Whoosh!

I've just reached home, to the warm and dry comfort of my room. Outside, the wind is blowing in every direction possible. Left, right, up, down, in your face. I really feel for the thousands of commuters still stranded at the train stations, braving the chills.

I'm gonna start this section about living in the UK with a bit of a rant. I was waiting for the train to get back from work and it was 14 minutes late. That was 14 minutes of enduring the cold gushes that seem to penetrate right into the bone. And when the train did come it was so packed (think Metrobus in KL) I couldn't even stick my foot into the carriage. I had to wait another 30-odd minutes for the next train. By the time I got home I was actually shivering. Bugger.

Man I can really use a nice bowl of hot soup now.

Not that it was anyone's fault. The country's been on alert for gale winds for a while now, but in recent days it has really manifested itself into a real devil. In fact, it was so bad tonight that a train actually crashed into a tree. How strong must the wind be to do that to a train?? At 80 mph, I'd say pretty damn strong. Even lorries get blown down on their sides.

Sometimes I can't even walk properly, swaying from side to side while trying not to get blown onto the road and the moving cars. Sometimes, I literally have to be on my feet, as I'd be fighting a strong flow from the left and it would suddenly change direction to hit me from the front or back. It really is a game of wit and endurance just to walk straight sometimes.

And the howl. Remember the sound of wind rushing by your ears when you were riding that awesome rollercoaster and you can't hear anything else? I can experience that just standing anywhere on the street. At night, I can hear the wind wailing outside my window. And as if my slit-eyes aren't small enough, I have to squint and make them even smaller to avoid irritation.

What a funny sight I must be to someone looking, hehe. But I guess everyone else is too determined to get indoors to notice anything else. Not only is there the wind to deal with, there is also the rain most of the time. Combined, both these forces can really cause some serious depression. Good thing I always have chocolate in my room. :)

I'm a bit warmer now, but not warm enough. Time to cook up a good hot dinner. I hope everyone out there will reach home safely soon and be able to have a warm dinner too.