At this time of the year, we are all looking for a bit of sunshine to warm our body, mind and soul.
My dogs seem to find it wherever I want to walk and one day I am going to fall over one of them and have a nasty accident.
Jelly-Tot, my mini-Jack Russell, has a spot on the top of the couch. I don’t know if she thinks she’s a cat or just goes to extra lengths to find her perfect spot in the sun.
If one follows Mark Marshall, it seems that those slippery creatures tend also to be trying to find warmth at this time of year, much to the terror of us humans, especially if the perfect spot is your veranda.
This time of the year also reminds me of my grandmother who would always claim the best spot in the sunroom and often fall asleep there while basking in the afternoon sun.
I can still hear her complaining that the rest of the house was always freezing during winter. At night that was my poor old dad’s cue to fire up the gas heater.
I still laugh when I think of my younger brother trying to warm his naked rear end after a bath and getting too close to the heater. He sported the grid lines of the safety grid for a few weeks.
Though our pets and us older folk are constantly trying to find that perfect sunny spot, spare a thought for all the commuters out there.
They must endure that terrible glare of the sun on the way to work in the morning, as well as on their way home.
I invested in a pair of prescription polarised sunglasses to counter this, and believe me, I am still not immune to that sudden glare.
It is a wonder there are not more accidents at this time of the year, especially in the Bay where many people travel from the western suburbs in the morning to their places of work, which are generally on the eastern side of the city.
Winter sun is almost always dangerous for driving, especially in the morning and late afternoon as it often appears low on the horizon, causing intense glare.
This is aggravated when going from a dark to bright area, like between trees and buildings — one can be temporarily blinded by the sudden change and glare.
A dirty windscreen or trying to use the wipers at the wrong time can often turn into a hair-raising experience.
It feels that the sun hangs around at those lower elevations purposely to upset us commuters.
We will always get plenty of advice about avoiding this glare, like leaving earlier or later for work or school, but I do not think companies and schools will change their hours to counter the glare.
Besides, I don’t think that many of us will get up earlier in the morning or arrive home late for any reason.
Taking a different route that avoids areas of extreme glare is not as easy as it sounds.
The only real usable advice one can give is to slow down and drastically increase your following distance.
Being blinded by glare for one second can result in an accident if you are tailgating.
Headlights are important not only to see but to be seen. They should be mandatory on cars, as they are with motorcycles.
Clean windscreens, rear and side windows are a no-brainer, and you should make cleaning them routine every time you commute. Dust and sea air is always a problem in this regard.
The scariest trip I ever had was driving to Uniondale. No, it was not the Ghost that scared me but due to leaving late we had to travel towards the setting sun.
The drive on the uphill was the worst with the sun directly in our eyes. At times with almost nil visibility we were all trying to look out for oncoming traffic and it was a task to just stay on the road.
Luckily, I am now my own boss and only leave the house after the morning rush and return before the evening rush on a good day.
This week in history:
2002
One of the strongest gusts of 135km/h is recorded in the Bay at the airport
Dam levels
69.55%, slightly down from previous week’s 69.68 %
Impofu down to 50.99%.
Weather safety tips
Hold on to your steering wheel tightly when driving past tall buildings as wind can channel through them and increase in speed, giving you a nasty surprise.
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Email: info@wgawx.co.za with feedback or requests
The Herald
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