SAD Sufferer

[Macca]

despite the darkness its seems not many people suffer from it here.
https://www.theatlantic.com/health/a...t-rise/396746/

Who's he kidding? They're making the best of it, that's all.

[Marco]

Who's he kidding? They're making the best of it, that's all.

You're probably right, but Tromsø, for me, looks epic in that picture - all 'moody' and atmospheric, due to it being so dimly lit, and with that dramatically amazing sky. It's almost like a scene from a sci-fi movie, where the film is set in some futuristic planet in outer space...

Therefore, on that basis, I could quite happily enjoy spending time there, because I quite like the dark, and a certain element of bleakness - but I wouldn't want it that way ALL the time. And for me, that's what the seasons are about: you enjoy them for what they are; how differently they impact on the surrounding landscape (in that respect wintertime can be rather more dramatic and beautiful), and simply adjust your lifestyle accordingly.

SAD sufferers aside (who incidentally I sympathise with wholeheartedly), I often wonder if one's abhorrence of wintertime, and the dark days and long nights that accompany it, are symptomatic of a wider issue, and showcases a feeling of being depressed about one's life - almost as if light and sunshine superficially succeed in suppressing an inner unhappiness, which otherwise is triggered by gloomy weather?

Whereas, someone who is inherently content with their life (happy within themselves, as it were) suffers from no such 'inner gloom', and so rain or shine, sun or snow, darkness or light, their (generally good) mood/happy disposition remains relatively constant...

Hey, I'm probably getting rather too deep now!!

Marco.

[Macca]

SAD sufferers aside (who incidentally I sympathise with wholeheartedly), I often wonder if one's abhorrence of wintertime, and the dark days and long nights that accompany it, are symptomatic of a wider issue, and showcases a feeling of being depressed about one's life - almost as if light and sunshine superficially succeed in containing an inner unhappiness, which otherwise is triggered by gloomy weather?

Whereas, someone who is inherently content with their life (happy within themselves, as it were) suffers from no such 'inner gloom', and so rain or shine, sun or snow, darkness or light, their (generally good) mood/happy disposition remains relatively constant...

Hey, I'm probably getting rather too deep now!!

Marco.

That is pretty much the thrust if the article Jamie linked to, and it does seem a reasonable argument.

I could go there on a visit but I've never understood people who have a choice, choosing to live somewhere cold. I can put up with cold or dark, but not both together.

[struth]

You're probably right, but Tromsø, in that picture, looks fantastic to me - 'cosy looking' and atmospheric, due to it being so dimly lit, and with that dramatically amazing sky. It's almost like a scene from a sci-fi movie, where the film is set in some futuristic planet in outer space...

Therefore, on that basis, I could quite happily enjoy spending time there, and because I quite like the dark, and a certain element of bleakness - but I wouldn't want it that way ALL the time. And for me, that's what the seasons are about: you enjoy them for what they are; how differently they impact on the surrounding landscape (in that respect wintertime can be rather more dramatic and beautiful), and simply adjust your lifestyle accordingly.

SAD sufferers aside (who incidentally I sympathise with wholeheartedly), I often wonder if one's abhorrence of wintertime, and the dark days and long nights that accompany it, are symptomatic of a wider issue, and showcases a feeling of being depressed about one's life - almost as if light and sunshine superficially succeed to contain an inner unhappiness, which otherwise is triggered by gloomy weather?

Whereas, someone who is inherently content with their life (happy within themselves, as it were) suffers from no such 'inner gloom', and so rain or shine, sun or snow, darkness or light, their (generally good) mood/happy disposition remains relatively constant...

Hey, I'm probably getting rather too deep now!!

Marco.

sure there is something in that point. i can get a bit down with poor weather as up here we get just too much of it. alas too much of the opposite has a similar effect as it becomes uncomfortable to point of hysteria lol. so if i cant have nice all time, i would rather it be cold and dark to overly hot

[Marco]

That is pretty much the thrust if the article Jamie linked to, and it does seem a reasonable argument.

Lol - it was just me doing my amateur psychologist! I didn't even read the article...

However, like you, I would enjoy visiting there (and could even quite happily spend a few months in Tromsø, or similar parts of Norway), but not to live on a permanent basis.

In fact, a tour of Scandinavia is on the cards for us at some point, as Del wants to see the Northern Lights/Lapland, LOVES the snow, and also so many other things about the food/lifestyle in these countries tick a lot of boxes for us.

Cold doesn't bother us either, as we much prefer being all nicely warm, wrapped up in thermal clothing, going for long mountain walks in the fresh air, than lying on a beach, sweltering in the sun - and no prizes for guessing which is healthier either!

We fancy starting with Finland...

Marco.

[Macca]

Yes it interests me too and I have never been out that way. Maybe a cruise, take in Helsinki, St Petersburg, Oslo, whatever the Swedish one is. Although I'm a bit young to be going on a cruise.

[Marco]

sure there is something in that point. i can get a bit down with poor weather as up here we get just too much of it. alas too much of the opposite has a similar effect as it becomes uncomfortable to point of hysteria lol. so if i cant have nice all time, i would rather it be cold and dark to overly hot

Yup I get that, and sometimes felt that way too, when I lived in Glasgow, and when often days could go by where it rained constantly and never seemed to get light - and that was sometimes in summer!!

However, I do think folks who continually moan, and go all 'woe is me', at the mere sight of a grey sky or a few drops of rain, need to get a grip and take a look at themselves, and why they feel that way, as out with of SAD, there may be a deeper psychological reason for it... Although some may simply be insufferable depressives or malcontents!

I'm pretty convinced that a happy mind makes for a sunny/cheery disposition, regardless of the weather

Marco.

[Marco]

Yes it interests me too and I have never been out that way. Maybe a cruise, take in Helsinki, St Petersburg, Oslo, whatever the Swedish one is. Although I'm a bit young to be going on a cruise.

Me too - fuck that shit, and the majority of types who go on them. We'd take a couple of months off, and do a fly-drive to the most geographically central of the Scandinavian countries, then hire a nice (big comfortable) car, or most likely an SUV, and go and visit the rest of them (long drives abroad don't bother me, as I'm used to it), then fly back home afterwards.

That way, we could go into the sticks and see the REAL Finland, Norway, etc, as well as the obvious cities and tourist attractions. We'll defo do that when we're both retired

Marco.

[Marco]

Oh and talking of snow, it's SNOWING NOW IN WREXHAM - and pretty heavily, too!!

Marco.

[Sherwood]

The days have been getting longer where I live for about a month now Brian! Are you currently at the North Pole?