Chez Shaffner

Monday, November 27, 2006

Sudden Fits of Global Warming Anxiety

Am I the only person in the Northeast currently suffering this unusual condition? At 12:30pm Monday afternoon, I threw on my gym shorts, a tee-shirt, and my warmest fleece. From my lobby to the gym is 2.1 blocks. One of these days I’ll count the steps. Basically, I have no excuse for skipping my daily cardio. No excuse. Anyway, this time of year, I expect to burn three extra calories shivering my way those 2.1 blocks. Not today: upon stepping outside I learned that my fleece was too much. It was a short-sleeves day here in Boston, Mass.

November 27th, a short-sleeves day? What the hell is going on?

I may be pretty liberal in a lot of respects, but an environmentalist I’m not. Still, short-sleeves on November 27th feels fifty-one flavors of screwed up.

It has gone the other way from time to time. Last week, I showed Keryn my favorite photo from college. In black and white, twelve men are covered head-to-toe in mud and grime. Two days before Chris Min snapped that pic, on April Fool’s Day 1998, we received three feet of snow. Snow in April? Eight years later we have short sleeves in December.

I’m not complaining, exactly… I have held a permanent address in only two states—Maine and Massachusetts—both of which are known for their wicked winters, yet I have always hated the snow and cold. Still, enjoying the warmth does not mean that I’m comfortable with it. See the distinction? I didn’t think so.

During my most recent visit to the barber, Ron told me that he heard our Massachusetts climate will soon resemble the Carolinas. I think it’s wrong to root for that statement to come true, but what makes me nervous is how days like today force me to consider for a moment whether he might be right… For now I’m going to make the most of these crazy temps. I’m sure three weeks from now big drifts will settle on the streets and I’ll regret jinxing things with this posting...