Flaming Nora

Today's picture from our walk on the beach. A cold day of just two degrees with the tiniest hint of warmth struggling to reach the earth from a watery sun. And then this, in the grey of the sky and the steel of the sea - a sliver of blue sky in the shiver of a day. On the way home from the walk, spoke to someone who has a friend spending winter in Tenerife. And yet, there are joys to be had on cold, winter days such as these and I wouldn't have missed today, here in the cold, frosty and ice-covered north-east, for the world. ______ I'm on twitter @flaming_nora

Is it just me? Am I the only one to be fed upthat it's still cold, still winter, still scarf and gloves weather? And it's not just the weather. Since returning from a wonderful holiday in the Canaries I'm missing leaves on trees, flowers and greenery as well as the heat and the sun. There's redundancies at work making everyone upset, and there's, you know, not much to look forward to, is there? I want to snap out of this but all I seem able to know how to do now after weeks of the same is to buckle down under a duvet and wait for it to pass.

Woke up this morning to -2.5c on the weather station, a lawn dusted with frost and frozen roses in the garden.