How the weather affects us

merlin

merlin

Member
Location
Saint Petersburg Russia
Today I woke up to a foggy morning here in the UK, after a week of gorgeous warm summer-like weather which is unusual here in April.

Over the past week I have spent a lot of time on the terrace drinking a beer, and simply watching the world go by. I adopted what I call the (stereotypical) Greek way of life, sitting in the sun and putting any notion of work off till tomorrow.

I have always said that the weather never really affected me, loving the rain as much as the sun, enjoying the lovely cosy feeling indoors when storms were raging outside.
Nowadays though I feel the cold more, and do feel uplifted on a spring morning sat in the sun, though I do find I am not good in the noon heat, so feel I couldn't live in a hot country any more, which I would have had no problem with in the past.

Do you feel the weather affects you? Is it true that only the Brit's are pre-occupied with weather, as we are often accused of being. I will admit its the most common topic of casual conversation here.
 

Well Merlin, my dad's family is from the UK, way back when, so maybe that's why I've always loved the rain and misty weather. BUT I will say, the 30 or so years I spent in Oregon (known for it's wet weather) I did suffer from sadness, depression and poor health. Since I moved to sunny California in the 80s I've turned into a different person. I hardly EVER get depressed anymore and if I do, it just lasts a few hours. Is it just the weather? I don't know for sure but I think that's it. Have you ever been where it's sunny and warm most of the time? How did it make you feel?
 
Linda said:
Well Merlin, my dad's family is from the UK, way back when, so maybe that's why I've always loved the rain and misty weather. BUT I will say, the 30 or so years I spent in Oregon (known for it's wet weather) I did suffer from sadness, depression and poor health. Since I moved to sunny California in the 80s I've turned into a different person. I hardly EVER get depressed anymore and if I do, it just lasts a few hours. Is it just the weather? I don't know for sure but I think that's it. Have you ever been where it's sunny and warm most of the time? How did it make you feel?
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Interesting question Linda (my sisters name) Some years ago I did spend a couple of months in India with constant sunshine, and oddly enough became bored with the monotony of it, I longed for some rain and mist and changeable weather. I do find if in perpetual sunshine when on holiday abroad that I get somehow bored with, it sounds a bit weird really, maybe its bred into me?

What you describe about your moods while living in Oregon, sounds like SAD (seasonal affective disorder)?, a fair number of people in the UK seem to suffer from it, and some of them use a "light box" to compensate for the lack of sunshine.

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No Fog Here Merlin...it's sunny and gloriously blue...and forecast to be up to 77 degrees today , hottest day of the year so far.

yes in reply to your question, I am somewhat influenced by the weather...I adore the sun, I love to get out in it, which is why I bought a house in Southern Spain many years ago..and why I choose to live in Southern England . There's not a lot more frustrating for me when the sun is shining and for whatever reason I can't get out in it.. :D That said I do know what you mean about praying for rain ..in Spain by the time it gets to 4 or 5 months without a single drop than you are pretty much doing the rain dance.. desperate for clearer air and cooler temps..
 
hollydolly said:
No Fog Here Merlin...it's sunny and gloriously blue...and forecast to be up to 77 degrees today , hottest day of the year so far.

yes in reply to your question, I am somewhat influenced by the weather...I adore the sun, I love to get out in it, which is why I bought a house in Southern Spain many years ago..and why I choose to live in Southern England . There's not a lot more frustrating for me when the sun is shining and for whatever reason I can't get out in it.. :D That said I do know what you mean about praying for rain ..in Spain by the time it gets to 4 or 5 months without a single drop than you are pretty much doing the rain dance.. desperate for clearer air and cooler temps..
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The fog is lifting here now hollydolly, and they promise 22c (72F) Funny I have converted my brain to celsius nowadays, so I had to look up 77F to see how warm it was :sunglass: I still use inches though, and can't somehow get the sense of centimetre :confused: ....Enjoy the sun, hope you can get out in it at least for some of the day.
 
My hometown is coastal California. I loved the fog. I can remember seeing the fog bank sitting on the ocean all day and then it would roll back in come evening.

The drought in California has me literally depressed.
 
Kitties said:
My hometown is coastal California. I loved the fog. I can remember seeing the fog bank sitting on the ocean all day and then it would roll back in come evening.

The drought in California has me literally depressed.
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I think your fog is more pleasant than ours Kitties because of your climate, it tends to be usually dank and damp here, though early morning ones in spring and summer are usually ok as they often burn off during the morning, as it has today, it makes for a lovely slow dawn.
 
I live on a hill overlooking Worcester, and we often get early morning and evening mists, here are a couple of shots from my terrace one in the morning, the other a sunset one.
The cathedral surrounded by the mist always makes the view special somehow.

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I'm the opposite of most.

I have vision problems which are made worse by bright sunlight, and a a condition where sunlight really drags me down, and I suffer with the heat.

When others are out in the garden or on the beach I;m indoors with the blinds drawn!

My favourite months are November and February!
 
We have had the worst winter in recent history. I probably would have enjoyed it as a kid but no longer. A good martini a day in any weather gets me thru. It was warm enough yesterday to sit on my deck and watch remaining snow melt. I tell people that I want to check out on the last day of fall with snow in the forecast...
 
Ralphy1 said:
We have had the worst winter in recent history. I probably would have enjoyed it as a kid but no longer. A good martini a day in any weather gets me thru. It was warm enough yesterday to sit on my deck and watch remaining snow melt. I tell people that I want to check out on the last day of fall with snow in the forecast...
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We usually have relatively mild winters with lots of grey damp depressing weather, where I live in the midlands snow is rare, and not much when it does fall. Here is winter photo overlooking Worcester

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I've lived in just about every type of climate and I'm very much affected by the weather. I moved to TN from Michigan because I hated winters and snow so much. Then moved to Scotland with a totally different climate. Although we get very little snow in our area, it is still dark, windy and rainy and feels very cold. The only negative thing I can say about Scotland is the weather. But I don't ever want to live anywhere else permanently, so we deal with it by traveling. Thailand has become our winter home, and though it's a little hotter than I'd like (30C/86F most days) I still love it and prefer it to dark, cold Scottish winters.

Merlin, I know what you mean about perfect weather becoming boring. During our two years in Uganda we got spoiled by the sunshine. Although it's on the equator the high elevation where we lived made the temps cooler. The sun was extremely strong so we didn't stay out in it very long. Temps were cool enough at night to need a thick blanket, and in the daytime the normal temps were in the 20'sC/70 - 85F. There were rainy and dry seasons but rain was usually a downpour for about an hour, and that was it. It did get monotonous with no change of seasons at all. But I did really enjoy getting up every morning and putting on capris, tshirt and sandals and opening all the doors and windows. :cool:
 
Merlin, we get a lot of fog on the loch, sometimes so thick you can't even tell there is water out there. But we get amazing sunrises as well. And lots of rainbows.
 
Ameriscot said:
The only negative thing I can say about Scotland is the weather. But I don't ever want to live anywhere else permanently, so we deal with it by traveling. Thailand has become our winter home, and though it's a little hotter than I'd like (30C/86F most days) I still love it and prefer it to dark, cold Scottish winters. :cool:
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What made you choose Thailand as a winter home Ameriscot? I have never been there, though its on our list of countries to visit!
 
Summers here can get very hot and humid which can be very de-energizing. This last winter was a bad one with extreme cold and snow --- being stuck inside can get old fast. But we get lots of sun - all year round. A change is nice - rain, clouds, anything, even a good thunder storm. I love living in this part of the world with the relief of seasonal changes.

I had never seen a severe rainstorm until I came here, rain lashing down in torrents; and creating rivers in the streets, with high winds on top of it making the rain fall upwards, amazing. When I would get off the bus to walk home, I'd take my shoes off and walk barefoot to prevent them from being ruined.
 
merlin said:
What made you choose Thailand as a winter home Ameriscot? I have never been there, though its on our list of countries to visit!
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Thailand was very far down our list of places to visit. But in Jan 2014 my DH's niece who lives in Australia had her wedding there. Her husband is Australian but also half Thai and most of his relatives still live in Thailand. Besides that, having a wedding on Thai beach appealed to them.

The wedding was on the island of Koh Samui. We enjoyed ourselves so much that before we left to come home we looked around at places we'd like to stay for a longer trip and booked a bungalow in a small community near the beach. We stayed there this past Dec and Jan. Before leaving we booked for 3 months this coming winter, so will be there Dec to end of Feb. We bought a lot of household/personal items while there and were able to store them at no charge for our return trip.

What do we love about it? Well, besides the weather, the Thai people who are very friendly and peaceful people. All Buddhists of course. Love the food which is very healthy. I love all the Buddhist temples and the interesting culture. Bargaining at the outdoor markets. Every restaurant we ate at was outdoors, and we preferred the beachfront ones. Loved swimming in the pool and in the sea as the water is very warm. Pretty beaches and clear water. For some reason we only kayaked once, but this time we are buying an inflatable tandem kayak and taking it with us.
 
I like sunny and coolish weather.. No hotter than 75.. or 80 tops.. I do sometimes love to look out ad really dark scary thunderstorms and see the wind blowing the trees... but no Tornados please.. Just dark and threatening.
 
We've had many excellent storms since I've lived in my building -- beautiful lightning shows --- very dramatic.... but.....

A few years ago we had a terrible freezing rain storm which devastated the city's tree canopies. The poor trees outside my building suffered terrible damage, the limbs just snapped right off. We sometimes get something called thunder snow -- snow storm with thunder and lightning if you can believe it, I didn't know it was possible.
 
QuickSilver said:
I like sunny and coolish weather.. No hotter than 75.. or 80 tops.. I do sometimes love to look out ad really dark scary thunderstorms and see the wind blowing the trees... but no Tornados please.. Just dark and threatening.
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I prefer 75 - 80 (something we don't get often in Scotland), but I can deal with 85 when it means the sea and the swimming pool are warm. Plus sea breezes help a lot.
 
Cookie said:
We've had many excellent storms since I've lived in my building -- beautiful lightning shows --- very dramatic.... but.....

A few years ago we had a terrible freezing rain storm which devastated the city's tree canopies. The poor trees outside my building suffered terrible damage, the limbs just snapped right off. We sometimes get something called thunder snow -- snow storm with thunder and lightning if you can believe it, I didn't know it was possible.
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Yes.. we get thunder snow here too.. It seems to really interest folks.

http://www.bing.com/videos/search?q...&mid=858A39ECF2570E9BE3D8858A39ECF2570E9BE3D8
 
I grew up in northwestern Pa., not too far from Buffalo, N.Y. We had very cold, snowy, stormy winters, hot, humid summers, a slushy but gratifying spring and a drop dead gorgeous autumn. Then I moved to southern Ca. It took me about two years to feel that there is, in fact, a very subtle change of seasons here. We have a hot dry summer which lasts from July to about November. From December through June it's a little cooler and we get occasional clouds, maybe some fog and, if we're really lucky, some rain. That's winter. Spring and autumn are a few days in June and November when the temp goes up/down a couple degrees. Overall, San Diego is wonderful in winter, especially if we get some rain. I'd like it a little cooler in summer but hey, that's what air conditioning is for! :sunglass:
 
Thanks for that QS - makes me appreciate the beautiful day we're having here today -- sunny skies and warm breezes.... now just waiting for some leaves to pop on the trees. :)
 
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