Wondering

“The brain...is a wondrous thing we know very little about.” 

I just read this sentence in my physics textbook. Never in the entire book has it called anything wondrous, and never before has it admitted it couldn’t explain something. This reminds me of how people in the past must have thought about other organs like the heart that are so easily explained now. In their absence of understanding, the organs were wondrous; now that we understand them, we have no time to waste on wonder. Couldn’t people understand things and still find them wondrous? But then, you might say, wonder is the lack of understanding. You don’t wonder about something if you understand it.

Don't Read and Drive

Courses have taken over my life in the last few months, but in some of my spare time I’ve been learning to drive. I never even thought about what it would be like to drive until I turned sixteen and everyone began asking me when I was going to learn, and even then the idea wasn’t exactly appealing. Now I’ve finally put more effort into it and earned my learner’s licence, if only to keep up with everyone else.

My province issues a driver’s handbook which is required reading for the test. Most of the book was mind-numbing, but there were a few lines that I enjoyed, like this one: “Parents and grandparents must always use an approved child car seat...” The sentence ended with “when transporting children” so that made it a bit clearer, but I still like the way they decided to word it. My favourite line out of the whole book however, is definitely this one: “Keep books in the trunk while driving so that you aren’t tempted to read.” Sure, they say, you can have your alcohol and drugs and cell phone on the seat beside you as long as you don’t use them, but books are in a class of their own. Maybe they decided to add that line after they saw me walking down the street from the library and reading at the same time. Well, at least I can rest assured that the government is vigilant about minimizing safety hazards on our roads.

Ten Ways to Stay Warm on a Winter Day

The temperature here is falling fast now, and to my delight we actually have a blanket of snow. In past years this hasn’t happened until nearly the beginning of January, so it makes a wonderful surprise. The world has such a magical quality when everything is white and sparkling, and I love the way big snowflakes don’t fall straight down, but spiral and dart up and around like little fireflies dancing together. The only downside of this snow is that it is freezing cold, even inside our house with the fire blazing. Here are my strategies for dealing with cold weather.

1.     Wear thick wool socks to bed. Even if the floor is like ice in the morning, a pair of hand knitted socks will keep your toes warm.

2.     Stack your clothes on top of a heating vent or radiator for a couple minutes before you put them on. Make sure you keep an eye on them though, and move them quickly if they start to smoke.

3.     Layer a wool sweater on top of everything else, and put on wool fingerless gloves as well. That way you can keep your hands warm without limiting your typing ability.

4.     Stand right in front of a fire for several minutes until your clothes feel like they’ve just come out of the dryer. Then go sit down with your legs folded tightly under you to decrease the surface area of your body and lock in heat.

5.     Sit on a rug in front of a fire, because there will be a large dog there with warm fur to pet.

6.     Use a laptop. When it starts to heat up it will keep your lap toasty, and as a bonus it also has a built in computer. For full effect, hold your hands over the fan at the side to have warm air blown on them.

7.     This sounds counterintuitive, but when you get the chance, bundle up and go out in the snow. Bring the dog from the rug and chase her around for half an hour. You can come back inside when your face stings and your fingers and toes are numb. You will return with a new appreciation for how warm and cozy your house is.

8.     Make your meals as hot as possible, and hold the plate or bowl in both hands to warm your fingers until the food is cool enough to eat without burning yourself. It’s okay to have more food than usual, because you burn so many calories these days trying to maintain your body heat.

9.     Move your laptop into your bed an hour or so before you go to sleep. You can keep it company under the covers if you like. This way the bed will be deliciously warm for you to fall asleep in.

10. If all else fails, turn the furnace up a degree.