flemmings | (no subject)

I put today's scatter brain down to a combination of heat (tropics-domiciled people, don't laugh when I wilt at 26C) and lack of human interaction. Forgot when retiring last night to bring up the yoghurt and frozen blueberries I have with breakfast, forgot to put overnight oats back in the fridge this morning, nearly forgot to put the morning's wash on the line before going out, nearly forgot to bring it back in before sunset, and forgot there were *three* things I was going to Loblaws for and the third was my dry cleaning that I, yes, forgot the ticket for. Mind, it's been years since I had something dry-cleaned, so maybe no surprise. But still. My brain is melting.

There's hoo-ha with Canada Revenue as well, but that goes under 'death and taxes.' Oh, and all the blossoms have fallen off the cherry tree and lie in drifts on the back path and next door's dandelion-spotted half of the yard. Bye bye, sakura.

Endure. A few more days and we'll be back to the teens Celsius and maybe I'll be able to think again.

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Will snicker gently. It's only this last week that a passing cyclone has brought the temperature down to a delightfully cool 33C from the 39-40C we have had to put up with since March...

I know, I know. Was appalled when a Singapore friend characterized our current swelter of 28 as 'good sleeping weather- don't even need a fan.'

Then again: one lovely sunny 5 degree February day in Tokyo, the student from Minnesota and I opened the classroom window to smell the lovely fresh air while the Hong Kongers huddled down into their puffy jackets.

Prof comes in: 'What on earth are you two doing?!'

Us, all aglow,'But sensei, at home we call this spring!'

'Well, here we call it winter. Close that window!'

I took a boat tour in Tasmania once, in late autumn, so it was their last one of the year, and because you sign up in advance, they know where you're from. So I was very tickled (and appreciative) that I and the Hong Kong guy got given extra hats and mittens, unlike the family from, as it happens, Canada!

Anyway, Singapore has no room to talk, not when the seasons there are actually "Inside" and "Outside". The last time I was there, the office was so cold that everyone was bundled up like Vladimir Putin's grandmother...for the servers, I was told.

Edited 2022-05-15 07:11 (UTC)

(Looks at Tasmania's climate) My kind of place. Not too hot, not too cold, not too rainy and OMG look at the dryness index!

Yeah well, S'pore couldn't survive without air conditioning, I'm told. We have the same weirdness here. Freezing AC in offices because the guys in their 3 piece suits (seriously, why?) get hot and the women in knee length skirts shiver. WFH, people.

It's lovely to visit, and I like the climate. Cool and damp, except when they have a drought and a heatwave and forest fires, just to remind you that it is in fact Australia. If they allowed foreigners to buy property there, I'd get myself a little studio apartment in Hobart with a nice view of the Southern Ocean and spend a couple of months every year of my retirement there.

Edited 2022-05-16 09:44 (UTC)

Somehow I thought being an island would protect them from the usual Australian perils.

Is it just Tasmania that prohibits foreign ownership, or all of Australia? I can see why but it's a pity for those who actually like the place and aren't doing the 'buy just to sell down the line.' Of which we have far too much here, as in any large city.