It is cold right now in Europe-- there is a vague de froid from the east, an unusual direction, that has killed hundreds of people in Russia and Ukraine. The cold is hardly glacial in Paris although everyone has been moaning about it. Today on the radio I heard a government-issued warning in a soft feminine voice: "Don't go outside in the cold if you can help it. Don't heat your home too hot. Be sure to cover your extremities well. Don't exercise strenuously outdoors." Anyone would think we were north of the Arctic Circle, but in fact, it's only 28º F/-2º C, quite a bit warmer than most winter days in Colorado or not especially cold even for New York City.
But it is a miserable time for the SDF*. Today I accidentally went down to the bottom floor of a parking garage in Saint-Germain-des-Prés, taking the elevator to the wrong floor. Just inside the door, where he would bother no one, and considerably warmer than he would have been on the street, was a homeless man, his head covered up, trying to hibernate in his sleeping bag.
*sans domicile fixe, or homeless. The right to housing is legally an enforceable right in France, an admirable law shared by only a few countries, but one that is not in fact enforced.
It's pretty cold down here in Poitou-Charentes though, as you say, nothing unprecedented for anybody who's lived in the northern US. The problem in the rural areas is less the cold than it is the lack of plowing/sanding the roads. People just drove on them, packing down the snow, and now the roads are like sheets of ice. We've been trapped in our house (well, not able to drive anywhere, which is going to be a problem soon enough because the nearest supermarche is a half-hour away) since Monday. No fun!
Posted by: Jadzia | 08 February 2012 at 15:13
There's still snow on the ground in Paris, but not much. It stopped looking pretty though! It must be much colder where you are. The French aren't good at dealing with ice and snow but from what I've been reading they'd better get used to it!
Posted by: Sedulia | 08 February 2012 at 16:06
I must have come at a good time - I was in Paris end of January and couldn't get over how warm it us! Stay bundled up!
Posted by: Gillian | 08 February 2012 at 18:45
Oh dear! Clearly I should have spent last week knitting you up those Beowulf socks . . .
Posted by: Frances at Materfamilias Writes | 08 February 2012 at 22:11
YES! En plus the heat has gone off in my house. I had to sleep in my clothes under several quilts and blankets, and the kitchen is heated by the gas burners and the oven. It's currently 48.5º F (9º C) inside, according to the thermometer. But the heater guy is coming this afternoon.
Posted by: Sedulia | 09 February 2012 at 11:24
I will send warm sock thoughts Paris-ward and hope the thermometer rises soon.
Posted by: materfamilias | 09 February 2012 at 15:40