The shortest day of the year

It's only four days until Christmas now and it's also the shortest day of the year, the winter solstice. The sun will come up here in Shetland at 09.12 and will go back down at 14.55 which means that the sun is up for just under six hours, a very short day indeed.

An hour before sunrise

Come the middle of June things will have changed. The sun will go down at about 22.30 and will come back up at about 03.30, meaning a long, long day and an almost non-existent night as at this time it is never really dark, only dusky for a while.

I find this quite difficult at times. At the moment I'm comfortable living in a predominantly dark environment. Come the spring and it starts to change, becoming very much the opposite and for a while it's hard work coping with the change but I will get into it – and soon after it will start to go the other way again and it's time to settle into that yet again.

Some things never change and yet, they change so much. From winter to summer, the time that the sun goes down changes by approximately seven and a half hours and the change in the morning is similar.

I wonder why I can't sleep sensibly?

Happy again

The weather hasn't been too good since I got home but today it has changed. There is no wind blowing this morning and there's only very light cloud overhead.

Yet again it gives me the chance to potter about in the garden, feed the birds and keep myself happy. It's amazing just what you do to entertain yourself, isn't it.

Right, better get down to it before I'm too old or lazy or the winter sets in or something. Not that he'll give me any help, jumping around in the water like that.

Radio, radio

The part of Shetland that I live in, Hillswick in Northmavine, is a really beautiful place but it does have one problem. The electricity supply can be a bit dodgy as I found out at Christmas last year. The power went off at quarter to three in the afternoon on Christmas day and came back on twenty-six hours later. No lights, no computer, no radio, nothing. I've just ordered a radio that I can wind up and also runs on solar power. Hopefully, the winter coming will have a better power supply but at least, if there are any breaks, I can wind up the radio. The good thing is, you can use it at the beach or in the bath too. Good, eh!!!

Weather ain't what it used to be

Not only is it blowing a gale but it's snowing as well - and it's ten days until summer starts but don't be silly and put your thermals away until next winter. The way that it's going, winter will go through spring, summer and autumn, meeting itself at the end of the year so be careful ;))

I have some black viola's to put out in the garden but the later that I do it this year, the better I think. They are coming on really well, as are the pansy's, but the closest they are getting just now is the front window.

So watch out everyone, weather ain't what it used to be :))

The day has been saved

The day has been saved after all!!! I arrived in Lerwick and did what I had to do, jumped on the bus to Brae and got a lift home from there, brilliant. It's amazing how generous people can be ;))

Now that I'm home, I'll probably spend most of the day watching the birds feeding themselves. They still don't eat summer food as quickly as winter food. The winter food must have been smaller and therefore easier to get at. Doesn't matter though, they persevere and they win in the end.

Summer snow!!!

It's the middle of May and summer has been cancelled. It snowed last night and it snowed again this morning. Not only that but my poor wee birdies are probably frozen but they're still smiling, cheery little chaps that they are ;))

I'll have to check out the feed that I put out for them, though. Not so sure that summer feed is really that appropriate for them in this somewhat wintery weather. They are certainly not eating it quite as quickly as the robins eat the winter feed that I put out first.

It might warm them up a wee bit if the sun comes out though.

Fingers crossed :))

A tiny wee black viola

At last. At long, long last a tiny wee black viola has shown its head. I'm sure that you know what it's like. You spend a fortnight getting half a dozen wee pots ready, you plant the seeds, go to bed and when you get up in the morning and nothing has shown -  bang, immediately you get paranoid.

But today I can proudly announce that after about a couple of weeks, one has, at last but looking cheerie, shown its head. My hope is rising. Now I'll have to have a look around the rest of the pots because there are a few more to be checked and the heart is beating ;))

Now I won't settle again for ages, waiting, hoping for a few more to show their gorgeous wee green heads. And it won't be long until they get re-potted into into something a little larger.

And when September, or possibly October comes along they'll be planted outside where they will sleep over the winter and spring will eventually arrive and they'll burst into flower :))

Hopefully ;)

They're getting to know all about it

The robins are getting to know where the food is and they are also getting used to me having a cup of coffee in the living room as well - and all so quickly too.

Now, they take no notice of me, they just get stuck in, scaring away the little sparrows as they go about their breakfast, lunch or tea.

I'm surprised too. Along with this feeder I bought winter food, expecting it to arrive after the summer stuff. It really doesn't seem to have mattered to them though. Having said that though, when the summer order does arrive it will be put away for a month or so. Timing of the seasons here in Shetland does run a bit late, in fact it runs a bit confused at times so I'll be a bit more careful in the future.

In fact, I may make sure that both are out at the same time and then we'll perhaps find out whether it's winter or summer. A bit of confusion here I think. Where have Spring and Autumn gone. They might be around for a short spell, I suppose ;))

Spring has been cancelled

Right, that's it - spring has been cancelled and we're back into winter.

Please keep your fingers crossed for the trees that I love (Jings, Shetland can be difficult at times). Have a look at the Beebs definition of disaster ;)

I think I've worked it out (with a pencil)

I think that I've worked it out. I did it with a pencil, haha.

No, seriously, I've been thinking about the death of last years trees. They were planted at the front of the house which means that they get much less sunlight. Once they have grown a bit they'll then get a bit more sunlight, enough to generate enough energy to get by in life but they never got the chance, they keeled over and died in the winter.

That happened primarily due to ignorance on my part but I've learnt my lesson and this time they are all around to the other side of the house where they will hopefully get enough to survive on. I've put a couple of last years around too, and one is improving more and more. It's slow but it is happening.

Now I know that they find UV light beneficial, I'll save up for a suntan system and in a decade they'll reach up to my waist, no problem :))

Imagine - the power's back on!!!

Quarter to three on Christmas Day the power went off and stayed off for twenty-six hours, coming back on at ten to five this afternoon. It probably went off because of the wind that was gusting between 90 - 100 mph. Wind is a problem to the electricity supply which is delivered above ground and has been, to this area, for approximately thirty-five years.

Talk about technology. We're about thirty-two miles from the power station, power supplied above ground, not under, power cuts averaging about once a month, that last between a few minutes to a couple of days. Around here we have electric lighting, heating and I also have an electric cooker and in reality it's worth about as much as a chocolate watch.
What a marvellous power station, sending top quality electricity nowhere near me to destroy the turkey that I threw out for christmas. I'm sure that I wasn't the only person to enjoy cold pie and beans for dinner yesterday, followed by a Boxing Day tin of coke today, perfectly chilled to room temperature because the fridge-freezer was off like everything else, that went with the sandwich, after the cornflakes to start, when today's lunch was enjoyed while looking out the window, watching the horizontal rain pour past.

I just hope the people that provide delivery of electricity enjoyed the same 

Christmas that I did.

Next year I will be buying a cooked turkey because considering the crap 

service that is provided around here, it's not worth taking the risk.

Is it spring already???

This morning, when I left at half past seven it was mild with no wind at all. It was possibly the lack of wind that made it so mild but it was really pleasant. The one thing that was a bit out of place was the fact that this mornings sky made me think that it was almost spring. A bit early for thoughts like that but it was beautiful.

Over to the east there was a gap between the top of the hills that grow right out of the shore and the clouds sitting quietly, waiting. The gap was a gorgeous blue, lighter than I expected, hinting at spring when you looked at it.

It felt like winter in your heart but I wish I had a photograph of it. Because of the lightness of it, it looked so much like spring that I had to check my diary to make sure that it really was January and not March.

Unfortunately I was right, it is still January.

Snowball fights

I've just read the BBC's weather report on-line and tomorrow it reckons there will be snow - BRILLIANT!!!

The end of October.

It's now the end of October and the days are getting shorter but it's not very cold, the winter is still a day or two away. Today there is no wind, the sky is bright although the sun won't be up for more than about another three hours or so. Fingers crossed that it will last for a few days.