So yesterday I wrote about how wonderful winter can be in Arkansas so of course last night and today we have sleet and ice all over the state (mainly just the north part to be honest). Yeah, ice can slow down the outdoor activities. Here in central Arkansas it wasn’t even one of the pretty ones where the ice wraps the trees and the woods take on a mystical feel. Earlier in the season we got this.
This time just like during a heavy spring wind storm it may be best to stay inside and not move around much. Wait, did I say stay inside? What I mean is, stay off the roads but do venture out into your yard. Close your eyes and listen to the hardened rain coming down through the trees. Notice the quiet. It can be so relaxing.
One of my favorite things to do when backpacking in the winter is what we call “zee bootieplodden” (yes, say it with a Scandinavian accent). That is when you get bundled up in all your warmest gear including down “booties” that we always take on these trips and step out of the tent. “Plod” around until you find a log to sit on away from camp and just listen. Let your eyes and ears adjust to the quiet darkness and pretty soon you are experiencing sites and sounds that are available to you at no other time.
Believe it or not this sensory treat is available to you in your own backyard. Get bundled up get a lawn chair out and go sit for awhile. Sure, you’ll have to tune out the traffic and other noises associated with our ever expanding urban landscape and sheild your eyes from the intrusion of the neighbors floodlight but soon you will be enjoying the cold crisp air in a way that you have forgotten about since you were a kid.
If it doesn’t work for you there’s always the television, me, I’ll go play outside.
