It Snowed :)

There really is nothing quite as magical as the first snow.

My alarm went off at 5:40 am this morning, and I groggily reached for my phone.  I saw that my friend Lindsay had already texted me… unusual.  I know Linds is an early riser, but this one had come in 5:09 am, and she knows darn well I’m not up THAT early.  Her text read:  Go look out your window.  You will be a happy girl this morning…

I didn’t hesitate one second.  I popped up out of bed and reached for the blinds of my bedroom window.  And sure enough, there it was.  

Beautiful, sparkling, glorious snow!!!

What makes this snow even more magical is that it is unexpected snow.  They were calling for 60% chance of flurries overnight.  The company I work for does snow removal, and I heard some of the guys talking late yesterday afternoon about having to get up in the middle of the night to check it out, just in case.  I was rolling my eyes and thinking, Oh, they get so damn hyper over the forecast.  It’s only going to be flurries.  Bet ya we won’t get anything. They won’t have get up at all!

I was just a teensy bit wrong on that one!  Ooops!

The weatherman was a little off.  The flurries and “light dusting” of snow ended up being a couple of inches.  Enough to cover the grass completely on my front lawn, and to bring the plows and sand trucks out for the first time this year.  And yes, the snow guys around here DID have to haul their butts out of bed in the middle of the night to get things rolling.

And I just can’t wipe the grin off my face because of it. :)

There are reasons why I should NOT be happy about the snow.  For one thing, I do not have my snow tires on yet.  I was planning to call someday this week to make an appointment to have it done on Saturday.  I think every year, I end up calling them on the first day it snows.  So typical, eh. I bet the phone will be ringing off the hook there today!  Thankfully, I don’t have far to drive to get to work, so I should be OK.

Also, I need new winter boots.  The ones I bought a few years ago now have a hole in the heel of one of them.  I cannot afford new boots right now, so… yeah.  Damn you, snow.

Another reason why I shouldn’t be happy about the snow?  Well, I just discovered yesterday that I am actually allergic to the cold.  I am not even joking, this is a real thing you guys!!   You see, for years, when out in the cold, I would develop a little welt on my left cheekbone area of my face.  Always in the same spot.  I assumed I had at some point got a touch of frostbite there, and that is why the bump always appeared there when exposed to the cold.

Over the past few weeks, on colder days, I noticed a few more spots showing up on my face after my noon hour walk.  They looked like hives.  The same one on my cheekbone, and a few others on my cheeks.  I just shrugged it off.  Whatever.  They weren’t really itchy or anything, and they disappear fairly quickly once I’m back inside, so no biggie.

Yesterday, when I got back from my walk, Lindsay took one look at me and said, “Uhhhh… what happened to your face?!”

A quick check in the mirror showed that I had hives on my cheeks AND my forehead.  That was when I decided I needed to consult the Google Doctors.  And within minutes, I had self-diagnosed myself with Cold Urticaria. 

Quite literally, I am allergic to the cold.

I have always had weird, sensitive skin.  It’s nothing new for me to have hives or a just random itchy red bumps break out.  I don’t usually get alarmed. I’ve also developed allergies in my adult years that I never had when I was a kid – seasonal allergies, Oral Allergy Syndrome…  So really, this isn’t all that earth-shattering. 

I had just never heard of someone actually being allergic to the cold before!

And of course, it has to happen to me, the snow-loving winter freak!!!

When I posted about it on Facebook, I found out I wasn’t alone.  I had several friends let me know they knew of someone who had it as well, or who experience it themselves.  Who knew?!?!

According to what the interwebs say, there’s not much I can do about it.  I can take Benadryl or Reactine, keep my face covered up completely when I’m outside (Santa, I need one of those bank robber ski masks, please) or just avoid going out in the cold altogether.  The thing is… it’s not THAT cold out yet.  I mean, it was only hovering around zero yesterday.  It’s going to get MUCH colder here in the next few months.  How much worse will my face look when I have to go out in –20 degree weather?!

Apparently I should be thankful.  My reaction is mild.  Some people have the hives break out all over their bodies.  For some, it can be very itchy, or the swelling can be severe. It can actually be fatal is some cases.  Can you imagine?!?!

Of course, I will definitely talk to my doctor about this the next time I see him.  There is a chance the Internet doctors could be wrong.  They did tell me before that I had a brain tumor, and they were off on that one.

In the meantime, I’ll just cover up my face when I go out for my walks and to play in the snow.  Because, like… it’s SNOW, guys.  I can’t just not play in it!!

Happy first snowfall of the year, peeeps :)