so much water

It's been a pretty wet winter here. Mild, but definitely damp. Not that I'm complaining - every drop is joy after a couple of years of drought. However so much water from the sky is more than the rivers can contain and now we have a fantastical, worst-in-fifty-years type flood. Thankfully it doesn't seem to be causing too much damage, but it sure is good for entertainment!

This is what the local tourist attraction, Cataract Gorge, looks like on a normal day.

Photo courtesy of Wikipedia

Beautiful, peaceful and serene. I love going for walks there, although I don't do it very often!

This is the same place yesterday afternoon just after the flood waters peaked. Apologies for the poor picture quality... it was getting dark (and possibly I'm not a great photographer, but we'll go with the dark option because it's my blog and I'm in charge).

And this for some idea of the force of the raging torrent:

icey-cream

You could be forgiven for thinking spring is here, but only if you were using shop windows as your guide. Gone are the jumpers, coats and boots, replaced by tee shirts and drifty skirts and flowing blouses. Meanwhile, outside a stiff, cold wind is blowing.

Of course there are the early signs of spring outdoors too - daffodils sneaking out of the dirt, buds swelling the tips of branches, smudges of light on the horizon when the alarm drags me from my dreams. Soon, soon it will start to warm up.

But not yet. Right now snow is comfortably settled on the mountain, the morning grass crunches frostily with each step and only the five layers of clothes I slavishly don keep the wind from cutting me in half.

And what do I crave in all this chilled coldness? Icecreams! No idea where that is coming from, but I am working my way through the packet I bought on Tuesday with alacrity. Strange but true.

I'm wondering if this ice cream crave is a subconscious attempt to conjure summer out of a box? As if each warm lick takes back a small portion of the territory currently trapped in winter's icy grip. Or maybe I'm having delusions of summer, imagining the air is already warm and ice cream a perfectly normal indulgence. Or maybe I'm suffering from SADS, feeling grumpy (yes) and miserable (a little) and bored with the same, dowdy winter clothes each day (totally) and ice cream is the comfort food of choice to drown my sorrows.

Really, I have no idea why I am craving ice cream in the dead of winter, but one thing I do know - I am over it and no amount of crisp, beautiful, clear air or wintery sun on patient, delicate, naked trees will change my mind. It is time for spring. Really and truly time for spring.

lagging behind

I'm not really lagging behind - if anything I've raced ahead. Australia is second only to New Zealand in the world time stakes after all and I passed through enough time zones to now be eight hours ahead of Europe.

Behind or ahead, I still feel gnawing hunger at strange times, need to pee in the middle of the night while my circadian rhythm still tells my kidneys it is day time, and fall asleep while watching the news. (Incidentally I was able to stay awake for the whole of Ugly Betty without difficulty. Sigh. Such trash, but I love it)

Really Frank and I are not doing too badly. Apart from waking up at 5:30am yesterday, we are sleeping well and feeling only moderately tired. I have a slight constant headache which I am working on by drinking lots of water. (which will no doubt help not at all in the night time peeing stakes...)

I started back at work today (at the school) and loved it. Now I just have to conquer the hospital, which I would quite happily never look at ever again if I could avoid it. Ah well - don't need to go back until Monday.

The biggest issue has been the cold. I spent all of autumn bedding myself down for the winter before jetting off to summer. Now we have gone from the longest day of the year to the shortest over night. Endless summer evenings have been replaced by darkness, the trees look indecently bare, and the cold... the cold. Well it took me three hours to get to sleep the other night I was so cold for so long. It was 32 degrees C in Rome when we left. 9 degrees C the day we arrived here, the coldest day of the winter so far. What a shock.

Moan, moan, moan - anyone would think I could at least be glad about the month of warmth and the fantastic places we visited.

So I'll stop complaining now and start reflecting on the great time we had.