Going North

Wednesday, March 21, 2012
"So goodbye for a while I'm off to explore 
Every boundary and every door 
Yeah I'm going north . . . 

Up where the hunted hide with ease 
Under the arms of eye-less trees 
Up where the answers fall like leaves 
Oh and your love is all I need 
Yeah I'm going north"
- Missy Higgins "Going North"

I just got back from a very misty walk out to the mailbox. The weather's taken a turn for the grey (I woke to hear raindrops pitter-pattering on the rooftop last night), but the temperatures are still unseasonably warm. Today the temp's hovering around 50 and with no passive solar coming through our south facing windows (which Andy cleaned yesterday --suddenly our outside view got a lot brighter!) the temperature inside the cabin is about 63. A little chilly for room temperature, yes, but I will not, I will not build a fire when it's 50 degrees outside.



Besides, if I built a fire, then I'd have to change out of my cozy cashmere sweater into a t-shirt and I've had just about enough of running around in t-shirts in March, thank you very much. March through May is supposed to be prime sweater wearing season in these parts, when I can wear my frillier, lighter sweaters without having to wear Smartwool long underwear underneath and a big fluffy vest on top. But sweater season has been foiled by the Arctic meltdown of 2012 and so I am keeping the house nice and cool today,  just so my sweaters won't miss me.

I don't mean to be the dull blogger who writes about nothing but the weather, but honestly, this weather is crazy.

It looks like we're on track to have the earliest ice out ever - the previous record was in 2010 when the ice went out on April 11. We may end the winter lake trout season (which concludes on March 31st) in boats! 


Yesterday, Andy and I looked at each other and finally said the question we've both been thinking: Is the world ending?  

(I mean, a world without sweater season? Is it really worth going on?!)

Luckily, Andy, being resourceful and all, has a solution to this discomfit that comes from early ice outs and unseasonable weather. It's a solution that will result in never-ending sweater season. We just have to move . . .
to Alaska.


Now, whenever Alaska is mentioned, whenever I see an Alaska license plate, I feel the need to sing out "North! To Alaska" ala Johnny Horton. And I'm just a little nervous that if we actually moved to Alaska, there would be a lot more Johnny Horton in my life and I'm just not ready for that.

Also, considering the hit my social life has taken just by settling in bumblef__k rural Minnesota, I really don't want the majority of social contact to be with grizzly bears. (And yes, I did see Grizzly Man .  . . no thank you.) While my bags are packed and ready for Canada, I'm not sure I'm up for the land of the midnight sun just yet.

But I think everyone has a direction they're drawn in. Some people long for the sands and heat of the south. Pioneers were encouraged to "go west!" And despite several attempts in my early 20s to convince myself that I was meant to head east, it's obvious that the direction that tugs at my heart strings is north.

How north is this heart of mine willing to go? Only time will tell. But probably not all the way "North! to Alaska." Although, how many months out of the year would I get to wear my sweaters up there  . . .? 

What direction does your heart move? Anyone other than me and Meri upset about missing out on spring apparel this year?

7 comments:

  1. from my understanding, alaska just takes "outdoorsy" to a whooooooole new level. like, the level where a loaf of bread is stupidly expensive because it's so difficult to even ship up there. i know you've got the DIY spirit, but that's a whole new ball game!

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  2. Oh, oh, I dunno. Virginia seems to be far North for me already! But he, today I did travel up North - well, in mind remembering my time in Denmark and Sweden. Fascinating countries with yummy food! But he, already too too North for me.

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  3. The weather is soooo unpredictable these days

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  4. haha, I"m laughing out loud- I was just telling my officemates how happy I was to get to wear tights today. Are we crazy?

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  5. Ha, I love your thoughts on sweater season- I got a little teary-eyed last night looking at my cashmere sweater I just thrifted that I will not get to wear, apparently, until next fall.
    Although as weird as this weather is, I have to say that I am still enjoying the warmer temps, specifically the ability to sit outside in the evening and listen to the birds in the morning when I'm lying in bed. I'll take it as long as we have a normal spring next year, especially since last year's spring was so gloomy and overwrought.

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  6. Everybody and their mother knows I dream of going out West, but I can see the appeal of cozy sweaters. I'm currently in the phase of, "Do I take my warm weather clothes out of storage? Or will the weather turn cold again as soon as I do?" It has seriously been weird here, too. And while I will NEVER complain about 70-degree weather, I do have a few clothing items that I didn't get to wear as much as I'd hoped.

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  7. While visiting my Fairbanks relatives, I discovered when women go blueberry picking one stands sentry with a gun while the others do the picking. Don't venture too far north!

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