Not alone, it seems, in losing track of what time it is. To some extent a common feature of retirement and often reported by those in lockdown. In my case exacerbated by the fact that my watch battery died shortly before we left Canada. Our nearest pound store in London had closed and we found ourselves in lockdown before another opportunity presented itself. Not that there are no other sources. Sunrise now just after 6 AM and sunset getting close to 7:30 PM. But often as little as two degrees difference between low and high temperature. So days feel pretty similar regardless of time. And nowhere to go, of course.
However here there is a second time check of sorts. We are within sight and certainly within hearing of the ezan, or call to prayer, at the Lala Mustafa Mosque in the central square. There are five calls a day, all based on the journey of the sun (not that the word journey comes from old French, as does the word jour - and was originally the distance one could travel in a day). The first call is pre-dawn and we would only hear it by accident, although it does include the phrase prayer is better than sleep. The second call is when the sun has passed the zenith and begun its descent. The third when a shadow is the same length as the object making it. The fourth at sunset and the fifth when the last red glow disappears from the sky. Naturally the times vary with both location and time of year. So at the moment the third call here is about 4:30, though moving a little each day. And today, as I am chopping vegetables for the soup and thinking it is mid-afternoon when I hear the call and ask J who confirms that it is indeed half past four. Have no idea how this would play out in the Arctic, though there are probably few Muslims there.
In the evening word filters through that the council of ministers has decided that everyone must wear masks in public as of Friday. 😷
However here there is a second time check of sorts. We are within sight and certainly within hearing of the ezan, or call to prayer, at the Lala Mustafa Mosque in the central square. There are five calls a day, all based on the journey of the sun (not that the word journey comes from old French, as does the word jour - and was originally the distance one could travel in a day). The first call is pre-dawn and we would only hear it by accident, although it does include the phrase prayer is better than sleep. The second call is when the sun has passed the zenith and begun its descent. The third when a shadow is the same length as the object making it. The fourth at sunset and the fifth when the last red glow disappears from the sky. Naturally the times vary with both location and time of year. So at the moment the third call here is about 4:30, though moving a little each day. And today, as I am chopping vegetables for the soup and thinking it is mid-afternoon when I hear the call and ask J who confirms that it is indeed half past four. Have no idea how this would play out in the Arctic, though there are probably few Muslims there.
In the evening word filters through that the council of ministers has decided that everyone must wear masks in public as of Friday. 😷