Blue Monday

 

Greetings Friends,

Are you depressed? According to a story on last night's installment of CBC's The National, today is "Blue Monday", so designated by a Welsh psychologist to call attention to the mid-winter blues. Winter is by far the toughest season to endure, and here in the Great White North, it can be especially brutal. The days are snowy and gloomy, it's cold, and generally miserable. I'm not disputing any of that, but I'm not pleased by the inclusion of many "manufactured" depressive elements, such as failure to adhere to New Year's resolutions, overwhelming debt, and distance from the holiday season. That, I'm not buying.

During the holiday season, we do our share of complaining about how stressful it all can be. We breathe a collective sigh of relief when it's all over, but we barely give ourselves a break before we find something new to complain about. It's January 17th, and winter has a good 2-1/2 months left to batter us. Personally, I find the month of March the most difficult to endure, partly because it is such a nondescript month, even though it begins still entrenched in winter, and ends with the arrival of spring. Spring is generally delayed in these parts, until sometime in early May. Blame global warming, or whatever you'd like, but until June, the weather can be as easy to predict as when the "big one" will make Denver waterfront property. You seem to wake up one day and start fiddling with the air conditioner, and, poof! summer has arrived.

There's nothing that peeves me more than the segment of the population that looks to complain for the sake of complaining. I'm not saying depression isn't a legitimate ailment; I know for a fact it is. I can understand how difficult life can be in northern locales where, this time of year, there is maybe an hour or two of daylight at most. That would bother me. I could fill the house with those "Seasonal Affected Disorder" light devices, but I seriously doubt they would help raise my mood. I give people who live in those places credit for persevering during this time of year, because the flip-side is near-24 hours of daylight. That would probably drive me nuts as well, but it beats the alternative. As I said last week, life is a trade-off, and we must decide which unpleasant elements we are willing to endure in order to reap the benefits. Why can't someone embark on that type of study? What are humans willing to put up with in order to enjoy the inherent advantages of their surroundings? That, I'd love to know.

I don't think I'd be happy living in a warm, or tropical locale year round. I've made no secret of how much I can't stand Florida, but having spent time in the Nevada desert in summer time, it wasn't quite so terrible. It all boils down to what you're willing to put up with; for me, humidity is a deal-breaker. Dry heat isn't so bad. I'd be willing to take my chances that I might spontaneously combust.

As January drags on, there is much to look forward to, despite the gloom, cold and snow. It won't be long before we're complaining about how hot it is. Our lot is life is to complain; grousing about the weather knows no particular season. In that, we should find comfort. 

Nava