I have never been able to taste coke
- Thread starter bhavv
- Start date
No kidding.
I don't own a lot of summer clothes. But pretty much every Canadian owns a winter coat, gloves/mitts, boots, scarf, and toque. When it gets down to -20C I wear two pairs of gloves, and that's when the heavy socks get used.
But there's the pesky matter of having to breathe and see where you're going. That means risking freezing nose, ears, and the rest of your face. And when going from outside to inside, my glasses fog up and I can't see a thing.
When have I ever used that silly scale of measurement?
I was in Grade 5 when we went metric here in Canada. Temperature was the first thing that finally made sense to me.1. I don't do Fahrenheit.
2. You've obviously never experienced -35C, and colder (add wind chill to that; during a particularly bad cold snap of -55C in the '90s I finally learned what the phrase "it takes my breath away" feels like - it's not pleasant at all).
I'm okay down to -25C. I don't even bother with my winter coat until it's -15C (assuming no wind chill). But once it gets down to -30, only an emergency will get me to go outside. And since wet snow is heavy and can bring down power lines, it's time to check the supplies of batteries, candles, and canned food that doesn't need to be cooked.
Of course it's necessary to dress in layers, and be sensible. I don't get these people who think they can dress like it's summer and not have consequences. I see teenage girls standing at bus stops, shivering and whining about being cold... while wearing light jackets, summer shoes, and no socks. On one occasion, she didn't have the brains to do her coat up, and she had no gloves or toque. So she didn't have any sympathy from me.
One of the first things I teach kids going out on the hills is that waterproof is windproof - a lot of the modern civvie outdoor kit (microfleeces and the like) is designed to be warm and breathable, which means that the wind absolutely rips through it. You don't usually have that problem with casual clothes like thick woolen coats, or military kit, which is usually at least somewhat warm and waterproof, usually at the cost of breathability, but it's easy to run into it with a lot of expensive (and very good) modern gear and little experience. As you've pointed out, windproofing is worth an awful lot of layers of insulation.
Also, hot food and drinks do wonders. Insulation only stops your body from losing heat; your body is the heat source, and warming yourself from the inside (whether with actual warmth or just metabolism) helps not only morale but also your physical temperature.
Silurian
Deity
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- Jan 5, 2010
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The coldest I have ever felt was after standing on a breakwater for 10 hours stood still operating a theodolite/ EDM. It was about +5C but the wind was blowing 30-40 mph.
When I was working at -12C I was stood beside a runway, no planes, and it was very foggy, 20m visibility, so no wind.
The windy breakwater felt far colder.
When I was working at -12C I was stood beside a runway, no planes, and it was very foggy, 20m visibility, so no wind.
The windy breakwater felt far colder.
classical_hero
In whom I trust
You're mad. I put on winter clothes when it is 25 in the positive.
Akka
Moody old mage.
You're the one who's mad !
At 25°C I'm half-naked and wishing for some fresh air.
warpus
Sommerswerd asked me to change this
It frequently goes down to -20C in the winter here, and with windchill it's not uncommon to experience -30C or colder.
I layer up, base layer is merino wool, then on top I have my regular work pants, undershirt, then work shirt, and on top of that a polar ice layer for the top, and a very thin windbreaker on top of that. Serves me very well for temperatures above -25C or so. Anything colder than that and walking outside for more than 15 minutes starts getting slightly uncomfortable. My winter getup looks super thin but it keeps me warm for the most part. From my experience, base layer is the most important layer, can make a huge difference in how warm you feel.
I layer up, base layer is merino wool, then on top I have my regular work pants, undershirt, then work shirt, and on top of that a polar ice layer for the top, and a very thin windbreaker on top of that. Serves me very well for temperatures above -25C or so. Anything colder than that and walking outside for more than 15 minutes starts getting slightly uncomfortable. My winter getup looks super thin but it keeps me warm for the most part. From my experience, base layer is the most important layer, can make a huge difference in how warm you feel.
My summer comfort zone ends somewhere between 18-20C. Anything over that is too hot.
I'm reminded of a story my aunt and uncle told me some years ago. They'd gone to Hawaii for their 25th wedding anniversary. So one day it went down to 70F and they thought, "Hey, it's a nice day out" and put on their t-shirts, shorts, and sandals and went down to the beach.
The locals looked at them like they were nuts. When they got back to the hotel, they discovered that the chambermaid was wearing wool socks.
"Slightly uncomfortable"? That's the point when Environment Canada is warning people about frostbite and hypothermia. It doesn't take long at -30C for exposed skin to freeze.
I have about 4 layers plus my coat when it gets cold. No wool for me; I'm allergic to it.
A long time ago, when I had my first cat, we also had a dog. Of course the dog had to be walked, and when it was cold but not too cold, I'd stuff the cat into the front of my coat (she usually wanted to come along but could give stubborn lessons to a mule when it came to walking on a leash). I discovered that when I had the cat, I could dispense with a couple of layers of clothes - cats are like very warm blankets that purr.
warpus
Sommerswerd asked me to change this
By "Slightly uncomfortable" I mean that I can feel the coldness seeping through my layers. -25C and warmer is fine, except for my hands and face (I got new gloves though so hands should now be fine. And the face is always exposed so you deal with it). So yeah, I can walk outside when it's -20C in my getup and feel warm! Unless it's overly windy, but in that case the windchill often leads to colder temperatures than -20
Here's some good winter tips from a Canadian. This post will teach you everything you ever needed to know about properly layering up in the winter and keeping warm.
Here's some good winter tips from a Canadian. This post will teach you everything you ever needed to know about properly layering up in the winter and keeping warm.
madviking
north american scum
coldest weather i remember ever being in is -17 c
madviking
north american scum
#latestagecapitalism
No, I'm still good when it's slightly over +20, but at +25 I'm indistinguishable from Akka.
At -30C there must not be exposed skin
unless all you need to do is to run from the warmth of a car into the warmth of a building.Kenny-style hood might help, thick scarf to dig your nose in also comes handy, and can be combined with the hood. And finally friends of mine presented me last year with a most remarkable hat shaped as medieval knights helm (those guys knew what protection is) with an umbrel that can be settled on the forehead or downed on your face when you need.
Behold! (no, that guy is not me, just a random one wearing same hat).
Spoiler :
Kid, eh? Ain't seen nothin' yet
Nah, they Hawaiians totally don't know when it's the right weather to bathe.
Spoiler :
Okay, I must confess at this point that as much as bhavv has never been able to taste coke, I have never been able to think seriously about even thinking seriously about actually swimming in the ice water myself. Call me a coward with no guts, I don't care.
madviking
north american scum
No, you exchanged it for the luxury of being able to come back as a tourist one day (or not). And also something else probably, I don't know.
Would it be inappropriate for me to ask you how you feel about it, happy after all or sad after all?
madviking
north american scum
i haven't been back to my leningrad stomping grounds since '03
