There are just 47 days left of the beautiful season known as winter. Don’t let them go to waste.

Last week, my friend had a roll of film developed. Out of the glossy envelope came a swathe of summer. There we were on a boat (!), there we were swimming (!!), there were our tents by a rocky bay (!!!), there were the hung-over versions of ourselves at a music festival (!!!!). 

We looked at the photos with no flicker of recognition, only a dull sense of nostalgia and disbelief, as if they were from another planet. “I forgot that life could be good,” she said. I’d been feeling exactly the same way, despite the fact that things were meant to turn around on that long cold day in June. 

There are 47 days until spring comes into our lives with an explosion of fresh petals and baby animals (real ones not AI renders). Winter has dragged on like a too long hem tracked through a puddle, but it’s almost over and in four months when you’re turning into a puddle of sweat, you’ll be missing it. Here is a selection of things to appreciate before it’s too late. 

Wearing your nice long coats

They will once again be relegated to the back of the wardrobe to get mouldy, and you can no longer pretend that maybe underneath you are sexy and mysterious. It’s just T-shirts, holey merinos and granny panties all the way down. This also applies to wearing cosy socks. The world will soon know there’s no pedicure, just a footful of hairy toes and cracking heels. 

Cat cuddles 

Does your cat really love you or is it just cold? Time will tell.

Magnolia flowers

Magnolia trees possibly have the most pretty privilege of all plants. They’re hellishly ugly a lot of time, sporting only twigs, they serve no bird or humans any nourishment unless you want to spend hours boiling them into a weird jam, they’re not that tall, they’re no good for shade, privacy or fencing, they’re not native, and yet we let them thrive, because for one to two months of the year, right in the throes of winter, they have the prettiest pink flowers. 

Hiding your legs and all their attendant problems

When long pants are necessary, there’s no need to angst over removing hair from any/everywhere on your body because you’re a feminist but also plagued by beauty standards.

The egalitarian power of puffer jackets

Once the domain of high school’s top netball team, along with tight buns and black tights, puffer jackets have in the past 15 years become ubiquitous across all sectors of society. Two-year-olds wear them, retirees wear them, I’ve seen trendy 20-somethings wear them. Yes, there are fancy designer puffers and camping-style puffers from the op-shop but from a distance they’re almost interchangeable. We’ve all decided comfort and warmth are more important than not trying to look like the Michelin Man, and that is something that unites us.

Standing on the sidelines of children’s football games

The perfect runway for your socialist puffer jacket.

Your sick leave / duvet days

Because you’ve used up the first and there’s no longer any excuses for the second. 

Fire

I do not have a fireplace but if I did I’d be praying for an endless winter. 

Snowsports

I do not do $nowsport$ but I heard they’re best when it’s cold. 

Knowing when you should do your washing because it could dry

Chores are best done under time pressure with set deadlines, eg. when someone cute is coming over this provides the necessary structure to clean your entire house and body. Same goes for a sunny day in winter – when one is on its way, it’s time to dump the entire contents of your wardrobe into the washing machine.

Your couch

It may feel like a depression hole right now, but where you’re lying on hard, scratchy sand that likes to get in all your crevices and orifices, you’re going to miss that raggedy thing.

Excuses to drive

New Zealand city slickers are not waterproof. We couldn’t possibly walk, cycle or bus to work on a rainy day, especially not if it’s cold. Winter’s cold rainy mornings have meant a few more hours sitting in our car, singing along to Mai FM with the heater on full blast. Enjoy these moments of reckless abandon while they last.

Low UV levels

Enjoy not getting burnt to a crisp because you went outside for five minutes.

Being able to sleep under a duvet

One of the world’s most comforting activities.

Citrus

The abundance of homegrown citrus in the winter changes people. They forget that we’re meant to be competing with each other in late stage capitalism and its many crises and instead engage in what was once known as “sharing”. This means large tote bags full of free food are carted around from homes to other homes, workplaces and community pantries. The most savvy of us declare a love for the underrated grapefruit, receive it in tonnes, and proceed to juice it.

Comfort food

Sunday roasts, pastas, hearty soups, broths, tea and hot chocolate can be enjoyed to their full potential at all hours of any winter day. 

The lack of flies, mosquitoes and many other bugs

They might be trying their best, but flies and mosquitoes are a bane of my existence.

Cute hats on children

I have now perfectly timed my morning walk to cross paths with one particular child, usually being carried by their grandmother, and almost always wearing a brown beanie with two little pom-poms standing in for bears ears. Whatever their summer look is cannot possibly be as cute.

The pub in the afternoon

It’s easy to go to the pub when it’s cold and dark out. When the sun is shining there’s always that pestering, festering feeling that you should be outside doing something wholesome and healthy.

Frost, fog and snow

The cornerstone of winter is wintery weather. That doesn’t just mean cold and raining, plenty of other meteorological phenomena happen too. The crispy grass we walk over, the misty coat that valleys wear in the mornings, and the delicate flakes of ice that fall from the sky. No clear sunny day inspires the same sense of awe.

If you have just realised you’re a winter person, I’m sorry. After the upcoming months of sweating and hayfever, it will be back on 1 June 2025.