The promised thunderstorms have not arrived. We’ve had some rain but it’s not really reestablished the mud puddles around the way. Yesterday I had just finished some radical pruning of a bush in the garden when torrential rain started but it was not a long lasting downpour.
A friend of mine, who lives not too far from here, has received an email from United Utilities:
"We wanted to let you know that the reservoirs and water sources which supply your local area are much lower than we would like them to be for this time of year. So, it’s really important that you do all you can to save water.
Due to the recent dry and warmer weather over the summer and with more of us at home during the holidays, still working from home or choosing to holiday more locally, we’ve seen a big increase in water being used, reducing the amount of water that we have in the reservoirs.
Although there have been some wetter days more recently, the rain we’ve had hasn’t made a big difference, as water is still being used more quickly than reservoirs have been able to fill up."
She went on to say she couldn’t believe it because of “all the rain we have had”. “We’ve had nothing but rain in Manchester this summer”, she went on.
At this I and several other friends protested that she is mistaken. We may not have had a baking hot summer but we have had a lot of dry days, or days with a bit of rain in the morning and then turning dry later. One even reminded her, “ And there was a good 2 or 3 ish weeks where Manchester was basically an oven...”
But that was the point when she was in Hamburg suffering from cold weather. So, basically, she wasn’t here all summer to comment on the weather. She countered by quoting the amount of electricity her solar panels have NOT produced this year as proof of how rainy it has been. But solar panels don’t work when it’s cloudy so her proof is not valid. And certainly the reservoirs near here are looking a bit depleted.
So I reckon it all depends on your point of view … and what year memory tells you has been going on.
The UK has been having a successful sporting time lately. The football wasn’t bad but the final failure to win was forgotten when the Tokyo Olympics got going. And then along came the Paralympics, where we excelled once again. And now we have Emma Raducanu, wowing everyone with her success at tennis in Flushing Meadow over in the Inited States. The Make Britain Great people are ignoring the fact that the latest British success has a Romanian father and a Chinese mother, was born in Canada and only came to live her when she was two. I think it’s great that such a mix is hitting the headlines. This is what being British should be about.
Aged 18, she goes into the final against another teenager, 19 year old Leylah Annie Fernandez. Wow, power to the younger generation!
I’ve had a run to the supermarket this afternoon. Our local Tesco looks reasonably well stocked. However, on the radio news they are saying that empty shelves and shortages are likely to be a regular thing for a quite a long time to come. My granddaughter was shopping with me, loading the trolley with pizzas, her meals for most of next week. We both agreed that we seem to be finding easily what we need. The only problem she has come across has been stores whose freezers have stopped working, causing specific supply problems.
On the other hand, her younger brother, now in his first year of sixth form college, has been seeing things from a different point of view. He and his group of friends had a long break in the middle of yesterday and decided to walk into the town centre to get refreshment at MacDonald’s. They they found there were no milk shakes available, no bottle of water, and certain other gaps in the MacDo menu - all due to delivery delays. Somit goes.
Life goes on. Stay safe and well, everyone!
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