I have discovered something, Swedish meatballs are a versatile food item. You can add them to almost any dish and the dish will turn from good to fabulous. I am very lucky to be living in Sweden where you can buy pre-made meatballs at any store. And they are really good.
Okay, I guess that I don’t eat them everyday, that would be gross but I do really like them. It was a bit of a running joke about what I would be eating when I got here. The truth is that I make three meals a day for myself here, so I eat pretty much the same things that I ate in America. My Swedish is getting better everyday, and many of the items have similar names, and common sense helps too. I have had a few bumps in the grocery store road when choosing certain food items. For instance, they have mjolk (milk, see, not that hard) and filmjolk. Filmjolk is some sort of sour milk (?) that the Swedes put on their cereal. Luckily I bought the right kind. Contrary to popular belief I have not as of yet eaten any herring, though I did consider buying it yesterday. I do eat a lot of salmon and lox, it is quite nice here. We don’t have very many restaurants here in Orrefors, and it is very expensive to eat out, so my cooking abilities have improved ten fold. We do, however, have a pizza/kabob shop right by my apartment. Being from Chicago I am pretty much obligated to say that the pizza here sucks, and it is pretty awful, but I still go there about once a week just to do something with my friends. It’s still good hang-over food, and it’s all we have.
There are other things about being in a foreign country that throw you through a loop when you least expect it. Sometimes I feel like a child again, not knowing how to do basic things. Like when it took me 20 minutes in the airport to figure out how to use the payphone. Or when I did my laundry for the first time. It didn’t even cross my mind that the machines would be different. They have about 1000 different settings that you can wash on, all explained in Swedish, and not easy to translate. It was embarrassing because I had to ask one of the high school students to explain the washer and dryer to me. I don’t have very many things here and I couldn’t risk ruining all my clothes, so I had to suck up my pride and admit that I couldn’t figure it out myself. They have been really kind and patient with me which is nice. Especially with the language. Everyone is helping me learn, even though my pronunciation is helpless at times, but always getting better. The other day my teacher Stip-Allan was giving me change from the coffee machine. As he put it in my hand I counted out loud, in Swedish. He was so proud and kept telling everyone. I am like a two year old again, people get excited when I count to ten.
Thursday, September 25, 2008
Wednesday, September 17, 2008
Life in the Forest...
Life in the Forest…..
Life in Orrefors. Things are different here. Slower, more calm, more relaxing. I am learning how to use this thing called “free time,” another foreign concept to me that I have had to adjust to. I’ll admit that I am getting used to it and enjoy it. I don’t have to rush when I cook for myself, or getting ready in the morning, I don’t have to rush to do anything. There is a part of me that doesn’t want to get used to this, because I know that when I go home it won’t be this way. But I have made a deal with myself that I won’t squander this gift of free time with worrying. I think I’ll take up knitting or something instead.
School is going great. We are allowed to stay there and blow or cold work until 6pm on Mondays and Tuesdays now. Typically we are only in class until 3:30 so I like having the extra studio time. And in October I will be starting a Tiffany stained glass class on Thursday evenings.
Outside of school I have been spending quite a bit of time outdoors. The other day I went on a hike with my new friend Kirsten from Norway. It was raining that day but we decided to go because it has been raining almost everyday. And I think that it is pretty cold here considering that it was so warm in Chicago when I left and when I got here I had to deal with a twenty degree temperature difference. Anyway, we found a section of the forest with tons of blueberry bushes. The blueberry season is over but we found a good patch that had a lot left. We started picking them and eating them and it was kind of addictive. We kept eating and eating even though at the same time I was being eaten alive by Swedish bugs. Swedish bugs love me. Then Kirsten showed me the traditional way to pick blueberries. You take a straw and string them on, kind of like a candy necklace. Then you hold it above your head and slide all the blueberries into your mouth at once. I wasn’t very good at it, some of the blueberries went down my shirt instead and left big black stains. Maybe next time I’ll do better.
Here are some pictures of the forest. When I started getting the pictures ready I realized that I probably spend half my time in the studio and the other half hiking. I have way too many boring pictures of trees but here are some that I like in particular.
Ah, pretty forest, I can only go so far in before I pysch myself out and get scared of getting lost.
This is me with the traditional blueberry straws. I have crazy eyes, exposed to too many antioxidents. Antioxidents make you happy.
Climbing.
My version of "Where's Waldo." I'm in this picture somewhere.
There was this awesome giant bird in the distance, it flew away by the time I took this picture. Must be faster next time.
Hiking in the rain.
Life in Orrefors. Things are different here. Slower, more calm, more relaxing. I am learning how to use this thing called “free time,” another foreign concept to me that I have had to adjust to. I’ll admit that I am getting used to it and enjoy it. I don’t have to rush when I cook for myself, or getting ready in the morning, I don’t have to rush to do anything. There is a part of me that doesn’t want to get used to this, because I know that when I go home it won’t be this way. But I have made a deal with myself that I won’t squander this gift of free time with worrying. I think I’ll take up knitting or something instead.
School is going great. We are allowed to stay there and blow or cold work until 6pm on Mondays and Tuesdays now. Typically we are only in class until 3:30 so I like having the extra studio time. And in October I will be starting a Tiffany stained glass class on Thursday evenings.
Outside of school I have been spending quite a bit of time outdoors. The other day I went on a hike with my new friend Kirsten from Norway. It was raining that day but we decided to go because it has been raining almost everyday. And I think that it is pretty cold here considering that it was so warm in Chicago when I left and when I got here I had to deal with a twenty degree temperature difference. Anyway, we found a section of the forest with tons of blueberry bushes. The blueberry season is over but we found a good patch that had a lot left. We started picking them and eating them and it was kind of addictive. We kept eating and eating even though at the same time I was being eaten alive by Swedish bugs. Swedish bugs love me. Then Kirsten showed me the traditional way to pick blueberries. You take a straw and string them on, kind of like a candy necklace. Then you hold it above your head and slide all the blueberries into your mouth at once. I wasn’t very good at it, some of the blueberries went down my shirt instead and left big black stains. Maybe next time I’ll do better.
Here are some pictures of the forest. When I started getting the pictures ready I realized that I probably spend half my time in the studio and the other half hiking. I have way too many boring pictures of trees but here are some that I like in particular.
Ah, pretty forest, I can only go so far in before I pysch myself out and get scared of getting lost.
This is me with the traditional blueberry straws. I have crazy eyes, exposed to too many antioxidents. Antioxidents make you happy.
Climbing.
My version of "Where's Waldo." I'm in this picture somewhere.
There was this awesome giant bird in the distance, it flew away by the time I took this picture. Must be faster next time.
Hiking in the rain.Thursday, September 4, 2008
It was a long trek for me, but I am finally here. I haven’t blogged until now because I needed some time to settle in. After I arrived in Stockholm I bought a train ticket to Nybro. It was nine in the morning and the agent told me that the first train didn’t leave until noon. She also informed me that I would have to take a train, switch to a bus, take another train, and then one more bus. I was thrilled considering that I was carrying over a hundred pounds of luggage. There was nothing that I could do so I decided to make the best of it. Oh, then she told me that I wouldn’t arrive in Nybro until 9pm. Damn.
I contacted Peter, one of the instructors at Orrefors who was going to give me a ride from Nybro to Orrefors. He told me that he would pick me up in Kalmar so that the journey wouldn’t be so awful. He made my day because that meant that the long haul ended at 7pm and I didn’t have to take the last bus. It was pretty hard getting from train to train, especially when your Swedish is severely limited. I made fine tough, and reduced jet lag by sleeping a bit on each ride. It wasn’t very restful sleep though because I kept dreaming that I missed my stop.
In Kalmar Peter and his partner took me out for Sushi, my first Swedish meal was Japanese fare. It was awesome though, and they were so friendly that I felt that things would be okay here. In fact, everyone has been really helpful. I arrived at my apartment that was arranged through Stig-Allan (another amazing glassblower and instructor at Orrefors) and I was pleasantly surprised. I am taking it over for a girl (another glassblower) who is going to be working in Seattle for the year. She left me all of her furniture, kitchen supplies, cleaning supplies, and it is so cute. All IKEA’d out. It is kind of a studio with a separate kitchen and bath. I love it.
It is interesting living alone because I’ve always had roommates. To be honest it is pretty lonely. And to be more honest the second night that I was here I thought that I had made a mistake. Now I realize that my feelings were more a combination of shock and jetlag. Once I started class my mind had changed. The school is amazing. They are tailoring my education to my wants and needs. I get to work with glass all day. The school concentrates more on technical skills in glass. A lot of mold blowing and engraving. The first couple of days I was making whiskey glasses. They do things differently from what I know, but I have enough skill to learn quickly. I am also really excited about the engraving and deep carving. I told them that for the beginning I would like to spend equal time in the hotshop doing mold blowing and in the coldshop doing engraving. They split up my days so that I do one in the morning and the other in the afternoon. I love it and now I know that I made the right decision to come here.
Some of the advanced students work at the actual Orrefors glass factory. I was told that I will be up there at some point, but I am happy where I am for now. The work that the students do in the factory is more similar to the work I already do back home, so I would like to get a nice balance of education between the school and the factory. I did get a tour of the factory yesterday and it was incredible. I will post pictures soon, they will allow me to take photos in the tourist areas, not in others. Some of the glass is handmade production, but a majority is made by machines and robots. Yes, I did say robots. Seeing the robots makes glass work was one of the coolest things I have ever seen. I originally thought that the majority of the work was made by hand, but this isn’t so. I was told that with the competition of other countries making such cheap glass they had to step it up. But I think the work they are doing with the machines is very innovative and still very interesting. My instructor pointed out that not only are these robots able to make the glasswork, but the metal used can stand up to the high temperatures which is quite a feat.
So this is my new life. The days are fun filled and I am figuring out what to do with my nights. I walk around the town a lot, I cook, I read, I study Swedish, I work out, I watch Swedish television which is mostly American shows with Swedish subtitles. I actually think that watching TV is helping me learn Swedish. Luckily I have started to make some friends. They are not just from Sweden, there are people from Finland, Norway, Denmark, Iceland.
Here are some pics of my apartment and my new hood. The town is kind of like a Swedish suburb surrounded by forest. It is very pretty and I can’t wait for the leaves to change, I know it will be gorgeous.
I contacted Peter, one of the instructors at Orrefors who was going to give me a ride from Nybro to Orrefors. He told me that he would pick me up in Kalmar so that the journey wouldn’t be so awful. He made my day because that meant that the long haul ended at 7pm and I didn’t have to take the last bus. It was pretty hard getting from train to train, especially when your Swedish is severely limited. I made fine tough, and reduced jet lag by sleeping a bit on each ride. It wasn’t very restful sleep though because I kept dreaming that I missed my stop.
In Kalmar Peter and his partner took me out for Sushi, my first Swedish meal was Japanese fare. It was awesome though, and they were so friendly that I felt that things would be okay here. In fact, everyone has been really helpful. I arrived at my apartment that was arranged through Stig-Allan (another amazing glassblower and instructor at Orrefors) and I was pleasantly surprised. I am taking it over for a girl (another glassblower) who is going to be working in Seattle for the year. She left me all of her furniture, kitchen supplies, cleaning supplies, and it is so cute. All IKEA’d out. It is kind of a studio with a separate kitchen and bath. I love it.
It is interesting living alone because I’ve always had roommates. To be honest it is pretty lonely. And to be more honest the second night that I was here I thought that I had made a mistake. Now I realize that my feelings were more a combination of shock and jetlag. Once I started class my mind had changed. The school is amazing. They are tailoring my education to my wants and needs. I get to work with glass all day. The school concentrates more on technical skills in glass. A lot of mold blowing and engraving. The first couple of days I was making whiskey glasses. They do things differently from what I know, but I have enough skill to learn quickly. I am also really excited about the engraving and deep carving. I told them that for the beginning I would like to spend equal time in the hotshop doing mold blowing and in the coldshop doing engraving. They split up my days so that I do one in the morning and the other in the afternoon. I love it and now I know that I made the right decision to come here.
Some of the advanced students work at the actual Orrefors glass factory. I was told that I will be up there at some point, but I am happy where I am for now. The work that the students do in the factory is more similar to the work I already do back home, so I would like to get a nice balance of education between the school and the factory. I did get a tour of the factory yesterday and it was incredible. I will post pictures soon, they will allow me to take photos in the tourist areas, not in others. Some of the glass is handmade production, but a majority is made by machines and robots. Yes, I did say robots. Seeing the robots makes glass work was one of the coolest things I have ever seen. I originally thought that the majority of the work was made by hand, but this isn’t so. I was told that with the competition of other countries making such cheap glass they had to step it up. But I think the work they are doing with the machines is very innovative and still very interesting. My instructor pointed out that not only are these robots able to make the glasswork, but the metal used can stand up to the high temperatures which is quite a feat.
So this is my new life. The days are fun filled and I am figuring out what to do with my nights. I walk around the town a lot, I cook, I read, I study Swedish, I work out, I watch Swedish television which is mostly American shows with Swedish subtitles. I actually think that watching TV is helping me learn Swedish. Luckily I have started to make some friends. They are not just from Sweden, there are people from Finland, Norway, Denmark, Iceland.
Here are some pics of my apartment and my new hood. The town is kind of like a Swedish suburb surrounded by forest. It is very pretty and I can’t wait for the leaves to change, I know it will be gorgeous.
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