> It is a gorgeous winter's day here (whether I'm mentally ready to
> accept that it is winter is a different issue....), so I thought I'd
> take a crack at this.
:-)
> > Does it ever thunder during snow? What about lightning?
>
> I've heard it rumored that it can happen, but have never seen it. In
> real world terms, to get lightning you need something like a 40C (40C
> ~= 70F) difference in temperature between the top and bottom of the
> clouds (colder on top). If the ground temperature is already below
> freezing, that calls for an awfully cold upper air layer.
Thank you for that info. :-)
> What are some of
> > the more powerful or unusual effects of snow and snow storms? What
> do
> > (non-hibernating) animals do?
> >
> > And what does it mean for it to be so cold 'you can hear it'?
IMO only & FWIW, there's a particular kind of cold where you get the impression of an echo from the air itself, and a deadening of noises from the distance, so that the air itself seems to be producing sound.
> (it is dangerous
> to ask about winter on a list with so many canadians.....)
;-)
Wish we had more Finns ... :-)
But thanx for the poetic descriptions !! :-)
> but it can be VERY hard to make anything out
> more than a few meters away (especially when everything is covered in
> snow).
One particularly beautiful effect, if it gets _really_ cold, is that colours and black simply vanish, so that the world turns into an enchanted realm of white, off-white, and various shades of grey.
You might be wearing a red jacket, and it will look grey with a reddish tinge, but anything further than about 3 yards will be grey.
Like living inside a Peter Jackson fantasy movie ...
> I'm not at all sure that Heortlings have cross country skis.
IMO, only some of them ...
But remember that "cross country skis" are a 20th century invention ...
Prior to the invention of modern alpine skis and ski boots etc., there were just skis.
> Ideally
> you want to curve them in a way akin to a composite bow, and I don't
> think they have that wood working technique. If they do have skis
> they are probably pretty flat, and they probably don't have an array
> of waxes. That would means most of the bottom of the ski covered in
> pine tar, with a stretch under the foot lined with deer hide with the
> under fur rubbed out but the coarse outer fur left on (keeps you from
> sliding backwards, and yes, the Scandinavians apparently did use that
> technique). But without a camber to keep the fur off the ground
> during the glide, this may not be all that much faster than snow
> shoes.
My mother used skis like that to go to school every day <insert naff Heidi reference at will>, and also taught me how to ski (cross country first). These skis are a HELL of a lot faster than snow shoes, walking, even power walking, or any other form of basic non-horsepower-assisted mobility except serious running, because you use four limbs to power your movement instead of two.
Of course the Heortlings have beeswax, there are several myths about honey, bees and &c in the canon.
Contrary to modern opinion, cross country skis can be used to do alpine skiing (in fact, I've done a small amount of it myself using them), BUT it is a fairly dangerous practice, especially for the ankles and back ; avoid red and black slopes, unless you have special skiing magic, skills, or other powers !!
> When it is really cold, wood tends to get quite noisy, making
> cracking noises when under any stress (I'm not quite sure what causes
> that).
Frozen water (not ice, because it's inside) cracking.
> Once you are used to winter, if you have good clothes, a day around -
> 10C, with some sun and not much wind, is gorgeous, and you can very
> happily spend all day outside if you are moving around and staying
> warm. Closer to the freezing mark your clothes often get wet from
> the snow, ultimately chilling you if you don't change them.
Bottom line : get better clothes / magic !!! :-)
Julian Lord
-- __________________________________ "Hmmm, I've heard of other powers. Can you tell me about ... ... Real Life ?"
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