Originally Posted by: Tonja_ReneeOOOOHH!! What I wouldn't give for +32 C right now.... Oh crap its starting to snow - I really really hate winter...... Although I have not been to the prairies... They tell me that the cold air is different there - dryer... but still -30 sucks. I feel for ya.[/QUOTE]
[QUOTE=earthman buck]Yeah, I've been told that prairie cold is not as bad as coast cold, because it's not so damp and bone-penetrating.
I lived in Ottawa before I moved to Calgary. My father, and more than a few of my friends, are from Down East. Anyone who thinks there's no humidity at temperatures like -30 needs to get out more. :rolleyes:
In Calgary, -30 is cold, but you can do silly things like run out to your car to retrieve something without bothering to put on your coat or gloves. Uncomfortable, but a sweater will get you there and back, even when the wind is howling.
In Ottawa, at -30, the cold seems to take on the characteristics of a hostile life-form. Any weakness in your defences will be pried open, the cold will sink into your bones, and the pain can make grown men weep.
On the coast, the wind off the North Atlantic can cut through a heavy coat like a double-bit axe. And the dampness makes clothes stay cold for a long time after you get inside. -30 in The Maritimes is cause to stay in bed, and pull the covers over your head 'til half-past March! :eek:
It's similar with the summers, too.
In Calgary, I can shave right after I shower because the mirror doesn't fog up. When it hits +30, people born here whine about the heat and humidity, and I laugh at 'em. There's always enough of a breeze to keep you cooled off if you get out of direct sunlight, and when the sun goes down, the temperature drops at least 10 degrees. I brought a 10,000 BTU widow-mount air conditioner with me from Ottawa, because I couldn't comprehend getting through a summer without it. I don't know if it still works, because I haven't plugged it in since I got here. I moved here in May of 2000.
I don't miss Ottawa summers at all. You sweat so much that you feel downright slimy all the time. A shower seems like a great idea for cooling off, until you try it. Unless the water is ice-cold, you will sweat while you're in there, and then the humidity won't allow you to dry off. If do fall for the temptation to shower with cold water, you soon regret it, because the air then feels like a thick, wet blanket. And it doesn't cool off at night. At all.
Maritime summers? Think in terms of chewing the air before you can inhale! Even the rain is warm! And it rains
a lot. :p
Lordathestrings
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