“Spring is when you feel like whistling even with a shoe full of slush”

“Spring is when you feel like whistling even with a shoe full of slush” is a seasonal saying that has been printed on many images. “Spring is that wonderful time of the year when you feel good even with a shoe full of slush” was printed in the Milwaukee (WI) Journal on April 14, 1957, taken from The Observer column in the Door County Advocate that was written by American columnist Doug Larson (1926-2017). “Spring is that glorious time of the year when you feel great even with a shoe full of slush” was written by Larson in the Green Bay (WI) Press-Gazette on March 31, 1977.
   
“Spring is when you feel like whistling even with a shoe full of slush” was written by Doug Larson in the Green Bay (WI) Press-Gazette on February 15, 1982. The “whistling” version is the one that is usually reprinted.
       
         
Wikipedia: Doug Larson
Doug Larson (February 10, 1926 to April 1, 2017) was a columnist and editor for the Door County Advocate (1953–1964) and wrote a daily column, “Doug’s Dugout,” for the Green Bay Press-Gazette (1964–1988), both Wisconsin-based newspapers. The column was originally syndicated through United Media under the title “Senator Soaper Says”; Larson took over authorship in 1980. Previously, it had been written by Bill Vaughn of the Kansas City Star. Larson was born in Sturgeon Bay, Wisconsin.
       
14 April 1957, Milwaukee (WI) Journal, “Wisconsin Notes,” pt. 5, pg. 2, col. 7:
Spring is that wonderful time of the year when you feel good even with a shoe full of slush, and spring is the season when we envy those kids who have mastered the art of getting a kite off the ground.
—The Observer, in the Door County Advocate, Sturgeon Bay.
 
21 March 1977, Green Bay (WI) Press-Gazette, “Doug’s Dougout: Disconnected Thoughts About Almost Anything” by Doug Larson, pg. A-5, col. 1:
Spring is that glorious time of the year when you feel great even with a shoe full of slush.
 
12 March 1979, Green Bay (WI) Press-Gazette, “Doug’s Dougout: Disconnected Thoughts About Almost Anything” by Doug Larson, pg. A-3, col. 1:
Spring is that glorious time of year when you can smile with a shoe full of slush.
 
15 February 1982, Green Bay (WI) Press-Gazette, Doug Larson column, A-13, col. 1:
Spring is when you feel like whistling even with a shoe full of slush.
       
Google Books
The Reader’s Digest
Volume 122, Issues 729-734
1983
Pg. 59:
Quotable Quotes
SPRING is when you feel like whistling even with a shoe full of slush. — Doug Larson, United Feature Syndicate
 
26 February 1989, Green Bay (WI) Press-Gazette, Doug Larson column, pg. A-14, col. 4:
Spring is a marvelous season that not even a shoe full of slush can spoil completely.
 
16 February 1990, Green Bay (WI) Press-Gazette, Doug Larson column, pg. A-7, col. 1:
Spring is a remarkable season when you find yourself whistling even with a shoe full of slush.
 
2 March 2005, Tribune (Welland, ON), “Garden supply catalogue puts spring into step” by Joe Barkovich, pg. A6:
“Spring is when you feel like whistling even with a shoe full of slush.”- quote in a gardening journal.
     
Twitter
jillgarcia
@jillgarcia
Spring is when you feel like whistling even with a shoe full of slush.  ~Doug Larson
11:23 AM - 5 Feb 2009
   
Google Books
Season It With Fun!:
A Year of Recognition, Fun, and Celebrations to Enliven Your School
By Diane Hodges
Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin
2010
Pg. 188:
Spring is when you feel like whistling even with a shoe full of slush. —Doug Larson
   
Google Books
Always Look on the Bright Side:
Celebrating Each Day to the Fullest
Compiled by Allen Klein
Berkeley, CA: Viva Editions
2013
Pg. 119:
Spring is when you feel like whistling even with a shoe full of slush.
DOUG LARSON
 
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Charlotte Grapevine
@Charlotte__GV
Spring is when you feel like whistling even with a shoe full of slush.  -Doug Larson
2:56 PM - 5 May 2019