Winter in Canberra is really starting to test me

Usually, I'm a big defender of Canberra's winter.

You get a frost, followed by a brilliant sunny day, chuck on some extra layers, and you're set. Happy days.

But, but, but, what is this? Fog? Leaden, depressing, overcast skies? Top temperatures in the single digits? We're not Melbourne, people!

And what's made the fogs and low skies of this winter even more distressing has been the piddling amount of rain. The long-term average amount of rain at the Canberra airport in winter is 128.8mm. It's so far this winter (to Friday night) had 52.22mm.

I mean, if it's going to feel closed-in and claustrophobic, at least send down some belting rain to which you can snuggle under a blanket and read a book.

But these relentless, eventless overcast days? Not a fan.

Sally from Tuggeranong captured the claustrophobic mood of this winter perfectly with her photos from mid-July. Picture supplied

I literally feel like I'm preserved in some metaphorical, meteorological aspic, struck down with a weird sense of inertia. Like those low, low skies have locked me in and aren't letting me go anywhere. (Yes, carrying on a bit there.)

Another of Sally from Tuggeranong's moody pics of the fog in mid-July. Picture supplied

But, but, but still - where are our big skies and brilliant sunshine?

Yes, we've had a few of the classic Canberra winter days, but not enough, I reckon. Especially these school holidays.

It hasn't helped our household was down for the count with a bout of flu which had us confined to our beds over the week I had off with the kids. Good. Times.

And the little sunshine we got seemed to appear between 3pm and 5pm before the night started to creep in. Nah, I'm over it.

Canberra's winter has been very depressing this year. Picture by Gary Ramage

We did manage to emerge from our sick beds for the middle weekend of the school holidays when relatives from the north coast of NSW arrived for a long-planned winter weekend in the national capital.

Lulled at home by winter temps that reach 20 degrees, these crazy cats wanted to experience a proper winter. The coats-and-boots and red-wine-and-open-fires kind of winter we are lucky enough to experience in our four-seasons city.

And, I'll be honest, I was panicking.

All the days leading to their arrival were foggy and overcast and horrible. It's hard to show off the national capital if you can't see your hand in front of your face.

Then the clouds scattered and the fog lifted, at least for most of the weekend, and we had some cracking winter days.

Our visitors got to feed some alpacas in Murrumbateman with some big skies behind them, had wood-fired pizza at Four Winds, toasted marshmallows over fire pits, walked around Lake Burley Griffin in the sun, had a Brodburger against the backdrop of the Capital Brewing taproom and enjoyed a home-made curry night against multiple open fires. We really threw a Canberra winter - and a lot of food - at them. They went home happy.

Our visitors from the north coast visited Canberra in July because they wanted to enjoy a warm socks-and-red-wine-and-open fire kind of winter, unlike back home. Picture by Shutterstock

And it made me happy too. We'd shown them that winter in Canberra is not only bearable, but fun. And involves all kinds of food. We just need more of that sunny winter.

And, just like when you start writing about a drought, it begins to bucket down, I'm sure we'll now be in for a string of sunny days. You're welcome.

At least there are some signs that we'll be out of winter soon. Watching those beautiful, busy spotted pardalotes darting around my garden, my heart lifts. I guess they're getting ready for spring? Building nests? Only six weeks to spring and only eight weeks to Floriade!

When it's all said and done, I'm still a fan of winter and hope this year is an aberration. I want a dazzling, sunny Canberra winter, not a miserable overcast Melbourne winter.