Living in Southern California it's easy to completely disconnect from the human experience of the past, the recent past, btw. A past where in many parts of the world the winter was a thing to be survived. A past where 'mother nature' was going make sure 3 out of 4 of your kids weren't gonna make it to age 10.
Oh, and I want to mention that there was a time on these forums where you had a strong Minnesota/Twin Cities crowd who typed as though they lived in the most enlightened, desirable place on the planet earth. I remember when Bobak moved there and was a part of that delusional, reality-disconnected madness. Like Minneapolis and St. Paul was akin to Rome at the height of empire.