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Thursday, March 08, 2007

Spring is in the Air

Although we are in the midst of what is probably our last cold snap this winter and we actually recorded the coldest day of the year yesterday (down to 5°C, 41°F), we are on the irrepressible slide towards the worst 'season'. Our 'spring', for want of a better name. Though really our seasons are hard to define, being sub-tropical we have no leaves dropping, no glorious reds and golds of foliage. No snow or extreme cold. No blizzards, no icicles, just a week or two of what most of you would laugh about were I to call it cold.

Here we have a long hot and wet summer, the beautiful cooler, drier days of our 'autumn' and then onto a few cold weeks which we call our 'winter'. Then we go to what is lurking around the corner. The season I call 'blech'.

To demonstrate, this is the normal view from my living room window:



A little hazy, to be sure, as pollution is a major problem here and most days there is that shadow hanging over everything. And please, no comments about somewhat dirty windows, I live on the 35th floor and my windows are ceiling to low bay-window ledge height. One thing I won't do, is climb up onto that window ledge and dangle by my toenails to clean my windows!!

And now in the blech season, from the same window, this is what I look forward to (this was last year):


Thick, heavy mist. I actually opened my window once during that kind of weather and ended up enveloped in a cloud that quickly took over the apartment. While I enjoyed the ethereal feeling of the experience, I later regretted it as it took two days for my towels to even move to the dry side of damp.

Joy, joy. Frizzy hair joy. Soggy toilet paper joy. Damp books joy. Wet bathroom tiled walls joy. Air conditioner on all the time joy. Dehumidifiers that can't cope joy.

Life is hell in the tropics. But everyone tells me that it sure does beat the snow!


Update: I just got home and damn it's cold here. My apartment is showing an inside temperature of only 11°C, 52°F - no heating at home!!! Brrrrrrrrrr

8 comments:

anna said...

I have to admit that I like having four easily distinguished seasons. So I guess your climate doesn't beat the snow... at least not for me.

Fiona said...

I actually like the snow Anna - though I've never lived through shovelling it or wading through it as it turns to slush.

The good thing about this season here is that my wardrobe is pretty much uni-seasonal with a few sweaters and wraps for the winter - I've never owned a proper winter coat!

Fusion said...

I'm with anna, I love my four seasons, but I do admit winter was hard for me this year (I can't help but feel it has something to do with my losses).

I love the view out your window, very panoramic!

I couldn't live in any tropical setting, I perspire way too much.
Found that out in Hawaii last year!

Fiona said...

I do envy the beauty of the fall, the gold and reds. And the new beginnings which spring signals with renewed growth.

Oh my Fusion, Hawaii was lovely and temperate, not at all sweaty ;) Come visit here in summer with the 95pct humidity, we're only dry when we're in our beloved air-conditioning!!

Anonymous said...

95% humidity. Yep I live somewhere that has humidity like that.

although yesterday was beyond beautiful it remind me that come end of june through september life is pure hell (weather wise).

Ob

Fiona said...

We're moist gals Ob ;)

Anonymous said...

It was a balmy 5C here today, which was lovely and warm, it's all a matter of perspective. Last week it was -22C. The snow is finally melting and there are huge puddles everywhere, as well as piles of melting brown snow.

Don said...

I can relate to the humidity - used to live in south Florida, back in my early 20s. Even better, I had a car with "two-sixty" air conditioning: roll down two windows and drive 60 mph! But the story about the cloud entering your apartment - that's priceless!

I have to admit, sans clouds, that's a beautiful view.

 

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