Colder than a Witch's Tit...

Photo by Tiffany Personett, taken sometime in December,
but germane to the topic at hand anyway.

Sometimes I wonder where colloquial phrases like that come from...

But mostly, I'm bemoaning the fact that I for some unknown reason decided to stay in the northern part of these great United States instead of joining my family in their more southerly location.

25 degrees yesterday, 19 this morning...though fine, it's warmed up to 28 (I use the term 'warm' very loosely), and yes, I know, in places like Minnesota and Wisconsin it's even colder (currently -2°F and 1°F, respectively, and apparently feeling --because weather feels now?-- about twenty degrees less), so maybe I shouldn't complain.

But I'm cold.  And no matter how many layers I put on, it gets colder.  And though I pay several grand a semester for my room and board, we don't have a working heater in our apartment.  That is, it never gets warmer than the mid-fifties, which really isn't conducive to studying or sleeping well, let me tell you.

To keep this from being too whiny, though, I'm going to try and focus on the positives...

1. I have a roof over my head.
   I may have mentioned this previously but Billings has a really high percentage of homeless citizens, and though I joke that every bad thing that happens is good for my writing, I'll just thank God I haven't fallen that low and leave that bit of experience to my imagination.
2. The oven works beautifully.
   I haven't done it often because I feel wasteful, despite the fact that my rent covers all utilities and will not go up if I over-do it, but I have on occasion turned on the oven, opened the door, and just sat down in front of it, basking in that tiny bit of warmth...
3. I have a credit card for J.C. Penney's.
   Why is this relevant, you might wonder?  The other day, somehow I sensed there was going to be a drop in temperature, and so I went out and bought three new sweaters.  Yes, I still need layers, but I can be fashionable while I'm at it.  Plus I found some fuzzy socks on sale, and you really can't go wrong with fuzzy socks.
4. I have more tea than I know what to do with.
   Drinking tea not only warms the body, but it warms the soul as well.  Plus it's a nice reprieve from the chill in the air to have a hot mug in my hands.
5. The heat in the music building is working.
   Though I have to make the trek through the cold to get there, I can spend hours playing piano and let the heat permeate through me, which in turn gives me a warmer sound, since my fingers aren't frozen on the keys.

So it is colder than a witch's tit outside.
Should have figured, January in Montana, right?

Well, here's to staying warm.

Cheers.