Happy Longerdays!

[Front-Ranger]

I think this is our first exclusively BetterMost holiday: Longerdays!

(with thanks to serious crayons and Pentheslea)

Happy Longerdays, everyone!

[serious crayons]

Thank you, Lee! And same to you!

The sun is now up for a few seconds longer each day. I can't say the difference is ever very noticeable, for me at least, until at least mid-February. But it's nice to know it's happening.

Here's an interesting article with great maps about how the solstice works, how daylight times differ in other parts of the country, how sunrise and sunset don't start expanding at the same rate, why the coldest part of winter usually follows the solstice (and differs by weeks, Lee, between CO and MN). Sorry, non-US Brokies, it's from the Washington Post and is very US-centric, but it will give you information you can loosely apply to your own geography.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/capital-weather-gang/wp/2017/12/21/winter-solstice-2017-five-things-you-should-know-about-the-shortest-day-of-the-year/?utm_term=.39d10c729ec8

And here's a chart showing how the coldest, warmest and in-betweenest times tend to follow a Dec-Feb, March-May etc. pattern. Apparently these are called meteorological seasons (based on weather), while the solstice-equinox system is called astronomical seasons, and the writer advocates for adopting the former.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/capital-weather-gang/wp/2017/12/01/this-chart-shows-why-winter-should-without-question-officially-begin-dec-1/?utm_term=.99eab5b7452e



 

[CellarDweller]

Happy Longerdays!

[Penthesilea]

Here's an interesting article with great maps about how the solstice works,

Cool maps, thanks for sharing .

[serious crayons]

I think this is our first exclusively BetterMost holiday: Longerdays!

You're right! It's very Brokieish.

Of course, we always keep a special place in our hearts for Brokie Thanksgiving. And, to a lesser extent, the Fourth of July.

[Front-Ranger]

Five years ago, I posted this on this day:

Some surprise good news. TODAY is the earliest sunset of the season. Sunrises will continue getting later and later until the 21st. Thanks to Earl Mellor
 for the info.

[serious crayons]

Some surprise good news. TODAY is the earliest sunset of the season. Sunrises will continue getting later and later until the 21st. Thanks to Earl Mellor  for the info.

Apologies if I asked you this same question five years ago, but why?

I will say the sun set plenty early tonight. It was cloudy, which exacerbates the effect, but it was dark by 4:30 at least.

[Jeff Wrangler]

Maybe this just applies to approximately the latitude of Philadelphia, but the almanac I use gives the length of the day (meaning daylight) for each Sunday. Today the length was 9 hours, 27 minutes. Next Sunday it will be 9 hours, 22 minutes. On December 20, the day before the Winter Solstice, the length will be 9 hours, 20 minutes. On December 27, the length will have crept back up to 9 hours, 22 minutes.

(I forgot today is St. Nicholas' Day, and next Sunday is St. Lucy's Day.)

[serious crayons]

Well, explaining this is beyond both my math and astronomy skills, but I found a chart that showed the sunsets getting earlier through Dec. 13 but then moving later starting the 14th. The speed at which they change increases as they go along. The sunrises get later throughout the month (by a minute every day or two in each case).

But the daylength is shortest on Dec. 21 and then starts increasing by a few seconds a day on Dec. 22.

[Front-Ranger]

Apologies if I asked you this same question five years ago, but why?     

It's kind of complicated. This site explains it rather well:
https://abc7ny.com/winter-solstice-latest-sunrise-earliest-sunset-solar-time/8593291/

NYC had its earliest sunset on the 7th. Here in Denver, it's happening around 4:35 pm each day.

[serious crayons]

It's kind of complicated. This site explains it rather well:
https://abc7ny.com/winter-solstice-latest-sunrise-earliest-sunset-solar-time/8593291/

NYC had its earliest sunset on the 7th. Here in Denver, it's happening around 4:35 pm each day.

But is the total daylight shortest on the 21st?

Here the sunrises and sunsets change in counterintuitive ways, but the shortest day is still the 21st.

[Front-Ranger]

For quite some time, sunset here has been at 4:37 pm. You can set your watch by it.

[serious crayons]

For quite some time, sunset here has been at 4:37 pm. You can set your watch by it.

4:33 here. This is the darkest week of the year.

[Jeff Wrangler]

4:33 here. This is the darkest week of the year.

In more ways than one. 

[Front-Ranger]

At last! Sunset is past 5 pm here in these parts. And sunrise is at 7:18 am.

Also, we may be headed towards the "January thaw" that we sometimes have. This morning, it rained for a bit.

[CellarDweller]

Yes, I've noticed that the darkness is coming later.

[serious crayons]

At last! Sunset is past 5 pm here in these parts. And sunrise is at 7:18 am.

According to my phone, sunset today is 5 p.m. sharp and sunrise tomorrow is 7:45.

So it's still pretty dark, but it's unusually warm. By which I don't mean literally warm. Daytime temperatures have been in the teens, 20s and 30s -- got up to about 40, maybe even over, a couple of days. If there's been any below zeros, they were at night. We've only had one or two days with single-digit highs.

[Front-Ranger]

Some surprise good news. TODAY is the earliest sunset of the season. Sunrises will continue getting later and later until the 21st. Thanks to Earl Mellor
 for the info.

Yay! We are about to start having evenings again, instead of early afternoon turning into night.

[CellarDweller]

Yup.  According to Google, the Winter Solstice is Tuesday, December 21, 2021 at 10:59 a.m. EST.

[Penthesilea]

Yup.  According to Google, the Winter Solstice is Tuesday, December 21, 2021 at 10:59 a.m. EST.

One more day- I can do that
For the last week I've been peeking towards the calendar, looking forward to Longerdays. Every time I think something along the lines of "What? It's already/still dark outside? - *'+%* "


Longerdays, followed by Christmas, sure is a ray of hope in dull winter days.

- and the sun has come out during the last minutes I take it whenever I can.

[Front-Ranger]

I'm getting ready for Longerdays! Getting out my lighter, smudging supplies, and little candle that I got on the Isle of Lewis when I visited there for the Equinox in 2010.

[serious crayons]

I remind myself now and then throughout the day that we've arrived at Longerdays. Very comforting!

[Penthesilea]

I remind myself now and then throughout the day that we've arrived at Longerdays. Very comforting!

Yes! And I try to gauge wether darkness comes noticeably later already. I'm not sure about it, but I do think it's getting brighter in the mornings. Hard to be sure however since I have a lovely period off work and get to sleep in every day.

[Jeff Wrangler]

Yes! And I try to gauge wether darkness comes noticeably later already. I'm not sure about it, but I do think it's getting brighter in the mornings. Hard to be sure however since I have a lovely period off work and get to sleep in every day.

This is one reason why I enjoy getting an almanac geared to the latitude where I live. It gives the time of sunrise and sunset every day, so it's possible to track the times of sunrise and sunset and watch sunrise get earlier and sunset later as the world moves from winter toward spring. In addition, at the beginning of each week, there is a notice of the length of the day. For example, this Sunday the length of the day is given as 9 hours 25 minutes. Next Sunday it's 9 hours 32 minutes. That's a gain of 7 minutes.

[Penthesilea]

This is one reason why I enjoy getting an almanac geared to the latitude where I live. It gives the time of sunrise and sunset every day, so it's possible to track the times of sunrise and sunset and watch sunrise get earlier and sunset later as the world moves from winter toward spring. In addition, at the beginning of each week, there is a notice of the length of the day. For example, this Sunday the length of the day is given as 9 hours 25 minutes. Next Sunday it's 9 hours 32 minutes. That's a gain of 7 minutes.

7 minutes gained in one week, yay! That's exactly what I need to hear in winter and why I like Longerdays so much
Good idea with the almanach.

[Front-Ranger]

Goodbye to 8 pm sunsets in Denver. Tonight will be the last one until May 2023. 

[Jeff Wrangler]

Goodbye to 8 pm sunsets in Denver. Tonight will be the last one until May 2023. 

According to my almanac, the last one here will be on Saturday. 

Just now when I went to check, I saw I had not turned the almanac page over to August. Just too distracted lately.

The moon was full last night. As it was rising it looked like a wheel of Gouda cheese.

[CellarDweller]

I just checked this site, it says sunset today will be at 8:01, and sunset on Saturday will be 7:59.

I'm not sure how the site works, and if there would be different times for different areas.


https://www.suntoday.org/sunrise-sunset/2022.html

[serious crayons]

Yes, you can set your location. When I pulled it up it was set for Denver. In Minneapolis, today's sunset is at 8:26. One of the few advantages of living this far north. By the end of the month it will be at 7:54.

Although then I plugged in Grand Marais, MN, a small vacation town up by the Canadian border. I've always thought sunset seemed especially late up there. But this table has it slightly earlier than here -- 8:21 and 7:46, respectively.

 

[Jeff Wrangler]

Yes, you can set your location. When I pulled it up it was set for Denver. In Minneapolis, today's sunset is at 8:26. One of the few advantages of living this far north. By the end of the month it will be at 7:54.

Although then I plugged in Grand Marais, MN, a small vacation town up by the Canadian border. I've always thought sunset seemed especially late up there. But this table has it slightly earlier than here -- 8:21 and 7:46, respectively.

It's the funniest thing. We've had this discussion before, and I still don't get it. 

I know our seasons come about because of the tilt of the earth's axis roughly 25.5 degrees, and I know "the sun doesn't set above the Artic Circle" in high summer. Yet as I visualize the sun "moving south" from the summer solstice to the autumn equinox, I still don't get why it doesn't get dark earlier "up north." It still seems counterfactual to me, even though I observed the phenomenon first had when I made my big cross-country train trip. It was later in the summer, and when the train stopped in northern Montana, it was light later in the evening than it would be back home. 

Maybe what I should do is the old science class trick of sticking a pencil through a styrofoam ball and moving it around a light bulb.    Then I have to make sure I have the pencil tilted enough and in the right direction. 

[serious crayons]

It's the funniest thing. We've had this discussion before, and I still don't get it. 

I know our seasons come about because of the tilt of the earth's axis roughly 25.5 degrees, and I know "the sun doesn't set above the Artic Circle" in high summer. Yet as I visualize the sun "moving south" from the summer solstice to the autumn equinox, I still don't get why it doesn't get dark earlier "up north." It still seems counterfactual to me, even though I observed the phenomenon first had when I made my big cross-country train trip. It was later in the summer, and when the train stopped in northern Montana, it was light later in the evening than it would be back home. 

Maybe what I should do is the old science class trick of sticking a pencil through a styrofoam ball and moving it around a light bulb.    Then I have to make sure I have the pencil tilted enough and in the right direction. 

I think at least part of the explanation is that at the solstice, the days are longer farther north. So on June 21, the sun sets at 8:33 in Philadelphia, 9:03 in Minneapolis and 11:43 in in Anchorage. Daylight in northern cities must shrink more quickly after June 21, though. By Sept. 22 everybody's got 12 hours. Then northern daylight keeps shrinking faster until Dec. 21 -- although, weirdly, at that point sunsets in Philadelphia are only 5 minutes later than Minneapolis (3:34 and 4:39 respectively, but sunRISES are earlier in Philadelphia. Anchorage sunset on Dec. 21 is 3:41 p.m.

These times are affected not just by longitude but also by latitude -- that is, where the city is located within the time zone.

 

[Jeff Wrangler]

These times are affected not just by longitude but also by latitude -- that is, where the city is located within the time zone.

I'm afraid you have that backward. Latitude is how far north (or south) of the Equator you are. Longitude is how far you are located west (or east) of the Prime Meridien (which runs through Greenwich, England).

I don't know how they do it now, but conventionally latitude and longitude were both expressed in degrees, minutes, and seconds. Thus the latitude of Philadelphia is 39 degrees, 57 minutes, 9 seconds North. The longitude is 75 degrees, 9 minutes, 55 seconds West. (I spelled everything out because I don't know how to get the degree symbol.)

You can see this in action in Close Encounters, where the UFO guys are getting this stream of numbers, and somebody recognizes them as latitude and longitude coordinates (which turn out to be for Devil's Tower).

[serious crayons]

I'm afraid you have that backward. Latitude is how far north (or south) of the Equator you are. Longitude is how far you are located west (or east) of the Prime Meridien (which runs through Greenwich, England).

Oops, yeah. I keep thinking the rule is that "longitude" is the longer one and therefore runs is north-south. Whereas the mnemonic I should be using is Jimmy Buffett!

 

[CellarDweller]

You can see this in action in Close Encounters, where the UFO guys are getting this stream of numbers, and somebody recognizes them as latitude and longitude coordinates (which turn out to be for Devil's Tower).

and with this post, you made me want to find the scene from the movie where tones are being used for communication.  Found it on YouTube.

[Front-Ranger]

I was letting the cat out and I noticed a certain duskiness in the garden today. I went out and looked up at the sky. It was a boneless blue--no clouds. But the sun wasn't yet in the sky at 7 am. 

[serious crayons]

Weird. Not to quibble, but this site says it's supposed to rise at 6:20 a.m. today. I'm hoping this is a sign the sun is rethinking its planned route this year and will just stick with the 14-hour days throughout the winter.

https://www.timeanddate.com/sun/usa/denver?month=8

[Jeff Wrangler]

Weird. Not to quibble, but this site says it's supposed to rise at 6:20 a.m. today. I'm hoping this is a sign the sun is rethinking its planned route this year and will just stick with the 14-hour days throughout the winter.

https://www.timeanddate.com/sun/usa/denver?month=8

That's the time my almanac gives for sunrise today in these parts: 6:20 a.m.

[Front-Ranger]

Well, I didn't think we were going to be scientific about it  . I meant the sun wasn't in the sky...I couldn't see it. It may have risen above the horizon, but it's got to travel farther before I can see it at my house.

I'm reminded of that lovely song "Ticket to the Moon": "but I'd rather see the sunrise in your eyes."

[serious crayons]

Well, I didn't think we were going to be scientific about it  . I meant the sun wasn't in the sky...I couldn't see it. It may have risen above the horizon, but it's got to travel farther before I can see it at my house.

I don't mean to draw out this debate, but I'm curious about a couple of things. 1) What gets in the way of your seeing the sun at sunrise -- trees, houses, or ... ? and 2) Does Denver not get good sunsets because the mountains block it or are they far enough away that they aren't really a factor? Obviously I've been in Denver for many sunsets but don't remember noticing or being disappointed. In fact, I do vaguely remember once arriving in the evening to a bright orange western sky. But sunsets are super important to me, partly because I am rarely up for sunrises (and now also because my apartment faces west so I see sunrises only reflecting off buildings and trees). I do distinctly remember that one thing I disliked about living in NYC for a year was skyscraper sunsets -- losing the sun and walking in shadows much earlier than you would without all those buildings in the way.


 

[Jeff Wrangler]

I don't mean to draw out this debate, but I'm curious about a couple of things. 1) What gets in the way of your seeing the sun at sunrise -- trees, houses, or ... ? and 2) Does Denver not get good sunsets because the mountains block it or are they far enough away that they aren't really a factor? Obviously I've been in Denver for many sunsets but don't remember noticing or being disappointed. In fact, I do vaguely remember once arriving in the evening to a bright orange western sky. But sunsets are super important to me, partly because I am rarely up for sunrises (and now also because my apartment faces west so I see sunrises only reflecting off buildings and trees). I do distinctly remember that one thing I disliked about living in NYC for a year was skyscraper sunsets -- losing the sun and walking in shadows much earlier than you would without all those buildings in the way.

For nearly 20 years, when the weather was clear, I could see the most beautiful sunsets in October from my condo. I would check the time of sunset in my almanac, and many times I've stood by my dining room windows and actually watched the sun sink below the horizon. Then just after sunset the sky overhead could be a very deep navy blue in color. As you moved your eyes from directly above down to the horizon, the sky went through all the colors of the rainbow down to a very deep red just at the horizon.

Now the new high rise next door blocks my view to the west-southwest, where the sun sets in October.

[serious crayons]

For nearly 20 years, when the weather was clear, I could see the most beautiful sunsets in October from my condo. I would check the time of sunset in my almanac, and many times I've stood by my dining room windows and actually watched the sun sink below the horizon. Then just after sunset the sky overhead could be a very deep navy blue in color. As you moved your eyes from directly above down to the horizon, the sky went through all the colors of the rainbow down to a very deep red just at the horizon.

Now the new high rise next door blocks my view to the west-southwest, where the sun sets in October.

Wow, sounds beautiful and very frustrating to lose it. I'm lucky in my current place -- I look out onto a city park. That won't change within my lifetime. The biggest problem I have at this time of year is a some thick trees that semi-obscure the setting sun during part of its arc (and I can't see the horizon at all). But it's hard to complain about a view of trees.

In that way, though, sunsets are actually better in winter, when the trees are leafless. When I first moved in I thought, this is going to be great! Beautiful sunsets in the depths of winter! What I failed to account for was how far south the sun is during winter's depths. It's hidden behind another wing of the (five-story) building all but a couple of hours a day. By sometime in February, though, it emerges from the end of that wing and sunsets were at their beauty peak. I took a lot of cool photos of the brilliant red or orange sky behind trees. Well, as cool as iPhone photos from your balcony get, anyway.

 

[Front-Ranger]

My house faces east, so there's my yard (with a large maple tree), the road, the neighbors' yards and trees, their facades and roofs, etc. So I don't see the sun until at least a half-hour after sunrise. There's a steep slope and about a dozen steps down to the back yard, which faces west. And more trees, which partially obscure the sunsets. Fortunately, on the top floor, there's a large deck where I can look out and see the sunsets and the mountains.

The mountains don't really obscure the sunsets here at all. Reason is because we are already so high; Denver is the mile-high city! The Alps are way more impressive than the Rockies, even though they're not nearly as tall, because they rise from a lower plain or valley. We have big skies and spectacular sunsets! Jeff, if your view was cut off like that, you have been robbed! Did they make you sign a waiver when you bought your place?

[serious crayons]

For a while there my newspaper beat included covering Carver County, an traditionally rural county that now had a couple of towns of about 25,000, a town of about 12,000, one of about 9,000 and a few much smaller. There's still farmland in between, but it's shrinking.

When I was about 20 I worked in one of the towns. At the time it was about three blocks long, surrounded by open fields. Now its population has quintupled. Suburban developments and chain restaurants and stores sprawl out in every direction. The county is the fastest growing in the state (and the wealthiest).

Residents are constantly opposing new developments for ruining the views from their houses. "I moved here 10 years ago so I could have this beautiful view" people would say. I'd always think, "How do you suppose the people who moved here 20 years ago (or 30, or 40, or 50) feel about YOUR house?"

It got particularly intense over a parcel of land owned and occupied by Prince and his ex-wife. After they divorced he razed the house (he was living in his nearby recording studio, Paisley Park, also in Carver County, when he died). His heirs sold the property for a development of upscale houses. When the city council discussed it, city hall was overflowing. (The council approved it after the developer pledged to donate part of the property for a park.)

Anyway, when people complained about that kind of thing, government officials would sometimes say, "If you want to keep your view in Carver County, you have to buy it."

But in fact, you wouldn't have to. You could just live next to a park. The county has two big parks and an arboretum. A friend lives in a giant sprawling condo complex that's kind of ugly, but her unit looks out onto a bike trail that won't be demolished anytime soon.

So long story short: one of the things I like about my apartment is it looks out onto a city park. Nobody's going to suggest changing it -- if a city hall overflowed over Prince's place, a park would make it explode. There's also a wetlands back there, developing on which, I believe, is illegal.

[Front-Ranger]

It seems like just yesterday I was warning people that the sun was going to start setting before 8 pm. But now I see that in just a day or two, it's going to set before 7 pm! Stop the world, I want to get off!

[Jeff Wrangler]

It seems to me that in years past, by now I would have moved my summer shirts to the rear of the closet and begun to wear my fall/winter shirts. Not this year.

[serious crayons]

It's supposed to get to about 80 today and 88 tomorrow, but after that it drops off quickly. The next 10 days or so (according to my phone) the highest temps will be 73 and 75, most in the 60s, and one 59! Brrrr! Of course, in January this would sound like Paradise.

Sunset here is at 7:16. 

[CellarDweller]

I'm looking forward to the electric bill going down due to the cooler weather, and the A/C not running as often.

[Front-Ranger]

It seems like just yesterday I was warning people that the sun was going to start setting before 8 pm. But now I see that in just a day or two, it's going to set before 7 pm! Stop the world, I want to get off!

It's 6:45 pm and I see a glimmer of pink light through the trees; otherwise all is dark. Going out to catch the last few rays.

[Jeff Wrangler]

By the end of this month, sunset will be at 6:00 p.m.

[Front-Ranger]

I went out this morning to see if there was a frost last night. No signs of frost except on a raised bed of pumpkins, in between the pumpkins there were a few sprinkles of ice crystals. If tradition serves, it will turn bitterly cold on Halloween and children will have to put coats over their costumes once again.

[Front-Ranger]

There is a ray of hope (literally). I'm told we've passed the earliest sunset of the season. The sun will continue to set at about the same time for a week or two, then afternoons will lengthen by about 4 minutes a day.

Sunrises--that's a different story. They'll continue to be later until December 21st. Keep that inner light burning bright until then!

[serious crayons]

There is a ray of hope (literally). I'm told we've passed the earliest sunset of the season. The sun will continue to set at about the same time for a week or two, then afternoons will lengthen by about 4 minutes a day.

Sunrises--that's a different story. They'll continue to be later until December 21st. Keep that inner light burning bright until then!

Thanks for the update, FRiend! I've now reached the point where I have no sun shining directly into my apartment. Last week I got about 30 minutes a day of direct sun; now the sun doesn't climb above the other wing of the building. Then it disappears altogether by about 4:30 and it's pitch dark in less than an hour. Depressing!

[Jeff Wrangler]

Thanks for the update, FRiend! I've now reached the point where I have no sun shining directly into my apartment. Last week I got about 30 minutes a day of direct sun; now the sun doesn't climb above the other wing of the building. Then it disappears altogether by about 4:30 and it's pitch dark in less than an hour. Depressing!

Depressing indeed! Right now, since my office is right inside my living room windows, I have to close the curtains for a couple of hours in mid-day because the sun is shining directly into the windows. After some time I can open them again because the sun has moved behind the new high rise next door. 

This kind of speaks to why I like to put up Christmas lights outdoors. If the lights come on shortly after dark, I like to be able to look out a window and see the lights shining in the darkness. It's sort of like the lights are defying the darkness.

You wonder how the Ancients figured out how bit by bit the daylight began increasing after December 21. I mean, sure, eventually you would notice (by February at least, its really noticeable), but it's such a small increment at first. How did they figure out when the solstice was? It makes perfect sense to me that you would have a celebration of some sort to celebrate the coming return of the unconquered sun.

Dies Natalis Solis Invicti

https://imperiumromanum.pl/en/roman-religion/roman-feasts/dies-natalis-solis-invicti/

[serious crayons]

Depressing indeed! Right now, since my office is right inside my living room windows, I have to close the curtains for a couple of hours in mid-day because the sun is shining directly into the windows. After some time I can open them again because the sun has moved behind the new high rise next door. 

My office is right inside my living-room windows, too. At this time of year I'll take all the sunlight I can get! In the summer it's too much in late afternoon and I'm forced to turn on the AC for an hour or two.

This kind of speaks to why I like to put up Christmas lights outdoors. If the lights come on shortly after dark, I like to be able to look out a window and see the lights shining in the darkness. It's sort of like the lights are defying the darkness.

Do you have a balcony? I've thought about putting lights up either inside or on my balcony.

You wonder how the Ancients figured out how bit by bit the daylight began increasing after December 21. I mean, sure, eventually you would notice (by February at least, its really noticeable), but it's such a small increment at first. How did they figure out when the solstice was? It makes perfect sense to me that you would have a celebration of some sort to celebrate the coming return of the unconquered sun.

Good question! At some point, of course, they fashioned some kind of time-keeping device. Certainly by the time Stonehenge was built. A sundial wouldn't be that precise though, would it?

I still don't quite understand why sunsets start getting later mid-month but sunrises keep going. I mean, I realize the result is that total hours of daylight continue shrinking until the 21st, but why would it be one-sided like that?

 

[Jeff Wrangler]

My office is right inside my living-room windows, too. At this time of year I'll take all the sunlight I can get! In the summer it's too much in late afternoon and I'm forced to turn on the AC for an hour or two.

The real problem that I have is that because of the way I have to situate things, I get sun on the computer monitor, and that, of course, makes it difficult if not impossible to work.

Do you have a balcony? I've thought about putting lights up either inside or on my balcony.

I think I tried that once years ago, but I couldn't figure out how to run an extension cord except keeping the sliding door open a crack. Today I suppose there might be battery-powered lights that I could use. I had a large illuminated star that I hung in the dining room window until I went down to the street myself and learned that nobody could see it from outside anyway.

The place I really like to see the outdoor lights is at my dad's house. It's in a suburban neighborhood, so it's really dark at night, especially at this time of year when it gets dark so early.

Good question! At some point, of course, they fashioned some kind of time-keeping device. Certainly by the time Stonehenge was built. A sundial wouldn't be that precise though, would it?

Maybe it's a chicken or the egg kind of thing. They had to know where and when the solstices were in order to build Stonehenge to tell them when the solstice was.

I still don't quite understand why sunsets start getting later mid-month but sunrises keep going. I mean, I realize the result is that total hours of daylight continue shrinking until the 21st, but why would it be one-sided like that?

I don't understand that either.

[serious crayons]

The real problem that I have is that because of the way I have to situate things, I get sun on the computer monitor, and that, of course, makes it difficult if not impossible to work.

Oh, I see. I don't have that problem because I face the southern wall with the windows to my right, looking west. The sunlight either comes straight into my windows, which can get hot but doesn't cause a glare, or at an angle that shines on the wall behind me.

I think I tried that once years ago, but I couldn't figure out how to run an extension cord except keeping the sliding door open a crack. Today I suppose there might be battery-powered lights that I could use. I had a large illuminated star that I hung in the dining room window until I went down to the street myself and learned that nobody could see it from outside anyway.

The place I really like to see the outdoor lights is at my dad's house. It's in a suburban neighborhood, so it's really dark at night, especially at this time of year when it gets dark so early.

Yes, those Druids appreciated their yule logs for a reason!

Correct, there are battery powered lights. I think I'm going to order some from Amazon, even though I have plenty of the plug-in kind I used to use inside and outside my house, to offer more placement flexibility. However, I do have an outlet on the balcony wall.

Maybe it's a chicken or the egg kind of thing. They had to know where and when the solstices were in order to build Stonehenge to tell them when the solstice was.

 

[Front-Ranger]

According to the old Farmers Almanac, it happens because Earth orbits the sun at an irregular rate. It speeds up and then slows down.

[Front-Ranger]

It's here! It's finally here! Yes, friends, we have all made it through the darkest days of the year, cheering each other on. We can count on 4 minutes more of daylight every single day, thanks to good old dependable sol.

I have my candle ready for this evening and I sprinkled rosemary on my morning egg. How will you celebrate?

[Jeff Wrangler]

I lighted our bayberry candle at sundown. 

Merry Christmas to all Brokies far and near. 

[Jeff Wrangler]

Sunset today is 5:03 p.m. On New Year's Day it was 4:46 p.m. So that's--what?--17 more minutes of daylight in the afternoon?