While everyone else was putting the grid on overload for air conditioning, the weather obviously decided to make up for it. Snow showed up in the highlands, our small but ancient mountains, and even at the winter ski resorts, for a change.
The snow didn’t get too far north, but Melbourne (in winter Melbrrrrrne), once described by a famous Londoner as worse than London) recorded its lowest temp in 12 years. A bit further south in Geelong, the Southern Ocean, a large amount of cold sea with 60 metre waves and subzero temperatures to match, the Antarctic dropped in to say hello.
There was a certain amount of restrained cheering from Perisher, one of Australia’s leading resorts, which like many has been finding it tough in the hotter years. They’ve had to use snow machines, so any real snow is always welcome. Out of season, they hope for a new Ice Age.
Admittedly, the weather may have simply been making a point. Australia doesn’t have enough glaciers, blizzards, or icebergs. Penguins, we do have, but they tactfully don’t mention this obvious deficiency. In summer they just hang around in ice boxes like normal people.
Maybe if we paddled the ol’ continental lifeboat a few hundred kilometres south, we could do something about this. Australia used to be joined to the South Pole, and much closer to Antarctica. We could get away with it. Nobody, except perhaps New Zealand, would notice if we snuck back down south.
We could even have our own polar ecology, woolly kangaroos, koalas in duck down parkas, and other attractions. Add cardigans for the crocodiles, mufflers for the sharks, and we’re in business.
