Sprucing Up

We have been shopping and shopping, trying to find some kind of wall unit/storage system/closet for Kaleb’s room. It’s the only place he’ll have to put his clothes, books and toys, so it needs to fit with the dimensions of wall that will hopefully soon be built. Today, ready or not, we bought a portable closet because it was a screaming deal for a little under a hundred dollars, brand new. I’m sure it was a mismarked item because even the receipt showed a price of double what we paid, but the tag on the display said it was 595 kroner, so that’s what they charged us. I couldn’t be more pleased. Now Kory just has to put it together, but he really does need something to do with his time. He fusses with things way too long if there aren’t enough projects stacked up for him to do. And now it seems he’ll be making some custom book shelves to go next to this closet because the remaining available space along that wall is anything but standard. I’m sure it will all work out just fine. Honestly, if it weren’t for the fact that TV has entered our lives, this whole process would have been a slam dunk, but we have to make room for a TV in Kaleb’s room now so that’s what’s made this project so challenging. (The photo today is of our condo “blokk” – we are on the top floor, second balcony from the right.)



Every week in the paper, at least one local company puts an ad in the “Wanting to Rent” column, asking for a short term rental of a furnished apartment in good condition. They pay a high premium for that but the cheapest hotel around here is over three hundred dollars a night, so renting an apartment for a few weeks or months is still a bargain when they have business meetings or training seminars that last a while. Cousin Rune knows a guy that rented out his furnished apartment for two months to some Japanese business men who were here doing a study on the fishing industry. He got 60,000 kroner for two months – an unheard of amount (about $10,000). There is such a demand for that kind of rental that Kory and I are leaning in that direction as to what to do with our condo when we leave. We don’t care about making a lot of money, we would just like the basic expenses to be covered while it sits empty nine months a year, so even just a few months of business rentals could cover that – and hopefully keep the wear and tear to a minimum. I’m currently keeping a list of all the companies that are advertising, and when we install a dishwasher and get Kaleb’s bedroom all set up, I’m going to contact the companies and let them come take a look and see if we can get some regular customers established. It seems to be the best fit, since our location is totally primo. The only thing lacking at this point, is internet access, but I can order that once I know we are on the right path.



Currently, to get an internet signal, I discovered I can sit outside on the walkway in front of our neighbor’s condo. It’s not ideal, but it’s better than sitting in the parking lot down below, right outside the library. I still need to bundle up, and sit in a lawn chair. If the sun isn’t shining, I don’t stay long because the wind has been rather cold and brisk in the shade lately. If the sun is shining, there is such a glare on the screen, I can’t see anything anyway, so I don’t stay long then either. I can’t believe how restricted my life is without internet, and I’m sure if this condo is being used by business people, they won’t take kindly to my cheapo method of getting a wi-fi signal from the library down below.



I thought My Pal Vestina and I were going to go on a hike today, so I kept myself busy doing little tasks around the house, waiting for her to wake up and call me. It was another gorgeous day and a hike would have been just the ticket, but instead I continued the sprucing up of our deck, washing windows and dishes, hanging things on the walls and running around shopping for different things. She never called. All the while Kaleb was still over at Tobias’ house. So Kory and I were home alone, wondering what to do with ourselves. I finally called Vestina, who had a friend unexpectedly come to town, so our hike got postponed to another day. It was a little disappointing, but not too terribly much since I got so much done otherwise.



Our deck now is looking pretty spiffy, with flowers in every pot. It was hard to pay over $40 for a small little Rhododendron, but I want a few plants that might last more than this season. I hope my plan works, and they survive, so I don’t have to spend over a hundred dollars on flowers again next year. Our place is looking more and more “typisk Norsk” by the day. The only thing NOT typically Norwegian is that nothing is very new. Norwegians like to throw everything out every few years and have all new stuff inside and out. I’m not that wasteful so I’ll probably still have all this same stuff twenty years from now. Once I like something, I keep it. That little trait of mine often works to Kory’s advantage. I like him just fine.