Darkness Increases - Not So Slowly

26 October 2012
8:49 AM

Sunrise at	9:21 AM	in direction	119°	East-southeast
Sunset at	5:47 PM	in direction	240°	West-southwest

Duration of day: 8 hours, 26 minutes (6 minutes, 44 seconds shorter than yesterday)

The big deal about today is the start of Civil Twilight - 8:28 AM.  Yes indeed.  I came in at 7:00 in the dark and worked for an hour and a half with it mostly dark when I glance out the windows.  We have been driving in at 8:15 and arriving about 8:30 and each day there was some degree of light.  Today, suddenly, no light.  It is overcast, and that greatly affects the quality of twilight.   Nevertheless, the change still feels sudden to me.

The flag circle remains dark with campus lighting still lit.

My Blue Max lights are getting regular use now.  The one on my desk at work, the one by my reading chair near the wood stove in the common room, and the one by the bed all contribute to my sense of well-being.  I did post information and photos about the summer solstice in the blog, but normally, I do not mark the passing of time and daylight as we approach the sun's zenith in our part of the world.  But I do take heed of the encroaching darkness.  There have been years that I counted the days to solstice - just to assure myself that the time of increased darkness would soon be past.  That tendency has lessened a bit, but I do take heed of the encroaching darkness.

I do adjust how I do things for the duration of the deep winter months, November through January.  For example, today I went out at midday to work the dogs in agility training.  I leisurely set up the jumps I wanted to use outside, then put each of the two dogs, Aria and JayJay, through the training exercises.  Then I returned the jumps to winter storage and went into the back yard to scoop poop.  Again the process was leisurely.  I had plenty of daylight to work in.  One month from now, I will skip the agility training because it will probably be too cold, but also, I will need to make sure that anything that needs light gets done in the time I have.  For example, I will still be sure to be out at midday so I can see clearly enough to keep the dog yard clean.  There are some things you simply can't do well with a head lamp.

Also, I will bring up a plant light I store in the garage for the ficus tree.  Three plants do well enough through solstice without the extra lighting; the ficus does great with just a bit of concentrated light.  Another benefits from being near the Blue Max floor lamp behind my reading chair and the third will need to be moved downstairs next week. 

The plants aren't the only living species that require extra light.  We turn on two deck lights to the southeast and one the illuminates a good section of the back yard for the dogs when they go out.  It is especially important for our oldest dog, sweet Mira Bai.  She can no longer see in the dark.  She will not extend too far beyond the steps.  The other three, two dobermans and one sled dog, still explore to the end of the fence, but as it gets darker and colder, the two dobies, at least will begin to restrict their pathways outside too.  As it gets darker and colder, the concentration of dog feces increases within the range of the light. 

Although a headlamp is sufficient for loading the wheel barrow and bringing in wood to stack, the task is much easier during the day.  Earlier this fall, there was no hurry about when wood would be carried in.  Now, just as we hope to do our other chores during day light, bringing in enough wood at once becomes more desirable.  We may not have enough wood to get through the week, and it will have to be hauled in during the evening.  Since it has remained mild, 20F on average, we don't need much and it's not an issue.  But soon, Gary will concentrate on bringing in as much wood as it takes to fill our garage wood stacking racks.  He will do that in hopes of not having to bring in more wood until December, around the Christmas break, or even January.  He will take advantage of the daylight for that chore.

The one task I don't really think needs daylight is shoveling the deck.  I think it is easier to shovel the walk between the deck stairs and the driveway, but going out on the deck in mid winter and shoveling during the dark hours is one of my favorite activities.  Serenity, crisp air, and the satisfaction of doing a necessary job are my reward.