Hey, how about all of those crazy snow/sleet/ice storms lately? Dont you just love shoveling the 2+ feet of snow that piled up on the walk, only to have another storm dump another three more inches of ice on top of that a few days later? Welcome to New England, my friends. As they say, we don’t live here because of the weather.

From my perspective I’ve given up – meaning I’ve given up fighting Mother Nature.

My motto is when things get bad, it’s time to embrace these events. Make them something to celebrate.

During these big nor’easters, my wife and I love putting on snowpants, a warm jacket with a hood, some LL Bean boots, and goggles (yes, goggles are imperative), and heading out into the slop. It can be pretty interesting walking around deserted Boston streets looking at fluffy mounds of snow that completely camouflage the car beneath it; you just need to keep an eye out for the occasional snowplow ripping down the street. And when we are indoors, I’ll build a cozy fire and my wife, who likes to cook, will put together a meal that we probably wouldn’t have had otherwise. This past storm we used a Raclette grill on our dining room table and broiled yummy Raclette cheese along with all kinds of other fixings. I mean, who doesn’t love melted cheese on just about everything??

Despite the inevitable headaches that come with these winter storms, I always take solace that things could always be worse. I think the benchmark of bad was February 2015, when the misery index topped the charts. In the city at that time there literally was no place to put all that snow other than on top of that single car that had to park directly in front of our home. Rain, wind, fog and warm weather have fortunately made these recent storms mostly a relic of the past. But just in case we get another big dump before winter is finished, I’m going to have my snowfit ready to go!

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By Thomas Fletcher CFP® Chief Investment Officer Read More