What does 42 degrees Fahrenheit feel like, emotionally and spiritually? What makes for an appropriate outfit in these circumstances?
Well, with a converter that's about 5 degrees Celsius.
5.55555556
to be more precise. So five and a half with a slight tilt towards warmth.
Okay:
After some field research (going for a walk out tonight) in slightly different circumstances, 7C or 44F (although that nifty little 'feels like' feature says 3C or 37F), I can determine that 42 degrees Fahrenheit is the perfect temperature for a wistful or reflective short to medium walk; depending on your cold tolerance.
For me, at 7C, my walk was about 20 minutes, although I didn't time it, I listened to Garbage's 'the trick is to keep breathing' Maxi CD (four tracks adding up to 13 and a half minutes, plus listening to one 'strange' track (as in I don't know the name of it) from a MP3 mix CD that's about 6 minutes long). This is honestly mostly because I had work today and my legs are kinda dead.
The fact that the temperature (or the fact it began to lightly rain) wasn't the deciding factor in me going back home, is evident of how pleasant the walk was.
I even took the time to feel slightly disappointed that I couldn't sit and read (I forgot my book).
So emotionally, I'd say, the cold welcomed me and although I zipped up my jacket, I felt very comfortable feeling however I wanted to (which is this case was calm and slightly melancholic reflection).
Spiritually, I felt overwhelmingly soothed. I felt as though the world was holding me as I walked.
I love a nice cool walk. A night time walk especially. There's something so kind about the night, and so upsetting to me that it's been twisted to mean hurt and worry. To go out at night nowadays is to worry for death. The night itself does not deserve this judgement (in my opinion), and should be weighed upon humanity and our actions alone.
Beauty is night and cold, to me true beauty is natural, harsh, and understanding of it's own nature. A walk in a dark night with a thick fog and a drizzle hanging in the air. A sun-bleached bucket with a rusted hole at the bottom. A tree, fallen and ripped from the ground, still growing new leaves. A cool-looking cloud, a bold green lawn, a warmth that could only be made from the sun and a cold that could only be made by the absence of it.
TLDR; Spiritually I think 42 degrees F would be perfectly enjoyable.
I wore my cargo trousers out, a cotton t-shirt, a jacket made out of football scarves (you know the one, Traff), and some fingerless gloves.
This outfit worked perfectly fine for me at 7C, if being a titchy bit warm on the arms, so I think it'd be fine at 5C or 42F as well.
Hoping this answered your question, and that you haven't waited outside in 42F the whole time I was answering it;
-Ace x