The weather outside is frightful, and the snow is not delightful. OK, so maybe it hasn’t snowed yet, and we did have a few nice days last week, but it’s starting to get too cold for comfort.

We’ve reached the halfway point of the semester, the leaves on the trees around campus are changing colors, the stores are breaking out the Halloween decorations and people are putting away the shorts and tank tops.

I know many students are excited about the brisk afternoons and the hot chocolate. Many have good memories of raking and jumping in the leaves and sledding once the snow does cover the ground.

However, the cold weather is not something to be excited about. For all the people out there who like to argue fall and winter are better than spring and summer, I’ve got an argument for them.

Spring and summer are good seasons because they’re more friendly.

When the sun is shining, people are happier and more pleasant. Most days in winter are dark and gloomy. People just want to stay in bed all day when it is cloudy. They’re tired when they’re in classes. It’s hard to be motivated when the sky is gray.

When it’s warm outside, people walk slower and make note that other people exist. On a nice late spring or summer afternoon, when people are walking around campus, they’ll say “Hi” to people in passing or stop and talk to friends they see along their way. Many students gather in one of the three quads on campus, sitting under trees doing homework or playing Frisbee. Some might be in a hurry to get inside an air-conditioned room, but they’re not running away to escape the cold like students in the winter. When the temperatures are low, not many students are seen outside. Most students hurry outside between classes only. Since it’s cold, they have their faces buried in their coats and they’re looking at the ground. It’s hard to spot a person you know or say “Hi” to someone when you’re too busy studying the sidewalk and just wanting to be inside.

When it’s cold, people can continue adding layers to try to become more warm, but when it’s hot, people can’t keep stripping. However, a lot of times when it’s cold outside, it’s also cold inside, and it’s pretty stupid to have to wear gloves and a scarf inside. Also, layers are just a pain.

Days of playing at the park, swimming or having a picnic by the lake are over once the cold front comes. The leaves may be pretty now, but soon they’ll fall off the trees, and other living plants will die. The wind will pick up, freezing rain will pelt the people on foot who are trying to get to their destinations and snow will soon fall.

The snow will be pretty at first. It’s neat to watch the unique patterns float to the earth. The snow on the ground looks especially pretty closer to Christmas time when all the colored lights reflect off of it.

However, people traipse through the snow, leaving footprints, snow turns to a messy mush and driving conditions become dangerous.

It’s simply not fun to be outside when it’s cold, much less when tiny particles of snow smash you in the face and the wind leaves your face bright red and freezing. Now maybe if we had a delightful fire and no place to go, we wouldn’t mind chanting, “Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow.” But if I have to go outside, I’d rather it be sunny and warm.

Michelle Jones is a junior journalism and English major and a biweekly columnist for The Daily Eastern News. Her e-mail address is” a href=”mailto:[email protected]”>[email protected]. Columns are the opinion of the author.