When I was in high school, I attended an all-girls’ boarding school in Glencoe. Oldfields School is a small school but there’s lots of cool things always going on. We did not shut down for weather very often and we did not get many of the holidays our public schoolmates received. To make up for that, we had a “free day” built into each quarter to give us a break. Sometimes the free day was was used when so many of us were sick we just needed a day to catch up. Other times it was used to buy travel time in inclement weather.
Oldfields School has a snowy setting Feb. 17.
Free days aside, there was another thing to contend with our psychological well-being: cold, dreary winter days. So what do a bunch of girls at a boarding school do to get out of the winter doldrums? We looked to our a Capella group, the Dubious Dozen, to provide relief through song. You know music makes everything better!
When it was time for a moral boost because the weather was so dreary, Dubious, as we were called (I was a member for one year), had one song to do in order to lift winter spirits: California Dreamin’ by The Mamas and the Papas.
All the leaves are brown and the sky
I’ve been for a walk on a winter’s day
I’d be safe and warm if I was in LA
California dreamin’ on such a winter’s day
Sounds lovely right? We thought so which why it became sort of a tradition.
This is the view from my front porch during the latest snowstorm.
Although I don’t own a copy of the song, I still remember the lyrics from my time in the Dubious Dozen. When the temperature started to drop and the snow kept rolling in, that was the first song that came to mind.
While we all wait patiently for warmer weather to return, share your favorite warm weather song in the comments below!