Sydney’s put on a dimmer and turned on the sprinklers: we’re not built to do this much rain

‘The effects of the relentless rain don’t just last as long as water is falling from the sky; even on relatively dry days, things still feel damp from the days of rain before’ … Brigid Delaney Photograph: Dan Himbrechts/AAP

What is Sydney without sunshine? It’s full of personal trainers who can’t train, dog walkers who can’t walk, tradies who can’t build, gardeners unable to garden and swimmers who don’t swim for fear of developing pink eye from the befouled waterways.

As of 24 May Sydney had only experienced 48 days this year without rain. Melbourne, on the other hand, had experienced 128.