Spring: Extreme edition

2nd of March...that means spring, right? Well, this year, Trondheim has apparently decided to give us the extreme edition. Other places, you can feel the spring coming on because the sun is shining and it is actually warming you up. And you smell the fragrance of spring. Not so in Trondheim. Here, you can feel spring coming because the wind blows like crazy.

The view out of my window.
Notice the bending trees and the very wet window pane.

And this weekend, we are apparently being treated to the extreme edition of spring, with sleet and a gale. Have I mentioned that I don't really like the in-between seasons - autumn and spring? I don't like the slush, the sleet, the rain, temperatures around zero degrees centigrade, and I especially don't like the the unpredictable weather. I mean, it does help that green things start sprouting and that things go from grey to colour. But that is later - like around May. Sometimes I wish that we could just skip autumn and spring, and just go directly from summer to winter and the other way. But I guess nature needs the time to get used to a new season.




Anyway, I am glad that I have a warm, dry house to be in with a possibility of making tea and watching a film or reading a good book (I Capture the Castle, for example) while the storm rages outside. I will try to remember that I am thankful that I am not outside, and look out at the weather with a satisfaction of knowing that this takes us at least one step closer to summer.

Cold and dark, with squeaky snow

This is Trondheim these days. There are mountains to the southeast and southwest, so even though the forecast says that the sun came up at 09:45 and went down at 14:36, the actual day is shorter. The sun actually never touches the house I live in, I think. So it is dark as night at about 4, making for looong evenings and disturbed sleep patterns. I try to see the sun every day (when it is a clear day), to be able to feel that it was actually day at one point.

Mentioning weather, it has mostly been clear the last week or so, giving temperatures below -10 degrees Celsius. There are lots of people around in their down jackets and with scarves wound around their head so that only the eyes peek out. Have you ever tried hugging someone who is wearing a down jacket? It's so soft - makes for great hugs. The only sad thing is that my cloak, which is my usual winter outerwear, is being repaired, and it is a bit too cold to use it.

But the skies have not been completely clear, we have had some new snow. It came when it was below -5 degrees Celsius, which gives snow with a wonderful sound. Oh, you thought snow was silent? Not exactly. When it is really cold, the snow sort of squeaks and crunches underfoot. I really like the sound cold snow makes underfoot - I know it is really winter when I hear that sound.

I have found out that I prefer steady seasons - summer and winter. I don't really like the changing seasons, spring and fall, because of all the chilly rain and uncertain weather. Sure, the winter is cold, but it is also beautiful, and you know what you wake up to day after day. Winter is actually the season, from my memory at least, when we have the most stable weather. We can often have really cold periods that last for up to two months (and even more!). That happens when a high pressure field moves down from Siberia and settles over parts of Norway. The sky is clear every day, the sky is starry every night, and the air is crisp and cold.

Still, I prefer sitting inside with a good book and a cup of tea looking out at all this, because the cold air really stings my face, and I often start freezing on my fingers and toes when I am outside for too long. Looking out at the moon shining down and the stars and planets shining down, I look forward to being finished with exams and starting my Christmas holiday.

Oh, and by the way, change is still scary. I moved out of my old big locker and into two small new ones, and  it's really weird. Now I have to go a different place every morning and afternoon - I have sort of changed my home base at school. I had my old locker for one and a half years, and I feel kind of sad leaving it. I think about the weirdest things sometimes. Pull yourself together, Julie! It's only a locker!

I think the exam period is starting to drive me just a tiny bit crazy - I'm starting to talk to myself now... I'll just procrastinate a bit more, to see if I can drive it any further (I am still trying to read 50 books this year, but I have 13 to go...).

Okay, I will stop my ramblings now. Have a great advent, and good luck if you are taking exams or the like!

Watching the world turn

Turning, turning, turning through the years.

Minutes into hours and the hours into years.

Nothing changes. Nothing ever can.

Round about the roundabout and back where you began.

Round and round and back where you began.

From the song "Turning" from Les Misérables, the musical

A sunset (or Earth-turning)
seen from St. Vincent

There is something special about watching the Earth turn. It can be beautiful, mesmerizing, peaceful and awe-inspiring all at the same time. Sunrise is an almost magical time. The first rays of the sun hitting the land, watching the sunshine chase the night away, it's peaceful and pulse-quickening at the same time. Sunset is equally fulfilling to watch, colourful and amazing, but softly fading into night. Here are some more sunsets from the Caribbean. It feels so big but at the same time so ordinary being in those moments when I have the time set aside to watch the sunrise or the sunset. It's like the thoughts I have are coloured by the colours in the sky - stress becomes nothing, and all thoughts mellow out. Now that winter is coming and the days are shorter, I can more often see the sunrise and sunset - if I just remember to look out of the window. Maybe I should make that a priority, to enjoy some tranquil moments during my otherwise slightly stressful days.

The progress of the sun across the sky is something I rarely observe except during the summer, so watching the sun move sluggishly across the sky is something that reminds me of hot summer days with nothing to do but to relax with a good book. Carefree and relaxing days, just watching the world turing and going for the ride.

Focault's pendulum

At university, I find myself drawn to another thing that marks the passage of time and the turning of the Earth - Focault's pendulum. The basic idea is that the pendulum moves in the same direction all the time, but because of the rotation of the Earth, its direction appears to be changing. The one here has metal pins set up around it, and these are knocked down about every 8 to 10 minutes (yes, I have timed it).

It is mesmerizing watching it rotate, knowing that when the next pin is knocked down, the world will have changed. Ever so slightly, but changed nonetheless. The Earth turns and we go with it, however unwilling we are to go at that pace. We are turning around and around, but never back again, even though it an feel that way. We are all time-travellers, travelling forwards in time at a speed of one second per second. Those second become hours and days, which become months and years.

Sometimes, watching the Earth spin, I feel so small, stuck down here on this pale blue dot. But then I think of how beautiful this blue ball is, with its teeming life and small everyday miracles like snowflakes and dew drops. It is humbling and awe-inspiring as well as peaceful to witness the turning of the Earth and the passage of time. Happy time travelling, remember to enjoy watching the world turn.

Snow in March

The snow dances
a wild dance.
The snow maidens are chased
by enamored suitors
who fly through the air
on their handsome horses.

The wind plays
with the trees,
in a game
full of surprises.

The snow men and wives
veer across
the white carpet
in a beautiful waltz,
while the snow maidens
are asked to join
in a passionate tango.

Everything dances
including my soul,
which swings slowly around
in the white
and is engulfed
in the intense dance.

Nature is having a ball tonight.
Winter's last joyous celebration
before spring comes along.

Snowy fields and blood

Microscopy is really interesting, and I'm getting to do quite a lot of it these days. Everyone who have bought a nice camera (SLR or similar) can attest to the fact that macro photography is fascinating. Taking up close pictures of everyday things like food and writing utensils becomes really interesting. Just imagine what happens when you start looking at things through microscopes!

Sometimes I find it hard to believe that what I am seeing through the microscope is what is actually there. Especially cells and organelles (the small thingies (very scientific name) inside cells), which to me have mostly been like atoms and molecules - you know they're there, but you can't see them. But now, suddenly, I can - thanks to these magnifying wonders.

Today, I looked at food mold (the white and green fluffy stuff you find on food that has gone bad) through a microscope at a relatively low magnification. It was really pretty! I wish I had taken a picture of it so I could show you. It looked like hills covered in fluffy snow catching the morning sun. Really beautiful and almost magical. And then you look at it without the microscope, and the immediate reaction is yuck! It really is like two different worlds.

Red blood cells I saw in the lab.
The oval is a red blood cell on its side.

I have recently looked at blood through a microscope too, and that was also pretty awesome. I didn't know that we had that many red blood cells in our blood compared to the number of white blood cells! And I kind of didn't think that they would actually have the form that we associate with red blood cells - but they do! Little discs with a dent in the middle of each side - quite neat, if you ask me.

In short, nature is amazing and awesome in all scales - from the global to the microscopic. And it is elegant and wonderful and really interesting.

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?

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