One of my favorite sayings is “If it’s not broken, don’t fix it.”
This advice is great any year, but especially in 2020. If there’s something in your life that is serving you, take a moment to recognize it and celebrate it. Then, find ways to keep it going.
But what if something that’s working is fixin’ to break?
That’s the situation I found myself in as I started thinking about the approaching cold weather. Two daily rituals have been keeping me grounded during this time of social distance: my morning walks with Colbie and hanging out on the deck for meals and happy hours with Jay and the kids, when they’re around.
Yes, Jay and I sat outside for lunch, dinner (sometimes breakfast) and beverages nearly every day since spring. It’s been wonderful, so I found myself dreading the oncoming winter months for fear of having to give up these daily sanity savers.
I needed a plan to save these two rituals for as long as possible.
For the morning walks, I rearranged my schedule to compensate for less daylight. This was as simple as flip-flopping my walks and breakfast so I could leave the house a bit later and not walk in the dark. I’ll also be doing some shopping to stock up on outerwear so I can walk in comfort no matter the temperature, rain or shine.
To extend deck weather into the colder months, we invested in some new items and repurposed others. First, we moved the outdoor table and chairs on our deck to make room for the four Adirondack chairs that were taking up residence under the deck.
Next, Jay ordered a propane gas fire pit and I picked up some blankets to snuggle up with by the fire. I roll the blankets, stash them in a bucket, and keep them right by the sliding glass door that leads to the deck.
I also set up a little S’mores station on a tray for easy transporting to the great outdoors. And I have to say…we love it!
If you’re looking for a simple way to extend your time outdoors, or a reason to start going outside this fall, I highly recommend this fire pit. Unlike a wood-burning fire, it’s safer to use on a deck. And you can turn it off and on and up and down to suit your needs. This means even if we don’t have a full evening to spend outside, we can sneak in a few minutes of relaxation any night of the week.
We’ve already had some chilly nights here and our new fire pit has brought a whole new level of joy to the deck. It has also helped me put aside my trepidation about the colder temperatures. I won’t be surprised if we spend time out here through the holidays. I’ll keep you posted.
If spending time outside isn’t your thing, I invite you to take stock of what is working well for you right now. Do you need to take any steps to make sure this activity continues to work going forward?
Remember, don’t fix it if it isn’t broken…but if it’s fixin’ to break, it’s time to start fixing. 🙂
I’d love to hear from you! What are you doing to stay sane during these days of isolation? Is there anything that could use a little tweak so it keeps working for you as cold weather approaches? Let me know in the comments!
Aby
Aby, Your perspective on this is very inspiring! I would love your thoughts on the opposite situation. I live in the deep south of New Orleans. May through October can be terribly hot & humid, give or take a month on either side, with July and August being the most brutal. Even though we have a pool (and stone patio), the water gets to be like warm bath water by July. Not enjoyable. Have ideas to help me think outside the box and spend more leisure time outside during the worst of it?
Hi, Nicole,
Thanks for your comment and question! We had a pretty mild summer here, so I didn’t have to get too creative. But when it was quite hot, I did my walks really early and then we started our deck evenings when it was later and cooler out. It also sounds like you could be headed into prime weather for your area – maybe? Since it’s a darker time of year, some string lights out on your patio would be nice to enjoy some time outside even if it’s dark out. 🙂
I’ll let you know if I think of anything else!
Aby
As usual, Aby, your blog posts inspire!
I want to come hang out on your patio and have s’mores . . . and wine! Or hot chocolate. Here in NC it’s just now getting cool enough for fires.
I’m forwarding this to a few friends and clients who’ll love the safer alternative to a fire pit.
Thank you, Geralin! I would love to have you over for a fire, hot chocolate and wine. 🙂 Hope you are well!
What a great idea to be able to get outside and enjoy the winter nights. Great idea!!!
Thank you, Cindy!
I love those ideas and tips! Sweet!
Thank you!
Great post, Aby. Here in California, there is not too much of a temperature shift, so we don’t have to do much that is seasonally related. What we do need is a new deck! :-o. That will take some thought and planning and budgeting for. Meanwhile, it’s in the fixin’ to break category, not dangerously so, so I feel comfortable enough going out on it to pick oranges from our orange tree.