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Over and Under the Weather

Perhaps it’s because I am a Brit, that’s why I seem to write a lot about the weather here in the Philippines. We British have a reputation of constantly talking about the weather. The subject crops up once more but in the form of being “under the weather.” I have succumbed to a local virus that seems to have affected so many people of all ages. It took the form of a rotten head cold then a chesty cough accompanied by the sweats and aching limbs.

It is one of the reasons why I have been quiet lately … quiet in the corner … I can hear you whispering “thank goodness”!

Yet it is good to know the Brits are not alone in talking about the weather. This bug I just mentioned has been attributed to … guess what … the weather! Not by me but by the locals. We have seen the return of a rainy monsoon season and to many locals that means coughs and colds. I think they have a point. One minute it is hot and dry then suddenly it is cooler, humid and lashing down with rain drops as big as golf balls. When it rains here … it rains!

The rain has its upsides. Many homes have tin roofs including mine. I love to listen to the machine-gun rhythms of the rain on metal. Β It’s kind of comforting to know you have a roof over your head keeping you dry.

The noise can be scary too. It is at its loudest when the heavens really open. Often that heavy rain is part of a lightning storm so the noise of the rain, the huge vivid white flash then the thunder clap makes for what can only be described as a surreal cacophony of noise with a blinding white flash of light.

I like it in a strange kind of way.

Oh, glad you asked … I’m starting to feel much better. I’m over “under the weather” Β – thank you πŸ™‚


Feature Image Courtesy of Steve Johnson

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10 Comments

  1. Tony Bushell Tony Bushell

    Ah! Man-flu! The female of the species do not understand how we suffer. Often dismissed as a cold or some pesky virus – man-flu is much worse than anything like that. The inabity to fill a kettle to make a cuppa…….sneezes louder than any earthquake………aches and pains requiring complete rest and non mobility for days. There was a scientific experiment done in Rossendale, Lancashire in 1972 when a man and wife both had the same condition…the wife carried on ironing, cooking, washing etc whereby the poor man was confined to bed with terrible symptoms. The tests proved that men get a worse strain of a virus than women. Surprisingly, the UK Medical Association would not recognise the experiment but us men know how accurate and true it is. :-).
    Anyway, glad you are on the mend from being “under the weather”…….feeling like that in warmer weather is not too nice.

  2. I was getting pretty boring there for a while, always complaining about the heat. I can finally say, the past 10 days or so have terrific – we’re actually having autumn weather here in FL !! [or at least what we consider a cool period, haha]

  3. Weather is often a topic of conversation around our house as well. Got our flu shots this week, so we are crossing our fingers. Off to Arizona soon, so we can talk about nice weather. πŸ™‚

    • I guess most households talk about the weather and many nationalities. I just think it is one of those stereotypical jokes about Brits talking about the weather. It is unsurprising really when a typical British day can contain all 4 seasons within a 24-hour period πŸ™‚ Enjoy Arizona! As you know it is one of my favorite places in the world.

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