Sunday, March 27, 2011

The PC as my personal secretary

This morning I woke up at 6.30, and went straight
to my PC to check email.
Imagine my surprise when the PC clock in that
right lower corner showed 7.30!

With snow still outside, my head had not registered
that from now we use summertime.

Saturday, March 26, 2011

The blessing of the washing machine



In some periods of my life I have lived without
a washing machine.
Having a young child and washing the clothes
by hand was probably the greatest challenge.

So on at least three occassions, as a grownup,
I have experienced the miracle of starting
a washing machine and sitting in the front,
watching the clothes as if it was a TV programm.
What a blessing to have a washing machine!

Looking through the TED talks I saw that Hans Rosling
had given a lecture about the importance of the
washing machine. Here it is
http://www.ted.com/talks/hans_rosling_and_the_magic_washing_machine.html



Leonardo de Vinci's face

This little TED lecture was just what I enjoy
- learning something new and not necessarily
useful.


But who decides what is useful?

If you have a little extra time, I suggest trying out one
the TED talks and find a subject that intrigues you.


Ted Logo


March 24th: A report from the beach


By now there were few iceblocks in the water.


Most were on the beach and in the process
of melting.



Had this little giraffe come from the sea or had it been
left on the beach last year?

Wednesday, March 23, 2011

Batteries that last

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kaF6FxmixJk&NR=1


Duracell or Energizer?
I don't know.

But I do know that I would like to feel like a strong battery.
So I hope that by July 1st I will feel that way.

I have decided to make that a project.
A little more than three months to recharge - in small doses.

My inherited troll


You can find this souvenir in some of Norway's
touristshops.

My impression is that the average Norwegian find
this troll quite tacky.

As you can see, my troll is old and not in the best shape.



I keep my troll because I once inherited it from a
very special man I knew. He died back in 1999.

Why he had bought it, I don't know.

When I think about him and his life, this figure seems
so out of character.

But then again, perhaps it reminded him of
something else?

Monday, March 21, 2011

The beach - just now


The iceblocks seem to enjoy "swimming" in the water.



In the background you see the ferry that goes from
Moss to Horten on the other side of the Oslofjord.
This one is the newest, called Bastö IV.

Sunday, March 20, 2011

Lina and Julius: Their first meeting in 1908

My son's greatgrandparents were Lina and Julius.
In 1908 they were both 27 years old and still single.



According to stories told in the family, on this very
day, 103 years ago, two trains set out from
opposite directions to arrive at the same railway station,
more or less at the same time.

Lina came with her father from their town,
and Julius with his father from their town.
They meet in this "neutral" town.

In my imagination all four go first to a restaurant
to eat together, and then - as the impression is that
Lina and Julius like each other - the two fathers
withdraw a little to let the couple find out how
much they like each other.

The result of this meeting:
Half a year later Lina and Julius married.

A little daily-life discovery

This morning, while preparing my breakfast,
I saw this:


I took some photos and just enjoyed the
visual part.



A moon landscape?
Snow formations outside?
Paint?

No , the lid of my Greek yogurt, turned upside down!

Sunday, March 13, 2011

Candied Orange Peel - Remembering S.



S. was an elderly lady when I met her about forty
years ago. She lived in an agricultural village where
the inhabitants had chosen to live a simple life.


Despite her age (around 75 at the time?), she worked
long hours.
During the day she worked in the orchards.
In the evenings she repaired the picking equipment.

But she also had time for her children and grandchildren.

Occasionally she gave me candied orange peels that
she made herself.
A woman with a big heart, and creative.

In that little village there were oranges.
S. had sugar.
Out of these two simple ingredients she made
presents for her children, grandchildren and others.
Like me.

Today I remembered S. and decided to find how
I could make candied orange peel.
Using these instructions
the result can be seen above.







Thursday, March 10, 2011

March 14th 1843



My mother told me that in Sweden March 14th
was the date you bought a farm, according to
an old tradition.

There was another date for sellings farms in autumn,
but most farm were taken over on March 14th.

My mother thinks this tradition is probably
still kept for sale of active farms. Perhaps?

So the farm I wrote about in my last blog entry
became the farm of my greatgreatgreatgrandfather
Eric on March 14th 1843.

168 years ago now on Monday.

Tuesday, March 8, 2011

A family farm that is no longer a family farm

Checking a box of photos today , these two popped up.


The one above was probably taken in the 1950's
before my grandparents moved away.
It was then "the family farm".



The second photo I took myself , probably in the 1980's.

It was then mentioned as "the family farm" but
it belonged to my grandfather's brother.
A lot of hurt feelings came up when you talked about
this subject.

Now in 2011, it belongs to people with money.
Not to anybody in my family.

Even so many years later, hurt feelings come up
when some family members talk about the farm.

I have wonderful childhood memories from here
that I keep in my heart, but personally I don't
feel the loss like the older generation does.

In my mind it is now "a farm that once belonged
to the family".


Friday, March 4, 2011

Just for a little smile: A "prayer" sent to me by a friend

Dear God,
My prayer for 2011 is to have
a fat bank account
and a thin body.
Please do not mix the two,
like you did last year.

Amen

Thursday, March 3, 2011

Ties


This is the centre.
Red for love, if I understood right.


The "roads" leading from this centre, are of two
kinds, just like life.
Easy, straight forward.
More difficult, a little off balance.


In memory of my father


When my father died , I felt that his old ties would
be one way of remembering him.

From my childhood I remember him in a white shirt
and a tie.

I never understood how he chose that day's tie from
his collection.
In addition, how did he made that knot???

As my father got older, he used more informal clothes,
and the ties would mostly stay in the closet.

But what do you do with a collection of old ties?

By themselves, they collected a lot of dust.
That I have tested. :-)

A patchwork seemed a good way to use the ties.

On the other hand, that seemed too an ambitious
project for me, both regarding design and execution.


After coming back to Norway, I once I bought
a patchwork that made me happy.

I contacted the artist Inger Kokkim to say thank you.

Suddenly it became clear to me who could help
me with my tie patchwork - Inger Kokkim!


Today she brought me the result.
I am very, very pleased.

Hope you can get some impression of her work
from these photos.


Tuesday, March 1, 2011

Moss Canal







The crow - the symbol of Moss



Kjelleroedgaarden = Kjellerødgården


According to the sign on the yellow building
shown below, this building was built in the 1770's
by Just Gude.

The couple Holth lived there from 1817 to 1862 and
the house was then called Holthegaarden.


Later alcohol (brennevin) was sold here.

Then it became a grocery shop.

From 1978 it became a restaurant.

Lately Dolly Dimples had their pizza business here.

Now the building is up for sale.



The building is very charming, inside and outside.
In addition it is now more than 230 years old,
but what will any potential buyers use it for?

Icy branches



This may look just like branches, but look closer
by clicking at the photo once or twice and see
how each branch is lined with ice.
This weather of colder-milder-colder-milder-colder
has created beautiful ice creations in nature.

But personally I am all for milder-milder-milder....
and then spring and summer.