The air crackled with irritability this week as the icy claw of winter continued to clench its bony hand around Wisconsin.
We celebrated the end of the meteorlogical winter with record-setting cold; the -24 degree air temperature on Monday marked our 51st day of below zero weather.
Bloated snow mounds higher than my poor little car loom obnoxiously along the streets, obstructing views and ignoring increasingly desperate attempts to make them leave.
Ice patches lie in wait like diabolical banana peels ready to launch intrepid joggers, grocery getters and dog walkers into the unforgiving air.
The teeth-rattling scrape of the snow plow marks the predawn hours and heralds the delivery of another daily deposit at the base of weary driveways.
My wind-flushed cheeks tingle with the omnipresent hint of frostbite, my eyes water in the bitter wind and I can’t feel the tips of my fingers.
Still, I look around and think, “How pretty!”
We’re caught in a polar vortex that has made our world infinitely more challenging and honestly more beautiful.
Somewhere under all that glittering snow and ice, fresh green grass and bright yellow daffodils are gearing up.
Until then, though, I’m going to bundle up and enjoy the view.
