Berlin is Trying to Kill Me

People who harbor romantic fantasies about the benevolence of nature obviously live relatively close to the equator.

The weather in Berlin has officially gone from uncomfortable to brutal.

Monday was the day I went back to the FU, and it was hard enough. (Dreadlocks? Really, Whitey? Monstrous portions of potatoes and gravy for lunch? I still can't wear my coat in the library?)

But then at 18:00 hours I left the hostile comfort of the library to wait for the bus.

Of course the sky had been black like deep space for hours already. But this time when I walked outside it was like getting snow spilled down the back of my shirt. It was kalt.

There was a large clot of students waiting at the bus stop, which is usually a good sign that there's another bus coming soon. Not this time.

I stood in the snow for 25 minutes. I watched four buses come and go on the other side of the street. I went from shivering to normal back to shivering again. I kept counting my layers to make sure I hadn't forgotten one. T-shirt, shirt, sweater, jacket, coat. Five. Plus scarf and gloves. My hands inside my gloves inside the pockets of my pea coat got cold. I started to wonder how long it takes to get frostbite. I had to keep reminding myself that there were people around to stop me from whimpering.

If I had to die by fire or ice, I'd choose ice. But if I had to live somewhere too hot or too cold, I'd choose too hot.

And it wasn't even that cold on Monday evening, only -8C degrees. In Uh'muhrik'n degrees that's ((-8*9)/5)+32= 18. 18 degrees Fahrenheit! The low predicted for tonight is -14 C, or 7 degrees Fahrenheit.

That is why I've decided not to leave my apartment until spring.