I hate being cold.

[Flaxbee]

I grew up in a beautiful, temperate climate (southern California) and now live in Virginia.

I hate being cold. I love the beauty of this part of the country, but I am a 100% warm-weather gal.

Brrrrrr. (I think the scared smiley looks like it's cold, so: )

[PoliticAverse]

1. Did you see snow during your time in CA ? n/t

[Flaxbee]

2. Once or twice -- we lived not too far from Forest Falls / Big Bear when I was in high school

and while we were in the valley, on a few occasions there was maybe an inch or so of snow in the morning, all gone by noon.

[Art_from_Ark]

64. I went camping in Forest Falls once

It was around Thanksgiving. When we pitched our tents in the evening, it was fairly warm. But we woke up to 4 inches of snow on the ground.

[MiddleFingerMom]

3. We were raised in Michigan. At one point, MiddleFingerMomSis lived in Southern California.

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She illustrated the difference by telling me that when you went to cut down a Christmas
tree in Michigan, you took along a themos of warm brandy.
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In Southern California, it was a bottle of chilled wine.
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The natural habitat of the elusive Flaxbee (from Nov. 1st -- May 1st):
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[Flaxbee]

4. lol!

Oh lordy, MFM, wherever do you find these photos?

Actually, I think that's much more fashionable than a snuggie, or whatever the heck those all-over blankets are/were...

The model in the image needs gloves, though. My hands are freezing right now.

[nolabear]

5. Me too. The first time my neice ever saw snow was when she came up from home to visit us here.

She was nine. I seems to be a family trait, but in spite of being a fairly zaftig type, I have relatively low blood pressure and get cold as hell. In winter I sleep in socks.

[Flaxbee]

6. Oh, I can't sleep in socks. My right foot is my SCUBA device: self-contained undercover breathing

apparatus.



Seriously, my right foot must be able to breathe fresh air at night or I'll suffocate.


One of these days I'm hoping to convince my husband we need to move to the southwest. Austin looks like fun. Or I'd even go to Boise, where some family lives, because the winters there are very mild.

California, while I love it, isn't the same place I grew up in -- just very crowded, and much of the beauty is now paved over with freeways and housing developments. However, if I had unlimited funds, I'd probably go back there.

[Curmudgeoness]

8. You are in VA, and you think you are cold?

Come visit any time. W PA. Any time from now till May will make you welcome VA.

But I do understand how S CA is much better----although I was always surprised at how chilly it would get at night, even in the summer.

[Flaxbee]

11. I know, I'm a total wimp

Definitely, when I lived in San Diego, a sweater was a must for evenings, even in the middle of summer.

Did you get your Sammy baby to the vet OK?

[Curmudgeoness]

13. I am a total wimp about cold too.

Apparently, I was not born to live here. Oh well. Afghans all over the place and five blankets on the bed.

Sammy was SO bad, I think I was charged extra for the difficulty. He is a very wonderful cat, until he is held down. Then he becomes feral. But after five tries, we got him taken care of.

[Flaxbee]

15. Glad to hear that about Sammy. My late NYC-girlfriend-kitty, Clarisse, was CRAZY

at the vet's. I adopted her when I lived in NYC for a while and was warned that she had 'issues'.

She was just kinda feisty and destructive (she peed in damn near every plastic storage box of my husband's -- she loved him, but hated electronics. Though, to be fair, he should have put the damn lids back on the boxes when he'd found what he wanted. Caught her once with back legs straddling the box, peeing away).

Anyway. If a vet tech was inexperienced in handling cats (and she could always tell), she'd SCREAM bloody murder. Scream. The kind of noise where if I'd been in the waiting room, I'd have been tempted to run into the exam room to make sure the vets weren't torturing the cat.

She died in my husband's arms in Virginia on the same day I was in California burying my dad at sea.

[Curmudgeoness]

17. Sammy is incredibly friendly and outgoing....

he just will not tolerate being held down. As soon as he was freed, he just sat on the exam table and then head butted the vet. So it isn't that he is afraid. Or bad. I got him at nearly 2 and he was rejected a few times back to the rescue group, so I have no idea what he went through earlier in life. But his anal glands are (mostly) drained, again. Sadly, he doesn't seem to have working glands, so he has to go through this often.

Hope your babies are doing well.

[Flaxbee]

20. Oh dear, poor fella. That must be an ordeal

I know dogs have the anal glands issue, didn't realize many cats did... Wonder what happened to him to make him hate being held down so much. When we first got Ivan (after Hurricane Ivan in 2004), he'd turn around and bite me (hard, the little shit) every time I'd put him down. If I set him on a table or chair, he'd bite my arm or legs. If I set him on the floor, he'd bite my feet. Took almost a year before he quit doing that. He was a stray who literally blew in with the storm, and I have no idea what his life was like before that, other than that he was definitely not feral.

So glad Sammy found his 'forever home' with you. No matter how difficult an animal was, I'd never, ever return him or her to a shelter or rescue group. Can't imagine.

All kitties are fine, and firmly rejecting the cold. Ivan spent a few days looking for Jesse, and my porch looks so lonely now without his bed.

[Curmudgeoness]

31. You are right, not many cats have gland problems.

Unfortunately, this has been ongoing and there is nothing more we can do except deal with it every month or so, or remove the glands. I am not there yet. Sammy has been a challenge though, came to me with loose stool and underweight. Took a month to clear it up and still will have bouts. He also had stomatitis, which has left him with only a few teeth left in his mouth, and we have to clean them often and give him water additives, as well as steroids. He has not been a cheap cat. But I am with you, this is his forever home and I will deal with the problems, because he is a pretty damned good cat. I could not return him, and I am only grateful that I can do what he needs.

I am sure that you will miss seeing Jesse for a long time. That poor little creature. Glad everyone is fine.

[Angry Dragon]

65. International Falls, Mn

coldest place in the continental US

[geardaddy]

71. America's Icebox. n/t

[Curmudgeoness]

74. Is that where you are?

I never believed that anyone lived there....it is a place no one would have heard about if it wasn't for the weather reports.

I really do feel for you. I don't think that I could ever survive it.

[Angry Dragon]

75. South of there ...I have been there ... and people do live there

You get used to it ....... but the winters do get colder as you get older

[progressivebydesign]

59. My Ex refers to me as the "Sock Nest Monster" because he kept finding sox in bed..

i'd start with them on, and at night I'd somehow take them off in my sleep. He's probably STILL finding sox in his bed. haha

You know, I was just back in California (after being up here in MossVille aka Seattle, for too many years. And you know, it was STILL wonderful there. The light is so magnificent, the people ridiculously friendly and laid back. There are other spots in California that are still really nice and not quite as intense as say.. Riverside, or the SF Valley. 60% of th Californians I meet up here are going back. I know that I am (but I was living in San Luis Obispo County when I left, and will go back there. It's still pretty amazing there, and worth it.)

[Odin2005]

54. I sleep in socks 9 months of the year!

[argiel1234]

7. We are opposite

I love the cold. My body is comfortable in a chilly breeze. Was wearing a tshirt out today(pittsburgh)

I like the brisk awake feeling it gives me

[Flaxbee]

9. I don't really like "hot" either, but I'll take that over freezing...

I was spoiled - SoCal was just nice, temperate, and not humid.

Though, it is easier to sleep when it's cold; I prefer cool rooms.

[We are Devo]

33. SoCal is too hot for me!

I've been here in Pasadena allll my life. I was recently in Eugene, OR and it was like heaven - - 40s and 50s during the day!

[Flaxbee]

36. Pasadena does get to 'baking' in the summer... good friends of mine are in Alta Dena

and one of them said he spent most of his summer in movie theaters Their house was being re-roofed and no a/c ...

[We are Devo]

45. Yeah, we had

a wretched summer here, over 100 many days. I just stay in with my a/c cranking!

*Altadena

[Flaxbee]

47. ah, yes, Altadena

I've been away so long I'm forgetting things...

[progressivebydesign]

62. I had a vintage apt in South Pasadena (amazing place, btw) but NO a/c

and was across the street from one of those bank temperature signs... it was like being in hell. Not only was it unbearably hot, but you could watch the temp go up and up.

[We are Devo]

69. I'm in So. Pasadena, actually..

I remember those bank temp signs...they are gone now.

[progressivebydesign]

61. Grew up in Pasadena. LOVE that town, but too hot. Eugene gets nasty hot in the Summer tho.

My daughter lives there, and I've been there for weeks at a time. The gray will make you crazy after awhile.. 8 months of it, and the summer's are very very hot, too. But unlike Pasadena, the Summers are shorter. Ashland has more sun year 'round, but also gets super hot (100s most of the summer.)

[We are Devo]

70. I couldn't live there

the gloom would get to me. It was nice for a getaway from the heat here, though. I love Santa Fe, NM too. Sunny and cold at the same time in the winter, unless it's snowing

[Curmudgeoness]

18. LOL, I have a friend like you....loves cold and I hate it.

And I am just north of you and I already have the thermal underwear out.

[fizzgig]

10. you sound like my husband

except he's a virginian living in northern colorado, he complains all the time about how much colder the winters are here than there.

i keep the thermostat at 58 and usually don't need my robe.

[Flaxbee]

12. One of my best friends is in Montana ... and I will only visit her from May - September :)

Well, I'll see her any time it's possible, but I prefer May - September. Middle-west / mountain - west is COLD. Bonecracking cold.

[fizzgig]

14. i don't think i'd go up there in the dead of winter

we have a week or two of that kind of cold every year and i all i can do is hope my car will start

[Flaxbee]

16. yeah, I've heard that concern, too - hoping the car will crank.

She's got a neat old Victorian in the middle of town, but no garage ... she needs a heating blanket for the engine at night.

[grasswire]

60. most Montanans have a heater that is installed in the car -- plug it in every night

open the hood, connect the heater to an orange cord for electricity.

I learned another good trick there. If your car door lock is frozen, hold your key to a lit match for a moment. Voila!

[RebelOne]

19. Grew up in South Florida.

I was sick of constant summer and spring. I moved up here to North Georgia where at least there are seasons. The summers are hot, but they do not last all year like in South Florida. Occasionally, we get some brutal winters, but I can deal with them because I love cold weather.

[Flaxbee]

21. I do like the seasons and agree - 80 degrees in December feels weird.

But I really don't like deep, windy cold.

We lived for about 5 years in Franklin, NC - right over the GA/NC border; our veterinarian was in Clayton, GA (Rabun County).

North Georgia is beautiful. Just so conservative (as is much of the south, unfortunately; Franklin was waaaaayyyy conservative).

[RebelOne]

22. I live in Cherokee County, which is totally red. n/t

[Lady Freedom Returns]

23. That is one of many reasons I moved to Tucson.

I find that this area suits me well!

[Flaxbee]

24. Definitely nice and warm in Tucson!

Some family lived in Flagstaff for a while (cold!) and we'd often scoot down to Sedona, sometimes Scottsdale, but I never made it to Tucson...

[Lady Freedom Returns]

26. The coolest part is that the heat may get above 100, but...

it is still tolerable. It is great!

[femmocrat]

25. I hate being hot.

Weather in the 40s is perfect for me. I was at the mall today in a tee-shirt and light jacket and was sweating. Ugh.

[Flaxbee]

30. Too hot makes me cranky, too. "Just right" as Goldilocks said...

SoCal was perfect. Not too hot, not too cold. Just right.

The drenching humidity of the deep South just pisses me off. But cold makes me shiver and withdraw.

[Odin2005]

55. Me, too!

I cannot STAND heat, especially if it is a humid heat. I actually start feeling sick.

I usually don't start wearing a heavy winter coat until it's below 30F.

[progressivebydesign]

63. I can't do extreme heat or cold. My perfect temps are 65-78

I really do belong back on the Central Coast of California. #1 and #2 rated weather in the Country. Not too hot, not too cold, not to damp, not too dry. Yeah, expensive, but worth it if you're a weather wimp like me. I am absolutely dying here in the Pacific northwest. . so much gray, so much wet, so much dark!! Cold, too!

Funny that you can do such extreme cold, though! My cold limit, jacket-wise, is like 48 degrees.

[Redlo Nosrep]

27. Ha, You'd Have Died Living MY Childhood, LOL

I spent my pre-teen and teen years sleeping in an unheated addition to an old logger's shack on our farm in Oregon and regularly woke up winter mornings with frost layers INSIDE the windows.

[Flaxbee]

37. But I think a lot of it is what you get used to as a kid. I was 'spoiled' by really temperate

weather ...

Though, frost inside the windows just sounds too damn cold!

[Helen Reddy]

28. Folks think me crazy.

My humble abode being Wisconsin still does not stop me from wearing shorts if I am working outside when the temperature is below 40 degrees.

I'm an optimist.

[Flaxbee]

38. I saw someone today walking around in shorts. It was probably 42 out, but windy so it felt

much colder. You must be made of sturdy stuff!

[Helen Reddy]

46. Don't know about "sturdy"

Perhaps with a couple of jiggers of crazy to boot!

[we can do it]

29. I do too - just be thankful you are not in NE Ohio. Its abysmal here 3/4ths of the year

[Flaxbee]

39. Any chance you could be somewhere warmer at some point in your life?

I mean, I do really like Virginia, and the cold 'season' here really isn't that long - maybe 4 months (Nov. - Feb.) with March being iffy, but definitely warming up. So I shouldn't really bitch too much. I think I'd like maybe one month of winter

[we can do it]

72. Hoping to move to Rehoboth Beach, DE within 5 years

[alarimer]

32. I'm with you.

I lived in south Texas for 15 years. Winter was 3 weeks in January, if that.

Now, in NC, it's been 50 degrees for days. My apartment falls below 70 and I need to turn on the heat.

God help me if I need to drive in ice or snow.

[Flaxbee]

40. Aren't you coastal NC, too? Somehow to me, that seems like it'd be colder

You need more kitties (lol - I kid; I saw your "I'm a cliche" post).

How are you doing? OK with your new(ish) job? Hanging in there with everything else?

[alarimer]

56. Yes, it's cold right now, but they tell me it hardly ever snows.

Good, because I have never really driven in snow or ice.

Job's going pretty well. I'm muddling through everything else.

I am about 60 miles from the coast; at least on the Gulf Coast it's warmer on the coast than inland in winter, and cooler in summer.

Not sure how that applies to this part of the Atlantic.

[madinmaryland]

34. Sonia is a very warm kittie at night (and very noisy in the morning!)

[Flaxbee]

41. Does she wake you up? We don't let our kitties in the room with us at night - 5 piled on the bed

is just too much, and some of them get into swatting matches... they all have their own beds, and Silver is our alarm clock. Wakes us up every morning by meowing incessantly (and loudly) if we're not outta bed by 10 a.m. (we stay up quite late for work / projects so 10 a.m. is sorta like everyone else's 7 or 8...)

[kiva]

35. Me too.

I've been in Las Vegas for fifteen years and am officially a weather wimp when it comes to cold.

[Flaxbee]

42. Ah, that warm, dry heat.

Heaven.

Part of my teenage years were spent quite close to Palm Springs (Ca - not Florida - that'd be too humid... ). Loved it.

[orleans]

43. i hate having a cold

but i think i've finally caught one
haven't stopped sneezing & blowing my nose since i got home from seeing that reincarnation cloud movie

maybe it's a sign...

[Flaxbee]

48. hm. did you like it? Cloud Atlas?

[orleans]

57. ummm...yes and no. n/t

[HopeHoops]

44. Ah, but you have someone to curl around and warm up with. That's the fringe benefit of cold weather.

And hell, Virginia isn't cold. I'm in PA now and used to live in the coldest part of the state. I also spent ten years in NH. What's wrong with wearing a string bikini in the snow? I used to shovel snow with no shirt because I was sweating so hard from the work. On the plus side, I had mounds of snow to park my beer bottle in while I was working.

[Flaxbee]

49. True, that (someone to warm up with). And I am a total wimp, I admit....

Didn't NH have the coldest temperature ever recorded in the continental US? White Mountain, or somewhere similar?

A while back we had friends visiting from Moscow; we all were staying at a friend's house right outside of NYC ... there was a huge snowstorm, and Alex did the same thing - stripped off his shirt, grabbed some alcohol (in his case it was vodka) and started shoveling. Lol. Our friend was a bit of a snob and this was in Scarsdale; she freaked out having a shirtless Russian shoveling and drinking in her front yard.

[HopeHoops]

50. I'm not sure if it was White Mountain, but yes, it was in NH. Not where I lived.

[madmom]

51. I, too, hate being cold, but for the complete

opposite reason. I grew up in Western Maryland. Not well off, and remember having to heat with a one room coal stove,where you roasted in one room and froze in all the others. I don't like the reminders of that.

[LWolf]

52. I hate being hot.

I left the Mojave Desert behind after spending 25 years of my adult life there, and am grateful for the cold.

I'd be happy if the temperature never got warmer than 70.

[Odin2005]

53. Quit whining, I live in FARGO!

If you think Virginia is cold, we get nights in January and February where the air temps (NOT wind chill) can get below -30F.

[Qanisqineq]

66. oh, I miss those days

weatherman telling everyone how many seconds until your skin freezes, car plugged in all night, hair slightly damp and freezes when you go out the door...

Good old days

[Major Nikon]

68. Spent a winter in Grand Forks

One was enough to last a lifetime.

I still remember looking over the treeless plains seeing the snow being kicked up by a herd of antelope? Nope. Rabbits.

[progressivebydesign]

58. I hear ya! Grew up in Pasadena, lived on Calif. Central coast.. Stuck in Seattle now...

SO tired of cold and rain and gray and damp and dark. And what is with all this black slime and moss all over my driveway.

Going back to California as soon as possible.. If you grow up in Southern california, it's too hard to forget what that's like.

Sending 'warmer than Virigina" thoughts your way. Was just in California a few weeks ago, and had In n Out burger and fries at a park on the beach. Sending some of that your way, too.

[raccoon]

67. I hate being hot--and I don't like cold, either. Between about 60 and 75 degrees is what I like. nt

[We are Devo]

73. Pasadena expecting 95 degrees today...

Can we trade places?

[SCALA13]

76. I actually prefer the cold...

since I think its easier to adjust to than the hot days of summer.