If we had no winter, the spring would not be so pleasant

“If we had no winter, the spring would not be so pleasant: if we did not sometimes taste of adversity, prosperity would not be so welcome.” Anne Bradstreet

Is cabin fever beginning to set in? Despite just recently having some time off for the holidays, do you find yourself furtively Googling tropical escapes when no one is looking? Do you regularly check the weather forecast for Honolulu and sigh longingly? Does it completely freak you out when you realize that we aren’t even half way through January yet? Well, join the club.

I read with surprise last week that the first two weeks of January are consistently the most wintery in Northeast Ohio. Right now is traditionally when we get the most snow and face the most challenging driving and walking conditions. This completely surprised me: isn’t February usually the cruelest month? In Cleveland, doesn’t March traditionally come in like a lion and go out like a Tyrannosaurus? Isn’t there a week or two within those two months where we always have to hunker down and hibernate, or take 30 minutes to wrap ourselves in 20 layers just to get the newspaper out from under the porch where it was thrown the night before? I guess our memories are wrong because apparently those months are officially harbingers of spring’s eminent arrival!

Well, maybe that’s simplifying things a bit, but the fact remains that we went from the last whispers of a really nice autumn and into the deep freeze of the wonderful white world of winter in a little over three weeks. No wonder we’re all a bit edgy - it’s like a curtain fell, and it’s a bleak and chilly curtain at that!

But don’t despair, for if there is one thing we Ohioans are good at, it’s making the best of things. Every week, our University Circle area brings opportunities galore, inside or out, to embrace this time of year in creative and unique ways. For those who enjoy sitting in the dark and traveling far away this month, The Cleveland Cinematheque, located on the campus of the Cleveland Institute of Art’s East Boulevard campus, features the unique vision of the reclusive filmmaker, Terrence Malick. He is best known for stunning visuals and quirky characters set in a historical context. He hasn’t made many movies, but Badlands(1974), and Days of Heaven (1978) are two of my favorites. Check out www.cia.edu/cinematheque.com for show times and ticket prices.

If you’re seeking something more physical, return to the simple joys of youth and visit The Rink at Wade Oval, University Circle Inc.’s great new skating rink located on Wade Oval between the Museum of Natural History and the Cleveland Botanical Gardens. The skating is free and skate rentals are only $3.00! You don’t need to worry about a heat spell either, as it’s a polymer-based skating surface (not that we’re going to see a heat wave anytime soon). Find out more at www.universitycircle.org .

Here at The Music Settlement this month, we have several offerings to lift you out of the winter blahs. If you are a musician, you really should consider getting out and joining us in one of our monthly open ensemble events called Musical Mix and Mingle, which allows you to join other musicians in themed ensemble activities for a pleasant afternoon. The next scheduled meeting date is February 21st from 1:30 to 4:30pm; the theme is Chamber Music and includes a participation fee of $20.00. Reservations are required: call (216) 421-5806, ext. 109 to get on the list. If you prefer to listen, on January 22nd at 7pm we feature our piano students playing Bach, Handel, Pachelbel and others on both piano and harpsichord in Baroque Fest!, or take in our awesome Suzuki students at their recital on January 29th at 6pm. Both recitals are free of charge. Our campus always has lots of fun happening, even in the depths of winter, so why don’t you drop by and warm up to the joy of music?