With fall pulling an “Irish Goodbye” on us, it is with heartfelt saddens that I say goodbye to some key players in my life. Goodbye, sun, and all your vitamin D-ness, your warm but poisonous hugs, your smile that enables me to look extra amazing in sunglasses while I’m trying to hide my under-eye bags in the morning as I run errands. You bring me much happiness, please come back and visit anytime.
Goodbye, tank tops and shorts. You motivated me for about 1 week to stay in shape over the summer so I could look cute. But even when I gave up on that, you still stayed on top of my laundry pile and were always there to cover my ass. Thanks for being stretchy, I appreciate your flexibility.
Goodbye, razor. Though we are “as needed” type friends, I see you most in the summer. Thanks for making wearing tank tops slightly less offensive. Will I see you this winter? Absolutely not. The extra body hair keeps me warm. Enjoy your hibernation.
Goodbye, flip flops and toenail polish. Thanks for being cute and easily accessible. Sorry for the sweaty feet, it was the sun’s fault. Sure, my feet are killing me after months of wearing flat shoes, but it was worth it. Toenail polish, I’ll see you at spring break. Flip flops, I’ll be seeing you with my socks when I take the garbage out. It’s okay, no one’s watching.
While goodbyes are hard, transitions and change are healthy, and fall is the master of transitions. I always love pointing out the leaves changing colors during my drives with the kids. I mean, no one is listening to me anyway, but I still say it in the off-chance they stop smacking each other in the backseat and actually hear something that comes out of my mouth. Nothing says “I love fall” like a mom screaming, “Shut your mouths back there and look at the pretty leaves already or you’re grounded!” Just to clarify, no one has gotten grounded yet for disrespecting fall. But fall really screwed us over this year, and we got short-changed. I love our tree in the backyard, whose leaves turn bright red in the middle of October. This year, it stood among snowfall, looking beautiful and confused as hell. It looked like a Weirwood tree in Winterfell (I miss you, Game of Thrones). And even though it was pretty, I’m like, come on man, too soon. I didn’t even get to use my fall vests or my fall boots. None of my cute scarves saw the light of day. We skipped fire pit night season. I didn’t even have any hot apple cider with salted caramel vodka, and not one pumpkin spiced latte. How will I live? For Halloween, I bundled the kids up in thermal underwear and all their winter gear, and they went Trick or Treating and had snowball fights at the same time. This all does not sit well with me, and I’m cranky about it.
So here we are, in full on winter. And with winter returns a little SADness (seasonal affect disorder). I get a little melancholy during this time of year. I’m more tired. I’m moodier (yes, it’s possible). There is a noticeable spike in my Spotify slow jams usage. Working out only happens to enable me to eat the rest of the Halloween candy with less guilt. But I need to look on the bright side, change my outlook a little, and welcome some key winter friends.
Welcome back, layers. Layers of all sorts- layers of clothing, layers of blankets, layers of fat, layers of emotions, whatever suits you. Layers of clothing aren’t as warm as the sun, but they hide my inevitable holiday weight gain, so I’ll take it.
Welcome back, egg nog. There is nothing healthy about you whatsoever, but you’re so good in my coffee and with rum. You are both delicious and oddly very close to being disgusting. Though you are only on the grocery shelves for a few months out of the year, you stay on my hips for years and years to come.
Welcome back, peppermint mocha. Sure, I had you the other day and you totally waged war on my stomach and gave me bubble guts for hours, but you are joy in a cup. Please be kind to my Asian digestive system.
Welcome back, Christmas music. Other than the 7 days leading up to Christmas, I mostly dislike you. You are like the party guest that arrives to the party 30 minutes too early, eats all the shrimp cocktail, gets drunk before the other guests arrive, and then leaves right after dinner. We are frenemies, but nevertheless, you are part of the winter experience. If it wasn’t for Mariah, you would be dead to me.
Welcome back, winter hat, coat, and fuzzy boots. You are beloved in my home. You enable me to stay in my pajamas all day long and never fix my hair, while still being a functional adult in public. I don’t know why, but there is something spectacular about being able to go grocery shopping while looking fly in my winter gear, but secretly looking like a total scrub underneath all of that. I literally only have to worry about what my face looks like, and maybe only 2/3rds of it if I’m using a scarf. So efficient.
All joking aside, it is dreary and cold these days, and I really do struggle getting through the season sometimes. The days drag, I can only handle so much cold fresh air, and I often isolate myself. I like fall because it gives me that slow lead up for what’s to come. But you can’t help what you can’t control, and winter is undeniably here. I’ll just have to rip off the bandaid and accept it. I’m going to wallow in the mood a little bit, just to acknowledge how I feel. And after listening to a few boy band love songs while I clean the bathroom and tear up, I’ll move on. I have to remember to stick to the basics to create some warm happiness for myself: stay active so my blood doesn’t curdle and freeze, hang out with friends on a regular basis and make sweat pants a mandatory uniform, and enjoy a small treat for myself everyday, whether it is a hot shower, a quick nap, or a piece of candy (because we all know when I said small treat, I was looking at all the fun size Halloween candy sitting in front of me). The darkness and cold feel harsh right now, but as time passes, things always get better. It is a comfort to know that there is light and warmth at the end of this season.
The Mundame 