Life in the Land of the Ice and Snow
Infiltrating Sweden one cinnamon bun at a time
Have you ever been around a peacock for a long amount of time? They have the most horrifying scream. There’s no way a peacock could make someone calm. Now, when it comes to meetings with people I don’t like, however, this would totally come in handy. I gotta get one of these.
The weekly school report informed us that our youngest son’s ice skating class had its schedule adjusted by 15 minutes today because of a “state visit.” So I looked it up, and the “state visit” was a bit of British royalty – Prince William and Kate – visiting a bandy practice in the park. Turns … Read more
I check the Houston news about once a month to keep up with things happening back in Texas. I want to be on top of current events and important developments happening in the city, so I know what’s affecting my family and friends. Sometimes I think I should check the news more often than once … Read more
The snow is melting today and it’s just a big slush of muddy roads and giant slabs of ice falling from roofs. I think most people here who claim they hate the snow don’t really hate the snow, they hate what’s going to happen because they know that eventually it will get melty and slushy, … Read more
My husband gave a presentation to a 4th grade class yesterday and asked the kids how they veiw the future and what new technologies they think we will have 50 years from now. I asked him how it went and he said, “It’s amazing the number of children who answer Robot Slaves. In fact, one … Read more
One of my favorite Christmas gifts from my husband about 3 years back was this hotel bell. One of my husband’s biggest regrets in life was getting me this hotel bell. He gave it to me because he thought it might come in handy any time I was sick and needed something in bed. And … Read more
My husband got a special pickling jar for Christmas. He is currently buying all the cabbage available in Sweden and filling our fridge and counters with sauerkraut and kimchi. Everything in the fridge smells of cabbage. The kitchen smells of cabbage. The apartment smells of cabbage. I’m afraid to go out and meet friends today … Read more
When I hear Boxing Day, I imagine people taking out frustrations on relatives after being cooped up in a house with them over the holidays.
Fire and safety might have something to say about a blow torch being used to light the church chandelier.
Just another news story to encourage us all to use credit cards instead of cash.
For several years now, here in Sweden, I’ve been seeing stores advertise for “Black Friday.” It’s not the chaos of the U.S., but more regular type sales. As far as I know, nothing opens early. The reason that I and other Americans find Swedish “Black Friday” sales ridiculous is that there is no point behind … Read more
Never really caught on.
An opinion piece on CNN is titled “Should we fear killer robots?” Yes. It does seem like a no-brainer because of the adjective “killer.” If this headline said, “Should we fear killer dolphins?” or “Should we fear killer hedgehogs?” my answer would be the same.
We had a slight bit of a scorpion problem while renting an apartment in Italy last week. However, I still prefer scorpions to giant Texas tree roaches. Scorpions somehow seem more sophisticated. Because of my respect for the majestic scorpion, I chose to catch and release the two we found by throwing them out of … Read more
One of my friends is working at a company currently planning the annual Christmas party. She says that last week, the CEO of the company walked up to the woman in charge, annouced that he needed an animatronic reindeer with snow showering around it, and then walked away. If I were the CEO of a … Read more
Jacket for sale – $10. — Message from Woman: I’m interested. I’d like to try it on. Me: Ok, here’s my address. (I write address). Woman: I’ll get back to you tomorrow. — next day — Woman: Is the jacket still there? Me: Yes. Woman: Can we meet at the Central Station? Me: No. The … Read more
I looked up reviews on a children’s activity park in Italy, but everything was in Italian so I had to use Google Translate. I don’t know why this person only gave this place 2 stars. It sounds pretty interesting!
These job ads get more specific every day. Today’s copywriting ad states that they would prefer an applicant who is really into chainsaws. If I come dressed as this guy, do you think I’ll get the job?
Every time I read a job ad that includes any mention of “stakeholders,” I just think of an angry mob chasing Dracula and then I forget what the job was about.
While waiting in line at the grocery store, I spotted the magazine rack, which is pretty much what one would expect in Sweden: