Hello winter my old friend....

...it's nice to play in you again.

As much as I enjoy my new temperate climate, I'm trying to grapple with it being so unfamiliar.  So yesterday, I took myself to the local skating rink at Icetown Carlsbad for a little bit of winter sports and comfort.  The reviews said to expect it to be SO COLD in there.  I say, internally, bring it on.

I never skated much until I moved up north for graduate school, and the Penn State Ice Pavilion (which sadly is no more) would offer public skate afternoons on the weekends.  For $8 with a student ID, I could get a great workout in and better myself in a new area.  Being cold while ice skating has never been a problem for me.  I commonly emerge from the ice quite warm.

I really worked to get in shape in 2008, and it showed on the ice.  I could go faster, and for longer, the fitter I got.  I made friends with an older gentleman, a very graceful figure skater who also frequented the free skate days, and he complemented my ability.  I still remember it to this day.

There's something about ice skating that's therapeutic for me.  You get the endorphins of exercise, but you've also got to strategize, especially with younger (aka kamikaze, no fear) or inexperienced skaters.  You're constantly gauging the situation and figuring out what you're going to do next.  Can you safely pass?  Can you make that turn?  And my favorite: oh god, can I stop?!

I'm still not great at stopping.

O Canadaaaaa, my home and adoptive laaaaaand!

After an hour of skating, the crowds were getting oppressive, and a few near misses convinced me that it was probably time to quit.  But I walked out of there happy to have spent at least part of my day in the mid-fifties, even if some ladies outside warned me that I'd freeze at that temperature in my flip-flops.  Quaint.

Southern California Culture Shock

As a new resident of southern California, and having not lived anywhere even remotely close in distance or climate, I'm having a significant adjustment period for certain things.

• The heat

I am a child of four seasons.  In Atlanta, they weren't so extreme as they were in Pennsylvania and Michigan.  I quickly adjusted to extremes, because there was always something exciting to look forward to.  I never thought I loved summer until I moved up north.  Even winter had its beauty and charm.

However, it's obvious that my new home is much different:

Temperature (F) with respect to time, evaluated monthly, courtesy WolframAlpha.

I moved in September, which is a transition month for Michigan.  However, my transition was halted, and I was catapulted into temps in the 80s and 90s.  It was 90 F on Thanksgiving.  The highest temperature I've felt here in Socal was 104 F in late October.

• Taxes

California income taxes are, to put it bluntly, bonkers.  Let's do a quick comparison:

Income taxes by salary.  Filing status = single. Top: Ypsilanti, MI. Bottom: Vista, CA.  Calculator: SmartAsset

You can see that my federal increased because I got a cost-of-living increase (for which I'm now incredibly glad I negotiated).  But that state marginal rate?  Wow.  My rent is also ridiculous, but we won't even go into that.

The Sunshine Tax is real.

• Fall is for FIRE!

I've weathered tornadoes, hurricanes, blizzards, and ice storms, but fires are completely unfamiliar.

I have a special spot in my heart for autumn, because it's when the weather turns cold and you get to wear boots and put more blankets on the bed.

No.  Fall in Socal means FIRE.  I learned very quickly what a red flag warning was, and what Santa Ana winds are.  The dry hot wind comes sweeping through and BAM!  Fires and allergies.

• The giant disparity between nighttime and daytime temperatures

Get your SPF 50 out, because the sun here is intense (my plants love it), and it makes it feel way hotter than the air temperature during the day.  But once that sun drops?  Get ready for a reset, because that mercury dips a lot.

Ah, the beauty of the desert.  It makes for great sleeping weather.

• The sun sets WAY early

I've lived most of my life on the western part of the eastern time zone, so the sun tends to set later-ish.  In Michigan during the summer solstice, you still have light at 9:30 pm, and even in the winter, the sun doesn't set until after 5.  In Socal, the sun sets at 4:40, before you even leave work.

It makes me tired much earlier.  Since friends in the east stop talking to me ~8 pm because they've gone to bed, I tend to go to bed really early as well.  This is actually a good thing for work!