After a frustrating and pretty much fruitless night of aurora chasing on Thursday night we tried again tonight.
Following a route we took during the day. The temperature had dropped to -8 with a wind chill of instant frost bite. Challenging conditions for us, the tripod and the camera. First stop - an arc of green over a frozen lake. Not spectacular (by Norway standards anyway) - but still showing signs of pinks. Not too shabby. Then we stopped near the sleeve chewing horses. Couldn't see them in the dark so I set up to grab a couple more shots. Christ on a bike - they can creep up on you! I nearly had a bloody coronary and knocked over the tripod when I turned round to see a large shape behind Stu. The leader of the pack had spotted us and come over to say hi. The rest were close behind. We didn't stay long as we were worried about them slipping on the sheet ice that had formed on the road. So we set off for some scenic foregrounds. Best laid plans and all that... Another few km on and the skies were dancing. We quickly pulled over, camera out, focussed on a handy tree and start snapping. Beautiful display that lasted around 15 minutes. The result is below (I have to say that that display would have looked just as nice shot over our cabin...)
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It's Friday and time for me to recap what we have been up to (it took us a while to remember tbh)...
Not quite as planned... Yesterday the plan was to drive to the glacier lagoon, stay until nightfall and get some photos of the aurora over the icebergs. Even if that meant staying past midnight. I don't think we're really cut out for 'proper' aurora chasing. We got bored very quickly. Around 8pm we decided to sack it and start the four hour return drive. After half an hour or so of driving the bloody sky went green. But: on the drive back we did have to slow right down for a tiny little white arctic fox who was crossing the road. That has made our holiday so far. Avoiding the crowds in the busiest area of Iceland... Today I was determined to say hi to some horses. It's a tradition. So we set off in search of less-travelled roads. Our route took us up to Gulfoss up into some beautiful snowy landscapes. We did stop. Briefly. A few clicks of the camera and back in the car. Straight past Geysir (it was absolutely heaving there) and back down a quieter road. There are horses everywhere in Iceland, though generally they are inaccessible, there is nowhere to pull over nearby or they are surrounded by bus loads of holidaymakers. We finally found some in a quiet residential area (massive farming area with around six houses in total). After a little encouragement they came over to say hello. Their coats are so thick this time of year - they're like cuddly toys (who nibble your jacket). A few bends later we came across a huge frozen lake and around 20 horses free roaming. And no (other) tourists to be seen. After half an hour of freezing cold, biting wind and having my sleeve chewed I finally decided it was time to head back to the cabin for a brew. Plus Stu looked a little bored in the car. Great end to our day. And we scouted out some potentially quiet aurora viewing spots for the next few nights. Today's pics:
It's so good to be back in Iceland. I don't think I will ever lose that tummy-flip feeling when we're coming into land, turning right into Reykjanes peninsula with views of the glaciers. Just stunning.
This year we've decided to stay on the South coast - not too far from Selfoss (decent sized town with supermarket, banks and a cafe). The plan is to get ourselves over to the glacier lagoon, Jökulsárlón, sometime in the week. Its a decent drive from where we're staying (decent means bloody miles). But that place never disappoints. We'll be packing enough supplies (and blankets) to stay into the wee small hours if there is even a remote chance of catching some green while we're there. I am determined to capture a shot of the icebergs and the aurora one day. Today's little adventure With the promise of a storm and road closures all along Road 1 in the South, to the east of our cabin, we had already decided not to take any risks today. We planned to drive inland a little, take a left turn and head back down towards the coast taking in some of the small historic towns en-route. The storm was predicted to peak around 3pm - so we set off around 10am, aiming to be back for lunch. I think fate does play a hand at times. And after the minor 'sliding off the road' hiccup we had on our last trip I thank the green gods we took that route today - at that time. As we got to within spitting distance of the left turn we spotted a car parked up, facing towards us. We could see at least three people - one waving frantically. I pulled over about 100m away. And we walked the rest of the way to check they were ok. They were fine. However their car was well and truly stuck in snow. And it was absolutely freezing. And the wind chill factor was freezer x 10. So after a little convincing they left the car there and we gave all four of them a lift back (really felt for the chap who had to squeeze in the boot) to the nearest petrol station / roadside cafe. Where they could at least stay warm while they tried to sort out a tow. So:
Their car was only the second we had seen on the road (the first had pulled in to check on his horses several miles back). Hopefully they got their car back before the storm settled and made it safely back to their lodge. There'll be no trips out tonight. The wind is strong enough to blow you off your feet. And if the aurora does make an appearance (not looking likely) - we'll be watching through the window. As I didn't get chance to take any photos today - here's one from last night... Not saying Stu orders a lot but I know that Peter Parcelforce's wife gets in at 1.30pm and puts their heating on. And it's run on Calor gas. And a bottle lasts around 3-4 weeks and costs them about £40 a go.
(Today's delivery was mainly No Nails and wood glue. We're finally putting some spindles back on the first floor landing. ) Our heating comes on at 4pm. Unless Stu sneaks it on a little earlier. Ours runs on oil. It's not cheap. And as we have a little oil level monitor in the kitchen, by the kettle, we can increase our anxiety whenever we make a cup of tea. In other news:
[Panic over - it's just one of the hens doing the 'laid an egg noise'. It sounded strange as it's echoing all around] And now I've lost my flow. Today's photo is of Leah from yesterday's snow day... I might have mentioned that we're off to Iceland in February.
As we now live in the back of beyond with two dogs, an indoor cat, an outdoor rabbit and three hens going on holiday is not quite as simple. The animals can't fend for themselves and I'm pretty sure Stu's Dad and sister wouldn't be overly impressed if we dropped the whole menagerie on their doorstep en-route to the airport. So we had to find someone to come and live-in. I joined Trusted Housesitters - a site matching people who like to housesit with those who have a need. Simples. Simples if people apply to your advert. We had one applicant initially. He came to visit us before Christmas. He was scared of a wasp that had somehow found its way into one of the bedrooms. He didn't seem to be listening when I explained (several times in a this-information-is-important voice) that George is not allowed out. So - what do we do? One applicant who is scared of his own shadow and is looking forward to a holiday ("and how long can we leave the dogs alone in the day?" and "if it snows obviously we won't be able to make it). So we tentatively discussed him, and his wife, looking after our most precious possessions - for nine days. Then - earlier this week a 40-year old Communications / Marketing person got in touch. Could she sit for us? Do we have good broadband? We spoke via Skype. She made notes. She listened. She understood. She wants to make sure she knows all the animals names before she comes. She is perfect. She's got the job. All sorted. But being me....my mind is now on the house:
Also on Skype she was wearing a big fleece - she looks used to a cold house. She'll be reet. Today's photo: Stu, car, snow - Iceland November 2015 This post is not related to Life in Wales. If you're looking for sheep updates - move along.
Last year I commenced a six-month, seven-days-a-month, contract for a charitable organisation with its headquarters in Germany. That's the background. And the basis of this post. Seven days a month was never going to make me a millionaire. And money does not come into this. So we'll move past that. Working seven days a month (mainly from home) would be a challenge. The main consideration being:
That has proved to be harder than I'd thought. I am a hands on communicator. Trying to find the balance between advising and 'doing' has been so hard. I need to own the communications - I've discovered that I'm not happy to just throw them a strategy, stand back and advise. I might have been ok with that if they hadn't ignored pretty much every bit of my advice - or that's the way it seems to me. And that's the crux. Why pay for a consultant then completely ignore every bit of advice, keep them out of the loop and carry on regardless? (Remember this is my perception and I'm a little loony so not always to be trusted). I'm cross with them. They're wasting money. So there. (I've also just realised that those six months are probably up). If you made it this far looking for sheep...here's a tiger from my archives We're in our tenth month in the new house and work has started on the front guest room (Jess and Felix's room).
Sitting upstairs in my office I can hear the woodchip paper being scraped off. It's a messy job - every time I nip in to see him I get woodchip stuck to my socks. As it's now 2019 - some 2018 thoughts..: Family
Life in Wales
Work, life and sleep balance
This year things will have to change - I really need to earn some proper pennies. I guess I'll just have to start practising setting an alarm. And try and motivate myself to the idea of looking for a contract. And wearing something other than farm fashion. And dig out some bras. That sounds completely shit. I can do most of that if I put my mind to it - but digging out bras is a step too far. But I can't find work until after lambing. I need to be around for that. On a completely different note: Anyone got an iPhone X? I have several hundred screenshots on mine - all done in error when I try to lock the screen. Anyone else have the same issue or is it just me? Today's photo - just another sunset over the paddock Finally sitting at my new desk, in my new office space in the attic. Far away from the rest of the house - the only sound is the wind howling round the chimney.
We've just done our online Christmas food shop. Food for the next two weeks hopefully. Since we moved to Wales I have come to loathe shopping. But that hasn't stopped me spending. The majority of Christmas gifts have been bought online this year - a first for me. I normally spend weeks trawling through TKMaxx. And several more weeks trying to peel off the bloody labels. After we did the food shop we had a look at the Ikea website for shelving. Dear God. Trying to work out Ikea 'shelving systems' online needs to be on the list of most stressful situations (along with weddings, divorce, moving house etc.). Having almost come to blows we gave up and are going to face the real thing tomorrow. Another trip to our nearest Ikea. As an added bonus there is a Homesense (TKMaxx household) not too far off the route to/from Warrington. So we (mainly me) can console ourselves with a mooch in there too To be honest - Stu is likely to be close to tears by the end of the day. I'll take some Kleenex just in case he gets all emotional. In other news...
Twenty days until Christmas. And for the first time in years I haven't done all my Christmas shopping.
The house is taking over everything. Every spare minute. We're really close to completing the attic bedroom / dressing room / office. Which is good as we have four guests staying for the festivities. As we're using Farrow and Ball paint in the bedroom we decided to use their undercoat. The first tin we opened had the consistency of cottage cheese. I opened the second (which looked like paint should) and used that one while Stu ploughed on painting the ceiling with gloop. Before we bought this house I hadn't lifted a paintbrush in a long time - not since I met Stu. Why would I? He's super speedy and super neat. But this house is too much for one person to decorate alone. So I have rediscovered my painting mojo. And I'm enjoying it too. In other Christmas-prep news:
Today's pics: Icelandic tree decorations from our favourite (but far too expensive) hotel in Snaefellsnes - Hótel Egilsen. So to round off our Monday we had a blast of swirling green. Followed by a storm. We got up this morning to the same storm. Very strong winds and driving rain. One of those days when you'd rather snuggle up on the sofa with Netflix. However, we set off and after ten minutes of driving to the other side of the mountain behind us....no storm. Today was all about culture. A trip to the Alta museum (World Heritage Rock Art Centre) to see ancient rock carvings and to learn a little about Sami. Nb: It is worth mentioning that on entering the museum, after paying our entrance fee, we were told that the rock carvings were outside (obvious) and that they didn't recommend we walk down as it was slippy. Of course we were going. We'd just paid - in real money. So she provided studs for our shoes. Which prevented us from slipping. Genius eh? I didn't mention that our boots had their own studs that we could use. You know..use theirs and get our pennies worth. Of course the same storm that blighted us at the cabin was also battering Alta fjord. So we got wet. The storm is dying down here at the cabin now - but the skies are very heavy and I don't think there is a hope in hell of anyone turning on the big light. So we're doing the Netflix thing and binging on The Sinner. Tomorrow the weather forecast is far better inland. So, provided we get out of bed early, we'll probably head towards Kautokeino or Karasjok. Land of the Sami. It'll be a long day (I say day....the majority of the driving will be done in the dark). But there's a chance we can get close to reindeer. So it's got to be worth it...right? Today's photos: Some of the rock carvings that we could actually make out |
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November 2022
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