I dove into that freezing sea, with a parasite attached to me

I love going for walks in the winter when it is cold and snowy. The coldness and whiteness everywhere makes me feel as if every flaw of mine is taken away, purified. I feel some veneer of perfection.

Then I go inside and look in the mirror and see that all it's really done is make my nose pink and freeze my face so I can't smile for a couple minutes. But it's nice to have that chance to pretend.

I forgot to say--I really like taking walks here in the mountains and woods behind the university. It's crazy though, because there are these exercise machines just set up along the path. It's so surreal to come to the top of a mountain and find a setup of weights and elliptical machines. We got to one place where there were a bunch of giant (really heavy!) hula hoops hanging from the trees. IT WAS AWESOME.