Go down to the woods today...

After a wash-out of a summer, there's been little opportunity to get out and about to explore, let alone motivation. But as December rolls in, it looks set for a spectacular winter of freezing fogs and thick ground frost.

Wait! Hear me out!

Winter's been given a raw deal; the past lot have been slushy, grey, depressing messes made all that bit worse by our grandparents telling us of the days when it used to snow so hard it buried buses and the rivers froze so thick you could skate on them... and then have the cheek to moan about how awful that was! It seems everyone's moaning about the days getting shorter and duller... Don't listen to them!

The winter is a wonderful time of year, and today, as Stirling sits beautifully under a deep crystal blanket of frost, it's the perfect example of how fortunate we are to be in Scotland right now.

I'm a student at Stirling University (hey there, nice to meet you, call me Gordon), and very aware of how gorgeous a place it is to study, but its also rather easy to forget that some days - yeah, it's green, awesome, but it's always green, I'm off to watch tv now - but when I woke up this morning, I was filled with so much excitement, the world outside was a different world entirely.

However, I'm well aware that not everyone looking out a window would've felt the same - it's not snow, so you can't sledge, harrumph! - but personally, it had a powerful effect:

It made me look around.

A mere change of temperature had brought about a wholly fresh perspective on the world around me; I was utterly breathless at the sight of a spider's web as it swelled with crystal, or speechless at the construction of icicles. Best not even getting me started on the rainbow effect of the glaring sun over the Ochils squeezing through the fog.

And all the while, this is a largely ignored world by us lot living in Scotland. Is it unfair to suggest that we're embarrassed by our cold country? We're always moaning about it, and I'd hazard a guess that the majority of Stirling folk today chose the quickest possible root between the front door and wherever they were going, too concerned about their cold ears.

Please don't become one of them, get a hat, go out and stop for a moment to think how amazing our climate really is; a vibrant landscape that morphs into this wonderland every time we're just getting a bit bored of what's usually there. The XBox will be there when we get back.