Freeze these out, please

This just in from Zoltan Toth in Toronto:

Hi Tom,

I stumbled upon your site a few weeks ago and have enjoyed browsing through it on my coffee breaks on an almost daily basis. I live in Toronto where we just got hit by a rather sudden cold spell, complete with a few inches of snow. This morning on my way in to work I caught a headline in Metro, the city’s free commuter rag: Old Man Winter Strikes Again!

Why is winter old? And why is it a man? But who really cares, can we just banish this tired old phrase? And while we are at it, can we throw in “2 inches of the white stuffî too?

Ah, I feel so much better now — thanks.

Glad to oblige!