Autumn has crept menacingly towards us in a fashion similar to the slugs making daily visits to feast upon the moribund petunias and begonia residing in my patio pots. These plants as helpless at the hands of the molluscs as we are to whims of the weather….. Well, unless I can find my bloody slug pellets anyhow!
Unlike perennial shrubs, which predominantly make up my border and will enjoy a renaissance next spring, these bedding plants will soon be ‘pushing up the daisies’ – Their race almost run. Sadly, there’s no return next year for this one summer flora which for three months has provided wonderful chromatic displays.
Another sign of arriving autumnal temperatures has been the requirement this weekend to fire up chez Strachan’s central heating system for the first time in months. This a consequence of my octogenarian mother feeling the chill; the elderly matriarch’s benumbed bones necessitating sporadic temperature boosts.
Next month the clocks go back and the UK’ll bid farewell to 2021’s British Summer Time (BST), returning to the time zone of Greenwich Mean Time (GMT). A catalyst to even shorter daylight for us northern hemisphere dwellers – The sun taking off on a six month hike where it’ll spend its time predominantly upping vitamin D levels in the Southern Hemisphere and only making fleeting daily contact with us ‘northerners’.
Unless you’re a vampire, or perhaps a cat burglar, our darker days and half yearly vitamin D deficiency habitually proves an irksome life intrusion to many. Sure, a dip in verve from lack of daylight, colder temperatures and vitamin diminishment are occasionally offset by esprit borne winter events such as Halloween, Bonfire Night and the Christmas period. However, they provide only brief comfort breaks from affliction by Seasonal Affected Disorder which impacts many.
That being said, what do I really know about the UK populaces opinions on the wintertide mood? I’ve certainly not asked anyone, and I can’t really base the observations on (for many years) regularly hearing individuals whinging about our weather. After all, we Brits are notorious whiners about our meteorological conditions irrespective of which season plays out in front of us.
No matter what the weather gods (Jon Kettley and Lucy Versamy) throw at us, you can bet your bottom dollar that a good proportion of this island’s dwellers will have some complaint or other. Rain, sun, wind, snow or meteorological nothingness all seemingly receiving some complaints from disenchanted members of the United Kingdom’s populace.
Although contrary to my gut feeling on the topic, for all I know vast numbers of the proletariat may’ve absolutely no beef with life on this sceptred isle at wintertide……. I doubt it though. Subjective I know but in this case subjectivity is fine. After all, I’ve only utilised subjectivity, not curiosity which can kill cats…. So well done me for not endangering felines!
Regardless, it’s pointless complaining about it as there’s nothing you can do about any of the short term weather we’re bequeathed…… Apart from maybe countering this irk by relocating to a more settled clime which meets your specific climatic aspirations.
We can, though, impact long term weather by choices which’ll improve our carbon footprint. So you in Cardiff think on when leaving all your chargers plugged in and electronic devices on standby. Who knows if we all play our part, like us, our future progeny may enjoy an existence upon terra firma, not be required to develop gills to exist in a latter day Atlantis.
Anyway, enough of your global warming comment, Gary – After all, I’ll be preaching to the converted in many cases, and large swathes of those who don’t subscribe to the theory will never accept it’s existence – In some case despite rising river levels causing their home to be flooded twice in the past five years.
Right, I’m off to find my long johns!
