Brrrrr

[pegkerr]

It's -4 degrees F. -18 degrees F below wind chill. The sort of day when it seems like a good idea to put a slug of Bailey's Irish Cream into your homemade latte, just to encourage you to get out the door in the morning. We gave the girls chemical hand warmers to help comfort them at the bus stop.

What do you do to encourage/comfort/pamper yourself when the temperature gets really cold?

Comments

[mrissa.livejournal.com]

I have really, really good hot chocolate or herbal tea. And I remind myself that I don't live in California. I realize that in some people's case, the latter would be a lament when it is -4, but I was not at all suited to life in California. The bitter chills here are my bitter chills.

[minnehaha.livejournal.com]

Long johns, of course!

K.

[dichroic.livejournal.com]

The temperature gets really cold?

Dichroic<= escaped after 10 years in Arizona, now living in the Netherlands where everyone is astonished at how winter never came this year (I think 39 F is the lowest I've seen)

[bethynyc.livejournal.com]

I bake or cook, because it makes the whole apartment smell good and feel warmer. Plus food! Also curling up with a cat, a blanket, and tea is a good thing.

[mamculuna.livejournal.com]

Hot bath and hot chai, homemade with lots of rich spices.

[hobbitbabe.livejournal.com]

A soft cotton turtleneck as my undermost layer, even though it doesn't look very dressy. Instant hot cereal with dried apricots in it. Coffee as soon as I get to work. And remembering to put stuff on my skin.

[loup_noir]

Make a fire, sit next to it with something warm to drink, put on some music and either read or let my mind wander. It wanders a lot, so the fire and music aren't required.

-4! BRRRR.

[maribou]

If it's overcast, all the warm hot cuddly sorts of things as detailed above. But if it's sunny out? Strangely enough, I find it really helps to put on all my warmest clothes, in layers, and go out for a long walk.

[papersky.livejournal.com]

I feed the birds.

It's my indulgence when it's really cold. I get to see them fluffing up their feathers on the balcony and squabbling over crumbs.

[hobbitbabe.livejournal.com]

I have never seen either birds or squirrels on my back (rooftop) deck. I'm wondering whether birds will come if I feed them, and whether there's some reason not to start feeding birds there. (Such as bird droppings, or squirrels suddenly noticing my garbage can.)

[malinaldarose.livejournal.com]

I bake Toll House cookies. And drink hot chocolat (I have some Ghirardelli for when it's really, really cold) or hot chai. I tend to go for the full fat instead of low fat foods and drinks when it's cold.

I used to also light candles all over the house, but now that I have cats, I don't have candles.

As a standard winter thing, we keep two twin-sized comforters on the couch and snuggle down in those. And generally the aforementioned cats will layer themselves on top of us. There's nothing like a warm cat....

I know it's naughty of me, and I really am worried about global warming, but I can't help being a little relieved that it hasn't yet been that cold here this winter (and it should be).

[huladavid.livejournal.com]

Well, what with my knee still being banged up I've gotten in the habit of "lazing" in bed with an ice pack on it while watching the Today program. These cold mornings we've been having lately have made it feel very indulgent, and I can justify it as being necessary to get the blamed joint working properly.

[nmsunbear.livejournal.com]

Soup! Nice hot soup for dinner.

A fire in the fireplace and hot cocoa. This usually also includes board games with my sweetheart.

Or, as this morning will attest, let the cats trap me in bed under ALL the covers.

[eeknight.livejournal.com]

Daytime: tea with a splash of rum.

Nighttime: hot cocoa with Bailey's or Vanilla Royale.

And thick, woolen socks of course.

[http://users.livejournal.com/_lindsay_/]

I work at night, outside, in Chicago and to psyche myself to go out one of my roommates and I will be silly and sing "This is the Day," but I also think the handwarmers help as well as any form of hot chocolate (especially with some kind of peppermint). I don't have, like, any money though so even hot chocolate at the gas station is a treat!

[aome.livejournal.com]

Hot chocolate - preferably homemade w/ milk, not the instant-mix version. Alas, can no longer have that, so hot tea suffices. And a good, hearty soup. Snuggle up under a quilt, read a book. Fire in the fireplace if I'm somewhere that has one.

On an unrelated note, I saw this recipe for low-fat butternut squash risotto while waiting for the pediatrician this morning, and didn't know if you might like the recipe. Let me know, and I'll post it.

[pegkerr.livejournal.com]

Yes, yes, I'd like the recipe! Please post it!

[aome.livejournal.com]

Butternut Squash Risotto

From "Real Simple" magazine. (Or whatever it's called.)

4 C low-sodium chicken broth
2 Tbsp olive oil
1 large yellow onion, chopped fine
1/2 tsp kosher salt
1/4 tsp pepper
2 Tbsp chopped fresh sage
1 small butternut squash, peeled, seeded, and grated - about 4 cups*
1 large clove garlic, finely chopped
1 1/2 C arborio rice
1 C dry white wine
1/2 C grated Parmesan

Warm the broth in a pot. In a separate large saucepan, heat the oil over medium heat. Add onion, salt, pepper and cook 4 minutes. Add sage and cook 1 minute. Add squash and garlic, cook, stirring occasionally, until squash begins to soften, about 3 minutes. Add rice and cook, stirring, another 3 mionutes. Add wine, stir until absorbed. Add broth, 1/2 C at a time, stirring occasionally and waiting until it is absorbed before adding more. It should take ~30min for all the broth to be absorbed. Remove from heat, stir in Parmesan. Serves 4. About 55 min total cooking time.

* To grate squash, you can either do it with a hand grater, or cut into small chunks and process briefly in food processor.

[pegkerr.livejournal.com]

Thanks! Looks good! (Of course, I'm probably the only person in my family who would think so.)

[longtimegone]

Well, bear in mind that I live in Alabama, so "cold" for me is probably vaguely mild for you! :)

I get up out of bed and crank up the heater and turn on the shower so things are nice and toasty, and I know I won't freeze while I bathe. Then I hop back in bed for about 5 minutes to soak the last of the warmth out of the covers before getting ready.

I don't usually have to talk myself into leaving the house. I get so hot while getting ready, the cold air is usually rather refreshing.

[redbird]

Good hot chocolate: either Green and Black's Maya Gold drinking chocolate, or using the recipe I found on a Droste cocoa box, either way made with heated full-fat milk. (I suspect it would work with 2%, if that's what you normally use; probably not with skim.)

Silk long johns are good, but that's not pampering any more than owning a proper winter parka is pampering.

A hot bath in the evening is nice.

Hot cocoa recipe, with my modifications:

Basic, makes about a pint (that being the size glass I normally use):

Mix one heaping tablespoon dutch process cocoa and one heaping tablespoon granulated sugar in a large mug. Add a little milk or cream, and mix until you have a moderately thick paste. (You'll need to experiment with how much milk to use.)

Heat milk, in either a small saucepan or a microwave oven, watching carefully to avoid scalding it. (Microwave is faster, but I've yet to convince myself it's worth buying a microwave for this and reheating stuff; I have the money, what I don't have is the counter space.) When the milk is steaming, pour a bit into the mug with the paste. Mix until the paste is dissolved. Add the rest of the milk, mix, and drink.

My modifications are to add a bit of vanilla extract, a bit of orange extract, a tiny pinch of salt, and a bit of powdered cinnamon when mixing up the paste. The salt brings out the flavor of everything else; we're talking about quantities small enough that you'll think you could count the grains. The other additions are based on my taste preferences. Mint flavor/extract would probably be good, if you like mint. A bit of Irish cream liqueur can be nice now and then, though I've stopped keeping it around. I may try a bit of Grand Marnier next time, in which case I'll omit the orange extract.

The Maya Gold drinking chocolate is quite a bit easier to blend with the hot milk, and almost as good, but it's not always what I want. (I don't like most commercial hot chocolate mixes; this is an exception.)

[daharyn.livejournal.com]

Thick German beers at the Black Forest Inn.

At least that's what I did about a year ago, when it was this damn cold.

[handworn.livejournal.com]

Hot chocolate with peppermint schnapps.