You’ve never spent a winter here, I take it.
It’s the humidity and wind. It’s cold on a totally different level, even when it’s around 32F. I’ve met a few people from the north who’ve settled here and they all agree that they cannot comprehend how something so mild on the thermometer is so vicious when experiencing it outdoors.
I’ve lived here in Australia for 20 years, which is also exactly the same amount of time I’ve been alive. In that time I’ve had such varying seasons as Summer, Really really hot summer, so hot that the landscape starts catching on fire summer, summer-that’s-meant-to-be-spring summer, summer-that’s-meant-to-be autumn summer, summer-that’s-meant-to-be-winter summer, and just plain stinking summer. Also, every now and then there’ll be a day that’s reasonably cold, but not so cold that it does anything interesting like snow.
I don’t appreciate summer. 80% of my life is summer, and the rest of the time, it’s a half-hearted winter. Summer is constant flies, oppressive heat and having to dress in inappropriate clothing to go to work. I agree with the title of the thread. There aren’t any seasons here and I don’t appreciate summer. Someone send me a winter.
Bahahahah! Perhaps I’m insane, but that struck me as highly amusing. Made me LOL, you might even say. Somehow I don’t think this modified expression will make its way into common smiley-people usage, catchy though it undoubtedly is.
Heh - I’m reading this thinking ‘ten below… that’s not that bad, is it?’ I get it now, though.
Anyway, as an Australian, I’d like to say that I agree with gex gex - when you’re enjoying the wonders of a forty-five degree Christmas (that’d be a hundred and thirteen of your degrees), the idea of a white north-hemisphere winter has a degree of appeal.
~ Isaac
OK with me
It’s STILL way the hell too humid here, even in January. Today doesn’t count, because it’s raining. But I was in San Antonio around the 10th and it was so much less humid, it was wonderful. Of course, my poor nose didn’t know what to make of it so it started running like crazy.
Summer here is hellish. I hear there are worse places, but I’m not sure there are any worse places in the States. Ick.
Ah, memories…just reminiscing about the time in H.S. when we decided that no matter how cold it was, darn if we weren’t going to do our annual Christmas caroling anyway. The temps were about 40 below, 80 below with wind chill, and the roads and sidewalks were basically solid sheets of ice punctuated by 5" snowdrifts. (This is Evanston, IL.) We stayed out for at least 3 hours or so…it was still a blast, even if I spent a large part of it wondering if the thing rattling around in my boot was a toe that had fallen off. Everyone’s house we stopped at was really nice; complete strangers invited us in for hot chocolate and cookies.
And let’s not even talk about the semester in the dorm in Leningrad, about 100 yards from the Bay of Finland, with semi-functional heat…the worst part of that is at least in the U.S., you can pretty much count on the heat working once you get inside, but that wasn’t the case in Russia by a long shot. But the cold wasn’t even the worst part…that would be the constant darkness. By December, it was light out from about 10 am to 2 pm, which was when we had to be in class. I really started to understand why Russians drink so heavily. What kind of crazy people voluntarily live somewhere like that? Although I’m told the summers make up for it.
Another Floridian here. I have a huge box of sweaters I get to wear maybe 1 month out of the year. :rolleyes: I could be very happy if the temperature stayed between 60F and 72F.
Couldn’t agree more! I have been happy as a lark in -20 in Stockholm, it is all crisp and the snow is white and you can walk in the dry cold through Gammla Stan and stop in somewhere for a cup of coffee and it’s all sparkley and pretty and wintry. Down here, its +5 degrees and you are in tears from the cold. I am in Blekinge so the raw wet winds come sweeping across the baltic sea and freeze my ass off. The cold goes right through no matter how many layers of clothing you have on and cuts you to the bone. I have a co-worker from Kiruna who thinks the winters suck infinitly more down here than up there (even when removing the winter sports aspects).
I have experienced the same thing in Ireland. Was standing outside Arlanda having a smoke and it was -8, not a bother. Got into Dublin airport where it was about +8 and, wearing the same clothes as in Stockholm, waited for a bus. I was crying (literally) from the pain in my ears, hands, etc. by the time the bus came.
It’s too friggin hot here in the summer. But the fall, winter and spring sure are nice. 