Almost everyone I see keeps telling me how much they hate the winter weather.

"I can't wait for it to warm up," I hear. "I hate this snow and ice," someone said.

"I wish spring was here already," comes the chorus. "When will it be summer?"

I've told several people about what my father used to tell me when it was time to fetch coal or some other such task, like feeding the animals, and the weather was what we know as inclement.

"There's no such thing as bad weather, just bad attitudes," he would say.

With that advice, I would usually go do what I needed to do without further grumbling or complaining. However, I didn't really appreciate very much of my father's wisdom until I grew older. As I have said before, it seems like every day older I get, I realize more and more how smart my parents are in some ways. I have to add the ‘in some ways' to keep them from having swelled heads.

Anyway, as for dear old Dad, the weather isn't something to complain about, in his estimation. It's just something to work around. I can remember him going out to help people, taking his old Jeep through the snow or ice to lend someone a hand or take someone home. We also often found ourselves pulling neighbors and even strangers out of the ditch here and there as we were on our way.

What difference does it really make if it is raining or snowing or sunny? The same steps must be taken daily, no matter what you end up walking through.

Sure, it is usually easier to get around when it is 65 and sunny, but I'm not going to let the weather control my moods, anymore than God will let my mood control the weather. Can you imagine what would happen if we were in control of the weather for just one day?

It might rain on my garden, but be sunny over your house. Someone might call for snow, to go sledding or skiing or just to look at it. Others would want various temperatures. I know I am most comfortable at 60 degrees, but you might want 80 at your house and someone else would call for 70.

By the time the day was over, the whole planet would be in a mess. That's why we should take a page from God's book on weather and just overlook all the complaints. I've never seen the snow stop falling because enough people whined about it.

My take on the whole thing is that weather, if we are prepared for the possibilities, really just serves to make life more interesting.

I couldn't stand living in a place where the temperature was the same all the time. How about a place where there was no snow or rain? Not for me, I can tell you that.

There is beauty to be found in every season, it just isn't always appreciated.

Granted, the summer months are cheaper to live in and more convenient. The days are longer, travel is easier and safer, none of us have to pay for heat and air conditioning is a luxury here, not a necessity for the most part. I can definitely say I favor the warmer months myself, especially when I am traveling along at 12 miles per hour behind someone with Florida tags who doesn't know how to drive on snow, or even curved roads for that matter.

I'm sure the city folk feel the same way about me when they find me charging the wrong way down one-way streets, trying to navigate busy highways and gawking at landmarks. For me, even a decent steakhouse is a noteable landmark.

Last week I had to go to my favorite local tire dealership and pick up four new tires. I don't really mind buying new tires, I just don't like to pay for them. Tires for my truck usually cost me between $300 and $400. I looked at one premium brand, which carried a price sticker of about $600. That's almost as much as my truck is worth.

I knew I needed a set when I tried to come up the road from my house and couldn't get traction on the ice last week. Granted, nothing goes on ice, but at least in four-wheel-drive with a new set of tires, I have a better chance.

Once the tires came off, I then realized that I also needed a new set of front brake pads. I usually change my own brakes, especially front ones. However, with a good coat of slushy snow, rain and ice on the ground and me without a garage, I chose to give the mechanic $20 and let him fix it for me. I'm just thankful that I had the money to pay so that I didn't have to crawl around in the mud and snow.

Those were both also coincidental costs of winter, but small prices to pay compared to the beauty of enjoying a winter snowfall, or the enjoyment of riding along a snow-covered road without a track or another vehicle in sight. There's also sleighriding, bundling up under a big blanket and watching the fireplace while sipping hot apple cider or tea and the cozy warmth of a woodstove on a winter's night.

As for the weather and everything else, I guess it all comes down to one simple sentence. Life is what you make of it. If you want to fuss and complain, you can find plenty to fuss and complain about. However, in my estimation, we would all be a lot happier if we'd spend less time complaining and more time counting our blessings.

Get more tongue in cheek commentary this week's issue of the Alleghany News!

Email: allnews@ls.net