I'm British by birth and it is in my genes to complain about the weather. Actually, it's in my genes to complain about everything, well, that's my cover story for being a miserable, sour faced prat and I'm sticking to it.
I am still in a bad humour generally because all my projects this year are way, way behind schedule.
All the reasons are my responsibility really but I can say, hand on heart, that the weather has and continues to play a major role in the delays, which brings me on to the theme most prevalent in the thoughts of all right minded, non-selfish people.
Global Warming.
I travel a great deal, I travel because I need to and in recent times I have travelled by air a great deal.
Air travel is a recent development for me, I have always preferred to go overland and sea as it gives opportunity to see what is around us and enjoy what is around us. On an aeroplane we can 'enjoy' the company of complete strangers who are too wrapped up in their own little worlds to see the real one; take in an in-flight movie (generally a mind numbing action film involving aircraft hi-jacking and plane crashes to give great comfort whilst flying) the back of the seat in front and of course, the in-flight plastic meal in it's plastic wrapping to be eaten with plastic cutlery. All disposable and contributing to the tons of landfill rubbish we all produce annually and even the recyclable stuff is, in my view, very debatable.
The bee up my arse today is... contrails.
For the few who may not know a contrail is the pretty white line scored across the sky by aircraft as they fly over our heads. It is nothing more than water vapour really and, in itself, technically, a totally harmless phenomena, after all, water is the source of life.
However, this day I rose early from bed to find another gloriously beautiful morning, clear blue sky, sun climbing upward over the distant hills and although a little chilly in the shadow of the house, the sun was wonderfully warm in the garden so, breakfast for me was out-doors.
Sitting at the garden table I was looking skyward to spot any Buzzards or Eagles that may have been soaring above in search of their own breakfasts, usually some hapless reptile or small mammal that hadn't quite got the sleep out of it's eyes, when I spied a glint of sun reflected from an aircraft fuselage ahead of the ubiquitous contrail, as ever, my camera was to hand and I snapped the image at the head of this article.
What happens to the vapour, I pondered and watched.
Ten minutes later, I snapped image number two. I started to look for more contrails as I sat there in the garden and found them easily.
Although the noise from aircraft here in central south west France is non-existant, many aircraft do fly over at a great hieght travelling from all manner of international locations to all manner of other international locations. (Just how many aircraft and people are in the air at any given time I wonder?).
As I finished my coffee sitting in the garden, I snapped shot three. This is the many contrails, clearly visible amid the general image, all merging together.
This was the beginning of the death of the gloriously beautiful morning that had greeted me and impelled me to have my breakfast in the garden.
Aircraft alone had turned a clear blue, sunny sky into a hazy sunshine, overcast morning.
How alarmingly depressing is that?
How alarmingly depressing is it that we think we can off-set our carbon emmissions with a tree or some other self justifying act of greeness?
What is the point of that when what I am witnessing is nothing to do with carbon emmissions at all? Yet the phenomina is having a huge impact on the very weather conditions I am sitting in right now!!!
As said before by me, I do believe that the climatic changes we are witnessing are part and parcel of the planets natural processes and to think we can stop that or change it is, basically, a fools errand. However, as also said before by me, I also believe that we, the human race, by our own selfish actions which will not change because of our own self justifications, are accelerating the process and, my own hypocrosy is evident in the fact that later this week I shall myself be climbing into an aircraft to leave this country to fly to another country. Shame on me and shame on all us air travellers.
I am still in a bad humour generally because all my projects this year are way, way behind schedule.
All the reasons are my responsibility really but I can say, hand on heart, that the weather has and continues to play a major role in the delays, which brings me on to the theme most prevalent in the thoughts of all right minded, non-selfish people.
Global Warming.
I travel a great deal, I travel because I need to and in recent times I have travelled by air a great deal.
Air travel is a recent development for me, I have always preferred to go overland and sea as it gives opportunity to see what is around us and enjoy what is around us. On an aeroplane we can 'enjoy' the company of complete strangers who are too wrapped up in their own little worlds to see the real one; take in an in-flight movie (generally a mind numbing action film involving aircraft hi-jacking and plane crashes to give great comfort whilst flying) the back of the seat in front and of course, the in-flight plastic meal in it's plastic wrapping to be eaten with plastic cutlery. All disposable and contributing to the tons of landfill rubbish we all produce annually and even the recyclable stuff is, in my view, very debatable.
The bee up my arse today is... contrails.
For the few who may not know a contrail is the pretty white line scored across the sky by aircraft as they fly over our heads. It is nothing more than water vapour really and, in itself, technically, a totally harmless phenomena, after all, water is the source of life.
However, this day I rose early from bed to find another gloriously beautiful morning, clear blue sky, sun climbing upward over the distant hills and although a little chilly in the shadow of the house, the sun was wonderfully warm in the garden so, breakfast for me was out-doors.
Sitting at the garden table I was looking skyward to spot any Buzzards or Eagles that may have been soaring above in search of their own breakfasts, usually some hapless reptile or small mammal that hadn't quite got the sleep out of it's eyes, when I spied a glint of sun reflected from an aircraft fuselage ahead of the ubiquitous contrail, as ever, my camera was to hand and I snapped the image at the head of this article.
What happens to the vapour, I pondered and watched.
Ten minutes later, I snapped image number two. I started to look for more contrails as I sat there in the garden and found them easily.
Although the noise from aircraft here in central south west France is non-existant, many aircraft do fly over at a great hieght travelling from all manner of international locations to all manner of other international locations. (Just how many aircraft and people are in the air at any given time I wonder?).
As I finished my coffee sitting in the garden, I snapped shot three. This is the many contrails, clearly visible amid the general image, all merging together.
This was the beginning of the death of the gloriously beautiful morning that had greeted me and impelled me to have my breakfast in the garden.
Aircraft alone had turned a clear blue, sunny sky into a hazy sunshine, overcast morning.
How alarmingly depressing is that?
How alarmingly depressing is it that we think we can off-set our carbon emmissions with a tree or some other self justifying act of greeness?
What is the point of that when what I am witnessing is nothing to do with carbon emmissions at all? Yet the phenomina is having a huge impact on the very weather conditions I am sitting in right now!!!
As said before by me, I do believe that the climatic changes we are witnessing are part and parcel of the planets natural processes and to think we can stop that or change it is, basically, a fools errand. However, as also said before by me, I also believe that we, the human race, by our own selfish actions which will not change because of our own self justifications, are accelerating the process and, my own hypocrosy is evident in the fact that later this week I shall myself be climbing into an aircraft to leave this country to fly to another country. Shame on me and shame on all us air travellers.
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