Fjordward

There's nothing quite like seeing your four-year-old daughter have her hands wiped to test for explosive residue to fill one's heart with feelings of secure contentment.

All this so we could get some documents notarized at the US Embassy.

The staff inside were really nice, and honestly, the security guys were ok as well; it was all just such a farce--part of the whole "security theatre" we've had to endure since Sept. 11th.

This morning it was snowing/raining and windy, and the security arrangement has people waiting in line outdoors with no shelter. I understand why the security consultants say folks have to wait outside. The vestibule (where security screening takes place) is small and the waiting area inside the consulate not much larger. So part of it is crowd control as well. Still, they ought to at least put an awning up or something--it isn't as if it could harm the place aesthetically; the building is hideous and completely out of keeping with the area (you can see the palace--whose grounds have less than 1/10th the security of the embassy, by the way--from the line out front).

Lest you think I'm kidding about the architecture:



I respect the architect and like some of his other stuff, but this is just dreary and awful.

In any case, we were finished after less than an hour, so it wasn't too bad. Still, I thought longingly of the ease with which you can get something notarized back in the States. Pop into a UPS Store and pay $6 and have done. 5 minutes max. Here it is the embassy or a municipal court. The embassy charged us $50 for the pleasure of witnessing our signatures. ($30 for the first, $20 for the second. FWIW, I believe having notarization done by the court is free, but we had trouble getting enough information to figure out that system, so we opted for the "sure thing".)

Now that the notarized documents are winding their way to Austin, we'll soon be able to close on the house sale and also take care of selling our car. (We had to send Power of Attorney to a couple of friends. Hi, G & R!) Can't wait to have only one housing payment a month!

We also finished our US taxes last night. Man, I hope I did it correctly. We had to file by mail, since we're abroad and have all the moving expenses to prove. Next up will be our Norwegian income tax return. We got the booklet in the mail this week. It is in Norwegian (of course) and the website is also in Norwegian-only. However, the process is different here. They send you a completed form, and if it is ok, you tell them so. If you need to make a correction, you do. Indeed, you can text "OK" to them on your mobile phone. (Norwegians SMS.) T is being taxed at a higher rate right now, since H and I don't officially exist yet. (Apostiles are in process--maybe we'll be registered in May . . .) At least, for 2006, this isn't a huge deal--he only began working here in October, and H and I weren't here 'til mid-December, so it would be a neglible difference. For this year, we're hoping he'll get retroactive credit once our papers come through.

Sorry for the boring bureaucratic babbling. I'm actually feeling very happy that we got all this done today. And it is the weekend, and H is being a big sillyhead right now. Her obsession with Wonder Woman continues--indeed, she's requesting her nightly You Tube "tiny box" viewing of her favorite montage--and we've been to the park several times this week, enjoying the warmer weather.

More soon.

It's been above freezing for the past few days, so the snow is pretty much melted now. Feh.

A weirdness on the way to meet T for grocery shopping Friday night: someone was apparently shooting a film scene of some sort at the end of our street. (It was actually a pain, because I had to double back with H when I realized they'd blocked off a connecting side street.) They were working into the night, apparently, given the huge crane with lights that was in place during the walk back. (The poor people who live in that apartment building, with the harsh lights focused on their windows.)

H and I have been going through this Richard Scarry book that our neighbor loaned us--it is designed to help Norwegian kids learn English, but we're using it in reverse. H really likes it, so it is a positive way to expose her to the vocabulary. (It also helps me, frankly.)

One way I'm working on my own grasp of the language is by picking an article in the paper each day and working through it with the dictionary until I can figure out the subject matter. T has been taking the class offered by employer. I'll take it during the next session, and I am looking forward to it, though a bit nervous all the same. (It meets twice a week, so there was no way to swing child care, hence the staggered approach to attendance.) Baby steps . . .

We got a sled today down at the mall. A mom here had given me the heads-up on where to go. The sled is a major help, as it means I can easily pull H and a bag of shopping or whatnot. We used it on the way back from the bus, and it was fabulous. No strain at all. (It helps that H is a wee thing.) And it is SO much easier to deal with on stairs--I can throw it over my shoulder like Santa's toy bag (it is very light) with one hand and hold H's hand with the other.

H also really likes it, since she can dip her hand in the snow as we go along. We may go through gloves like tissues, but it is just so much easier than getting out with the stroller.

And it was cheap, too. Yay!

Now I only need to fit it with wheels in the warmer months, and I'll be set.

We also found out that we could take our closest bus straight to the major shopping places, museum stops, etc downtown. This is faster and more convenient than going over to the tram stop, and it means I can now get out with H on my own more easily. This is huge.

Well we have snow again. BOY, do we have snow! It is also verrrry cold. (-9 Celsius at the moment) Fortunately, our apartment is snugly warm.

I had a huge surprise over the weekend when my very-best-ever junior high/high school friend contacted me out of the blue. (Hi, K!) She transferred schools senior year, and we lost touch. I've seen her only twice since then, and the last time was about 15 years ago, if I recall correctly. It was so great to see what she is up to--and to see her so happy.

She lives in the town where my parents live, so I will be able to see her in person next time we visit. This cyber-reunion has brought back so many happy memories. The hours we'd spend at her house (her bedroom was awesome to me, as she had so many cool things) getting ready to go out to the roller rink on Saturday night in junior high. (As lovesick adolescents, the time spent getting ready often surpassed the actual outing in terms of enjoyment.) The hours we'd spend by her grandparents' pool sun-baking ourselves to a crisp and rocking out to music to which I will not admit in print. Suffice to say it was "rock" and 1984, so . . . yeah. Riding around in her car in 10th grade (she got her license before I did) blaring Prince's "Purple Rain". The time we were at her other grandparents' restaurant and went into the bar (it was closed for business at the time, so ok for us to be in there) and rigged the jukebox to play "Funkytown" a gazillion times. (This cured us of any appreciation for the song for a considerable time. Even now, whenever I hear a snippet of it I cringe, but smile, remembering that day.)

She'd actually left a message on my folks' answering machine asking for my phone number. Of course, with the move here, Mom opted to give her my email address instead. I'm so glad she did.

On another topic, it is King Harald's 70th birthday today. There are all kinds of festivities planned, and some are open to the public. We may go to something on Saturday, if only to snag photographs for Mom. The palace and its grounds are so beautiful in the snow.

Tonight we went to stock up on groceries. There is a cold front with snow coming (it is supposed to be -15 C tomorrow night), and T is headed to Sweden for a couple of days for work, so I wanted to be sure H and I would be set while he is away. This way we can limit outings to going to the park and other fun things.

A few weeks ago, we tried a green grocer that was a few blocks from one of the two supermarkets we frequent. We went because the potato selection at ICA that night was pricey and sad. I was astounded at the price difference between the two markets. And the green grocer is even on our way home, so it wasn't in the least inconvenient to make an extra stop.

Based on our previous success, and with a lot of fresh produce on the shopping list (for a big stir fry, among other things), we decided to try out the Vietnamese grocery which is on the way to the bigger market where we'd do the remainder of our shopping--we thought there might be some ancillary items available--good tofu and egg rolls without red meat, for example. I am so glad we went in there. They had a nice variety of produce available, the selection was better looking than at either supermarket we go to, and the prices were impressively cheaper than the supermarket. This means we can do fresh veggies more regularly now. (And they also had shrimp springrolls and tofu--score!) To top it off, the Vietnamese shopkeepers were very friendly and welcoming (esp. for Oslo).

The cashier/co-owner was very taken with H and gave her a lollipop at the end of our transaction. They have a lot of cooking sauces, condiments, spices and other staples on offer as well--not just Asian fare. The store is small, but well-stocked and well-organized. And the prices are excellent for Oslo--some produce items were close to what we'd pay in the States. (I almost fainted when I saw that the huge carrots were less than a dollar.) This shop is equidistant between the two main supermarkets we frequent, so it will be easy for us to stop by--it isn't a convenience store, but its hours tend to track with the other grocery stores (no 24-hour groceries in Oslo--at least not in our neighborhood). We will definitely be making this place a regular stop. I'm so glad it is in our neighborhood.

Just a little slice of daily life for you. Now I need to go cook!