what i hate about winter

1. Nobody ever walks by with their dogs. At least not so you would know. In the summer, we sit under the birch tree and every day a dozen people walk by in the late afternoon and early evening. They always say hello and visit for a minute. Now, when the sidwalks are icy, we don't see anybody.
2. It's dark all the time. In the last few weeks, it's dark by 4:15 and it doesn't get light again until 7:45. You can combat that in December with Christmas lights but in January, it's morbid.
3. If you have a dog, your backyard looks like hell. There's no way to clean all that up so you have an archaeological dig of poop from first snow to last.
4. You never see your neighbors. They could be gone for weeks and we wouldn't know. Strangers clean their walks, their houses are dark, you don't know where they are. You might as well live in Siberia.
5. If you do see your neighbors, you see them as they scrape their windshields or drive into the garage. No spontaneous backyard barbecues or cold beer over the lawn mower. Who wants to visit while the car warms up?
6. You walk like a damn penguin because you're afraid of falling. This is not attractive and it makes your hips hurt.
7. Cobwebs build up and scare you in the spring when the sun finally moves north enough. I have one hanging over the picture window in the living room with a lacy-winged insect caught in it. I only think of it when I see it in the mid-afternoon but of course, I don't take it down; only notice it and think about it.
8. Winter food starts to get dull. Meatloaf and stew smell so good in October when it first gets cold but three months later, you start to miss the steak on the grill and tacos.
   
9. Margaritas don't taste quite the same when it's ten degrees below zero. You can have one, but it isn't the same.
10. Everybody whines: the temperature, the coming storm, the departing storm, ice removal, painful joints, the short days, the lack of light. Hell. If the freezing rain isn't too bad, we're going to the Mexican restaurant with Tom and Betty for a margarita and a taco.