ARE YOU A SUMMERPHOBE? QUIZ YOURSELF

It’s Thursday evening, and the weather forecaster appears jubilant. He says the hottest day of the year so far will be this coming weekend. Do you:

a. Feel bad about not having made plans that involve being outdoors for a full 12 hours and carefree with friends.

b. Tentatively unpeel your outer cardigan.

c. Buy a disposable barbecue and Frisbee. Summer’s here!

At work, all conversations revolve around holiday plans. What’s your reaction?

a. Nothing. You try to avoid chat about a colleague’s forthcoming holiday.

b. Spend the morning on cheap flight websites to keep up — there must be a deal on somewhere.

c. Leave photos lying around of the beach resort you’ve booked, ready for anybody who asks.

In August, the flood of out-of-office replies to emails and the sight of a near-empty office leaves you:

a. A bit down in the dumps, to be honest. Where is everyone?

b. Jealous, but finally getting some work done.

c. Overcome with FOMO (fear of missing out). How much TV do you watch in the summer?

a. The same as I do in the winter. b. Just the big events.

c. Are you crazy? I don’t watch TV in the summer. I soak up every moment of the long days. What do you associate most with the word “September”? a. Nights drawing in, the weather turning and total relief.

b. Earth, Wind & Fire’s 1978 classic. c. Sheer misery. How many months until spring again?

RESULTS: Mostly a You’re a prime candidate for summerphobia. But it’s more common than you think. Mostly b

Nothing to worry about, but you could still do with relaxing a bit. It’s just a bit of sun. Mostly c

You have nothing to worry about, apart from those terrifying words “winter is coming.”