I'VE BEEN WAITING FOR THIS DAY FOR FIVE MONTHS

It is 63 degrees outside and every single window in my house is open right now. I've been waiting for this day for five months.

It has been brutally cold this winter on the East Coast. For five months, the windows in my house have been closed. Not only so, but I have vigilantly sought to seal every sliver of leakage between indoor and outdoor, through caulking and weatherstripping, foam and tape. Every time I have cursed the gas bill, tightened my scarf around my neck, or marveled at how impossibly difficult it is to heat this old leaky houses, I have looked ahead to the day when I could open every single window, air out the stuffiness from the house, and enjoy a pleasant breeze.

That day is today. Especially because we have been painting our bedroom, it is a welcome feeling (and smell) to open windows all over the place, and let the winds pass through our home.

With the windows open, not only do the winds and smells of outside come in, but so do the sounds. The new windows we installed a couple years back to lower our energy costs are also great at insulating noise. Car horns and screeches are muffled, and late-night obnoxious talkers are silenced. But today, the sounds of the street come in. Latin music blares next door. Cars pass by the house, humming; there's no need for honking or screeching, after all, for everyone is happy and no one is in a hurry to get back inside. Soon enough, I'm sure, a barbecue will fire up, adding crowd noise and wafts of hickory smoke to our house.

I've waited five months for today.