Damp

They're not used to wet weather in Sydney. Apparently they don't get much of it, which accounts for the drinking water dams hovering around 30% of their capacity most of the time.

You might have seen some of the storms we've had on the news. At Nobby's Beach on the central coast a tanker lies embedded in the sand; the very sight of it is drawing crowds from far around. To give you some idea how wet it's been recently, the dam levels have risen to 45%; not enough to end water restrictions, but enough to contemplate going to a car wash, something that might otherwise attract very disapproving looks.

Because it doesn't rain often, they're not set up for it, particularly the houses. To get some idea of what I'm talking about you'll have to imagine your own house without double glazing, if you have it. Then imagine the seals at the edges of the windows aren't much cop and there's no heating and no insulation so even if you put on your little plug-in radiator, most of the heat is lost through the windows and walls. It's so damp inside the flat that I'm peeling the pages off the calendar every day when I used to rip them and the windows rarely clear of condensation. It's miserable.

Anyway, we're not the only ones suffering; I had an email from Scott saying their flat is freezing cold, though if I had the view they have, it might take my mind off it for a while.

Christmas minus ten.