4 ms·

> I live in the upper midwest and, like many other places, don't get much light in the winter. Not to one-up here, but the UK gets around 60 hours on sunshine

> I live in the upper midwest and, like many other places, don't get much light in the winter. Not to one-up here, but the UK gets around 60 hours on sunshine across the whole of November, compared to Minnesota at about 115. Europe north of the Mediterranean is gloomy beyond basically anywhere populated in North America.

jackschultz 3y ago
For sure. I'm in Wisconsin, and when I see maps about where Europe would be overlayed compared to the US in terms of latitude, it's a shock. I feel like we get such little light in the winter months, but turns out I live middle of France, while you in the UK is much further north.
kitten_mittens_ 3y ago
I lived in northern Germany (55°N) a few years after living most of my life at 42°N in the US. The lack of natural light in the winter was brutal.
- iteratethis 3y ago
  Endless summer nights are a nice flipside though.
- ajuc 3y ago
  Poland here, same thing. Summers are great, but winters are basically 3-months long country-wide depressions. It's made even worse by the fact we use the same timezone in Poland that Spain uses. So it's bright in the winter at 7, but it gets dark at 15:00 :/ If you work 8-16 as most people do - you get up in the dark, commute in the dawn, work while the sun is in the sky, and comute back in the dark... I would much prefer if we moved 1 or 2 hours east timezone-wise. I'm fine with comuting in the dark one-way, but please give me at least 1 hour of sunlight after work...
iteratethis 3y ago
Some theorize that the absolute misery of Northwestern Europe during winter is what led to the scientific revolution, industrialization, etc. Not because the people were brilliant. Simply because they were forced inside and had lots of time to think.
anyoneamous 3y ago
This seems like an opportune moment to remind/notify any fellow UK dark-dwellers that the NHS recommends taking vitamin D supplements here in the winter.
- fennecbutt 3y ago
  Tbf we've had a particularly sunny Autumn/Winter so far.

jackschultz 3y ago

For sure. I'm in Wisconsin, and when I see maps about where Europe would be overlayed compared to the US in terms of latitude, it's a shock. I feel like we get such little light in the winter months, but turns out I live middle of France, while you in the UK is much further north.

kitten_mittens_ 3y ago

I lived in northern Germany (55°N) a few years after living most of my life at 42°N in the US. The lack of natural light in the winter was brutal.

iteratethis 3y ago
Endless summer nights are a nice flipside though.
ajuc 3y ago
Poland here, same thing. Summers are great, but winters are basically 3-months long country-wide depressions. It's made even worse by the fact we use the same timezone in Poland that Spain uses. So it's bright in the winter at 7, but it gets dark at 15:00 :/ If you work 8-16 as most people do - you get up in the dark, commute in the dawn, work while the sun is in the sky, and comute back in the dark... I would much prefer if we moved 1 or 2 hours east timezone-wise. I'm fine with comuting in the dark one-way, but please give me at least 1 hour of sunlight after work...

iteratethis 3y ago

Some theorize that the absolute misery of Northwestern Europe during winter is what led to the scientific revolution, industrialization, etc. Not because the people were brilliant. Simply because they were forced inside and had lots of time to think.

anyoneamous 3y ago

This seems like an opportune moment to remind/notify any fellow UK dark-dwellers that the NHS recommends taking vitamin D supplements here in the winter.

fennecbutt 3y ago
Tbf we've had a particularly sunny Autumn/Winter so far.