A Guide to Coping With Snow For Soft Journalists

[miss_s_b]

As usual when we get a few flakes in the UK the press and media have gone berserk. There have been some issues with transport, but other than that and the British propensity to moan about the weather whatever the weather actually is, I really can't see what all the journalistic fuss is about. So you save a bit of money by not going shopping and you might get a day off work because the buses/trains aren't running. Neither of these are tragedies. Remarkably few of the journalists who are moaning know or care about people who are freezing to death because of poverty, and the whinging is mainly pointless.

That said, there does seem to be a basic level of ignorance about how to cope with cold weather and snow in particular.

Obviously if you are indoors, you can turn the heating up or curl up under a duvet, but what if you have to go outside? What if, because of the problems with the roads, you have to WALK somewhere?

There follows a list of the things I find invaluable at times like this, with apologies to all those of you who know all this already:

1. Layers. I am currently wearing a vest, a t-shirt, a long sleeved t-shirt and a jumper.


2. Polar Buff. Miles better than a scarf, and remarkably thin, thin enough to be an extra layer under a hat for outdoors without being uncomfortable. It's also easy to arrange it so the only bits of your head that are exposed are your eyes and nose.


3. British Army Long Johns, which you can pick up for as little as two pounds a pair if you can stomach second hand. They're bloody awesome, warm and snuggly and soft and non-allergenic.


4. Sealskinz socks. They're not as good as they used to be, but thankfully I have a few pairs of the old ones which I have had for over ten years. They're still warm and still waterproof.


5. Good boots. Anything with a decent cleated sole will help you grip in the slippery snow, and the higher up your leg they go the warmer you will be. I have a pair of these which are marvellous (if slightly girly) - I paid a damn sight less than they are on that website though.


6. A Good Coat. Mine is a German army one with lots of pockets and a very warm fleecy liner, but there are lots of good coats available.


7. Good glubs and a warm hat. Being an occasional motorcyclist, I have good gloves anyway - warm, waterproof and flexible. The hat I wore today (over my Buff) was given to me by my daughter. She got it free on Doctor Who Adventures magazine last year, and it's got a reflective Doctor Who logo on it - I wouldn't have been able to wear it sans Buff because the "wool" is scratchy, but it's OK on top of a Buff. It's important to keep your head and hands warm because that's where a lot of the warmth escapes from.

I hope this (slightly patronising) entry helps you poor benighted journos cope in the *checks window* three inches of snow we are currently experiencing in Yorkshire and the reported quarter of an inch you've got in some southern counties...