So when in my life did interesting things happen?

A friend in my other country brought up the idea

that I may have many more interesting things

happening in my life here in Norway than when

I lived in my other country.

I was thinking about this last night before falling

asleep, and feel very strongly that I have had very

interesting things happening all my life.

My life in my other country was a wonderful row

of meeting fascinating people, learning things, having

experiences I can only be very grateful for.

It was an incredible life.

BUT

in my other country I never wrote a blog like

this, so most of what happened to me is only in my

head and heart, if I still remember it consciously :-)

My friends only got to hear about some of it -

here and there.

My other country is a very special country,

with a mixed population hard to imagine,

with nature so different from Norway,

with a history hard to understand.

That country, my other country, has so many

private citizens who have opened their homes and

their hearts to me for so many decades.

I am, sorting out box after box of personal

documents, trying to keep some of my "paper life"

in chronological journals.

Just imagine if I one day tried to recreate 40 years

of living in my other country in blog form.....

Torderoed - a work in progress

Last year our guide Arnulf Johannesen showed us the

White Room where the ladies would withdraw now

and then from the dancing and the entertainment.

He said that the expert Viktoria Brand had established

the original color scheme of the room and that she had

found part of some amazing old wallpapers with 18

different colors, printed in France, with an English tax

stamp. From this Viktoria Brand would now make

reprints to be put up in this room.

So this was my last visit in August 2010, more or

less of that same corner. Different colors - the right

colors - but the wallpapers will only be ready next year.

I find this exciting!

This year's visit at Torderød = Torderoed

Every year I go to see what is new at Torderoed, the

mansion here in Moss.

These are the photos I took during my last visit.

If you are in Moss during the summer keep a

Sunday at 15.00 free and join the tour.

It is interesting and amusing, well worth the

around two hours you will spend there, and it is

even FREE.

This season's last tour will be the coming Sunday

August 22nd,

My earlier postings about Torderoed

http://rediscoveringnorway.blogspot.com/2007/07/moss-torderoed-gaard.html

http://rediscoveringnorway.blogspot.com/2009/07/dancing-in-ballroom-at-torderd.html

http://rediscoveringnorway.blogspot.com/2009/07/torderoed-torderd.html

http://rediscoveringnorway.blogspot.com/2009/07/torderd-collage-made-in-2007.html

http://rediscoveringnorway.blogspot.com/2009/07/little-bit-more-about-torderd.html

A minor major personal success

It is probably ridiculous to most of those in the younger

generation, but for me it was really like a wall:

Every time I wanted to print something from my PC,

my bye-bye old printer came up as first choice.

It was very irritating, but I felt overwhelmed.

That was the kind of situation I would have let my son

solve if he was here, but he is not.

So last night I decided to try, and believe or not,

I succeeded.

There is always this old basic fear that if I do

"something wrong", the whole PC will collapse, but

then it didn't happen!

A tiny step for humanity, a major step for me.

Surprise meeting!

Kate, in her thoughts at least: Hmmm.....

I have seen this family on TV!

Holding her newly acquired Sponge-Bob from the antique mall and looking at Daddy.

Sponge-Bob's eyes.....

Homer's eyes......

Maybe Sponge-Bob is a relative?

What fun it is to play in a tent!

So what is a renaissance fair?

When my son invited me to a renaissance fair in Bristol,

Wisconsin, I thought we were going to some antique mall.

Seeing all the cars parked in some huge fields, I slowly

understood that this was something else.

Some of those who parked their cars, then came out

dressed in costumes.

Not an antique mall, for sure!

The entrance looked like this, so I forgot I was in

Wisconsin and remembered visits to England and

even to Germany.

We had come to the Renaissance Faire in Bristol!

In many ways you are on a set, with buildings that

probably have no real backside, but I loved walking

along, looking at each building. There were shops of

every kind you could imagine for such a place.

As people needed cash, the ATM machine had been

built into a more timely little building. ;-)

There were performers of all kinds, and many dressed

up in costumes that may or may not, have been

typical for that time.

It was very funny to see some of those "historical"

persons talking on their cellphones!

I loved it, despite all the phoniness.

It was pure fun!

http://www.renfaire.com/