Tradeoffs

Dunno ‘bout you but I fucking HATE this shortest day of the year shit. Yes, yes, yezzzzz. It’s really not that bad. I mean, yesterday in Boston we had a wee bit over nine hours of murky cloudy skies.

In my other favorite places?

Stromness, on the Orkney Islands off the northern coast of Scotland? They'll only get about six hours and 11 minutes of daylight today.

Reykjavík will only see about four hours and 45 minutes of daylight.

Here’s the big fucking fucking difference. The warmest it’s gonna get in Boston today is 32º and that’s not taking the wind chill factor into consideration. Good luck walking down Clarendon, Washington, Boylston Streets or along the goddamn seawall today.

Stromness is gonna be 47º – that’s fucking balmy. Shorts weather!

Reykjavík? 46º *SIGH* 

Meanwhile, Los Angeles will have nearly 10 hours of daylight AND the temps will hit 66º today. Fine. I’ll take my four months of cold weather and short days over their poor air quality, earthquakes, wildfires and, from what I’ve heard, miserable public transportation.

The older I get the more I understand the whole snowbird thing. You know, the folks who migrate to warmer southern locales (like Florida or Arizona) for the winter months. Problems – Arizona’s not on an ocean. I need ocean proximity. Florida? The governor is evil, state politics are vile – it’s a rightwing MAGAt hellhole, gun laws are a joke, and the education attitude seems to be that it’s only for the rich (who can pay for private schools). Environmentally, Ron DeSantis is hastening Florida’s inevitable sink into the the Atlantic – he doesn’t give a fuck.

So, where could I go for a few months to escape the cold and dark of winter AND still be close to docs and surgeons who have experience with and a real understanding of NF2. I’m at the point, in life where it’s not smart to be far away from savvy med resources for extended periods of time. “Extended” defined as more than a month. 

Los Angeles

Cool but that’s really pricey. Since we’d be on the other side of the country, we wouldn’t have our car with us. Do we rent a car for the three or four months we’re living there? $$$$ I’m not terribly mobile anymore and California’s not known for its public transport. This ain’t NYC or Boston – cars are a necessity. $$$$

Redondo Beach is around 20 miles from UCLA Medical which is only six miles farther than I am now from Mass General. So, broadly speaking, that’s mebbe workable.

We could get a short term one bedroom, furnished rental for a few months for around three grand a month *ka-ching* 

There’s a wide, diverse variety of dining options there including Thai, Mexican, Japanese, Middle Eastern – most advertise vegetarian and vegan options. There’s a vegan place called lil' Vegerie. I checked out the menu and all the dishes are making my mouth water. Coconut Pumpkin Curry? Philly Cheesesteak? Loaded So Cal Hash? Jesus, go read the menu. Boston needs a diner like this.

Some joints on the list I pulled up are just labeled “health food.” I automatically think that means vague, mushy carboard-ish textured beige, food that, after consuming, is going to leave me, a vegetarian, with a yearning for a greasy Big Mac and fries. Honestly, if you describe your restaurant’s offerings as “health food,” you’ve clearly failed Marketing 101.

Honestly, I'm much more apt to snowbird in Reykjavik or Stromness than in LA. Why? It may be dark but 46º in January feels like springtime to this New Englander. It's the snow and cold of Boston in winter that I mostly object to. Also, those LA palm trees are just plain odd.