Ottawa, Merivale Road, April 2019
Ottawa, Merivale Road, April 2019

It rained all day on Friday. It snowed on Saturday. As I’m typing this tonight, on May 1, there’s a freezing rain warning in effect, or rather, “a ‘messy mix’ of snow, ice, freezing rain and rain” weather statement from Environment Canada because apparently, even meteorologists gave up on trying to figure out what kind of shitty weather is coming our way.

On most days, it’s cold, gloomy, windy, rainy or most likely, a combination of all four. The snow has finally melted and there’s an ongoing flooding situation in many parts of Canada, including Ottawa.

Spring is late.

We’re all miserable.

Oh, we had a handful of nice days, but important fine print—a “nice day” is defined and lauded as such when the temperature reaches 15⁰C for a few hours in the middle of the afternoon. In the morning and in the evening, it’s chilly, and 15⁰C isn’t exactly warm in the first place.

As a People for Spring Union representative, I demand to see the CEO, whoever that is (the higher-ups are always hiding in some fancy office on the top floor…).

What do we want?

Spring.

When do we want it?

Now.

I mean, seriously… it’s about time.

  • Winter floor mats have been removed from public building entrances and lobbies. Floors are clean and shiny, yet many of us are still wearing winter footwear.
  • Most restaurants and bars reopened their patios for summertime lounging and nothing is sadder than empty tables and chairs under the rain. Patio season is taken seriously here, CBC and other media even report on it when it starts.
  • Supermarkets have opened their “garden centres” with potting soil, gardening tools as well as trees and flowers. The poor flowers left outside look cold…
  • “What’s that thing on the tree?” Mark asked yesterday, pointing to a bud. That’s how long winter has been—we forgot that trees can have leaves and flowers.
  • Clothing shops are all selling the season’s latest style, i.e. skirts, dresses, t-shirts and swimsuits. It’s very awkward to take off your winter clothes in the changing room to try on a pair of shorts you may wear weeks from now.
  • Even the most enthusiastic members of #TeamWinter are weary of their favourite season and begging for spring.
  • The weather is seasonably warm in non-tropical parts of the Northern Hemisphere. Most of the time, I have to add “… and I’m not joking” when I give my parents the usual weather report.
  • I need to wash my winter jacket, and I’m sure I’m not the only one in this situation. The problem is, I still need my weather jacket.
  • The Ontario Landlord and Tenant Act states that the end of the heating season is June 15, but many public buildings and households are starting to turn down the heat after months of high hydro bills—it’s cold inside!

We ask you, CEO of Canadian Weather Inc., to consider our points carefully.

Else… I’ll teach peaceful Canadians a few French riot tricks.

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22 Comments

  1. kenza May 2, 2019 at 9:51 am

    On a exactement la même chose ici même si on a évité les inondations ! On a eu 2 jours à plus de 15 et sinon, hop, retour à 0, 2, 3 degrés, pas de soleil… et même réflexion pour les manteaux, et oui ça commence à faire long là !!

    Reply
    1. Zhu May 3, 2019 at 12:31 am

      I remember winter started early for you as well… October?

      Reply
      1. Martin Penwald May 5, 2019 at 1:43 pm

        October 2017.

        Reply
        1. Zhu May 6, 2019 at 2:28 am

          ?

          Edit : c’est bon, je viens de m’acheter un cerveau et de comprendre (j’étais fatiguée, hein :lol:)

          Reply
  2. Cara May 2, 2019 at 10:06 am

    Haha, good luck, hope you’ll survive till spring actually arrives.

    Reply
    1. Zhu May 3, 2019 at 12:31 am

      I should survive! I can’t even complain, I skipped the worst months.

      Reply
  3. Aylyon May 2, 2019 at 1:05 pm

    Oui, on en peut plus là…

    Reply
    1. Zhu May 3, 2019 at 12:31 am

      :-/

      Reply
  4. Frenchie au Canada May 2, 2019 at 4:40 pm

    Viens a Victoria! Il fait tellement beau, tout est en fleur depuis fevrier…

    Reply
    1. Zhu May 3, 2019 at 12:32 am

      It looks like a lovely place but I think if I were to move far, I’d move south. May as well…

      Reply
      1. Martin Penwald May 3, 2019 at 1:28 pm

        I went twice in the Nanaimo area last month (once with a load coming from California, once with a load coming from South Carolina), it’s a very nice area.
        And I think the weather and climate are pretty similar to what you have in Nantes.

        Reply
        1. Zhu May 4, 2019 at 12:16 am

          Yeah, I’ve heard that too–occasionally gloomy and wet but not too cold. I don’t think I’d be able to advocate for a cross-country move, though.

          Reply
          1. Martin Penwald May 4, 2019 at 3:48 am

            And you have to consider jobs opportunities, which are not as good as in Ottawa for your profile.

          2. Zhu May 6, 2019 at 2:28 am

            … unless I unleash my Mandarin-speaking skills!

  5. Kiky May 3, 2019 at 12:05 am

    Sorry for you, it’s 34 degrees in where I live and I just need one hour to let our wet clothes become dry. Having dryer in my country is not common, only laundry services have ones.

    Reply
    1. Zhu May 3, 2019 at 12:36 am

      Oh, I know the pain of trying to air dry clothes in a tropical country! Even in Ottawa, actually, it does get very humid in the summer (and super dry in the winter, not that you would hang stuff outside, though…)

      Reply
  6. Isa May 3, 2019 at 4:30 am

    Après un mois de février avec une météo de juin, on a ici un début mai avec une météo de février 😀
    Ca ne va jamais finir ! 😀 Courage…

    Reply
    1. Zhu May 4, 2019 at 12:15 am

      Oh non, pauvre toi! C’est fou ça :-/

      Reply
  7. Martin Penwald May 3, 2019 at 1:35 pm

    There was a snowstorm early sunday morning south of Saskatoon and tuesday in the Edmonton area.
    And i’ve seen in southern Alberta pictures of dozen of cars and trucks in the ditch on highway 4 last week-end or monday, not sure.

    Reply
    1. Zhu May 4, 2019 at 12:18 am

      Whenever I’m annoyed with the weather, I check temperatures in Iqaluit. Always cheers me up.

      Reply
  8. Cara May 3, 2019 at 5:10 pm

    Tiens, il me semble qu’un de mes commentaires a disparu… ?
    Si ça peut te rassurer, ils annoncent de la neige ici pour demain soir !

    Reply
    1. Cara May 3, 2019 at 5:11 pm

      Ah non, le commentaire est bien là, oups, mais je ne le voyais pas 😉

      Reply

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