Whether, Weather

It's Autumn in Bermuda and the weather changes here, too.  It is not unlike  Canada.  The leaves turn brown here--  because of windburn from a hurricane.  They begin to drop to the ground--hurricane, again.  Of course, a couple of weeks after a hurricane or a big blow, the leaves are all now green again and the hibiscus hedges and Birds of Paradise are in full bloom. The temperature drops---to  a chilly 73 degrees F. It's not all fun and games, though. With Autumn comes the wind and the rain. 

Funny thing about the rain, or any other weather, for that matter. You can't simply check the weather channel and then know how to dress for the day.  It really is a 'look out the window' kind of place.  Actually in this high-tech world, we check the radar on the computer before venturing out to work on the bike.  Since it is in real time, you can actually see the '10 minute window' when you are likely not going to be rained on.  Rain gear is packed in the bike.  When a single cloud decides to unload on you, there is really no time to pull over and put it on--you will be drenched; however that does not stop many people from pulling over to the side of the road, into the stone bus shelters to either escape the torrent or to pull on rain gear and venture out.  In a real downpour, there are literally rivers running down the street and the bottoms of the wheels will be submerged; it is hard to  see and the helmet visor has to be down or I breathe water.  Maybe there should be snorkels on helmets. This is usually shortlived--but not always.  It was on one of these days that I discovered the need to buy all new rain gear.

 

Kids finding shade at lunch

High winds, torrential rains quickly give way to a hot, sunny day. It is becoming increasingly difficult to know whether to wear Summer clothes or Fall clothes.  Sandals or rubber boots. Capris or rain pants. Tanktop or windbreaker. The mornings are a little bit chilly and sometimes showery.  The sun  comes out and it is a hot, summer day again.  Dressing in layers is the answer, but there is not a lot of storage on a bike for the discarded clothing.  There are dilemmas even in Paradise!  Schools have solved the wardrobe problem, though. It's November,  therefore students must wear their winter uniforms. Period. These consist of shirts (with necks buttoned!), ties, vests, polyester blazer, grey flannel trousers for the boys and green skirts for the girls.  The blazers must be worn at all times.  If the temperature climbs, they still must wear the  blazers.  Appearances trump practicality. It is a hard balance between  when to have the air conditioning on or off.  The kids are sweaty after  playing at lunch; I am sweaty at the most unusual times...  but I digress.

Bermuda is 22 square miles. 22 miles long and 1 mile at its widest. Not a lot of land mass there. This island is not influencing weather patterns--it is at the mercy of them! The good news, though, is that a system rarely lingers, it simply blows across the Atlantic. There are no prevailing winds that I have noticed. You can't tell where the weather comes from day to day. If it is  not from the south, then the beach by our house will be calm. That's really all I need to know.  As the weather changes, there is not a lot of difference in how I live my life. On  a rainy day, I wear special gear and   pull my visor down to get through the water. On a sunny day,    Oh, wait...