The Winter Solstice

The circle of friendship protects the light.

My favourite part of Winter is the solstice - the shortest day.  From now on the days get every so slightly longer, creeping towards Spring and Summer and loooong days.  Today Sunrise was 09.07, and sunset 15.19.  In the photo above the circle of friendship protects the light to remind the Sun to return tomorrow morning.

Today was also a lovely calm day, quite mild temperatures and barely any wind. I managed to go out for a bit of a walk along the shore, although I was working today.  But that's the joy of working from you, you can take a break when the weather does! 

So here are some photos from my walk today.  Madam Button decided to stay at home. In Winter as long as she has warm paws and food in her tummy she doesn't bother about venturing far, apart from the odd night hunting...

The sun was just setting behind the Hoy Hills....

The last rays before dusk falls.

Sun tinged clouds over Stromness.

After the recent storm there are a lot of stones and shale pushed up along the beach.

After every storm I wonder if I'll find this wall on the beach!  The old ruin creeps nearer the shore every gale.

And more stone from this building ends up on the shore too.

The sun has set now...

I've had to get sheep hurdles secured at the gate this winter....

Some marauding sheep have been in the garden...... they kept knocking the hurdle down, and the wind blew it too.  So had to get someone to put fence posts in to secure it....

Pesky sheep ate my hebe!!  AND the herbs... including the mint...oooh the irony!

And when I got home..... Madam Button still snoozing!

"What?"

And then the moon rises over the Hoy hills, make sure Sun comes back tomorrow!.....