I had an outdoor job once, when my parents ran a market stall. I've blogged about life on the markets in My Market Performance but I didn't mention the all-consuming pain of spending a day on the market in the depths of winter. I'm talking more than numb fingers and toes. It was a cold that attacked my entire body and it took hours, sometimes days, to recover. It was a tough life and I only stuck it for a short time.
So it is with genuine empathy that I express concern for the many outdoor workers at this time of the year when the inevitable frosts will soon be upon us. Take the postman, for example, struggling with red and frozen fingers to sort and post letters. Then there's the window cleaner slithering on icy slabs with his ladder, the garage man lying on his back under a car with a swift north-easterly whipping round his trousers, police on the beat with frozen feet, and as for those car washers; have you seen how red and chapped their hands are?The list is endless. There are road repairmen, tree surgeons, street cleaners, gardeners, and don't get me started about the horrors of being a sailor, trawler man or fisherman at sea. How they survive the sub-zero temperatures, the wild seas and the gale force winds is beyond my comprehension.
I know that there are lots of jobs that I haven't mentioned and I'm sure that they are all equally tough at this time of the year so let's spare a though for all outdoor workers as the temperature starts to plummet.
I'm typing this with a snuggle blanket over my legs, a cat curled up next to me and a mug of hot Ovaltine on the table by my side. I can hear the wind whooping down the chimney but it can't get at me. I know that people have to do those outdoor jobs and I am grateful that they do them. I'm just glad it's not me.
Hi Ros - yes ... I gather getting people to work in cold weather jobs is nigh impossible. Still they have the best of both worlds and spend those wonderful summer days outside - while everyone else is stuck in a stuffy office or sitting on an unhealthy train commuting ... but I do hear what you say. The weather has thankfully been pretty warm - though we need a dose of cold. Cheers Hilary
ReplyDeleteOh dear, Hilary, I'm really not an outdoor person even in the summer - all that heat and wasps and... no, give me a fuggy office any day.
DeleteSome people manage cold better than others. One of my brothers is a farmer - with land high in the Cotswolds so it could be bitter, and he's like a caged animal if he's stuck indoors, however cold it is. But I'm with you, I hate the cold.
ReplyDeleteThanks, Jo, farmers! I knew I'd missed out lots of important outdoor workers. It wouldn't be my kind of job but I'm grateful that he does it.
Deleteyep - good to thank all those slogging about in the cold. I"m always grateful for trash collectors - that has to be miserable no matter what the temperature. I would think in and out of the cold has to be horrible - warm car or truck and then a bracing wind. Glad you are snuggled up warm. Keep paying that electric bill! Have a good weekend
ReplyDeleteGood point, Joanne, going in and out when it's bitter must be tortuous.
DeleteOur postman is still in shorts and a short-sleeved shirt with no jumper or jacket! I think he just keeps moving fast. But I'm like you. I need a hot bath to thaw me out once I've got chilled. Have a warm and merry weekend!
ReplyDeleteYour postman must be made of sterner stuff than me, Pippa. I'm still tucked up under my snuggle blanket. Shorts indeed! *shakes head in despair*
DeleteMind, we don't have cold weather like we used to..been positively balmy here....
ReplyDeleteDon't you talk to soon, Carol my girl, especially with your toes. You know how you're a martyr to your toes in the cold!
DeleteRos, I couldn't cope with it either. I saw our postman today in his shirtsleeves! Now I know it's not that cold, but I had a vest, a long-sleeved tee-shirt and a very thick sweater on under my jacket and I still wasn't too warm at all. I really don't know how they stand it and still look cheerful! There is nothing worse than being cold for me, so I sympathise with these outdoor workers endlessly.
ReplyDeleteAnd yet you do work outside when you're working on your barge, Val. Is that not finger numbing at all?
DeleteOh I'm with you Ros. Last week men were working all weekend in our street digging and laying some sort of pipes. It was freezing and the rain poured down and yet they worked all weekend. I certain they don't get paid enough. When you're younger you're tougher I bet all those young girls going on Christmas nights out are not wearing jackets or coats.
ReplyDeleteAnd I bet they're not wearing vests either!
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