A Near Perfect Day

8 May 2013

The forecast said today would be even better than yesterday so I planned to have Kaleb skip school altogether so we could head to the beach and have a SUN DAY, but by the time we got everything ready to go to the beach (including making a bit of food), he’d already completed his big chapter test in math and some of his other homework.  He didn’t mind blowing the rest of it off for the afternoon, though.

Before we left, we took over some shrubs to Cousin Bjorn.  I rescued them last year from my friend, Sandra’s yard, and put them in pots on our deck, not knowing if they would survive the winter here or not.  Three out of the four did, so Bjørn said he’d give them a permanent home.  We are all about getting rid of things these days and each day we have to get rid of something.  We’d hoped Bjørn and the twins could join us at the beach, but he had his own yard work in mind, so they worked the day away, while we sat at the beach listening to the waves crash against the shore.  I so needed that. (Kaleb is sitting among the rocks in the photo above and very hard to spot - it's like "Where's Waldo?")

I’m now sporting a bit of red on my face, which couldn’t make me happier.  I’ve been sun deprived for far too long and between yesterday and today, I feel somewhat restored in body and spirit.  No more whining about the rain out of me, I promise.

We ate lunch out on an island about 30 minutes drive from our house.  It was warm and there wasn’t even a breeze.  Kaleb “skipped” rocks on other rocks just to see how many bounces he could get from one rock to another.  Kory stacked rocks just to see how many gravity defying balancing acts he could perform.  I collected shells and bits of driftwood for a home craft project I hope to be doing soon.  We were there for hours and it was wonderful.  Our missionary friend in the Bahamas called us on Kory’s cell phone while we were out there and her first words were, “Now Mickey, you can run but you can’t hide.”   She cracks me up with every word… still begging us to come back.  I honestly think she’d break things, just so we’d have an excuse to come back and fix them.  She’s a hoot.  It was good to hear a voice from “home.”

We walked around the cute little town of Alnes for a while before we ventured back to our condo.  I wanted to be gone as long as possible because before we left, there were people up on our roof spraying some kind of poison up there to kill any moss or other plant growth.  They were NOT being careful and they over sprayed so all the clothes I had just washed and hung out to dry on the deck (ugh) got a good dose of the poison.  The smell was permeating our place so I closed all the windows, took in the laundry and got out of there.  They apparently don’t know we like to be chemical free in our household, but this time of year in Norway, all the maintenance and upkeep things get done in time for 17^th of May – so every place is abuzz with spiffing up activities.

It’s an official day today where the Norwegian flag is allowed to be flown, since it’s the anniversary of the end of World War II and Germany’s occupation of the land, so flags were flying everywhere we went.  They do have a pretty flag and the month of May, more than any other month, it gets quite a bit of use.

When we got back, it was so warm on the deck we sat and had dinner outside – the ultimate thing for me and the smell of the chemicals was gone. The sunset tonight was spectacular… total eye candy and such a gift from God.  (I took the photo below while driving the car!)  I need to live on the memories of this day for many days to come as the weather forecast is for rain to return tomorrow.

Kaleb spent the night with Daniel tonight so I got to visit with Tina a bit when I dropped him off.  She told me about a hike she took today and all the stress around finding a newborn lamb with broken back legs from falling over a little cliff.  She tried to help it, but couldn’t, so she made enough phone calls to find out the owner of the sheep and he went to rescue it.  More stress for her, poor thing. 

I didn’t get home from dropping Kaleb off until after 10pm when most of the grocery stores are closed.  There’s one smaller store about a mile away that I had to zoom over to, since tomorrow is “Himmelfartsdag” (Ascension Day) and everything is closed.  I’m hoping we’ll get a hike in either tomorrow or Friday, but I’ll need to pack food for any such trip.  Our frig is so small I can’t stock up on a thing, so it requires daily trips to the grocery store.  The store I went to was totally packed with people and the shelves were nearly bare, so I guess I wasn’t the only one needing a few groceries.  We are so spoiled in America with 24-hour access to everything and shelves that never run dry, but I’m sure, given a few more years, things here will become more and more convenient, and the “charm” of living in a foreign country will be diminished.

Finally, Some Sunshine!

7 May 2013

The sun, the glorious sun, showed up today!  I was in hog heaven.  But again, timing was everything and I couldn’t get out in it much because we’d invited some cousins over for dinner.  I at least got to lay on the lawn chair out on the deck and take a bit of a snooze, though, so that was something special.  It was even in the 60s so it felt like summer!  Everyone was outside and no one was in a bad mood today – it’s been awhile since the weather has been this nice around here.  Thank you, Jesus!

Kory did a bit more work for Turid this morning at her art studio – getting her bench and shelf all set up (below).  Kaleb studied for a big math test he has tomorrow.  He’s so motivated now to get 100% on the test when he knows I’ll give him Norwegian chocolate as a prize.  I’m going to fill a suitcase full of that stuff to take home and keep him motivated, as it really makes a difference.

I cleaned the condo a bit today – something I’ve been putting off since we got here – but we didn’t just have company coming for dinner – we have guests arriving from the U.S. to stay with us for four weeks, so I thought the dust bunnies had to go to make room for them.  They are just sleeping here, as their son and daughter-in-law live a stone’s throw from our place, and there’s no room for them there, so Kory offered to let them crash here.  It’s a good deal for them.  Kaleb’s a little put out that we are all three now going to be sleeping in his room, but that’s why he has a bunk bed, so there’s room for us when company calls.

We had a lovely dinner with Kory’s mom’s cousins tonight and I picked their brain on all things Norwegian, trying to get more ideas for articles for the LaConner paper.  One of the guys is a retired farmer so I wanted to know a bit more about Norwegian farming practices and what it takes to make a living as a farmer in Norway.  Surprisingly, it only takes about 20 dairy cows, or about 20 acres of tillable soil to either be a full-time dairy farmer or vegetable farmer.  The government subsidizes farming so well that it’s not a lot of work to make a go of it, but even still, small farms have stopped farming at alarming rates.  I love that organic produce costs the same as conventional here.  The government really subsidizes that industry because they think it’s important, but no one will pay extra money for it, so they have to level the playing field.  Works for me.

The other shocking fact we learned tonight is that the oil reserve money Norway now has totals enough to give each and every citizen 1.3 million dollars.  They have no idea what to do with all that money and they haven’t spent a dime of it- it just keeps growing.  They don’t want to spend it in Norway because that will mess with inflating prices on everything else, so they just hold on to it and have a lot of meetings.  It’s so Norwegian, to hold that money close.  But somehow it’s going to have to balance out the fact that over 600,000 Norwegians that are eligible to be working, are not.  They are on some form of disability or sick leave – yet most of them can work, they just don’t want to because they get nearly the same pay as if they were working.  Now that’s a system that won’t last long… but part of the discussion around all the oil money is the fact they need to have some money for this new generation of kids that don’t know how or don’t want to work.  Insane thinking.  The immigrants are going to end up taking over the country.  Already Oslo has a 30% immigrant population, up from 25% just a few years ago.  Norway’s borders are open and people are flooding in to do the work that Norwegians just don’t want to do.  The old Norway is disappearing quickly.

The Day After

6 May 2013

I knew Confirmation was big here in Norway, but I didn’t realize just how big.  Daniel showed up at our house today during school hours so he could hang out with Kaleb.  Actually, he wanted to go to the mall with Kaleb.  I asked why he wasn’t in school and that’s when I found out each kid gets the Monday off following the weekend they had Confirmation.  It’s to give them time to spend their money!  How crazy is that?  So he was at the mall with all the other kids that were confirmed, spending some of his money.  He was proud of the fact he had enough to buy five McDonald’s cheeseburgers, a large fries and large coke.  He ate it all and was downright giddy.  He also bought a wallet to hold the rest of his money until he spends it.  Opening up a savings account wasn’t high on his priority list.  Too funny.

I spent the morning packing up my treasures that I want with me back in America.  Earlier, I was at the grocery store stepping over boxes of things they were stocking the shelves with, when it hit me that I could scrounge some of those handy little boxes to pack up all my precious belongings.  The pewter items are so easily damaged, I figured it was best to have them wrapped well for the travel.  And all the glass dishes and stoneware I want to bring home, also need extra packaging… so I spent a good part of the day wrapping up things like it was Christmas, hoping someone coming our way will be able to bring them along with them if we don’t have enough room in our luggage, which I’m sure we won’t.

In the middle of my packing, my friend Tina called (Daniel’s mom) and asked if I could help her set up for the “leftover party” tonight.  I was happy to do that, so she picked me up and we went out to the community hall where the confirmation dinner had been yesterday for Daniel.  We moved tables around, cleaned up a bit and got things looking fresh and pretty again for the second wave of guests to come eat all that food.  We sat down when we were done and she told me of the very stressful time she had leading up to the confirmation, as her oldest son was coming home from college in Trondheim when his car broke down about five hours away.  He didn’t have enough money to take a bus, get a hotel or fix the car.  It was one very stressful evening as Tina made phone call after phone call trying to figure out how to get him home.  Her husband even left right away to go pick him up, even though it meant he’d be driving through the night, but when they realized the ferry schedule wouldn’t get him home in time anyway, they gave up on that idea and he returned.

In the end, he got his car towed to the nearest city, Tina called the hotel there and explained their circumstances and got the hotel to cut their rate in half AND give them a bill to be paid AFTER they left because they had no money to pay when they signed in.  (He was with his girlfriend.)  They also had no money for the bus the next morning, but with enough phone calls she was actually able to talk to the guy that would be driving the bus at 5:30 am and she asked him if he’d let them get on the bus and she could pay on her end when they arrived.  He said they had to change busses, so that wouldn’t work, but he’d let them ride on his leg of the journey for free, and he’d arrange it with the other bus driver that she could pay for them once they got into Aalesund.  I’m just not sure all those scenarios would have happened in America.  But they got home in time for two of the three confirmations they had planned on attending over the weekend, Daniels’ being one of them, so all-in-all, it worked out.  Except now his car is sitting in a city five hours away and they still don’t know what to do about that.  At least he hitched a ride back to Trondheim with some cousins of ours that were going that way anyway.  Whew.  Poor Tina needed a hot bath after all that negotiation and it certainly wasn’t what she expected to be doing when she was getting the final things ready for the big day for Daniel.  But Norwegians are practical and determined people and they make things work.

So Kory and I ate a bit of dinner before we arrived at Daniel’s “reste selskap” since we knew there wouldn’t be any fat free vegan options.  It saved me from eating any dinner whatsoever so I could just concentrate on the cakes.  My oh my, were there cakes and all of them worthy of a second helping, but I had to just stick with one slice per or I wouldn’t have fit through the door on my way out.

We had a lovely evening visiting with those who were there and then we stayed on a bit longer to help with the total clean up of the place.  Tina was very thankful she had help.  Daniel also got a few more “envelopes” with money in them so he’s still smiling.  He said one kid in his class got over ten grand for his confirmation, but “he’s an only child,” he said, not sounding the least bit jealous.

Confirmation Day

5 May 2013

It just so happens that three kids we know pretty well were all confirmed today in the same church at the same time.  Considering there are confirmations going on each and every hour throughout the weekends of May and June, those odds were pretty amazing.  Of course, Philadelphia Church is a Pentecostal church and there are only two of those in our area so they only perform one confirmation per year, so it wasn’t really all that incredible, but still… the rest of the kids get confirmed at the state churches or in the “humanist” non-church groups.  What the humanists are confirming is beyond me, since the idea is that you are confirming your faith in God so the humanists are confirming they don’t believe in God, I guess.  They just want the money, as that’s really what confirmation is all about these days.  It’s a “coming of age” party now where everyone gives cash – most get at least four grand, and getting upwards of eight to ten grand is not unheard of.  Turning 15 year old kids loose with that kind of money just seems silly to me, but some of them do save it until they are 18, as getting a license to drive a car costs between 2-3 thousand dollars.  Oi.

So we attended the Confirmation service at Philly (above), and that place was jam packed, as there were 28 kids being confirmed and there were just not enough seats for the families and friends.  We went an hour early just to be sure we could sit down.  It’s a good thing they don’t have fire code restrictions here, as every wall was lined with people, the balcony had people sitting on every step going up it and folks were crowded in every aisle and standing in the lobby.  It was an insane amount of folks, all dressed in their finest suits, or bunads (below).  Formal and very fancy parties followed afterwards.

The ceremony at Philadelphia itself was much more entertaining than the ones we’ve attended at the state church where it’s just a formula and with no personality to it whatsoever.  This group of kids today formed a band so many of them were playing musical instruments and some of the girls sang along.  A couple other kids read scripture, and an entire group of them put on a dramatic skit that actually brought tears to my eyes.  Our old neighbor girl, Sabina, played the part of God, and she did a fantastic job.  It was all without words, but the message was quite clear. 

So Sabina, Kaleb’s good friend Daniel (top photo), and the foster son of a cousin, Benjamin, were all confirmed, prayed for and sent on their way into adulthood today.  We ended up being invited to all of their “reste selskap” (the “leftover party”) for tomorrow, but they are all happening at the same time so we are going to Daniel’s because his mom (above) asked us first.  They make so much food and so many cakes, it’s not possible to eat it all at the first party, and the size of refrigerators and freezers here makes it impossible to bring that food home, so it all has to be eaten up somehow… which works out well because then there’s the B list folks that also get to participate a little in the celebration, the day after. (The pattern of the bunad from our area of Norway is seen below.)

We hung out and visited quite after confirmation with the pastor of the church so Kory could find out details about helping him with a remodel project going on in the city on a house that was donated to the church.  I want Kaleb and I to help also, so maybe we’ll be starting this week.

I sat at my computer for about four hours this afternoon, trying to plan out the road trip we’ll take when the next batch of Norwegians come visit us this summer.  I checked and rechecked camping places and just sat, in tears, so frustrated that I couldn’t find a thing that would work out.  More advanced planning would have helped, and we made it extra challenging because we need a tent site along with the RV, since there will be 8 of us and our motorhome can only sleep 6.  Ugh.  I took a break, prayed, and just asked God to help me because I was about to lose my mind.  My patience had already gone out the window.

I tried again, looking at different camping spots, different areas, figuring how where we could stay each day that kept driving to no more than four hours a day… and finally, things clicked – including getting reservations on the Port Townsend ferry for the return trip home from Olympic National Park.  Whew.  Then I had to sit for another hour or so and make all the reservations and double check I had my facts straight.  Normally I like to plan trips, but this one was quite the challenge.  At least now I know where we are going and what we are doing and that takes a lot of stress out of having company.  Planning is the key.  My next step is meal planning the 10 days they are with us, then I just work the plan and don’t have to think about a thing.

After all that drama was over, we called up Odd and Turid to see if they were home, so we drove on over there for a visit.  They were having coffee with Turid’s daughter, Sara (above) and her family, and Odd’s son and his new wife.  We arrived just in time, since they left shortly thereafter to go move furniture from Sara’s house back to our condo building.  We helped with the moving as Haavard needed a couch and Sara had an extra one.  It also allowed us to get a tour of Sara’s beautiful house they bought last year and remodeled.  It’s very “modern” Norwegian style with everything white, sleek and no nick-nacks (her kitchen is above).  The minimalist movement is all the rage here, but would make me very nervous as I need a bit more visual stimulation, and after renting for 24 years and only seeing white walls, I so need more color in my life.  But all this is why thrift stores are full of lovely things from Norway’s past – because no one wants them sitting around, except me!

We had a quiet night in as the rain continued to fall… family game night is not just once a week like at home, it’s every night as there are no other distractions or projects for us to do here.  It’s one thing Kory says he likes about being here –the extra family time we have.  But then Kaleb skyped Daniel at 11:30 tonight, asking him how his confirmation party was, and I finally had to kick him off the computer at 12:15 so we could all go to bed.  It gets harder and harder to get to sleep when the days last longer and longer.

Trip Planning

4 May 2013

Yesterday morning there was nothing on the calendar for today, but that sure changed quickly.  I was hoping the sun would shine and we could go for a hike today,   but Kory’s mom’s cousin called to invite us over for dinner tonight and to talk about their upcoming plans to visit America this summer.  Shortly thereafter, I got a message from My Pal Vestina, saying she would like to come for coffee around 11am today.  Then we got another invitation for dinner tonight which we had to turn down, and as we were leaving to go have dinner with the cousin, we got another call, inviting us to yet another friend’s house for dinner.  Three invitations for one night!  Now there’s something that NEVER happens in America.  But that pretty much set the day in motion today and even though the sun was out for most of the day, I wasn’t out in it.  Nurture beat out nature today.

I spent the morning making a dessert for my friend Tina, as her son, Daniel, has his Confirmation tomorrow.  It’s common that neighbors and friends help prepare the food, even though they don’t go to the party.  We are invited to the “leftover party” on Monday though, so maybe some of those pecan squares will still be around by then, but I doubt it.

Vestina came by and we had a great chat over coffee while Kory and Kaleb left to go to Turid’s studio to hang up shelves and assemble the bench Kory made for her.  Vestina still cracks me up with every word.  I’m not sure she considers herself such a card, but that girl can make me laugh like no other.  It was good to have a little time with her and she’s still gorgeous as ever.  She won my heart when she asked why I looked so good and how come I’m not looking any older.  Ha!

The cousin we had dinner with lives across the fjord in another town so we had to take a ferry to get there.  Fortunately, it provided a few minutes to take photos of the mountains we haven’t seen much of lately since the clouds have been hiding them from view.  They were in all their snowcapped splendor today, so at least my soul got fed a little as did my body when we sat down to eat at Terje’s house.  Kory ate very little since we didn’t tell them we were vegan.  We do the best we can with that whole dietary restriction while we are here, but sometimes it’s just not happening.

Terje is about Kory’s age but has never been to America, so this trip is over the top for him and his wife, Laila.  They are also bringing their 39 year old son and his two boys, ages 9 and 3.  The house was pumped full of energy as they were all there and just full of excitement over what experiences this trip will bring.  The 9 year old practiced the little English he knows, when he asked us “How ARE you?”  Then during dinner, his brother spilled some pop and he yelled over and over “Oh my GOD! Oh my GOD!” as if to impress us.  I didn’t have the heart to tell him it was not something we like to hear.  He obviously watches American television shows as I’m sure they don’t teach that in school.

Being the planner that I am, I got out pen and paper after dinner and with laptop in hand, started asking questions, planning out routes and days they will be with us.  I made sure they each got in their preferences because with that kind of age span, their priorities are all so different.  Terje just wants to visit family.  He has a first cousin he’s never met, he was hoping to greet while we were there, but a quick internet search found out he died 14 months ago, so the focus shifted toward meeting his kids, instead.  They live in Vancouver, BC, so hopefully we can make contact with them and satisfy that desire.  

Laila wasn’t too hot on going to America as none of them can speak English and she was worried it would just be sitting around visiting Terje’s family, but once I told her about how cheap name brand clothes are, she perked right up and decided she’d like to spend a little time shopping.  Her grandsons want to go to the science center, zoo, aquarium and trampoline park.  They all thought a road trip in our motorhome would be nice – seeing Olympic National Park, Eastern Washington and Mt. St. Helens.  They need to stay longer, but we’ll try to get it all in.

So we had one heck of a night and now I have a new challenge to make reservations for the RV for the days we will be on the go in July.  It’s a bit late in the season for such plans, but I’m believing with God, all things are possible.

I delivered the dessert to Tina at 11pm, on our way home from Terje’s house.  It’s weird that 11pm is kind of the cut off time for making phone calls or dropping by for a visit here in Norway.  I think it’s about 9pm in America, but here, life’s on a different schedule and we are too, as the sun stays in the sky longer and longer.