Blog

TAKE IT!

One of the cultural differences I noticed when I moved to Sweden is that Swedes will never take the last of anything.  If you attend a Swedish party, by the end of the night there will most likely be 1 chip left in the bowl and one tiny slice of cake.  On Christmas there is … Read more

Jeeves

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

Spooky sunbathing

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

Volcano!!!!!

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

Madness

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:

ssons

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’m so tired…..

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

Winter Olympics

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.

Tea

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.

Cinammon

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

Bad Monkey

I read a lot of children’s books to my kids and it’s always fun when you find interesting pictures in them.  Sometimes the illustrator likes to hide funny things in pictures that not everyone notices.  My favorite is from a Curious George book.  It’s a little picture off to the side, almost hidden in the … Read more

Thank’s God

While I was looking up restaurants today on the main restaurant site for Stockholm, I found some information on Thank’s God It’s Friday  – better known to you and I as T.G.I. Fridays.   I guess some ambitious writer took it upon themselves to demonstrate their knowledge of U.S. chain restaurants and thought they would write … Read more

Tornado School!

It’s time to look at schools for our oldest son.  After careful searching through the neighborhood, I finally found the perfect school.  TORNADO SCHOOL!!!!!  I know nothing about it, it just sounds exciting.   Unfortunately, it’s a bit too far out of our area.  Too bad.  I was hoping he could start there, continue on to … Read more

My hovercraft is full of eels

I saw a paper yesterday for new students coming to Sweden. It gives helpful phrases they may need to know in Swedish. There were only about 20 phrases. The best 2 were, “How do you like it in Sweden? – It gets better every day!” (There was no option for ‘I don’t like it’ or … Read more

Waiting room

Don’t you hate it when you’re in the waiting room for the doctor and the only thing to look at is the giant poster on the wall that says, “Let me tell you about cholera….”?

Fake Pockets

So I go to put a Kleenex in the pocket of my new pants today only to realize that my pants are full of fake pockets!!!!  There wasn’t one real pocket on there.  I almost ripped the stitching out trying to get one to open.   Luckily I had my boots on so I stuffed the … Read more

Snow Chaos!!!!

The news reported yesterday that we were going to get a little snowstorm today with another foot of snow.  It’s been advised that people should stay indoors if possible and prepare for delays on public transportation.  Everything was calm this morning, but I think the mini-blizzard has begun.  It’s looking bad outside the window and … Read more

Artic Drift

I’m reading a book right now called Artic Drift.  It’s a great book but I’m starting to question whether this was the right time of year to read it.  All of these people keep getting trapped in blizzards and floating out on icebergs and all I can think of is, “Yeah, I think that must … Read more

Icicle of Doom

My son thought he heard Santa Claus this morning up on our roof.   I didn’t think about it very much until I went outside and realized that there were several men on our roof.  They were pushing off all of the snow, which is something that’s done quite often around the city, as people are … Read more