Monday, July 6, 2009

Winter!

Winter either bites with its teeth or lashes with its tail!
We are really into the thick of it now. Short, dark, cold days with sparkling frost covering the lawn as well any little leaves that are brave enough to still be attached to brown, dry branches! Duvets and soft blankets - good books and hot chocolate - snuggling on the sofa watching old movies! These are my favourite things about winter! Although we live in Africa, it's not all sunshine and roses! It DOES get cold here, VERY cold, only its supposed to be dry in Gauteng! Our houses aren't equipped for the cold, so we have no central heating in our homes and no double glazing. Sometimes, if there's a little bit of sun outside, it's warmer in the sun than in the house! We have a gas heater burning in the living area of our house and oil heaters which we leave on in the bedrooms! Hot baths and jarmies with big fluffly robes! That's how we keep warm on a winters night! But ... it's time, it's time for the cold chills and killing off of bugs and germs that multiply during our hot summers! It's time for the lawn to die down, so that in the spring it will grow back with a vengenance - green and new! It's time for the earth to become so cold, that the bulbs break through in spring time, stretching towards the sky for warmth and bringing with them the bright spring colours! It's time to be cold and I really am trying to enjoy it!

6 comments:

Marcelle said...

I feel the cold winters when I go home now more than i ever used to...here in Germany I'm lovely and warm indoors - its only when I go out that I get reminded how cold it is as during winter the sky can be blue and clear...so you think its a nice day...
I struggle back in SA now without the heated homes and double glazing I've become used to living here...I have to sleep with m thick gown and socks on and still moan about the draft that seems to come in all over the place.LOL...how quickly we get used to this way of life...but I do miss the aircons here in summer time, no shops or gym have aircons ...something we in SA have thankfully.
Stay warm there.

Love Bears All Things said...

Here in the Southern part of the United States, we don't have the severe winter that the northern part or Canada has. We have some days when the temperature gets into the teens but usually it is just for a couple and then we will have some days in the 40s. The best thing about winter in the South is the sunshine. None of that endless gloomy weather,just a cloudy day now and then. Very little snow or ice.
Then again we do have this high humidity and hot, hot summer for a few months.
It is nice to read about it being warm and cozy by the fire there while we are feeling the heat of summer.I've always said that I like winter best because one can always put on enough clothes to get warm. It is not always possible to stay cool in the summer.
Mama Bear

Avril said...

Brr ... me too .. TRYING to enjoy it :) Wish the sun would shine though! I know we have to have a cold winter to chase all the nasties away but this is ridiculous!! Off to have a hot bath and pop into my warm bed!

Firefly the Travel Guy said...

The one thing I do like about cold winters is that you can cuddle up and sleep like a log. The problem comes in the morning again when you neeed to crawl out of that warm space and get up...

Klambat said...

Be thankful that you can at least enjoy the four seasons and feel the cold sometime. In places like where I now live Malaysia, the weather is always the same, there is only summer throughout the year.

Country Mouse, City Mouse said...

Bundle up, and snuggle down:)