Life in the Land of the Ice and Snow
Infiltrating Sweden one cinnamon bun at a time
Today I will be spending 4 hours at a slippery course. What is a slippery course, you say? It’s a requirement toward getting a Swedish drivers license. From what I understand, it’s a racetrack where they create patches of water and ice in order to teach you what it feels like to drive and break … Read more
I’m looking though Singapore Airlines webpage and trying to fill in a form. I have to say, all the airlines I’ve ever used only give a choice of “Mr., Mrs., Miss, Mstr.” Singapore Airlines has a drop-down menu of possibly 50 different titles including, “Duchess, Sultan, Queen, President, etc.” I have a feeling this airline … Read more
Listening to Dexy’s Midnight Runners this morning. When is the adult blue-Jean overall coming back into fashion? It was actually popular in the mid-eighties. I owned a pair. Legwamers have come back, leggings, some people are trying to bring shoulder-pads back, but why not blue-Jean overalls? If I remember correctly I wore mine with a … Read more
I was in a meeting today with an old man in a suit. He would have looked very sophisticated except for the wild white hair going in all different directions all over his head. I’ve decided I really like this look. It’s the “charming old man genius” look. Is there a fashion magazine for people … Read more
There are only 3 bathrooms at work for our floor of around 60 people so with all of the coffee drinking around here I am sometimes forced to use the second floor bathroom, or the Angry Voodoo Bathroom as I like to call it. All other bathrooms in the building are fairly normal, but apparently … Read more
Leo has the chicken pox this week. At the moment it is my turn to be home with him a couple of days. Lucky for me, this is also the same time that the temperatures dropped between -15 c and -20c. Leo and I sit at the window, drinking hot chocolate and waving at all … Read more
Just checked Amazon’s “Gift Ideas for Grandma” section. They suggest the Millenium book series. I’m not really sure that’s the right choice for most of the grandmothers I know.
A little re-cap of my Wednesday morning subway ride: 7:31- Trapped in crowded subway tube next to child coughing up a lung. Apparently a side effect from all that coughing is kicking. Picked the wrong day to wear a skirt. 7:40 – Pushed forward after three stops to crowded middle area where I was coughed … Read more
One of the political parties in Stockholm wants to have butlers in the subway. My idea when I read the headline was that he would follow each person around, carry their bags, warm up and save a seat, hold open doors when you’re running and have a hot cup of tea waiting when you step … Read more
Took a walk today at lunch through a graveyard. I’ve always thought it was creepy that they built a hospital across the street from a graveyard. Half of the patient rooms are facing it. What a depressing view. Saves time with transportation after unsuccessful surgeries. A friend at work told me about a graveyard somewhere … Read more
I really never thought I’d be living somewhere where a volcano could disrupt my activities. A volcano in Iceland has been spreading volcanic ash in a cloud over part of northern Europe and they have stopped all flights since Thursday. People are stranded. No one can get home. Many cancelled flights. Luckily I wasn’t travelling … Read more
In case you don’t live in Stockholm and were wondering what it was like earlier this week to fight off half a million people for buses when they shut down the subway, I took a picture:
I had to look up a person’s email address at a Swedish university. I couldn’t remember the first name, only that the last name was Larsson. No problem, I thought…. I’ll just look for the person with that last name. Forgot for a moment that I was in Sweden where probably 1/5 of the country … Read more
I’ve been so tired this week. I can’t seem to remember people’s names correctly. But I’ve decided now that I’m much better off just making up names that I think fit people better. For example, there’s one person that I keep calling “Caroline” even though that isn’t her name. But she looks more like a … Read more
I’m hearing a lot about the Winter Olympics going on, but it can’t possibly be as exciting as my own personal Winter Olympics going on each day. I have to dodge every rooftop on the way through the neighborhood with sword sized icicles.
I came across a box of Russian tea the other day. I thought, “Hmm…. what makes this tea Russian?” So I looked at the description which said, “tea with citrus flavors.” Well that makes sense, because when I think of citrus fruits, I think Russia.
Why isn’t there a cinnamon shower gel? I’ve seen chocolate. I’ve even seen amber. Amber? That’s not even a real flavor, but they have it! So why no cinnamon? I’d buy it. Maybe I’ll just start rubbing some in my skin. When I walk by people, I’d like to hear them say things like, “Umm.. … Read more
Speaking of pictures from books, this one is my husband’s favorite: