It is currently the middle of winter in North Carolina. Meteorologically speaking, the coldest part of the year is just over a week away.
While many students may feel that winter is the worst season (our Mycenaean staff has definitely written an article or two about that very idea) I, for one, am quite fond of winter.
Let’s address the elephant in the room right away, the weather.
Weather
While this might be an unpopular opinion, I think the temperatures in winter are perfect.
As someone who runs extremely hot, I hardly ever find myself freezing during winter in NC. The sensation of a tingly nose during a cold breeze is somehow quite nostalgic, and makes me feel right at home.
For all the naysayers who claim winter is “too cold and uncomfortable”, just put on more layers. There is a reason the saying is “you can always add more layers.”
Plus, let’s get real. We live in Raleigh, NC where the average low temperature in January is 31° Fahrenheit. Much of the Northern U.S. does not even get above freezing for their high temperatures in January. The folks up there seem to do just fine and to even mention to them that 31° in January is cold would make you the laughing stock of the town.
For the few days of the year in Raleigh where it does get actually cold, just put an extra heavy coat on and maybe some gloves.
I would be remiss if I didn’t bring up the topic of snow while writing about winter weather. As a snow lover, even the slightest chance of snow has me excited.
However, in Raleigh, we don’t get that much snow (About 6 inches yearly on average). In fact, in recent years the average snowfall has actually dropped to around 4 inches. I think that this is a positive however, as it leads to more excitement when it does actually snow. If it snows feet every year, that could get very dull and annoying after a while.
Snow also provides one of the best memories for children and even teens: waking up to find snow on the ground and school canceled! It does not get much better than that.
While winter definitely has some issues related to weather, such as dry skin and chapped lips, all of the other three seasons also have their issues.
The biggest offender when it comes to weather issues is, of course, summer. Hot, humid, muggy, and sticky don’t seem like very pleasant descriptions of a season, but unfortunately that is the reality of summers in the South East.
As I previously mentioned, I run hot, so anything over 80° with the humidity around here is a real buzzkill. Plus, unlike winter where you can keep adding layers, you can’t just keep taking off layers.
Spring would be the next biggest offender due to its highly volatile weather and pollen. Spring has so much pollen that many people get really bad allergies with runny noses common during peak pollen season.
Lot’s of rain and rising humidity levels make for unpleasant days in the spring. Unfortunately, spring’s temperature changes from one day to the next can be awful. It can be 40° one day and 75° the next, which really messes with your body.
Autumn would be the perfect season temperature wise if it wasn’t for the random 80° and 90° days. Autumn also has weather features like hurricanes, which like snow, brings a stir of angst and excitement throughout the community. Hurricanes tend to be more destructive and deadly than the snow we get in Raleigh, plus you can’t play outside in a hurricane. This leads to hurricanes not being in as good standing as snow in my opinion.
Sports
Winter has some of the best sports not just to play, but also watch.
Skiing and snowboarding are peak winter sports, and American athletes like Mikaela Shiffrin (who is the most decorated alpine skiing Olympian of all time) and Shaun White make watching the sports almost as exciting as actually doing them.
Hockey, wrestling, basketball, and American football also take place during the winter.
While most of these sports spill over into other seasons, the NCAA College Football Playoffs and Bowl games are some of the most exciting collegiate sporting events to watch all year. The NFL playoffs also take place during the winter, with the Super Bowl being the most-watched American television broadcast year after year.
While the summer has some nice sports, namely baseball and soccer, I find it to be lacking the excitement factor that other seasons have when it comes to the sports department.
Spring and Autumn definitely have more sports than Summer, but they tend to either be continuations of winter sports (NBA, NHL), or the beginnings of winter sports (Most collegiate sports).
This leads to most of the action taking place during the winter season, except for the NBA and NHL, which have their respective finals in the spring. While these finals can be fun to watch, I find myself not that interested in them, especially the NBA finals. Winter sports and their respective finals, like the NFL, just have more appeal to me than other sports leagues.
Activities
Winter has a plethora of fun activities, many of which can be enjoyed either alone or with friends and family. Whether you enjoy outdoor activities or indoor ones, winter has you covered.
In the winter you can enjoy building a snowman, sledding, and ice skating, all of which can be done with or without friends. Snowball fights are a classic winter activity, and are some of my favorite backyard winter memories.
If you’re looking for something more relaxed, winter also has you covered.
Getting cozy by a fire or under a blanket and cracking open a book can be the perfect thing on a gloomy day.
Watching a movie on a particularly harsh winter day is also a great pastime, both alone or with others. Winter also is the perfect time to drink hot cocoa, one of the coziest drinks that warm your whole body on a cold day.
While any of the indoor activities could be done anytime of the year, the feeling of doing them while it’s wintertime is truly something special.
So while winter does have its downfalls, the benefits that come with winter greatly outweigh the negatives, especially when compared to the negatives of other seasons.
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