Originally Posted by
schnee
The entire culture has been dealing with the dark for almost a thousand years. Swedes have built up a number of cultural practices that ensure they don't have problems with it - from a HUGE exercise culture to frequent social gatherings to changing to candle lighting in many stores to make the dark festive and (when there's snow on the ground to reflect the light) magical. There's also the thing of highly regulated alcohol sales, which limits some possibilities of excessive behavior.
In DC area it's a bit paradoxical how most folks virtually hibernate during winter compared to up north where folks just learn to deal with the winter. When it snows I love to go out for walks on the bike path, usually I'll only spot a couple other folks, even if gov't/schools shut down. It's not all that cold after all, though usually cold enough so that one just can't wait a couple of days for warmer weather. In Scandinavia they have local x-country ski paths; I hear that in Oslo there's a bus or train line where kids tote their downhill skis to a local hill. Even in Germany/Netherlands it's surprising to see folks biking/walking etc in whatever weather. One Sunday morning in Amsterdam it was -5° C & windy, streets were thronged w/locals munching french fries, sitting in outdoor cafés etc.