It has been dark these past couple of days. The sun isn't rising until a little past 10:00 am and it sets a little after 3:00pm. The shortest day of the year is Dec 21, after which we will start gaining some daylight on a daily basis, so that is something to look forward to.
It's not all that bad with the late sunrise and early sunset, the thing that is getting to me is that I haven't seen the sun is over a week now. It has been kind of foggy, but instead of suspended rain drops, it is more like suspended ice drops. It weird because it makes the day time quite dark and then the evening quite light. It's hard to explain, I haven't experienced weather like this before, not that it is cold (it hasn't been very cold at all for the last week), but it is just different.
One of my coworkers told me that once you spend a winter up here, you become truly Northern. Another lady I know told me that she counts the years she's been up here by the number of winters she lives through. I guess I'll decide for myself what makes me more 'Northern' than I was when I lived in Montreal. I guess it is a combination of learning about the vegetation, the insects (and experiencing the insects this summer!), the culture and now the winter! It seems like everything is black and white. Black ravens (which you see all over the place), white ptarmigans (which you also see all over the place)...black sky, white snow...
I took the camera with me today while I was walking to work. I wanted to show you what it actually looks like outside. I had to play around with the settings of the camera to actually get a picture that resembles what it is like outside. Take a look:
This is up the street from me, right when I leave the house. It was about 9:35 am, the sun hasn't risen yet. It was clouded over today so I didn't see the sun rise at all. One good thing about this time of year is that when it is clear outside you get to see the sunrise and sunset everyday! I find that pretty cool. Of course the street lights are still on.
The trees are all frosted over, really quite pretty. When I get to work in the morning there is usually frost on my eyelashes, it is a funny sensation. Then when I get into the warm building the frost starts to melt and it looks like I'm crying! My coworkers think I am a little crazy to walk everyday, but I like it.
Here is a cute ptarmigan. There are flocks of them and they camouflage so well, it looks like the snow is moving! I can even recognize their tracks now (thanks to Cousin T). There was in article in the Yellowknifer newspaper warning people that there are a number of foxes around town. People should not feed them because that'll encourage them to be around people and they should be scared of us. Foxes don't attack humans, but they have been known to eat cats and small dogs, so Cashew is confined to the house. I saw a fox up close the other day, it was beautiful!
Another couple of ptarmigan greeted me this morning on my walk to work, they are so cute!
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Here's a funny story that my coworker (let's call her DL) told me yestarday when we went out for a department Christmas dinner:
DL just got back from a month long trip to Las Vegas and Hawaii. While she was in Las Vegas she realized that it was almost the end of Ramadan and she wanted to email me to wish me a happy Eid. Not knowing exactly what day Eid fell on she was on the look out for a person that 'looked' Muslim. She got into a cab and the driver was dark skinned, so she figured that he might be Muslim.
She then proceeded to ask him if he knew what day Eid fell on. He said he didn't know. There was a pause and he asked her why she wanted to know. She said it was because she has a coworker who is Muslim (i.e. me) and she wanted to know when to email her to wish her a happy Eid. He became kind of agitated and said that she should tell her coworker that she should 'accept Jesus as her personal savior or else she'll burn in hell!'. DL, not wanting to cause a scene just said, 'Okay I will', and he kept insisting that I will burn in hell if I don't accept Jesus (Peace Be Upon Him)!
Imagine! Someone in a whole other country saying I am going to burn in hell!?! Hey buddy, I'm Muslim, I already accept Jesus as a prophet of God! Maybe we should talk about your sentiments toward Muhammad (S.A.W)!
Anyways I found that story amusing and it seems like cab drivers are in my destiny!
3 comments:
LOL at the cab driver.
Wow it's really dark out there! I don't know how people don't get depressed without much sunlight...I find it very gloomy the days we don't get much.
Wow-lovely pictures. To bad thelittle birds were so dark. I know I shouldn"t really ask-but have you ever eaten one in a stew. I think people do n'est pas. It truly does look lovey and imagine dec 21 in only days away and youll be headed the other way.
Got to love that L.A. cabdriver-to feel otherwise would do only harm. Keep on blogging I to finishes a lovely scarf-for your father this am and I feel extremelly accomplished about it -but no visual blog. Love Mom looks like we are on the way to TO conference-Im excited.......
Mom: I never had ptarmigan in a stew but someone told me they have and it is tasty.
I am really glad you are going to Toronto for RIS, I think you'll find it interesting, fun and exciting. Congrats on the scarf! I am making another one for Matthew and then I am making leg warmers for myself.
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