Let's Discuss: Thriving in Winter

 

I was looking at the calendar and thinking wow, less than 2 weeks left of the month...and the year AND I haven't done a single discussion post this month! I mean, I will eventually write my end of the year wrap-up post where I highlight my favorite reads of the year and such but I thought I needed some weird rambling post here for this month besides that! Lol. Then an idea occurred to me and I thought, why not?

Thriving in Winter

The Winter Solstice was just a few days ago and with it brought a little melancholy for me, as I realized now, ever so slowly the days will be getting longer and the nights will be getting shorter and soon we will have to lose that extra hour of the day. Unlike everyone else I know, I love it when there are shorter days and longer nights. To me, that part really doesn't matter, but it's knowing we have that extra hour that means a lot! We get a little more sleep, a little more reading time...just more time!

Everyone else seems to prefer the longer days and I don't know why I don't. Or I have suspicions but they are not quite happy ones. Being an introvert with very real life friends--okay, let's just say none because all my friends are online ones who live states away! I'm still single where most of my online friends aren't, so I just have a hard time being around people and such and the longer days just remind me more of all that alone time and it gets me down. I guess with the longer nights, it's like there's a good reason to stay cooped up inside, I mean I really only go out at night if it's for an author signing anyway, lol. So being home makes me feel like everyone else is too. When I go out, I get reminded of being alone even when I'm in a crowded room. I guess it makes it even harder knowing that the friends I once had in school and such were never really readers anyway, so it wasn't like I could convince anyone to come with me to meet the super fabulous authors anyway.

I don't know. Like I said, talking about it kind of depresses me in some ways too. I know I come off as antisocial but it's just me being an introvert like most readers. I try to talk to people but I feel like it never goes off well. Tricia Levenseller's Bladesmith duology really hit home for me because I have those same fears and anxiety running through me that Ziva did, like legit she was reading my mind when I am forced to talk socially with people.

So yeah, when we get longer days and such I grow more reclusive and depressed. It's the backwards seasonal depression the greater part of society gets. While they get theirs in winter, I feel myself thriving, but once we cross that Winter Solstice and the days get increasingly longer, I find myself growing increasingly more depressed minute by minute and I get full on down once we hit Spring.

I told you, it doesn't quite make sense. Perhaps if we were not forced to give up that hour anymore I could do marginally better, but I feel like if Daylight Savings Time does ever get axed, it will be done when we don't get that extra hour of life back, so yeah.

Not exactly the warm fuzzy topic to have around this time of year, but since the Solstice just passed I figured it kind of fit. I am super excited for Christmas this weekend though as it is one of my favorite holidays! I stress all month long (and all November since I usually start shopping early) over getting my family presents and hoping they will like them...especially if it was an item they didn't ask for, and I always hope they will enjoy it! So yeah, adding more stress to my sensibility, probably not the best idea, but I do love the holidays! So yeah...I've never been one to be normal anyway! Lol.