We have had amazingly good Fall weather this year (possibly to make up for a shitty Summer). A few days ago was the warmest November day on record (or so they tell me). I do know that I had unseasonably good weather during my holiday, which was in the coldest, wettest part of England during the last week of October. It should have been freezing cold, but it was not - I even got a couple of days "sitting on the beach reading" (admittedly in a coat, but at that time of year at that latitude I it should have been much too cold to sit outside for more than a couple of minutes).
However yesterday it all ended. Yesterday was wet and cold. Today was wetter and colder. And the forecast for tomorrow is "even worse".
We also just had our first named storm on Thursday night. We have never names storms in the past, but we have a problem with idiots thinking "a little bit of rain and wind never hurt anyone" and going out in a storm (climbing, walking, or some other outdoor sport) and either getting killed, or costing the rescue services a fortune to rescue them.
So someone realised that in America you name your hurricanes, and we hear about named hurricanes in the news when they cause loads of damage ("Hurricane Fred is sweeping across Florida, so far it had destroyed ten buildings, killed five people, seventeen cows, and a whole flock of sheep.") The thinking is that we are now attuned to think of named weather events as killers. So they decided to try naming our big storms in the hopes that it will stop idiots going fell walking, rock climbing, and whatever other unsuitable pastimes they try in bad weather that get them killed.
Which means late Thursday night "Storm Abigail" became the first named weather event in Britain. Hitting Scotland first, then moving down into North England.
Didn't worry me, I live in South England.
Paris
Woke up to the news on the World Service about five o'clock this morning. Shame. It is rare that I feel sorry for the French (England's traditional enemy) but today I do.
Personally I think it is way past time for "boots on the ground". I have no problem with Muslims in general (some of my friends are Muslims). But I think I.S. needs wiping out, by
any means.