.

I’m hoping that the coats I have on my calves can be taken off when fall decides to take a stand against winter’s selfishness. Winter can wreak havoc on water. It will freeze up pipelines, freeze livestock waterers and even create sneaky ice patches.

Winter doesn’t want to be forgotten so when you cross paths with a sneaky ice patch, the bruises left on your behind leave a lasting memento of winter. Even car shopping isn’t immune to winter’s selfishness.

When choosing a vehicle, I would be shocked if how it handles winter road conditions isn’t something a potential car buyer values.

I know I’m always concerned at how a vehicle handles the road winter conditions. Arriving safe and trusting my vehicle on snow and ice packed roads is a high priority for me.

The good news is though that I did a lot of winter preparation last month. The bad news is that like a lot of area farmers, we still have a few acres of corn left to harvest and field work left to wrap up.

Winter isn’t the worst thing, but it certainly isn’t the most enjoyable.

The cold and snow are manageable to deal with when you think about some of the extreme weather other regions have to combat.

I can handle a snowstorm because at least it’s not a hurricane.

But I still think that winter is selfish.

Brittany Moorse

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