Smoked beaver? Anyone?
The menu at a Russian restaurant in Tallinn. Smoked beaver on the appetizers… Bear meat stroganoff on the main courses… Bear meat dumplings..
Blog
Root Beer is NOT Disgusting – episode 2
Another episode of my podcast is up. I talk with a friend from California. We discuss the new “Museum of Disgusting Food” in Sweden, which apparently includes root beer. I am not in agreement with this assesment and I think all that pickled herring must have messed up the taste buds of a lot of … Read more
Booze Cruise
We took a short trip to Tallinn, Estonia this week on what some people call a “Booze cruise.” In Stockholm, there are several short trips you can take by ship to Helsinki, Tallinn and Riga. It’s 2 nights on the ship and one day in the city. The best part is that it’s insanely cheap! … Read more
Another tale of Swedish trick-or-treat
My son’s friend went trick-or-treating with his sister last weekend (because in Sweden, Halloween is 2 weeks for some reason). The Swedes are still learning how Halloween works, which leads to some strange things ending up in the treat bag. On this occasion, the boy and his sister knocked on a door belonging to an … Read more
I’ve got a podcast!
Much like my books, it’s about the funny things that happen as an expat living in Sweden. I interview a different fellow expat friend each week and we talk about the mysterious ways of the Swedes and all the various ways we’ve made embarassing mistakes here. Our humiliation is your entertainment! Each episode is between … Read more
Where’s my balloon?
Lots of people like to ask, “Hey, where’s my hoverboard?” in reference to what we thought our current lives would look like by the 2000s. I stumbled across an interesting article on Mashable with illustrations of what people living in 1900 thought the world would look like by the year 2000. Apparently, walking on water … Read more
Thanks for the image, son.
After eating a bit too much curry at lunch, my son had to spend a long time in the bathroom yesterday evening. When he finally came out, he said: “I thought I had dysentery! But not like Oregon Trail, more like Oregon ROAD!”
Cinnamon Bun Day
It’s Cinnamon Bun Day in Sweden. Why do we celebrate? I don’t know. It’s so depressing heading toward winter so this is about all we have to look forward to this week. Maybe we need to eat a bunch of cinnamon buns to build up our warm layer of fat to get through the next … Read more
Another insulting job hoop to jump through
When looking for jobs, I appreciate companies that can get to the point about what they want, ask for my résumé and a sample of my work and then an interview if they feel we match. What I do NOT appreciate are companies that make you jump through unnecessary hoops that have nothing to do … Read more
Well, that’s a relief
While looking through CNN headlines, I often notice articles sandwiched in between news of war and sickness, such as this one. Was this really a thing? Or was the reporter just out of ideas and repeated something someone said at a party? It seems you could write a lot of articles this way: Peanut Butter … Read more
Geography
We decided to book a trip for the winter. I asked the kids where they wanted to go. One of my suggestions was Barcelona and the other was Greece. One son said Greece and the other really wanted Barcelona. As he has never mentioned Barcelona, I wondered why he was so adamant about going. When … Read more
Italy observations
As we rode through yet another small Italian town, my oldest son asked, “How come all of these towns have groups of old men just sitting around together all day? What are they doing?” “What do you think they’re doing?” “Probably complaining about the modern world.”
How to defeat your kids on YouTube
The kids and I have been having a contest on for who can create the most watched video on YouTube. I need to crush them with my amazing video that I spent a whole 10 minutes making, so why not give it a view? It’s so very informative!
Correspondence with my son
Otherwise entitled “My son does not appreciate my humor.” My oldest son has been away at summer camp this week. We will be picking him up today so I sent him this: He now requests that I wait in the car.
I need some air, take out an organ
Always take a shower in the morning! You never know what the day will bring. Example, a lazy day last week turned into an overnight stay at the hospital and one son without an appendix! I have to say that everything went smoothly and everyone was very nice. My only complaint was that there was … Read more
It’s Peanut Butter Jelly Time!
I planned to bring both of my sons to the beach yesterday. I packed two peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, because they’re cheap to make and I already had everything. Plus, they like them, which always helps. Just before leaving, my oldest son got an invitation to go somewhere else, so my youngest invited a … Read more
Please refrain from discussing my underwear
Strangers are generally much more talkative in the U.S. than in Sweden. At times it can be nice to chat with someone. I might learn something new or come away with a funny story. At other times strangers’ interactions with me can become a little too intrusive. For example, I was in Texas buying underwear. … Read more
Sweden – your new beach destination!
It’s HOT! Really hot! And you know it must be bad coming from someone who grew up in Texas and just got back from a vacation there. We’ve had a bit of a heatwave here in Sweden over the past 2 weeks. Of course, I’m all for it so I can wear my sandals and … Read more
Apple pie burger
We were told to visit a popular burger place in East Texas that serves an Apple Pie Burger. I pictured a burger with an actual apple pie between the buns (honestly, it’s not that much of a stretch with some of the other crazy foods around there), but it was a burger with apple pie … Read more
Pickle juice craze
I’m back from 3 weeks in the states with a confused stomach and many new food observations. Today is all about pickles. So pickle juice flavor is a thing in the U.S. now. Or at least in the south. I am a huge fan of pickles, but that’s as far as it goes. I have … Read more