I didn't take much of Rhode Island with me, but I cannot NOT call a water cooler a "bubb-lah."

As a Southerner who found herself in Rhode Island for four years, I think Southerners tend to make too much of an issue about the cold. If you wear a good coat--and long johns, and a hat--you should be fine. Don't skimp on the cold weather gear, though! Quality really is important.

So true! I've often found that there's really only a few days (maybe one or two a month during the winter, maybe a couple of weeks at a time if it's a really bad one) that I really have to sacrifice personal style in order to keep warm. There are a lot of really cute, warm coats out there! You will want to make sure that you have a warm ski-type jacket on hand though - generally something that has a zip-in/zip-out liner is going to be very warm and they usually have several layers beyond just the shell and the liner, too.

I've had the same Columbia jacket since my freshman year in undergrad and while it's not the cutest thing I've ever seen it keeps me warm and is long enough to cover my butt if I take a tumble on the ice. Get boots with good treads, too. Generally if I'm heading somewhere where I'll be wearing fancy shoes I'll wear sneakers or boots outside and carry my fancy shoes with me. It's a little weird but it keeps me from breaking my tailbone and my feet are nice and warm instead of standing there with snow in my shoes.

Uggs are not snow boots with good treads.

Also, don't wait to buy cold weather clothes, either. You might think "Oh it's 50 degrees out in October so I don't need to make sure that I have both gloves or have several scarves" because by the time you need them they'll be sold out of stores. Same goes with shovels and ice melt for your sidewalk, if you have to shovel it yourself, and for an ice scraper for your car.

Ultimately, layering is your friend.

Driving should also be considered a sport in MA, especially in Boston. I learned to drive in NH, and we would definitely refer to people from MA as Mass-holes. When I would drive in MA, I was scared to death. Then I moved to MA. I very quickly became one of those agressive drivers, and I completely understand why they drive the way they do.

And if you get the chance, go to RI. It's often forgotten about, being the smallest state, but it's beautiful. Go to Providence and experience WaterFire on Saturday nights in the summer (http://www.waterfire.org/) And hit up the beaches!

Wow. never expected so many replies. Thanks for all that by the way.

Hopefully, it will just be me, for a few years for college and then I plan to return to the South. I love it here, but I just need something different for a little while before I give up my life to the heat, humidity, mosquitoes, and gnats.

I think no matter where you go, you have to learn how people drive in that area. I can drive like a pro where I live, but I have to get mean if I go to Atlanta.

Oh, trust me! If it kills me....I will be warm! I'm not going to let myself freeze to death!

Soda? Pop? that's crazy! Here you go into a 7-11 saying "I'm getting a coke." and you come back out with a pepsi, mountain dew, gatorade, water, ect.

I know all about rough areas of town. We have like, 8 or 9 different gangs that live in our town, and you learn quickly not to go where you aren't wanted.



I do have a specific question though. If the roads freeze over, do you have to put snow tires on your vehicle?

It's never a bad idea. However, I've never owned snow tires and I've been fine. They really take care of the roads there when it's snowing. I know in the south they tend to freak out over a few flakes, and they don't have the equipment to keep the roads plowed when it does snow. In New England, though, there are fleets of plows and the roads, for the most part, are always covered in salt during the winter months.

ETA: Keep in mind, however, that I'm used to driving in such weather. For someone who isn't, it might be a good idea to invest in new tires.

hahahahah not in Boston this winter. the roads where i live are currently atrocious. I'm weaving up and down the ones ways so as not to drive right through a crater.

I'll admit that the first time I drove in Boston, at some point in high school (I grew up in CT), I was surprised at how aggressively people drove. People in CT always complain about MA drivers. Seven years of living in Boston (between college and post-college) changed that perspective. While MA drivers are aggressive, I've also found them to be, on the whole, very skilled drivers. They're aggressive, but they also won't put you in impossible driving situations, and they do respect the rules of the road.

Haha...if you go into some store and ask for a Coke, that's what you're getting...a Coke. That's not such a big change though. As for "bubbler," in my 7 years living in MA I never used the term, so don't worry about it.

I tend to get all-season tires, and those work pretty well, even in deep snow. A lot of it is going to end up depending on what type of vehicle you drive.

I suggest all season tires since you might drive elsewhere or home, and you can always put on chains/cables if the roads are bad. If they are really that bad do you really need to be out driving in it?

Get strap on treads for your shoes for the ice, like yaktraks, or something along those lines. Don't wear UGGs, get real snow boots, and decent winter socks. Mittens are good because your fingers share the heat, but gloves are good for dexterity, you can always get gloves you wear inside mittens.

Don't forget a AAA Plus membership those are great for being away from home.

Oh lord... bubbler!

Jimmies or sprinkles??? Anyone?

I still make my best friend from Boston say "Park the car in the Harvard yard" on occasion.

I would hear "jimmies" every so often, but again, like drinking fountain, if you say "sprinkles" people will know what you're talking about.

I actually don't know many people, even those born and raised in Boston, who have a strong Boston accent. A few who were born in Southie have it, but other than that most Bostonians have a New England accent.

To be honest, I think there are Rhode Islanders with a stronger accent than most native Bostonians.

ETA: I say this as a New Englander who pronounces "quarter" like "quahter."

Flip-flop gloves! I think most people call them "convertible mittens," but they're awesome! I do a lot of work outside in the winter, and they're great.

One of my dormmates was actually from Providence, and she used to call sprinkles "jimmies." We were all, WTF? Some of the RI-based grocery chains sell sprinkles with a label that says "jimmies."

Now I'm getting all nostalgic for crazy Rhode Island...:o

Don't even get started with the whole jimmie/sprinkles debate. I've seen homes ruined over it.

I say "jimmies" and yes, I get weird looks now being in PA. I had one kid ask me, "You want ... condoms?"

Rhode Islanders definitely have a strong accent. My mom's side of the family is from there, and they all talk with heavy accents. I always like making my cousin and his wife say "Dr. Pepper." It comes out more like "Dauwcta Peppa." Always entertaining.

And unlike in Boston, those people in Rhode Island with accents sometimes ADD Rs to words. Like "idea" becomes "idear". And some people there will call a milkshake a "cabinet"... unlike in MA and the surrounding areas where they're called "frappes". Don't worry.. you'll get the hang of it all eventually!

And fun fact for the day: In 'Family Guy', the town they live in is Quahog. A quahog is actually a type of hard clam, most commonly found between Cape Cod and New Jersey (Rhode Island being the most popular place they are found). Hence the reason why the bar in the show is called The Drunken Clam :)

The frappe thing actually got me - the first time I went to J.P. Licks in Boston, I thought it was weird that they didn't serve milkshakes. Only later did I realize they were listed on the menu as frappes.

LL Bean outergear will do just fine for winter.

Are you going to Holy Cross?