not burnt, but spooked

Yipes, I'm still behind on posts! So here is a quickie to get me closer to caught-up.

I had an experience a few days ago which I've found to be quite typical of wintertime in our fair city.

It was about midday, and I was sitting on the couch, minding my own business, when I noticed a strange, golden light outside my windows. It looked really odd, especially when compared with the usual matte gray-ness one sees when glancing out of windows between November and April around these parts. This weird light got so bright that I was actually able to turn off the lamp beside the couch, which I had had to turn on because (save for about one hour around daybreak) it's always so dark in our north-facing living room. At first, I couldn't figure out what on earth the strange light was or where it was coming from. Just what the heck was going on out there?? It took me a minute before I realized it was sunlight.

Yes, you know it's winter in Syracuse when you actually get spooked by the sight of the sun.