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The dark time of year


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A much loved friend only visits us for a few hours a day right now: LIGHT. Polar night is setting in and it's the darkest time of year here.

I saw somewhere a newspaper clip where there is the hour at which the sun rises the next day in different places.

For Utsjoki, at the top northernmost corner of Finland, said January 16 11.50 AM. Think about that for a second. The sun won't rise til 6 weeks from now .

Well, I am not living that far north, I am merely at the southern border of Lapland, in fact 8km south of the Arctic Circle, but we don't have many hours of daylight here either. I am not at all amazed Finns drink the most coffee per capita in the world!!!

But you know, it has its bright side too; in the summer the sun likewise doesn't set for weeks on end, so that's of course magical too. And the funny thing is I sleep so much better in the summer. We don't even use curtains in our bed room: I cherish the light so much it wouldn't cross my mind to block it out even during sleep.

So, today, at 10.30 AM it just kind of dusky like on the photo I took out my kitchen window just now. It's so pretty with the snow though. The snow makes all the difference.

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I'll also post here some photos I took last weekend during a small hike on a nearby trail. It was clear sunny skies and the little light we have is just peculiar when the sun doesn't quite manage to rise above the treeline. You see all these shades of peach, pink, warm orange and yellow contrasting with lavender blue, lilac and all of them eventually turning into a deep navy blue.

This is the optimal time of year to focus on weaving an knitting and other indoor projects. And of course planning outdoor projects. In the summer it is just a manic few months of doing, doing, doing.

I did have one thing I needed done outside my house last week.

I ended uop having a real struggle with such a seemingly simple job as spray painting some lighting frames. I needed them done asap. They where quite large in size, 1m diameter circles, so I had to do it outside.

Well, I don't normally do a whole lot of painting jobs especially with spray, so I was manically watching the weather forecast because I needed plus degrees (so the spray won't freeze before hitting the surface), no rain (so the water won't mix with the paint), and outdoor light (so I would see what the hell I was doing) to coincide at the same time.

I tell, you that is not easy in November up here!

Luckily I caught a break last Friday and got the job done, but there really are times when I wonder if it just wouldn't be smarter to choose some easier place to live. Like somewhere a bit further south like in central Europe or something. I mean, I did experience living in Tucson Arzona for one year in 2006 and I loved it! But then I remeber all the cool things up here that I could not have anywhere else I stop bitching about it. But yeah...

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