Dreaming of a white Christmas

The effect of snow on people is quite interesting. Especially here in dark Norway. November is traditionally the most dreary month because it is just getting darker and darker and there is usually no snow. But when it snows, everything changes. Suddenly, it appears to be much lighter outside, and going outside isn't just something to get through, it can suddenly become this wonderfully aesthetic experience. Children (and older children :P) play outside and the trees are really pretty.

So pretty and white and pure *sigh of contentment*

But snow is just solid water - why do we love it so much and wish for it for Christmas? To many people, it is an essential part of spreading Christmas cheer. But it also means slippery roads and pavements - so it is best to wish for snow when you have no place to go (let it snow, let it snow, let it snow). Some people celebrate Christmas in places where there is no chance for snow, like Australia or Texas, USA. But here in Norway, snow is a part of the weather report that we enjoy talking a lot about. Especially those who like to go skiing. The amount of snow in the mountains during the winter also affects the price of our electricity, and is therefore discussed thoroughly.

I expect most of you know what snow actually is - ice crystals formed in the clouds which don't melt on the way down. Every natural snowflake is unique, but in a lab it is possible to make two identical ones. For chemists and biologists, one of the most interesting properties of water is that the solid is less dense than the liquid. So then you get an isolating layer of ice on top of lakes, and fish can survive on the bottom. Another interesting property is that if you exert pressure on ice, it melts. That is part of the reason that ice is so slippery - especially on skates.

I mostly enjoy the visual aspect of snow - I don't particularly like to walk on slippery roads. But when there is new snow on the trees and the ground, every sound is muffled, and each step either sounds crunch es or creaks, it is absolutely wonderful. Sometimes it feels as though I have stepped into a magical land - Narnia or something like it. I am dreaming of a white Christmas - are you?

Books read: 51
Pages read: 15215

Hilarious Carols

It is nearly Christmas, and you know what that means...children going from door to door singing (not necessarily beautifully) Christmas carols. In addition, the Christmas songs are taking over the airwaves, so that every time you turn the radio on you get 'Driving Home for Christmas', 'All I Want for Christmas' (with Justin Bieber singing this year, just as a treat), or (horrors of horrors) 'Twelve Days of Christmas'. I'm not saying I'm opposed to Christmas carols, they do get you in the Christmas spirit (whatever that is). It's just that I get a bit fed up with listening to the same (old) unoriginal songs over and over (and over, and over, and over....you get it) again.

So this year, what about the old boring Christmas carols with a twist on them? Youtube has this audio transcription tool which quite often does quite a bad job of transcribing the things that are being said in the video. This can often turn out really funny, like in this video, where these two guys (called Rhett and Link) sang some Christmas carols, uploaded them to youtube, and then used the audio transcription to make a new video with the new lyrics. Among the things the poor lover gets during the twelve days of Christmas are experienced ranch hands and two fertile doves (I can't stop laughing). It is quite hilarious, on the whole.

I hope this will brighten up your December day (if the Christmas lights aren't helping), and I'll be back later (when one of my two exams will be done - yay!).

Books read: 50
Pages read: 14756

Success!

For those of you who appreciate memes

I did it! I read fifty (yes actually 50) books this year! I planned for this to happen, of course, but I am kind of amazed that it did anyway. I'm not huge on self-confidence, as you can probably guess.

So now that I have read all these books, and I also have a lot of books, I have been thinking about what I should do with all these books. I mean, put them in a bookshelf, obviously, but how? A lot is too relative, so I tell you what, I'm going to count all the books in my bookshelf here (The books that are not notebooks, reference, or school related. Basically the books designed for cover to cover reading) (I have more books, but they're not here). Just hold on for a second...

112. So then I, as the sorting and collecting kind of person that I am, unavoidably start thinking about how to sort and organise all these books. For as long as I can remember owning more than one shelf (80 cm long) full of books, I have been organising them alphabetically by the author's last name, like a library. But there are so many ways to organise books!

My books, sorted by colour. Isn't it pretty?

After I moved here, I decided to try a new way that I had seen on (wait for it...) the internet. I sorted my books into two categories - series and singles - and sorted the singles by colour. Not very systematic, I know, but I don't have that many books, so I can find the book anyway. The series then followed, in the order I preferred relative to the size of the bookshelf and the colour scheme. I am pleased with this sorting, and I also find it aesthetically pleasing (I know - I'm such a girl).

But there are many alternatives to these two ways of sorting books. I could organise them by height, or number of pages, or how well I liked the book, or publication year, or genre, or themes, or any other criteria you could possibly think of. I think the most fun would be to have a system that only you can understand. For example, you could group them according to what they meant to you, whether they (in your head) relate to each other in any way (across the usual boundaries) or just your personal preference.

Advent has just started, and there is snow on the ground and a calendar waiting for me in the corner. So I will go now, and open today's package. I hope your December has been nice so far.

Books read: 50
Pages read: 14616