Coping Skills for Surviving Winter in Michigan
Surviving winter in Michigan requires a special set of coping skills. Some are hands-on, physical abilities. Others take fortitude. A lot are a combination of the two.
1. You need to know how to move snow. If you can’t move snow, you’ll either have to spend the winter with your car trapped in the driveway or need to get used to walking everywhere in a pair of snowshoes. You have three basic ways to accomplish this task: shovel it, use a snow thrower or plow it. If you plan on shoveling, you’ll need an assortment of shovels and preferably a couple of kids to put to work helping. How ever you plan to move snow around, you’ll need to carefully plan out where you move the snow. By March you start running out of places to pile it, especially if you have a small yard.
2. You have to get over worrying about how you look. That down coat and ski pants might make you look like the Stay Puft Marshmallow Man, but at least you’ll be warm. And get over your perfectly coiffed hair. Just put on a hat already! In California beachy waves are stylish. Here the hot look for winter is windblown and disheveled.
3. If you care for young children in any capacity, you need to know how to put gloves on their tiny, sticky, squirmy hands. There really is nothing quite as frustrating as trying to get all ten of their fingers in the right place. It takes at least 20 tries, 10 minutes and a whole lot of patience.
4. You need to be able to walk on slippery surfaces without falling down. First, you need practical footwear: snow boots with good traction. Put away the cute shoes until April. (See point number 2.) Then you have to assume the right posture. You keep your arms at your sides, bend your knees a little and lean forward slightly. It’s not unlike how a penguin walks! You might look silly, but you’ll look even sillier face-planting in the parking lot.
5. You need to keep a well stocked pantry. With all of the modern snow removal equipment municipalities have these days, it’s unlikely we’ll be trapped at home for days or weeks at a time unless Snowmageddon hits us full force. But we might be stuck at home for 24 hours. Or we might just not want to venture out into the frozen tundra. Which means it’s important to have enough of the essentials on hand. Like toilet paper and chocolate. Bread and milk are probably a good idea too.
6. You should learn how to play Euchre. Euchre is Michigan’s unofficial official card game, and playing it with friends helps to pass the cold, dark evening hours. It’s different from most card games, because the Joker is high. It’s a bit confusing at first. But don’t worry. You have ALL winter to figure it out.
7. Learning to enjoy winter sports will help get you through the cold months also. There’s a lot to choose from. Skiing and snowshoeing are classics. If you’re more adventurous, give snowmobiling or ice fishing a try. For the latest craze, get a Fat Tire Bike and go cycling in the winter. If you want to get in touch with your inner child, hit the local sledding hill. Whatever you choose, physical activity outdoors always makes winter more fun.
8. You need to be optimistic. It works like this:
“Well, there’s three feet of snow on the ground, but at least it isn’t 20 below.”
“Well, it’s 20 below, but at least we aren’t having a blizzard.”
“Only 97 more days until spring!”
9. Plan your vacation to someplace warm. Whether it’s a trip to Arizona in February or your summer camping trip to the Upper Peninsula, looking forward to sunshine and warmer days ahead will help the winter pass a little faster.
10. You need to be able to drive in the snow. You will have to drive in winter weather after you dig your car out of the driveway. It’s not too hard. Slow down a little, leave plenty of space between you and the vehicle in front of you, don’t try to stop suddenly and, most importantly, dodge the giant pot holes. Seriously. We have pot holes here that can swallow your car. Or at least pop a tire.
