Matt Ward - Oh Sunshine, Where art thou?

Matt Ward, IT contractor by day and Hearts FC fan, 
writer, blogger and avid music lover by night.

Hi there,

I’m Matt Ward from Edinburgh, Scotland. 

I first heard about Brit Writers' last year when a friend emailed me a link about their awards competition. I sent over my entry and the rest is history.  I hope to interact with people here who are keen on developing and sharing their writing experiences as much as myself.  

Thanks for your time.  Matt Ward

OH SUNSHINE, WHERE ART THOU?

What a cracking summer of weather we’ve had so far, haven’t we? We’ve had the day it rained non-stop for over 12 hours? The day that the trains from Edinburgh to Glasgow were cancelled (a regular occurrence I hear you cry). And how about the day when we had a month’s rainfall in just 24 hours. That’s my favourite. With all that in mind, I’ve decided to be a rebel for a day and venture out without my wellies, to see what all the fuss is about. It’s only a wee bit of water after all.

I got as far as the front courtyard before turning back. I realised that what I had on was probably a wee bit OTT. Not only did I look a little like Mary Poppins with my ‘man’ brolly, but also my Barbour jacket, scarf & beanie were drawing sweat from every possible body part & funny looks from my neighbours. That’s the problem I have with the Scottish summertime, I never really know what to wear. It looks so cold and miserable out there, yet once you actually get out there, it’s definitely miserable, but not that cold. I stupidly keep telling myself that the sunshine is just around the corner, or over the Pentland hills and it’s going to creep out at any minute and brighten up our day (I blame my wife for putting this theory into my head). You would have thought I would have learnt by now, having lived in Scotland for over thirty two years, that we don’t get much sunshine here!

A Nike cagoule replaced the Barbour jacket, a flat cap (showing my age, I know) replaced the beanie and my sunglasses were placed back onto the shelf to catch more dust. I also dropped my scarf back into my winter clothes drawer. Or as I like to call it, my summer wear drawer. Back outside again and the roads were looking more like canals with every minute that floated by. There were however, a fantastic array of brollies on display. All different colours, shapes and sizes. Some of them were that bright that it made me think that maybe it was a sign that the sun was on its way? What a numpty! As I walked along the road, dodging the puddles on my way, I couldn’t help but have a chuckle to myself at the people getting soaked by passing traffic as they waited for the bus. Just then, I suddenly felt a cold, damp sensation around my right ankle and started to have flashbacks to the Isle of Wight festival. As I looked down to where my shoe used to be, I realised that I’d just stepped into a giant puddle OR depending on how tall you are, a paddling pool. Karma?

With my right foot now sporting a different shade to my left, looking like a cross between a microphone & Worzel Gummidge AND the folk at the bus stop now pointing and laughing, I decided that now was as good a time as any to head back to the flat. As I walked home, my thoughts now turned to the cold cans of Strongbow which I’d foolishly left making friends with the fruit & veg in the fridge. With my afternoon now sorted and tomorrow being another day, I made my way indoors. Tomorrow IS another day and surprise, surprise…

I’m expecting sunshine J

Matt Ward