Just when I thought conditions outside couldn’t get any worse, the temperature decided to plummet to a frigid 6 degrees this morning. The cold and snow is something that usually doesn’t bother me that much considering my previous residency in New Buffalo. A typical winter in New Buffalo consists of 2-3 feet of lake-effect snow, temperatures ranging from 32 degrees to -32 degrees, and wind chills of -40 degrees. I moved to Ada expecting the winters to be much easier to live with. Man was I wrong. Living in Ada for the last 3 years has led me to develop a new-found hatred for the absolutely miserable season we call winter.
I got my first taste of the brutal winds of Ada not long after I first arrived in August of 2018. These winds quickly became my mortal enemy and would plague the rest of my time spent here on campus. I know this might sound strange coming from someone who has lived in Michigan their entire life, but the amount of wind I experience in Ada is not even remotely close to what I experienced back in Michigan. Back home we have 1000s of these green plants called trees spread all across the countryside. The beauty of these trees is that they block most of the wind coming off the lake, basically neutralizing the wind before it has a chance to ruin your day. If you live in Ada or even in the general vicinity, you may have realized that there hardly any naturally occurring trees in the area. Instead, we are surrounded by endless seas of cornfields that accomplish absolutely nothing in terms of blocking wind. Furthermore, I recently found out that Ada is located within the largest flatland on this side of the Mississippi River. As the wind patterns travel across this plain there is nothing there to disrupt the wind and it just keeps getting stronger, essentially turning ONU into a giant wind tunnel.
The affect wind gives to winters in Ada is just unbearable. It's already frigidly cold outside, but when you add 20-30 MPH winds to the equation it creates a whole new beast. Sure, your coat might be able to save you from single-digit temperatures, but I can promise you it will not do anything to stop the wind. This wind just cuts through your coat like a knife and penetrates deep into your body to where you can feel it in your bones. It turns a 15 minute, rather menial walk across campus, into one of the hardest expeditions you will make in your entire life.
This is all so true. Hopefully classes are cancelled on Wednesday! -40 degrees is dangeously cold. It is crazy that the wind here in Ada is worse than in Michigan, I would have never guessed that.
ReplyDeleteI think its funny that even people from the northern states struggle with the cold winters here. I'm from Texas and the first thing people ask me when i tell them i go to school in Ohio is "how do you deal with the winters". I am somewhat relieved that even those from this neck of the woods still have trouble dealing with the cold too.
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