November 29, 2010

• Reasons to Love Winter

  Okay first off it’s very cold here, perhaps not as cold as some really extreme places but our house has not central heating and with only two fires (one small one in the front room and a big Arga in the kitchen) most of the upstairs is arctic.

  The computer room usually has to rely on the computer for warmth and when it’s winter thats just not enough. Right now i’m sitting here with FIR fingerless gloves on, while wearing a Ponch over a Kruta (someking of mongolian over jumper thing, it’s thick and woolen) and a t-shirt and shirt. And although my hands are pretty much numb the rest of me is just about fine.

  My bedroom is in a sort of extra bit stuck on our house that has thinner (by half) walls than the rest of the building, And it’s above the bathroom, so it’s basically like a fridge most of the time in there. I can literally see my breath most nights.

  All that combined with the fact that up here it’s dark at about 4:00pm (even 3:00 later on) makes it hard to be comfortable when winter decends…..but I still love it

   

  And here are a few reasons why, First and foremost the insects are gone and you don’t have to worry about getting savaged if the wind drops during the evening. also it’s much quieter, not that it’s exactly heaving with people up here anyway but still having been used to almost no-one the summer time flood of tourists and geneeral activity is less enjoyable.

  But the main reason by far is the clear crispness of a still cold winter day, when the snow has a slight covering of ice and crunches under foot and the low cool yellow sun shines and shimmers off the pale ice blue water.

  You can wrap up in many comforting layers of gear and just head out into the stillness, and become enraptured by that magical sense of being the only warmth in a vast landscape, then sense that if you were to stay out over night that your life would be in danger awakens that awe and respect for nature that can often be over looked.

  The cold air is clear and bright and as snow covers the usual places and transforms them your imagination can run wild taking hills and walks that you might have walked a hundred times and makeing them new and wonderful all over again. Storms arrive with greater ferocity and make you grateful for your warm house and close family, as you curl up near the fire and are lulled to sleep by the howling of the wind.

  And at night when the clouds fade and the sky is filled with stars and the snow glows silver with the moon, you can walk along frozen roads without seeing another soul untill you feel like you’ve passed into another world.

   

  A bit rabling perhaps but there are a few good thing about living in the fridge

  • 7:06 am
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