There\u2019s only one question doing the rounds this week and it\u2019s this: have you put your heating on yet? Suddenly there\u2019s a nip in the air and I\u2019m not having it. Last time I looked up from my desk it was warm and sunny. <\/p>\n
I was wearing white jeans and eating salads alfresco. Tights and central heating were a distant nightmare, one that hopefully might never happen. Now reality is biting and we can either give in or push back. <\/p>\n
\u201cNothing in life is inevitable,\u201d said a wise and like-minded friend, \u201cperhaps not even autumn. The only season worth having is summer, and it is over. Resist.\u201d To be fair to autumn we can\u2019t plead ignorance because we\u2019ve lived here most of our lives. But the fact remains: seasons are overrated. Here\u2019s why.<\/p>\n
Tights<\/p>\n
We must hold out against the black opaques as long as possible because we have morals and because the alternative is an admission that winter is coming. I once held out until well into November just by wearing a long coat although, granted, I live in the south and I\u2019m not outside all day feeding silage to cows (and if you don\u2019t feed silage to cows in September, well, it\u2019s just as well I\u2019m not doing it, isn\u2019t it?). <\/p>\n
This year I may not last bare-legged until October, let alone November. I texted a colleague early on Monday morning for her take on the situation and she said she\u2019d put a pair of tights in her bag just in case. That\u2019s a total cop-out. Tights are like the royal family: you\u2019re either in or you\u2019re out, as Queen Elizabeth said to Harry and Meghan.<\/p>\n
\u2022 The perfect toastie, a \u00a35 bottle of red: how to do this autumn well<\/a><\/p>\n Food<\/p>\n When it\u2019s hot, you can go wild in the salad section and nothing bad will happen as long as you steer clear of the croutons. \u201cNo good ever came of a crouton,\u201d my godmother once told me darkly, and she was right. But you can\u2019t throw comfort food at the problem when you\u2019re my age because, come the spring, you won\u2019t get into your clothes.<\/p>\n Other people<\/p>\n Wholesome, jolly types who talk about a nip in the air, turning leaves, toffee apples and woolly mittens. They act as if being wholesome and jolly is something to be proud of. They probably have rosy cheeks, whereas all I want is tan lines. I have never said \u201cit\u2019s too hot\u201d ever, anywhere. My sole idea of bliss is 30C, sand and a sunlounger. Leaves are better on trees. A nip should refer to strong drink, not weather.<\/p>\n