There’s a website which records every twist and turn of the wind. It displays its findings on an interactive map, and you can scroll back and forth across the entirety of Europe to see what weather happened where and when. The patterns generated by this website are strangely mesmerising, and it’s also nice to remember that they are harmless. You can only see where the wind has already been and gone, so there’s nothing like a forecast to consider. You don’t have to pin your hopes to the arrival of high pressure or pray for the likelihood of a cool southwesterly. You’re simply watching the way the world has worked, and that’s a fascinating distraction.
The weather sharpens in October, and a bright moon sets the wild birds moving. From where I lie in bed at night, I can hear pink-footed geese arriving on the Solway under cover of darkness;
