Category: general

23
Jul
2024

I AM SWEET ENOUGH ALREADY, AM I NOT?

I can’t seem to quit sugar. I have no self-control whatsoever. UGH. Back in 2013 I stopped drinking soda cold turkey. I’d been a Coke addict since I was really young, often drinking multiple cokes a day. Coke was my THING. All our Swedish friends learned fairly quickly to have Coke AND ice on hand when we were over, neither of which is really Swedish. I stopped drinking soda because I had read somewhere that the amount of sugar in soda if you drank one can a day was equivalent to 20 pounds a year. So it was WEIGHT LOSS...

14
Jul
2024

QUARTER OF A CENTURY

Yesterday, Karin turned 25 years old. She’s an amazing young lady and it’s a pleasure to watch her make her way through the world, with the spirit and influence and drive that she has. For some reason it’s not as weird to have my youngest turn 25 as it is when my little brother hits milestone birthdays. I am already sufficiently boggled at my own age; my daughter’s doesn’t seem to make it worse, which is nice. She’s barely been home for 2 weeks, first working a week at the music festival in Roskilde, Denmark and then working every single...

11
Jul
2024

FEELING FISHY

For someone who eats so much salmon, it’s weird that I don’t really otherwise care that much for fish. I like tuna sandwiches, and I’ll eat tuna steaks or pretty much any kind of breaded fish with remoulade if it’s served to me, but fish isn’t really a go-to item on my menu of choice. Unless it’s salmon. Then it’s #1. In the last 7 days, I have eaten oven-baked salmon (with lemon zest, olive oil, and salt and pepper), pan-fried salmon (chili pepper and saffron seasoning), gravlax, cold smoked salmon, warm smoked salmon, and sushi (salmon nigiri and sashimi,...

09
Jul
2024

PARTIES AND POMOLOGY

I actually really enjoyed the AIC BBQ party on Saturday despite being completely wiped out afterwards. It felt like a real return to the 4th of July parties of the early days of the club. We were 55 people total, with about 14 smaller kids (no babies though). The bouncy castle was a huge hit, and the kids pretty much stayed on it the entire time, when they weren’t eating, throwing a beach ball around as well. Nice because I didn’t have to get Martin to take them over to the playground, or come up with other games or activities....

03
Jul
2024

SORRY, HAVE MOOD POISONING. MUST HAVE BEEN SOMETHING I HATE*

So far, it’s been one of those weeks. Monday was a complete shit show with one frustrating, aggravating, and upsetting thing after another. I hadn’t slept well, and my knee was hurting to boot. The only good thing was talking to my manager and knowing that I have her support, no matter what. But the residual feelings about everything that happened 3 days ago is still bugging me. Why is that I just can’t let things like this go? They sit and spin about in my head, on repeat, for DAYS. Last night I slept poorly again. I woke up...

01
Jul
2024

MY COUNTRY ‘TIS OF WTF

I started this post by writing that I was ashamed to be an American again. But you know what? I’m not. I’m ashamed of the 7 conservative members of the Supreme Court who have been bought and paid for and made a mockery of actual justice. I’m ashamed of the Republican party and all of those who have kowtowed and worked tirelessly to put the US in the state it is now: divided, corrupt, following a felon, rapist, power-mad lying psychopath who cares about absolutely nothing but himself. I’m ashamed of everyone who voted for him the first time, and...

30
Jun
2024

TO DO AND DO AND DID

How is it already the last week of June? How is it already 2024? How am I possibly going to be turning 60 in a little over a month from now? The mind boggles. It’s been a mostly relaxing weekend, with one beautiful sunny warm day and one chilly, rainy grey day, though the skies have mostly cleared now at 8 pm and the sun is shining again. Yesterday, I had a to-do list that consisted of housework: defrosting the freezer, lots of laundry, vacuuming, cleaning bathrooms, emptying garbage cans. I got it all done and had plenty of time...

23
Jun
2024

THINKING ABOUT THINGS

Eesh, there is nothing like working on an inventory of ALL your stuff to make you realize exactly how MUCH stuff you have. Years ago, I started an “inheritance inventory” of our belongings, designed to be a list for my children to know the history and provenance (as much as possible) of all the items in our house. We have furniture from my grandparents, from my parents, from Anders’ parents. We have art and knick-knacks and figurines from all over the world. I read about this somewhere and my little organizing-devil OCD mind thought, “oooh, what a great idea!” I...

22
Jun
2024

MIDSUMMER MEALS & MORBIDITY

Another midsummer eve in the books and contrary to CNN’s strange idea of how Swedes celebrate, we only did the drinking part. And actually only 2 of us did the drinking part, since one was driving, one doesn’t drink, and the other can only drink limited liquids due to a heart condition. We had an absolutely lovely day, weatherwise, which was extra appreciated, because today is rainy, cloudy, and humid. Anders was out in the yard for most of the day: mowing, weeding, trimming the hedges, and putting down slug-killing pellets. I cleaned inside and outside, tidying up the deck,...

17
Jun
2024

WE’RE ALL A LITTLE IRISH

Has this online journal become a Monday-night special? It’s possible. It’s a good excuse to sit and write a post while I listen to what Spotify’s Discover Weekly might have to offer me. Sometimes not much, sometimes surprisingly many songs that catch my ear. I’m sitting here sweating because I just folded all the laundry, and then went outside to water the garden, and then I came in and did my knee exercises. You wouldn’t think that standing up from a sitting position 30 times in a row without using your arms would be strenuous, but you’d be wrong. Some...

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