Tuesday, July 12, 2011

Flaming July

British people always regard themselves as being obsessed with the weather. I don't know whether we really are - after all, we don't often get extreme weather that threatens safety. Quite the opposite - it's often coolish or warmish or wettish or dryish. But it's not predictable. You can't plan on having a party or wedding outside. It might be nice. Or it might not.

Yesterday, for example, it was a bit drippy in the morning but in the afternoon the sun shone. You couldn't call it exactly hot, but as Mr Life and I walked home, westwards, from town, it was almost dazzling and he was a bit warm in his jacket.

Today it's dull and rather chilly. One's fingers think nostalgically of gloves and one's nose is slighly nipped. I went to the Co-op and the lady in front of me in the queue said to the lady behind the counter: "D'you think that's the summer over now?"

She nodded gloomily. "And I can't remember which day it fell on."

PS Now, in the afternoon, it's sunny and I've been sitting in the garden. With my cardigan on, mind you. But the washing's drying nicely on the line.

9 comments:

  1. July's always unpredictable - except my birthday at the end of July when it always rains. This has become a longstanding family joke and we always go out well prepared on that day! My mother always remembered being taken back to the ward after my delivery and sitting watching the most exciting thunderstorm with rain lashing the windows.

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  2. Oh please, come and take away some of ours!

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  3. There's always something to talk about. This morning the lady in front of me at the reception desk said, 'It's quite chilly out there', and the one behind me said, 'Isn't it muggy this morning?' The receptionist smilingly agreed with both of them. I should have said, 'Aren't the nights drawing in fast?' but I managed to restrain myself.

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  4. There is nothing like the weather for conversational topics. I am shivering here, and trying not to overuse the electricity, and rather crossly observing that clouds are building up, and will all too probably obscure the imminent full moon, and this always makes me feel absolutely cheated and therefore grumpy. What right have clouds to deprive the honest citizen of the sight of the full moon?

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  5. I'll be more than glad to send you some summer we just had our 55 day in a row of 90 degrees or above. I'm looking forward to our trip to England so we can have cooler weather.

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  6. I've always thought the reason we are so obsessed with the weather is exactly because it's just sort of dullish and greyish with alternate rain and sun. We like to make it more exciting than it actually is!

    Hope you are well, and congratulations on your retirement!

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  7. I think we talk about the weather because it is so unpredictable. Today according to the Met Office was supposed to be cloudy but its gorgeous outside. Last Friday we were meant to get rain, but not like we did. The unpredictability is nice but I do wish we would get more sunshine than we do.

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  8. Every morning, the postman says the same thing. " We had our summer in April this year, didn`t we?".
    Yes, I think we probably did......

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  9. Goodness.....your summer days sound just like our winter days, a little bit grey, some lovely sun, occasionally (not often enough) some rain......it's winter this week, here.

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