Real winter has arrived. It is ushered in with the removal of the Christmas decorations. Our villages, towns and cities are stripped of the cheery lights that added sparkle and colour to streets and shops. The phony winter of December is gone. For more than a month, throughout December, the bright lights disguised the retreat of daylight, as the sun gradually disappeared a little earlier each day. The tinsel and mistletoe warmed hearts enough that one doesn’t notice the freezing of the ground beneath their feet.
Yesterday, a large truck came on to Bournemouth’s circular square and removed the rather miserable Christmas tree and a few festive baubles. We are left with grey, foggy skies. Brick and foliage are merged into white, icy monuments to winter misery. The only colours that remain are the winter blues that have possessed our depressed souls. And I am reminded once again how historians supportive of the British Empire miss the most obvious justification of them all. January.
The Mexile 
We have been getting some sledding weather, no ice skating yet, lots of snow. The sun is a stranger, I saw a little blue sky a week ago so yes, very dreary. We are having a very mild winter, more rain than snow, the coldest night was 18 degrees so far. We have had winters in my life where it never went above o F for a week, nothing over o C for a month, a mild winter so far…
I’m real tired of driving in the dark, during what should be daytime, curse that tilt of the earth.
LikeLike
New Year’s Day we had blue skies. It’s been frozen and grey since then. This is how it’ll be for most of the time over the next few months. Winter always goes on too long. The virus will make this one feel longer.
LikeLike
Here in the NY area, our winter months have not been too bad, if talking about weather that is… mild temps for this time of year. One snowy storm that dropped about a foot of snow last month, and one nasty wind storm, but all in all, just mostly rain. The most fortunate part is being able to go for a daily walk, because even if it’s only in the 30’s and 40’s, the sun shines strong most days.
On January 20 I’m optimistic our country will take a turn for the best. And maybe, even the other, the Covid virus, leaves our country sooner then later. The real bleakness will start to come to an end…
LikeLike
Great job Gary! You have managed to capture the bleakness of January.
LikeLike