Winter 2014/2015

[Stanley]

Don't use that word thongs.... I get impure thoughts....
Jack and I have just had our second and last walk o0f the day in gently falling snow. The wind seems more NW than West to me, it's bloody cold! Forecast says we'll have a bright spell now, we'll see!

[Moh]

We had a thunderstorm around 9am this morning, the first rumble seemed to go on for ages, this was followed by hail. At the moment we have snow falling and it is very cold.

[Stanley]

No thunder here Moh but some nasty showers during the evening and through the night. We have a thin covering of slush this morning, it must be just above freezing. Glass is up again at 29". Forecast is gloomy... good chance of showers of sleet, hail and snow all day. Temperature hovering at freezing all day. Moderate West wind to keep the showers coming in. It's a wintry day! Not a lot of joy looking forward either. Mail as usual says it is the end of the world. NASA say that 2014 was the warmest year on record.... Take your pick...
08:30. We had a later walk then usual but it was hardly a surprise that very few were out in the nasty weather. Slush and packed snow underfoot and the occasional spatter of hard snow that all seemed to get into your neck hole! It's a bit brighter as I write this but the grey clouds are still coming in from the west. Plenty more to come I suspect....

[Moh]

We have a brief moment of sunshine at the moment, then it keeps sleeting although it looks to be falling as snow up on Hambledon. Very slippery & slushy underfoot.

[Stanley]

We had the bright intervals as well Moh but as forecast, later it froze hard under a clear sky and what was slush yesterday morning is hard packed snow and ice this morning. Glass is steady on 29", so no immediate change indicated. Shipping forecast has widespread gales round the Isles but not as strong as recently. Forecast is for a quieter misty day with light winds veering into the NW as the temperature drops all day to become even colder tonight. No snow forecast but no doubt an occasional spatter. We appear to be on hold with this weather for the next two or three days....
07:30... We've had our walk on a still, cold morning with hard packed snow covering all untreated surfaces. Clear patches on the minor roads are shot ice. I was struck by the confidence the few drivers on the road have on the ability of the small amount of salt on the main roads to keep them safe. They are driving at normal speeds... I could tell them a few stories about that!
16:00. Weather or no weather, I got fed up with my hair today and shaved it off..... That'll change the weather! Expect a heat wave shortly.....

[Stanley]

A cold day yesterday and a colder night. Very hard frost but dry. Glass is up slightly at just over 29.1" Forecast is for an overcast day with very light variable winds. Temperature never above freezing and another frost tonight.
07:20. We've had our walk. Very cold but calm and underfoot many pavements have cleared themselves, however, where the snow persists it is still treacherous. Last night was officially the coldest of the winter, -12C in some parts of Scotland. I reckon we had about -6C and it could be colder tonight before the next Atlantic system reaches us. If you’ve got a long exposed drain pipe from the condensate chamber of your gas boiler, keep an eye on it.

[Marilyn]

Bet your naked bonce is feeling the cold, Stanley!
Cant complain about our weather. Shorts and T-shirts here, and nice to enjoy some cloud cover this morning. We shall enjoy a beach walk later...

[Stanley]

Actually no Maz. My head runs very hot! The main reason I like it shaved is because if my hair gets long I wake on the co0ldest night with a damp pillow. I must be a bit peculiar....
Very still out there, partially overcast but frosty but perhaps not quite as cold as earlier nights. Glass is down a touch, half way between 29" and 29.1". Forecast is for a bright overcast day, very light East wind, expected high of freezing point and perhaps some light snow into Wednesday morning. Good winter weather, a proper cold season. Things could be a lot worse!

[Stanley]

Funny morning out there.... It could be just about freezing and occasional flakes of snow are falling but not sticking. I think there may be rain coming in and this is the harbinger. The glass is trying to fall, it's just below 29" at the moment. The forecast is for an overcast day, a small chance of a shower at almost any time, a light east wind and a steady temperature hovering within one degree of freezing all day. The weather is trying to make up its mind and the probability is it will warm slightly and became more wet as the Atlantic Low gradually overcomes the systems that have given us the prolonged frost. I think cold, damp and gloomy sums it up.
08:00. We had our walk in gently falling snow, nothing serious but as I said earlier, it's a gloomy day with snow laden clouds. Mark says that the council have ordered gritting but I think they are just covering their bets. No reason at the moment to expect a heavy fall.

[Wendyf]

Just under freezing here this morning with a bitter easterly wind. There has been another inch or so of snow overnight and its still snowing now.

[Moh]

Heavy snow falling at the moment and it is sticking - the snow which fell overnight had almost melted but we are becoming a white world again.

[Wendyf]

It has snowed non stop all day up here, we have about 6 inches, more where it has drifted.

[Stanley]

Same here in the town Wendy but nowhere near 5" and no drifting. Still snowing late last night but this morning apart from well insulated roofs it has all gone from the ground and it's not freezing. Glass is up funnily enough at 29.3". Forecast is for a quiet day, overcast with patches of sunshine occasionally, very light variable wind and temperature hovering around freezing all day. There might be the odd flake of snow but nothing of any account. Slightly warmer tomorrow...
.07:00. We are back early from our walk. There was a hint of light in the sky at 06:30 so we got going. Not a bad morning, some packed snow in Valley Gardens but the pavements are mostly clear. These early morning walks are good for me and Jack as well, lovely to get your lungs full of cold fresh air!

[Wendyf]

There has been a couple more inches over night, but it's very soft and fluffy. I'm going to attempt to get out this morning...I should be OK in the 4-wheel drive.

[Stanley]

It just goes to show Wendy, that it's a different world up there! Barlick is essentially clear of snow and ice and yesterday was a quiet, relatively mild, winter's day. Glass is up slightly again at almost 29.5". Forecast is for a calm, overcast morning with the temperature hovering just above freezing. Then the SW wind strengthens and brings in an increased chance of showers but higher temperatures as well. Could get up to 6C this afternoon.

[Marilyn]

"Soft and fluffy"....just how I like my snow...

[Stanley]

It's all right on Xmas cards....
We had or walk down to the butcher's at 07:00. Surprising how much colder it was than at 4AM. There was quite a hard frost.

[Marilyn]

One would not normally consider visiting their butcher at 7am.
I would go so far as to consider it odd.
I am an early riser, but know that the rest of society runs to a certain schedule...

[Cathy]

"I am an early riser, but know that the rest of society runs to a certain schedule..." Marilyn said
If I didn't know any different I would think she was having a go at me...

[Marilyn]

I wasn't actually, Cazza ( though I do wonder how we can be sisters and keep such different hours)
No - what I was thinking is that if I turned up at the local butcher shop at 7am, I would be there probably a good hour and a half before the butcher turned up...and given Barlick's dark mornings/snow/frost/rain at present I may freeze to death on the doorstep while waiting!
( I mean...the butcher is there all day and I have all day to visit, so throwing on the coat and heading out in the dark to buy meat before sun up would not occur to me)

Nothing to do with not expecting you up before....well... Shall we say morning tea time? But you have your strengths later at night, whilst I am decidedly pumpkin shaped and ready for bed by 9pm.

[PanBiker]

One would not normally consider visiting their butcher at 7am.
I would go so far as to consider it odd.
I am an early riser, but know that the rest of society runs to a certain schedule...

Why not if the place is open?

[Marilyn]

...probably for the same reason I wouldn't buy fruit and veg at that time of morning...the only stuff on offer would be whatever didn't sell yesterday...

[PanBiker]

False logic Maz, the butcher will not throw everything unsold away at the end of each day he's a butcher not a supermarket. Our fruit an veg tends to get delivered early doors as well. It's not all instantly perishable, certainly not in our climate. If you shop at the end of the day there is a counter argument that says the stuff has been on display all day. So which is best? If it was 42 degrees here I think I would prefer early doors!

[Moh]

A bitterly cold wind today, and it has just started drizzling with rain.

[Marilyn]

No problems here with early doors.
Just wouldn't be visiting the butcher at 7am in any weather, but I am beginning to have a vision of you all lined up at the shop door before dawn
We have specially padded and insulated bags/hold-alls that we take to the shops to bring food home in. No plastic bags here. You must take your own...