The Weather, It Has Changed, or Hey, wasn't It Fall Just A Minute Ago?

This afternoon, on my way into the library from my car, the wind was blowing from the south, and it was humid.  Not hot, but not cold, either. 
This evening, when leaving the library to go back to my car, the wind was out of the north, and so dry and cold that it almost seemed to have teeth.  It grabbed my clothes and pulled on my bags, made it hard walk against.
Lucky for me, I knew the weather was supposed to change.  Everyone in Oklahoma is obsessed with the weather.  If you lived here, you'd understand.  Turning your back on Mother Nature is a very bad idea.  Paying attention to the weather forecast becomes just something you HAVE to do.  I had dressed in layers, and had one of my big, soft, comfy capes with the faux fur lined hood to wear tonight.  (Didn't have my gloves, though.  My hands were complaining until the car heated up enough to run the heater.) 
When I lived in Southern California, I never even knew there was such a thing as a weather alert radio.  Now, I am  nervous if I don't have the latest model with all the county-specific warning settings available.  When I lived in Los Angeles County, I never really had to own a heavy coat.  Now I have a long wool coat. a short wool coat, a short, hooded carcoat, several lightweight jackets, THREE capes, two of which have faux-fur lined hoods, three ruanas, which are like the capes but lighter weight, several scarves/shawls, a multitude of sweaters, and at least six bathrobes that could be considered VERY warm.  I love being able to wear these snuggly things.  I love sweaters, and the soft-textured capes and ruanas that I have.  I love my soft, colorful scarves that are big enough to be shawls.  I love all my soft, snuggly robes.  Growing up where winter was only cool,  not really cold, robbed me of the chance to enjoy and appreciate a warm, cozy house, with a nice reading corner, and cuddly sweaters and throws to wrap up in and read on a blustery day.  Germany was the first place I got to experience being able to actually wear warm clothes and to cuddle up with a good book and a hot cup of tea on a blustery, cold, nasty grey day.  It is SO satisfying to be able to do that. 
Here  in Moore, Oklahoma, I am blessed to have an "office" of my own at home, where I have a little reading corner that is cozy and comfy and has a nice lamp, comfy pillows,  and throws to snuggle up in right by the window, so I can watch the wind blow through the oak tree out front, and be grateful for my cozy nook with my books.  I also have scented candles that I burn sometimes to make it feel even cozier in here. 

While I appreciate the chance to hole up with a good read and my warm snugglies, I don't relish the idea of having to get out to go to work or anywhere else when the weather is acting up around here.  Snow, sleet and ice make nightmares out of the local roadways.  Though the city plows the main thoroughfares, getting in and out of our subdivision and the various parking lots around town can be extremely treacherous.  Even at the library, which parking lot the city plows.  Getting to and from work Saturday may be extremely interesting.

Meanwhile, tomorrow, Friday, I have battles with our mortgage bank that must be fought, as they have palmed us off onto another loan management company, but this time I have to make all the arrangements for the automatic payments, etc.  Cheap bastards.  They had BETTER make our property tax payment like they are supposed to, or I will complain to the VA, who guarantees our loan. They already have the money in the escrow account, after all.   (And I'll tell anybody who's willing to listen how crappy B of A is to their customers.)  I also get to make the December birthday cards for the library, and get my December calendar together, so I'll know if I have schedule conflicts or not.  Fun, fun, fun. 

So, now that the North Wind is howling as loud as any banshee ever did, and the cold air is riding that wind down from the Arctic, I will leave you in order to crawl into my nice, cozy bed, that has the electric mattress pad already heated up and toasty for me.  Now you know where yesterday's poetry was coming from.  I had been listening to the weather reports last evening.