Let’s play two truths and a lie: The sky is blue. Cats are mammals. Winter is cold. Which is the lie? If you answered “winter is cold,” you must go to Stanford! Congratulations, you get to go to school in a place where “winter” means the high is 70 degrees and sunny in February! Don’t worry though, you might be able to find a use for that thick puffy coat that’s been gathering dust since ski trip. It drops to 40 degrees at night. That’s cold, right? I mean, that’s the high temperature at Harvard around this time of year, and it’s cold there. Yep, it’s definitely cold this quarter. That’s why I, as someone who utterly despises the cold, can take an afternoon nap outside in just a t-shirt and jeans.
It’s almost ironic that the weather so perfectly reflects the Stanford stereotypes that float around outside the bubble. Coming into winter quarter, it seemed like everyone who spent winter quarter here last year was warning innocent frosh such as myself to buckle down for a cold and rainy 11 weeks. For a short while, it almost felt like that would be the case. The beginning of the quarter definitely had some bitter cold — for California at least — and miserable rain. It seemed like the weather norm for the quarter was set, and it wasn’t going to be pretty.
Those first few weeks belied the balmy weather that was coming. Temperatures slowly but surely climbed until it began to feel more like summer than winter. The rain also drizzled away into nothingness, and it was back to the bright clear skies and comfortable t-shirt weather that I felt when I first stepped onto campus in September. Sometimes it makes me wonder if it’s actually already April and we’ve been hibernating all winter like bears; that’s the only way this weather could possibly make sense.
There’s only one tragic thing about this beautiful weather: it was unexpected. After accepting the inevitable misery of winter and resigning myself to a heavy course load with hours upon hours spent in basement seminar rooms and crowded lecture halls, the weather almost seems to be mocking me. It’s perfect weather for relaxing outside with friends or a good book, but who has time for that in between essays, problem sets, office hours, discussion sections and group projects? At least at the beginning of the quarter I’d rather stay inside and get my work done than deal with the wintery misery outside. Plus, it felt like the weather was staying miserable in solidarity. It’s almost as if the rain was saying, “Yes, I know you just spent the last hour on one problem only to find out that you did it wrong. Look, I’m just as sad as you, see? I’m crying.” But now the weather is saying, “Okay, you and I both know that you’re wasting perfectly good sunlight while you sit inside and write this essay. Why don’t you just go for a walk? You should really get some vitamin D. You can finish that essay later. Hey, it’s perfect outdoor napping weather too. Don’t you love naps?”
The problem with the weather being too good is that it gives me yet another reason to procrastinate, and that’s the last thing I need. However, in the past couple of days it’s been a bit cooler, making me realize that even though I don’t need perfect weather, I definitely want it. Even when it feels like it’s mocking me, having a “winter” quarter is much more pleasant than having a bitterly cold winter quarter.
Contact Kiara Harding at kiluha ‘at’ stanford.edu.