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Spare me the summer strip
SUMMER'S here. Glorious, gorgeous summer. The season of sun, the season of shine.
Everyone's favourite time of the year. Except for those miserable, macabre fools who like winter.
I like winter.
I like the air when it's heavy with snow and the traffic lights when they're reflected in puddles. I like the nights when they're dark and long.
Never enough darkness for me. Never enough night.
I think Kubichek! said that, or Kerouac, depending, I guess, if you like your references niche or cliche.
Or maybe it was me who said it.
Originality is nothing but plagiarism that goes unnoticed.
Summer's here.
You can't fail to notice that.
Not with weather like this. Wednesday-night-as-I-write-this, I mean
By the time you read it, of course, it'll be the weekend and Glastonbury will have begun and Wimbledon will almost be in its second week and, therefore, the combined laws of nature, averages and inevitability will have kicked into action to ensure
torrential downpours. There'll probably be a couple of British cities under a couple of feet of floodwater.
But right now, such a glorious, gorgeous summer.
Not even a middle-aged, fat bloke, wearing nought but shorts and sandals, just to my right, can spoil weather like this.
Why do they do it, though, these people? What makes them strip at the first sight of sunlight? What makes them think displaying overflowing, rippling bellies of beer in busy town centres is appropriate? It's not. Give them an ASBO until they learn to at least sport a string vest.
She's not bothered what people wear. Or what they don't. Live and let live, she says.
She likes a drink when the weather's like this and I like one whatever.
We sit outside and talk about all the usual stuff; Sid Vicious and Syd Barrett and Sid James; Bob Dylan and Bobby Fischer and Boba Fett.
We had more than one drink on Saturday. It was my birthday, see. Always getting older.
But I like having a summer birthday. I think of it as the official start of the season.
I sat in the Piece Hall while Calderdale's first-ever gay pride festival snaked around me – all colour and celebration – and then later I snaked myself away to some places where the sun doesn't shine and I tried to be polite while some people told me that a dog is man's best friend, and I tried to forget I'd be working just a few hours later.
But the next day was equally sunny and so working was okay.
Summer's here, and when you're sitting outside, with the sun on your neck and burning through your jeans, a mind sure can wander.
colin.drury@halifaxcourier.co.uk
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Weather for Halifax
Saturday 11 February 2012
Today
Sunny spells
Temperature: -1 C to 0 C
Wind Speed: 8 mph
Wind direction: South west
Tomorrow
Cloudy
Temperature: 2 C to 4 C
Wind Speed: 9 mph
Wind direction: North west
