Monday, January 19, 2009

If winter comes ...

I associate this time of year, rather oddly, with looking at houses. Specifically, houses and flats in Glasgow in January 1970, with a view to buying somewhere to live after our wedding that summer. One of the most heartening aspects of what was frequently a depressing process was the fact that it was still daylight after work, and that we weren't always looking at these houses in the dark. The photo above was taken this afternoon in the slightly snowy Bishop's Glen - at about 3.45pm, I think. That's what the light actually was like - I've been fiddling with exposures but wanted the real thing as well.

But later, I had to go down to the shops. At 4.40pm the sky had cleared and it was still light - light enough for the big cumulus that had passed to have a bright whiteness about it against the pale sky. A bright star - presumably a planet - reminded us that night was coming, but I felt that same lift of the spirits as I did on the house-hunting days. And by the second half of February - birthday-party time when my boys were small - the sun will still be visible at coming-home-from-school time and Spring will be on the way. Cheers!

1 comment:

  1. Ah Chris...when I looked at the photo, it took my breath away. Instead of seeing "gloomy", I was astonished at the sheer BEAUTY! We get those "low-lying clouds" frequently here and they can be annoying, but add an air of mystery...

    Mark always hated the short days of winter. He would leave for work in the dark, drive 50 miles to work, then return home in the evening in the dark. I never quite undertood this, as for one reason or another, I associate shorter days with relaxation. Perhaps I am part bear? (grin)

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