Winter Solstice

[Sandyn]

As I write this, we are passing through the winter solstice, 10:02 21st Dec and heading back to spring. My favourite moment of the year!! I'm not surprised stone age people built elaborate processors to find the solstice, then had a great p**s up!! and threw a few sacrifices on to the bonfire for a bit of heat.
Today it's also the Great Conjunction 2020, so something great is going to happen. I'm finally going to find my thicknesser on Marketplace or Gumtree!!!

 

[clogs]

same'o, same'o,
but will build my new workshop...
no children here to sacrifice now tho......hahaha.....

 

[Tris]

Drove past the Rollright stones last night and there were a lot of cars and vans parked up. Not sure what the pagan spirits make of led candles and wet polyester!

 

[Yojevol]

And the Star of Bethlehem occurs tonight

 

[Fitzroy]

Yup the days now get longer, hurrah. Living properly north the days are very short at the moment!

 

[Sandyn]

And the Star of Bethlehem occurs tonight

A very interesting Sky at Night special here I'm sure Patrick Moore has been resurrected as Maggie Aderin-Pocock. Time to watch Life of Brian!

 

[Cheshirechappie]

Just remember not to over-do the p**s-up too soon. Remember it's deflower the virgin and sacrifice the goat. Don't overdo the mead and get it the wrong way round.

It IS a turning point, though. The prospect of the nights drawing out and spring being on the way does give hope. I can understand our ancestors' need to mark the day.

(Just in passing, it does prove that Stonehenge was a government job, though. They've been building it for five thousand years, and they STILL haven't got the roof on!)

 

[Phil Pascoe]

Yup the days now get longer, hurrah. Living properly north the days are very short at the moment!

I didn't consciously realise the difference until years ago I had two lodgers, one from Oldham and the other from Bridlington. We watched the occasional rugby league match on the TV - the match would be being played under floodlights and we'd have to draw the curtains to keep the sunshine off the TV. That's nowhere wear as far north as you.
It's just starting to get dark here now.

 

[Fitzroy]

Already proper dark here. Officially sunset was 15:27, today was sunny so it wasn’t too bad. When it’s heavy cloud you find yourself with a light on indoors most of the day. That and being along way from family are the only two downsides of living here. Love the place otherwise.

 

[Nigel Burden]

I hate winter and virtually everything about it. Although the nights start to draw out, sunrise is still getting a little later. As for the great conjunction, we're not going to see it as its raining heavily at the moment. My daughter was hoping to get her telescope out and photograph it. No chance of that now.

Nigel.

 

[Linus]

Don't get me started on Stonehenge. I live just down the road from it in Salisbury and the government have given the go ahead to spend £1.7 billion (yes that's right) on digging a tunnel through open countryside to hide it from the prying eyes of anyone who may have the temerity to look at it without coughing up £20. Hell and handcart come to mind!!!

 

[XH558]

Yup the days now get longer, hurrah. Living properly north the days are very short at the moment!

I love it up 'properly north' in the summer but would like to see what its like in the winter. Love the highlands............

 

[DrPhill]

I lived in and near Aberdeen for four years. On the longest day it was light enough to read a newspaper outside at midnight. On the shortest day you could need your headlights on all day, depending on the weather. That aside, lovely people. I would have stayed except there was no work for me.

 

[Inspector]

Sunrise on the way to work this morning. I’ll see sunset just after I get home.

Pete

 

[Nigel Burden]

Neighbours of mine had friends who worked in the atomic energy industry. They were moved from UKAEA Winfrith down here in Dorset to Dounreay on the North coast of Scotland. They found the difference between the short winter days and the long Summer days quite difficult at first.

Nigel.

 

[Nigel Burden]

Sunrise on the way to work this morning. I’ll see sunset just after I get home. View attachment 98923
Pete

Beautiful, but I still hate winter.

My wife left the house in the dark this morning and came home in the dark.

Nigel.

 

[Phil Pascoe]

My uncle was a skipper of a North Sea rig supply boat in the late '70s and early '80s. He loved Aberdeen - he knew the bars to drink in 24/7 when there was no Sunday opening. He worked six weeks on six weeks off and didn't drink until he'd left the ship (alcohol was taboo on the ship), which was sometimes three days after he'd docked because it was dependent on his getting a crane driver, a banksman and a docker there at the same time. If they choose not to be there, another day was day wasted. They had spirit optics permanently mounted on the walls in dockers huts, and were all unionised so working was an option not a necessity.
He used to bring back three and half dozen litre bottle of good malt for £50 - which suited him well as when he was home he was a prodigious drinker. He got drunk for two weeks, did what work that was necessary for two weeks then got drunk again for the last two. I gave him a lift home one evening when I was about 20 - I thought he was quite drunk, and the people who'd served him told me the next day day he'd had half a bottle of Wood's rum ............... and twenty eight pints of Guinness.

 

[Inspector]

Beautiful, but I still hate winter.

My wife left the house in the dark this morning and came home in the dark.

Nigel.

I understand.
I put the wrong picture up. Sorry. It should be this one.
Pete

 

[Chris70]

Beautiful, but I still hate winter.

My wife left the house in the dark this morning and came home in the dark.

Nigel.

When I’m spending money on my hobby, I try to keep my wife in the dark all the time )

 

[Sandyn]

As I get older, I get less tolerant of winter weather, especially Scottish winter weather, usually below 5C, so not cold, but damp and the cold seems to go right through you. Sometimes foggy, dark, damp, even in the middle of the day. I prefer when it's colder. It doesn't feel so damp.