In an interview with the former Swedish Prime Minister Goeran Persson he talked about "mediautrymmet".
A much talked about documentary about Persson had been broadcast the day after his party had chosen Mona Sahlin as their new party leader.
Persson noted that the documentary probably had taken up much of the Media Space from Mona Sahlin.
I had never heard this expression before.
Saturday, March 31, 2007
FOUR Ts FOR A DECENT LIFE
On the seminar I attended a few days ago I learnt that four Ts are basis for a decent life.
The Ts are of course all Norwegian words, but here they come:
TRYGGHET Safety That you feel safe
TILLIT Confidence That people have confidence in you and believe you
TOLERANSE Tolerance That people tolerate you, even if you are different than most others
TRIVSEL Wellbeing That you feel well with yourself and your environment
The Ts are of course all Norwegian words, but here they come:
TRYGGHET Safety That you feel safe
TILLIT Confidence That people have confidence in you and believe you
TOLERANSE Tolerance That people tolerate you, even if you are different than most others
TRIVSEL Wellbeing That you feel well with yourself and your environment
Friday, March 30, 2007
Hotel 100 % Smoke Free
As part of a two day seminary at work, we stayed at a very nice hotel in Toensberg on the other side of the Oslo Fjord - the Quality Hotel Toensberg.
A sign in the hotel room informed:
This hotel is 100 % smoke free, which means that there is no smoking in any part of the hotel. If you smoke in the hotel room, you get a fine of 1500 Norwegian crowns (a little more than 400 US dollars). Half of that sum is donated to cancer research by the hotel.
A sign in the hotel room informed:
This hotel is 100 % smoke free, which means that there is no smoking in any part of the hotel. If you smoke in the hotel room, you get a fine of 1500 Norwegian crowns (a little more than 400 US dollars). Half of that sum is donated to cancer research by the hotel.
They Got Engaged
Two phone calls have made me very happy the last week.
Phone call # 1.
My son arrived safely in Chicago and his girlfriend was there to meet them. They had last seen each other in Norway in August 2006.
Phone call # 2.
My son proposed to his girlfriend in a Chicago. Congratulations!
They are now engaged.
Phone call # 1.
My son arrived safely in Chicago and his girlfriend was there to meet them. They had last seen each other in Norway in August 2006.
Phone call # 2.
My son proposed to his girlfriend in a Chicago. Congratulations!
They are now engaged.
Monday, March 26, 2007
Being Far Away When You Would Like to be Close
The person I love the most on this earth, has some hectic days.
Yesterday he got his airplane ticket, today he was supposed to get his visa (I haven't heard from him, so I believe everything worked out - tfu, tfu) and early tomorrow morning he is flying to a country far away he has never been to before to meet the person he loves the most and to start a whole new life with her.
I wish them both the best and hope they will have a long and happy life together!
Yesterday he got his airplane ticket, today he was supposed to get his visa (I haven't heard from him, so I believe everything worked out - tfu, tfu) and early tomorrow morning he is flying to a country far away he has never been to before to meet the person he loves the most and to start a whole new life with her.
I wish them both the best and hope they will have a long and happy life together!
Spring and Light
When I came in November, the days were short and the temperature was on the coldish side - for me.
Now, for the last few days, you feel how it is getting warmer and how the days get lighter and longer. This spring weather becomes a topic when people meet on the street, on the bus, at work.
It is like we have crawled out of a dark tunnel.
Spring is great!
Now, for the last few days, you feel how it is getting warmer and how the days get lighter and longer. This spring weather becomes a topic when people meet on the street, on the bus, at work.
It is like we have crawled out of a dark tunnel.
Spring is great!
Sunday, March 25, 2007
Saturday, March 24, 2007
Fastelavensboller - a Taste of Childhood
In my childhood, sometimes before Easter, my mother would serve "fastelavensboller" with whipped cream and a little piece of marzipan hidden inside.
This is a tradition from Sweden, but from the time Sweden was Catholic (before 1523). I was told the Catholics fasted before Easter , not eating meat, but only fish and milk food.
So here I am, in 2007, enjoying a "fastelavensbolle" just because of the taste !
This is a tradition from Sweden, but from the time Sweden was Catholic (before 1523). I was told the Catholics fasted before Easter , not eating meat, but only fish and milk food.
So here I am, in 2007, enjoying a "fastelavensbolle" just because of the taste !
Friday, March 23, 2007
Heron Dance : A Story about Planting Trees
An American I met once around 40 years ago in my second country gave me a present – forwarding the newsletters from a website called Heron Dance. Beautiful water colors of herons. Nature aquarels. Texts that become small meditations in a busy day.
http://www.herondance.org/
http://www.herondance.org/
I signed up to get the weekly newsletters. I still get them.
Thank you Heron Dance! Thank you to the man who forwarded the newsletters in the first place.
Lately Heron Dance is reorganizing the site slightly, and around this change sent out a story written in Europe many years ago, a story I hope you will enjoy as much as I did.
http://www.herondance.org/The_Man_Who_Planted_Trees_W88.cfm
"Moellers Tran "- Fish oil for health
Around fifty years ago my mother gave me what was considered a good health protection in the winter - a tablespoon of fish oil ("tran" in Norwegian) a day. I remember the bottle with the name "Moellers tran", and worse, I remember the terrible taste!After that first bottle, my mother quickly changed to Sanasol - a sweet orangetasting sirup with vitamins. What a change for a young child!
These days fish oil sells itself as Omega -3.
Imagine when I saw those old "Moellers tran" bottles at the supermarket , more or less looking the same as back then!
But of course these days one does not have to suffer that disgusting taste. You can now buy the fishoil in capsules. I even bought capsules with mint taste....
Sunday, March 18, 2007
Norwegian : "Oblat" and "Kontrollavgift"
At Moss railway station I was reading an announcement about new parking arrangements around the station.
To park, you needed an "oblat", otherwise you would get a "kontrollavgift" (control payment). "Kontrollavgift" would in my oldfashioned Norwegian be called "mulkt" (a fine).
Does it hurt less when you pay the "kontrollavgift", than if you pay a "mulkt"?
And "oblat", how did that word enter the Norwegian language as a word for a parking permit?
In my world, oblat has to do with eating unleavened bread in a church to get forgiveness for your sins.
How did a religious symbol become a word for a pure money transaction?
How can paying money for a parking spot, give you an "oblat"?
To park, you needed an "oblat", otherwise you would get a "kontrollavgift" (control payment). "Kontrollavgift" would in my oldfashioned Norwegian be called "mulkt" (a fine).
Does it hurt less when you pay the "kontrollavgift", than if you pay a "mulkt"?
And "oblat", how did that word enter the Norwegian language as a word for a parking permit?
In my world, oblat has to do with eating unleavened bread in a church to get forgiveness for your sins.
How did a religious symbol become a word for a pure money transaction?
How can paying money for a parking spot, give you an "oblat"?
Saturday, March 17, 2007
We over 60 - well, nearly
I am not yet 60 (getting closer!), but I certainly want to know what happens then.
So today I found a magazine called "Vi over 60" (We over 60) and decided that that was just what I want to read about.
They even have a website http://viover60.com/
So today I found a magazine called "Vi over 60" (We over 60) and decided that that was just what I want to read about.
They even have a website http://viover60.com/
Friday, March 16, 2007
Piet Hein: Remember to Forget
Husk at glemme bagateller.
Husk at nemme hvad det gælder.
Husk at elske, mens du tør det.
Husk at leve, mens du gør det.
Piet Hein
A very free translation:
Remember to forget the unimportant details.
Remember to understand what is important.
Remember to love, while you still dare to.
Remember to live, while you are still alive.
Husk at nemme hvad det gælder.
Husk at elske, mens du tør det.
Husk at leve, mens du gør det.
Piet Hein
A very free translation:
Remember to forget the unimportant details.
Remember to understand what is important.
Remember to love, while you still dare to.
Remember to live, while you are still alive.
Moss: Tollboden = The old Customs House
Downtown, next to the bridge, the canal and the guest harbor, is the old Customs House in Moss.Today this building houses a restaurant.
The photo was taken from the other side of the canal in the end of February 2007.
Piet Hein: A Lesson about Life in a Grook
Norwegian version of a "gruk" (Grook in English) written by Danish poet, author, inventor, designer and mathematician Piet Hein (1905 -1996):
Den som mister sin ene hanske
er heldig
i forhold til den som mister den ene
kasserer den andre
og finner
den første igjen.
English version found on the website http://chat.carleton.ca/~tcstewar/grooks/grooks.html
CONSOLATION GROOK
Losing one glove
is certainly painful,
but nothing
compared to the pain,
of losing one,
throwing away the other,
and finding
the first one again.
And indeed, the lesson of that poem helped me reunite my two mittens today!
This winter a pair of black knitted mittens with fleece lining has kept me warm.
About ten days ago one glove disappeared from the backseat of the car, around the time I was moving to my new apartment.
My basic feeling was that it had fallen out of the car somewhere, but I could not find it.
Remembering Piet Hein's grook I kept the "surviving" mitten in a drawer.
In the meantime the snow is melting and as the Norwegian saying goes: "What disappears in the snow, comes up when the snow melts".
Today I got out of the car, on the street, outside my new apartment and there, in the dirt, was the lost mitten!
The two mittens are now on their way to the washing machine....
Thanks, Piet Hein!
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grook
Den som mister sin ene hanske
er heldig
i forhold til den som mister den ene
kasserer den andre
og finner
den første igjen.
English version found on the website http://chat.carleton.ca/~tcstewar/grooks/grooks.html
CONSOLATION GROOK
Losing one glove
is certainly painful,
but nothing
compared to the pain,
of losing one,
throwing away the other,
and finding
the first one again.
And indeed, the lesson of that poem helped me reunite my two mittens today!
This winter a pair of black knitted mittens with fleece lining has kept me warm.
About ten days ago one glove disappeared from the backseat of the car, around the time I was moving to my new apartment.
My basic feeling was that it had fallen out of the car somewhere, but I could not find it.
Remembering Piet Hein's grook I kept the "surviving" mitten in a drawer.
In the meantime the snow is melting and as the Norwegian saying goes: "What disappears in the snow, comes up when the snow melts".
Today I got out of the car, on the street, outside my new apartment and there, in the dirt, was the lost mitten!
The two mittens are now on their way to the washing machine....
Thanks, Piet Hein!
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grook
Thursday, March 15, 2007
Congratulations: My Norwegian Bank is 150 years old
Yesterday my mother visited the bank and was offered coffee and cake.Last night a show of fireworks looked impressive from my window - all in honor of the bank now celebrating 150 years.
From the bank's website:
Around 200 years ago in the nearby community of Rygge, a granary (kornmagasin in Norwegian) was established.
Later, in 1857, based on the value of the oats and the barley in that granary, a bank was established, helping local farmers with loans to buy more seeds and thus helping them enter the era of "money management".
Tuesday, March 13, 2007
The Circle on TV
It was the summer of 1956 and I was still five years old.My Swedish grandparents had just bought a TV, but of course the programms were sent only a few hours a day.
Grandma sent me from the kitchen to the living room «to watch TV».
After some time (the story does not say how many minutes...) I returned to the kitchen, announcing: »I am not going to watch that circle any more.»
PS. Imagine my surprise when I saw that same circle on TV this morning, March 2007. The only difference – then it was in black and white, now it is in color.
Who, What, Where, If and How
Beloved childhood rhyme was written by Andre Bjerke.
This is how I remember the text in Norwegian:
Hvem og Hva og
Hvor og Hvordan
bodde i ett hus ved Jordan,
men en dag var Hvor blitt vekk.
Hva var nesten stiv av skrekk.
«Hvor er Hvor?» sa Hva til Hvordan.
«Er han kanskje falt i Jordan?»
Men da kom Hvor med Hvis og sa:
«Kan Hvis bo her?»
«Ja, hvis Hvis vil.»
Nå er de fem:
Hva, Hvor, Hvordan, Hvis og Hvem.
My free translation:
Who and What and
Where and Why
lived in a house next to the Jordan River,
but one day Where disappeared.
What was nearly stiff with fear.
«Where is Where?» said What to Why.
«Has he fallen in the river ?»
But then Where came with If and asked:
«Can If live here?»
«Yes, if If wants to.»
Now they are five:
What, Where, Why, If and Who.
This is how I remember the text in Norwegian:
Hvem og Hva og
Hvor og Hvordan
bodde i ett hus ved Jordan,
men en dag var Hvor blitt vekk.
Hva var nesten stiv av skrekk.
«Hvor er Hvor?» sa Hva til Hvordan.
«Er han kanskje falt i Jordan?»
Men da kom Hvor med Hvis og sa:
«Kan Hvis bo her?»
«Ja, hvis Hvis vil.»
Nå er de fem:
Hva, Hvor, Hvordan, Hvis og Hvem.
My free translation:
Who and What and
Where and Why
lived in a house next to the Jordan River,
but one day Where disappeared.
What was nearly stiff with fear.
«Where is Where?» said What to Why.
«Has he fallen in the river ?»
But then Where came with If and asked:
«Can If live here?»
«Yes, if If wants to.»
Now they are five:
What, Where, Why, If and Who.
The View from my Window
The upper part of the view :
The Oslo fjord and the Bastø ferry and the Jeløy Island.
Beautiful.
The lower part of the view:
The harbor and the containers and the crane.
That seems to be life too – a combination of feeding our stomachs by making a living and feeding our souls and minds with beauty.
The Oslo fjord and the Bastø ferry and the Jeløy Island.
Beautiful.
The lower part of the view:
The harbor and the containers and the crane.
That seems to be life too – a combination of feeding our stomachs by making a living and feeding our souls and minds with beauty.
A Norwegian Bank Card
My credit card from my other country has a photo of me on it. It is only used for bank matters. For identification my local ID card proves who I am.
My Norwegian bank card has my photo and personal information, making it an ID card in many situations in Norway.
Before I got my bank card I used my Norwegian passport for identification. There are no ID cards issued by the state like in my other country.
I really think the banks back in my other country should add the ID part to all their credit cards. The photo, which is not compulsory, is something, but not enough.
Bank language:
In my other country we usually talk about Bankomat.
Here in Norway they call it Minibank.
More bank stuff:
In my other country when I pay with a credit card, the cashier in the office, supermarket or shop take the card from my hand and pushes it through a slit to confirm if there is money on my account. The vendor has the active role.
In supermarkets, shops, offices etc. in Norway, they use a separate machine turned in my direction where I push the card through the slit and write the four numbered pin-code. I, the customer, have the active role.
My Norwegian bank card has my photo and personal information, making it an ID card in many situations in Norway.
Before I got my bank card I used my Norwegian passport for identification. There are no ID cards issued by the state like in my other country.
I really think the banks back in my other country should add the ID part to all their credit cards. The photo, which is not compulsory, is something, but not enough.
Bank language:
In my other country we usually talk about Bankomat.
Here in Norway they call it Minibank.
More bank stuff:
In my other country when I pay with a credit card, the cashier in the office, supermarket or shop take the card from my hand and pushes it through a slit to confirm if there is money on my account. The vendor has the active role.
In supermarkets, shops, offices etc. in Norway, they use a separate machine turned in my direction where I push the card through the slit and write the four numbered pin-code. I, the customer, have the active role.
Moving in
Moving takes energy – not only the physical aspect of moving your stuff, but perhaps even more the mental aspect of moving your soul.
When will I get used to feeling that this little apartment I have moved into, will feel like «home»?
How will I sleep here tonight in the bed I have bought this morning in a secondhand shop? New sheets, though.... :)
When will I get an internet connection at this apartment where there is no telephone?
How will it be to take a shower for the first time? To cook a meal?
I still haven't met my upstairs neighbours. They will have to tell me which of the three postboxes outside is mine, and how I can get the internet through cable TV.
PS. First night: I slept nearly ten hours with two breaks – I can't remember when I slept that much last time. Excellent!
When will I get used to feeling that this little apartment I have moved into, will feel like «home»?
How will I sleep here tonight in the bed I have bought this morning in a secondhand shop? New sheets, though.... :)
When will I get an internet connection at this apartment where there is no telephone?
How will it be to take a shower for the first time? To cook a meal?
I still haven't met my upstairs neighbours. They will have to tell me which of the three postboxes outside is mine, and how I can get the internet through cable TV.
PS. First night: I slept nearly ten hours with two breaks – I can't remember when I slept that much last time. Excellent!
Week 10
In my other country I have been used to single dates - like March 5th , Nov 16th etc.
In Norway, at least at work, they talk and write about Week 1, Week 2 etc.
If the specific dates are noted on the lists using the Week number – no problem.
When it only says Week 10, I have to count the weeks from the beginning of the year – or find a calendar listing both.
When did this system of using weeks as time units develop in Norway, and why?
Did it come from the States?
Is it also used by some firms in my other country?
In Norway, at least at work, they talk and write about Week 1, Week 2 etc.
If the specific dates are noted on the lists using the Week number – no problem.
When it only says Week 10, I have to count the weeks from the beginning of the year – or find a calendar listing both.
When did this system of using weeks as time units develop in Norway, and why?
Did it come from the States?
Is it also used by some firms in my other country?
Sunday, March 4, 2007
Vasaloppet in Sweden - 90 km on skiI
Today on Swedish and Norwegian TV we could watch how around 12000 tried to complete the 90 km long distance cross-country ski race in Dalarna, Sweden.Vasaloppet started back in 1922, inspired by the run that the future King Gustav Vasa had made in 1520. A long memory for a historic event? An excuse to arrange a ski competition in a faraway place?
As the race started, the Norwegian TV commentator said: «The Swedes win so many of these races, it would be nice if somebody from abroad could win this year – f.ex. a Norwegian.»
His wish was not granted.
This year another Swede won.
Train Oslo - Moss
Going by train from Oslo to Moss, you have two alternatives:
1. taking the local train that stops on each station and ends at Moss or
2. the fast train, a train that usually goes from Oslo to Halden near the Swedish border.
This fast train does not stop before Moss, and it takes only 40 minutes.
No wonder many of the citizens of Moss work in Oslo!
This fast train does not stop before Moss, and it takes only 40 minutes.
No wonder many of the citizens of Moss work in Oslo!
But before you get on the train, you have to decide on which waggon to enter.
* The basic choice is the Regular Waggon.
* Adding money to your ticket you may chose Comfort, giving you a newspaper and free coffee and – I think – an internet connection for your PC.
* You can also enter the Quiet Waggon (Stille in Norwegian), but that means quiet. No mobile telephone. Hardly any whispering. This is the waggon for those who want to slumber on the train.
* If you have a monthly subscription, you will use the one with a M (for Monthly).
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