At first, I thought this angst was caused by my age. Was the fact that I'm turning 40 next month going to change everything about me, including my hearty winter tolerance? It's bad enough that I'm getting wrinkles and pimples at the same time. But it'd be an awfully cruel joke of nature if I became permanently grumpy too. If I stay this way, my husband will want to learn to hibernate. And to be honest -- I'd let him.

There was a time when I'd scoff at minus forty. I'd be willing to ski when the chairlifts would freeze up. But not right now. I don't want to leave my house. If my kids didn't need to eat something other than peanut butter and crackers or if I could find a way to start a vegetable garden in my living room, I wouldn't leave my home until April.