Daily discussion post: Let's talk about the weather

[smallhobbit]

Because I'm a Brit, and that's what we do.

It is a characature that whenever two Brits get together the first thing they discuss is the weather, we all know it and acknowledge it, and continue to do it.  It's the easy ice breaker, the way of politely spending the first couple of minutes before moving onto something of greater depth.

And why not - we live in a country where one day it may be cold enough to need to put the heating back on and the next day all the windows are thrown open with the plaintive cry of 'it's too hot!'  And where in one place it will be pouring with rain and a mile away it's still dry as a bone.

So, what about you?  Do you live in a place where the weather is more guaranteed?  Do you like it hot or cold, wet or dry, snowing or thunderstorms?  And what is your weather like now?

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Also, this month I'm taking part in the story_works communications challenge and sending e-cards to anyone who requests one.  Therefore, if you would like an e-card and are happy to give me your email address, please drop me a DM.  Alternatively, if you live in the UK and drop me your address I will send an actual card to you.

Comments

[liseuse]

As a Brit, yes I adhere to this stereotype. I live in Yorkshire but in a fairly sheltered bit of it, so we don't get the extremes. But we do get all of the different weather. I think it's Bill Bryson's Notes From A Small Island in which he points out that the reason Brits talk about the weather is not because they get big weather they just get lots of it.

My preferred weather is cold and dry; I love the crisp clear autumn and winter days. I also quite like it cold and wet, although preferably if I'm inside. I love snowy days although Home City doesn't tend to get much snow because we're quite sheltered and what we do get turns to insipid brown slush very frequently. I do not enjoy hot weather, particularly when it is also humid. So the last few weekends of bright sunshine were fine because the humidity levels were fairly low. I can cope with sitting outside and reading in the sunshine when the air doesn't feel like a damp washcloth.

Currently it is grey clouds and a light breeze. The clouds look a little threatening and it's quite the change from this morning when it was bright blue sky and sun. These are, I find, the irritating days of mid- and late-May where most of the day is warm enough to be comfortable in the house (albeit I keep my house at levels described by others as 'frigid' and 'icebox') but by the evening I have to whack the heating on for an hour because I'm shivering. Current internal temperature of my house is about 14C and the backdoor is wide open for the cat and half the windows are open because they always are except in the depths of winter. It hailed at the beginning of the week which was a little bizarre.

[smallhobbit]

So much easier to keep the back door open for the cat than have to get up to let him/her in/out at regular intervals.

We were in your neck of the woods three years ago next week and it was so hot the jelly babies in the car melted and turned into a uniform dull green blob! And then the same time last year we spent two days in Bridlington when it rained almost non-stop.

[liseuse]

It's just so unpredictable. I was surprised it didn't snow over Easter this year because it really felt like it was going to for a while and then Easter was lovely. A friend has a mid-August birthday and was visiting from London for it a few years ago and sent me an email asking if she'd need a jumper or a raincoat. "Yes, both," I replied.

If I'm home and it isn't raining into the house or the wind isn't blowing the roof tiles off I just leave the door open for the cat. He's perpetually on the wrong side of it and I only have so much patience.