draliman on life

Winter’s here at last. Cold mornings, icy winds, the threat of snow. I, like another poster, love the crisp clear days. There’s nothing quite like walking through the cold and frost and then getting home to the warm and snug.

We don’t get it much in Cornwall, apart from the last two winters. This last week is the first frost I’ve seen, and the first time this winter that the little snowflake on the dashboard of my car has turned red (indicating that the temperature has dropped below zero degrees).

I’m in two minds about snow, however. On the one hand, “oh, isn’t everything so beautiful!” Everything looks white and fresh. It’s so quiet, and your boots make that lovely crunching sound as you walk along.

On the other hand, I have responsibilities. I have to get to work. That’s not so easy in the snow. OK, driving through a few centimeters of snow isn’t so bad. There’s a fair amount of grip, once you realise that you can’t brake and turn at the same time. Everyone drives nice and slowly (apart from those few in the fast lane who seem to think that traction control makes them invincible). The last couple of years, it snowed, then it was really cold. So we were basically driving on ice, and that’s not so good. The main roads were clear, but getting up the hill to the main road wasn’t so much fun.

It would be great to be a kid again when it snows. You can either get to school or you can’t. That’s your parents’ problem. Someone needs to go and get food in the house, but that’s nothing to do with you. The heating is on full blast, but that bill’s nothing for you to worry about. The kid’s job is to play outside and have fun.

Last year they showed something on the news about Heathrow airport being closed. They showed some kids playing outside in the snow, looking really happy, and talked to them. “Where are you going?” they were asked. “Spain!” they replied. Um, no you’re not. Kids don’t really understand the words “cancelled” or “grounded”. That’s for the parents to worry about.

Well, no snow yet this winter. The current lot doesn’t seem to be coming any further south than Bristol, and that’s over a 100 miles up north. Our lovely crisp bright mornings have turned to mucky rain. And it’s still cold. Lovely.