At Cornell, it is super easy to hate the winter. The cold wind causes tears to run down your face. You have to trek through the snow because, officially, there is “no winter maintenance.” Somehow, you sweat under all your layers, despite the freezing temperature. Pair that with the boost of serotonin you get whenever a glimmer of sunlight comes out, just to find yourself devastated when another wave of subfreezing weather comes through.
While we get ready to say goodbye to winter (I think we have one more cycle of false spring), let’s acknowledge (and possibly appreciate) a few of the things that’ll be gone once the weather warms up.
1. No Mosquitoes
I tend to forget this one. While dry skin can be somewhat itchy, this is easily remedied with lotion — mosquito bites, on the other hand, are tiny pieces of hell on Earth. This isn’t an unpopular opinion by any means, but I think it’s very easy to forget that warm temperatures come with animals and bugs, like mosquitos. So while we’re still braving the subfreezing temperature, let’s at least appreciate that we’re not being attacked by mosquitoes at the same time.
2. No Pollen or Allergies
If you’re part of the lucky 70% that doesn’t experience spring allergies, just know that the bombardment of pollen is horrible. You constantly feel just a little bit sick, not knowing if you’ve actually caught a cold or if it’s just your body overreacting to the pollen. With flowers blooming also unfortunately comes itchy eyes, scratchy throats, running noses, hacking and sneezing. Let’s appreciate the time we have left until then.
3. Snow
While it’s easy to focus on what winter doesn’t have, I would also like to highlight what it does have: the beauty of snow, especially in Ithaca where it is a regular part of life in the winter. Experiencing large amounts of snow was a big change for me, but it is something I have come to find joy and whimsy in.
As opposed to being depressed when the snow reappears, I’m instead grateful — the trees may be dead, but I love seeing the white powder cover them and the mountainous view from West Campus.
4. Cornell-Specific Snow Activities
I generally like the winter everywhere, but being in Ithaca and at Cornell gives me extra ways to enjoy it. For one, sledding down the slope can’t be beat. It is something that is especially intense with the slope being almost 500 feet long. While we’ll find community on the slope in any season (and I’m definitely looking forward to some after-class relaxing in the sun), the first snow followed by hordes sledding down the slope has a different energy.
Something else I love about the winter season at Cornell are the hockey games. Hockey is obviously one of Cornell’s most watched sports. While checking in on the homecoming football game is fun, hockey is where we thrive. It offers a truly unique experience: hearing the various taunts and witnessing the crowd traditions at my first game was unparalleled.
While I love the winter, I am of course looking forward to spring, something only heightened every time the weather goes above 40° Fahrenheit — only to fall back down to subfreezing temperatures the next week. But while I wait for spring, I’ll also remind myself of what there is to appreciate in the winter.
Melanie Delfosse is a sophomore in the College of Human Ecology. She can be reached at md2262@cornell.edu.
