Useless activities

An activity can be fun, good, necessary, bad, boring and more. We enjoy an activity or get through an activity because it usually has a purpose. But some activities are just plain useless. Specifically two useless activities have grown beyond being merely useless, they have grown into my pet peeves.

Waiting in line and looking for something lost. I can feel the frustration grow just writing the words!

I understand the purpose of a line. It will eventually get me closer to my goal. But the actual activity of standing in line is useless. It doesn't matter if I have all the time in the world, it is still a source of frustration. My husband tells me that it doesn't matter how frustrated I am, I will not get there any sooner. I find it less frustrating when he's not in line with me...

I might hate the activity, but I never cut in line, in fact, I hate when people do. However, there are some "grey-areas" that allow some wiggle room, if you ask me. One is when they open a new cash register. It is anarchy until a new line has formed. The order in which you joined the other lines has no significance at all. My husband vastly disagrees with me on this. So, I only get away with it when I shop alone or if I'm carrying our merchandise and the wallet.

You can find another "grey-area" at, e.g. amusement parks, where they sometimes have a holding area for the next group of passengers waiting for the ride. What used to be a line is morphed into a group and who knows who's first, second or last? In this situation I'm happy to adjust my position to a more beneficial one. I do have a limit on how big of an advancement I am allowed to make and I try very hard not to take it too far. As I said, I hate when people cut in in line.

The second useless activity is looking for something lost. It's great finding what ever you're looking for, but the time spent leading up to that moment is a total waste of time. This activity is a bit different from waiting in line because it has many layers of frustration.

Firstly, you only realize something is lost when you need it. So there's a time aspect to it. Often when you're looking for something you're in a hurry. Secondly, regardless of if you're in a hurry of not, it prevents you from continuing to do what you set out to do because you can't find the thing you need and until you find it you can't proceed or you need to abandone you initial plan. Thirdly and the most frustrating thing is that you're in the situation because you didn't manage to put the thing where you would easily find it. Unlike waiting in line, this useless activity is self-inflicted. I guess, if you have a family or a pet, you could blame them, but more often than not, it is all your fault.

Who is afraid of whom?

Happy Wedding Anniversary to me and my husband. We've now been married two years. It's been two wonderful years, full of happiness and bliss. This could easily turn into a long, never-ending, tribute to my wonderful husband, but it would just be stating the obvious.

Instead, this will be about delusions and the never-ending journey of self-discovery.

Last year we chose to celebrate our anniversary in Sacramento. It wasn't our first choice, but if you realize too late that your wedding day is the same day as Columbus Day, you'll find that most other places of interest are fully booked.

This year we learnt our lesson. A few months ago we booked a small cabin in Big Sur. We were looking forward to a nice weekend of hiking. What a delusion! We don't hike. The few times we've hiked it's been ok, but not particularly great. We are generally gaming and watching movies kind of people.

Last Friday we arrived at our cabin. It was the sweetest little cabin with a queen bed and a half bath. At least I knew myself well enough to know it wouldn't feel like a vacation if I didn't have at least a half bath in very close proximity.

I had prepared a feast of pork skewers and vegetables and we were both pretty hungry when we arrived. We brought with us a whole bunch of fire wood, but little did we know how long time it would take to turn fire wood into charcoal.

While waiting for the fire to burn out my husband suddenly saw a cat in the dried up river next to our cabin. After a closer look, the cat turned out to be a skunk. And the skunk was well within spraying distance. We slowly back away hoping we wouldn't scare it.

After a loooooong wait for the fire to turn into charcoal, we lost our patience and decided to turn our food into charcoal instead. Surprisingly, cooking pork over open flames turned out to be ok. The food tasted great! I'm not denying that starvation tends to elevate any flavor, but we were full and satisfied.

By this time it was pitch black and we were more than ready to turn in for the night. As we were packing away our food I glanced over into the dried up river, just to make sure there were no animals around. What I saw scared the bejesus out fo me. Four pairs of eyes staring at me. A pack of raccoons! I have never met one before, let alone a pack! I had no idea they were that big! I'll admit I panicked and fled into our cabin. I've heard horror stories about raccoons and I was not prepared to add a story of my own!

Fast forward to the next day. We had breakfast and headed out to Andrew Molera Park. We decided on a 8 mile hike along the coast, up a mountain, through some Redwood forest and back. The sun was shining and the trail was beautiful! However, the climb up the mountain was intensely strenuous at times and I had to question why I thought this was a good idea, when there must be a million other things I rather do.

After finally making it up the mountain I was looking forward to strolling down the mountain, through the beautiful forrest. And it was nice, for about 10 min or so. As we strolled down the trail I suddenly saw a snake crossing our path. Not just any snake, but a rattlesnake. This time I actually didn't panic. I told my husband to stop and back up. I informed him about our situation and we tried to make as much noise as possible and eventually we made our way passed the snake. For the reminder of our hike, I had my eyes pierced on the trail and didn't see much of the view. We saw no more snakes, but we did hear another one further down the trail.

We had planned to hike on Sunday as well, but we were both a bit freaked out by our close encounters with nature. Some people pay good money to enjoy nature and be close to wildlife. We are not those people. I've always thought I can handle most situations and that I'm not particularly squeamish, but I am, I absolutely am.

As we packed our bags on Sunday, we decided to leave Big Sur after breakfast. We were done with hiking. Instead we changed our plans and headed to the Gilroy shopping outlet. In the car we decided, for our next anniversary, we're heading to Napa or Sonoma to drink wine.

Bear with me...

As you might have noticed, I haven't blogged as frequently lately. There are actually plenty of things to write about. Since my last blog post I've been to my first book-club, I've been to a Health and Fitness Expo, I've taken a Segway tour in Golden Gate Park, I've done a Ghost Tour in China Town, I've hiked and I've had my first proper run down a mountain (which turned out to be easy on the lungs, but heavy on the quads and knees). But as of lately, I'm pre-occupied with a much bigger project.

So, I ask you to bear with me. I fully intend to continue blogging as frequently as possible, and if you stick with me, I will soon invite you to join me on one of my life's biggest adventures to date (and no, it does not involve babies).

Thanks for reading!

What am I running from?

For those of you who have followed my blog, I just finished another race!! For those of you who don't understand what all the fuss is about, I only need to explain that I'm terrible runner. Some people (like my husband) build stamina like a stroll in the park while others (like me) need several months of running just to be able to finish a 5K (3.1 miles) race.

About 10 months ago I finished my first 5K race. The plan was to register to run 5K races regularly so that I had something holding me accountable. Trusting my self-discipline didn't seem like enough. And boy, was I right! I didn't register for any more races and I stopped running.

Fortunately, I started exercising in general, so when I finally decided to run another race, the uphill battle was not as steep, even though it was still a battle. I finished my first race after 38 minutes and 31 seconds. This race took me 32 minutes and 29 seconds. It would be a huge exaggeration to say I'm a fast runner, but I'm happy with my 6 minutes of improvement.

Have I finally learnt how to enjoy running? No, not really. It's mostly painful and it takes me about 2 minutes before I wish I wasn't running. Do I prefere other forms of cardio exercise. You bet I do! There are many, many other form of endurance training I like more than running.

Have I though about giving up on running all together? No, I can't say I have. I might not enjoy the activity of running but I do enjoy the benefits of it. I've been to the gym regularly since the beginning of the year so I'm used to exercising. However, since I started running I've become better at it. Plus, it's a real calorie-torcher.

Many runners (I still don't consider me being one) claim that running is such a freedom and such a high, it's almost spiritual. I don't know if I'll ever experience that. But, if you want to give running a try, you really should, no matter how big of a hurdle it seems. You know how people say "If I can do it, anyone can". I'm usually not a big fan of clichés, but you have to trust me on this one. If I can do it, anyone can!

Lights out!

My husband is a very creative person and a creative person usually has creative ideas. At any given moment, we usually have at least one project we're working on. A while ago he presented a new idea, a challenge, if you will. How about 48 hours without electricity?

Last weekend we finally made it happen. The whole ordeal required some preparation. We had to agree on the rules, stock up on food and make sure we had enough candles.

Rules:
From midnight Friday/Saturday to midnight Sunday/Monday
No electric devices, such as computer, tv, phones etc.
No battery powered devices, such as flashlights, radios, toothbrushes etc.
No use of lamps, microwave, stove, dishwasher etc.
No car
No hot water
Cold water ok
Fridge and freezer were not turned off, but couldn't be opened

Food:
Bread, Corn Tortillas, Canned Foods (corn, kidney beans, peas, salmon, sardines, spam), Air-dried salami, mushrooms, Laughing cow wedges, salsa, boiled eggs, crackers, beef jerky, protein bars, banans, tomatos, mango, avocado and  Snack Pack Caramel pudding

We stocked up on candles, candle-holders, matches, lighters and we duct taped all the light switches (which turned out to be a necessary on multiple occasions). I also bought a 1000 pieces jigsaw puzzle, as a temporary replacement for our PS3.

Activities:
Long walks, biking escursion, tennis, running, hiking, picnic, swimming, playing cards, jigsaw puzzle, reading (books, articles and magazines), talking and eating.

In summary, we spent most of the weekend outdoors, we went to bed REALLY early, we slept 11 hours the night between Friday and Saturday and we had spam tortillas wraps. The biggest challenge this weekend was the freezing showers. If we would have done this for a week, I would have missed my computer and if we did it for a whole month, I would really miss hot food.

The Swedish Diet Commercial

I friend just sent me this commercial. Apparently it's been running for a while. I'm lost for words. But I am smiling and kinda digging it. When tacky is so tacky it becomes funny, you have to embrace it. I especially love how this commercial made me research the product on Google to make sure it is actually sold at CVS. It is!

We are flooded with commercials everyday and it's rare that an ad is so interesting that multiple bloggers, before me, have written about it. Also, being a Swedish Scandinasian, I love how they went overboard with the stereotype. Are the blonds in the US not blond enough without using blond wigs? ;) I wish they would have thrown in a viking and a moose or two. My only complaint is the turkey. It's not really a thing Swedes do. And if it's going to be authentically blond, it should be authentic all the way!

Btw, this diet is unheard of in Sweden.

Welcomed to the United States

I'm now officially welcomed to the United States. How do I know I am? I got a letter telling me so. Last week something monumental happened. I received my Green Card. And over the past weekend, I realized I live in the United States.

I've been living in the United States for a couple of years now. I've created a home together with my husband and our home feels very much like our home. My visa status has allowed me to stay and live in the United States but prevented me from working. I used to really enjoy working, but I've also really enjoyed my years as an involuntary housewife. I've been looking forward to receiving my Green Card, mostly to regain power to decide over my own choices in life, weather it be working or not.

So, in my mind, the Green Card is a work permit. It allows me to apply for a Social Security Number, it allows me to work and it makes me a fuller member of society, with it's rights and responsibilities. But I came to realize it's much more than that. And it says so, right on the Green Card. In the eyes of the United States, I'm now a permanent resident. A permanent resident.

If I plan to leave the US for more than 12 months I have to apply for a re-entry permit before leaving. Not too long ago, my visa extension was denied and I was asked to leave the country. It's like inviting your self to a party, having the host throw you out but by the end of the night you're asked to move in and never leave.

The journey through immigration bureaucracy is difficult in many countries. Mine has been a real adventure, with ups and downs and a lot of suspense. But all is well that ends well. I imagine I could have grown resentful along the way, but the matter of fact is that I really love my life here and I'm just thrilled that I'm welcomed to stay and that I'm invited to explore even more aspects of life in the US.

I can't wait to go through the US immigrations next time I go abroad. Hopefully I'll be greeted by a officer who will welcome me home. Because the United States is where I live, it's where home is.

6 month later...

Exactly 6 months ago, today, I bought my gym membership and went to the gym for the first time in ages. Just like everyone else who buys a gym membership in January, I was enthusiastic, full of energy and completely convinced I would be able to start a healthier, leaner and stronger life. So, what has happened since then?

I'm leaner, stronger and I can only assume I'm healthier as well. I still carry some extra padding, but it's more like I'm wearing a windbreaker now, rather than a down anorak. I've lost 20 lb and 8 inches around my waist and this have had some consequences in my life.

It would be much more profound if I could say that it has turned my life around. That I'm finally feeling like the true me and that I've never really felt comfortable in my own skin until now. But none of that is true. The truth is, I've never really had a problem with my weight (I've lost 30 lb since my heaviest). I wasn't miserable before. My self-confidence has always been, and still is, borderline obnoxious. I've kinda always liked being me, with or without the extra insulation.

So, the consequences of my leaner and stronger self is of a much more pragmatic nature. First of all, I no longer have the urgent need to change into my sweatpants as soon as I'm through the front door. Secondly, my new preferred look is wearing jeans and t-shirts. Some people loose weight so they can wear tight and skimpy cloths. I lost weight so that I could wear jeans and t-shirts.

Thirdly, I can wear maxi-dresses! I love maxi-dresses and have for years. Every year I try on a dussin maxi-dresses but it has been as flattering as putting a maxi-dress on a refrigerator (some of us are not blessed with a hourglass figure). But as the refrigerator shrunk, I've been able to find a few maxis that don't look horrendous on me. I'm actually wearing one right now.

I still have some work to do. This journey has been very pleasant this far. I thought it would be much more painful and difficult, but it has been great. I don't feel like I'm sacrificing anything, but I'm gaining a lot (except weight). My goal has been from the get go, to reach a comfortable weight within 12 months from the day I started. So I will report back in another 6 months and I'm certain I will have positive news to report, just as certain as I was when I enthusiastically started this journey.

The World of Chemistry

I wish I saw this when I was still in school. It makes so much sense!

I'm not a marriage counselor, but...

Considering the amount of time I spend at the gym, there is no wonder I encounter funny people at times and hear funny stories. While stretching yesterday, I was entertained by three older gentlemen in their 70s.

Two of the men were already exercising when the third man appeared. For the sake of the story, let's call the third man Bob and his friends Frank and John. Their conversation went something like this:

Bob: Guten Morgen! (Good morning, in German)

Frank: Guten Morgen! Wie geht's? (Good morning! How are you?)

Frank continues saying a few sentences in German.

Bob: I have no idea what you're saying. I don't know why, but I'm having difficulties remembering the words. The lessons are not helping. You're doing great, but Im hopeless.

Frank: You just need to practice.

A few minutes of exercise goes by.

Frank: Isn't your wife's birthday coming up? Do you know what you're getting her?

Bob: Yes, I saw this really expensive and high-tech bathroom scale. It will be perfect!

Frank: Wow, you dare to give your wife a bathroom scale?!? Isn't she going to be upset?

Bob: But she says she wants to loose a few pounds and that we need to buy a scale.

Frank: I'm no marriage counselor, but is it really a good idea to give a woman a bathroom scale? She might want to loose weight, but I'm sure she doesn't want you to want her to loose weight.

Bob: You think? Well, I don't want to upset her.

John joins the conversation

John: My wife loved the gift I got for her birthday. I don't know if you've seen them, but there are fancy aprons that look like dresses nowadays. She's always in the kitchen so it was a perfect gift.

Frank: Bob, don't buy your wife an apron. John, I don't know how to tell you this but your wife didn't like the gift. She was happy you got her a gift, but my wife told me she was upset that you only thought she was good for cooking.

John: But she told me she loved it... Well, Frank, you seem to know it all. What do you think Bob should give his wife?

Frank (turns to Bob): You could take your wife out to the theatre or to a nice restaurant. And don't forget to buy flowers! You must buy flowers, it's the flowers they remember.

Bob: A nice restaurant you say... Have you been to any good ones lately?

The three men walk away discussing restaurants.

There are so many things I love about this conversation. Without knowing, I imagine that they have been married to their wives for a while. Still clueless and still trying to figure them out. Even Frank. The way he mentioned the flowers was not because he understood why his wife loved flowers, but he had learnt throughout the years that when he buys flowers she responds in a positive way.

Also, cudos to anyone who picks up a new hobby, skill or language, especially when you reach a certain age. These men go to the gym, are learning German and go out to new restaurants and shows. I'm sure they will live a long, healthy and rewarding life, for many years to come.