The Sun’s Just Too Good To Be True
Admittedly, when I first arrived in London, I really didn’t see what all the weather fuss was about. “You’d better pack an umbrella,” my cautious friends and family warned, “it’s going to be raining all the time.” Then there were those cartoon postcards depicting London’s four seasons (and I don’t mean as in London has their own Jersey Boys):
Winter = [cartoon man holding umbrella over his head]
Spring = [same cartoon man holding umbrella over his head]
Summer = [same guy, same umbrella]
Autumn = [same guy, same umbrella, maybe a few brown leaves whipping him in the face]
But 2009, the year I arrived, turned out to be a year in which the weather was uncharacteristically good. To someone who didn’t know any better, I thought that was normal. Now, however, as I stare out the window at the soggy trees cowering from the relentless wind against a backdrop of grey skies, I realize everyone was right.
August 2010 has had quite the effect on my moods. I find that when I wake up in the mornings, I’m rearing to go upon seeing the sun shining in through my window. An hour later, I’ve suddenly found I’ve had to turn on the light to finish doing my makeup. By breakfast, raindrops have begun to speckle my window. By the time I leave the house – it’s pouring.
But then I emerge from the tube onto street level. All is sunny again. My soggy umbrella drips onto the drying pavement. I board the bus, feeling happy, and arrive at work. I go upstairs to make some tea, head back to my desk, whistling to myself, before I happen to glance outside. It’s clouding over. Before I know it, I no longer want to talk to anyone, I’m shivering by the open window, and my lunchtime plans to pick up a soy latte from Exmouth Market are ruined.
I’ve heard it said that London is an unfriendly city. I’ve also heard it said that it’s one of the friendliest. I do believe this all depends on what time of the day you ask.
Ah Lindsay, as a Brit (and proud of it) the weather is an integral part of ‘British life and Culture’. You should try living in the North of England – there we had weather that was even worse than London. Today was a strange one though, sunny one moment, cloudy the next, then sudden rain showers.
One thing is for sure, you’ll miss the unpredictable BBC weather forcasts and the rubbish weather (unless its hot and sunny)!!
Hey Sui! You’re so right – I will miss those. And I can’t imagine how bad it must be in the north: probably like Canada, only wetter. *shudder*
See ya in Dublin, m’lady!