From the darkness, into the light

Glasgow is having a run of truly beautiful weather at the moment. I have actually been seen, over the last two days, wearing (drum roll...) t-shirts. This is code for 'over 20 degrees Celsius'. Anything lower than that and I need a fleece.

I have long suspected that the sun has a completely different purpose this far north of the equator than it does in sub-Saharan Africa. There it exists to give warmth. It drums up business for producers of air conditioners and installers of swimming pools. It heats the air to the point that swimming in the Atlantic seems like a good idea.

Here it exists to provide light. Drumming up business for manufacturers of blackout curtain lining and ... well now I'm stumped. Exactly why do we need broad daylight in the middle of the night?

In Cape Town, in mid-summer, it's dark by 9pm. Perfect. Enough time for a leisurely braai (similar to a barbeque but with less burnt meat and no hamburgers), before lighting a few outdoor candles for a chat before bedtime. But here in mid summer, it's light until after 11pm. I simply don't know what to do with all the extra daylight. It keeps me up. It's like a faulty alarm in my body clock clanging that I should be doing things when, actually, I should be sleeping.

But, in its defence, it does come after months of solar hibernation. 5 hours of daylight through winter is just plain stingy.