Topic: The Ramblings of a Northern*Star Girl

[Wendi]

@CaelaNotKayla  @mm  @Wendi  @KathyLauren 
@JudiBlueEyes  @Myranda  @Megan.

Update:  November 18, 2020...    6:00AM

It's a new  and very C-O-L-D day
This morning at 6:00AM the thermometer on my deck is displaying a temperature
of  (minus) -31 degrees(f) BELOW ZERO.

My vehicles that I keep in my garage have "block" and "battery" heaters that are plugged in
which makes for easier starting and quicker warmup. 

I have a full propane tank at home so I can keep my home furnace and propane fireplace
running to keep my home warm and cozy.   

I will be dressing very warm today when I go to work....
HUGS and warm thoughts,
Danielle

Danielle, I know it gets very very cold up there and I'm wondering does the cold stop the foot traffic on the streets or are they use to it and go about their business as usual?

Sent from my SM-G986U using Tapatalk

[Northern Star Girl]

Danielle, I know it gets very very cold up there and I'm wondering does the cold stop the foot traffic on the streets or are they use to it and go about their business as usual?

@Wendi
Dear Wendi:
While there is certainly less foot traffic and even vehicle traffic in extremely cold temperatures, life does go on and business is as usual for the most part except when we are blanketed with snow amounts exceeding 4 or 5 feet of snow,  then things do slow down while the snow is being cleared.

For most Alaskans in very cold temperatures, we are quite accustomed to bundling up with super-warm clothing, coats, hats, gloves, etc... so there are still people walking around town even in sub-zero temps.

Our businesses and stores are comfortably heated and some even provide outdoor electrical outlets in their longer term and night time parking areas so that customers and employees can plug-in their vehicle block heaters.

Thank you for posting your comments and thoughts on my thread.
HUGS,
Danielle

[Northern Star Girl]

Danielle do dress warm if it is -20's now where you are.  Your days are getting short so not much warmup during the day this time of the year.  What temperature do you keep your home? We are having about 70 daytime and 40-50's at night now.  I like this weather here.

@mm
Dear mm:
I keep my home at around 68 degrees(f) and in the evenings when I get home from work I will light up my propane fireplace and that warms my home even more in my main living areas.   Of course when I am cooking and baking the kitchen area is noticeably warmer.
Flannel sheets and electric blanket on my bed keeps me nice and cozy when I go to bed.

Thank you for posting your comments and thoughts on my thread.
HUGS,
Danielle

[mm]

Thanks this is what I hear from friends lively in the northern 48, in the winter 65-68 during the day and much cooler at night some say as low as 50-55.  It does use less fuel and is cheaper.

[JudiBlueEyes]

Brrrr -31 F is low, but I can image that after a certain point that it doesn't make much difference as to how it feels.  I'm sure a good stiff wind would not be enjoyable!
Stay safe and warm.

[KathyLauren]

Brrrr -31 F is low, but I can image that after a certain point that it doesn't make much difference as to how it feels.  I'm sure a good stiff wind would not be enjoyable!
Stay safe and warm.

Having spent several years in Saskatchewan and Alberta, where -40 (same on both C and F scales) was not uncommon in winter, I can tell you that it makes a big difference.  After a week at -40, warming up to -30 feels like a heat wave.

We had to plug in our cars there, too.  The car seats were so frozen that they went "thunk" instead of "squish" when you sat in them.  And the block heater only warmed the engine block, not the transmission.  The transmission oil would be so thick that you could drive the car in neutral!

I used to walk a mile and a half to work each morning, regardless of the temperature.

[Northern Star Girl]

@KathyLauren
Dear Kathy:
Thank you for sharing your central Canadian cold temperature experiences.  Temperatures of minus -40 degrees can be quite a shock to persons not accustomed to it and that are not prepared for it.
   
Based on my experience here where I live, it just seems a little too early to have these kinds of super-cold temps in the -30 to  -40 range.   In recent years it has not gotten that cold until mid or late December and then January can be even colder. 
The coldest it has been in my town since I relocated here was minus  -58deg(f) Below Zero in mid-January several years ago...
...although some longer term residents in my town tell me that they recall minus -70 degrees(f) Below Zero temperatures, again, in the month of January.

At those very low temperatures, anything mechanical has a hard time working.  Diesel fuel will gel, tires on our cars can fail unless they are made of special winter low temperature rubber compounds ... and the list goes on.

Up here, living near the Arctic Circle latitudes, staying warm and keeping things from freezing can be a full time job during this time of year.... but if prepared for it, it can be quite beautiful in it's own way.
HUGS,
Danielle

Having spent several years in Saskatchewan and Alberta, where -40 (same on both C and F scales) was not uncommon in winter, I can tell you that it makes a big difference.  After a week at -40, warming up to -30 feels like a heat wave.

We had to plug in our cars there, too.  The car seats were so frozen that they went "thunk" instead of "squish" when you sat in them.  And the block heater only warmed the engine block, not the transmission.  The transmission oil would be so thick that you could drive the car in neutral!

I used to walk a mile and a half to work each morning, regardless of the temperature.

[SarahEL]

Oh my - I just had to convert you F's into my C's... and are you serious Danielle?? Oh my.. My deep freezer is not even close to those temperatures?
Here in North Wales, a temperature below -4C (+25F!!) basically brings everything to a halt! It really is another world... Stay safe - sending hugs! just to keep you warm (haha!)...

[barbie]

Two days ago, the temperature here reached 27 degree Celsius (80F), the record highest for November. It was like summer, but after rain, it will be like winter soon.

The lowest temperature I have experienced was in Mongolia in April (less than -50 C, or -58 F), but the daytime temperature reached 27 degree Celsius (80F). But I could not feel the cold outside so much, because the air was extremely dry, and within the Ger, it was very warm.

I expect we will have snow soon in December.

Cheers,

barbie~~

[Northern Star Girl]

November 23, 2020 ... Arghhhh .... it is MONDAY !!!!   
               Certainly not my favorite day of the week.

Got very cold last night  minus -22 degrees(f) ... snow is expected later this week although there is still plenty of snow on the ground, on the streets and on my roof of my home.

I got to work early this morning... lots of filing to do and my office cleaning.   
Because of the Corvid restrictions for many months now... my business is way off.
There have been several months that I have done less than half of my normal business.
Obviously this can be attributed to the fact that the businesses and personal clients
that I have are affected by the restrictions in their business and income.

I had a nice surprise....  my sweetie toothfairy came to visit me at work before she went to her work
and she brought me some of  her homemade shortbread cookies and my favorite espresso ...
...complete with the famous Pink Lid....    just for me!!!

I will post a picture shortly.
I trust that all of my friends and followers have a good day today, in spite of it being Monday.


HUGS,
Danielle

[Laura1951]

You are incredibly lucky to have your sweetheart.

I consider +31F to be as cold as I'd like...  -31F? You're certainly stronger than I am.

But then, I can still play tennis and fly in this weather.

Laura

[Northern Star Girl]

You are incredibly lucky to have your sweetheart.

I consider +31F to be as cold as I'd like...  -31F? You're certainly stronger than I am.

But then, I can still play tennis and fly in this weather.

Laura

@Laura1951
Dear Laura:
Thank you for posting your thoughts.   
Yes indeed, the cold temperature extremes change the nature of activities that I do,
in the summer and in the winter... it is all very different.

As long as one is well prepared for it, the cold and snow has it's own beauty.

HUGS,
Danielle

[Northern Star Girl]

This morning's bounty from my sweetie ToothFairy.

The Pink Lid was her idea when I first met her in early 2018.
My next door coffee shop did a special order for the PInk Lids.
    (left click image to enlarge)
     

[davina61]

Looks far more inviting than my stainless flask of green tea.

[CaelaNotKayla]

@Northern Star Girl

Brrrrrrrrr, Danielle!  I guess I'd rather be on a black sand beach in Hawaii drinking a "Lava Flow"... But I'll have to admit- those shortbread cookies look extremely dangerous, and you are very lucky to have someone bringing them to you!

Hugs!

Caela

[RandyL]

Perhaps Mondays aren't so bad after all???

[JudiBlueEyes]

Those look like tasty cookies!!!  Stay warm dear!

[Northern Star Girl]

@JudiBlueEyes  @RandyL  @CaelaNotKayla  @davina61
Thank you very much for reading and following my thread and for your reply comments.... Yes indeed the coffee, cookies and treats that my friends and my ToothFairy drop off at my office are not just tasty but also I am so thankful for thoughtful and caring people that are a part of m,y life.
My office is just 2 doors down from the Coffee Shop, it is the town center for me where I can meet and greet old friends, new friends, and others on almost a daily basis.

My very first Blog here on the Forums  I am the HUNTED PREY: Danielle’s Chronicles  describes the joy I had when I first relocated here as Full-Time .... at developing friends, acquaintances, and experiences of overwhelming acceptance.   Before I decided on my ToothFairy (dental hygienist, suitor #4) ... i had to run the gauntlet of several other male and female suitors that I was considering romantic relationships with.   All of  those things were a brand new experience for me as the newly arrived (and only) transgender woman in town.

I am truely blessed and most appreciative regarding all the kindness that I experience from the townspeople and from all of my Forums friends and followers.

HUGS and HUGS to all of you.
Danielle

Those look like tasty cookies!!!  Stay warm dear!

Perhaps Mondays aren't so bad after all???

@Northern Star Girl
Brrrrrrrrr, Danielle!  I guess I'd rather be on a black sand beach in Hawaii drinking a "Lava Flow"... But I'll have to admit- those shortbread cookies look extremely dangerous, and you are very lucky to have someone bringing them to you!
Hugs!
Caela

Looks far more inviting than my stainless flask of green tea.

[Rachel Montgomery]

This morning's bounty from my sweetie ToothFairy.

The Pink Lid was her idea when I first met her in early 2018.
My next door coffee shop did a special order for the PInk Lids.
    (left click image to enlarge)
     

You often post pictures of delicious looking food.    I am on a diet, and need to be on it for quite some time.  I have a lot of weight to lose.  Envy?  At least a little.  Hungry?  You bet. 

I don't envy the cold weather.  It is 65F here now with a low tonight of 54F.  But, our Southeastern summers are jungle like heat, so we have our hard season too. 

[Northern Star Girl]

@Rachel Montgomery
Dear Rachel:
Thank you for coming to my Blog/Journal.
So sorry I am tempting you to veer from your diet plans.....   
WILLPOWER is needed for sure to be able to continue on and be successful in any kind of weight diet.   
I am quite active and I can seem to eat what I wish but I do practice portion control.  I can eat several Oreo cookies but NOT eat every cookie in the entire bag.....  etc.

I am wishing you well with your diet plans and I hope and trust that you can reach your weight goals soon.
Please update your weight loss progress, but only as you feel comfortable doing.

Again, thank you for posting your comments and thoughts.
You are always welcome on my Blog, and any other threads that I have, to share whatever is on your mind.

HUGS and HUGS   ....   
Danielle

You often post pictures of delicious looking food.    I am on a diet, and need to be on it for quite some time.  I have a lot of weight to lose.  Envy?  At least a little.  Hungry?  You bet. 

I don't envy the cold weather.  It is 65F here now with a low tonight of 54F.  But, our Southeastern summers are jungle like heat, so we have our hard season too.