Some thoughts on cycling to work through the snow this morning.

• I must be completely off my rocker. In Edinburgh I avoided cycling through snow like the plague, as my bike has absolutely zero traction on lying snow. But here I've discovered snow's nicer to cycle through than rain (it bounces off you rather than soaking in and making you cold and wet), and it rarely snows enough in London to lie on trafficacious roads; and besides, going to work and back by Tube takes me 37 minutes longer than Tube on a good day, and I've no intention of having to make up even more time leaving early on a Friday afternoon than normal; and the first thing I saw this morning on opening my blind was a cyclist going past, so I thought if they can do it, so can I.
  
• Who would have guessed that cycling into a headwind could apparently turn big fluffy snowflakes into gritty ice spicules fresh from the Beardmore Glacier as they hit me.
  
• The snow is lying; on some of the roads I had to go along wheel ruts.
  
• Nevertheless, I was okay until I swerved to go around a speed bump, then skidded, and fell off. Fortunately, instead of skidding along the tarmac abrading clothing and skin, I skidded along on a layer of slush, and escaped with only one minor graze (which, however, I could still have done without).
  
• If I hadn't done this, I wouldn't have had the pleasure of seeing Regent's Canal covered in snow lying on the frozen surface. How very Dickensian! Trying to skate on it, however, would have been very strongly contraindicated for anyone who didn't wish to follow the example of Doctor Foster.
  
• Having got to work and survived, now all I've got to do is get back. :-S