THE JAWS OF WINTER - Segment 2 (Scroll down for opening segment)     


     The other day I saw an ad that pictured the four seasons.  It posed the question, “Which season makes you feel most at ease?”  Let’s see…do I feel more at ease reading a book in my lounge chair on the deck in the warm sun, or do I feel more at ease tip-toeing across the ice and snow, like it’s a high wire act, hoping I don’t slip and fall to my death.  Okay, I’ll take the lounge chair in the warm sun. 

     Unlike summer, when the days fly by so fast, you don’t have time to put your boat in the water, (although not having a boat can add to the problem) winter is filled with long, dreary days of darkness.  It brings time to a near standstill.  There is very little movement.  My wife said she notices the same thing when she asks me to take out the garbage; there’s very little movement.  Anyway, after peering into the darkness for days and weeks, I gradually degenerate into a formless mass of jelly.  My wife looks for me, and there I am, puddled up on the floor.  She believes I may have a mild form of Seasonal Affective Disorder, a condition that robs a person of their cheery outlook when they spend the winter locked in a dark closet, or in Alaska.  And you don’t want to be locked in Alaska all winter.

     Those who suffer from S.A.D. often feel like winter days are twice as long as those during the summer.  I, myself, have seen some winter days that equaled, at least, three days of summer.  

          

     My good friend, Ozzie, has been struggling with the disorder for years.  I think he’s in the final stages. 

     S.A.D. is caused by a lack of sunlight.  So Ozzie has been experimenting with one of those special lights in a box.  You know, light therapy.  It mimics sunlight.  He says the light has really helped.  It may keep his disorder from spreading beyond the final stages, when you turn into amoeba.    

To be continued...check back soon