And It Kept Snowing

It kept on snowing more or less all day today. For my own part, no need to go out... Had the laundry room (in the basement) booked anyway, so for exercise I just walked down and up the stairs a few times (only took the lift when I had a lot to carry). - Looking out my windows, I happened to catch the postwoman (I think!) on her rounds, and zoomed her in with my camera... Reminding myself of my privilege as a pensioner to more or less spend my time as I please, and not being obliged to be out and about it any kind of weather!

Let There Be Light

 

Monday afternoon walk

Wintry weather this week inspired me to get started with my Advent decorations a few days earlier than planned. (Looking at the dates, not really earlier than usual though, as Advent comes "late" this year, with the 4th Advent Sunday coinciding with Christmas Eve.)

Anyway, it struck me that I would have more time for decorating on Monday-Tuesday than I would have later in the week. So I started with the kitchen and bedroom yesterday; and continued with the living room and study today. 

Kitchen

 The kitchen is always the biggest project because there I also change the curtains.

Bedroom

Study

Living room

Balcony

Back in my childhood, as well as in my first flat back in my 20s, we/I just had one window star, in the kitchen (the same kind and colour of paper star as I still have in the kitchen), and one electric candlestick, in the living room. 

Ever since I moved into the flat where I live now, though (15 years ago), I've had the setup that I do now.  (Except that I've had to exchange one or two candlesticks over time. But this year - so far! - I did not even have to play "find the faulty light bulb" with any of them...)

Glad to have them all back up once again, to brighten up the December darkness.

(As usual, I will be adding my other Christmas things week by week until Christmas.)

 
In honour of the freshly fallen snow (so far only a very light layer) and outdoors temperatures now around -7°C (19°F), Barbie and Skipper have donned matching winter jackets + knitted hats (all made by my mum back in the 1960s). (Skipper only had summer shoes in her wardrobe, though, so I had to make her a pair of snowboots out of cotton pads and surgical paper tape...)

 

Today, just a short walk outdoors before lunch (photos from around 11:30 am).

Shadow Shot Sunday

Days are short here now, and even in the middle of the day the sun does not rise all that high over the horizon... Which also affects when and how it shines in through my windows, and what objects it hits when it does.

The bookcase in my living room

Two items on the wall in my study... The cross was a gift from an elderly relative of a friend of mine, with whom we + another friend spent a night on a holiday trip way back in 1977. (She gave each of us a different gift from her "collections".) The picture below the cross is my own framed photo of someone else's artwork on an outdoor exhibition, probably over a decade ago now. (One of several stone slabs with words on them, in the lawn in a park). 

My own outdoors shadow today at 2 pm

Linking to Shadow Shot Sunday

Tea, First Snow & Last Leaves

Wednesday through Friday were mostly staying-in days here, with windy and rainy weather going on outdoors, and various indoor routine chores to deal with at home anyway. Today I woke up to a thin layer of powder snow on the ground - but dry, and no ice underneath, so I decided on a walk downtown for some minor errands.

Not really enough to constitute a "Christmas market", but a few extra booths and stalls have been put up along one side of the square (as usual this time of year). 

My main errand today was to my favourite Tea Shop, though. I've been buying loose-leaf tea blends in this shop ever since I first moved to this town to live - 38 years ago in January! (They sell coffee too - but I don't drink coffee.)

Buildings and trees across the square reflected in the windows

 

 I also popped in at the Bookshop, recently reopened again after a fire in that building back in the summer. I didn't buy any books, but some stickers and stamps - as I realised the other day it's time to get started on my overseas Christmas cards. (I already had enough cards at home, but I wanted to show my appreciation of the bookshop being back in business...)

 I received the first Christmas card and letter myself this week - from a penpal in the US.

Looking back towards town on my way back home - the sun breaking through from the south, but still dark skies in the background.

Crossing the old cemetery closer to home - here you can see the very thin layer of powder snow on the ground.

The trees are all bare now, except for just a few leaves lingering here and there. In the cemetery I've noticed that some low branches on birch trees growing right next to lamp posts seem to tend to hang on to their leaves longer than the rest... Must be to do with the light from the lamps at night!

Santa is Tired Already

Today I had to go the shopping centre "across town" for an item I could not buy in the city centre. (A spare filter for a specific device.) After I had got my main errand over with, I also went for a bit of a stroll in one of the enclosed shopping malls. I didn't buy anything, but I snapped a few photos of their Christmas decorations...

Santa's sleigh was parked in the middle of the complex, but Santa himself and his reindeer were nowhere to be seen...  Perhaps gone shopping??

Oops, there's Rudolph - looking a bit lost ... Did he come down the chimney on his own?!

And here's Santa, snoring away on a bed in the next room... Shopping can be exhausting!

As I had nothing heavy to carry, I walked all the way back home. Good weather for it in that there was no icy wind blowing - but it was a very grey day, so the only photo I took was this one (below) of a mural that really stands out all the better on just such a day as this: overcast, all the leaves gone from the trees, and the river still like a mirror...

In case anyone is wondering, the "device" is an air purifier I bought back in spring; which proved helpful for my asthma, especially during the worst allergy season. (It has a very quiet night mode, which means I can have it turned on in my bedroom during the night without being disturbed by it. And yet at the same time it also serves a bit like a fan.)

Yesterday it started beeping, though - which is its way to say "My filter is worn out!"

Old filter, new filter