This week, David asks, "When Did You Last Complain About The Weather?"
What are you joking? We are living in England for Heaven's sake! We complain about it all the time!
We have a poem. Not sure where it comes from. I had to learn it at school. Maybe it is folklore.
Whether the weather be cold
Or whether the weather be hot,
We'll weather the weather
Whatever the weather,
Whether we like it or not!
Most British people do just that because it never seems to be the same twice! There is plenty to talk about and that is why we British always remark about the weather to every one, every day!
You can speak to a perfect stranger and say, "Good morning, not so nice today!" Or "Is it going to rain, do you think?" Or "Nice weather for ducks!"
Some how or other our weather seems to bond us together and we are noted on the Continent for always talking about it. One of the great British eccentricities! Well that's OK its good to be different.
We are probably noted for our stoical approach to the weather and the fact that we will go for strolls down country lanes in rain or hot sunshine. Mad dogs and Englishmen ......... out in the noon day sun!
However, we do seem to complain a lot about our weather.
When I was a child, my Dad had an autograph album, but instead of having famous people write in it, he got all the relatives to write a poem or a drawing in there. I remember Auntie Minnie writing:-
As a rule
A man's a fool.
When it's hot
He wants it cool,
When it's cool
He wants it hot!
He's always wanting
What is not!
That little verse stuck out in my mind. I wish we still had the autograph album as all the people in it would be dead by now.
I think the last time I really complained about the weather was when we had to go back to school in perfect sunshine, after the storm during our holiday traveling, that I have already written about!
You can link to authorblog: Weekend Wandering
20 comments:
I love the british weather - changing all the time. I lived in Bermuda for about five years and mostly the skies were blue but wow was it humid. This was in the days when aircon had not reached private houses in Bermuda. At night, sleeping was most uncomfortable. Also the weather was boring - the same every day - expect for hurricanes and they were scary! I just love the changing seasons in this country. By the way I love your photos.
Every time I visited the UK it was in summer - terrific times. But you should see how quicklt our weather changes in Melbourne!
hi maggie may,
just read your last post....what a dreadful time you are having. it seems that everyone has said it all. my one stand-out thought is maybe rupe has got what he deserves?
bless you
k
I remember a lot of variety in the weather when I visited England, Scotland, Wales, and Ireland many years ago. It would be kind of like we are having here this June. It was June when I was there, too.
I complained just this morning about how changeable the weather is from day to day! I love talking about the weather! It's fascinating. I am also very grateful that we have fairly regular rainfall, otherwise our countryside wouldn't be so beautifully green and fresh. I wouldn't be happy living in brown, parched countryside.
I just read your last post. I'm sorry about your current difficulties and worries. The unpleasant things just seem to pile up, sometimes.
Thanks for coming to my site on Saturday. It was a great day!
We do complain dont we!
I havent heard those 2 poems for ages! Thanks for the reminder!
This is funny-- when we first moved here and kept praising the rain, our landlord thought we were mad. After this past winter (you know, the one that started in April 2007 sometime), we finally fell in step with everyone else and learned to complain :-)
Maggie,
Oh, the British weather! How I miss it! It is rather strange, isn't it? However, it is a great conversation starter.....I'm sure there have been studies on it!
take care,
Peter
Hello maggie - do you feel like doing a bookish Meme? if so please pop over to mine to see the rules... it's not very demanding or technical.
LOVE that poem "As a rule". I swear to you my husband is the SAME way. In the dead of winter he'll say, "Man, I can't wait till it gets hot!" in the dead of Summer, "Man, I'm ready for it to be cold again!"
Never happy.
Great British Weather? Try Crap British Weather!
I love Auntie Minnies poem. It is so true, particularly in my dads case!!
Is that your picture? Are you still wearing jackets and boots? Does it ever get really hot there? We had a cold, rainy spring and went directly into summer with temps over ninety Fahrenheight. (I think about 32 Celcius.)
We used to sing the first poem as a warm up for choir.
Hi Maggie!
Great post! I love the little memories...
One thing that I don't miss since living here in Brasil is the British weather back home! and I truly believe that I couldn't survive one of those "bone-freezing" winters there now!!!
Have a great week!
"This week", who asks? Bye!
Oh how we love to talk about the weather! I'm addicted to weather forecasts to find out what I have to dress daughter in for the childminder's the next day. I end up dressing her for one kind of weather and sending spares for another. Yesterday she went in raincoat and took sunhat!
the whole point about having weather is so we can complain about it isn't it? it's just about the only thing to do in a summer downpour. either that or drink gin.
Hi! Thanks for visiting my blog. I didn't know that the weather here in Oklahoma, USA, has so much in common with England. Because the weather changes so much here, we just say that if you don't like the weather, wait a minute and it'll be different.
Many thanks every one for your interesting and kind comments.
It was not us walking along the lane but some locals, while we were on holiday.
I was going to say when we lived in England I never once complained about the weather! Wait a second, there was that time it started to snow in mid April...oh and the fog...there was the time it rained for four weeks straight every afternoon for ten minutes only...okay, I guess I did my share of grousing even there...love the poems by the way!
Sandi
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