Liam goes fishing

My nephews Andrea and Oliver took Liam and I fishing.  This was Liam's first fishing trip...We got to go out on an old wooden boat, that has been in the family for many decades.  It is really neat to get off the island, even though we don't really go anywhere...change of scenery is really nice.




Liam and Andrea

Oliver

We hadn't anticipated Liam going on the trip, but because of his inability to adjust to jet lag... Still... he was up at 5:30 when we left.

It is understandable that the boy still hasn't adapted...its daylight out until 12:30 and the sun comes up at like 3:00... I have seen both of these events many times on this trip...LIAM!!!

That much day light has its advantages as well.  The ability to sleep in until 11:00 and still have plenty of time to do everything you wanted to do that day.  For me that includes a nap and some resting bouts, some movie watching, maybe some reading before napping again and then lunch...hey I'm on vacation.

Liam was so intrigued by the whole situation, it was so wonderful to experience, 

We trolled for fish, using two long lines with different weights and about four lures on each.  Fishing, not being the most exciting activity for 99% of the time, became even less involved.  This time continually moved, dragging our lines behind us.  It was basically a three hour tour,  is sit, wait and enjoy the day.


Liam at the sight of a fish

Fishing is one of the major draws of this island for me.  I find it relaxing to be on the water.  With the added benefit of possible getting a meal out of the deal, makes it that much better.  I am not an expert fisherman, or even all that good at fishing. For me it is just put something on the hook, fish might like to eat (I would probably also eat most of what is on the hook too...that will be explained later), drop the line in the water and wait...what ever happen by and takes the bait is dinner.  

Liam with Fish in the tank

Here in Sweden people love mackerel. When ever a mackerel is landed, there is a great cheer that erupts....MACKEREL!  And with out a break, there is a recall of how many, this one makes.  At home, (or at least in Los Angeles where most of my ocean fishing has occurred) mackerel is a bait fish. When landed, mackerel are usually cut up and used to catch other fish.  It was a bit of a paradigm shift for me when I first started coming here, but now it is just a part of life. 

Culture shock appears in many ways and can be sparked by many different things.  Food for me was and is part of the cultural adjustment I need to make every time I come.  I love eating, I love food and I love cooking for anyone who will eat my food.  Problem is that  food here is different.   If there was a culturally sensitive way to say the food is bland, that is what I would say.   I like my food with a bite, some spice, chilies, curry, some this that make you feel the food in places other than your mouth,,, that sounded weird.   Cook here is tough, not only do I not have my usual cooking tools,  I don't have all the flavors that I normally like to paint my food with.  The best I normally can do, with out going to far out of the way is salt, pepper, maybe onion and garlic.  I'm not saying that I don't like the local tastes, they actually are very "comforting."  But after the first couple of days something different is always nice. 

As far as culture shock goes, things could be worse...and the fact that I know what to expect helps even more.   Guess after coming here over the past 12 years I've become very familiar with life on the island.   Now if I can only get off this island and go somewhere else.



Liam contemplating life in other places in Sweden

Dieting in Sweden

I refuse to die with an inch deep belly button. My wife says she doesn't care how deep my belly button is, she just doesn't want me to die prematurely.  For these two reasons I have gone on a diet.  It's call the Dukan diet and as far as I can tell it is working pretty well. It's not too terrible, basically cutting out fat and carbs (pasta, rice, breads, potatoes, fruits, anything with sugar...etc.)  and filling my diet with lean protein and vegetables.  At home, low fat proteins are not hard to come by and are relatively cheap. Vegetables are also part of it, I can pretty choose any I want. Low fat foods are also readily available (milk, cheese, cottage cheese).

At home dieting is as common as left shoes, (the paleo-diet, Adkins, Mediterranean Diet, Grapefruit...the Baby Food diet?..etc http://www.webmd.com/diet/evaluate-latest-diets)

In Sweden, not so much...in talking to other people about dieting, the most common answer, "Don't eat so much and try to walk more than you sit."  Although it is pretty sound advice, that doesn't work for me.  Which leads me to my latest dilemma...how do I maintain my diet here.  Having never tried dieting here, and I was not aware of the availability of things I need, fat free, low fat, diet, not fully fat, not made of bacon, not filled with carbs...I'm so lost.  I've been to every store I can think of, scoured every shelf and asked every clerk (sometimes the some person more than once).  The closes thing I found was "diet" pop sickles...

For Scale

 Here are some diet cantaloupes...

Probably not diet but still they follow the rule, above. 

Diet foods, namely fat free foods are not an option.  7% fat free is about the lowest I've found.  

Labeling in general is so confusing here, some labels say 95% meat, which means what?  5% fat? 5% not meat?...Not sure, just gotta go with it.  I have found that this diet is also very expensive...food costs about 3 times as much here...especially the protein.  If this were a carb diet, I could eat for much much less money.

Here is a picture of a "soda" drink called "Socker Dricka" which literally translates to Sugar Drink, they don't even try to hide it with catchy names - SPRITE, DR. PEPPER, FANTA, COKE (not terribly catchy)...

In all honesty is there really any difference between Coke Zero and Diet Coke

We were barbecuing the other day and I noticed this label on the charcoal bag...

I guess it is highlighting the fact that propane BBQs are CO2 unfriendly...I guess.

But talk about unfriendly...what about this?  

The connection is also lost on me.

There is a much needed discussion in the U.S. surrounding the naming of sports teams using stereotypical imagery of First Nations groups.  The Atlanta Braves, The Washington Red Skins, The Kansas City Chiefs.  There are name that some people think are relics from a past era, other see things in other ways.  You see both perspectives on from people of both First Nations descent and non-indigenous populations.  There are people who being hurt by this and other who see the injustice in it.   There is a long history of discrimination and insensitivity in U.S. history.

From an American perspective the ice-cream box is at best odd and worst extremely offensive. But what is the Swedish perspective?  And is there reason to take offense at this image?  If the glove were on the other hand, do we have images as part of our pop-culture that from the Swedish perspective could be considered offensive?

Not all Vikings

Not all blond

Have you every heard of Swedish Massage?  What about the Swedish Sleep Design?  Well no one here has.

Cultural relativism...

Rainy days

It has been raining for the last couple of days. At home a little rain doesn't stop us from doing anything.  Rain is just part of life in Seattle. Dress the kids for rain and nothing is out of the question. If we don't feel like going out side, we can always find something to do inside...We have lots of toys, books, play-doe, Legos.  If things get really bad, we can put on the T.V.   Being at home there are options.  We can run and hide in a different room or can send a particularly unruly child into another room.  Although life can be hard sometimes, there are always relatively quick fixes. 

Being in Sweden for two months, we are faces with challenges that are unexpected and not so easily fixed.  On rainy days the question of what to do with the kids is an especially hard question to answer.  We basically move here for two months.  All of our possessions in five suitcases and four carry-on bags.  How much can we actually bring and how much can we expect Mornor (Grandma) to have that will be entertaining to the kids?  Also how much space can we expect to have in her home? The answer is no much for all.   To get by on days like this, it takes the imagination of both the children and the parents.  Finding ways to entertain the kids in much the same way kids were entertained 50 years ago.  An old doll house, some books maybe a handful of stuffed animals.

 

Some houses have T.V. with multiple channels, video games and DVDs.  Mormor has none of these things.  She is more traditional and not interested in technology.  So how does life here work for me, a consistently connected, internet addicted geek.  It is not uncommon for me to have three screens running at the same time while working on a fourth. 

Here I'm lucky to have a power cable that will plug into a wall and not burn out my devices.  Only have one adapter, that I can safely use, I continually cycles my one of the three IPhones, the IPad, the Surface, Kindle Fire, Nook touch and one of the laptops  through the charger adapter so at least two of them are always fully charged.  I like to say I do this so I always have some way checking my emails and online class but it is more like a safety blanket...I feel better when I'm connected.

We had Wi-Fi installed for our use, when we leave it will probably be taken out within five minutes.  Looking at the list of electronic devices, I know its totally ridiculous, I recognize that.  I also recognize that the list although extreme,  is not beyond the scope for a lot of people. 

It is amazing how much has changed here over the twelve years I've been coming here, Wi-Fi did not exist for much of the word, and in fact internet could only be found down town at the city library. 



     

Jasmine then

Now my twelve year old niece Jasmine, who was about three months when I first came, is now never more than a foot away from her IPhone.   How will things be next time I come.  The world seems to be changing so fast, that I can hardly keep up...I sound like that "get off my lawn" guy.   



Jasmine now (note the IPhone)

This island is in many ways the caught in between yesterday, today and tomorrow.  There is a beautiful symmetry to it.  Children (about the ages of my kids) are forced to live and play as they did many years ago, children the age of my niece have a blend of technology and tradition.  I...well I don't really count in the equation, but my mother-in-law is strongly held by the old ways.  In her eyes a row boat is just as good as a powered boat, and when something breaks fix it yourself, if you can't give it to someone who can. 



Super old Coffee grinder

My mother-in-law does have a cell phone...it can store up to 18 phone numbers in its directly.  The book of the usefulness and uselessness of modernity has yet to be written here. Where will this island be in two year when I return again...you'll have to come back then to find out. 

 

I don't let my kids play my devices much...there are puddles out there to jump in.

 

Genetics of Karma

So here is where we are, Källo-Knippla a small island on the west coast of Sweden, very near the Gothenburg (the second largest city in Sweden).  

The population varies depending on the season.  During the peak months of summer the population swells to about 400 people, many of these are known as Summer Guests (people who live on the mainland during the harsher parts of the year and on the island during the summer) other are boat people (people who come to the island on summer vacations.
The population varies depending on the season.  During the peak months of summer the population swells to about 400 people, many of these are known as Summer Guests (people who live on the mainland during the harsher parts of the year and on the island during the summer) other are boat people (people who come to the island on summer vacations. 

My Niece Charlotte and my son Liam and then some boat people

Gala in Knippla dialect - fiskmås in standard Swedish

You can always tell the locals children or Knippla bor from the summer guest and the boat children.  The Knippla bor (roughly translates to Knipple living) tend to walk freely on the rocks, by the water, sometimes…most times without shoes...never in life jackets and not usually with their parents…Even the smallest of them…they all know the short cuts around the island.  All of the Knappla bor have a unique dialect, it can be understood by others, with the exception of a few unique words.

My kids clearly are not boat people nor are they true Knippla bor…if I had to say they more like every other year summer guests.  They do have many of the qualities of a Knippla bor. They commonly are without shoes, rarely wear life jackets and are often permitted to run free on the island with their cousins. This probably comes from the fact that their mother grew up here and has done a great job teaching them the “ropes course of life” on the island; where to go, where not to go, how to be safe…etc.  Now although they (my wife and kids) are comfortable with this arrangement, I am not entirely.  I wish I could be… I get so scared that something will happen and one of them will get hurt.  I’m not Knippla bor, I’m a summer guest.  I do see that the island life so freeing, such a great life experience…kids need to run free just not in dangerous ways. 

Time for a snack..bag of chips, random high rock..Good enough. 

I’m not one to talk, when I was a wee little boy, I caused such stress for my parents by doing things that brought into question if I was indeed a human with normal human sense.  Running full speed at automatic doors at the store, betting they would open fast enough…sometimes they did…something I've seen my middle son do.  I also used to play rope chicken…not smart…but it involves a tree with a rope tied to it…the other end on my bike.  Let’s just say… ride as fast as you can, and break when you think you are near the end of the rope…the one who gets closest to that point wins (my son hasn't done this one yet, we don’t let him play with ropes…or trees for that matter).  

He is known to do some really dangerous things.  Just yesterday he decided it was a good idea to straddle the railing on the deck which is probably 15 to 20 feet off the ground.  

The Deck from ground level

He has admitted to sneaking outside and dance on the slippery rocks near the water...he says the slim on the rocks makes him dance better (no argument here). 

Unashamed 

Unapologetic

Feelin' it

In the middle of the ferry boat!

As much as I am terrified of him doing some really damage to himself, I also admire his fearlessness...he will try anything in the name a laugh or adventure.  I think he does these things because he knows he can, not because he is too in his own head to realize what he is doing is a really bad idea.

I think...dancing out of pure joy of being Vincent

The worst part of this is that I now know what my parents went through with me.  It is largely the genetics of karma.   My son, my genetic spawn, is pay back for all I did to my parents.  He is capable of so much both the crazy and great…I guess walking around on the rock and running free isn't all that bad.  I'm beginning to see that my son Vincent, as with my daughter Elsa and the "baby" Liam; they represent the best parts of my wife and I,  but also those parts that aren't so awesome.  It is the unique combinations of these things that make them so amazing and so much more than I could ever be. 

NO IDEA!

One week in and its already midsummer.

I generally enjoy the sound of children laughing.   I know not the normal start to a blog about life in Sweden.  But there is a point.  This blog was started two years ago, last time we were in Sweden.  If you want some background go ahead and read the earlier posts.  

When I started writing this post, I was getting ready to go to the midsummer celebration on the island we are on.  Midsummer is a two day event, that starts with the raising of the Maypole (I will skip the long and mostly boring explanation of the maypole thing).  Children then dance and sing around the pole to traditional songs.  There is one about a “små grodorna” or small frog, which is besides the tradition seems to have no connection to the start of summer.  There is an assortment of other songs and accompanying dances, this lasts about an hour.  

The Maypole

People dancing around the maypole

 People then return home to eat and rest.  Just as night falls, so does the inhibition of public drunkenness.  Song and dance as well as plenty of alcohol, all in the name of the longest day of the year.

My sister-in-law waiting for the night to fall

Open Containers

Before I left I was told to lock up my bikes and bring all of my kids water toys inside …thing have a tendency to disappear or ending up in places they don’t belong when the party breaks up.  After all the preparation was done, we walked down to the party, drinks in hand (it seems that the inhibition against open contains is also lost).  

If you read the posts to this blog made two years ago, you’ll see that I've been to this island many times, and in many ways I feel very comfortable here.  Attending parties like this is not a totally new to me, but there is one thing that always is a hurdle I must get over…The language, I understand a fair amount, if spoken slowly, and I’m able to focus.   I don’t speak much, mostly because I’m not comfortable doing so.  Part of this is due to my limited vocabulary, the other part is due to the fact that when I do speak Swedish, I end up feeling like a circus animal that everyone wants to hear.  Most people speak English here so it’s not impossible for me to communicate. 

The restaurant we were in has a small dining room, a handful of wait staff and at the moment about two hundred people; all speaking Swedish, quickly and at the same time.  To say my mind was in racing to keep up is a bit of an understatement.  At first I could catch a few words and generally piece conversations together.  As the night drags on (not as a negative) the number of voices increase, the volume increases, the syllables start to blend together and rate at which words fly also increase. At the same time my comprehension feel exponentially.  At the high of my confusion, all the sounds of Swedish blend together into noise.  

I’m drowning in it, at the same time taking it all in.  The environment is filled with symbols and images commonly found in parties around the world: the drunk couple dancing too close that everyone secretly hates, the older man with the seemingly misplaces overly robust laughter, and mod of faceless party goers all with their own stories.  Intermixed with these familiar characters are the cultural asynchronous elements, things you might miss if you were not looking for them.  I will be looking at these things throughout this blog. 

The evening continued to turn into night, people continued to pour into the club/restaurant the noise level grew, the band played on…I've found that after X number of drinks it doesn't matter the language, or the song…every song becomes my song. 

Navigating our way home, my wife and I, still jet lagged and also two or three wine bottles lighter need to sleep…As we approached the house, darkened and quite, the night air was pierced by a sound that generally makes me smile, that I generally live to hear, and that generally resonates with me as a father…however in this instance it meant only one thing…it meant I was not going to get sleep anytime soon, it meant I was in for an even longer night…it was the sound of my children laughing…grandparents love spoiling there grand children with candy and soda… 

Time to head home

The sun rise this morning was incredible! One of the most beautiful ones I've seen...oh, it is also the last I'll be seeing in Sweden this trip. The reason I'm up so early is that we are flying home today.

We have been here for over six weeks and have really enjoyed our time. As I hope you have come to see being here is much more than a vacation, as far as I can fell it isn't really a vacation at all. It is more like a life style. It doesn't have the "relaxing" aspects of an average vacation. Nor do I end this experience feeling like I wanted to do more or I wish I had more time. I really want to go home!

Not that I won't miss the people or the island. I will remember everything fondly and will look forward to the time I can return. Because I've been coming here for so long and have grown to see thus place as a second home of sorts, it hard to know where to put it.

After being here for so long I almost have forgotten what it's like being home, being around my stuff and eating my food. I do however miss my bed. There is nothing like being in your own bed. Funny how the thing I miss the most is something I'm pretty much unaware of most of the time I'm using it.

So as we leave, I will ponder how much I have changed, how much my kids have grown and what will be different when we come back.

Laughing with Christina and Joel

We had a pleasant surprise this last week.  Christina and Joel dropped in for a visit.  They are on vacation and made a special trip to Gothenburg to come see the island I've been talking about.  

It was really nice to have them here.  and see the how someone with less experience with Swedish culture than I reacts to it.  

They slept trying to get past the Jet Lag phase as fast as possible.  We went on walks around the island, watched some football matches and watched videos Joel had found on the internet.  Mostly though we laughed...this was a shock to me, not that we laughed but that I noticed it.  I realized how much I hadn't laughed during my time here.  Not to say I'm not having a great time and enjoying being around family or enjoying being with my kids all the time.  I just haven't been laughing...which anyone who knows me knows that that is pretty much a non-stop noise coming out of my mouth.  

You experience so many things that being in a different culture that are unexpected and might even go unnoticed.  

The comedy of one culture is highly divergent from another coupled with a language barrier...We were are a Kräftskiva (Crayfish party) the other night.  

 is a very important cultural event for Swedish people and seems to have been highly anticipated by many.   

Many people from the island attended sitting at long tables.  At each place there was a plate with ten Crayfish on it, a near by basket of bread, butter (always on every table) and some other things I'm not sure about.   

While we ate they sang drinking songs...at the end of each everyone took a shot of what ever liquor they had... although not tradition we went with "Captain Morgan's Black Rum."

It was fun to experience this, as I haven't done so before.  But I didn't understand the words to the songs which limited the amount of enjoyment, but I still linked arms with the people on either side of me and swayed back and forth to the music.

following the dinner there was a rewards ceremony for the football tournament that was held earlier in the day.  I hear this was really fun because all of the jokes...