A Ramp's Eye View of Winter

I recently read a blog by a pilot describing the beauty of a snowy, wintery scene on take-off.  It made me think: What a difference a warm cockpit and a downward glance make when it comes to one’s perspective on winter at the airport.  The years and years I worked outdoors on the ramp at airports across the northeast, I never saw anything beautiful about winter.  Instead, I saw how hard the cold and ice are on men/women and machines.  It’s tough to work with hands swaddled in thick gloves; tougher to work without them, in weather so cold your flesh sticks to metal.  Machines are not immune to the effects of cold weather.  When temperatures take a nosedive, suddenly equipment that worked just fine refuses to start on its own or to run properly.  Those of you lucky enough to operate all-electric vehicles won’t have this as a winter worry. And how many mistakes happen because parts that should be tightened, aren’t tightened enough because of the cold?   I had this happen to me on a cold winter day when working outdoors was brutal, and I was rushing to complete my tasks and warm up.  Repairing a broken radiator hose on a belt loader at Logan, I failed to properly tighten a radiator hose clamp.  The upshot was that the hose leaked and the vehicle overheated a day later. Even today, looking out at the ramp from the warmth of the gate area, I still see nothing beautiful about winter on the ramp.