Hot damn!
It's hot. Very hot. Actually it's HO-HO-HOT.
Like typical brits, this means we are all miserable. Obviously we would be miserable it it was cold too. Or wet. Or windy. Or overcast.........
It's also been hot for three whole days now. Yep, that's right, three days of temperatures above 30*(Celsius).
Therefore, like proper brits we can not cope. Hospitals have been put on alert, expecting hoards of burned/dehydrated idiots. The news has been telling us to stay indoors, especially during the hottest part of the day (no, really!), and to use suncream (that's the type of important information I expect my licence fee to go towards). I'm sure trains are stopping, buses are cancelled & soon, school children will be sent home. Because everyone knows that 30*C is freakish weather, and nobody in the world could possibly cope with three days of it!
On another note, I got into an argument with another mother at playgroup today. I said (rather innoculously, I thought), that I was looking forward to the time when on hot days like this I could just open the front door at 8am & tell them all to go away & amuse themselves at the Lido or something, and not come back till suppertime. She said she didn't think she would ever let her girls out on their own as there are too many perverts out there. This is something that really annoys me, so I calmly pointed out that the number of children snatched off the street by a stranger hasn't changed in the more than 50 years since records began (on average 4 per year). yes she replied, but my girls might be one of those four.
"but, but, but" I stuttered, "but you being with them won't even necessarily protect them, and never letting them out on their own will seriously damage their ability to live independant lives. And never? what about when they are 14? 18? 25?"
she got well huffy, and it went on a bit. But really!
Oh well.
On the plus side, i got a phone call at 3.10 this afternoon, saying Mstr A has a place at the new school next term. Yay! The appeal hearing was set for Thursday morning, but now we don't have to worry:-)
Like typical brits, this means we are all miserable. Obviously we would be miserable it it was cold too. Or wet. Or windy. Or overcast.........
It's also been hot for three whole days now. Yep, that's right, three days of temperatures above 30*(Celsius).
Therefore, like proper brits we can not cope. Hospitals have been put on alert, expecting hoards of burned/dehydrated idiots. The news has been telling us to stay indoors, especially during the hottest part of the day (no, really!), and to use suncream (that's the type of important information I expect my licence fee to go towards). I'm sure trains are stopping, buses are cancelled & soon, school children will be sent home. Because everyone knows that 30*C is freakish weather, and nobody in the world could possibly cope with three days of it!
On another note, I got into an argument with another mother at playgroup today. I said (rather innoculously, I thought), that I was looking forward to the time when on hot days like this I could just open the front door at 8am & tell them all to go away & amuse themselves at the Lido or something, and not come back till suppertime. She said she didn't think she would ever let her girls out on their own as there are too many perverts out there. This is something that really annoys me, so I calmly pointed out that the number of children snatched off the street by a stranger hasn't changed in the more than 50 years since records began (on average 4 per year). yes she replied, but my girls might be one of those four.
"but, but, but" I stuttered, "but you being with them won't even necessarily protect them, and never letting them out on their own will seriously damage their ability to live independant lives. And never? what about when they are 14? 18? 25?"
she got well huffy, and it went on a bit. But really!
Oh well.
On the plus side, i got a phone call at 3.10 this afternoon, saying Mstr A has a place at the new school next term. Yay! The appeal hearing was set for Thursday morning, but now we don't have to worry:-)
posted by Juggling Mother @ 9:04 pm
9 Comments:
At Monday, July 03, 2006 11:12:00 pm,
Mama Duck said…
Hee hee. Come on down to humid FL, you'll find out what hot really is. Just drink some extra water and turn on the air, that's what we do. Plus, it's a good excuse to lie around in the pool all day..... hee hee.
At Tuesday, July 04, 2006 7:47:00 am,
Juggling Mother said…
ah well, the thing is, that 30*C really is freak weather here - hardly anyone has air-con and only the stupidly rich have a pool that will be used for a maximum of a few days a year - and never on some years! We just sit around & sweat & moan!
At Tuesday, July 04, 2006 8:38:00 am,
Paste said…
This 'nanny state' mentality that so many parents are in, like the one you mention is so misguided as you indicate. People really do seem to believe that there is a pervert behind every corner. They are trying to be kind but just restricting their children's experiences. I blame the media.
At Tuesday, July 04, 2006 3:43:00 pm,
CyberKitten said…
Fear is a great way of keeping a population compliant Dave.... Oh, and apparently spending money on consumables too.........
Not to mention that political parties can then promise to 'save us' from the bad people...
At Wednesday, July 05, 2006 9:56:00 am,
Paste said…
Do I detect a hint of cynicism
Cyberkitten??
At Wednesday, July 05, 2006 12:28:00 pm,
CyberKitten said…
Oh... MUCH more than a hint I assure you!
At Wednesday, July 05, 2006 4:59:00 pm,
Anonymous said…
Mind you. If you wanna leave your door open in a street with 3 registered sex offenders resident and various half-way houses to, go ahead!
At Wednesday, July 05, 2006 7:38:00 pm,
Juggling Mother said…
I leave my door open in a street where we have three registered re-hab hostels & a registered sex offende in the next street, but I don't really see what that's got to do with never letting your children go asnywhere on their own!
Of course, i don't walk off & leave my kids playing outside on their own yet - the eldest is only 5, and I teach them that they should never go off without telling me where they are going & who with, but that applies to everyone, not just nasty mr Smith at no. 43!
Mstr A walks round to the post-box on his own. next year, he'll go to the corner shop & some local friends. Once he's in junior school, he can cycle to & from school & to friends further afield. Once he's showing the maturity, I'll teach him how to use all forms of public transport himself too, then, when he's a teenager & refuses to let me be seen anywhere near him, I'll know he can get himself around safely & sensibly.
chauferring them around everywhere does NOT keep them safe. It merely teaches them that you are their slave, stops them from gaining any independance, hides them from the real world - which they have to learn about one day - and ensures that when they rebel, they will be in real danger.
At Tuesday, July 11, 2006 1:25:00 pm,
JR said…
The heat made me so ill!! But obviously I survived. I was so relieved when the weather cooled and became rainy. That's actually my type of weather, as I am unable to handle heat of any kind very well.
As for the argument with the mother, I believe you're right, even though I'm rather over-protective of my own as well. My mother turned the 7 of us out daily and though we got into mischief and a few close calls, we were definitely better prepared to take care of ourselves and learned how to be aware of dangerous situations and people. (I'll try to get caught up on all your posts soon!)
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