It's official: Old Man Winter has arrived in Gtown. As a KZN girl, I am accustomed to throwing on the odd hoodie during winter, and perhaps a scarf on the really cold days (you know, when the temperature drops below 25 degrees). Having been home for the Easter weekend, I had once more become used to tottering around the house in a mini skirt and thin jersey without feeling the slightest chill. When we arrived back at Rhodes yesterday afternoon, we were greeted with the coldest wind I have felt in a loooong time, and a temperature of 10 degrees Celsius. Guess who was still wearing her mini skirt? I think my legs are still numb today.
Naturally, after a long day of travelling, I thought that a lovely hot shower would be a good way to warm up my chilly body. I distributed my toiletries around the bathroom, switched on the taps, tossed my clothes onto the hook on the back of the door and stuck one hand into the spray to wait for the warmth.
And waited.
And waited.
After five minutes of miserable, naked shivering I finally concluded that my hot shower was not going to happen. I didn't have the courage to immerse myself in that freezing dowpour, and so I flicked the taps off again, wrapped myself in my towel and shivered my way down the corridor, making disgruntled and threatening sounds under my breath. Desperate times call for desperate measures, and I ended up trying to wash myself in my bedroom sink, using water I had boiled in my kettle. Such is the student life.
Thankfully the hot water had returned this morning, as I don't think I could go through another sink-bathing session. Unfortunately, the cold wind had returned too. According to the Rhodes website, the temperature at the moment - at 11:39am - is 15 degrees. Personally, I'm pretty sure it's colder than that. As soon as I got back to my room after lectures I switched on my heater and my kettle. Before even putting down my bag. Now I'm sitting here with my windows shut, my heater on full, my scarf still wrapped around my neck and my easily-chilled feet snugly encased in calf-high boots. And guess what? My nose is still numb. I'm actually holding a mug of tea against it to try and warm it up.
I don't know what it is about me but as soon as there is the slightest hint of cold wind, all my extremities go numb. Fingers, toes, and especially my nose, which has a habit of turning bright pink to match my rosy, chilled cheeks. Thank heavens I'm not male or my chances of procreating would have disappeared with the first Grahamstown winter.
In order to overcome these numb extremities, I have come up with a business proposal. I am going to knit - and sell - nose-warmers. In case you can't picture it, imagine a tiny knitted hat that would fit over one's nose, with an elastic to go around one's head and hold it on. Yes, they would look ridiculous. BUT if I knit them in neon colours and convince JayJays to endorse them, I'm willing to bet they'll quickly become a huge trend amongst Rhodes students. Not only will we all look ridiculous together, but we'll also have the most colourful campus in South Africa during the winter months. And my numb-nose-issue will be a thing of the past. It's a win-win situation for all!
Now if you'll excuse me, I have to go and find somewhere that sells neon coloured wool.
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