Day 8: Six More Inches, Fog, And A Few Basic Necessities

So when I woke up this morning it was coming down heavy and thick, and it didn't stop until close to 3 this afternoon.  At least six more inches today, so that brings us up to two feet or more!  I amused myself this morning watching cars go slowly past my window up the hill...and then a moment later come sliding back down again...!  There were many people who had attempted to go to work or somewhere else and were now heading back home, so a mass exodus trudged past my windows all morning.  Meanwhile I was warm and cosy inside!

But not for long.  Not feeling a hundred percent today, but had to get my walk - otherwise bad habits start.  So, once the snow stopped, leaving us with at least six more inches to enjoy, I completed the now-familiar ritual of putting tights on under my jeans, layering up, hat, gloves, scarf, coat, extra socks, and finally stepping into my wellies and heading out.

Words can't convey the absolute silence outside.  There are so few cars on the road, and the ones that are there move silently on a smooth, icy road.  (I had one peep at me quite angrily for walking on said road, but the roads belong to pedestrians as well as cars this weather.  Perhaps more so pedestrians.)  Every fence-post and lamp-post and street-light and post-box has a massive snow hat, and the churches look even more solemn and beautiful and peaceful.  Lights gleam out, white and yellow, as the sun starts to set.  The trees are heavily laden with beauty, and the fog has started to come down and mist the whole scene with blurred edges.  Everything is muffled and quiet, except for the random ned on his mobile phone, hollering insults at the city, the weather, his mates, and the Lord, not necessarily in that order.  So few people are looking around at the incredible beauty around them.  I do feel a little sorry for those who are stuck in massive queues on the roads and motorways, but I'm a bit surprised that with heavy snow falling this morning they ever attempted to leave in the first place. 

I ran into a few locals who were out getting some basic necessities, noting that some of the shops are out of milk.  "No one can panic-buy like the British", they say, and from what I've heard this past week, that's incredibly true.

My suggestion to everyone is, listen to the insurance companies, the post office, or whoever it is telling you not to get in your car.  It's just not worth it.  Cars abandoned in the middle of roads.  Queues backed up for a mile because one car can't move, and none of the others can get round it.  People leaving work at 1 in the afternoon and at half 5 not even close to home yet.  Cold.  Dark.  Dangerous.  It's just not wise, people.

Better to pull on the wellies and shrug into that coat and walk! You'll get there faster, and you'll enjoy the journey so much  more.  Take it from me!