My least favorite time of year has officially arrived. The Long Slog, as I’ve dubbed it, is the endless period of time between Presidents Day and Memorial Day.

It’s the dead of winter without the festivities and anticipation of the holidays. Just long, gray, chilly days. And there are no holidays to break up the everyday routine of commuting, going to work, etc. Memorial Day and the start of summer seem so far away.

The craziest/saddest part is that I feel like I’ve already been wading through the Long Slog for months! Today marked the 14th snowstorm in NYC, this season. And since the start of the year, we’ve gotten four feet of snow! No wonder I’m tired of seeing the icy mounds of gray snow all over the city.

So I’ve been brainstorming my Long Slog survival plan. It mostly consists of ways to treat myself in NYC: Getting massages here with my mom and sister. (Those were our bday.gif"betony" href="https://www.betony-nyc.com/" target="_blank">this place, soon.) Planning game nights or other events with friends.

And, of course, I’m hoping to go on a few quick, weekend getaways. I actually have one planned for this weekend—ironically, to Vermont! But I’ll be doing lots of warm, cozy activities to counteract the winter chill!

(I’d originally planned to use a wintry image with this post—but I couldn’t bring myself to snap a photo of the piles of snow along the streets!)