12 May 2003 13:06 [link]
singing in the rain
Seeing the torrential downpour outside the office window prompted a conversation on the unpleasantness of getting rained on.
I sounded the sole contrary note. Under certain circumstances, there's nothing better than getting soaked. It's really rather liberating.
The circumstances are quite particular, mind:
- The rain must be the big, satisfying, chunky sort of rain. No drizzle.
- The rain must be fairly heavy. Not so heavy you're in danger of drowning, but heavy enough that you get seriously wet.
- You mustn't be wearing anything which might be ruined by soaking. Good shoes are right out.
- You must have no umbrella or coat. Struggling against the rain means you won't enjoy the experience.
- You must be far enough from useful shelter. Nearby shelter means just getting a bit damp.
- You must have warmth and dry clothes at the end of your soaking.
- It must be mild, and not windy. You want to get wet, not catch your death.
Even under these circumstances, you need to have the right frame of mind. You'll never start off with the right frame of mind. You'll swear as the rain starts. You'll probably try to tuck your head into your shirt. You'll calculate the distance to the nearest shelter. (Note: don't try to shelter under trees. Apart from the obvious lightning hazard, trees just concentrate the rain into streams which they will direct down the back of your neck.)
The epiphany comes when you realise you can't get any wetter. At that point, you straighten your back, lift your chin and just start to enjoy the feeling. It's rather like being fully clothed in the shower, only with a more interesting view. Watch everyone else scuttling along, trying to avoid the rain. Stroll. As long as you're not cold, there's no need to hurry.
Oh, I nearly forgot: plodge. Jump in the puddles. Tap dance, if you must.
Everyone should enjoy the rain at least once it their lives.
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12 May 2003 12:43 [link]
just behind the crest of the memewave
Last week I had the great idea to re-publish Samuel Pepys's diary as a weblog. It would be a Beautiful Thing.
I began work on serialising the etext before thinking to Google. And - lo! - someone (Phil Gyford no less) had don't it already.
Dammit.
Still, at least he'd only been doing it for a couple of months. And at least he's done it better than I would have done. I take comfort in the fact that instead of thinking "I wish I'd thought of that" I'm now thinking "I wish I'd thought of that sooner".
I'll get there yet. My Big Idea is waiting. I can feel it.
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