Stabbur Snabb

So there I was, eating some sausage...

Sorry. I know this photo is totally obscene. But I mean, who makes a foot-long sausage and then calls it the Stabbur Snabb? The Norwegians--that's who! (And who decides to pose an obscene photo with said sausage and then capture it with his cell phone? One guess.)

I have been running around mad for three days, just class planning and setting up a class I'm teaching online from the States. And of course, making my second trip to the immigration office to plead for residence, after slashing through a whole lotta red tape at the university. They failed to tell me I needed some stuff (proof of my Master's, for one) before I got here. The funny thing is, I keep going up there--to the Uni, not the immigration office--to pick up paperwork from my mailbox, dressed in, say, biking pants and muddy, mushroomy sneakers--and then finding myself having to get into conversation with the clean-cut and very professional-looking department head (who tells me the paperwork isn't ready yet). A bit embarrassing.

But today I finally brought the completed stuff to the UDI office. Hopefully they'll let me stay.

I made this pact with myself that in Norway I would release some things. In San Francisco last year I found myself being pretty wrapped up, busy, frantic, having a hard time slowing down and looking around. I decided to move more slowly in Oslo, to breathe a little, to enjoy this place. The Norwegians so far are a more mellow people than mine. Even Ben, historically laid back, has commented that he feels sort of like the uptight American guy when we spend the afternoon drinking tea and eating too much cheese in Kristin and Thorbjoern's garden as the kids run around. But this week I've done a terrible job at my new resolution. I've been stressed out, frantic, rushing around, anxious about a million things: my class, the fact that I missed out on all the Norwegian courses this session, immigration. I also decided to check out the University of Oslo chorus last night, and had me a good old case of stage fright. I walked around all day yesterday feeling stressed out (and then I didn't even have to audition--I do that next week).

I don't know. Still making sense of Oslo, I guess.

The sky is huge here and quite...expressive. Lately it's been deciding whether or not to rain. It's moody that way, and quite beautiful when it's all fraught with clouds. We have daylight until about 8:30 in the evenings, but that is changing pretty rapidly--we lose three minutes a day, according to the Internet. The sun is no longer rousing us at 6:30. More like 7:00, and losing 2-3 minutes a day on that end. Today was five minutes darker than yesterday, and tomorrow will be five minutes darker than today...

Here's a picture of Rannveig, who we're now calling Rams. Because Rannveig is extremely difficult to say.



Isn't she a cutie? Her mom is due any day.

And here, the Japo Sushi. So offensive, and yet...so close to the great vegetable store so we see it all the time.



More pics when we get a real camera. I want to document the Vigelands Park before it gets too dark. It's a lovely spot.

Ha det,

Susie