The end of the world as we know it

Not that I want to bore you with constant talk about the weather, but really…this is freaking Africa for goodness sake! We are not supposed to have cold weather like this! To explain to you how cold it is I will tell you a little story about my dad.

My dad does not feel the cold, ever. The reason for this is a bit of a mystery but we vaguely suspect that he was either born without a fully functioning thermostat or it got damaged growing up on a farm in Pietersburg (now known as Polokwane). Even in the middle of winter my dad can usually be seen wearing short-sleeved shirts and going round barefoot.

We make jokes about the fact that we were never allowed to have a heater on, but really it’s only funny if you’ve never experienced it yourself. Apparently heaters will make us sick (but hypothermia will do nothing to us?). In winter time we keep a stack of blankets by the door and when guests arrive they are issued one for the duration of their stay. My dad also believes that you can never have too much fresh air – so when other people are huddled up in front of fireplaces or heaters we sit round under blankets with only our eyes and noses visible and exposed to the freezing gale force winds howling through our house…lots of fresh air indeed…brrrr! (We also wear beanies because apparently you lose most of your body heat through your head, you might want to remember that – it’s true!).

Well, today my dad bought a gas heater – and he is even wearing a tracksuit. It’s obviously freezing! That or the world’s going to end – don’t say I didn’t warn you.

On the bright side: This is fantastic weather to get sick in (as I am). I didn’t go write my exam today because I looked like death warmed over this morning and could hardly breathe. It seemed foolish to attempt an exam in that state and unfair towards the other students there, since it’s probably contagious. My doctor gave me a whole bag of meds, and among them painkillers that knock you out cold. Guess who is getting to spend the next freezing cold day in bed? Yip…me! That’s okay, you can hate me now if you want – I understand.