254A Canadian is the only person who
stands out on the veranda on a bright,
warm, windless spring day, as the
birds sing and the buds burst, and
says darkly, “ We’ll pay for this.”TRUE CONFESSIONS FROM
THE NINTH CONCESSIONSTORM OF THE
CENTURY
By Dan Needles
Canadians are the only people I know who look
at the weather like a bank account. If we get an
extra month of crappy weather in winter, we feel
like we have something better coming to us. But
if we get too many clear, bright days with no wind,
we grow anxious.
One payback moment came a few
years ago when I was trying to get to
three distant and remote speaking
events on the same weekend just as
an ice storm swept up from the south,
paralyzing all of the TV weather
forecasters from Windsor to Ottawa.
At first I thought of cancelling
engagements, but then I heard CBC
announce the Storm of the Century.
Right there I knew it wouldn’t
amount to much.
I would pay more attention to
storm warnings if the Rotarians
and the Soil and Crop people ever
cancelled an event because of
weather. They don’t. It doesn’t
matter what tempest is battering
the neighbourhood, they all show up
at the hall in droves for a roast beef
dinner and a little fellowship. That is
what winter is for, after all.