Nil by Mouth

Ordinarily something like the Winter

Ordinarily something like the Winter Solstice means nothing to me. I leave that type of earth worship to the hippie types who pilgrimage out to Venice Beach drum circles. But this year i am anticipating it like any kid does Christmas. The solstice, the longest night/shortest day of the year is December 21/22. This of course means that after tomorrow night, the days will get progressively longer, the nights progressively shorter. The solstice means that soon i may be able to emerge from my office with some sunlight left in the sky. It means that when my alarm rings at 8am, there might be some light shafts in my bedroom. The winter daylight in Paris is so sparse. I can understand here, now, why one would celebrate the solstice. But in LA, the seasonal difference in hours of daylight is pretty minimal. It’s been awhile since i lived there, but i’d guess not more than 45 minutes difference on either end, if even that. But then again, i always find drum circle hippies just a touch misguided. Anyhow, this year i’m going to celebrate. There aren’t too many people around right now, but i will do something special tomorrow night. And then i’ll write about it.

Speaking of Venice Beach, my dad and his friend are coming to visit for the triage of holidays known as Christmas->My Birthday->New Year’s. His soft California hide is gonna freeze to bits here. I told him to pack like he was going skiing. This is all we southern Californians know of cold weather, but as i know now, pretty-vacation-skiing cold is kinda different from dreary-regular-city cold. Where you need not only be prepared for a biting cold outside, but for a sweltering metro ride, a lukewarm restaurant, and plenty of walking. He has lived in cold climes before, but 20+ years in SoCal might dry up those defenses.

• Dec 20