Living by the seaside….

Isn’t all it’s cracked up to be.

Today was supposed to be the hottest day on record. There were fears about people getting badly sun burnt (though what do you expect if the latest scaremongers claim sunscreens don’t work); schools closing because of the heat; roads melting; the national grid might go into overload so there could be power cuts etc, etc.

We live less than 800 yards from the sea and in seaside places such as Scarborough, Blackpool, Brighton our street would filled with guest houses. It isn’t.

Whilst the rest of the country enjoyed beautiful sunshine, here in Fulwell we had sea fret*. The fog horns have been sounding all day and it was rather depressing looking out of the window to see grey sky and fret blowing past the window.

The sun did eventually come out but not until late afternoon. Now it’s back to dull grey.

This happens quite regularly but still catches quite a lot of people out. Go five miles inland and it’s a glorious day. People suddenly decide to flock to the beach only to be extremely disappointed.

About one or twice a year we do have lovely weather so it can make for a pleasant stroll along the sea front. However everyone else has the same idea so it can get quite busy…

I will however, be praying that the fret comes again not this weekend but next (29th/30th) as it’s the Sunderland International Airshow. It’s the largest free airshow in Europe so one million people descend on us every day. It’s hell on Earth ! ! !

For two days we’re virtual prisoners in our own home as we can’t get in or out because of the traffic. The aircraft noise is horrendous and the vibrations are so bad that it sets off car and house alarms. Normally we go away but this year we’re doing some DIY in the kitchen.

I just hope we don’t need any thing urgent at B&Q. One year it took John two hours to drive two miles to do an errand for his mam. I think it might be quicker if he’d walked ! ! !

Marie


* Local term for fog/mist