Monday, November 24, 2008

And winter came



Lately, I have been enjoying my wings. The ones that never disappear. Even under all the black there is the glitter. I look like Violet and I think like Claire.

faeries, pure white, winter stars, whimsical crafts, lots of dancing, exploring

I have to fill my mind with these things. It's important to remember my wings this time of year.

Rainy and dark today. Saturday was cloudy and I woke up depressed without even knowing it was cloudy. I have seasonal affective disorder and have just kind of lived with it for many years. Texas has mostly sunny winters so it wasn't as hard to combat, but here, the clouds roll in and stay a spell. A very long spell, or what seems long to me. I think a week of gloomy weather could drive me insane. I felt that way Saturday. I knew something had to be done if I was already feeling horrible in November.



I saw an ad in the Metropulse for a place called Green Earth Emporium selling salt lamps. I had read about the lamps in the past. They are supposed to be good for a number of reasons, one being that they release negative ions, which boost energy levels, get rid of headaches, clean the air, etc. I have also read that the glow is beneficial for people with s.a.d. It may all be hocus pocus, but I'm willing to try. And if nothing else, it's quite nifty looking. Also, I can't afford light therapy lamps at this time. It might be something I need to invest in though.

The highlight of my Saturday was the French Market. A new cafe in downtown Knoxville. I was super impressed to find out that they import their macarons and petite fours from Paris every week. Of course I had a stack of macarons! Delicious and everything I had always imagined. I also had a cup of hot cinnamon spice tea, which was perfect for a cold day. Luc had a smoked salmon crepe and he was equally impressed. The French Market also serves as a French gift boutique and flower shop. A really lovely place that I will visit often.

Sunday was a different story. Not a cloud in the sky. Perfect blue. Warmer. I took the dog for a walk and let him sprint and jump through the grass. I wanted to lie in the grass and watch the sky. Swim in all the blue.

The title of this post comes from Enya's new album of the same name. I have always been an Enya fan and found this album to be exactly what I needed. It's supposed to be a Christmas album, but can be listened to at any time of year, as it has mostly a winter theme and not overly holiday-ish. I like it because it helps me to embrace winter. I listened to it on Sunday whilst making Christmas presents.

:)




5 comments:

Jerry said...

My ex had SAD and we live in Oregon, kind of a rainy place and a bit grey a lot of the year. I am glad that atleast you are in a place with Sunshine and appear to have a muse in your life.

Your blog popped up in my inbox becasue I get a notice when people write about Salt Lamps. Today I shipped a bunch to Knoxville but it was to a spa and not the store you mentioned.

If any of your readers are looking for Salt Lamps they can go to SaltLampCreations online and get free shipping and discounts for 2 or more lamps.

Makes them quite a bit more affordable than OTT lights.

You write beautifully and the photograph on the blog page I read is awesome.

Anonymous said...

I'm with you on the recent Blah in Knoxville. (I grew up in Seattle... so got used to it EARLY!) The light boxes really work, according to several docs I know. They may even be deductible or insurance-cover-able. I recommend them.

The British, who live much closer to the north pole than we (SHORT, dark days in the winter) plus have lots of drippy, foggy days AND hardly heat their houses at all. They are pretty much ALL afflicted with SAD, I discovered while we lived there. That's why they comfort themselves by drinking tea all day long and get thousands of brochures in their mailboxes for "winter holiday" trips to the Canary Isles, etc. which many of them finally succumb to by February or so...

The new French Market sounds great -- thanks for the FYI!!

Maija said...

I had suffered with s.a.d. for so long! Then I moved to Phoenix Arizona where it is sunnny 360 days a year! What is so wonderful about living here, is that when it does rain, it's beautiful!
I recently had some macaroons at Laduree's in Paris and they were exquisite!

Shannon said...

I have a salt lamp next to my bed. Not sure how much faith I put in the negative ions making me happy, but it's such a pretty glow-y colour that it works for me.

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