Monday 5th March

We all knew it couldn’t last, the good weather I mean, and it has been extraordinarily good for days, temperatures in the late teens in London, which for the time of year was such a pleasant change.  Not that, apart from one icy week, we have even had a winter at all.  And it was there on the weather forecast for the last two days, ominously creeping nearer and yesterday, Sunday, it arrived.  That awful combination of cold rain and driving wind, that chills you right to the marrow.   And even though I had watched the weather on Saturday for some reason it hadn’t quite occurred to me just how cold and wet it would be.  I was off to my writing class, and stupidly didn’t even glance outside as I set off jauntily at One.  The class is held at Bermondsey, and like most of South London, of which I have never been a great fan, the tube stations are few and far between.  When I came out at Bermondsay Jubilee line station and knew I had to walk about half a mile I realized how inappropriately I was dressed, a light Mac, with no hat, scarf or umbrella.  For some reason I had neglected to put on my nice North face insulated coat with the hood and the double lined zipper that completely isolates one from the wind and rain, and opted for the Mac I had been wearing for the last few sunny and warm days.

The windy rain was whipping at me, and my thin Mac was soon soaked, as were my tights and shoes. And it seemed head on too, so by the time I got to the class I had a throbbing headache.  I somehow got through reading my piece, and was dreading the return journey.  It was just as bad only the wind, now mostly at my back, was hitting the back of my head and making my headache even worse.  I was feeling quite sick on the tube journey home, and as soon as I got in went to bed, where I tossed and turned, fighting the idea of getting out of bed and taking two neurofen.  Eventually I succumbed and am now sitting wrapped in towels from a hot soaking bath nursing a cup of tea and a headache and looking at the rain battering my window.  A truly awful wet day with little to redeem it..