WEBVTT - Plan some winter adventures

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<v Speaker 1>Welcome to Before Breakfast, a production of iHeartRadio. Good Morning.

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<v Speaker 1>This is Laura. Welcome to the Before Breakfast podcast. Today's

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<v Speaker 1>tip is to plan some winter adventures. The post holiday

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<v Speaker 1>winter months can feel dark and cold, but by planning

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<v Speaker 1>in some winter specific adventures, not only will you have

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<v Speaker 1>things to look forward to, you will enjoy the season

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<v Speaker 1>for its own sake, rather than just counting days until spring.

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<v Speaker 1>So longtime listeners know that winter isn't exactly my favorite

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<v Speaker 1>season of year. I get cold easily, and the weather

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<v Speaker 1>here in southeastern Pennsylvania is often dark and gloomy until

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<v Speaker 1>about mid March. And yet I don't like the idea

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<v Speaker 1>of wishing time away. I am not alone in this.

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<v Speaker 1>Several years ago, I wrote a piece for Fast Company

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<v Speaker 1>called The Norwegian Secret to Enjoying a Long Winter, and

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<v Speaker 1>it became one of their most shared articles of the year.

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<v Speaker 1>It seems a lot of us want to know how

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<v Speaker 1>to appreciate this time rather than simply endure it. One

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<v Speaker 1>of the ways it seems that people in northern Norway

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<v Speaker 1>make the most of winter is by enjoying the things

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<v Speaker 1>you can only do in winter. Cross country skiing is

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<v Speaker 1>certainly a huge thing there, and it makes sense. Being

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<v Speaker 1>outside is a known mood booster, so it is physical activity.

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<v Speaker 1>If you can figure out how to combine the two,

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<v Speaker 1>especially in activities that require cold weather, you can start

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<v Speaker 1>viewing January and February as exciting months rather than terrible ones.

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<v Speaker 1>The folks in northern Norway also appreciate the beauty of winter.

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<v Speaker 1>Sometimes this is a more challenging, demanding beauty than a

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<v Speaker 1>June rose garden, but it is a beauty none the less.

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<v Speaker 1>So as we face down the next two and a

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<v Speaker 1>half months until spring, I mean, at least for those

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<v Speaker 1>of us in colder northern climates, it might be worth

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<v Speaker 1>figuring out how to plan some winter adventures that get

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<v Speaker 1>us active or expose us to winter's beauty. I know

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<v Speaker 1>a lot of people love skiing. I am not a skier,

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<v Speaker 1>but if you are, or you have friends and family

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<v Speaker 1>members who enjoy this, it can be a great winter activity.

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<v Speaker 1>Not all slopes are ridiculously pricey or difficult. We have

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<v Speaker 1>a lot of little ski mountains and the Poconos that

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<v Speaker 1>are well not that steep. Because the Poconos are not

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<v Speaker 1>that high, little mountains like this could work as a

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<v Speaker 1>day trip for people in this part of the world.

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<v Speaker 1>Even when I lived in the rather flat Midwest, I

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<v Speaker 1>know that there were at least a few small hills

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<v Speaker 1>that became ski slopes for the winter. Some of these

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<v Speaker 1>small hills also offer tubing, which can be really fun.

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<v Speaker 1>You don't need to have any skiing skills to get

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<v Speaker 1>into a tube and let gravity slide you down the mountain.

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<v Speaker 1>Speaking of sliding, if there is any snow in your

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<v Speaker 1>part of the world, sledding is fun as an adult too.

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<v Speaker 1>Buy a cheap sled, find a hill and enjoy swooshing down.

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<v Speaker 1>Play your cards right, and you can be outside for

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<v Speaker 1>maybe thirty minutes or so, and then come home to

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<v Speaker 1>warm and tasty beverages. It's just a little adventure, but

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<v Speaker 1>I know that one of my most recent experiences of

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<v Speaker 1>grinning ear to ear came while sliding down a snowy

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<v Speaker 1>hill in my front yard. Snowshoeing and cross country skiing

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<v Speaker 1>can work in places that have snow but don't have

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<v Speaker 1>big hills, and even if you don't have snow cover,

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<v Speaker 1>as long as it is cold, a trip to an

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<v Speaker 1>outdoor ice skating rink can be tons of fun too.

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<v Speaker 1>My family goes to the rink by the river in

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<v Speaker 1>downtown Philadelphia, and I always love swirling around the ice

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<v Speaker 1>under the winter sky. This is something you cannot do

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<v Speaker 1>in warm weather, and I do genuinely look forward to it.

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<v Speaker 1>As for appreciating winter beauty, I always like looking at

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<v Speaker 1>the sunrise and sunset. The sunrise tends to happen at

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<v Speaker 1>a time you might see it given the shorter days,

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<v Speaker 1>and with bare trees, the colors look even more pronounced.

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<v Speaker 1>Fresh snow makes a winter wonderland. But even if you

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<v Speaker 1>don't have that, frost glistens, as does ice in ponds.

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<v Speaker 1>Going on a winter walk in a place with lots

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<v Speaker 1>of evergreens or holly with its berries can make for

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<v Speaker 1>some stunning scenery. Of course, to have any adventure, which

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<v Speaker 1>includes winter adventures, you need to plant ahead. I recommend

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<v Speaker 1>a weekly planning session late in the week, such as

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<v Speaker 1>on a Friday, looking ahead to the next min day

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<v Speaker 1>to Sunday week. You can then take a minute to

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<v Speaker 1>look at the immediately upcoming weekend and tighten the plan

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<v Speaker 1>you made a week prior based on the weather or

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<v Speaker 1>new information. This helps with getting tickets or reservations for places,

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<v Speaker 1>but also with managing energy, which is really important in winter.

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<v Speaker 1>I know that I have never woken up on a

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<v Speaker 1>winter Saturday morning and said, you know what, I want

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<v Speaker 1>to argue with my kids to get off their iPads,

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<v Speaker 1>bundle them into my car, drive downtown and get them

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<v Speaker 1>into rental skates. I need to know I plan to

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<v Speaker 1>do this ahead of time. But then when I do

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<v Speaker 1>have this as a plan and do it, I always

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<v Speaker 1>have fun. Winter adventures, in particular, often require overcoming a

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<v Speaker 1>bit of inertia. Your house is warm, the world is not,

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<v Speaker 1>but soon you will be on the other side and

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<v Speaker 1>have great memories to look back on. So think about

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<v Speaker 1>what winter adventures you could plan, what would make you

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<v Speaker 1>excited about the next few months, rather than just counting

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<v Speaker 1>days to spring. Winter is all about mindset, and with

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<v Speaker 1>the right mindset, it is possible to have a lot

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<v Speaker 1>of fun in the meantime. This is Laura. Thanks for listening,

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<v Speaker 1>and here's to making the most of our time. Thanks

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<v Speaker 1>for listening to Before Breakfast. If you've got questions, ideas,

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<v Speaker 1>or feedback, you can reach me at Laura at Laura

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<v Speaker 1>vandercam dot com. Before Breakfast is a production of iHeartMedia.

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