Question of the Day: how best to make the most of another London winter?

Standing outside pubs is a great activity during the summer, but obviously one that has its drawbacks during the winter.

I therefore recommend standing inside pubs.

Posted about 1 year ago by BraveNewMalden

I therefore recommend standing inside pubs.

Drinking mulled wine or winter Pimms and sitting by the fire. Cozy.

im seriously considering hibernation.

Posted about 1 year ago by Babb

Winter Pimms is magical stuff. I don’t know when they invented it, but it plus a real fire are a fantastic combination.

Posted about 1 year ago by jaylett

Is there cucumber in it?

Posted about 1 year ago by iSleepDiagonal

I like to go for lots and lots of Christmas Day-style Sunday morning walks throughout winter. Bracing slogs through sprawling woodlands, like Epping Forest, Hampstead Heath, etc. preferably in the company of a loved one, ideally also a dog. Pacing out with hefty clouds of breath on every step. I love a good walk. I LOVE IT! However, at the moment I have neither a loved one or a dog, so i shall be staying in till April I think. Hibernating.

Oh, cycling is also most invigorating. But I don’t have a bike.

Posted about 1 year ago by FoolFighter

I heartily recommend getting together with a group of friends and instigating a roast rota.

Drag your dirty minds from the gutter, I’m talking pork, lamb, beef, duck and fish type roasting, not footballer-style.

Anyway, my Sunday evenings were improved beyond measure last winter when a group of us got together and took it in turns to cook a hearty meal, designed to be eaten with lots of gossip and fine wines, and followed with a great cheese board (and a bit more wine) in front of Planet Earth, watched on a huge projector screen with a surround sound.

If you can manage to fit in one of FoolFighter’s bracing walks beforehand, and maybe a quick stop off in a pub with a real fire and mulled wine, then I think that is probably the recipe for a perfect winter day.

although maybe footballer-style roasts would be one way to pass those long cold nights if youre into that sort of thing

Posted about 1 year ago by SeeSee

Mmm. Cheese.

That’s some roast you have in mind there See. Oh – not all at once? Shame, I quite fancied some Englishe variations on the Turducken.

Count me in for the roast action though

hur

Posted about 1 year ago by iSleepDiagonal

Can I borrow SeeSee’s friends so that I too can feel the warm embrace of festive cheer? My housemate is currently battling me on the subject of Christmas decorations.

Posted about 1 year ago by KinkyFantastic

In October?

Posted about 1 year ago by iSleepDiagonal

With alliterative overkill, I second SeeSee’s suggestion. Me and some friends did the roast rota thing and kept it up [snigger] for a good three or four years, changing to barbecues in the summer. Ours were held on a Sunday, always a potentially depressing day, and the lunches started later and later until they became dinners. We’d go to work with awful hangovers but you’re going to do that anyway.

The roasts came to an end when one of us buggered off to Norfolk, one of us died (much the same thing, it could be argued), and two of the remainder got married (no comment).

If you can afford the time and the expense, take the whole of February off and head south.

Posted about 1 year ago by BraveNewMalden

Winter Pimms is the brandy Pimms isn’t it? In the olden days they had normal gin Pimms, and then vodka Pimms, brandy Pimms, and possibly whisky Pimms too. I remember vodka Pimms from my childhood (we weren’t allowed Ribena).

The main trouble with winter seems to be that we can only think of it in terms of Sundays. Me included, when I first read the question, I thought about roasts and pubs and cosy and stuff. Then I thought about kids chucking fireworks and went off winter a bit. Sundays are great (except for Mondays trying to creep in and ruin them), but there are lots of other days.

Posted about 1 year ago by PrincessBride

Under cover of darkness, I think it might be quite fun to throw snowballs at smokers shivering outside pubs and clubs.

cheer them up a bit

Posted about 1 year ago by Spammed

Yes, exactly, we need a solution to damp trouser-bottomed midweek drear, when the sky is matt and lifeless and the wind niggles at your neck. Maybe a selection of all those wonderful Pimms varieties in a bottle of Volvic is the answer.

But thinking beyond public displays of alcoholism for a second, how else to brighten up crap old wintry wednesdays? All I can think of is some form of gym-type thing, or indoor sport. Swimming. Tennis. Something like that. The problem, of course, being all those other people joining in and being all fucking sporty and that.

Posted about 1 year ago by johnpaulghetto

Who said that Pimms was a weekend thing? I think I’ve only ever drunk winter Pimms midweek.

Posted about 1 year ago by jaylett

The answer to damp trouser-bottomed midweek drear, when the sky is matt and lifeless and the wind niggles at your neck is, of course, woolly socks and coloured wellies plus a good coat, scarf, mitten combo.

Posted about 1 year ago by SeeSee

Are you wearing your Hunters and woolly socks around the pool in LA?

Posted about 1 year ago by iSleepDiagonal

I second Foolfighter’s suggestion of a Sunday walk. I hate, HATE, the winter yet getting all cosied up in a big coat and woolly hat to brave the elements is just lovely. It does help if the weather is more sunny and crisp than grey and wet though. I went to Regents Park a couple of weeks ago and besides having to dodge bird shit with every step it was very nice indeed. I did wish I had a dog though.

Posted about 1 year ago by AssumingVakant

I’ve already bought a 14 disc Hitchcock boxset and looking to invest in a alpaca/mohair blanket. I’ve also (almost) mastered the art of baking, so I’ll be getting rather rotund in the next few months.

I will be frequenting pubs, trying out my new nicotine inhaler thingy (like a twat), bitching about the lack of atmosphere yet trying to avoid any type of smirting, smelching or snowballs thrown by utter bastards Spammed by staying indoors and trying new pub quizzes.

Oh, and walking around parks because I happen to love winter thankyouverymuch.

Posted about 1 year ago by mafalda_quino

Bovril and lots of it.
Buy a pair of comfy slippers and wear them around the house all winter.
Pick a night of the week to have classic movie night and stuff your face with popcorn and dips while sitting cosily under a big duvet.
Take up darts (also another excuse to be down the pub.)
Try every single type of soup in the supermarket even if they sound gross (who knew I would end up loving apple and celery?)

Posted about 1 year ago by LittleEmily

a mid-week something to look forward to is always a good move in the depths of winter…

A group of us used to go to the cinema every wednesday, no matter what was on, we went… we saw some rubbish films, but that was part of hte fun I think :-) We went to a brillient burget joint beforhand too, HUGE portions and cheap… I miss that place.

Just having that wednesday fun-time helped get us though the start of the week before you feel you can start looking forward to the weekend.

can still smell the popcorn

Posted about 1 year ago by Amykate