G'day mates! How ya goin'? No worries here down under. Not even on the first official day of winter. Winter? Ha. That's what they call it here, but seriously....
Winter is frozen fingers; socks in bed; hands encircling a cup of something hot and steamy; sitting by the fire; turning up the heat, putting on warm fuzzy socks, bundling up in a blanket and STILL being cold. Winter is feeling like your bones are cold. Get out from under these warm blankets in my bed? I think not. Flippin' brrr!
Take a look at winter in West Australia. Seriously. It is laughable. I took my bike out for a ride on 21 June, the first official day of winter here; Winter Solstice. Shortest day of the year. I rode on one of the glorious bike paths that hug the stunning shoreline all over the greater Perth area. What I encountered didn't have any of the trappings of a winter day. The coastline was teaming with people out enjoying a gorgeous day. I saw people wearing pants, shorts, wet suits, swimming suits, sports bras, bare chests. Winter? Whatever, mate!
The temp was high 60's, low 70's. I found my way to a dog exercise area of one beach; people can let their dogs be dogs here without having to keep them on a leash. The unabashed joy I saw on the faces of these dogs was pure magic. Of course, they didn't know it was the first day of winter and couldn't have cared less. But I was struck by it. In Oregon the first day of winter is generally drizzly and/or foggy. Cold and yucky. But hey, it's winter, it's supposed to be, well, cold! West Australians don't have a clue about winter. They feel terribly inconvenienced to wear a hoody if the temps dip below 75 degrees, or, if they have to exchange their flip flops for a pair of socks and shoes; not that I've seen many concessions in those areas yet.
Aussies dream of a winter vacation up north (remember, it's always opposite day in Australia!). Up north it's a nice, sunny 80-85 degrees. Better yet, go to Bali or some other Indonesian island where the real warmth is.
Aussies like to squirm and compain about enduring the winter. One friend I have said she has lived here most of her life and she characterized it as something of a surprise each year when winter rears it's ugly head in Australia. Like, "hey, who turned down the sun?" Well, that's not all that winter is here. It actually rains here in the winter too. But it's nothing like the days upon days of rain we have to endure in Oregon. It's usually a day or two of major downpour, and then several days of sun and delightful temps. I am still quite comfortable riding my bike during the day wearing shorts or capris.
Winter in West Australia? I think I can handle it.
But hey, mate, the days are already starting to get longer here! No worries!
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