Wednesday 6 January 2016

It’s Cold Out There

Yesterday was my 7th ‘Blogoversary’, can you believe it?!

It was on 5th January 2009 that I created my first blog, entitled The Island of the Voices – without knowing if anyone but myself would ever find it. But some people did find it – and, even more amazingly,  some of you are still with me! … also having followed when I widened my horizon further and sailed on to Beyond the Lone Islands (from 2011).

Whenever you came aboard, thanks for still tagging along! Winking smile

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After a mild autumn and no snow for Christmas, we’ve had a cold start to 2016. Around -10°C (14°F) here today… Which is “cold enough” for me, but still nothing compared to the far north of Sweden, where it’s been down to -40°C/F in some places.

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Yesterday I took the bus into town for some errands; got off at the railway station (above). Nice to see sun and blue sky…

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Later, waiting for the bus back home in the town centre.

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Pigeons seem to have the idea that people standing still by the riverside may involve food…

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Today: Dressed for a minor polar expedition.

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Some of the views (and water reflections) down by the river have changed since my early blogging days. Old factory buildings have been torn down, new highrise apartment buildings have gone up.

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Depending on how one manages to frame the images, it is still possible in some spots to get the view to look much the same as before though. Mind you, with furry mittens on, it’s not all easy to handle the zoom and settings...

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The camera gave up before I did today, claiming “weak battery”… I think it really just found it too cold, though, because the battery charged very quickly when I got back home!

Linking to Through My Lens and Weekend Reflections

34 comments:

  1. i don't think batterys like cold and you look very cold in that snow suit. or warm in the cold in the suit.. not sure if i could work a camera with mitten on. i love the upside down reflection. all your photos are beautiful but brrrrr on your temps.

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  2. forgot to say i have been around almost the whole time, you were one of my first followers and I one of yours

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    1. Sandra, I never expected so many longlasting friendships to come from blogging - but I'm very glad that they did! :)

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  3. Your temperatures are so incredibly low that I really can not grasp how everything survives. In your photos the air is clear and bright; the sky is blue; happiness shines. And there is never any litter. Keep writing and sharing pictures. It is always worth the effort. I learn such a lot from you.
    I send you warm tropical air, high humidity, and a touch of the monsoon.

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    1. Louise, my camera may be a little bit deceptive that way... (On grey and dull days, it often stays home; and when we are out together, it often tends to look away from litter and pretend it's not there...)

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  4. It seems a long time since I used it but I have a spare battery in a bag that I hang round my neck under my clothes. I can then keep cycling the batteries as they die.

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    1. Good idea, except that I don't have a spare battery for my main camera! (In normal weather it runs a long time on one charge.)

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  5. A very stylish minor polar expedition, may I add!
    Blue sky and sunshine do a lot to make the cold more bearable, don't they. It's still somewhere around 6-7 Celsius here during the day, and I am not complaining about the lack of snow and ice! I just fear it will come when I'll have to go back to work, making the trains even more unreliable and meaning long waits on platforms out in the cold...

    Happy Blogoversary!

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    1. Meike, sun and blue sky certainly does make the cold seem more bearable.

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  6. I especially like that last picture. We have forgotten what sunshine is like in the UK though yesterday was at least dry (if very misty). And it is till very warm for the time of year - around 8*C.

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  7. I forgot to say Many Happy Returns of the Blog!

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  8. Always enjoy your reflection pictures. I'm so use to you posting snow pictures, it seems strange that you have none. Stay warm.

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    1. Winter weather in the area where I live varies a lot, Janet. Some winters are cold and snowy - others mostly grey and rainy. We did not have a lot of snow last winter either. What I dislike the most is when it keeps snowing and thawing and freezing and snowing again so that the streets and walkways get very icy and slippery.

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  9. Happy Blogaversary Monica!
    Love your reflection photos, you have inspired me to capture a few of them for my blog this year.

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  10. Congratulations for blogging for so long! The reflections are lovely!

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    1. Thanks CameraGirl. Water reflections are among my favourite things to try and capture with the camera...

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  11. Beautiful reflections! Happy Blogiversary :)

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  12. Still a happy New Year and anniversary! Love the reflections here. Also, your polar expedition made me smile:) Those are beautiful teapots in your header. Your collection, or just to say you love tea? I have a whole drawer full of different teas.

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    1. Thanks Jeannette. It's been snowing a lot more the last couple of days, so good to have tried out the equipment :) The teapots are not mine, I'm afraid - they were on display in my favourite teashop a couple of years ago. Recycling the header from my archives... :) I do love tea, I have a shelf in one of my cupboards set aside for tea-tins!

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  13. Great mix of photos! And I loved your comment about your camera battery. I'm still laughing. :-)

    It sounds like your weather has been very similar to mine, even though I'm in the Northeast US. We had a mild Fall and start to Winter. Then this past week we had an arctic blast. We're warming up for the weekend, though, so the storm coming will be rain instead of snow (at least where I am).

    Congratulations on your blog anniversary! I started blogging in Feb/Mar of 2009. :-)

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    1. Thanks Anne. Seems we started blogging around the same time then! :)

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  14. And when are you going to the North Pole? beautiful reflection shots. Have a lovely weekend.

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    1. Thanks Margaret. As the snow has come blowing down here now (it's been snowing for two days), I think I can cancel the expedition to go searching for it. I'll do it the Winnie-the-Pooh way and just declare the first pole I find to be It!

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  15. Replies
    1. Thanks Jim, whereever you are in the world (I shall have to investigate)

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    2. Ah, yes, Sydney. Quite a contrast to my wintry views!

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  16. superbe endroit mm si il n a pas l air d y faire chaud ;o)

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  17. It has got colder here too but nothing like those temps

    Mollyxxx

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  18. That's a wonderful reflection!

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  19. I'm sorry that I missed your post at the time. As you know I've been a bit occupied recently. Many congratulations. Yes batteries don't like the cold. I'm sure that I must have seen your railway station before but I it's always good to be reminded of places again.

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