This is the translation Anders gave me at least.
His daughter Brita has down syndrome, and her friend Silvie with the same came over for dinner tonight. During dinner, Anders and I were speaking to each other a little bit in English, and then he´d switch to Norwegian to talk to them. At one point, when I had just said something to Anders, Silvie turned to me and said something very seriously. Anders said she was requesting that we speak in Norwegian so she could be in on the conversation. How big of a jerk did I feel at that moment? Yeah, big.
But the hilarious part of the situation was that when Anders tried to explain to Silvie that I was from America and only spoke English, she could not grasp the concept. They had to drop the subject eventually, because Anders told me she just said "It´s not possible she speaks only English". I was like "I know, I´m sorry."
So ridiculous!!
Now Silvie & Brita are in the living room having a grand old time, cracking up over something. And anyone who knows me knows I LOVE to eavesdrop on conversations. Slight problem in a country where you don´t know the language! I guess I should work on that, hm?
Today I am finally not feeling anxious. I think I´m just more comfortable with the unhurried pace of this farm. Also I tired myself out this morning sweeping the pens in the sheep house. Forceful sweeping can be really exhausting! And following that activity, Anders and I went through his fields pulling up dockweed by the root. The fields are REALLY hilly and the grass is very high (in preparation for the sheep who will be grazing there after we get them this weekend). High wet grass is quite difficult to walk through. Thick dockweed stalks are quite difficult to rip out by the root. We collected hundreds of them!! Holy crap I never want to see another dockweed again. It feels good to have gotten such great exercise today though. I was feeling tired but invigorated when we got home from the fields, so when Anders went to pick up Brita from school I stayed behind and cut some more grass. Freshly cut grass is such a wonderful smell! It´s nice relaxing work too, just using the little handheld weed wacker.
Another relatively quiet day at Ytre Åsen.
I haven´t been getting nearly enough emails, by the way. Don´t you people have news? Aren´t you freaking out about Sarah Palin or anything? Speak!
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2 comments:
hi emma, i thought i sent you a comment, but i pressed the wrong whatever. so, i'm trying again. your dad was thoughtful to send me your blogspot. i loved reading your journal on your travels and your creative impressions and wonderful photographs.about sarah pallin. sarah pallin is a frightening happening. soccermom, as vice president to a very old and not healthy president. can you imagine. i'm ready to pack us all up and meet you in norway. i love the firestove, looks perfect for the cold winter. the whole beauty queen of alaska, mother of pregnant daughter-grabbing reluctant adolescent , sullen athlete for husband, and special needs child , who she certainly will abandon if she becomes vice president of a country......its a soap opera and teevee sitcom. its not real. its just a bad dream, like bush was a bad dream, nightmare more to the point. back to fishing and animals and real life. its great you are enjoying what is not tainted by worldliness and modern nonsense. its great you don't like bars. from my experience, you just meet alcoholics in bars. we are fine, here in the woods. i had a great time with your mother a couple of weeks ago. we swam at steve whatshisname's pool and took a wonderful walk in the corn fields. it was lovely to walk and swim with your mom. now there is a real mom. she wouldn't give up having been a stay-at-home mom to run this country. aren't you glad? i don't know if you are connected to my stories on this blog, but if you are ,i hope you like them. i haven't read them in a long while and i forgot what i wrote, but i'm thinking of putting some together as a little book. if you don't get them, that is just fine, also. love,suzanne...here's to the farm woman.!!!!
quick emma! learn norwegian! before the dockweeds grow back!
(i know - i too am always embarrassed at my english-only skill set. we suck!)
okay, enough exclamation points, except for sarah palin. please lady - stay the hell in alaska!!!!!!!
picking a broad just because she's a broad to win over hillary fans? come ON! i would hope that republican women are offended at the lack of respect mccain has shown by picking palin.
i hope they aren't that stupid.
sad thing is, as i've been watching the lame RNC (yes, i watch...i want to know what they're saying!) i throw up in my mouth a little each time i see some pale-faced lady with her red, white and blue scarf tied daintly around her neck as she laughs and sings and claps in ignornant bliss. the fact of the matter is, as awful as the mccain / palin ticket is, they still may win. YIKES!!! even if they don't actually win. let's not forget how the white house has been stolen for the past two elections. let's not be surprised if there are all of a sudden missing ballots from liberal states or turned-away voters from polling stations in ethnic cities and areas. let's keep on eyes on these two...i don't trust em!
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