A Festivus for the rest of us

Here's a post that probably won't make much sense except for the Seinfeld nerds out there, unless you do some research. Ever heard of Festivus? If not, read up.

...done? Great.

Life in Fremont is the source of constant amusement, and I was honestly not the least bit surprised when I started seeing posters about Fremot Festivus taking place on December 5th. Somehow, I had managed to miss this tradition in 2012 and 2013, but luckily not this year. Besides the customary Festivus practices, the celebrations also included the annual Lenin lighting; or, as the organizers so nicely put it, a chance to "Celebrate the start of the Fremont holiday shopping season by helping light up a bronze statue of a dead dictator!" Eh, count me in.

The hour-long festivities included everything you would expect, such as Airing of Grievances, Feats of Strength (at least, a version of it) and a proper Festivus pole.

In addition, the celebrations included some things you might not expect, such as representation from the city in the form of Miss Seattle. Yes, seriously. (The one with the tiara, to the left.)

Shani and I decided to make this event into a proper girls' night out, and after the decorated dictator was lit up we spent the evening going from place to place, happily shopping, eating and drinking; basically enjoying everything that makes Fremont such a gem.

The rest of the weekend was equally lovely; on Saturday Amanda and I met up at the University Village outdoor mall for a Christmassy breakfast/shopping date, which turned out to be not only super fun but also super efficient. Sunday meant football at Eastlake Bar & Grill (go Hawks!), after finishing a few things at work and then crossing off the last items on my Christmas list. Finally, as I'm writing this, a batch of just-made glögg is cooling on the stove behind my back; one bottle will be brought to work on Wednesday, and the other to the Frayos next weekend. Good times they are a-comin'.

Happy second Advent, from me and Vladimir!

Making Christmas*

I'm well aware that it's only November, but 2013 will be the year when this Christmas junkie spends her first X-mas away from Sweden, and it takes some preparations to make it bearable. Hence, stocking up on important (and not so important) accessories and ingredients on the brief sojourn back home was essential.

Below are some of the items I collected: bitter orange peel (pomerans) for ginger thins, a sample of my favorite Christmas tea blend, spice mix for mulled wine (glögg), almond paste (mandelmassa), traditional cookie cutters (piglet, angel, star), a calender candle, a knitted heart, dry yeast for saffron rolls, and some typical holiday sweets (Marianne mint candies and juleskum). I also got myself a star shaped paper pendant lamp to hang in my kitchen window in time for advent (not shown below).

So far, so good! I'm ready for December to start. Like, right now. Now!

*The title of this post refers to the No. 1 Christmas movie out there: Tim Burton's “Nightmare Before Christmas”. But you knew that, of course. If not: check it out!

Subliminal

When I found this scarf on sale a couple of weeks ago I didn't look too closely on the pattern; I just liked the colors and the softness of the fabric. Unfolding it some days later, I discovered what I had bought.

Resistance is futile; assimilation is inevitable.

Busy busy busy

Whoa, things are really stacking up because of my upcoming trip to Sweden... At FHCRC, September and October have been super busy because the PIs are frenetically working on grant renewals and need to complete their reports with fresh data, ideally proving the hypotheses that were stated in the original applications. Consequently, we are working day and night trying to produce graphs, images, and results to fill in the blanks. It's fun, because we are really making progress in some of the projects, but it's also exhausting. I'm hoping that the pace will slow down somewhat in November when the grants are submitted, but past experiences tell me that once the pace is set, it rarely decelerates... We'll see what happens this time.

Off work, I have been struggling with finding a formal (floor-length) dress for the Conferment of Doctoral Degrees that I'm attending in Gothenburg on October 25. It's the University’s largest ceremonial occasion, when new doctors from the previous academic year, jubilee doctors and honorary doctors receive their insignia as confirmation of their position at the University. Because of my move to Seattle last year I was able to postpone my attendance, but now it's finally time. However, finding a proper dress turned out to be more of a challenge than I had expected, as pretty much all the places I looked had plenty of gorgeous gowns - but not in my size! I ended up ordering one online yesterday, so now I'm keeping my fingers crossed for it to fit properly and look good irl.

On top of that, I'm trying to schedule my days in Sweden so as to see as many friends and loved ones as possible during my brief stay, as well as schedule meetings with interesting people in Seattle to try and figure out what I want to do with my life and my career after my second year as a Walker fellow is up.

What do I want to do? Which direction should I go? What is the best way of getting there?

No more thinking tonight; my brain needs a break.

A bird in the hand...

...is worth two in the vegetables section. Hello Ducky!

Kitsch revealed

Now wait just a minute! I promised that I would show the contents concealed by this mysterious wrapping a month ago, but then completely forgot to fulfill my obligation. Shame on me!

Ok, here goes: The first golden frame brought some feminine beauty to my bedroom.

Hey, I told you it was depressing! But I honestly like the eerie vibe it is projecting.

The second print added to the maritime theme I've got going on in my kitchen/living room.

Fun fact: on the back of it is written “Udskibning fra Saltholmen, 1880”. Got to keep that Scandinavian heritage alive!

Alright folks, that's all from today's episode of Antiques Roadshow. Stay safe and don't play with fire! (Or guns.) Cheerio!

Where young people go to retire

If you like a good snigger but haven't discovered the TV series Portlandia yet I highly recommend a quick peek, for instance on SVT Play. And if you feel like burying yourself in flannel, facial hair, homebrewed beer, and moderately overpriced locally produced eco-friendly holistic (somewhat dented) artisan sourdough bread, well then you should do what David and I did last Sunday: jump in the car and take a day trip to Portland, Oregon.

Never mind my satirical tone; although I only spent about five hours in this hipster haven it was certainly enough to realize that I would love to go back for further exploration, preferably in the summer.

During our short stay David and I managed to enjoy a hearty brunch, do some tax-free shopping, walk along the waterfront to the Saturday (sic) market and browse around for a while before going to Voodoo Doughnut.

I am by no means a devoted donut consumer, but David assured me that if I ever should indulge in a deep-fried, calorie-packed sugar bomb extraordinaire this was the time and the place. I wasn't difficult; we bought ourselves some coffee and entered the winding line that lead to the store. The queue actually started under the pink sign below, then went all the way to the left and finally back to the entrance again. And that was just to get inside... A popular place, to say the least.

Standing in line has positive side effects, though; this photo was taken by a gentleman from California who was in town for a quick business trip. A really nice fellow who gave us his card and promised us a guided tour of San Fransisco, should we go there.

Once inside, David decided to surprise his colleagues with a Monday treat and bought a whole box of goodies. (Kiss ass!)

For me, the multitude of forms and flavors was completely overwhelming and I panicked slightly when it was my time to order. David indulged in a Bacon Maple Bar (um... yes, that's bacon and maple frosting) and I ended up randomly picking an Old Dirty Bastard, with chocolate frosting, crushed Oreos and peanut butter (the messy one to the right of the bacon bar).

My verdict? Not that bad. No, actually: it was really good. But I sure didn't need any dinner when I eventually got home to Seattle... Calling it "filling" would be an understatement.

All in all, it was a lovely little trip! Hope I get to go back soon.

"We were just gone for a few minutes."
"A few minutes is like a few months in dog years."

Wrapped up

What's this? A real bargain, that's what it is!

At least if you're into semi-depressing lithograph prints with dented golden frames for half price, like I am. (Otherwise, you might not be particularly impressed.) I'll reveal what's hiding under the brown paper as soon as my vintage darlings have found fitting spots on my walls.

Do not analyze or remodel absolutely

Hello Hello Kitchen Timer Rabbit! Hello!

Please handle my backside. Carefully!

I promise not to analyze. Absolutely!

And new Cake Mold friend: you are not used to be. Therefore I will not use.

Hello! Goodbye!

Vanilla Ice Ice Baby

Before I go to bed I must share another fun thing that happened today. I'm planning on baking an apple pie for the Thanksgiving dinner on Thursday and decided that custard would complement it nicely. Went to my local PCC store (which I absolutely love, by the way) and looked around for some vanilla flavoured yummyness. But alas! No such yummyness was to be found. After browsing around for a while I asked for help by a girl that eagerly took on the task. We looked among the dairy products, by the baking supplies, in the freezer and among the cakes. No custard. Only weird puddings and organic oddities.

I finally told her that I might just get some vanilla ice cream instead (secretly thinking that I should go find my custard in another store), and she wondered what kind I would get in that case. "Some really good vanilla?" she asked. When my answer was yes, she reached into the freezer and picked up a pint of really fine, locally produced Snoqualmie Danish Vanilla Bean All Natural Ice Cream ("Handcrafted in small batches for people who love ice cream"), wrote "SAMPLE" over the barcode and handed it to me, saying that I should try it. Just because she couldn't find me any custard!

Only in Seattle, my friends, only in Seattle... The friendliest town I've ever been to. How I love it!

Under construction

My little apartment is getting nicer by the day; this weekend I've drilled some 26 holes in my walls, putting up hooks and shelves left and right. I'll post some pictures of the improvements as soon as I get my things organized, but until then I can show some sweet vintage prints that I bought at the Fremont Sunday market. A bargain!

And in case you didn't know: this is a hammer.

On Thursday I will experience my first ever Thanksgiving. Therefore, the next couple of evenings will be spent trying to figure out something nice to prepare and share with the rest of the dinner guests, preferably with a Swedish touch. Stay tuned for pictures of turkey, yams and pumpkin pie!

L'amour est bleu

Behold! Baby Blue, new love of my life. All the cozy nights we'll spend together; I can hardly wait!

And you brought me flowers too! Oh, you shouldn't have...

[Tihi!]

IKEA revisited / I depend on me

Saturday made me ridiculously full of myself. Ollie and Nancy had been kind enough to lend me their van while they spent the weekend in their cabin, opening up the opportunity for me to go back to IKEA and buy a bed frame without being subject to two-faced advertisers on Craigslist. Great! There were, however, a few circumstances that made me slightly nervous. In fact, they made me anxious enough that I didn’t get much sleep the night before.

What bothered me was mainly this:

1. I had never before driven a car in the US.
2. I had never before maneuvered on a five-lane freeway.
3. I had never before driven a van.
4. I had no GPS to guide me.

Without embroidering the story too much I would simply like to conclude that not only did I make my way out to Renton and back (approximately 32 km, one way) without injuring myself or the borrowed vehicle, I actually did it with confidence and delight. All by myself!

(Yes, I took a picture while approaching Seattle on the way back, but only when traffic slowed down.)

As if that wasn’t enough, once home I also assembled the full-sized bed frame on my own, even though the instruction manual recommended getting assistance, and managed to put the base and mattress into place.

So damn proud of myself! And the bedroom? Way better now.

Hurry up and wait

I guess I was pretty naive to think that things would run smoothly with my move-in to the new apartment. Pretty damn naive... Although I'm very grateful for the place being extensively renovated (new floors, cupboards etc.), the makeover apparently took more time than the landlord anticipated and I'm still staying at the old place; all packed up and ready to go. Sigh. Frustrating, to say the least... But hopefully, this is my last night here. And honestly, who cares in the long run? As soon as I get settled in properly, this aggravation will surely be forgotten.

Until then, I can rejoice at the bargains I made today when Nancy and I went rummage sale shopping together. For instance, I bought a fully functioning vacuum cleaner (including bags) for $5, a kettle (Braun) for $3, and a cool, gold framed vintage mirror for $5. All in all, I spent $45 on 23 different items. Let's just keep our fingers crossed and hope that I'll have a home to put them in tomorrow...

I just found me a brand new box of matches

I've been yearning for these glossy babes since last fall, when I reluctantly concluded that they were too costly for my budget. Today, I'm delighted by that decision, as I just bought them for less than two thirds of the Swedish price.

But it wasn't just economics that made my day. No, the deal was sweetened by yet another encounter with the generous Seattle spirit, and I left the store with a big smile on my face and a blanket around my heart. (I love this city.)

Are you ready boots? Start walkin'!

Season of the witch

Somebody out there knows me too well.

Americans seem to love the changing of the seasons almost as much as I do. How could I, a fall loving, Halloween crazy cinnamon addict, possibly resist buying this? I couldn't, that's how.