family life

How to stay warm

JOY journal

“A snowball in the face is surely the perfect beginning to a lasting friendship.” Markus Zusak, Australian writer, The Book Thief

It is freezing here. Literally. Snow is falling outside the window seat where I am working. Tiny flakes, but it’s dense enough one can tell it means business without consulting The Weather Channel. Yet more snow is expected later this week.

This is OK with me, not that my opinion matters. I like snow. I especially like snow that leads to noisy Saturdays with everyone “stuck” in the house, wet boots lined up on towels and chili simmering on the stove.

I do not, however, like being cold. This is a problem as our house is “historic,” which is real-estate talk for “drafty.”

To combat all this, well, history, I wear lots of layers. I wear woolly socks so thick my shoes do not fit properly. (I would wear a knitted hat 24 hours a day if mid-life women could do such a thing without being accused of trying to look like a millennial.)

And, most importantly, I use hot socks. I cannot remember where I learned about such a thing, but they are brilliant, simple and inexpensive. Take a sock (cotton, or it will smell plasticky when microwaved) and fill it with 2-3 cups of brown rice (any other kind of rice will soon turn into powder.)

Microwaved 2 or 3 minutes, these socks can warm a bed before you get in it, help bread dough rise (as pictured above), warm your fingers after an outdoor adventure or wrap around an ache or injury in the most satisfying way.

A tiny warning: They can also start a fire if you accidentally press “30” on the microwave instead of “3,” which shouldn’t have happened, but once did. They also require care if using with a young child or any other person who may be unaware of or unable to communicate a burning sensation.

Stay warm!

Published by JOY journal

After a long career writing for local newspapers — and, on rare occasions, for publications such as The Washington Post — Nora's word life is now focused on blogging and occasional writing projects of special interest. Also the author of several books, Nora lives in Appalachia with her husband and a goodish dog named Finn, who is delighted whenever the family's two adult daughters are home from college.

12 thoughts on “How to stay warm”

  1. Ooh girl,

    You draw a beautiful word picture of the snow. Sounds like a beautiful space where you write.

    I hate being cold too. Our house is not historic, built in the 60s, but it’s drafty too.

    That little interesting tip about rice in the socks is one I just might try. 😉

    ❤️ Paula

    Sent from my iPhone

    >

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  3. It rarely gets cold enough to snow here, yet still cold enough that my body aches and I’m too big of a baby about it to go out if I don’t have to. Today is one of those days. I just use a scarf with my coat, wear jeans and a long sleeve shirt, and if it’s really bad, I have these silky feeling long underwear, yet I only ever wear the shirt 🙂 I do have a neck warmer cloth thing filled with beans that you put in the microwave for aches, I never thought to use it to warm the bed…that’s a good idea. 🙂

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  6. Nothing wrong with wearing a beanie 24 hrs, I’ve done it in the coldest part of Winter. Hubby has always worn them to bed in winter. In Australia, most houses are under insulated, and few have double glazing.

    Love the sock idea! I’m sure hubs would love that leaving early for work on cold mornings!

    Cath

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