Freakish Weather

In England, weather is often a favourite topic of conversation.  We English are never content whatever the weather.

The beginning of 2014 has brought some freak weather to our shores.  Since December last year there has been torrential rainfall in the south of the country leading to intensive flooding.   The ‘Somerset Levels’ has now become an inland waterway.  Many people in that area have been forced to evacuate their homes and farmers have bought boats so that they can get to and from their farmland and the local town.

For some reason the Jet Stream has become stuck and it is this that is causing this unseasonal, freakish weather!  In recent weeks this anomaly has caused hurricane force winds along parts of the coastline.  Some gusts peaked at over 100mph exacerbating high spring tides and causing waves that damaged coastal properties.

The torrential rain has also caused sinkholes to appear because of underground corrosion.  Some of these have appeared next to residential properties, requiring them to be evacuated.

Moving closer to my Shropshire home the winds have been less severe but still strong enough to bring down many (old) trees, causing travel problems and damage to property.

Sadly the extreme weather conditions have led to some loss of life and some people have unfortunately lost their livelihood.  The weather has also had a devastating effect on the environment and the land will perhaps take a long time to recover.

Once again I am impatiently waiting for spring…

• Posted at Vision and Verb.

Autumn Contemplations

We are well and truly into Autumn now. The leaves on the trees are all turning into their delightful hues of yellows, coppers, reds and golds.  The breezes that stir up are gently shaking those leaves from the trees and making them fall like confetti to the ground below.

Autumn is one of my favourite seasons, but this year I can’t help feeling a little cheated.  Autumn has arrived but what happened to Summer?  Did I blink and miss it?  I have a memory that there was a Summery week in May and two to three Summer days in September.  Apart from that it seems to have rained from spring through to Autumn.  Oh! Yes, the weather managed to be just perfect for the Olympics in a not so typical English Summer, which was quite welcome.  The whole occasion including the weather gave visitors to England and natives a reason to celebrate in style, especially as it had been shortly preceded by the Queen’s Jubilee celebrations.

I am sure the Shropshire gardens enjoyed the rain after last year’s drought.  ‘My Oak Tree’ seems to have grown quite considerably this year. Myself I am not much of a sun worshiper and I struggle when it gets too hot but I would have liked a few more gaps in between the continuous deluge of rain if only so that I could visit some of those gardens that I so love.

As Autumn arrives the rain still doesn’t seem to have let up.  At times it seems like someone has turned a tap on and there is a continuous downpour for hours.  Apart from the colour of leaves on the trees the only thing that has differentiated Summer from Autumn is the distinct drop in temperature, especially a night.  Seeing the beautiful vibrant colours of the Autumn leaves makes up for the Summer rain.

Let’s hope the weather has a change of heart before the Winter months, we certainly wouldn’t want that level of deluge falling as snow…

• Posted at Vision and Verb.