Cold, Rain & Snow: Utilizing Down Time

The middle of last week saw bitter cold weather like New York hasn’t experienced in decades; you know what else it saw?

....Me, making my way into the city from my toasty-warm suburban home, only to find Manhattan’s streets practically abandoned, and most of my meetings postponed at the last minute. My brave board of advisors, however, did manage to make their way to our quarterly gathering, making my trek all worthwhile.

When that cold weather finally broke, the weekend became a washout of torrential rain. I saw this coming, and took the opportunity to “poll” the board of advisors about what they did at home during the cold, and what they would be doing with their wet weekend. Not surprisingly, their ideas were thoughtful and productive, ranging from phoning the family to rearranging furniture to cooking a batch of chicken stock. A recently married director said she would use the opportunity to finally finish writing out thank-you cards to her wedding guests, and another would finally remove and store away Christmas decorations (I'm sure she's not alone, as Monday morning saw the sidewalks lined with discarded little green trees).

As for me….I’ll admit to working from home through most of the weekend, although I reserved a sizable chunk of time to watch a chick flick, read for leisure, and enjoy the decadence of a new sofa in the process.

Well, how about you? If you were one of the many who didn’t venture out into the cold, rain and snow last week, how did you spend your time indoors? Please share your endeavors with our community, and inspire us to utilize down time. We can sure use your ideas….winter is far from over!