My thinking spot

This is the path that leads to my thinking spot

These stones are the ruins of a viking age fort near the edge of the lake.

This is the stone on which I sit listening to the wind in the trees and the waves lapping on the shore.

And here is the view from my thinking spot.

There's a place I like to go when I need to get some perspective on things that are bothering me. It can be things like not feeling appreciated at work, or feeling torn between the needs of different family members at home. When I sit on my rock overlooking the lake, in one direction all I see is dark forests - I can almost believe that a thousand years have fallen away, and imagine a viking ship coming out from behind the point of land. In another direction the fields of ripe grain reach down almost to the shore, different shades of brown for wheat, barley and oats. Then I close my eyes and just listen to wind in the trees, the sounds of birds, of the dogs splashing in the water and the waves lapping on the stones. It's funny how the sound of water eases the mind. When my mind is in turmoil I look for an opportunity to go to my thinking spot at the lake. There I am able to sort out my feelings, and find positive solutions, at least a positive way to deal with whatever situation brought me here.

For example I have been feeling unappreciated at work. It affects my motivation. I am all tied in knots about it. My time at the lake brought the following insights:

• I will not allow lack of appreciation to influence my commitment to my patients. My primary concern will be excellent patient care and my secondary concern will be to participate in the smooth running of the unit.
• I should not allow the lack of acknowledgement of the value of my skills keep me from constantly working to improve them. Too long I have allowed the fear that the past year and a half were wasted keep me from studying to improve my knowledge. No more!
• This situation of not being appreciated, of my qualifications not being acknowledged is making it easier to let go of my current position, and the safety it represents (steady job, secure future) and keep applying for jobs in other places. I am looking at nurse-anesthetist jobs anywhere in Norway, and intensive care jobs at local hospitals. I have registered with the labor department and with 4 temp agencies. It also makes it easier to start considering a move to america, even if I'm not qualified to work as a nurse anesthetist there.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

I had a job interview last week. They asked 2 standard questions

1. How would you describe yourself?
2. How do you think your co-workers would describe you?

Here are my reflections on these subjects:

1. How would I describe myself?

I talk alot. Some say I talk too much. On the other hand I believe in the importance of communication with patients and their family members. It is something I am constantly working on. So yes, I talk alot, but I try to make that an asset.

Also, if I hear that someone has a problem with me or a complaint, I will go to that person to clear things up. Same if I'm the one with the complaint. I don't like to let things fester and just bitch to everyone else. So people know where they have me.

I may seem unsociable, because I bury my nose in a book or sit at the computer when business is slow, rather than hang out in the common room shooting the breeze. The thing is, I give so much of myself to my patients and to the job, that when I have some free time, lunch break or whatever, I need time to myself to recharge.

I enjoy working independently. On the other hand I enjoy working in a team where the individual responsibilities are clearly defined. Thus I work very well with doctors, nurses aides, housekeeping staff. The problem arrises when I have to work in a team with nurses who have a different level of commitment, or where my area of responsibility is unclear.

2. How would my colleagues describe me?

I have been told that I am capable and thorough. What I want them to think of me is this: I want them to find it easy to ask me for help. I also want them to think that when they take over one of my patients everything is well taken care of. If I write a report it should be complete. When I leave a room, it should be ready for a new patient (I sometimes fail in this - so there is room for improvement here). I want people to think of me: "when she does something, she does it properly".

I've also been thinking about the differences between being a nurse in the US as opposed to Norway. Each place has it's pros and cons:

In the US you are expected to have a higher level of medical knowledge and assessment skills. Your work is noticed more by your superiors, and good work is appreciated . There is a strong emphasis on customer service and continuing education.

The cons are living in constant fear that a mistake can cost you your licence, and the constant evaluations can get in the way of going about your business of taking care of patients. Also having no more than 2 weeks of vacation, work every other weekend and a 40 hr work week would burn me out in the long run.

On the other hand, in Norway you can work much more independently as a nurse, in other words you can use your knowledge and skills more independently and that is extremely satisfying. Also the work situation is better with longer vacations (5 weeks), less weekend work (every 3rd or 4th) and a shorter work week (35,5 hrs).

The cons are that no one gives a sh*t whether you do a good job, as long as you don't get any major complaints, and further education is not a priority, except for the bare essentials required by law.

Job Interview and a dog fight

Today I had a jobinterview with a temp company called Jobzone. They were looking for a nurse anesthetist for a client. The job was in Oslo, and would be a daytime job, no weekends, evenings or nights. Originally I found the idea of commuting to Oslo prohibitive, but when I thought more about it I thought that if I could work 4 days a week, and have a regular rhythm it might just work. I was really excited when they called to set up an interview, and also kind of scared at the thought of giving up my steady job for a temporary anesthesia job and who knows what that would lead to. But I am determined to try to get an anesthesia job one way or another.

Anyway, this morning I got up at 5 to walk the dogs before taking the 6:55 train to Oslo. It was pouring rain when I walked the dogs, and still pouring rain while I waited at the station. When I got to Oslo I found the subway alright. When I emerged at my destination it was still pouring rain. I followed the instructions I'd been given: exited throught the main doors and discovered the Oslo Business School directly across the street. I walked around the building and at the back I found the Jobzone office.

First I was kept waiting for half an hour. The lady who was doing the interview was held up in traffic. When she arrived she was just. so. nice. After a few minutes she suggested that she call the chief nurse anesthetist of the client - a private clinic in Oslo - and maybe set up an interview right away. When she mentioned the name I realized that it was the name of a clinic to which I had applied a couple of weeks ago, but who had not yet responded.
When she resumed the conversation with: "I will be completely honest with you..." I knew what was coming. They wanted folks with experience.

Why is it that anesthetist managers don't send that letter saying: "thank you for your interrest. But the position has been filled with someone more qualified/we require minimum X years of experience" ? Do they think that their applicants like their patients are unconscious and won't notice if they get a rejection letter or not?

Still had a nice talk with the nurse recruiter and she assured me that she would do what she could to find me a job, she wasn't giving up on Aleris either, sooner or later they might get so desperate that they would take me in spite of my lack of experience (should I even hope for that? - if the reason is that they are not set up to give the backing that new nurse anesthetists need?). Whatever.

It had stopped raining when I returned to the subway and arrived at the train station with an hour to kill. Used it to get Irene a birthday present. Met my dentist waiting for the same train. The latest crisis met me upon my return. Topsy had attacked Lucy again - she has begun attacking her unprovoked. Lucy fought back this time, but when the scuffle was over she was limping on 3 legs. The vet felt around at her paw, couldn't figure out whether it was sprained or broken. Lucy tried to bite her to make her stop, so we muzzled her. Even with a muzzle on she fought to get away, get the muzzle off, bite. She got herself all exhausted. I was a bit worried how she would react when we took the muzzle off, but after only a minute or so she was accepting goodies from the vets hand. So I guess their relationship isn't totally ruined.

Splashing through bog and stream

Orienteering

This weekend Husband, Audun and I ran 3 orienteering races, all of them on boggy ground after heavy rains. It was so wet that several times I sank right down to the thigh in mud, the brooks and streams so swollen that it was impossible to jump them - you had to just splash right through them.

Audun

Thursday was the club championship for 3 local clubs. I ran a 3,5 km A-level course, Husband ran a 4,5 km course and Audun accidentally ran a 6,5 km course. It was Auduns first time orienteering in 8 years so I was amazed that he finished in approximatly the same time as Husband did. It was a rainy afternoon. I was afraid I'd be out all night as I normally stay away from such long A-level courses but it went well. There was a strange bird that followed me for a bit. I never really caught sight of it, but it had an odd call. I wonder what it could have been.

Dancer

Saturday was the bog-sprint (myrsprinten), meaning lots and lots of controlls on a relatively short course. Here too I ran an A-level course (3 km). I started off running along a path in the wrong direction but discovered my mistake pretty quickly when I came to a bridge over a stream. Since there wasn't supposed to be a stream on the path I checked my compass and thats when I discovered that I was running north instead of south.

Between the 7th and 8th control I met up with Husband who was wondering where he was. I had just been trying to figure out the same thing, and so could enlighten him. He has this tendency to get carried away with running fast, forgetting to check the map and compass and thus gets lost. Anyway he finished second to last and was bummed out about that.
Anyway I only finished 12 minutes after the next to last contestant which for me, is doing well. Last time I competed on an A-level course I was 20 minutes behind the second to last.

Husband (in white with red+blue stripes)

Sunday for the bog-tramp (myrtrampen) Husband promised himself to slow down and concentrate on his orienteering skills and sure enough he finished second and brought home a prize. As for me, after starting in the wrong direction again but getting myself back on track after a few meters, I tramped along through the bogs and splashed over streams for 3 km again (but C-level this time). Once I saw a moose cow running along a ridge right in front of me. Thats what I like about orienteering: the cool flowers and wildlife that you see. The satisfaction of finding the controls. I wish I was faster. I tried running across some of the bogs but it is exhausting. To tell the truth everything hurt on monday after all 3 days of this. Audun did really great too. He had some incredibly long courses: 5-6 km both days. I am amazed at how he is able to keep up with the others in his class.


My course on Sunday. You can see how wet it was and where I saw the moose.

Training for the inca trail

Working out more was one of my resolutions for after graduation. For the first 6 months of the year I was managing to work out 1 hr a week, and for the year before that I worked out even more sporadically. Also I have done zero strength training in the past year and a half. The only regular exercise I've been getting was a 20 minute (not necesarily brisk) walk with the dogs every morning.

There are a number of reasons to work out:

1. Losing weight. Around christmas I became officially overweight as defined by BMI > 25.
2. protects against heart disease and diabetes (not that I am really in any danger of aquiring these, but it's nice to know) as well as certain kinds of cancer - specifically colon and breast (now that I am worried about).
3. Helps promote a positive outlook. My husband tells me I'm negative all the time. Since aquiring an mp3 player exercise also gives me an excuse to listen to audio books, music and keep abreast of the latest news via the BBC world service.
4. Protects against Dementia! Apparently, according to a book I'm reading on brain research, exercise causes new brain cells to "grow". Also middle-aged and older people who exercise have been found to have heavier brains that people of the same age who don't. As far as I'm concerned is more important than being protected from heart disease and diabetes).

All this is regarding any exercise that increases the heart and respiratory rate and makes you sweaty: ie brisk walking, bicycling, orienteering, cross country skiing, and dancing to name the ones I do.

Strength training has other benefits. I do mostly pilates and yoga based strength training.

1. Strengthens the bones. Important for us women after menopause whose bones easily get brittle if we don't strengthen them.
2. Protects the joints and the back from wear and tear. If you have arthritic joints, strengthening the muscles that hold them in place protects them. Same goes for lower back pain (or any back pain). If you strenghten the muscles of the back and abdomen it protects your back.
3. Improves balance, suppleness and provides relaxation.
4. Improves the figure (or so they claim).

So what am I doing about it?

In the first month since graduation I doubled my workouts: from once to twice a week. Then in July I increased my workouts to 2-3 X a week, and since I started having back problems I've started up strength training 2-3 X a week also. In august I'm intending to increase both cardio work-outs and strength training to 3-4X a week (30 - 90 minute sessions, depending).

Mostly I've been orienteering and bicycling to and from work. It takes me 45 minutes to bike to work (about 10 miles) and 55 minutes to bike home. Why the extra 10 minutes? well for one thing I'm tired after work, and for another it's more uphill. Biking to work is grinding to a halt for the summer though. 2 weeks ago I discovered that it was getting too dark to bike home from the evening shift (at 10 pm). On sunday I found that though the sun was only just setting as I was leaving for the night shift, it was quite dark by the time I arrived. I will maybe give biking one more try next wednesday when I have an 11 am to 7 pm shift, providing it's not raining, and that will be the end. The orienteering season goes on until the end of september. After that my source of cardio will be "spinning" at the gym, pluss maybe dancing (husband has suggested we could maybe start swingdancing again), and skiing, when the snow comes.

According to husband it is important to train toward a goal (personally I tend more toward focus on the process rather than goal orientation, but I think finding a balance is important). We have talked about visiting Machu Pichu in Peru for our 10th aniversary next year, and while researching it, I discovered that one can do a 4 day hike along the inca trail to Machu Pichu! In my current shape it is unlikely that I would be able to enjoy a 4 day hike at high altitudes: so this is the goal for this winters training: to hike the Inca trail to Maccu Piccu!

Internet troubles

While we were on vacation lightning hit and killed the internet modem as well as the telephone adapter. We ordered a new modem, and a week later it arrived. However after hooking it up we still had internet problems. For weeks our internet was erratic, falling in and out every minute or so and making it impossible to use the phone or skype. We complained to our provider and for a couple of weeks they did nothing. When I started threatening to withhold payment they sent around a repairman to check out the line. Still no improvement as yet another weekend passed. At this point I was calling them every day. The repairman came back, and was able to determine that it was not the line and so had to be the modem, convincing them to send us a new one (finally!). Lo and behold, when we hooked up the replacement modem a week later the net worked perfectly. So now we are finally back on line. I can call my mother (and any one else) again, and pick up my italian studies.


Yes, I have started an online Italian course from the BBC. I was able to sort-of do it while the internet was bad as well, but each page took forever to load so I didn't make much headway - then I'd start solving griddlers while waiting for the page to load and forget all about it... Anyway, now I am studying quite consciensciously. Question is will I actually remember how to say anything when placed in a real live situation in Italy?


Yes, we are going to Italy. That is why I am learning Italian. That week in the mountains and the second week orienteering were just half my vacation. The second half is scheduled for september when we are meeting Mother, Roland and Sharon at the Garda Lake, where we have rented an appartment in Malcesine for a week. Before meeting up in Verona, Husband and I are spending a few days in Venice...



Family News:

Tante Christina spent a weekend with us. We went on walks in the forest and watched the DVDs of her 80th birthday party, and her final Eurythmy performance. I realize I have never seen her do eurythmy before and she is REALY GOOD!! Interesting to see what Jan Benedikt and Åsmund look like on the birthday DVD. Oddly enough, I see a similarity between Jan Benedikt and Adam Helge! Åsmund is the spitting image of Onkel Harald!

Audun is back from Australia. He's staying with us while appartment hunting in Lillehammer. Starting work already on monday at his old market research job there.

Haven't heard from Tormod in a while (due to the above-mentioned phone problems).

Irene is having fun on her interrail trip according to occasional sms' and facebook updates. 

Got to spend some time with Ingvild this weekend. It's been a long time since we hung out together.

Next week my stepdaughter is getting married.

Anesthesia:

I didn't get the anesthesia job here at the hospital in Hamar. I find it hard to understand why. Sure, they could get people with more experience, this was a temporary position. Couldn't they have given me the chance to get the experience I so badly need. I have saved the hospital the cost of a stipend by paying my own way through the course, pluss I am familiar with the rutines of our hospital and the OR from my months of practice nursing. A nagging feeling at the back of my mind wonders if its personal - if they don't like me, or if they for some reason think I'm not good enough.  I try to tell myself that I like ER work (I do), and that I can use my competency in the ER (I can). However I feel a pressing need to practice actually anesthetizing people for a while, in order to get confident and increase my expertise.

Unfortunatly there are practically no jobs to be had. I have registered with Manpower and Addecco pluss a couple of other temp agencys as well as applied to a private hospital in Oslo that are looking for a nurse anesthetist. Unfortunatly unemployed nurse anesthetists are a dime a dozen in Oslo, and temp agencys want folks with experiece so my chances are like zero. Can't hurt to apply though I figure. My proffessional self confidence is being put to a sever test by all this. Sometimes I wonder if those 18 months of training were all a waste of time, money and energy. Thank goodness for the extremely nice swedish travellers with whom I am working a lot during these vacation weeks. Most of them are also nurse anesthetists. They are so supportive and encouraging. One of them suggested I start calling around to all the hospitals in Norway. Seems crazy, but maybe I should.

The Garden

The garden is looking good. Strawberries are almost done. Rasberries are in full fruit. The cherries (there were 3 or 4 - I planted the tree last year - are ripening). Black and red currents and gooseberries will be ready very soon. There are a number of green plums on one of the trees, but no apples. Why not? I have given Husband the task of figuring it out and making those trees produce. The sugar peas were dissapointing. I only picked about 3 times and they already seem to be done. The carrots and onions are looking good (but too early to harvest). What we are getting right now is lettuce, radishes, turnips and cucumbers (from the window sill). The first zucchini should be ready soon as well. The Kale and Broccoli look terrible. All full of holes. Someone told me about a kind of broccoli that gets little thin heads but gets them constantly? Hope I can get some seeds next year for those.

Fjord-O in Sogndal, July 13-18

Prolog:

We left home a day early in order to spend the night with MaryAnn and Nils Nøbben and have a proper visit. It was really great. MaryAnn's garden is amazing, the stone work and the flowers! It's different every year. Can't wait to see it when she gets the waterfall going. There is now a young man who wants to farm their land and even make use of the barn for his cows. Nils has been cultivating a field that had been lying fallow for years and years in order to use the manure in the manure cellar and sow grass to extend the hay field down by the lake.

Day 1:

Sogndal with campground

We drove the same route that Tor Idar biked less than a week ago so that I could see it. The Sognefjell is a fantastic area! Wild and untamed mountain, an eerie landscape that seems like another planet. Down in the valley, many hairpin curves later, the town of Sogndal nestles in a corner of the Sognefjord. We checked into the campground at 1 pm, where we had the good luck to get the one cabin that they have for rent. It lay at the top of a bank. 3 orienteering families from Haugesund camped below us in a little field. The rest of the campground was in an apple orchard with picknick tables, tents and campers parked under the apple trees.

Tor Idar and Lucy at our cabin

Days 1 and 2 were near the Sogndal airport. The assembly area was at the site of the reality show "Farmen" called Haukåsen, with a spectacular view over the fjord. The weather was bright and sunny, but of course we had forgotten to bring the camera.

"the farm" Haukåsen

We found a spot in the shade and out of the way for Lucy. Parking was at the airport, the assembly area a 30 minute walk from there, then another 30 minutes back along the other side of the airport to start. The course was basically in the woods and marshes on both sides of the airport, so that you could see the Widerø planes flying in low for landing right over your head while you were running.

Lucy

I started 20 - 30 minutes before Tor Idar on all days. Both of us running in the 17C class. The event got off to a good start with Tor Idar winning his class by over 3 minutes. I spent an hour on the 2,9 km course. Besides the camera we had forgotten to bring money. Luckily we had sandwiches so it wasn't so bad.

Day 2

View from Haukåsen

Day 2 was cloudy and a little rainy, but we had remembered both the camera and money for the barbeque plate after the race. There was a whole mobile sportsstore at the assembly area as wel and I bought myself a new pair of neoprene socks and a sweatband before the race. Tor Idar missed winning by 3 seconds. His main competition seems to be a 21-year-old russian kid.

Assembly area at Haukåsen

I should have worn a baseball cap to keep the rain off my glasses. It's hard to read the map with drops of rain on it, even if it's in plastic. Rain on the glasses makes things worse. I kept putting my glasses up on my head, just taking them down to read the map and half-way through the course got a twig caught in them which knocked out one of the lenses (luckily you can buy new lenses for O-glasses). There was a bit of a mix-up with the codes to the controls as well, since one of the controlls had been cancelled on the map, but was still printed on the loose controll slips. I got that all figured out only to find I had been disqualified for stamping the very first control wrong! I cannot believe it!

Day 3

Glacier Museum

This was a rest day. We went first to the glacier museum at the foot of the Jostedals glacier. It was an interesting museum with lots of interactive glacier related exhibits and an 18 minute film by Io Caprino where he had hung 5 video cameras under a helicopter creating a panorama. The theatre had 5 screens so that it was like flying in the panorama of the Jostedals glacier.

Solvorn seen from Urnes

Afterwards we decided to visit the Urnes Stave church. To get there you first leave the main road and follow a smaller winding road through farmland until you enter the village of Solvorn, with its boat houses on one side of the ferry dock and the sandy beach on the other. This sleepy little village has almost a mediterranean atmosphere. We had discovered it and it's fantastic cafe yesterday. Today, we parked in the square by the ferryboat dock and took the ferry over to the even smaller hamlet of Urnes on the other side of the fjord arm.

Ships dog

The ferry is tiny. It takes only a few cars. Most people just park in the square and walk on. Lucy does not like ferries. She finds them scary and on a car ferry prefers to stay in the safety of the car. I took her up to the top deck where she made the aquaintance of the ships dog, a border collie who came out fromt the steerhouse to investigate.

Urnes Stave Church

Urnes is basically a large farm and a few more houses. The road winds up from the ferry dock past strawberry and rasberry fields, until you get to the little stave church. The oldest in Norway, built 1150 on the site of 2 previous churches, Urnes Stave church is a Unesco heritage site. The girl who gave us the tour seemed very knowledgable about art history. Before going back down to the ferry, I bought a postcard. We were half-way back when my cell phone rings. It was the gift shop calling to let me know that I had left my wallet behind. With only 20 minutes until the ferry was due to leave I ran back up the hill to get the wallet and then all the way back down, arriving just as it was docking. On the way back it turned out that there was a ships cat as well. One of the crew was carrying a big tom around on his arm.

Hot chocolate and Turidmisu

Back in Solvorn we revisited the cafe for their delicious Turidmisu (tiramisu in Turid's version - Turid works there), snickers cake and hot chocolate, made with hot milk and melted chocolate. There we sat on the terrace. Other people were sitting nursing their coffees while reading a novel, the newspaper or surfing the net. Very laid back atmosphere!

Day 4

The River at Hodlekve

The last 2 days were at a different location, a ski center north of Sogndal. It was another sunny day, and again we forgot to bring the camera. We found a spot near the rushing river for Lucy. All runners had to cross the bridge to get to the finish on the first day, and both to start and finish on the second. It was a tough course going steeply up, up, up for the first 5 controls, through open land, brush and marsh and across several streams. The highest controll was in an area of summer cabins, where a whole family were basking in the sun watching us struggle up the steep hill. From there the course followed the river down, down, down. It was wonderful to get wet feet running through marsh in the hot sun. On both days I kept seeing these beautiful wild orchids. They are called Heath Spotted Orchid (Flekkmarihånd). 

Tor Idars knee had been bothering him since the last race. The russian started 3 minutes after him but caught up with him at the 3rd or 4th control after which they clung together for the rest of the race, Tor Idar trying unsuccessfully to shake him off. This put him in second place again.

Day 5

Assembly area in the rain

Tor Idar woke with a sore throat and feverish, not sure if he was even going to start. Not only that but it started pouring rain. He ended up running the course anyway, coming in 4th. It was my best race. I ran the 2,4 km course in 38 minutes. It wasn't actually pouring during the race, more like dripping so I didn't really have the problem with water on my glasses. I find it easier to run in the rain, since I don't get so hot and parched. 

There were prizes for total points from the best 3 races and Tor Idar won a second prize. All in all a great achievement to run 4 orienteering races within a week of the Tour de Jotunheimen bike race. No wonder his body was saying "stop!"

Tor Idar is tired. No more smiling.


We drove straight home after the race - a five hour drive but good to get back. Once again the girls had everything in great shape, and it was a pleasure to come home!

Valdres, July 5-11

Bitihorn from Skaletstølen

July 5th - Arrival
We left home in the late morning to make the 3 hour drive up into the mountains where we are planning to spend a week. During this week we plan to hike up Norways highest mountain peak and Tor Idar is planning to participate in a bike race circling the Jotunheimen mountains. We are only taking Lucy with us, Topsy is staying home with the girls who are taking care of everything at home.

Stopped as usual to stretch our legs about half way at the river stone carvings from the stone age. There was a lot of water in the river and Lucy found its rushing scary.

Just past Fagernes we unloaded Tor Idar and his bike. He was planning to bike up to Skarstølen, the cabin at Vinstervatn as training before the race; also the race will be going along this stretch. Meanwhile I stopped by for a quick chat with MaryAnn and Nils, and to get the cabin key and some drinking water. Got a little carried away talking and so Tor Idar arrived before me. A sharp wind was blowing and there is little shelter, the cabin being above the tree line. He took refuge in a wood shed, with the wind whistling through the cracks. Needless to say he was less than pleased at my late arrival. However, once inside the cabin, he changed to warm and dry clothes, fired up the stove, and cooked some coffee and peace was restored.

July 6th – Galdhøpiggen

Galdhøpiggen is Norway's highest peak – 2469 m above sea level. In fact you won't find a higher peak in Europe north of the Alps. There is a summer ski senter at about 1800 meters, and from the ski lodge you can climb the last 600 meters in 7,5 km. Because you have to cross a bit of glacier you have to go with a guide. Everyone gathered outside the lodge at 10am. The guides handed out harnesses, the harnesses for children had to be specially fitted, dogs were recommended to be harnessed as well.

Lucy all harnessed up and ready to go.

Then off we went at our own pace until we reached the edge of the glacier. When everyone was gathered we were attached to ropes, about 2 m apart in 3 long lines (there were 91 hikers today). Children were always placed between 2 adults and each line was headed by an experienced glacier guide.


So we stomped along over the snow. Not very exciting, though we saw a couple of deep holes, there were no cracks or anything. The last km up to the cabin on the summit we went at our own pace, climbing over boulders and up a snowy bank until we reached the cabin on the summit shrouded in mist.



Apparently it was built by stonemasons from Nepal. It had a bit of an eastern look about it. Up here you could buy hot dogs and coffee, bottled water and t-shirts. We sat inside and drank hot chocolate. Lucy, tied in the entry didn't like when people wanted to pet her: “watch out! I'll bite!” she kept saying.


Pulling hard over the snow.

At the appointed time (2 pm) we all met at the glacier again, where the ropes lay as we had left them when we unhooked ourselves. The snow was much mushier now, in the middle of the day and this time we did have to jump over cracks. I got my foot caught in a crevice under the snow and held up the whole line until I was able to get loose.


Issoleie (glacier buttercup)

All in all the hike took 6 hours. Back at the lodge we had a plate of spaggetti bolognese with salad before heading back to the Skarstølen. We had gotten quite sweaty on the hike and Tor Idar jumped strait into the lake to wash . Brrrrr. As for me, I heated water before washing in the cabin.

July 7th + 8th – Resting up

We've spent the last 2 days resting up. We've been getting lots of sleep: going to bed at 9pm and getting up at 6am, then a morning nap from 10 to noon. The rest of the day is spent walking along the road or the shores of the lake with Lucy, reading, playing cards, preparing meals and once a day heating water to wash dishes. One afternoon we drove down to MaryAnn and Nils so that Tor Idar could check on the weather report for the pending bike race.



Skarstølen is a great place for dogs. It is on a toungue of land reaching out into the lake, Vinstervatn. So on 2 sides it is surrounded by water and the third is fenced to keep grazing animals out as the grass is cut for hay. Thus Lucy has a large area on which she can run freely, and we don't have to worry about what she is up to. At the very tip there is a large stone that I like to sit on to look out over the lake and the surrounding landscape and listen to the waves lapping on the shore. It is the most relaxing thing.

July 9th + 10th – Tour de Jotunheimen bike race

Friday dawned warm and sunny, with a north wind. After lunch we drove the 2,5 hours to Lærdalsøyri where the race starts. After the short cut from Østre Slidre to Vestre Slidre, we continued up the Vestre Slidre valley into Vang and then over the Filefjell mountain pass and through several tunnels until suddenly we were in West Norway (the land of Fjords). On the way we passed 3 stave churches and several bits of the old king highway though the mountains which has been preserved. Parts of could only be traveled with pack animals. Lærdalsøyri at the end of the Lærdals fjord, contains a lovely old-town, and the Wild Salmon Center. We were hungry when we arrived and Tor Idar needed to fill up on decent food – I was thinking burger so after unloading him and his gear I went in search of something to eat. Pretty soon I came upon a fast food joint run by a polish couple where I got a hamburger and a serving of chicken nuggets and fries, plus drinks. In the registration area people were napping at the side of their bikes in preparation for biking through the night. The race starts at 9pm for most classes and ends the next afternoon. The slowest class starts at 6pm. I wanted to leave before the slowest class started at 6 pm so at 5:45 I wished Tor Idar good luck and set off back to Skarstølen.

The race started in Lærdal from the Wild Salmon Center

I decided to take the scenic route and bypass the tunnels. It was narrow, with cliffs overhanging the road on one side and a rushing river on the other, and passing right by the Borgund Stave Church, Norway's best preserved, impressive with it's dragons sticking out from all corners. Back at Skarstølen, no sooner had I let her out of the car than Lucy went racing across the grass, glad to stretch her limbs after 5 hours in the back of the car. As I was unpacking I saw what I first took to be a little rabbit hopping around near the wood shed. Then I realized that it must be a baby hare. It was so cute, all fuzzy brown, but disappeared under the shed before I could get a picture. That explained why Lucy was always sniffing around the wood shed.

It was after 8pm when I got back and 10:30 before I was ready to sleep. I slept fitfully, wondering how Tor Idar was doing, and how long it would take him to get to the various rest stations. I had expected he would be in Fagernes by 3am and at Beitostølen by 5am, so that I would meet him up at the main road between 5 and 6. We were expecting that he would take 18 to 20 hours to do the whole trip over 3 mountain passes, through 3 valleys, and along the fjord, however at 2am I was awakened by an sms saying that he was in Fagernes. In under 5 hours! I couldn't believe how fast he had gone. Couldn't sleep after that. Realized I had to rethink the whole time schedule. I lit some candles, boiled water for the coffee I was bringing Tor Idar, and sat and read until he called from Beitostølen at 3:30. I drove up to the end of the road with a backpack full of drinks, bars and gels by 4 am. The weather had changed: there were dark clouds overhead, and rain in the air, and the wind had turned to the south. I watched several bicyclists creeping slowly up the hill, their lights coming every closer until they passed me. They all looked disgustingly cheerfull after 200 km on the seat of a bike! About 4:15 Tor Idar came. He filled his bottles, drank the coffee and jumped back on his bike as a larger group came up behind, thinking to continue in their company. I went back to bed at the cabin and slept for another 3 hours – awakening when the sun broke through the clouds and shone in the window onto my face.


4:15 am, the guy in the yellow jacket is Tor Idar coming up Valdresflya,

the second mountain pass of the race.

I figured I had about 3 hours before I had to leave for Sogndal to see Tor Idar finish, because I figured that with the time he had made during the night he would probably finish in 16 hours, ie about 1pm. My departure was delayed however. Coming back from walking Lucy I discovered cows from a neighboring summer farm on our peninsula. Lucy had met them on a previous walk and was afraid of them, in fact once when we had let her off leash she saw them in the distance and ran toward them, ignoring our call to come. We ran down the hill and started up the road toward where the cows were whistling all the while. Suddenly Lucy comes from behind us. My guess is that the cows shook there horns at her and that she then lost her nerve and came back the way she had gone, up the hill and then followed our trail. Anyway, I figured she'd be no help at all chasing them so I locked her into the cabin and then set about chasing the cows back out. They were all excited about their naughtiness, kicking up their heels like little calfs with their udders swinging, and completely ignored the gate that I opened for them. They ran up to the fence near the road. There's a gate there as well which I opened. At this point 4 or 5 of the heifers headed back down to the lake shore (heels kicking), but the older cows decided that the game was up and began going out through the gate. The bell cow stood undecided for a bit, but then also went through the gate. When the heifers saw that they came wandering up as well. I didn't have to run down to the lake to get them.

The cows are back outside the fence. 

Anyway, by this time 10 am had come and gone. I started packing a lunch for the trip to Sogndal. Just as I was leaving at 11 am, Tor Idar phoned from the Sogn mountain hut, the top of the third and highest mountain pass he had to pass. From there he had only about 85 more km. I figured it would take him a couple of hours, but he thought it would take longer. I left then, driving the same way back to Lærdal (to avvoid the bicyclists) and then on to the Ferry over to Sogndal.

Ferry across Sognefjord between Lærdal and Sogndal

Tor Idar had arrived about 15 minutes before. His total time was 17:42. He told me about the trip on the way home. The group he was with when he had passed Filefjell, the first mountain pass had started a chain and that is why they got to Fagerness so fast. Chain biking is extremely efficient over long distances, which are not too steep. He lost the chain in Fagernes though. From Beitostølen, just before he met me, it rained and they had a headwind which lasted for the entire second half of the race. Actually the last 140 km they had wonderful sunshine, but because of the headwind, coming down from the Sogn mountain hut took not the 2 hours it normally would have, but a full 3:50. In fact it is said that because of this wind, this years Tour de Jotunheimen was the toughest ever.

The finish line in the town center of Sogndal



July 11th – Departure

Tor Idar in Sogndal after the race, sore but still smiling

When we got back to Skarstølen we pretty much went straight to bed. Tor Idar could hardly walk. He had had legg cramps during much of the drive. Getting into the horizontal position was pure bliss. I hadn't had that much sleep either last night so I packed it in pretty early too.
This morning after breakfast we cleaned the cabin. Lucy was very quiet and when we looked out to see what she was up to we found her lying in the grass with a lemming that she had caught. It was damaged, and she didn't know what to do with it, so Tor Idar put it out of it's misery and threw it in the outhouse.

We got home about 2 pm. Tor Idar spoke to his mother on the way home and she couldn't get over how wonderful the girls were, so polite, and grown up, and affectionate. My motherly heart swelled! The girls had done a great job. The house was clean and tidy. All the animals were doing fine. Topsy was happy to see us and a little fat. The plants needed watering, but I expected them too. It is good to be home again. In a couple days we are going back to Sogndal for an orienteering event.

Girls trip to Denmark - June 28 to July 1

In May I bought ferry tickets to Denmark. This was when Ingvild was still planning to go to college in Copenhagen. Anyway, the ticket was non-refundable so even though Ingvild has changed her mind about college in Denmark, the girls and I took the opportunity to take a trip together and visit my dear friend Ninna at her summer cottage.



Day 1:
I love my new car! It is compact, comfortable and economic, and it has cruise controll! I let Ingvild practice drive through all the road work and detours on the E6 as well as through Oslo – a couple of hours of varied driving – so she got some good practice toward her next driving test on July 16th. Then I drove for a couple of hours, and Irene drove the last bit in Sweden to the Ferry in Gøteborg, and after the ferry about halfway to Hvalpsund. I had google map'ed the whole route, but missed having a proper road map. In Gøteborg we missed our turn, almost got lost, worried that we were late, but it all worked out.



The 3 hour ferry ride was just the perfect length. Just time to have a coffee (after standing endlessly in line), surf the internet – had a nice chat with Tor Idar – and a nap in the sun on the deck. We were starving when we got to Denmark and stopped at a cafeteria for a truckers burger: huge hamburger, mountain of fries + salad bar – we weren't able to eat half of it.

Arrived at the summerhouse around 10 pm to be greeted by Ninna and Lillefix, her super cute danish-swedish farmdog. After a glass of wine the girls went to bed. Ninna and I walked the dog in sunset along the beach. Lillefix ate shells and seaweed. Then we sat and talked about the death of my father and Ninnas mother, about our ex's and our struggles as mothers... talked until 1 am.



Day 2:
I am sleeping on the matress in the living room. Lillefix wanted to sleep on my feet – I kicked her off, nor was she allowed to sleep on my bed when I'm not in it either. Insulted she curled up on the sofa.

Today was warm, calm, the sun shining, birds singing. I woke up at 7 as usual. Tormod called shortly after. How nice to hear from him! This morning Ninna and I walked Lillefix to a riding camp with a pasture full of horses which came to the fence to eat clover out of my hand. We had a breakfast of smoothie, cherries, melon and hot rolls in the garden. Ninna and I sat and read while the girls worked out on the grass. When they were all showered and ready we went shopping in the nearby town. I spent a long time looking for a present to bring back to Tor Idar. Hovered for a long time over a cute toothpick dispenser, but decided against it – it was very expensive and we don't have the right kind of toothpicks at home. After lunch the girls went to the beach to work on their tan. Ninna and I took naps, and read in the garden before walking the dog along the beach to find the girls and invite them home for dinner.




Ninna is the master of quick and delicious dinners: oven baked filet of trout in individual foil packages, oven baked cherrytomatoes with pesto, new potatoes, warm salad, raw zucchini, brokkoli... I love her diet: rich in fruit and vegetables, with mostly organic foods.
I was getting a sore throat and headache (again!) and just sat around this evening watching «the office» before going to bed early – at 10pm.

Walked on the beach with Lillefix this evening, listening to the waves lapping on the shore, the sea birds calling and the wind sighing in the branches while walking back through the oak woods.




Day 3:
Cloudy this morning with a tendency to rain, when I walked the dog. Ninna took us north along the coast after breakfast. Here it was mostly sunny but windy, the waves were white-capped. We went first to Løgster where we visited the maritime museum, with art, ships, tanks showing how the ecosystems have changed in the limfjord over the years, and a tank of petting fish: flounders, starfish, crabs, eels and a lobster in a corner to which the other fish gave a wide berth.



We had lunch at a brazilian restaurant, that served the most delicious smoothies and filled pancakes. I had their seafood special: bread, a salad and a shell filled with a shrimp and mussel stew! Several painters have their galleries and ateliers here along the seawall, and we looked at the art before heading back.





On the way we stopped at Vitskøl Abbey, a cistercian monastary from the middle ages. The same that is mentioned in the Arn books by Jan Guilleau as the place where Arn was brought up. The monastary is more or less intact, but the church is ruined and there is a lovely abbey herb garden with all sorts of flowers and herbs...




Day 4:
Return to Norway. After an outdoor breakfast and last walk on the beach while the girls did the dishes - today again, the sun is blazing from a cloudless sky - we got on our way. We decided to splitt up the driving as follows: Irene drove in Denmark, I in Sweden, and Ingvild in Norway. We got to the Ferry in plenty of time, and I went and sat on the edge of the dock watching the jellyfish and after a while the ferry as it arrived.

The ferry trip was spent for my part lunching on grilled fish, sweetpotato and salad, napping on the sun deck, shopping for chocolate for Tor Idar and chatting with him on the free internet.




The drive home took longer than anticipated. There was an accident on the E6 in Sweden and we got detoured for an hour through the Swedish forest and farmland, among others along a road that was not even really wide enouph for 2 cars. On this the big trucks had to pass each other, with millimeters to spare and one wheel off the shoulder - thank god it hadn't rained in a while so the shoulder was dry and firm, still the traffic snailed along at 20 km/hr. We had our picknic on the swedish side of the border.





Ingvild drove very well through the Oslo traffic. This side of Oslo the road work started with a detour through Eidsvoll and over Minnesund. We got off the E6 at Strandlykkja, which turned out to be unnessesarily early as the other entries, which were closed on Monday, had been reopened. Ah well. We arrived home at 10 pm.



Reflections:
It was great to see my friend Ninna - it's been a long time since we had time to catch up on stuff.
It was also fun travelling with the girls: they are so affectionate, positive, and playfull. Yet sometimes I feel old in their company, a stranger in their culture.
"The feeling that I'm
Losing her forever
And without really
Entering her world
I'm glad whenever I
Can share her laughter..."
(ABBA in "Slipping Through my Fingers")

Bike festival

Today is "styrkeprøven" - the great strength test - the Tronhjem - Oslo bike race (but you can also start from Lillehammer, Hamar or Eidsvoll). http://www.styrkeproven.no/en After all the training (over 3000 km since Easter), and all the packages with bike equipment that have been coming in the mail every day, Tor Idar ended up having to cancel because he got my bad cold. It was really too bad. The weather has been perfect with the wind at their backs the whole way. I biked to work tonight - finally, first time in weeks! - and it was cool to see all the teams biking past. At the Stange station the support car for a German team had lined up boxes with clothes and refreshments in 2 long rows, just as I went by the team turned in to fill up their bottles etc. In Ottestad people had set up their lawn chairs along the road waiting for the Ottestad team to come. At 9:30 pm, when I passed by, there was already a big crowd of fans at the gas station, though I thought the team wasn't expected until about an hour later. They are planning to stop there for the coffee/cola/honey brew that is supposed to give them the energy to make it the rest of the way to Oslo (another 100 km or so), ETA about 3 am.



We are both getting over our colds now, so Tor is planning a bike race to make up for the one he missed: Jotunheimen rundt. It is only about 430 km but as an individual, rather than team race it is just as tough: Tor Idar expects to finish in about 18 hrs. http://www.jotunheimenrundt.com


Here is Tor Idar preparing to go on a training ride in the new jersey I gave him for his birthday!

Everything was going so well...

Ok, so I finished the Nurse Anesthesia training last week, got an A on my final paper and bought a new car. Even applied for an anesthesia job. I was all ready to start working out, gardening, training the dog, learning Italian, meditating etc. I was going to bike to work this weekend, 3 days in a row. Friday I had a cold coming on. Saturday I felt like shit but went to work anyway - which I regretted as I lost my voice in the course of the evening. Have now been home sick from work for 3 days in a row with the cold from hell: sore throat, couph, no voice, runny nose, almost fever... I just feel like hell warmed over and when am I ever going to get better???!