I will have a December post if it kills me

Some while back, I noted I had written no posts at all in December, last year. In fact, I was, at the time, having a blogging crisis (I am fond of the artistic licence to exaggerate) during which I came very, very close to giving it up altogether. Oh, thank God I didn't, because it would have been unthinkable...but I note I have not exactly been particularly wordy recently either. This is, of course, to do with the climate and the weather and the darkness - location, location, location, in other words, dear Reader. Living a stone's throw from the North Pole has its lighter and its darker sides, and currently, we are going through the latter. It has a strange, flattening effect on one's writing (at least this is as convenient an excuse as any I'm likely to come up with before December's done again, and I still don't have a December post to my name). Weirdly enough, the darkness does lend itself to some lovely photography (excuse me while I blow my own trumpet).
These pictures, dear Reader, are from my balcony, and depict not the constellations above me (a chance to see them would be a fine thing in current prevailing weather conditions) but a very wet type of sleet falling.
I am so fond of these photos (I took a couple a few weeks or so ago, when we first had a light dusting of sleet) that I have already got several up on my flickr site, and I'm too embarrassed to flood more and more of the same thing there (don't ask me why - it is as much my site as this one, so I should be allowed to do whatever dorky thing I like there. Mostly, I do, too, but for some reason, these (oh God) artsier efforts make me feel shy). Which is why I am treating you, dear Reader, to them, here on my bloggy. Here, have another one (sorry, but I do like them an awful lot).

And because I do like you, too, an awful lot, although I've been neglecting to say much, here's one more showing my downwards view as well as the galaxies of snow. I think it has a distinct stage-lit feeling to it. The blogger enters, upstage left...she is going home.

Shrove Sunday, anyone?

I don't think it exists in the English-speaking world - and even Shrove Tuesday is probably better known as Pancake Day. However, in Finland we are lucky enough to have both a Sunday and a Tuesday dedicated to sledding and eating a special baked good filled with whipped cream and strawberry jam and/or marzipan. Laskiainen is the name of the day. Clicking on the link will allow you to see what it's all about:

"Holy shit I'm gonna die heeheehee"

Finally

Who knows, maybe winters are something we are going to lose. I am certainly appreciative of having even a taste of one this year. I made a snow lantern on my balcony.