The Left Lane
Telltale signs that Old Man Winter is here

Advertiser Staff

We all have our own markers for winter. Here are a few, offered by various folks around town and Advertiser staff members:

You know it's winter in Hawai'i when ...

• You see your rubber slippers floating down the driveway. (Cathy Downes, of 'Aiea)
• All the TV stations have interviews with tourists at the Pali Lookout, saying they almost blew away. (Lee Cataluna, Advertiser columnist)
• Hot, steaming saimin suddenly becomes worth the trouble of the trek halfway around the stadium, in the rain and wind, to the snack bar. (Esme Infante Nii, Advertiser assistant features editor)
• The weekend kanikapila moves from the open back-yard lanai to the garage — with blue tarp. (Nii)
• You wear a sweatshirt with your surf shorts. (Ken Rickard, Advertiser page designer)
• There are more surfers in Sunset Beach than Waikiki. (Guy Hagi, weather forecaster, Channel 9)
• Ala Moana Beach is so deserted, it looks forlorn. (Nii)
• You get goosebumps on the beach. (Pam Fujiwara, National Weather Service)
• Suddenly your place fills up with houseguests. (Stephen Downes, Advertiser art director)
• You see all the kids at the mall. (Darren Pai, News 8 reporter)
• All your annoying friends come home from the Mainland and they expect you to drop everything to hang out with them. (Pai)
• You wear a T-shirt instead of a tank top. (Cathy Downes)
• Swimsuits go on sale. (Leigh An Crow, Advertiser page designer)
• The sweaters come out from the back of the closet. (Lorna Lim, Advertiser presentation editor)
• Local folks get excited about the rare chance to bundle up "Mainland style." Then they get their bubble popped by Mainland transplants who start jeering, "You think this is cold? You don't even know what cold is! Why, back when we lived in ..." (Nii)
• Robert Kekaula actually wears a jacket with his shorts. (Cataluna)
• You can turn the ceiling fan down a notch because of the wind howling in the window. (Alice Keesing, Advertiser staff writer)
• Your electric bills go down. (Sandra Vahine, Advertiser clerk)
• You may actually turn on the heater in your car. (David Yamada, Advertiser deputy director of photography)
• You bus' out the comforter. (Frank Cho, Advertiser staff writer)
• You finally dump the stale Halloween candy and stock up on Christmas sweets. (Wayne Harada, Advertiser entertainment editor)
• You really consider that gorgeous red poinsettia plant for your home entryway, even if you know it's not going to retain its glory for two weeks. (Harada)
• The town kids are giddy because the air has become just barely cool enough to "blow smoke" with their warm breath, and there's finally enough dew that they can "draw" pictures by dragging their feet in the grass. Meanwhile, the country kids, who see some of those things all year, say, "Yeah, so? What's the big deal?" (Nii)
• The neighbor's Christmas lights, hanging unlit for a whole year, are switched on again. (Harada)