The weather in the country is far more interesting for the occupants than in the city as most of the countryside is governed by its nature. Frost on the roads means no school run and a small scattering of snow brings most local schools to closure as the PC society runs scared of playground trips.
What I love about my daughter's school is that it is stuck up a mountain and the playing fields are shared with sheep. In the snow the kids all bring their sledges to school and build snowmen in the fields. My daughter comes home from school wet, dirty, cold but extremely happy. Now Powys Council are threatening to close the little school down to shove all the kids into one big homogenous super-school.
Hay-on-Wye has its own micro-climate, being in a dip with not much winter sun. It always seems a degree or two colder than everywhere locally. Each day I nip in to the centre to grab a loaf of Alex Gooch's beautiful sourdough bread from the local deli and have a quick chat with the shopkeepers.
It's amazing how you can find out so much local gossip from the shops. In Oxfam on Saturday I overheard a discussion about Gifford's Circus. Buried deep within the old linens and towels I listened intently as I discovered that the circus was not coming to Hay this year.
The reason being they were no longer being allowed to pitch in Hay Castle grounds as the Hay Festival were holding their first music festival there in a marquee instead. What a shame as Giffords is much loved by all the locals and brings a lot of foot-fall into Hay. Whereas the festival is a mile outside the town the castle is bang in the middle and Giffords adds glamour and mystery to the 10 day festival and is, for some, the highlight of the whole event. Apparently flyers and advertising have already gone into production and tickets sold so this is one hell of a mess.
Hay now has its own TV station, thanks to an innovative young woman called Tamara. You can tune in on http://www.hayontv.com/. She is documenting the fight against the proposed Retail Development and has some interesting videos from Hay's shopkeepers. Plan B for Hay are also fighting fit with four meetings, which were all filled to capacity. Seems the town does NOT want a supermarket after all.
Perhaps Powys County Council should take heed. People Power is the new force for 2012. Hay wants to decide it's own future and all future developments for the town should benefit the town and community as a whole, not just a small number of people. Hear Hear.