Winter and the Countryside

Over the last few weeks I've made a couple of sojourns out of the city. One was to visit friends in northern New Jersey, and the other was a recent tour stop in Burlington, VT. These few times I've been able to be in nature are so welcome. I think the excitement and business of the city tends to overshadow the fact that I am frequently missing trees and mountains. That's not to say that I'd trade my NYC life for one in the wilderness doing goodness-knows-what, but sometimes it's pretty tempting.

The winter is always a strangely comforting time for me as well. I love cold air in my lungs and being able to see my breath. When I was in New Jersey it snowed a good foot of fine, icing sugar-like powder and being out in it was exhilarating. As was being in a warm, snug house with good friends, shut in against the wintry night.

I'd never been to Burlington before last week, and it seems like a nice balance of urban convenience and natural setting. Of course, working on a show I didn't stray far from the centre of town, and found myself wondering where the "wrong side of the tracks" was in such a seemingly idyllic place. Here the cold was quite fierce (and, I'm told, was actually quite mild for this time of year), but I loved being out in it at night before retreating to a warm bed. Sitting at the edge of Lake Champlain on a morning off was incredibly peaceful - it's quietness and stillness reminded me a little bit too much of home for my own good, I think, since I got quite nostalgic for BC.

Now, back in Manhattan, I'm trying to carry those nature moments with me but find they're already beginning to fade. I wander about Central Park sometimes, but it's not quite the same (however it does keep reminding me that I should pick up a book about Frederick Olmsted one of these days). I hope the next month back home for the Olympics will leave a more lasting feeling and recharge me more completely.