This Winter Is Going To Be A Cold One

Are you still sweltering in the dog days of summer? Don't worry, because new lamentable conditions are set to arrive before you know it: the Old Farmer's Almanac predicts a cold winter with tons of snow to boot. Although the exact contents won't be released until next week, a sneak peek straight from the editors in New Hampshire claims that "Just about everybody who gets snow will have a White Christmas in one capacity or another," which sounds lovely, until you remember that you're going to have to travel in all that powder.

New England is allegedly in for a colder and snowier winter than usual, while the Midwest will freeze its butt off (as is customary for the Midwest). The South will see ice, which is very bad if true, because I grew up in Atlanta and know that those drivers sure don't know how to handle winter conditions. Old Farmer's Almanac is also predicting some early-winter rainfall for California, but nowhere near enough to make a dent in the parched agricultural state's ongoing drought.

You may be wondering how exactly this publication makes its prediction. Unfortunately, publishers are not revealing the particulars of the "secret formula" devised for Old Farmer's Almanac in 1792, which has since been about as accurate in its predictions as flipping a coin. To be fair, it's basically impossible to forecast the weather day-by-day using any method currently known to man, let alone one we had in the 1700s. At least the Old Farmer's Almanac (not to be confused with the regular Farmer's Almanac ) provides other bits of helpful daily information, like how to wash your dog without a bathtub.

Whether the Old Farmer's Almanac is right or wrong about the especially brutal winter ahead, there are some things you can do now to ease the pain. It may seem a little too early to be covering your winter bases, but you can thank me later. Here's how to start mentally prepping for winter now, before the snow actually gets here.

1. Get Your Vitamin D Levels In Order

Though sunlight is a great source of vitamin D right now, your levels could wane as soon as those temperatures drop, and your clothes start covering more skin. Now is the time to start supplementing just to be safe, if you want to avoid the related lags in health and mood altogether.

2. Clean Your Closet

If you didn't wear it last winter, into the trash or giveaway pile it goes. Invest in a few basics, which might still be at off-season prices, if you need to. The last thing you want on a nasty snowy morning when you can barely pull yourself out of bed is that desperate "I've got nothing to wear" feeling.

3. Do Some Preparatory Pampering

Your winter skin, hair, and nails need different care than your summer ones. Getting caught with too light of a conditioner or moisturizer will definitely set your winter off to a bad start. Nothing's worse than having frozen toes and a face full of flakies. You can't change the weather, but you can change how you deal with it.

Image: triocean/Fotolia; Giphy (3)