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'tis the season
Dec. 24th, 2017 02:32 pm
The days are getting longer again, the year is almost over, and once again we all hope that love and light and joy are going to overcome the dark. Happy Holidays!
The days are getting longer again, the year is almost over, and once again we all hope that love and light and joy are going to overcome the dark. Happy Holidays!
A pic a day is not feasible for me, but in order to keep posting, I'll try to do a picspam (or at least a single pic to ramble about?) per week. We'll see how that goes!
We've been having snow, on and off, all year (haha). That is, it's been snowing, then it's been staying for a day or two, then it's melted away, then it's been freezing, and then it started to snow again. No big cumulative masses of snow, just enough to delight the kids, powder the landscape and cause a couple of unnecessary accidents on the roads.
Today is another snow day. But as I've already posted several snow picspams in past years, I won't do one (now, anyway). Instead, have some pics of the cold spell that hit us last week. We weren't hit as badly as some other regions - never less than -10°C - but we've had some very pretty frost in the garden. Which is as good an excuse as any to show off my measly attempts at keeping a garden in the first place. ;)
( Here be lots of pics )
Things are looking very different today, all underneath a nice cover of snow (like so). But showing you snow wouldn't have allowed me to ramble about the garden so much. So yeah. Now I'll go fetch firewood because while it's warmer than last week, it's still pretty cold...
We've been having snow, on and off, all year (haha). That is, it's been snowing, then it's been staying for a day or two, then it's melted away, then it's been freezing, and then it started to snow again. No big cumulative masses of snow, just enough to delight the kids, powder the landscape and cause a couple of unnecessary accidents on the roads.
Today is another snow day. But as I've already posted several snow picspams in past years, I won't do one (now, anyway). Instead, have some pics of the cold spell that hit us last week. We weren't hit as badly as some other regions - never less than -10°C - but we've had some very pretty frost in the garden. Which is as good an excuse as any to show off my measly attempts at keeping a garden in the first place. ;)
( Here be lots of pics )
Things are looking very different today, all underneath a nice cover of snow (like so). But showing you snow wouldn't have allowed me to ramble about the garden so much. So yeah. Now I'll go fetch firewood because while it's warmer than last week, it's still pretty cold...
No news on the job thing.
The cold season is beginning so I'm not outside but in here where I can light the fire, or as Julian puts it, "heich" (heiß is German for hot). Cooking is also "heich". His vocabulary is small but beginning to grow - every couple of days, he'll produce a new word. So far, he says "Mama" and "Papa", "Nana" for Grandmother Ingrid, "Bebi" for Felix, "Bibi" for pee, "Mau" (meow) for cats and horses, "auf" (on or up) for open doors, lighted lamps and going up the stairs, "ja" (yes) and "nein!" (no), "ne" for "I don't know", "baff" ("thud") for everything that moves downwards (particularly if it does so very fast...), "fah" (from fahren, drive) or "brrm" for cars, "ei" for gentle, "au" ("ow") for things that hurt, and "hmm-mm" for "hungry", "food" and "delicious". "baff" and "nein!" are his most important words. He likes music on CD or TV, but when anyone starts to sing in real life, he'll immediately go "nein!" Felix listened to singing endlessly, I could even sing him to sleep, but for Julian, singing is "nein!". He doesn't like sleeping much, either. He still wants to be breastfed. We're trying to limit it to evening and nighttime. He has eleven and a half teeth, and the most adorable cheeky grin. And he knows exactly that nobody can resist that grin. He tries to copy whatever his big brother does.
I have stuff to do outside but it's just not warming up, so I'm procrastinating. Can't do so forever, but right now, it's tempting. I don't think I'll do much in the garden today, but I will have to protect a couple of plants from the nightly frosts (or else). There's enough to do inside but I'm not feeling like it, either. On the plus side, I finished Chapter 15 of Golden Days. It turned out an extremely short chapter. I posted Chapter 14 on October 10th 2013 so this is sort of ridiculous. 2 years for 2500 words. But maybe getting this chapter out of the way was the most important thing and the words will flow more easily now? One can hope.
Speaking of word counts, I have decided on what to do for NaNoWriMo. Not fanfic (I never use NaNo for fanfic, because NaNo is supposed to be special) and no editing of old material, but picture books. I've had several ideas for children's books in my head for a while and never did anything about them, so I hope NaNo will help me change that. As a picture is worth a thousand words, I figure that if I do 50 illustrations, that's like 50.000 words, i.e. winning NaNo. It's not cheating, it's rebelling...
Finally, I'm just 20 pages into The Sleeper and the Spindle and I'm already shippin' Snow White/Sleeping Beauty. It's like in the old days!
Finally finally, The Last Kingdom series on BBC2 starting next week?! Oh my heart. CAN'T WAIT PLEASE DON'T EFF THIS UP.
"It is going to be another snowless winter", meteorologists announced this December. "Definitely no snow for Christmas, probably none at all. If any, a little dusting in February."
I was happy after I'd heard that, because if there's one thing that'll insure heavy snowfalls is meteorologists announcing that there won't be any.
They were right about the lack of a White Christmas, but as soon as Christmas was over... we got hit by a minor snowstorm. It was the best possible time (for us): All the visits at the relatives over, Jörg still off work, and I'd already done the grocery shopping for the entire week because we all know what the shops look like if there are three holidays in a row, then one day for shopping, and then a Sunday. So we cheerfully let it snow, except in the Saturday afternoon, when I shovelled the courtyard and driveway. It was unlikely that anyone would try to get to our door, but the law is the law. Also, I no longer had to feel guilty about eating too much over the holidays. ;)
Sunday was a bright and sunny and frosty day, so the pretty snow stayed, and we got to go for a walk in the woods. The mother-in-law probably went batty during that time because OMG NO RENOVATION DONE ON HER LIVING-ROOM (seriously, fuck that, because Jörg and his brother worked on her stupid living-room most of Christmas Eve and Christmas Day. I wish I were kidding you.), but it was worth it.
You know what that means. Yup, it's picspam time!
( Under the cut for the sake of your friendslist. Large-ish, so it'll probably take some time to load. Fair warning. )
Today, it was a bit warmer (around 0°C), but grey all day. Still, we're being promised occasional snowfall until at least New Year's, so I'm getting what I wanted (well, another thing I wanted) for Christmas - a proper winter. Wheeeee!
Hope those of you who celebrated something in the past week(s) had excellent holidays and happy feasting!
Something harmless, for a change
Dec. 3rd, 2014 12:04 pmFIRST SNOWFLAKE OF THIS WINTER ENTIRE YEAR, ACTUALLY: SIGHTED.
The snow isn't staying yet, but hey, it's still early in the season. At least it's starting to come. Time to change my LJ into its winter outfit! [/frivolous]
(Not actually quite harmless. Windscreen wiper is still broken. Garage is moving locations and not available this week. Hear me whine.)
The snow isn't staying yet, but hey, it's still early in the season. At least it's starting to come. Time to change my LJ into its winter outfit! [/frivolous]
(Not actually quite harmless. Windscreen wiper is still broken. Garage is moving locations and not available this week. Hear me whine.)
Ahahah, I just looked at what I wrote about the weather in early February back in 2007:
Otherwise, this January has been disgustingly warm, and I can't even begin to say how depressing it is to read about people complaining about snow on my flist when all I have to wipe off my car here is POLLEN, for someone's sake. Oh, true, we got some snow last week. Lasted a whole day, too. And even four days of frost before that, hurrah! The good news is, I suppose, that the frost didn't even manage to kill the cherry and other blossoms freelancing their way through this so-called winter, but it might still have sufficed to satisfy those fruits that need a few days of frost in order to bud at all. This will be an interesting year. Full of midges, too.
Oh well, winter might yet come and surprise us all. And probably last well into May once it comes.
That... pretty much fits this winter, except we got more than one major winter storm this year (actually, we're getting at least one every other week). And we had three days on which it snowed (but didn't last longer than a few hours). And a few more frosty nights. But on the whole? Same thing. By now, the hazels are fully in bloom, which is unfortunate because in spite of it all, it is "too cold" (i.e., below 15°C) for the bees to fly. (Also, too stormy.)
There are now two options for this winter. Back in 2007, winter did not come and surprise us all and last into May; instead, we had a "normal" March and a seriously funked-up April. (April is, of course, the month of funked-up weather, but in 2007 it wasn't the normal "three seasons in a day" April weather, but rather, warmth and drought for 30 days.) The good thing was that the drought killed all the fledgling midges that would otherwise have been a true pest after the non-existent winter, and also the snails -- never again did I have so many zucchini plants and sunflowers as I did in that year...
Alternatively, we could get a proper winter yet. If we do, can that please happen within the next two or three weeks, and then be over? Because even though I didn't get my winter this year and I like proper winters... it's now February. By February, I begin to long for spring - even in a year that didn't really have a winter.
During Felix' afternoon naps, I've already begun to fight back the brambles; satisfying on the one hand, because it's necessary and I'm getting it done, but depressing on the other hand, because it's tedious. Also because brambles are vicious creatures. I'd rather do some "real" gardening for a change!
Oh well. It's not like I can influence the weather, anyway, but I thought I'd put my request out here just in case. ;)
Those of you living in the way of Cyclone Bodil/Hurricane Xaver: Be safe, OK?
(Right here, we'll probably be fine; we only got the "Stay inside" alert ('Force 10/11 winds and heavy snowfall') as opposed to the "Hide and pray" alert that's been issued for the coast ('Force 12+ winds and three storm surges in one go'). But the wind is getting scarier, either way.)
Still not Spring
Mar. 31st, 2013 08:49 pmHappy... *checks calendar* Easter. Totally Easter. In conclusion: Easter.
(I know, I know: The one thing everyone is even sicker of than this winterspring is people complaining about this winterspring. Sorry, sorry! I'll stop whining about the weather soon, I promise! I hope.)
And if you don't celebrate Easter:
Happy Passover! Or Happy belated equinox! (Whichever equinox applies to your location.) Or just: Happy (hopefully long?) weekend!
Winter is Staying :P
Mar. 29th, 2013 04:55 pmI am done with almost all the Easter preparations, aside from the gifts for relations & neighbours.
You really kind of have to remind yourself that it's Easter you're preparing for - not Christmas. (Actually, we had no snow and +9°C around Christmas...)
So I dyed some eggs (and some wool while I was at it) with plants. The green (and very light green) is hollyhock blossoms (collected them all summer long last year!); it was supposed to be blue, but when the infusion gets too hot, it turns to green. Obviously, it got too hot. The nice copper is good old onion peels, and the sickly lilac (egg)/interesting fire-colours (wool) is beetroot. Last year, I got a nice pink with beetroot. Am disappointed this year!
( Moar pics under the cut. Click on pic will lead to larger version, as per usual. )
And this concludes this picspam. Must try to get gifts finished now.
Erkenntnis des Tages
Feb. 1st, 2012 02:19 pmWenn man sich was aus dem Kühlschrank holt und sich wundert, dass es im Kühlschrank gar nicht kalt ist, und dann feststellt, dass der Kühlschrank aber ganz normal läuft...
... dann sollte man vielleicht doch mal die Küche heizen.
:P
... newly arrived: The winter of 2011/12!
In other words: We just had ten minutes of snowfall. Not that much of it stayed, but it was there. Now there's no way back!
(And I just united my two hives this morning - they were both on the border of "might survive", but last year that wasn't enough so this year I thought I'd turn them into one strong hive. Now I just hope the "new" half moved the box and got settled fast enough. >_>)
Obligatory snow picspam
Dec. 6th, 2010 10:40 amJust a quick picspam before I visit my grandmother (presuming that I manage to get to Bonn ;)), because it's no proper winter if I don't make winter picspams, right? ;) So I might as well get started.
( Under the cut, click thumbnails for larger version, etc etc the usual. )
Aaaaand off! (At least the snowplough (or perhaps someone with a tractor and a snowploghing attachment, you never know) cleared even our backend street, so the main streets should be all free.
"Truism" kommt von "true"
Mar. 6th, 2010 12:25 pmDas haben sie nun davon, die Kollegen, die übermütig meinten, So, jetzt ist Frühling und dieses Jahr schneit's nicht mehr. Das haben sie davon, die Leute, die nach der Schneeschmelze im Februar meinten, jetzt hätten die Winterreifen ausgedient. Liebe Leute, die "von O bis O" Richtlinie mag ja abgedroschen klingen, aber sie hat schon ihre Existenzberechtigung. Eigentlich ist O(stern) immer noch zu früh, aber wenigstens liegt das per definitionem jenseits des Äquinoktiums und Schnee und Eis werden zumindest etwas weniger wahrscheinlich*. Es gibt aber auch'n Grund, wieso man früher (TM) den eigentlichen Frühlingsanfang hier erst am 1. Mai gefeiert hat... und die Eisheiligen heißen auch nicht gerade so, weil man Mitte Mai erstmals draußen in der Eisdiele sitzt. Und dann ist da noch die Schafskälte...
Also nochmal 30 cm Schnee- und zwar der schwere, pappige, der total super ist zum Schneemann, -laterne oder -haus bauen, aber total beschissen wegzuschippen ist und sich auch nicht zum Skifahren eignet.
Naja, hübsch ausschauen tut's ja. Und mein Fitnessprogramm hab ich für heute auch hinter mir. Sogar der Schneepflug war schon da! Und kalt + Schnee ist so viel besser als nur kalt.
Die erste Dachlawine hatten wir auch schon.
Der Baum da unten ist Xynthia zum Opfer gefallen, da kann der Schnee nix für.
- - -
*Wobei ich da prompt wieder ans Rohan-LARP 2008 denken muss. Macht das LARP nicht im November, haben sie gesagt, da könnte es schneien, haben sie gesagt! Macht es im April, haben sie gesagt, da passiert sowas nicht! Weniger Kalender und mehr Phänologie täte manchmal nicht schlecht.
Náro has found out how to open Tupperware containers.
At least when they're containing Salami. *facepalms* First the milk containers, now this. Nothing is safe anymore, you gals, nothing!
- - -
Also, after only three days of above-zero temperatures and two additional days of rain, I can see grass again.
And there are snowdrops! The excitement, it is killing me.
Ceterum censeo
Feb. 19th, 2010 09:47 amIm Übrigen glaube ich, dass man sämtliche Streugutprobleme der Republik hätte lösen können, wenn man einfach mal den ganzen Split und das ganze Salz von den Kölner Straßen aufgefegt und dahin gebracht hatte, wo tatsächlich Schnee und Eis waren.
Notiz an Kölner Winterdienst: Streugut ≠ Kamelle. Ehrlich, wenn das Salz noch nach zwei Wochen auf dem Bürgersteig liegt, ohne sich aufgelöst zu haben, war es von Anfang an nicht nötig. Das Zeug verwendet man mit Sinn und Bedacht. Vielleicht solltet ihr im Sauerland ein bisschen üben, bevor ihr die Straßen pökelt, dass es für die nächsten fünf Jahre reicht.
- - -
OT: Wieso hat keiner meiner Eiskunstlauffavoriten eine Medaille gewonnen? Ich bin... ENTTÄUSCHT. Nobunari, irgendwo flattert die Asche deines Ur-ur-ur-undsoweiter-großvaters rum und stößt wilde Verwünschungen aus. "Costume malfunction", also ehrlich. Da interessiert man sich mal und dann sowas.
Jetzt müsste ich nen Traktor haben
Feb. 1st, 2010 09:09 pmIch soll am Donnerstag ein Referat halten.
Deswegen muss ich morgen eigentlich ziemlich dringend in die Sprechstunde beim entsprechenden Prof.
Ich zitiere bei dieser Gelegenheit die amtliche Vorwarnung zur Unwetterwarnung für den Rheinisch-Bergischen Kreis:
gültig von: Dienstag, 02.02.2010 00:00 Uhr
bis: Dienstag, 02.02.2010 08:00 Uhr
ausgegeben vom Deutschen Wetterdienst
Dienstagmorgen kommt von Nordwesten her Schneefall auf, der bis zum Abend andauert, im Flachland aber zum Teil in Regen übergeht. In Westfalen und vor allem im Bergland über 300 m sind Neuschneemengen um 10, im Stau der Eifel, des Bergischen Landes, des Sauer- und Siegerlandes und des Weserberglandes 15 bis 25 cm zu erwarten. Da es sich um nassen Schnee handelt, besteht die Gefahr von Schneebruch. Bei Böen um 65 km/h (Stärke 8) muss zusätzlich in freien Lagen und in Kammlagen mit Verwehungen gerechnet werden.
Dies ist ein erster Hinweis auf erwartete Unwetter. Er soll die rechtzeitige Vorbereitung von Schutzmaßnahmen ermöglichen. Die Prognose wird in den nächsten 14 Stunden konkretisiert. Bitte verfolgen Sie die weiteren Wettervorhersagen mit besonderer Aufmerksamkeit.
Das kann ja lustig werden. Ich wohne "im Stau des Bergischen Landes". Huzzah.
Das besonders Schöne ist ja, dass in Köln wahrscheinlich wieder mal bestenfalls zehn Flocken fallen und "ich bin eingeschneit" folglich nicht mal geglaubt/akzeptiert werden wird. Hahahah. Hah. Hahah.
Vielleicht mach ich mich besser schon mal zu Fuß aufn Weg?
Ach was. Die Hauptstraßen werden bestimmt toll geräumt und die Busse fahren selbstverständlich alle planmäßig, nicht wahr? :p
Dies ist keine Beschwerde über das Wetter. Das Wetter als solches finde ich geil. Dies ist nur eine Beschwerde über den Mangel an Flexibilität. ENTWEDER, es ist dafür gesorgt, dass auch bei schwersten Wettern alles normal läuft - ODER man muss Arbeitgeber und sonstige Heinis dazu verpflichten, zu gestatten, dass die Leute dann eben ganz flexibel mal zuhause bleiben dürfen. Ohne schlechtes Gewissen, Abzug von Urlaubstagen oder "dann kann ich Ihnen aber kein Feedback geben!".
Und mein vierter Weisheitszahn drückt sich durchs Zahnfleisch, das hebt die Stimmung auch ganz ungemein.
EDIT:
Sie haben die Vorwarnung "konkretisiert".
gültig von: Dienstag, 02.02.2010 10:00 Uhr
bis: Mittwoch, 03.02.2010 00:00 Uhr
ausgegeben vom Deutschen Wetterdienst
Es tritt starker Schneefall mit Neuschneemengen von 5-10, in höheren Lagen um 15 cm auf. In Verbindung mit wiederholten Böen um 65 km/h (Stärke 7 bis 8) sind zunehmend auch starke Schneeverwehungen zu erwarten. Zudem besteht hohe Gefahr von Schneebruch durch Nassschnee. Am Nachmittag und Abend steigt die Schneefallgrenze vorübergehend auf 400 m.
ACHTUNG! Hinweis auf mögliche Gefahren: Straßen und Schienenwege können unpassierbar sein. Bäume können unter der großen Schneelast zusammenbrechen. Vermeiden Sie Autofahrten!
Köln liegt wie erwartet außerhalb des Warnbereichs. Köln hat "Wetter", Leverkusen hat "markantes Wetter", und wir haben "Unwetter".
Effort and effect, the relation between
Jan. 31st, 2010 07:53 pmMy father turned 55 yesterday. As my parents only yesterday returned from my father's sports club's skiing vacation, we were invited to celebrate it today.
Originally for lunch; then it was turned into dinner.
It has started to snow yet again. The problem is not that we don't get away from here: The problem is that everybody else is parking in the bottleneck where our street meets the main road. Snow plough-made walls narrowing the street down, + cars parked on either side, means that it is now a one-way street. And the snow plough came again (making more walls), and people are trying to find parking spaces still, and... well, the way is almost blocked. We had to help push a car before we could even reach the main road.
It's only a 15-minute drive to my parents, but it is snowing like mad. We have snow chains, but there are other people on the road who neither have snow chains nor know how to drive in this weather. I think it is not too unreasonable to say "Look, it's too difficult and too dangerous to get to you, let's do this some other weekend."
Is it?
My parents didn't try driving today, as far as I know; at any rate they have no idea about the state of the roads, the current weather (well, they probably never looked outside ever since it turned dark) or the rationality or rather lack thereof of driving anywhere just for dinner. My mom only bought it when I said that the intersection is blocked and we couldn't even get out of our street. Yes, I lied. Feel perfectly justified about it, too. I am not going to risk my neck over dinner, no matter how nice, and if the truth makes her mope and a lie makes her see reason, I must lie. And that, all ye parents and ye who want to become parents on my flist, is how you do it wrong.
[insert some clever line here]
Jan. 29th, 2010 11:37 pmSo we are watching Watchmen, and as I never mentioned it back when it was recent, I shall do so now.
When I saw first saw the movie, it was in Cologne, and it was (obviously) the year 2009.
Nobody reacted to the (much-discussed on the intarwebs) giant blue penis. But several people gasped when Ozymandias was talking to the functionaries, and in the background a zeppelin seemed to be heading straight for the twin towers of the WTC...
I found that vaguely enlightening.
In other news, we are snowed in. Well, were. The plough came down the hill a few hours ago, so I assume we could now get up again.
More Christmas
Dec. 25th, 2009 11:49 pmAnd more gifts!
Well, if you like photos.
The snow outside has been melting all day. To counter this sad occurance, I will now post the photos I took of the snowy landscape last Friday and Monday. Who knows, perhaps you'll get kittenspam tomorrow?
( Picspam under the cut! Warning to those on dial-up, there's 30 of them. Only thumbnails under the cut though. )
Aaah, the fire's going out, must save it!
