Here are some interesting findings from a survey that we conducted with The Associated Press that looks into how weather affects our moods and relationships:
Poll: Frisky folks choose snuggling over Snuggies
(AP) — Does winter weather give you the blues? Or are you the type who gets a little frisky when there's a chill in the air?
Either way, you're not alone.
Four in 10 Americans say the weather affects their mood, and winter by far is the season most likely to leave them feeling down.
Still, there are pleasures to be had amid the snow and ice.
Given the choice between grabbing an extra blanket or cozying up with someone special when it's cold, most people choose snuggling over a Snuggie.
And some folks take things a whole lot further: 15 percent of Americans who were cooped up by the weather reported having more sex than usual. (Two-thirds reported no romantic uptick while trapped inside, and 15 percent reported having less sex than usual.)
These tidbits and more about the weather and romance come courtesy of an Associated Press-Weather Underground poll conducted Jan. 21-26, wrapping up just as yet another snowstorm was gearing up to clobber the Northeast.
Michael Loughnane, 58, of Fort Thomas, Ky., is among those who says his love life has been known to pick up when it's cold outside.
And he was among just 8 percent of Americans who reported that winter weather left them feeling sexy. (Summer was the season most often selected.)
Loughnane said there are certain advantages to being bundled up when it's cold: Some people just don't look that great in shorts, after all.
As for the details of his wintertime sex life: "I'll leave it to your imagination," he said.
The poll found that spring gets the most frequent nod from those polled as the best time to fall in love, begin dating someone, meet someone new or get married.
And two-thirds of people find shorts and bathing suits are easier on the eyes than sweaters, scarves and boots.
But it turns out that winter's getting a bad rap as a bad time for romance: Among those in serious, committed relationships but not married, 29 percent said they began dating in winter, 26 percent in spring, 26 percent in fall and 19 percent in the summer.
Whatever their climatic preferences, people are just plain into the weather.
Two-thirds had already checked the weather on the day they were polled, and a quarter reported they check the forecast multiple times in a day.
Even 28-year-old Jessie Oettinger, who says the weather is always nice where she lives in Berkeley, Calif., reports that she checks the weather several times a week — mostly to see if she needs an extra layer for cool mornings.
Oettinger, a college student, said she noticed a big difference in her outlook when she moved to California from rainy Seattle, where she said the weather "makes life pretty depressing."
"I just feel happier," she said.
But then Oettinger clammed up, confessing: "I don't want a bunch of people moving to California just because it's nice here."
Among other findings of the poll:
· People in the Midwest and the Northeast are most likely to get depressed in the winter. Eighty-three percent of Midwesterners and 76 percent of Northeasterners found it a downer.
· A quarter of those surveyed have canceled a date due to the weather, and in the Northeast the figure rises to a third.
· Offered a choice of four seasonal romantic dates, 26 preferred a stroll through a blooming garden, 23 percent each chose a day at the beach or a long hike to look at changing leaves, and just 4 percent chose ice skating and hot chocolate. Another 24 percent stuck with a climate-controlled option: dinner and a movie, thank you.
Jeff Masters, director of meteorology for Weather Underground, an Internet weather site, said the weather attracts a lot of interest because everybody has to deal with its effects, making it an easy conversation-starter and a great equalizer for people.
Masters said he hears all the time about the weather's effects on mood: "It just gets mentally tiring to get endless winter, and on the flip side of that, people's moods are enhanced by beautiful, sunny weather," he said. As for whether romance truly blooms in the spring, Masters says he hasn't seen any scientific data on the subject, but allows that it's worked for him.
The AP-Weather Underground poll on weather and relationships was conducted online by Knowledge Networks of Menlo Park, Calif., Jan. 21-26 among 1,125 randomly chosen adults. The poll has a margin of sampling error of plus or minus 3.6 percentage points.
Knowledge Networks first selected respondents randomly using traditional telephone and mail polling methods. People chosen for the study who had no Internet access were given it for free. With a probability basis and coverage of people who otherwise couldn't access the Internet, the Knowledge Networks online surveys are nationally representative.
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Surge in Katrina babies is especially noticeable with fewer hospitals open. Medical staff and parents see the children as signs of hope.
Seems dem "Pollster's" fergot bout Hurricane Season too.
U betcha,
LOL
A dozen red roses and a heart shaped box of candy on Valentines Day is a winner.
A romantic dinner with candlelight and an evening of dancing during the summer is good.
Stargazing on a fall evening in the backyard with mugs of French Roast Coffee with Irish Creme can be nice.
It's not the weather that makes the difference,
it's knowing how to enjoy the weather during each of the seasons. :)
Absolutely.
Definitely.
Positively.
For sure...
Nice one, RTLSNK.
Depressed that the GFS oulook shows it going away after this week without, once again, giving me a good snowfall in SE LA!!!
;)
Well, well. It just bumped itself to the top again. Maybe we're closer to spring than we realized and the sap's rising.
Chuck...sounds like you could use some Xanax and a strip club!
Easily.
If I post in a archived blog of say,,mine,or Jeff Masters,,it puts it at the top as well.
We call it wunderground Magic sometimes,,..
I grew up in mid south and I got depressed every fall because I knew winter
was coming and thrived in the spring and summer.
Moving to SE Florida in 1979 was a dream come true for me and I still love it...
well except these past two winters have been record cold for long periods of time
and has caused many natural disasters in this subtropical area.
I do not handle below 70 at night and below 80 in the day...
I also look better as I get older a little more "covered up"
but I can manage with shorts and tank tops!
I am tired of sweaters & turtle necks & jackets & jeans!
I live in the sub tropics not in the North East.
I want my tropical winters back!
Hello everyone! Happy Friday.
As an adult, the inconvenience of the daily work commute is a depressing drag with or without violent weather even here in northern California. That petty grind, with D3 supplementation in the winter darkness, is the major depressant for modern people blessed with electricity and heat, I think.
However, this winter has added a new and depressing annoyance for me, namely the new "design" of this site. UndergroundLullaby described it most cogently for me as inconvenient, ugly and typical.
Obviously there is an attempt to further monetize the site which may succeed in increased revenue somewhat but, given the inconvenient ugly design, I doubt it.
There may have been a change to more arrogant ownership or management but that doesn't matter to me now. The thrill is gone and spring weather will not change that.
Bring classic back or at least a link to it.
Classic is still here.
Simply type in: classic.wunderground.com
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