Dealing with the winter blues

[Mrs.Anteater]

…..or whatever this is this time of the year.
January- the month when people fall into depression, increased suicide rate and - if I look at what is happening here at WC2, I am puzzled about Kimmio interpreting Luce’ mostly difficult to understand expressions as exclamations of aggression and secret manipulation.
There’s got to be a better way of dealing with January….
So let this be a positive thread-
Where do you see the “dangers of January”? And What are you doing to make your life and that of others better in January?

 

[WhyCzar]

Personally the "dangers of January" are not on my radar.

Quite the opposite.

Rest and hibernation pretty much cover my January agenda.

I shovel snow - for the fun of it.

I feed the birds - for the fun of it.

I keep a fire burning on the cold days - for the fun of it.

I go for long walks on the milder days - for the fun of it.

I concoct all sorts of soups and casseroles - for the fun of it.

If someone drops by they are always welcome but I don't go out of my way looking for company.

I am not overly busy but I am seldom bored.

I am often alone but I am seldom lonely.

Now that you made me think about it - January might be the best month of the year for me!

Easy for me to say - given that I am comfortably retired.

I have empathy for those who are not as fortunate.

For anyone that has the time and inclination to talk - I have plenty of time and inclination to listen.

Where I can lend a helping hand - I am free and willing to do so - without need of compensation.

That's all I got besides reading a lot.

 

[Mendalla]

Usually we go away but various things derailed that and we aren't getting a vacation until Spring this year. But I have plans anyway and there's plenty at work to occupy me. I get the January blahs but they aren't that much worse for me than Spring blahs or other depressive periods I run into.

 

[chansen]

Find things to do outside. This is my favourite time of year, by far. I might spend more time outside in the winter than I do in the summer.

It's not everyone's cup of tea, I understand. And skiing is a ridiculously expensive and privileged sport. But there are so many more things you can do in the winter.

And, no bugs.

 

[JayneWonders]

Plan the garden.

Have to figure out seeds soon

 

[BetteTheRed]

And I've got a grow light set up downstairs to overwinter geraniums/coleus so I could start some seeds...

 

[Mrs.Anteater]

Oh, the garden I haven’t thought about that yet. I wanted to buy myself some grow lights, some without a fan ( which is way too noisy), I had my son’s last year, but the fans drove me nuts.

 

[JayneWonders]

I have seeds that are for wildflowers. They are to be winter sewn. nf it isn't too late.

Got plastic bins and potting soil today. Will do on friday

 

[BetteTheRed]

Way too early to start much. I was thinking of some seed geraniums (very slow), maybe some parsley (wyrdly slow for an annual) and some lettuce to eat now.

 

[JayneWonders]

yup, the wintersewn seeds I was supposed to do in November, but, didn't get around to it. Found the lists and checked that it's ok for me to do them now, so will do on Friday.

I think the rest is planning. ....including how I want to mark the plants that I have now as the garden is going through a change. Maybe make a bunch of new labels / and get ready for putting in once the ground thaws.

Come to think of it, I have some daffodil bulbs that I didn't dig in, so i should find them, and put them in a pot in the sun room too...get some early spring blooms

 

[Luce NDs]

I find depression comes on all the time usually because of what some deranged doctor ing has declared I need ... when alas I am sensitive to pharms (mostly steroidal) and I don't need that overstimulation that has a come down like skiing ...

The solution is to rise up and look about search for things you never know about ... easy when in the great unknown ... personality drift ... people of the edge ... fringe Eire? Those areas are despicable to those right intuit ... solutions? Work eM out ... profound enigma ... can cause long term business ... strange process compared to "shorting" ... that economic ... an infringement that impresses! Slam dunk ...

 

[ninj]

I found this quote again, which seems to echo what Luce said, and seems particularily relevant right now. It's from "The Once and Future King", by TH White.
"The best thing for being sad," replied Merlin, beginning to puff and blow, "is to learn something. That's the only thing that never fails. You may grow old and trembling in your anatomies, you may lie awake at night listening to the disorder of your veins, you may miss your only love, you may see the world about you devastated by evil lunatics, or know your honour trampled in the sewers of baser minds. There is only one thing for it then — to learn. Learn why the world wags and what wags it. That is the only thing which the mind can never exhaust, never alienate, never be tortured by, never fear or distrust, and never dream of regretting. Learning is the only thing for you. Look what a lot of things there are to learn."

 

[Luce NDs]

I found this quote again, which seems to echo what Luce said, and seems particularily relevant right now.
"The best thing for being sad," replied Merlin, beginning to puff and blow, "is to learn something. That's the only thing that never fails. You may grow old and trembling in your anatomies, you may lie awake at night listening to the disorder of your veins, you may miss your only love, you may see the world about you devastated by evil lunatics, or know your honour trampled in the sewers of baser minds. There is only one thing for it then — to learn. Learn why the world wags and what wags it. That is the only thing which the mind can never exhaust, never alienate, never be tortured by, never fear or distrust, and never dream of regretting. Learning is the only thing for you. Look what a lot of things there are to learn."

There is no end to learning ... given that few are immersed in it! It is like a large poor of unknown ... appropriately black?

Many authorities refuse to believe there is anything to learn ... and therein the flaw ... a kind of irregularity ... so that no normal can exist. A Doctor actually wrote a book on the myth of such comprehension (normality that is). It may be because he saw so many extremists ... authorities are rich in that kind of material! It is why they tell me I'm poor and stupid ... happens all over ... even here ... I know little about it!

 

[Carolla]

Plan the garden.

Have to figure out seeds soon

I'm experimenting with 'winter sowing' this year - starting lots of native plants to add to my Sea Scout Community Pollinator Garden space. So curious to see how this works out!

 

[Carolla]

Way too early to start much. I was thinking of some seed geraniums (very slow), maybe some parsley (wyrdly slow for an annual) and some lettuce to eat now.

I have to get out my gardening files & check my seed supplies too! Maybe a trip to the seed place next week with my gardening buddy.
You have a grow light in the basement? I move one of mine down there in the fall - and plant a flat of salad greens in November. In a few weeks, harvesting begins & the salads are very tasty until I need the light to start some seeds for the garden later in the spring.

 

[Carolla]

Vitamin D is winter magic.

 

[Carolla]

And for those whose thoughts are turning to gardening or landscaping .... 353K views · 120K reactions | These steps are crucial for doing landscaping | Tigran Gertz

 

[KayTheCurler]

I'm experimenting with 'winter sowing' this year - starting lots of native plants to add to my Sea Scout Community Pollinator Garden space. So curious to see how this works out!

Good activity for the Sea Scouts. Hope it goes well.

 

[paradox3]

Harvesting salad greens from the basement sounds wonderful!

 

[Mendalla]

Is it wrong that I want "winter blues" to be a genre of music typified by a musician playing a mournful, downtuned guitar in a raging blizzard?