{"id":43290,"date":"2025-05-13T13:38:00","date_gmt":"2025-05-13T13:38:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/hrefna.com\/blog\/?p=43290"},"modified":"2026-04-06T12:41:45","modified_gmt":"2026-04-06T12:41:45","slug":"heatwave-in-may-annual-ball-wood-chips-galore","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/hrefna.com\/blog\/2025\/05\/heatwave-in-may-annual-ball-wood-chips-galore\/","title":{"rendered":"Heatwave in May \/ Annual Ball \/ Wood Chips Galore"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

[Photos taken 13 – 19 May 2025, posted online 21 March<\/s> 06 April 2026. Winter has actually arrived, spring equinox brought with it a blizzard! Since starting to write this post we’ve spent a week in the UK (!), and returned to Iceland, to yet another incoming storm.<\/em>]<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In May, when the weather is usually both gorgeous and absolutely freezing cold<\/em> due to artic winds, Iceland was the happy recipient of a highly unusual heatwave. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The southwestern corner got broiled (by local standards) for multiple days, as very warm air came at us from southern lands. It coincided with my company’s annual ball, the Eurovision song contest, and made for very enjoyable gardening, even if the tasks were quite brutal on the hands.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Tuesday 13 May 2025<\/h2>\n\n\n
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The weather was so good that I decided to bike to and from work. It only takes a few minutes longer than driving. The bike-path winds alongside a lush valley, and to my utter surprise on the way home I stumbled upon kids playing IN the water by the waterfall, jumping off the ledge! That water is not warm!<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n\n\n
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While Emma was at her music school, I took a walk around the adjoining neighborhood, and the horses were out in full force.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n
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Many of the houses there have their own stables and horse-fences attached!<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n
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Big apartment buildings have encroached on the area.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n
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The tiny cabin by the lake keeps being cute.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n
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Yet another horse.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n
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The dam that makes the lake.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n
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A somewhat unnatural-looking mini-pond.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n
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By the big road again, and the funky new pipe. As of today (March 2026) the old walking bridge (and prior pipe-bearer) beyond the road bridge has been demolished.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n
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Staining wood at 20:30 in the evening.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

Wednesday 14 May 2025<\/h2>\n\n\n
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Dinner!<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

Thursday 15 May 2025<\/h2>\n\n\n
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The day’s location for a ladies-lunch.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n
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Oooh, vertically stacked fish! Was yummy!<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n
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Also yummy!<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n
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I took a peek inside the University of Reykjavik next door, to see if there were any more familiar faces around, but everyone was somewhere else!<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n
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As I biked back home (in the gorgeous weather) I stopped by mom’s to check out the newly installed fence-door. For some reason the architect neglected to actually close the hole, so we had to get it done ourselves.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n
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Finnur got a goodbye present from his old team in the US, as he was being switched over to a team in Germany. So kind!<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

Friday 16 May 2025<\/h2>\n\n\n
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The view as I biked to work that morning.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n
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The car measured the outside temperature at 20.5C \/ 69F at 18 in the afternoon!?!<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n
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Being driven downtown for the “annual-ball” of my workplace.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n
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We all gathered at a pre-party site. My company (Varist<\/a>) was, up until about to when I joined, totally a sub-company of another much bigger company (OK<\/a>), which was the one actually holding the ball.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n
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Bizarrely, my then 2-ish year old company was handing out 15 and 20-year work anniversary gifts! Yes, some of this gang has been working together for a very long time!<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n
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Our CEO is quite a submarine-fan, and he’s not afraid to show it!<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n
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We walked on over to I\u00f0n\u00f3<\/a>, where the actual ball was being held.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n
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The foyer. This house is so lovely!<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n
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It was so warm out that we all stood outside and chatted the evening away. Totally unheard of in May!<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n
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Yours truly, dressed up for the evening.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n
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The Town Hall<\/a> was just next door. This was taken from the second floor balcony.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n
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The weather was so good that nobody could stay indoors with good conscience. Also, the music was darn loud!<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n
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The food was of the finger-food variety. It was good though.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n
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Slowly, but surely, our little sub-group meandered up onto the second floor and had our own little mini party there.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n
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Out on the second floor balcony.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n
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Looking down onto the people still outside at 22:45 as the weather kept being weirdly warm. Note the lack of jackets and zero outside heaters.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

Saturday 17 May 2025<\/h2>\n\n\n
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A classic start to the day.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n
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We had visitors coming so it was time to clean the never-used hot-tub. Sadly, the water-control seemed to be not working so there was no hot-tubbing that day. It magically fixed itself later though!?<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n
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More that 21C \/ 70F in the shade. WFT?!<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n
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So. Nice!<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n
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Guests! I quite like these outside couches I found at Ikea.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n
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The weather guy even had short-ish sleeves! as he went over the nutty temperature numbers. <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n
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Watching the annual Eurovision song contest.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n
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Proof I was there!<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n
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It’s been a long time since we’ve indulged in this dessert!<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n
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Iceland’s entry about to begin!<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n
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The final score, marred by international conflict. The main upside was that Iceland didn’t quite come in last, and hey, we got some points.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

Sunday 18 May 2025<\/h2>\n\n\n
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New day, more warm air. Time to put Anna’s baby summer flowers outside to acclimatize.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n
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At 2 in the afternoon, our outside thermostat read 28C \/ 82F (!!!!) in the shade. Madness.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n
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I took it as a sign to get going on tidying up the edges of our little lawn in the back. We had a graduation party to host, and it was time to tidy up.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n
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The grass had crawled over a bunch of pebbles, and covered up the electrical line to the outside lights, making moving difficult, and a bad idea.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n
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I’m not sure why, but for some reason I went left instead of right, and ripped up the grass that had made it across pebbles to the deck. Finnur was not impressed by my “straight line” skills. I told him he was free to fix it himself.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n
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I found a gardening store that was open on a Sunday, and had wood chips…<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n
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Said wood chips in a pile.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n
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They were watering everything in sight.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n
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Finnur got in on the outside action by high-pressure-cleaning some of our fences. They desperately needed a new coat of stain\/oil.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n
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My haul from the gardening store, aside from wood chips.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n
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Before…<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n
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After! Those rocks around the roses also make for difficult mowing. I’m hoping the wood chips keep the grass back.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n
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Half done with de-greening the steps…<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n
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Done!<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n
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It’s not often I do garden work in a tank top!!?!<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n
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At 19 in the evening, the meter had read 21C \/ 70F, but close to 22 it had finally gone all the way down to 17C \/ 63F. Nuts. So nuts.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n
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I kept working through the evening, and at 23 I called it a day. This was the end result.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n
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Looking tidier!<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n
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Also, quite tidy. The timber was in need of a coat, but didn’t get one. <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n
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The sun setting veeeery slowly at 23:25.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

Monday 19 May 2025<\/h2>\n\n\n
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New warm day. I put the plants out at 8 am before heading to work. The meter read 13C \/ 55F.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n
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The weather was so good that myself and a few colleagues went out on a walk in the afternoon. We’re down by the seaside, but there is no shore to access, as it’s all taken up by harbor activites.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n
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Gym classes had migrated outdoors…<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n
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Still warm! 17.5C is 64 F. That’s quite toasty by Icelandic standards.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n
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The veggie-box tops got their acrylic covering stapled in. <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n
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Meanwhile, I stained a few fence parts that had begun looking quite sad and colorless.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n
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Feet solidly put up at 23 in the evening. Warm days in Iceland are hard!!<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

[Photos taken 13 – 19 May 2025, posted online 21 March<\/s> 06 April 2026. Winter has actually arrived, spring equinox brought with it a blizzard! Since starting to write this post we’ve spent a week in the UK (!), and returned to Iceland, to yet another incoming storm.<\/em>]<\/p>\n

In May, when the weather is usually both gorgeous and absolutely freezing cold<\/em> due to artic winds, Iceland was the happy recipient of a highly unusual heatwave. <\/p>\n

The southwestern corner got broiled (by local standards) for multiple days, as very warm air came at us from southern lands. It coincided with my company’s annual ball, the Eurovision song contest, and made for very enjoyable gardening, even if the tasks were quite brutal on the hands.<\/p>\n

Tuesday 13 May 2025<\/h2>\n
\n
\"\"<\/a>
The weather was so good that I decided to bike to and from work. It only takes a few minutes longer than driving. The bike-path winds alongside a lush valley, and to my utter surprise on the way home I stumbled upon kids playing IN the water by the waterfall, jumping off the ledge! That water is not warm!<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n

Read more<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[130,18,11],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-43290","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-friends","category-us","category-weather","post-container col-md-12"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/hrefna.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/43290","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/hrefna.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/hrefna.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hrefna.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hrefna.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=43290"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/hrefna.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/43290\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":43422,"href":"https:\/\/hrefna.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/43290\/revisions\/43422"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/hrefna.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=43290"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hrefna.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=43290"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hrefna.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=43290"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}