Happy Fat Tuesday and then some!

Hej,

Yes, it has been a couple of weeks and I promised to talk about marshmallows and beer.  Well, I have yet to be to the correct store to take pictures of the marshmallows.

So, I wanted to wish you all a Happy Fat Tuesday.  I was a bit surprised at work today (more on that in a minute), when we had a special fika this afternoon. Just like in the U.S., Sweden has their own special pastry that they have on the Tuesday before Ash Wednesday.  They are called "Semlas".  Really, they are a cream puff filled with an almond filling within all of the whipped cream.  Here is a picture of them:

They were very good, but a bit too sweet for me.  I only ate a small part of it.

Anyhow, on to the job situration.  I have a temporary job that at this point will go through the end of March.  This time, I am doing more than ironing and steaming beds. :)  I will be working in the Free Range area obtaining and preparing products for an upcoming photo shoot.  It definitely is nice to be able to think a bit more than I have been.

Now, we found out some distressing news today.  We will have to move in the near future.  The person who owns the house that we are renting had an offer that he cannot refuse, so therefore, our agreement is going to be broken. Hopefully, we will be able to find a new place quickly.  The bad news is, we left most everything we own in Houston due to the fact that this house was mostly furnished and had a kitchen with pots, pans, and dishes.  I guess IKEA will be getting some more business from us in the future.  Yes, it is distressing, but there are some good things about it as well.  We most likely won't have a yard to take care of and will have more free time to exercise and feel a bit freer.  We have spent a lot of time taking care and improving this house, so it is disappointing.  In some ways this house was getting frustrating due to the fact that the living area is cold and there are items in the house that are difficult to keep clean.  I will keep you all posted on the new developments and where we will move to.

By the way, there have been no developments on my English class, so I am not sure where that stands.  I am a disappointed with this, but not sure what else I can do.

I will get to the marshmallows and beer soon.

Much love to all of you,

Bridgette

Iceland?

Hej,

It is Monday here in Sweden.  We are entering our second week of cold weather.  We have been stuck in the teen's since last week and expected the rest of this week.  Obviously, we measure the temperature in Celcius, so technically, it has been in the minuses.  At night is has been going down to about -18, which is just below 0 Farenheit.  However, it is very cold in our house in the mornings.  We have had to have fires every night and this weekend, even starting it in the morning.  The heating system in the house is not really designed to keep up without having the fires to help out.  We don't have radiators, the heating is electric and goes through the floor, so you can find some really warm spots sometimes, the cats know where they all are.  The air though is chilly and with the high ceiling and all the windows in the main room and kitchen, it is hard to keep it warm.

The good thing about the cold weather is that the sun has been out everyday, so it has not been so gloomy and gray.  Also, the sky has been absolutely clear at night, so we can see the planets and a multitude of stars.  David finally received his Christmas present - a really cool telescope.  However, it is too cold to take it outside and observe.  We have been looking at the moon through the kitchen windows. We can't wait to get it outside this summer and look at everything.

Last week, I worked at IKEA for a few days.  I spent my time ironing and steaming the beds on display, the textile area and cleaning and straightening the bathroom display area.  I enjoyed being out of the house, but it felt as if I spent the whole week cleaning.  I guess I did!

A week ago Sunday, we had a friend over for dinner and then we headed out to see Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol.  We are trying to keep up with going to the movies at least to get out of the house.  Luckily, we have been able to see movies that we both like.  I do not think anything interesting is coming soon.  So, we can just watch Netflix. :)

On Wednesday I did attend a knitting circle with several ladies from IKEA.  I think the experience was interesting and everyone was very nice.  I always enjoy meeting new people.  The knitting circle allowed me a chance to get a head start on my current knitting project.  I am making a scarf made out of 12 separate pieces that will be sewn together at the end.

So, I know that I have not spoke about anything different in Sweden than the U.S. in a while now.  I have noticed on the deodorant packages and on many of the lotion bottles that they claim that they work for 48 hours!  I am not sure if this is because they want to conserve water and the resources the people are looking for something that lasts more than 24 hours or they just do not shower every day.  Personally, I come from the U.S. and I have oily skin, so I must shower and wash my hair every day.  I have met several women who have told me they only wash their hair once a week.  Sorry, this just would not do for me.  I promise, I do not take showers longer than 5 minutes, but at least I am fresh.  Here is an example of the deodorant:

Sorry, I do not have any examples of the lotion bottles at this time.

Again, it is fun and interesting to see how things are the same and yet different here.

Next up: Beer and Marshmallows.

Take care and have a very good week.  Things are slow on this end due to it being the middle of winter and not much going on.

Bridgette