Giving Thanks - Swedish Style....

Giving Thanks – Swedish style…

Unfortunately, Wednesday this week, I was ‘encouraged’ to work a few ‘extra’ hours, so I managed to work well into the morning here (after going into the office here in Sweden at 8:00 and working a full day there – I came home and logged in to work the US hours as well…cest la vie), and that late working led me to sleeping in on Thanksgiving day – the day I was going to go explore the Kungsholmen area of the city. The change of plans led me to explore closer to home since I had to be back for practice later that night. So, I walked the northern portion of Vasastaden to Sveavagen and over to Varhallvagen where I would see some sights. I did find a dog and cat pet shop on this walk, so I have a place now to get Reese some dog food – perhaps the way to transport it back home will be to take my wheeled suitcase and load it in there….55 lbs will get heavy on a long walk. I walked for about 2 hours and I started to really put locations together when I came by Ostra Station and saw where I had gotten off of the train the first time I went to look at an apartment! It was all making sense to me. I then walked along until I went by Tekniska Hogskolan - which accounts for 1/3 of Sweden's technical research and engineering education at University Level. 15,000 students - founded in 1827. While there, I saw some of the neat sculptures they have there as well as the fountain structure that Carl Milles created - The Industrial Monument, and it rests on a marble base; quite massive in size! I rounded out my walk by going past the Olympic Stadium which was the host spot to the 1912 Summer Olympics and is still a functioning facility – in fact, I didn’t take pictures of it this trip because there were some tents being put up or taken down and it would have ruined the neat shot I know I can get; Thom will be here and I’ll have to go back by there with him anyway! At that point, I had to hop onto the bus and head home to make it to practice in time. Not much of a “Thanksgiving Day”, but I would make up for it tomorrow.

Friday I set out to do cover as much of the city as I could, and I did cover a lot. I started walking down one of the main drags here “S:T Eriksplan” and decided to fuel myself for the day with a mocha from a café. While sitting there and people watching, I started to take an inventory of what my senses are experiencing here as well as my physical being. Being a Holiday and all, I felt compelled to really appreciate all that I have to be Thankful for --- I listened for a while and loved the sound of laughter from the table next to me, the smell of the stereotypical “Strong Swedish” coffee, and the warmth within the café. I hear a buzz of the shopping plaza around me (which almost every town has it’s own mall…even if it’s only 5 miles from the other shopping mall), the sound of the studded tires outside on the streets, and the honking you usually hear in a busy metropolitan area where congestion is common. I see tons of moms pushing their “push seats” (strollers) with their little ones bundled up in some kind of wrap or ‘sack’ that looks so cozy and snuggly. The strollers they have are all very rugged and seems like they could go on almost any terrain – I guess that’s why you always see people outside walking, even if they do have little ones.
I have been asked a lot of “what kind of food do they have there?” I see a lot of shrimp everywhere I go! (As you can see from the picture, it is in abundance, and this was just one sidewalk window I took a picture of.) I had a baked potato, and on it, they put shrimp. Salads have shrimp, sandwiches, pizzas, you name it, shrimp is common as is corn on everything, whereas salad dressing seems to be limited to one option – 1,000 Island!
I see a lot of Hot Dog stands – just like in NYC. McDonalds and 7-11 seem to pop up on about every other corner. The abundance of McDonalds makes sense too – you see, in the US, we have diversified our fast food venues…we have McD’s, BK, Wendy’s, Taco Hell, KFC, Subway, Pizza Hut, and the list goes on and on. Here in Sweden, they have McDonalds, Max (competitor to McD’s), and maybe one other one that I haven’t seen much of…So, the ratio of fast food ‘spots’ is probably the same, it just seems like there is a lot of McD’s here. SUSHI – totally see that is almost every other restaurant I come across. Plenty of the raw fish to be eaten. Well, I finished my coffee, time to move along…the journey continues along the busy streets of the City.

I didn’t walk around Kungsholmen all that much, but I did walk by the large Police House, and then by the City Hall (Stadshuset). It is quite a neat building - The three crowns that you have probably seen as a symbol in reference to Sweden are on top of the building and were designed by Ragnar Ostberg. The three crowns, (tre kronor) date from before the 14th century. *I wonder who gets up there and polishes them - they were shiny! This is also where they hold the Nobel Prize ceremonies – cool.

I made my way back over the bridges to Gamla Stan and just walked part of the small island and headed to Sodermalm (South City). I took the time to walk to the top of the hill where I could take in a good look of the city from a higher spot. Quite impressive with all of the buildings and activities going on. As I came down the hill, I then decided to walk through some of the residential streets to see how some other people live, and yes, there are actually houses amongst the many apartment buildings – not many, and they are very old, but there were a few. I headed down one of the main streets on the west side of Sodermalm and what do I see? A random bandy rink??! Later, I found out that this is actually one of the rinks where the men’s World Championships will be held this year!! Sweden versus Russia will take place on this ice – I cannot wait to see that game! I took a deep breath in of the bandy field, then cut back north to start heading home through a main street in the center. It is here where I saw where much of the shopping must go on! I headed back to Gamla Stan, and then to Ostermalm (East City) where I had read of a Pub that I should try to experience, and I did just that. Headed to the Pub named Tudor Arms which opened in the 1960s and most people speak English here. After relaxing my feet for a bit, I decide that it’s probably time to head back home and call it a night like the sun has already done, especially since we have a game the next day.

Saturday morning I wake up, prepare (and consume) my usual pre-game meal, and head to the rink. Time to challenge Edsbyn the way I took on the city; with authority and ownership as if I knew exactly where I was going and knew exactly how to get there. This game should be no different. I get out onto the ice and the butterflies are swirling in my stomach. I knew I shouldn’t have checked the online stats of the teams in the league – we needed to rack up a large score to take the lead in the standings. First half, I had a few chances to carry the ball, and a few passes which also set me up for some great hits against me. Doh! One of the passes was a nice pass to me, but it wasn’t quite in the right spot because as soon as I got the pass, I managed to hit head on with one of their bigger defenders. We both went down, but I popped up quicker than she did (good!). The next chance I had in their zone was another pass where the ref straddled the ball, so I couldn’t really “go to it” like I would have wanted to, and my timing was off in order to catch it in the right place, so a minor bobble and instead of going around the girl who was coming after the bobbled ball, I went knee to knee with her. Owie – glad I had my brace on! I shake it off and continue on. I did manage to carry the ball up the sides in their zone at one point too, walked it towards the baseline and popped it off of one of their girls to set us up for a corner stroke. The first half was ok – I was not completely satisfied with my play, but it would do – no major flubbs, and we were up 5-0 at the end of that half. Second half, I was determined to have a better half, and I did. I carried the ball quite a few times and tried to set us up – learned a few things on my carries as well, and will work on those things that I talked to the tactics coach about. Towards the middle of the half, one of their girls and I were going for a ball which was a pass that had gone off of one of our players and I was racing another girl for it to make sure it didn’t go over the end line --- I was determined to beat her to the ball, and I DID! Even though she was trying to block me from the ball, I managed to beat her to it enough to bounce the ball back off of her to get us another corner stroke. Towards the end of the game, I carried the ball and attempted a shot which was blocked by a defender, so we race to the ball at the boards. I win the race and face another opponent, but still come away with the ball – 2 defenders on me opens the ice to pass to one of our forwards who sets a nice pass out there for another midfielder who puts in yet another goal, ending the game with a 12-0 victory. Yes, we put in a lot of goals…that was the objective, I hope it’s enough.

This week, I will go for a 12-15k run on Sunday, training Monday, Tuesday, and Thursday. Stay tuned for more adventures as I plan to hit the streets more to see what else this great city has to offer! I may not have had any turkey for Thanksgiving this year, but I will say that I am really full and still digesting the great sites I have seen and the culture I devoured. I give many Thanks for the opportunity to be here, the friends and family that have supported me in this, and the great place I am at in life. I have a lot to be Thankful for…and I’m happy that my “leftovers” consist of exploring more of the city and experiencing more culture and fantastic sites.

Hej då - KP

I mean so much ice, they yell "Skate Wayne"

Holy smokes it's been a week!
Sorry to keep y'all on the edge of your seats as I took my time getting this post up...the week contained a lot of 'mundane' activity for work and lots of exciting training. For the work part, I'll spare boring you with the details, so if you were looking for a long novel, my apologies...it's not that exciting to read about the woes of work when I want to focus on the positive changes I'm making in life! (This coming week - I will be taking the Thanksgiving Holiday time off --- I think I deserve it by now!)

Last Sunday we had our first game --- that's where I left off.

Monday - more of the same routine with work - get up, log in, work work work. Then it was off to practice on the ice, and I didn't know this, but Mondays are "Skating days" --- where we do LOTS of skating. Any drill we did consisted of lots of skating either end to end, or lots of dips and doodles, loops and curls. Awesome! My legs felt like Jell-O after that skate, and I was exhausted; 90 minutes of pure skating bliss. Tuesday, again - work work work, then take to the ice for another 90 minute session. We did some drills that I completely sucked at (in comparison to these gals). Oh well...lots to improve upon, right? I try to keep myself positive and tell myself "This is why I'm here!" Wednesday, I had high hopes of getting a small run in, but I got a call from the work facility in Brussels first thing in the morning, screaming "CRISIS!" So, I dealt with that for work for the first 6 hours of the day, then it was a typical 10 hour day for the US side of things --- dang it - no luck getting out of the apartment that day as I was tied to the phone or computer all day long - that was a drag, and I longed for the Monday skating session, even if it WAS painful; nothing can top the internal pain of having to work for 16 hours! I was anxious for Thursday to get here so that the work fire could be put behind me and I could get on with 'normal' life. I decided to go for a walk around Solna on Thursday morning BEFORE logging into the system to do some work - that was a smart idea! I got a good 2 hour walk in, learned a bit more of the layout of Solna, and then did some work, followed by another great training session on the ice. THIS one ROCKED! I totally wiped the mistakes I did on Tuesdays drills out by learning from them, and NOT repeating them. My chips were on target, my ball handling was solid, I even had some great shots. Weee! I am getting it! I felt so great from that skate, I couldn't wait for Saturday's game. Friday I headed into the office here to join the team meeting with the SJM folks, answer a few questions, get a few more tasks assigned to me, etc.. I left work at 3:30 to get to the rink for a "Shooting Session". Just me, the ball, the net and a stick to wack the ball into said net! There were 3 other gals that showed up to this session we had set up, and it was a beautiful night for shooting the ball around. 90 minutes later, I take the skates off again and head to the grocery store to get some grub, head home to get some rest, and relax before the game on Saturday (today!)

Unfortunately, someone else in the apartment complex didn't seem to think that Kristy needed the rest, therefore, they were doing BAD Karoke until about 2:00 in the morning and my alarm was set to ring at 5:30. UGH! Crappy night's sleep....don't dwell on it, move on...think about the positive Thursday session and repeat the execution of that 90 minutes on the ice.

We were heading to "Nässjö" (sounds like "Nehk - whua") to take on the 2nd place team from last year; this is the team that AIK faced in the finals and defeated to be the champions of 2007/2008. Apparently, last year when the 2 teams met for the first time, AIK was not the winner, and therefore it was to be a great match this year with both teams trying to prove something, and it was an awesome match! Nässjö is about 4 hours south of our home ice in Solna. We had a very nice coach bus to ride on so it wasn't a bad journey and I got to see quite a few sites, including the FIRST Ikea store as we made the venture. Nässjö is where 3 of our players on the team this year come from. They have a "bandy school" here where students can train 2 times a day for bandy amongst their studies. No wonder they have such great bandy - I would have LOVED to have trained 2 times a day growing up! We arrived and took a walk to get rid of the stiff legs from the bus trip and get ready for warm ups on the ice. I absolutely love the way AIK is a "TEAM". We warm up together and we have this great 'circle' we do at the end of warm ups that gets us pumped up and going....I am now to the point that I understand most of the words that the girls will shout out in this circle (things like 'strength', 'patience', 'goal', 'win', etc) and it gives me the goose bumps and butterflies before a game; what a feeling. Game time - I'm in the STARTING line up. WOW! I'm even more nervous, and therefore over thinking everything. I just need to calm down, and I realize this....I get out there and within the first shift I had a real eye opening experience - P-H-Y-S-I-C-A-L bandy. Normally, I'd consider this a "gentleman's game" where the physical contact isn't much more than a little rubbin' and bumpin'. Not today. All out aggressive play - with or without the ball. Including the time where I was NO where near the play, just minding my own business, watching play on the opposite side of the field and one of their girls came by and used 2 hands on her stick to chop my arms! I couldn't believe it. Not even in the play, no where near the ball, didn't do anything to her, and "WHACK!" owie - that hurt....I got her number. Let's just say by the end of the game, she had pissed enough of our team off that she was stood up; she did not like that and therefore tried to "shove" the girl who stood her ground (the initial play was not a cheap play as our team member was going for the ball and stood her spot on the ice). The refs didn't take control of the game from the beginning, so I think that it got a little out of hand (from both sides - not claiming innocence here) and left me not as happy with my play as I wanted, but still a bit happy with some of the carries I made, passes I gave, and plays I set up - one almost resulted in a goal. The first half was against the wind, and was NOT our best 45 minutes of bandy that our team has played. Tied 1-1 at the end of the first half, the determination from the team emanated from each person, and we came out at the end of the match with a 2-1 win! We will face this team again on January 31 on our ice and I hope that it will be less "hockey/bandy" and more "bandy/bandy" that we play.

Next game is a week from today - home game against Edsbyn; Edsbyn is where we played the first tournament of the year where they have the indoor rink. This again will be a great match and most likely, less physical. I'm already looking forward to it!

This week was a tiring but fun one with how much training I got to do on the ice. 6 of 7 days; 9 hours of ice time in one week. I think I've only had 5 or 6 hours of ice time in a week before back home, and that was during the World Championship Tournament! I can imagine that training week after week like this, getting less than 7 hours will seem like I've done very little. I am considering hitting the ice tomorrow for 30 -45 minutes just to work on "quick starts" and skating, maybe a little ball handling. Then Monday --- well, as previously stated "Monday Night Skate Night" ;). Tuesday more ice --- that would mean 9 of 10 days with ice time....that would be WAY more than I've ever had before...bring it! I can see the improvements in my bandy abilities, but I'm no where near where I want to be. One day at a time, but at this rate, every day is a bandy day!

Getting to know my home - on and off ice

Hej!
I'm beginning to speak some "Swenglish" these days - kinda funny actually if I were to listen to myself I bet, but I'm picking a word each day to try and get into knowing how to speak more of their language here. It's quite a fun challenge that I put myself up to each day - Today was "Tjejer" - sounds like "shea - yar". Meaning "young woman/girl/tough girl"...slang for "girl" basically. So, it's fun to hear the team mates saying "Bra Tjejer" - meaning "Good job Girls!" Our first home game was exactly that - "Bra"!
The weekend started out with a great run on Friday through "Haganparken" - I was told that it is a beautiful park, and that it is. Lots of open space, and Reese will just LOVE it when she gets here. On my run through part of the park, I see that there is actually quite a bit of history - but I need to take a translator with me to understand everything. As I was running through the park - I had a map in my mind that would be a big loop that I could do many times if I wanted to stay to a 30 minute run - this was an "off" day of training after all...but I came to an interesting map that showed how I could run around this 'lake' that is in my neighborhood. Ahhh, what the heck!? The sign says it's only 12 km around the lake on this trail...only 7.5 miles...shouldn't take me more than...65 minutes?? So, I take off on this trail. I imagine that if it hadn't been raining, the sights would have been more enjoyable and the trail less muddy - but none the less, it was an amazing run! I came up on some random "cafe" in the middle of no where (or what seems to be the middle of no where) and it smells delicious! I will have to walk there with Thom and Reese when they get here! As I looked closer at the map, I realized that I ran from my apartment to the bandy rink, around the other side of the lake, back to my house. Not bad! 63 minutes later, I'm back to the place where I started from and I know how to get home from here...whew...that was quite a run! I loved it! The pictures I took cannot do it justice!

Saturday I waited for my couch to be delivered! Yeaye! I can sit on something other than my bed...er...mattress. Until it came, I decided to stickhandle in my living room...something to do besides sit there and read, or look at the walls. When the couch arrived, it was an easy installation, and then I was off to explore Stockholm. I walked and walked, aimlessly, just wandering and taking it all in. Of course, I was taking some mental notes of sites I came across and streets I was wandering down so I could find my way back home...but, I went without a real destination in mind, and I saw lots of neat stuff. I made my way to the streets where Thom and I had been exploring with the US Bandy team in February, and that brought back some good memories. I strolled in front of the Royal Palace and happened to be there at the time that they did the "Changing of the Guards". That wasn't quite as bone chilling as the Changing of the Guard of the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier in Washington DC, but it was quite an experience that words cannot portray the level of respect you feel for the Guards as they go through the routine. I tried to capture some pictures, but as night was falling on the city and my camera is a point and shoot, the flash just made the picture too dark - so you have to look at my "shakey" hands as they tried to hold the camera long enough for the shutter to let in enough light. I found some cute clogs that I will have to go back and get --- they didnt' have my size at the time that I was there. DARN - looks like I have to go back!??! ;) (ok, twist my arm).

After wandering around for a couple of hours, I decided it was time to head back. Gave Thom a call and surprised him by hearing my voice, then called mom and dad. Talked with them while I walked home, to the grocery store, and into my apartment to cook some dinner, and then took time to relax the night before the first home game. The walk was very enjoyable and I love the way the city is basically in my backyard, as is a lake, a trail to run, a mall....ahhhh, yes....I'm enjoying the location very much!


The first home game was moved from Saturday to Sunday, and that was actually unfortunate for the weather and outdoor bandy. Rain was falling all sunday morning, and by game time, slushy snow/rain was falling from the skies above. Oh well - if we are playing in the 'bad' weather, so are our opponents. Lace 'em up and deal with it.

First half, the ice was covered in about an inch of slush/snow stuff, making it hard to carry the ball. Well, hard for everyone but the slow one on the ice (that's me!). Our team resorted to the chip shot method to get the ball from one end to the other, and lots of little flips from teammate to teammate. It was quite effective, and had the other team sitting back, waiting on our attack. At one point, the ball came to me as I was curling back in our zone, and I pulled my head up to see LOTS of open ice in the middle....so.....remembering the tactics and plan of attack I went over with our strategy coach, I took to the middle of the ice, carrying the ball, almost coast to coast. Ha! The other team was sitting back, waiting for a chip, and I got to carry it. That was nice until 4 white jersey's converged on me....I should have "Cheese Doodled" back...I started to, but was too late on the decision to do that. I learned lesson #1 of the day - don't wait to cheese doodle. First half ends with us up by a few goals - I think it was 3-0 at that point, and the snow was starting to taper. The zamboni was out on the ice as we stepped into the locker room for a brief strategy session and re-fueling of the bodies. Taking to the ice in the second half, I did a bonehead move and curled in front of my half back instead of behind her - Lesson #2 for the day - don't do that! I caused a pass to hit my skate and potential danger --- lucky for me, they weren't able to do much with the ball, and my teammates recovered for me very well. Duh! Ok...lesson learned...not to be repeated again!!! I continued my game plan of the strategies that the coaches and I had talked about before the games and I kept finding the open ice very easy to find --- so I kept occupying space. Finally, we were in their zone, I was occupying the white space, the ball was being bounced around to the right of the net, I was standing left center --- and what's that??! The ball pops out of the scrum in front I take a shot (on my BACKHAND!), and put the ball just about 3" to the inside of the post!!! I SCORED!!!! WOW! I was like a kid that just unwrapped a bike at Christmas and I threw my arms up in victory and jumped around like the earth was on fire below my toes! That was an amazing feeling.... Patience paid off. The studying I had been doing of our strategy, paid off. I think I'm getting somewhere with this bandy thing...


So, I sit here in my apartment, on a couch, and reflect back on where I started and where I am now - started out with dryland training, the area unknown to me, the language so very foreign. I pushed myself so hard, trying to 'get it all' in the first day of training - trying to train my body and my body retaliated and told me I had pushed too hard, and had therefore hurt my quads. Today, I have an apartment, I can find my way around Stockholm, Solna, Taby, and Bergshamra (4 different areas of "Stockholm" and suburbs). I have my own dryland training areas, I know my own limits on the physical challenges I put my 'old' body through. I have learned enough words to understand some of the concepts in the locker room, and my game is already 5 steps ahead of where I was just a month ago. I'm getting it - - I'm figuring it out, and I love it. I fear I may be settling into a routine I may not want to get out of...again, just missing 2 components - - Thom and Reese. (32 days until Thom and Reese get here! yeaye! but who is counting??) I love this life.

I think I'm green...

I haven’t used a car in almost 5 weeks – instead, I’ve been walking, running, taking a bus, train, or “tube” to get to places, even if I head to Ikea and come back with tons of stuff that I would otherwise at home think is "too heavy to carry". I have started to try and conserve the soap I use – learned a Martha Stewart like trick from my host family – putting some of the dish soap into a squirt bottle and diluting it with water makes it really easy to wash dishes in the sink – cuts down on how much soap you waste, as well as how much water you waste when washing dishes! I purchased a re-useable shopping bag, and I’m buying wine in a bag!!! Yes, wine in a bag – not a box even! It’s 90% less waste and a smaller carbon foot print than any other wine container. Pretty darn cool, and I do have to admit, the wine tastes pretty darn good! (and if you’ve ever looked at the wine in a box – it’s in a bag anyway, just surrounded by cardboard to make it ‘look nicer’). FYI – Wine in a box is very common here! Yes, I am going greener!
I moved into my new apartment this past weekend (6th floor - as you'll see in the picture "6 tr" for "trappe"...I'm "six 'trappe upp" - meaning 6 floors up), and even though it is quite lonely, I have to say I LOVE IT! I don’t have children coming to me at 8:00 on a Saturday morning, asking me to read to them about Mollie and her Opposites. Granted, I did learn some words through reading those books, but when I’m training until 9:00 at night and taking the train/bus back home, I treasure my sleep too! I have 3 lamps – that’s all that lights my way for me right now, so it’s kinda weird when I come in and use the light from the hallway to take my shoes off. I need some hangers and then I think things will be pretty much organized – who would have thought that finding hangers like we have in Target (where we have rows and rows of color selections even for $1/10 hangers) would be hard to come by here in Sweden?!? I can only find “the best” wooden hangers – 3/20 SEK --- meaning – 3 hangers for almost $3. Oh the things we take for granted in the States!

The location of my apartment couldn’t be better, and the price isn’t bad either. At 45 square meters, it’s not bad in size, and it has what one needs to get through 6 months of life – granted, if I bought this place, there’d be some re-modeling getting done, but…for the time – it’s perfect. The location is SO awesome! If I walk across a bridge, just 5 minutes, I’m at a park – HaganPark – a great place to take the dog or go for a trail run (on my “own training days”). It’s just one bus ride (2 if I’m lazy) to the bandy rink that is about 20 minutes. It is 15 minutes walk to “Solna Centrum” (basically a shopping mall) by foot, or 5 minutes if I’m lazy and want to take the bus. It is under a 5 minute walk to the grocery store, liquor store, and a sports store; probably would take me longer to wait for the bus than it would to walk there! If I walk just 5 minutes past that, I’m in the northern side of down town Stockholm!!! I couldn’t believe it today when I got off of the train on my way home from work (which is only 30 minutes from the apartment) and looked around as I strolled from the commuter train to the bus back home; the ride home on the bus was very short --- I realized then that I could have walked on a sunny day….or even at night if I had already done this route before! I’m also learning that to walk around here – CARS STOP for people!!!??! Yeah, really! I saw some lady carrying her dog to get onto the train (dogs are only allowed on certain cars of the trains) I cannot wait for Thom and Reese to get here to experience this stuff with me - including my new "dessert' - "Nutella" on "Digestive" Crackers -- it's like a chocolate spread on top of graham crackers! YUMMY! I LOVE IT!


Training this week – we were supposed to get back onto the ice, but there were some problems with the tractor (that floods the rink) and some other issues with the compressors that chill the rink. Therefore, the warm temperatures (about 8-10 C = roughly 46F – 50F) have not helped with creating good ice. We are supposed to have our first game this Sunday , and we can only hope we will have ice. I hear that in Minnesota, there is snow, and the men have already started their season!!! I’m a bit jealous --- but it’s not to say that we haven’t been doing our training! Monday, we went by the rink – through the running trails to a hill. Ugh – yes, hill work again! Sprints up and down the hill, backward jumps (try doing them uphill…not so easy!), lunges, long steps, more sprints…An hour of hill work plus 20 minutes warm up, 20 minutes cool down and I was toasted! We had a strategy session afterwards, and I was mentally and physically exhausted, but I had yet to move everything into the apartment – thank you Miska for being such a great person and doing so much for me!!! Tuesday was running at the track in the pouring rain with interval sprints. Yes…again. 1 hour worth of that, and today (Wed), my body is ready for the day off!!

I went to the office for the first time today and was well received. I jumped right in with a meeting at 9:00 and discussed the planning for the project, how they should try to prepare for it, what things they need to think about, and I helped them create their visual planning board. I have an “office” here (better than in the states with a cube!) and it will also be the project meeting room. Each Friday, I am expected in the office for the meeting – should be ok – as much as I’d rather work from the apartment – exposure to helping is awesome and I’m learning new things and meeting great people. The project team here is only 8 people or so (including me), so it’s quite a great group and very receptive to me.

I’ve been asked the same question(s) by many people back home
First one is along the lines of “Are you glad you did this?” I can honestly say “YES!” If I put aside the fact that I miss Thom and Reese, I’m having such a great time here. If there wasn’t the visa issue (and my friends and family I’d have to leave behind), I’d love to stay here and continue life forever – as if it were normal. It is very easy for me to pick up on the language (more written language and some verbal language) and my vocabulary of Swedish words is expanding daily. I seem to impress many people that I talk to with some of the phrases I can already say.

Next common question: Yes, the days are shorter... The sun rises around 7:30 and sets around 4:00, and the day shave mostly been overcast. The days that are not wet are cold and windy – but that is typical for their “fall”. Their winters will be more mild than they are at home in Minneapolis (whew!), but they will have short days as well. The weekend Thom gets here it will be the shortest day of the year, and the days will get longer. I can see how some people would get depressed as I’ve heard the stories, but I guess I just don’t have time to be that way. My days are pretty packed trying to figure out where I am and where I’m going (as far as the metro is concerned), training and learning plays (I have asked one of the veteran players to write down some plays for me so I can “study”), to trying to get the things that one needs to get through daily life – like light bulbs, food, and figuring out the laundry system in the apartment complex!

Because it is all so new to me, there is so much to figure out. One thing I have learned is that you have to be willing to embrace the adventure. I feel safe in the city, but a little fear never hurt anyone. I don’t roam alone at dark – I pick a mission and stick to it – get there, and head back, know the route and don’t stray from it. Carry both phones at all times – one for Swedish communication one for US communication. Carry some maps of the city bus lines and you are set to get to where you want to go.

My times of missing connections are fewer and far between. My wrong turns to get to the stations are almost non existent now, and if you were to watch me from afar, I might even start to look like a local…listen to me speak, and it tells a different story. I’m green – I’m new here, but I’m also learning how great it is to be able to work with the systems set in place, reduce, reuse, recycle, and live like a minimalist.

So, with that I sign off as I sit on my foam mattress that has been my office, but also acts as my couch and bed for the time being – yes, I’m living the lifestyle of a stereotypical bachelor – playing a sport, training daily, going to work to pay my bills, and living with the basics. Can’t say I’d change a thing, other than having someone to enjoy this adventure with me.

Taking the ice, Training run, apartment find, cleaning house

Since the last blog I did, I had a chance to take the ice on our "home rink" for the first time. It has been warm, so Thursday is the only day so far we have been out there unfortunately. We are creeping up on our first home game a week from today, so we sure hope the ice will be ready.

Friday I did a nice 10k run by the lake here in Nasby Park, Taby. I did the 5k loop that Miska showed me twice. I was so taken by the scenery, that I had to do it the second time and take my camera. While I was running, I could have sworn I ran from the lakes in Minneapolis to the Horse Fields in Madison! (No Paul - these horses were NOT like the ones in Madison that we saw...) It felt great and I managed to keep an 8:00 pace both times! After my run, I went to the apartment in Solna to pick up the keys and pay the deposit. I was excited to get into the apartment, but was instantly deflated when I saw the condition of the apartment - the place was filthy! UGH! So, I contacted the leasing company but they told me that they wouldn't clean it! So...I'd have to figure out what to do now - obviously 'get supplies and clean'. I really wish Thom was here for his really good thorough cleaning abilities --- among other things like his company and the fun we will have when he gets here! Head back to the burbs with some disappointment settling in...not a big deal, I'll survive...it was just the anticipation and then the let down. Bummer. Guess I know what I'm doing this weekend! Once back at the house, Miska and I go to the REAL Ikea - and yes, it IS less expensive here! I didn't buy much because I don't know what I'll need at this point - Miska and Camilla are going to get stuff from their summer house that they are selling and let me "store" it for them for 5 months until they move it to their new Summer Home in Gotland. So, I buy some scrub brushes to make the trip feel worth while. At least I know where the outlets are and where Ikea is so that way I can load up on the things I need to get when I figure it out! Back to the house for some dinner, wine, and relaxation!

Saturday we are supposed to take to the ice again for some practice, but the 8 degrees C (~46 F) made the ice too soft to skate upon, so we cleaned the locker room and painted it instead of practicing! Great team building! I spend about 3 hours there doing that and then head towards my apartment to do much of the same. I go shopping for cleaning supplies - mops, buckets, sponges, solvents...you know - the basics. I walk through "Solna Centrum" and pick the things up from the stores that I have learned are the "inexpensive ones" - spend about $35 USD and have everything I need! Rock on! Head to the apartment and it is dark outside - so as I ride the elevator up, I realize "I don't have any lights in the apartment - I'm not going to be able to do much!" Oh well - I have the light in the bathroom and kitchen - I can get those 2 rooms done today, tomorrow, I can take to the rest of the place in the daylight, and then Camilla will be back with the stuff to fill the apartment with the necessities. Perfect! I spend a few hours there - I'll spare you the details - it wasn't TERRIBLE, but I guess my mom has conditioned me to be a perfectionist when it comes to keeping a house clean. I'm only here for 6 months, I'm not going for perfect! Head back to the house for some great Thai food and relaxation.
Tomorrow I will finally get my hair cut and do more cleaning as well as go for another run.
I am finally starting to feel a bit more comfortable with the transit system and getting around. I didn't miss any connections today and I didn't even need to go online to map my route for the first time! I just used the maps and time tables I picked up in the transit center and figured it out - whew! I guess it takes a few weeks to get accustomed to it, but when you finally get it, it feels great! I then showed Miska where my apartment is on a map in the phone book - she was quite amazed with the location - being very close to the city - in fact, my closest "Tube" station is downtown! How cool! I did a walk to Solna Centrum tonight, thinking that was the closest, and that was only a 15 minute walk. Awesome to have DownTown right outside of my door. Additionally, a great park for walking and taking the pooch is about a 5 minute walk from the apartment! Things are starting to come together and this is beginning to feel more and more like home.

Here's a few interesting photos for you - As I walk out of 

the apartment to the bus stop, I see a billboard --- yep, that's Team AIK DamBandy! I head north to Solna Centrum a bit more and another one - with 2 pictures of the team. Kinda cool to realize what your team means in the city where you live. My apartment is very close to AIK Futboll stadium too...AIK is all around me. I'll be dreaming in Black and Yellow tonight - everything is feeling all right --- I just wish Thom would hury up and get here so that I could share this with him. I will be able to show him around like I'm a regular by the time he gets here, and hopefully, I'll be playing bandy like I've been doing it all of my life.

Time for bed - must get up early in the morning for another 10k run!

God Natt,
KP

Public Transportation

We have had 2 days of training on the running trails around here this week (and it's only Wednesday), and I'm happy to say, "I Survived!"  My first comment after we did our 'warm up' and first few sprints around a 500 meter hill was "Welcome to Swedish Bandy Kristy - it's not all about a stick and ball!"  I'm amazed at the things I haven't done to train in the past.  This is so cool.  

There's this place called "Ursvik" - it's a great park that I can only relate to back home as 'being like Theo Wirth Park' - but I'm not even sure that is accurate because these trails that we are running along are well groomed, all dirt, and a series of up and down hills.  The terrain is tough for a runner, and the setting is pretty.  I guess the way to think of it is a mountain bike path that has been widened and made for running.  I need to find some trails like this when I get home to train on.  

Getting to Ursvik from where I am now isn't so tough...now.  The first day was quite the joke on public transportation for me.  I took a train to a station in "Morby", and then was supposed to find "Platform M"....um...but it is like 1/4 mile away, and the bus driver I asked for directions had me walking down the highway!  Yeah, lesson #1, find out how to do the transfers before going.  I get to the bus station to make that transfer, and as I'm running up behind bus #157, it pulls away.  CRAP!  I have about 15 minutes left to get to the training....but like many people will say about Stockholm transportation, it's pretty frequent.  (Read here - rush hour you will see a bus on your route every 15 - 20 minutes, off peak hours...every 1/2 hour).  Since it's rush hour, another 157 bus comes along and I hop on.  Now, the trick of which stop to get off on...logically, the one called "Ursvik".  I get off at that stop and step off of the bus, take a look around and I see highway, and more highway.  The sidewalk goes about 200 yards before the intersection, so I walk that way, cross the street, and see that the sidewalk only goes to the next bus stop before it ends.  Ok, so I can go 200 yards either way, but otherwise, it's all Highway E18.  What do I do???  Call the coach and have him pick me up from the stop!  It took me an hour and 15 minutes to get to practice on Monday....lessons to learn about the public transit system - don't take the train to Morby to get to the bus station if you are going to have to take the bus from Danderyds Sjukhus (that's hospital), and if you do, figure out the walking path to get between the 2 platforms; or just avoid taking the train.

On the way home, I note the stop that is much closer to the training field since I will be here again the next day.  Sundbypark Ostra (Ostra = East).  Noted!  I take the bus to Frescati this time to catch the train - I know this stop from a journey before, so I know that I have a small walk before getting to the train - and wwwwhooooooshh!  there goes the train I wanted to take!  Ugh - I know that in Frescati, not every train stops, so I have a good 1/2 hour standing, waiting for the train with a wet baselayer of clothing from running.  Finally, the train comes and I make it home to a hot sauna just an hour and a half after I started my venture home.  Day 2 of training this week, I will make better route plans.

I took the time on Tuesday to go to the "SL Center" (Public Transit Center), to get some maps.  It was a good thing I did!  I mapped a route to practice that would take me 30 minutes this time (and it took me less because I made a transfer from bus 618 to bus 157 on the early bus), and mapped out a plan to take the bus back home that would be 1:15!  What??!?  How can it take me 30 minutes to get somewhere, but an hour and fifteen minutes to get back?  Ugh!  I think  "It's going to be a long one", and it was.  The bus that www.sl.se told me to take from practice to the first transfer doesn't even go to the first transfer that it told me...so, luckily I had my trusty map and figured out 3 more transfers to get home...this time, it only took me 1:45 to get home.

As I sat in the sauna after day 2 of training, I began to wonder "what if someone came to Minneapolis to train, would I know how to help them get along the public bus system there?"  No...I wouldn't.  Something I should know in my own town, and I don't.  Something to put on my to do list when I get home.  I also thought about the conveniences I have taken for granted for so long.   When I got to practice early on day 2, I had to stand in the chilly night air, waiting for others to arrive.  At home, I would have sat in a toasty car.  I thought about being able to come and go as I please - not having a car is a bit different.  I thought about being able to get to places by taking the shortest route known - you can't do that when you have to follow the route of the bus or public transportation system, so everything takes more time.  I thought about how when you drive yourself somewhere, you don't have to worry about the timing of transfers...if you miss a connection, you could have just set yourself back a half hour on public transit.  

It's amazing the things we take for granted and don't realize it.  I did take note as I was riding all of these different buses and trains that Reese will be welcome on all of them that I rode this week.  She won't have a problem getting around once she gets here...as long as I figure it out first!

I'm adding a link below that has some pictures from the futboll game on it....the pictures of me show how badly I need a hair cut!!!

Ciao~

Public Transit KP

http://magnusneck.se/gallery2/v/AIK/AIK-Helsingborg-2008-11-02/

I think I experienced a slice of heaven...

The weekend had some activities scheduled, nothing major though, and well, it turned out to be quite fantastic!
We had a late practice Friday night, so I took advantage of Saturday morning to catch up on some much needed sleep. Ok, I was up at 9:00, but still...it was sleeping in for me. After getting up and lazing around for a little bit, I decided to go for a run. Miska (house host) was up for showing me her 5k route and it was beautiful. It went along the lake side and was just so relaxing and pretty. I think it was a little over 5k, but she claims it just feels that way because we were running slowly --- (not really!). Because that was only 5k, I thought I'd go back out, but asked Camilla (house host) if she wanted to join me...she thought about it for a little bit, and said she would! She took me a totally different direction - to the trail for 9k more! WOW!

I've never been one for cross country running, but I may be changing my outlook a bit. The trail was awesome. Granted, it was muddy and slimy and slippery all at once because of the recent rain fall and what not, but it was a gorgeous setting! We ran through the "oldest golf course" to get there, and once we got there, I was in for a real treat. The trail was rolling with challenging hills and great terrain. We kept a very good pace throughout the whole thing, and it was just beautiful. Along our run, Camilla mentioned (towards the end) that she was motivating herself by thinking of a cold beer and a Sauna---ok, that sounded like heaven! It couldn't get much better than that, could it? So, I joined her and it was definitely a slice of heaven! I could get used to that!
We cooked some MN wild rice and had Ludde and Micro over for dinner - everyone enjoyed the "taste of home" - so much so, I've written home to ask for Thom to send me more :) Then, I was off to a birthday party for Frida E with the gals. It was a group of younger gals - most in their early 20's (if that), so I was the old one of the group ;) That was fine though because I got to see some more of the city and got to know a few of the gals even better. I really enjoyed talking to them, playing games, and learning some more Swedish words and songs. We also went to a club and we were out very late --- later than I think I've been since my days in college.

I came back home after staying the night with one of the gals (thanks Linnea) and got ready for a Futbol game of AIK. That was a really fun soccer game, even though it was cold 

outside, I still enjoyed it. The bandy team got to go down to the field before the game started and some were interviewed (glad I was not since I wouldn't have understood a word in the question!) AIK won the game 3 -1, and I have never seen such fancy footwork with a ball in all of my life. My favorite goal was scored by #29 when he did an awesome fake with his foot by moving it around the ball (with the ball in motion), and then kicked the ball to hook it around and into the inside post and into the net. Quite cool!

Now, I'm winding down and getting ready for a busy week ahead of me. Tomorrow night we will go to a set of trails and run, same with Tuesday, Wednesday is ice time I believe, Thursday more trail running, and Friday will probably be ice time. We have our first game on Nov. 15th, so we hope to get onto the big ice to practice a bit before 

then....as much as I don't like being cold, I think I'm ready for the cold weather so we can get out onto the big rink!

Hope everyone had a safe and Happy Halloween and enjoyed the weekend!Have a great start to the week!
Later,
KP