Whilst whiling away the hours in the hospital today, I read the newspaper from cover to cover and one of the stories was about our current cold snap here in the UK. It has been as low as -8 in some areas of the UK, and I bet in Scotland it has been colder than that. Anyhow, the weathermen predict that February is going to see colder weather and lots and lots of snow. No work for me then. They listed lots of practical advice to keep you safe and warm in the cold like wearing lots of thinner layers rather than one thick layer, keeping a survival kit in the car like blankets, torch, high energy food and drink, eating hearty meals, not drinking and making sure you give the wee birdies fresh water every day. Bbbrrr. Roll on summer I say!
Temperatures have dropped down as far as -12C in some areas which is waaaay colder than I can ever remember. I've tried making sure the birds have water every day but it freezes so quickly that it's hardly worth the effort. Thankfully we have a river within a 100 yards of our cottage that is still flowing so, hopefully, our feathered friends are finding a drink there. Even the water in a jug in the greenhouse has been solid ice for a couple of weeks now. The plants that have survived in there are covered in layers of bubblewrap. I could definitely do with a little warmth and sunshine but the forecast tells us nothing like that is going to be around in the foreseeable future!!
I'm ready for summer too! I wish I could say that it doesn't get that cold here. I still have the 2 coldest months ahead of me and I could see temperatures dip to -30°C.
I know all you folks that are having the cold, snowy, terrible weather are ready for spring. But in Texas, we have 75 degrees one day and 29 the next. I wish it would stay cold, until it is supposed to be spring. And I know Toni wants some snow!!
We rarely get temps below -10C/14F here by the coast, but a bit further inland they are used to -20 to -30C/ -4 to -22F. We're used to the cold and are equipped for it, but I still don't like it unless we've got a good snow cover to play in. February is usually the coldest month here. I find that strange, since December and January are so much darker.
Old saying. "As the days get longer the cold gets stronger!" Always take these newspaper predictions with a pinch of salt. After all they did predict a drought filled, stinking hot, old person killing summer last year. Wish you young folks would stop wishing your lives away though. Look on the bright side. Cold weather kills off a lot of overwintering bugs and germs (as well as old folks like me!). Walking, well wrapped up in frosty conditions means we can get to places which are impossible in wet conditions. Finally, be prepared for a glorious show of herbaceous paeonies, they NEED cold to ripen the buds so that they flower.
