Does it have to rain EVERY day?

So yesterday and today, the weather has been a tease. I sit inside, and it looks sunny and pleasant. The second I darken the door to go out, it starts raining. And not just a little rain, either. Sheets of rain, sometimes with little bits of ice that sting the backs of my ears. I get to where I am going, and guess what - no more rain. I tried once stepping out and jumping right back inside. It was like a blast from one of those oscillating lawn sprinklers. And here's the best part - it doesn't have to be cloudy to rain. Crystal blue skies, not a cloud to be seen anywhere, and still it rains. I don't know how this works, but I swear that's what happens here. Every day it rains at least a little. If I was a duck I'd be laughing, but I am not a duck, so I am just wet and cold and annoyed.

Actually, I have to admit that last Friday it didn't rain (at least not much). Friday the weather was what I like to call British Nice. It was cold and windy, but there was sunshine and a noticeable lack of rain - that's British Nice weather. Some friends and I went out for a drink after work Friday evening, and realizing that this was as close as we were likely to get to decent weather for some time (ever, really) we decided to sit outside. We splintered off from the larger contingent of Durham geologists amid exhortations that it was probably too cold to sit outdoors. "No, it's British Nice out," I said. We sat down outside, knowing that our indoor friends were keeping tabs on us through the window. We tried to nonchalantly zip up our jackets without being noticed; a campfire would have been decidedly too obvious. We congratulated ourselves on our bravery and fortitude, noting that it really wouldn't be that cold if the wind wasn't turning small dogs into kites. We talked about how warm it probably was in America right now - "It's gotta be in the eighties at least..." We talked about our favorite spicy foods - buffalo wings, barbecued ribs, and chili. None of this seemed to help, so after about a half hour, we slowly and quietly got up one or two at a time - so as not to attract the attention of the indoorsies - and walked casually back inside, trying to act like we had only just arrived. Nonetheless, we had to endure a few smug, we-told-you-so glances.

Well, the sun is out and the wind seems to have diminished now, so perhaps I'll go out for a bit. Now where did I put my umbrella?