Running Errands

I didn’t do much in the way of getting settled in today.  The sun was shining a bit and it didn’t rain all day so I felt the need to “lufte meg” (air myself), as the saying goes, to explain what one does when they go for a walk. (The above photo is of a house in our neighborhood - it shows the sun deck everyone has, with a few chairs, candle on the table, flowers everywhere - so typical of a scene in Norway.)

Actually, we needed to go for a couple of walks, even though friends offered to loan us their cars to save us the trouble, but we had business to take care of and the places are all within a few miles of our condo so it didn’t hurt to spend the bulk of the day literally running errands… well, walking them, at least.

I was up by 8am this morning, fairly adjusted to the new time zone, but the boys slept in until ten.  I did a little Bible study during the quiet time.  After we all ate breakfast, we decided to walk together down to the “people register” place to ask a few questions about our tax return and also to get a copy of our “people numbers” (their equivalent of the social security number).  I knew we couldn’t order the Internet service without them, as it’s impossible to do anything in Norway unless one has a people number.  I have those numbers, but they are in storage and since I haven’t fully unpacked everything, I knew we’d be in a world of hurt without those numbers.

On our walk, we passed a few empty pop bottles, which Kaleb quickly picked up.  If the barcode labels are not damaged, he can turn them into the grocery store and get a kroner for each one, which is currently worth 17 cents, so it adds up fast.  It’s a side job he’s happy to have whenever he’s out and about.  He’s also taking to looking for stray grocery carts.  People have to deposit either 10 or 20 kroner coin (worth $1.70 or $3.40) to free one up from the locking system, and sometimes people don’t put them back to get their coin back, so any stray carts are easily returned to their proper place, which then frees up the coin.  Kaleb’s already made 30 kroner doing this ($5 in one day!).   If he’s industrious, he could pile up some serious money when he’s here, just going around picking up bottles and cans and returning carts.  God provides in mysterious ways.

So we got our tax questions answered, got our people numbers and headed on down to the telephone company, which was a few miles in another direction.  As it turns out, the modem I bought years ago will still work and because I had that modem, I don’t need to sign a one-year lease with Telenor.  I now can just have month-to-month service, which is nearly miraculous.  The only down side is the service won’t be turned on until August 7^th, but I can wait and just use the library until then.  At least we’ll have two months of high-speed internet once it is hooked up and we can Skype people back home – so this is as good as it gets.  Hallelujah for that.

We did a little more shopping on the way back home.  I bought a Magic Bullet little mini blender for making smoothies and salad dressings, etc., brand new at the store here for cheaper than they sell for at Costco.  Go figure.  I was thrilled.  I also bought a rice cooker for $17 – brand new!  I hit the right sale at the right store so I’m thinking God was directing my steps today as I really could use both of those items and I didn’t even flinch at their price.  I’m thrilled.  Last night we had stir-fry veggies and rice and I had to watch the stove like a hawk as I’m not used to making rice without a rice cooker, and I’m also not used to using an electric stove top, as our gas range back home is so much easier to control. 

While we were bagging up our goods at the store, the couple behind us in line was listening to Kaleb and I talking English.  She asked if we were from America, and she told us they are from England.  She said they have a B&B on an island near here and she invited us to come over for tea sometime.  We were thrilled!  So as soon as we get our car going, we’ll be taking Carol and Clive up on their offer.  Can’t wait to make some new friends, and tea doesn’t even have any fat in it!  (Photo below is of mailboxes - I love it when people hand paint scenes on them.)

I’m taking this whole food thing one day at a time since it’s too depressing to think about being here for 3 months and not eating some Norwegian food.  Actually, it’s not as bad for me as it is for Kory – he’s downright depressed about it already.  He said today it doesn’t even feel like we are in Norway because the food means everything to him.  Tonight we had tacos, so that didn’t help much either, but they were pretty darn good.  I told him if he started getting some aerobic exercise everyday, that one heart specialist, Dean Ornish, allows heart patients to eat fish once a week, assuming they are getting their heart rate up.  So, maybe there’s hope on his horizon.  He’s already started planning a jogging route in preparation for the big day he gets to eat fish.  Poor Kory.  He made Kaleb “fish cakes” for lunch today as it at least gives him a vicarious thrill to know that Kaleb is enjoying some Norwegian food, anyway.  I’ve been scarfing down lefse and I even cheated and had a slice of good Norwegian white cheese yesterday because I bought a loaf of bread at the store that was still warm when I got it home, and I just couldn’t resist putting the two together.  Kory may be a fat-free vegan, but I have to call myself a “cheatin’ vegan.”

After lunch today Kaleb took off on his bike to go visit Daniel, his friend who was just visiting us in America.  Daniel lives about five miles away, but the beauty of being in Norway is there is no potential threat of him being kidnapped along the way.  He loves that kind of freedom here.

While Kaleb was gone, Kory and I went for another long walk down to my favorite thrift store.  I knew their hours last year were noon to five, so we made sure to get there by 4pm.  The older couple working there have been there for several years and they recognized us right away from years prior.  As I walked in, the woman told me that they were just “coincidentally opened” right then because someone came by to pick up some furniture, but the store was closed tight for vacation from July 10-August 7^th.  My heart sank.  When she saw the look on my face, she said I could look around and if I wanted to buy something I had to use cash because they weren’t really open for business due to it being vacation season and all.  That’s kind of how it is in all of Norway as even the churches shut down in the month of July.

It was a real thrift-store miracle for me, but talk about stress!  I had to speed shop like I’ve never shopped before!  My eyes darted back and forth from shelf to shelf, looking at all the things I can’t live without.  I love everything I got and could have bought more but I knew she was staying open just for me as the people who came to pick up the furniture were just leaving when we arrived.  We were limited in what I could buy anyway because we were walking, but at least I thought enough ahead of time to bring a backpack.  I got some pewter bowls, candle sticks, vases, salt and pepper shakers, candy dish and a basket and some glass plates, tourist plates, a hand woven table runner, hand stitched table runners, rosmaling painted bowl, plant holders and a few kitchen dishes all for less than $85!  I love them all and realize my obsessive compulsive hoarding disorder has reared it’s head once again.  I tell myself I’ll be giving these things as gifts, but then I get them home and love them too much to part with them.  But there is only so much room in our condo, and in our luggage back home, so I’m not sure when the madness will stop but until then, it makes me smile.  For me, it feels like we are back in Norway, now.

On the way home, Kory stopped and picked a large bouquet of wild flowers along the roadside.  There must have been at least 20 different kinds of flowers blooming everywhere.  It was so beautiful and colorful and I can’t imagine why anyone would go buy cut flowers in the stores this time of year.  I’m sure people live all year off just the idea of seeing the countryside in bloom.  Amazing.  We were able to put to use some of the pewter vases I’ve collected over the years.  At least I’m not verging on the impractical. 

Kaleb was gone from home til nearly 11pm, but it stays light out until long after midnight so there were no worries about him getting home safely and he had a great time hanging with Daniel.  Kory and I were pretty tired after all the walking we did today so we had to stay on our feet in order to keep from falling asleep too early.  I managed to get all my clothes put away and we got several more boxes unloaded from the basement late tonight.  It won’t be long now before we can sit down and relax and start having the life we came here to have.  God is good.