The balance between observation and measurement

摘要

Each morning, at this time of year, I look out of the window to see if I need to leave time to de-ice the car. On the mornings that I forget to do this, I am inevitably delayed by having to scrape ice off the windscreen - just as I was this morning! Winter brings with it cold wind, rain, sleet and snow and, of course, short hours of daylight and the early onset of darkness by late afternoon. Yet, perversely, I look forward to winter, just as I look forward to the arrival of spring, the long hours of daylight, the one hot day of summer and the colours of the trees in autumn. Being from these climes, I enjoy the variation of the seasons. When I have been abroad in sunnier regions for any length of time, I can see that I would become bored of waking up to the sun every day.