Today is a holiday Monday for most of Canada. In a country known for it’s long, cold winters, the summer long weekend is an almost sacred event. Whether it involves a trek to the cottage, barbequing in the backyard or mowing the lawn, we Canadians take having fun on a long weekend seriously.
This year’s August long weekend seems a little different than past years however. Normally by now, those of us in Southwestern Ontario would be in full swing complaining about the heat, humidity and smog – all the while secretly revelling in the fact that we aren’t shovelling snow.
But this summer has been different – not just in Southwestern Ontario but all over Canada. Here we’ve had cold, rainy weather. The west coast has been swelteringly hot, the east cost has been up and down like a yoyo and we’ve had several truly bizarre days where Whitehorse has not only been the hottest city in Canada, but hotter than Florida and California! If that’s not a sign of global climate change, I don’t know what is.
But we Canadians are hearty stock. In Ontario, if we can’t complain about the heat, we’ll happily complain about the rain. I’ve often wondered what people in countries with less changeable weather talk about when waiting for the bus. What do you use for small talk when the weather isn’t ready fodder for conversation?
If you’re lucky enough to live in such a climate, or are tired of talking about the weather, check out this week’s edition of the Blogging Boomers Carnvial. The members of the Carnival have offered up some wonderful articles this week that should give you plenty of topics to discuss. So head on over to Ann Harrison’s blog Contemporary Retirement Coaching to see what this week’s carnival has to offer.
Andrea J. Stenberg
