Alaska Chat III (Fairbanks: Scottish, spring break, how much)

[gobrien]

Originally Posted by Rance

We ate the last of the Swedish Meatballs (or in Sweden better known as...meatballs) for dinner tonight. Followed with pastachio cheesecake. I'm definately going to have to diet for my New years resolution.
I may have missed a Monday night football game, as it is already Monday night here!

Had one heck of a wind storm here last night. Hurricane force winds left thousands without power for the next few days, lot's of roads and rail tracks blocked by fallen trees. Many travelers stranded on the trains, bus stations packed with record lines of people hoping to travel. And now I can hear the wind roaring again outside.

I did a massive detail job on our car's interior and split a few wheelbarrow loads of wood for the MIL today. Tomorrow I think I'm going to get dragged kicking and screaming into town for shopping deals. Sad. Rance is sad.

Be glad you have someone who cares for you enough to want to drag you around, and it least it's Europe, probably a lot of different stuff you won't find here in the stores! Try to look at shopping as a cultural experience. I know you're just kidding.

[ShipOfFools42]

Got myself a Nikon D3100 for Christmas. Here is a picture of my newest pipe, taken with my absolutely wonderful new camera, which I bought myself for Christmas with some of my Christmas money from relatives. The stem kind of blends into the background, but that's OK:



It's made by Neerup of Denmark (Peder Jeppesen), a very fine pipe maker who learned from Erik Nørding, a more well-known pipe maker. Denmark turns out some very nice pipes. I'm more than pleased with it; the draw is effortless, it's light, beautiful to look at, and beautiful to smoke. One characteristic of fine pipes is that they have a fantastic grain, and for $87, the grain on that pipe is unreal. It would easily beat quite a few $700 Dunhills. I'm actually probably going to get another pipe before I go home because Birmingham has a nationally known pipe shop/tobacconist called The Briary, in Homewood, with an absolutely stunning selection of pipes, tobaccos, and cigars. One of my favorite masculine pleasures. Or at least, it's generally regarded as a masculine activity. In all my time sitting and talking in smoking lounges, only once have I seen a woman. She was smoking a hell of a nice pipe though, and she kicked a couple of those guys' asses in discussing current events and issues.

Anyway, that was one of my presents to myself. I can't wait to get my next one.

[lyoness]

Rance, how about some pics of how Christmas is celebrated in Sweden!

[naturesdreams]

I did see Rance's mother in laws home but what are some of the traditions??? I'm w/ lyoness

[Rance]

Pretty much like the US. Pretty much everyone goes to a church service on Christmas Eve and Christmas morning. The Mrs works at the local church which is going on 900 years old, is very small, and still contains fancy woodwork, old time stained glass windows, a seperate bell tower, and a 6 inch thick oak front door covered in hand wrought iron plating full of musket ball holes from back when Denmark would frequently attack Sweden trying to take over the country. The entire village would hole up in the church, bar the doors and windows, and just sit out the attack until the Danes grew weary and went home.
Just like my family always did, they open gifts on Christmas Eve, have a mass amount of food for dinner on Christmas Eve and Day with family and friends, consisting of ham and meatballs. Not much for turkey in this country. They do have the Christmas Goat which back in the day was the deliver'r of gifts if you were good all year, and the elves which when left some munchies would feed the farm animals for you. If not they would eat all your stored food and probably do something bad like let out all the animals on the farm. This was before santa was invented.

They also put up Christmas trees and have a 7 candle light in every window in the house during Christmas here. Everyone drinks Jul Must or Glogg, I have seen no egg nog in this country.

Santa originated in Sweden although he was a much different looking character here, and in fact the santa of today was created by a Swedish immigrant to America who created the red and white overweight santa for the Coca Cola Company.

God Jul = Merry Christmas

[Лютый]

Happy coming New Year, my friends!

[Alaskapat528]

Originally Posted by Лютый

Happy coming New Year, my friends!

And Happy New Year to you and your family.

[Rance]

We'll be headed to Jonkoping and Huskvarna for NY's eve and will get pic's of the fireworks. The entire twin cities goes balistic for an hour with fire works.

[Barkingowl]

That sounds more fun than a bunch of drunks congregating in downtown Charlotte.

[Jan Alaska]

Originally Posted by Rance

We'll be headed to Jonkoping and Huskvarna for NY's eve and will get pic's of the fireworks. The entire twin cities goes balistic for an hour with fire works.

With them lifting the restrictions in Anchorage it sounds like it wont be far behind this year.