When Dave and I first rented this cottage in July, we kept saying, "Wouldn't it be amazing to be here during a winter storm?" With the glass wall facing the ocean it would surely be a spectacle.
Well, yesterday I got to experience it. We had a named storm, Gerrit, which brought steady winds of 25-35 mph and gusts above 40 mph. The house rumbled and the ocean pounded and I stayed inside pretty much all day. We also had rain, though not as much as in some other parts of the country, where Gerrit caused flooding. The photo above shows Poseidon standing guard in the garden, seen through the rain on the window.
Here's what the weather looked like about 9:30 a.m. from the deck and then out on the beach:
You can see how rough the waves were compared to the video in yesterday's post. You'll also see Olga at the end, sensibly parked indoors on the couch. That's pretty much where we both spent the day. I only went out to the corner shop in the morning to get a few odds and ends for dinner. (Holly's collar is gone!)
Despite the storm, Dave set out for London and although he said his train was crowded with people returning from Christmas holidays, he got home fine. He took almost all our stuff, so I'm left with just a change of clothes, some toiletries and a book, and I'm happy about that. Dave tends to bring a lot when he travels, enjoying all the comforts of home, whereas I tend to feel oppressed by a lot of belongings that I need to keep track of. I feel a sense of relief knowing it's all back where it belongs.
I spent the day reading and last night I watched a documentary on Netflix called "Exposed: The Ghost Train Fire." It was about a disastrous 1979 amusement park fire in Sydney, Australia, that killed seven people, six of them children. I don't recall ever hearing of this incident, so it was all new to me, and the documentary was very skillful in its presentation -- what starts out seeming like a fairly pedestrian recounting of a terrible accident eventually turns into a sordid saga of political corruption reaching to the top of the New South Wales state government. I plowed through all three episodes in a single sitting and it was astonishing.
Dave and I watched a less satisfying film on Tuesday night -- "Saltburn," a gothic thriller set in an English country house. It was like "Brideshead Revisited" on cocaine, trying way too hard to be shocking. I didn't mind it as a two-hour diversion, but Dave was repulsed.
27 comments:
I would have loved that weather. SG would have been on the first train out of there. What a charming cottage... and Olga.
I loved Saltburn having seen it at the cinema a few weeks ago. It was a satire on class and some of it very funny, very dark humour.
I am surprised that you didn't don your Floridian swimming shorts before taking a bracing dip in The English Channel.
whoa! Surf’s up, dude!thanks for the action video. Garrett had its way in the city too. Not my favorite weather but a good reality check- weather rules! Olga is such a good sport.
I'm pleased that you were not satisfied with 'Saltburn'. I watched it because Tom said that it was meant to be good. I thought it was dark and weird and the final ending was 'well' what can I say, LOL
Love the little rental, just my kind of place.
Happy new Year to you both and look forward to more posts, glad that I have finally got the comments working.
Briony
x
I like films and books and music that shock me, but I loathe it when the shock is for shock's sake.
I posted about Emerald fennell recently, mainly her name. Saltburn has had what they call a mixed reception.
That video is grim, so desolate, I think I'd have left with Dave!
I wondered if you got any of that storm. I saw coverage from Scotland on the news last night. The flooding looked awful. The wind is blowing pretty hard in your video. Olga is a smart girl to stay on the couch.
Even though I lived on the California coast for a number of years, I was never that enthralled by the ocean ... the sand and surf never drew me like the Colorado mountains has done!
Enjoy your last day there and I hope you have a safe trip back home! Olga will probably be happy to get back home!
I can remember spending days and nights at Dog Island where the wind would rip through the dunes and trees and even the bay would have waves on it. It was sort of wonderful and a little bit scary. I think it's good that you have Olga with you- a calming presence.
I decided to give Saltburn a pass. Amazing weather -- be careful what you wish for! But very atmospheric!
A storm isn't really what you went to the coast for but storms can be interesting.
Seems like you haven't enjoyed this place as much as last time you visited. I'm sure you will be glad to be back in your own bed soon. Hope you and Olga have an easy trip home!
Good thing you hadn't ventured to the Northern Isles ..with wind at over twice the speed of the gusts you had 😳
Let's hope for Poseidon's sake and upright stance, the storm has eased and won't get worse. We stayed in a similar place one year over new year's in Holland when a storm blew away all the garden fixtures incl. the BBQ set.
Hope Dave's treatment went smoothly.
That's typical winter ocean weather and reflects the power of nature. Love it, although I would need to have the right gear with me to enjoy it!
I watched about 15 minutes of Saltburn while being on the rowing machine. I turned it off, the class snobbery and cruelty was just too much. Perhaps the plot expanded, but I was not there to see it. Repulsed is an excellent word to describe how I felt about it.
Well, you got your storm, your opening photo says it all. Great little rental!
I always wanted to go to Lake Erie in the winter to see what it was like in a storm, but we never did. We WERE there when there was some flooding - the lake was quite tumultuous & I thoroughly enjoyed looking out at it from our 2nd floor hotel room.
I think that while I wish I was more like you, I'm more like Dave. I like to have my stuff when I travel.
You might have shown it on your previous visit (I have a short memory), but I liked seeing the cottages all lined up like that. Olga was giving you a "what the hell is that man doing??" look through the glass.
You've reminded me that I have Brideshead Revisited on my Classics Club list. I think I'll make it a priority for this year. It's been years since I saw the miniseries.
that wind is loud! I figured the people didn't come fetch the collar because they had already replaced it.
BBC News on PBS has just shown that the storm created damage to some 100 homes or so in Westchester!
Greater Manchester, not Westchester. A localized tornado! Holy cow!!
After your (hatless!) sojourn in the morning I'm not surprised you spent all day inside with your Olga trying to stay warm.
I noticed Saltburn on a couple of lists of best movies of 2023 so I thought I'd watch it. Now I'm not so sure. I'm glad you could enjoy the power of the storm. I would have gone to bed with the covers over my head.
Love,
Janie
Love those crashing waves. With the right clothing I might have enjoyed being on that beach. I'm glad you left Olga safe and warm inside though.
I vaguely remember The Ghost Train Fire but didn't know about the inquiry into it. I think we were living in Victoria at the time, having recently left Sydney.
Mitchell: I must admit, although I enjoyed it, all that rumbling wind gave an ominous edge to the experience.
Rachel: It is indeed very dark, though not particularly humorous. I understand it's satire -- quite specifically aimed at "Brideshead" -- but it was also gratuitously disgusting in places, I thought. And I'm not easily disgusted!
YP: There's a poster in the bathroom here that mentions going into the water to soothe the soul -- and yet I haven't seen anyone actually DO it on either of my trips. (Now would definitely not be the time!)
Linda Sue: Yes, wet and wind -- that's winter in England!
Briony: So glad you got your comments working again! "Dark and weird" is a good description of "Saltburn."
Bob: Exactly. It felt gratuitous.
Boud: I remember that post! It IS an unusual name.
Sharon: Scotland and northern England had it much worse than we did, as is often the case.
Marcia: Isn't it interesting how some people are ocean people and some are mountain people? I definitely prefer being around water.
Ms Moon: YES! It IS a little scary. Even though I knew I was safe I couldn't help feeling on edge.
Jeanie: It was fun to experience -- once.
Red: Well, it sort of is, actually. We knew in winter we'd likely get some crazy weather and we wanted to see what that was like.
Ellen D: It's interesting you say that. I have enjoyed it, but it's been a different experience. The last time I was focused more on sightseeing and getting out and about. This has been a "hunker down" trip!
GZ: Yikes! I know what we had was nothing compared to places up north.
Sabine: I think Poseidon is heavy and pretty well anchored. We do have a barbecue set too, but it's against the leeward wall so it didn't go anywhere. :)
Margaret: Exactly! It was enjoyable in a weird way.
Allison: The plot expanded but in a weirder and weirder direction.
Jim: I'm sure we'll be back!
Bug: I see stuff as an encumbrance. Dave sees it as a comfort.
Kelly: I really enjoyed the "Brideshead" book when I read it years ago.
Ellen: Maybe, but she seemed excited on the phone to know it had been found. I was perplexed when it sat there a few more days but she may have been away for Christmas. (Or busy.)
Marcia (again): Yikes! I haven't seen that report but I'll look for it!
Catalyst: My hatless sojourn was only a few minutes. I wasn't out there long. :)
Janie: Really?! I would certainly never call it one of the best movies of the year. It was mildly interesting but, as I've said, gratuitous.
River: I'm sure the Ghost Train thing must have been big news at the time, but it sounds like many of the revelations in the documentary haven't come to light before now.
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