what a gloriously miserable day

Let me put this post in context for those of you who don't follow Northern Irish weather patterns.  It rains.  A lot.  It's one of the reasons the country is so green - that and the painted curbstones in Dunloy.

Of late, however, we've been have been experiencing a bit of a high pressure system.  For the past three weeks we have been bathed in glorious sunshine.  People have been flocking to the beach, wearing sunscreen, buying ice cream... all the things we normally only get to do after enduring an hour on easyjet. 

A quick side note here.  Good weather doesn't make people any less lazy.  I've had several lovely beach walks during this pleasant spell.  Portstewart Strand, the White Rocks, White Park Bay...  all very different experiences.  Portstewart (which you can drive on to) was bunged, the White Rocks (which has a convenient car park) was busy, White Park Bay (which requires you to either climb over boulders or walk down a steep path) was fantastically empty... on the hottest day of the year!  Take a look at these two photos.  

The first was taken at the entrance to the strand - where cars are allowed to park.  The next one was taken from the barmouth - at the far end of the strand.  Now I understand people probably had things to carry from their car and they didn't want to be too far away from it.  They probably love it dearly and wanted to look up at it occasionally.  It's just that personally I hate the idea of being crammed together with hundreds of sweaty people - I can't understand why they wouldn't just walk a hundred yards up the beach to where they would have space to spare.  

But back to the weather... or actually not.  This is not an article about the Northern Irish weather.  It is about the Northern Irish people.  Because even when the sun was at it's peak and the temperatures rose to, a not unbearable, thirty-ish degrees centigrade, people were still complaining about the weather.  They were having to think a bit harder to come up with something, but they were managing.  "having to water the flowers about three times a day... can't get comfortable in the heat... have to work inside when it's so beautiful outside [as a teacher on summer holiday I love hearing this one in July]... roads are bunged up with day-trippers... sweaty all the time... I've run out of summer clothes [that one was my fiancee - I think she just wants an excuse to buy clothes]... it's Northern Ireland; it'll never last..."

Then today the met office forecast was for a change.  Heavy rain and thunderstorms to start in the afternoon.  Suddenly it's as if we haven't had the last three weeks at all.  I woke up, looked at my phone and there it was - the first post on my facebook feed complaining about the rain, "Eugh it's gonna be wet and warm today that's the worst! — feeling sick of northern irelands b******t weather." Ah, back to normality. Things had been a little surreal with everyone walking round in shorts and trying to think of something else to complain about.

 I had to laugh when we were walking along East Strand at Portrush one day.  They have put in a paved promenade around where the Arcadia ball room was.  It's very popular with elderly people eating soft ice cream.  As we were making our way to the beach we caught a snippet of a conversation between two old men, "...of course I wouldn't much fancy being here in a caravan when it was raining.  I'd rather be at home in front of the TV..."  He was walking along in the sun, the warmest weather for several years, and he was imagining what it would be like in the rain...  That man was no amateur moaner - he had years of experience and I had no choice but to be impressed.  There's none so easily pleased as those who like nothing more than to grumble. That's an original - you can quote me.

I got to thinking about how much complaining people do when it rains here, and I realized something.  It's not actually the rain they're bemoaning; it's got nothing to do with the weather at all - they just need to keep complaining - in case they forget how to.  But I have decided we need to go the other direction.  We need to start finding and vocalizing the positives, even when there are none.  When I look at that forecast I think the farmers will be pleased - the grass will grow faster; I won't have to water the lavender my brother-in-law planted when he was over before his wedding; the north coast roads won't be filled with crazy Belfast drivers;  the rivers could probably do with a freshening...

  But the bad weather hasn't hit yet; so I'm going to pull on my shorts, go out, lie on the lawn, and enjoy the last few rays of sun.  I suggest you do the same.