This column originates, for the time being, in the great state of Minnesota -- also known as the I Can't Feel My Toes State.

Over the weekend, the temperature in the Twin Cities area fell to minus-21 degrees Fahrenheit. It can (and did) get colder in the northern parts of the state, where Canadians like to stand at the border to point and laugh at our shivering, but minus-21 was cold enough.

On a certain night in February 1996 -- when it last got this cold in the Twin Cities -- I was living in a room that I would describe as a converted prison cell on the campus of Moorhead State University. The Pittsburgh Steelers had played in the Super Bowl that year. Animators Nick Park and Steve Box were Oscar contenders for their "Wallace and Gromit" film.

I'm sure you took Minnesota geography in high school, so I don't have to tell you that Moorhead lies in the northern part of the state; the temperature up there plummeted to minus-40.

A few of the guys in my dorm formed a sort of vehicle rescue squad to help our cars survive the extreme cold. Every hour, one of us would take the others' keys and go start all the cars. I got the 3 a.m. shift.

The overhead lights in the parking lot bounced off the snow and gave everything an otherworldly feel as I shuffled out into the cold with a plastic bowl full of car keys. In hissing profanity I ran from car to car, jumping in the driver's seat, turning the key and screaming at the engine to turn over.

I fell into my pickup truck last. The engine lurched to life and I relaxed, sinking down into my seat and slapping my arms for warmth.

"I have got to get out of here," I thought.

But in February 1996, my plan for escape had fallen through. I had been refused a place on an exchange program that would have sent me to Britain for a year. Beyond the fact that the rejection left me stuck among God's Frozen Chosen, it meant an almost certain end to my relationship with my girlfriend. She had been accepted into a program that would allow her to spend the year studying in France.

I eventually cajoled my way into the exchange program, but it didn't turn out as I had expected. My relationship fell apart anyway; my grades plummeted; and I spent every dollar I had -- and several thousand that I did not -- just trying to stay afloat. Yet it was without a doubt one of the pivotal experiences of my life.

It was an experience that shows the beautiful oddity of the universe. It broke me down in all sorts of ways but planted something deep within my soul that has spent the past 10 years growing. It's almost terrifying to think about what I would and would not have become had I never gone to Britain. And the only regret I have is that I ever left.

But if I hadn't left, all those things that have grown out of the experience would never have grown. See what I mean about beautiful oddity?

On a certain night in February 2006 -- the coldest night in a decade -- I was sitting next to my wife in front of the fireplace. The Pittsburgh Steelers had played in the Super Bowl that year. Animators Nick Park and Steve Box were Oscar contenders for their "Wallace and Gromit" film. And again I was thinking about Britain.

I'll be moving there in July -- my place in Wales' Cardiff University is secured. And this time, I am in a strong relationship that won't be separated by the English Channel. In fact, almost everything seems to be better. I am physically, mentally, emotionally, academically and financially healthier than I was 10 years ago. In short, the universe is giving me a second chance.

There are no promises, of course, but who could honestly ask for more? It makes me look forward to the next time I find myself bundling up against a miserably cold night.

Chris Cope is married, with no children. His column appears every other Tuesday.