Do you enjoy UK Winters?

Does your son enjoy the winters in the UK?  I use to work in San Antonio and spent quite a bit of time in Houston. To live in Texas you pretty much have to enjoy extremely hot weather. 105 degrees in quite the norm in summer in Texas.

See this is why I don't mind the winters.

I grew up in Florida and despised being boiled for nine months out of the year.

But Houston! Dear lord, that place! It is a level more. Two levels more.

I despise UK winters and I grew up in Minnesota and spent 2/3 of my life in Colorado.

In the UK it's grey, damp and cold for 85+% of the winter and it rains A LOT and it's feels colder. I absolutely freeze here because of the dampness and find it to be much colder than the below zero temps I'm used to from Colorado winters. We keep the house at 21 Celsius and I am still cold, unless I was recently outside.q

And did I mention it's horribly muddy all winter? This makes taking your dogs on their walks a trial in the dark of the morning because they and their coats get filthy and you have to wear wellies which do nothing to keep your feet warm. If I could import Colorado weather, I would.

Oh, and if it snows the entire country shuts down. People can't drive in England when it snows. The trains stop, buses stop, businesses aren't open and taxis will cancel your bookings. It's mental.

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See this is why I don't mind the winters.

I grew up in Florida and despised being boiled for nine months out of the year.

But Houston! Dear lord, that place! It is a level more. Two levels more.

That's Colorado summer! Other than we have zero humidity. 105 in the summer and -2 in the winter, my hometown runs the gamut.

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Does your son enjoy the winters in the UK?  I use to work in San Antonio and spent quite a bit of time in Houston. To live in Texas you pretty much have to enjoy extremely hot weather. 105 degrees in quite the norm in summer in Texas.

So far he has only experienced 1 winter, which was very snowy and he didn't enjoy driving to work on those days. However he much prefers the weather here when it is not icy and snowy on work days and spends enormous amounts of time outside, which he never could do because of the heat and humidity in Houston much of the year. I went over to Houston end of September 2017, for 2 weeks to help him move, and to begin with I would get up early and go out walking to get some exercise but after 2 or 3 days I gave up because I was sweating in the heat even at 7:30am and receiving itchy mosquito bites.

See this is why I don't mind the winters.

I grew up in Florida and despised being boiled for nine months out of the year.

But Houston! Dear lord, that place! It is a level more. Two levels more.

I know the feeling. Central Florida is my home and I have lived in Texas and California among other states. I prefer a scenic place with moderate winters hence my love for Florida. Moving to any new place requires a certain amount of adjustment but it does help a great deal to assimilate if there are certain comforts already in our new location.

 A major change in cultural traditions is often viewed through a positive lens for most expats. And even the difference in how to handle the complexities of governmental agencies are made a little less stressful when other creature comforts are in place in a new country.  Weather conditions can be a deal breaker for a lot of people because extreme changes in climate affect our mood and health. Especially as we get older. The damp can then become the enemy. And many people that are already stressed out trying to solve money and logistic life issues can suddenly find their mental health fraying a bit because of a new location with challenging weather.

I never saw so many ads for depression in my entire life on tv than that one year I spent in Seattle. Being trapped in the house with grey skies and damp windy winters can make a person start baying at the moon.

I despise UK winters and I grew up in Minnesota and spent 2/3 of my life in Colorado.

In the UK it's grey, damp and cold for 85+% of the winter and it rains A LOT and it's feels colder. I absolutely freeze here because of the dampness and find it to be much colder than the below zero temps I'm used to from Colorado winters. We keep the house at 21 Celsius and I am still cold, unless I was recently outside.q

And did I mention it's horribly muddy all winter? This makes taking your dogs on their walks a trial in the dark of the morning because they and their coats get filthy and you have to wear wellies which do nothing to keep your feet warm. If I could import Colorado weather, I would.

Oh, and if it snows the entire country shuts down. People can't drive in England when it snows. The trains stop, buses stop, businesses aren't open and taxis will cancel your bookings. It's mental.

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WOW.

Are you a cold natured person?

I imagine that a cold natured person is going to feel extra chilled to the bone in cold states and countries. But if cold climates don't especially bother a person and that person moves to a cold place they will more than likely adjust quite well. But if you are cold natured and you move to a damp windy environment, that is brutal!

I am not cold natured and enjoy outdoor activities in the winter northeast, no problem with that. But the year I spent in Seattle with the constant drizzling and raining and grey skies was challenging. I kept reminding myself how beautiful the place looks, truly gorgeous. But those grey skies and rainy days were actually in the month of July. My first thought was what have I done I drove from the east coast and arrived in Seattle July 1st and the place was stunningly beautiful but I couldn't believe the overcast skies. Had a great time in Washington State but by the time the winter months arrived it was clear the damp wet windy winters with 40 degree tempts was far more challenging that the cold snowy 15 degree winters in the northeast. You can't put on enough clothing to escape the damp windy climates.

And you are so right to mention how mud and water and slush just adds to how we navigate even the basic chores of daily life in these type of climates. I'm thinking there must be a lot of pee pads for pet owners in homes in those damp wet locations.

My husband and I are nerds, so we like data to back up assumptions based on prevalent attitudes. What we learned was most of England (we were only looking at the places we'd be living) saw more sunshine and less precipitation than WNY where I regularly saw 1-3 feet of snow in the winter starting in October. I know we had 10 summers worth of sun this year, but even when I moved in December it wasn't that bad! I can't spend much time in the cold but with appropriate clothes I am fine. I need a more mist repelling coat than my current down parka though. I think a lot of it is based on your home as well (ie - are there damp issues and drafty windows, is it a shoebox, and do you have a dehumidifier) vs only outdoor conditions.

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WOW.

Are you a cold natured person?

I imagine that a cold natured person is going to feel extra chilled to the bone in cold states and countries. But if cold climates don't especially bother a person and that person moves to a cold place they will more than likely adjust quite well. But if you are cold natured and you move to a damp windy environment, that is brutal!

I am not cold natured and enjoy outdoor activities in the winter northeast, no problem with that. But the year I spent in Seattle with the constant drizzling and raining and grey skies was challenging. I kept reminding myself how beautiful the place looks, truly gorgeous. But those grey skies and rainy days were actually in the month of July. My first thought was what have I done I drove from the east coast and arrived in Seattle July 1st and the place was stunningly beautiful but I couldn't believe the overcast skies. Had a great time in Washington State but by the time the winter months arrived it was clear the damp wet windy winters with 40 degree tempts was far more challenging that the cold snowy 15 degree winters in the northeast. You can't put on enough clothing to escape the damp windy climates.

And you are so right to mention how mud and water and slush just adds to how we navigate even the basic chores of daily life in these type of climates. I'm thinking there must be a lot of pee pads for pet owners in homes in those damp wet locations.

Hmm. You do realize what most people consider a "cold natured" person to have to do with their personality?

Cold climates don't bother me when there's low to no humidity. Hence the reason I mentioned Colorado where it's below freezing almost all of the winter. And I loved it. You get actual sun most of the time and snow. I miss snow so bad. Going for a winter hike when there's a fresh snowfall is something I loved to do.

I visited Seattle in January for a week to see if I wanted to move there (when I was fresh out of college) and it was a no go. I actually think Seatle winter weather is worse than the UK in winter. I was there for 5 days and we saw the sun on the day I arrived for an hour and then it was cloudy and drizzly the rest of the time. I had a good time visiting my friend, but the weather was such a turn-off.

Winter is one of my favourite seasons in other parts of the world. Here it's just like early spring for months on end with the mud, cold, frosts and a lack of light. And that is my least favourite time of the year.

Don't get me wrong, the UK is home now, but I seriously hate the winters. And it makes me grouchy because I love what I think of as winter (snow) and you don't get that.

And did I mention it's horribly muddy all winter? This makes taking your dogs on their walks a trial in the dark of the morning because they and their coats get filthy and you have to wear wellies which do nothing to keep your feet warm. If I could import Colorado weather, I would.

I have the remedy for cold winter feet! Muck Boots and Heat Holders! 

Muck Boots, they are neoprene lined which means they are much warmer than regular wellies. I use them for gardening but many comments I've read on Amazon are from dog walkers. Watch which kind you get though because some of them are pretty heavy. Here is the link to their website so that you can see the full range but shop around, they will be cheaper elsewhere.

https://www.muckbootcompany.co.uk

Heat Holders Socks! Get the Originals, they are so fluffy and lovely. https://heatholders.co.uk

And maybe think about getting some reusable hand warmers to pop in your pockets.

I don't suppose you are anywhere near a beach are you? That would help the muddy dog problem!   

Another vote for Muck Boots -- they're great!!

Hmm. You do realize what most people consider a "cold natured" person to have to do with their personality?

Cold climates don't bother me when there's low to no humidity. Hence the reason I mentioned Colorado where it's below freezing almost all of the winter. And I loved it. You get actual sun most of the time and snow. I miss snow so bad. Going for a winter hike when there's a fresh snowfall is something I loved to do.

I visited Seattle in January for a week to see if I wanted to move there (when I was fresh out of college) and it was a no go. I actually think Seatle winter weather is worse than the UK in winter. I was there for 5 days and we saw the sun on the day I arrived for an hour and then it was cloudy and drizzly the rest of the time. I had a good time visiting my friend, but the weather was such a turn-off.

Winter is one of my favourite seasons in other parts of the world. Here it's just like early spring for months on end with the mud, cold, frosts and a lack of light. And that is my least favourite time of the year.

Don't get me wrong, the UK is home now, but I seriously hate the winters. And it makes me grouchy because I love what I think of as winter (snow) and you don't get that.

You definitely are a trooper. When does winter weather begin in your area?

Winter doesn't bother me, as I expect it to be crap.

Summer bothers me.     Hoping we get more summers like this past summer.   

From New England where you have to shovel yourself out and get into work anyways so I appreciate that we rarely get snow in winter where I am in the UK, and when it does happen, it's almost always just a light dusting.

That being said, I MUCH prefer the warm. For me, it's less about the cold itself, but the cold accompanied by darkness when I leave the office at 5:15PM and dampness. I wouldn't mind it if I worked from home all the time and could choose when I wanted to go out into it, but I have a dog so can't just decide I don't want to walk her on a given morning/evening when it's exceptionally cold. The daily pains, IMO, aren't exactly miles away from what I dealt with in the US (E.G. defrosting the car/scraping the car off in the morning) minus the snow problem....but other parts of the UK will have to deal with snow far more than I would.

Can I tolerate the winters here? Sure. Do I actively enjoy them?: Nope. I almost definitely have SAD, so the brighter it is, the happier and more positive I will be and the warmer it is, the more I want to leave my house (which, again, has an impact on my mental health). I don't think it's necessarily down to location, however. I think some people are winter people and some people just aren't. Even back in the US, I absolutely hated when it would snow because it meant I had to go out into the freezing weather and shovel for what felt like ages. Some people love the cold and don't mind that but I would dread it. The less amount of time I needed to give in the morning before going to work, the better. While I enjoy some aspects of winter, I am just not a winter person regardless of where I'm located. (Sorry for the ramble, I've not finished my coffee yet so my brain isn't awake).

And did I mention it's horribly muddy all winter? This makes taking your dogs on their walks a trial in the dark of the morning because they and their coats get filthy and you have to wear wellies which do nothing to keep your feet warm. If I could import Colorado weather, I would.

Oh, and if it snows the entire country shuts down. People can't drive in England when it snows. The trains stop, buses stop, businesses aren't open and taxis will cancel your bookings. It's mental.

Oh man....I can relate to the dog walking! I am lucky that I don't walk anywhere where I constantly need wellies and my dog doesn't get too muddy, but it's AWFUL walking dogs in the freezing cold, damp, darkness of the morning AND evening. It's rare that I get to walk her in too much daylight (I juuuuust about catch a bit in the morning if I walk her slightly later than normal). That's what I hate the most (but then I think that's to do more with constant darkness than the temperature in general).

I remember being told constantly that the entire country shuts down when it snows, etc., and public transport/taxis do just come to a total halt, but I've found that where we are down south, when it snows, there is still somewhat of an expectation to come into work. Thankfully, however, people still don't like driving in it so I've always been able to just blag it and work from home on those rare occasions. They don't expect people taking public transport to come in, but they do seem to feel that those of us driving should. I don't mind driving in the dusting we get, but I don't trust any of the other people on the road!

I remember being told constantly that the entire country shuts down when it snows, etc., and public transport/taxis do just come to a total halt, but I've found that where we are down south, when it snows, there is still somewhat of an expectation to come into work.

My company expects us in.  It's awful.  I want to get a bad weather policy in place.  When there are Amber/Red weather warnings and only essential travel, they should not be requiring us to be in the office.  And unfortunately, we only have rear wheel drive vehicles which doesn't help.

Oh well, hopefully we'll have another 7 years of no snow.  Though the rumor is that a warm summer will produce a cold winter.  Though, how can they know that?