Climate Inversion
CLIMATE INVERSION – December 28, 2024 – Madison, Wisconsin, USA
A passenger jet pulled up to a gate at the Madison airport. Keith and Rebecca Lindore watched from behind a wall of glass in the boarding area. Their seats were warm but they knew exactly how frigid the outside morning air felt.
The upcoming trip to Tampa, Florida, was almost spur-of-the-moment. Rebecca had a sister down there and the Lindores learned Breeze Airways operated a nonstop flight between the cities. As long as they were willing to fly on a Wednesday or Saturday, the fare was reasonable enough to justify visiting for a few days between Christmas and New Year’s. For the Lindores’ young children, it would be their first time on a plane.
“When is your sister planning to tell us what we’ll be doing?” Keith asked his wife as they watched the arriving plane connect with the jetway.
“Since she hasn’t told me yet, I guess we’ll have to wait until we get there,” Rebecca answered. “But she’s very excited. She’s promised it’ll be a Top 5 life memory. And you know we have to play along.”
Keith rolled his eyes. “It better not be one of her scavenger hunt things. The more I think about it, the more I just want to sit somewhere warm outside. I can’t remember what that feels like. If I can sit on a hot beach until New Year’s, maybe I’ll make it through the rest of winter.”
The first passengers appeared through the arrival gate’s open door. In the middle of the group, Ramone and Theresa Espinosa herded their two small children down the airplane’s aisle and into the chilly walkway leading to the airport. When they got inside the building, the kids simultaneously complained about being cold and pointed excitedly at the snow visible through the windows.
“Here, let’s get your coat on. It’s going to feel cold the whole time we’re here,” Theresa said to her young daughter. They stopped walking and Theresa pulled a coat from her backpack. The motion caused a metal water bottle to fall to the floor and roll directly toward Rebecca Lindore’s feet. Rebecca picked it up and shuffled a few steps to hold it out for Theresa.
“Oh, thank you,” Theresa said as she struggled to get her daughter into the coat. “We’re not used to putting on so many clothes.”
“How was the weather in Tampa?” Rebecca asked with a friendly smile.
“Hot. This is our first time seeing snow. The kids can’t wait to touch it. They want to make 100 snowmen.”
“Have a good time,” Rebecca said with a chuckle and watched the Espinosas disappear into the main section of the airport.
Ramone Espinosa soon got tired of his son’s slow walking pace and carried him all the way to baggage claim to retrieve the children’s car seats. Ramone looked around for the exit. “We’re meeting your sister at the curb, right?” he said to his wife.
“Yes. She says she’s five minutes away,” Theresa replied after reading the text message on her phone.
“And then what? You still haven’t said what we’re doing the rest of today or tomorrow or any of the other days.”
“Eva has it all planned out and you know it’s supposed to be her big surprise. No matter what it is, you have to enjoy it.”
“I’d like to try skiing. I think I’d be a good skier.”
“I don’t think they have skiing in Wisconsin. You need tall mountains. I didn’t see any mountains from the plane.”
“Then we need to do something on ice. I want to feel real winter for once instead of different levels of hot all the time.”
As the Espinosas waited for Theresa’s sister, the Lindores boarded the jet bound for a return trip to Tampa. Rebecca continued to discuss her earlier encounter with Theresa during which the woman from Florida struggled with her daughter’s coat. “Can you imagine never seeing or touching snow before?” Rebecca asked her husband.
“I can’t. But a lot of people must be that way. What about all the people living near the equator in Africa and Asia?”
“I guess you’re right. Come to think of it, maybe most people have never seen snow.”
“The lucky ones,” Keith answered as he caught a glimpse of a dirty snow pile outside the jetway.
The three-hour flight to Tampa was unremarkably smooth. When the plane crossed the Gulf of Mexico, Keith pointed out the window and said to his kids, “Look, the ocean!”
“That’s all water?” his daughter asked in return.
“The ocean’s very big.”
“Bigger than the land?”
“Yes, bigger than all the land combined.”
By the time the Lindores were ready to land, back in Madison, the Espinosas had met Theresa’s sister and piled into her minivan for the drive to her house.
“Touch the window. You can feel how cold it is outside,” Ramone said excitedly to his kids.
They pressed their small fingers to the glass and giggled with wonder and surprise.
“Are we going to stop anywhere and play in the snow?” Ramone called to his wife’s sister.
She laughed like he must be joking. “I don’t think we have time for that.”
“Okay, then what are we doing?”
Theresa’s sister perked up in the driver’s seat. “I’ve got it all planned out and I already paid for all the tickets. It’ll be like my Christmas present to you. We’re going to Wisconsin Dells.”
“What’s that?” Ramone and Theresa asked at the same time.
“These amazing water parks. Everything’s indoors. We’re going to three different ones. I’m sure you’re going to love it. My kids think it’s the greatest place in the world.”
Ramone and Theresa tried to sound enthusiastic as they asked more questions about the waterparks. Their kids cheered when they heard the words “water slides” and “lazy river.”
The Espinosas had not packed for swimming, so they spent their first afternoon swimsuit shopping at a Target store. For the next three days, they rode in the minivan for 45 minutes each way between Windsor, Wisconsin and Wisconsin Dells to visit three different water parks. Billions of BTUs kept the water and indoor air temperature near a balmy 80 degrees Fahrenheit. After each day of sliding and floating, Ramone complained to Theresa about heat stroke and his hands looking like wrinkled prunes.
“I’m exhausted. The steamy air sucks the life out of me,” Ramone said before heading to bed early.
He and his kids never did make any snowmen.
Meanwhile, down in Tampa, the Lindores safely connected with Rebecca’s sister and her minivan. On the drive to her house, she excitedly revealed her plans for their stay.
“Every year for the holidays, our family goes somewhere special. We decided to wait until you got here to visit this year. I’ve already got the tickets. My kids can’t wait to show their cousins.”
“What is it? Where are we going?” Keith asked impatiently.
“Snowcat Ridge. They make their own snow, right here in Florida. You can ride down this mountain in tubes and have snowball fights. They’ve got these igloos you can crawl in and out of. It’s so fun!”
Keith and Rebecca tried to sound interested in Snowcat Ridge. They felt obligated to spend the next day trudging through artificial snow and ice kept cold by billions of BTUs worth of energy. Luckily, they brought jackets from Wisconsin and did not need to shop for extra snow gear.
The day after Snowcat Ridge, Rebecca’s sister took them to another family favorite destination – an ice-skating rink. They spent hours circling the arena which was still decorated for Christmas. Rebecca’s sister insisted they all drink hot chocolate and eat cinnamon rolls drizzled in a thick layer of sweet frosting. They never did make it to the beach.
On Wednesday, the Lindores were back on the early morning Breeze Airways flight to Madison. No one in the family looked any tanner than when they arrived in Florida. They put on their coats as they walked onto the jetway at the Madison airport. Waiting at the gate for the return flight to Tampa was the Espinosa family. Rebecca Lindore recognized Theresa Espinosa from their earlier encounter and stopped to say hello.
“Did you play in the snow and make a lot of snowmen like you wanted?”
“Not really. We stayed inside most of the time,” Theresa replied in a disappointed voice.
“Well, if you want to see more snow, you can always visit Snowcat Ridge. That’s what we did down in Tampa.”
Theresa looked surprised. “You went to see snow in Florida?”
“It was my sister’s idea. We would have rather gone swimming at the beach.”
“If you want to go swimming, go to Wisconsin Dells. That was my sister’s idea.”
Ramone was listening to the conversation and chimed in to say, “Wisconsin Dells was like the hottest beach day of my life.”
Rebecca smiled and said in farewell, “Enjoy sunny Florida for us when you get back.”
“And you enjoy cool Wisconsin for us,” Theresa replied.
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