Among other things, I'm thankful for my toothbrush

My girlfriend from Norway has been lamenting the fact that she isn't able to enjoy American Thanksgiving this year. My friend Iain from Wales said I am the first person he has ever wished a happy Thanksgiving to.

Eating dinner at our house are four people from California, two people from the East Coast and one sweet midwestern girl. (Guess who that is? Yes, I made casserole and lefse. I thought you would never ask.)

Although Thanksgiving is truly an American holiday, it brings up something that everyone can relate to, regardless of their background: Gratitude. What are we thankful for? I like to think that I spend every day giving thanks for what I have, but I'm sure there are things I take for granted.

In the newspaper industry, we were encouraged to think of new and different ways to cover the same things that happen year after year. And I have thought about writing something different, but really, isn't Thanksgiving about revisiting what you're grateful for? So without further ado, here is my list (in no real particular order):

Love, Sun, Luna, Earth, Dreams, Clean running water, Electricity, Fuel for cooking, Food in/and my refrigerator, Pilates, My room, My 6 senses, Moving to California, the Pacific, Trees, Books, Cooking, Wine and beer (Oh who are we kidding? Hard alcohol too.), Sex, The Universe, My blog, Traveling, Truth, Health, Floss, Indoor Plumbing, My bicycle, The beach, Rain, Shooting stars, Music, Internet, My closet, Margarita Meetings and My job

And while all of those things are great, they wouldn't mean too much without these people:

Sante, Johanna, Bryan, Iain, Kangbao, Nicole, Jennifer, Jean, Sophia, Okon, Justine, and Julie. Oh, and my mom. Duh.

Last year on Thanksgiving. I love these women!

Happy Thanksgiving! May your belly be full, your weekend seem long, and your football team win.

Gangsta For Life (G4L)!

I've been listening to a lot of hip hop and Top 40 bullshit lately. Some people have reality TV, others trashy romance novels -- my guilty pleasure is terribly bad music. Or at least it is terribly bad to the music fascists out there. It makes me happy. So really, what's wrong with that?

My roommate and I were listening to the radio in the car last night and Rihanna's new song Hard was playing. I commented that she was on Def Jam now and had to get some street cred. Read: Pop/Rap song with Young Jeezy. Oh dear lord. Can you believe how ridiculous it is that I know this? (BTW: Check out the song. I really like it.)

hard - rihanna ft young jeezy

I started thinking about how silly real life would be if we all acted like hip hop artists:

I stayed up partying past midnight last weekend. We were drinking Sierra Nevada and sauteing shrimp for dinner. Watching Curb Your Enthusiasm we rented from NetFlix: Larry David is a genius. I'm not scared to laugh.

I caught the 71 from Aptos to Watsonville. It runs once an hour. Some of the drivers know me. I look so fly walking to the bus stop that cars driving by honk and people wave. I wave back. Yeah, I know I rule.

During the week I kick it at Smith Micro Software. I'm always writing the coolest shit so people will want to buy our software. Other software companies are wishing they had our products. Their marketers would kill for my skills.

After work I'm hitting up Target for some Clear Care contact solution and Crest Whitening Toothpaste. You don't wanna question my hygiene. I'll shower once, maybe twice, a day. But I'm not washing my hair that often. Don't get it twisted.

I don't always ride the bus. Sometimes I walk. I can walk for miles. I walk 3 miles every day. Up hills and shit. That's how tough I am. Once in a while I ride in my roommate's Ford Focus. Or my boyfriend's Toyota Tundra. I don't know if it has sweet rims or anything, but I would bet it does. He doesn't play.

And that was just this past week! I gotta say, I feel pretty hard. And awesome. Don't hate. Give it a try. You just might find out you're extraordinary.

P.S. Rihanna's new look is really hot. And I am going to shamelessly promote her and her new album, which kicks ass and is being released November 23.

You can change an idea. Beliefs are trickier.

A friend of mine had never seen Fight Club. I happen to think it's one of the greatest movies (and books) of all time. And it's not just because Brad Pitt kicks a lot of ass while shirtless. And it's not just because of Edward Norton's soothing voice as narrator. The book and movie speak volumes for how I feel about consumerism and the American "dream."

There are a few lines in the book and movie that speak to me. It's only after we've lost everything that we're free to do anything. Isn't that the truth? The classic stories of heroes throughout time all begin with a loss so great (family, home, trust) that one doesn't possibly think the hero can overcome. But when you have nothing to lose and everything to gain, you start to see things differently. Hell, you can do whatever you want. But only with the right mentality. And the ability to see past the fear.

My favorite line from the movie is The things you own end up owning you. I never wanted to forget that, so I branded it on my body. Frankly, I am not a tattoo kinda girl, but this was important to me. And I've had more than one conversation about it that ended with "I'm not a big fan of tattoos, but I really like yours." And that's how I feel about it. It means something.

So: A friend of mine had never seen Fight Club, and he actually owned the movie. It was in his home. This was while I was staying in Norway, which happens to be one of the wealthiest countries in the world. People there tend to be very into fashion. It costs $30 to take the bus. Cigarettes were $20 a pack. (Coincidence I just quit? Hardly.) I hadn't been able to put my finger on exactly why I felt uncomfortable at times there, but the movie did it for me: I'm uncomfortable with people spending money.

Now we could talk about why that is, but that's really neither here nor there. What I'm concerned with is my quest to achieve balance in all of this. Just because I have an opinion about owning things does not mean that no one else should. Hell, my roommate owns his house and I'm pretty stoked on that. And I would really like to buy a boat one day, and I convinced him that I should put it in his name.

So is it really bad to own things? Is it terrible to want nice things and to spend money on them? I don't know. As Tyler Durdin would say: Is this necessary, in the hunter-gatherer sense of the word?

Again, I'm thrown back to Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs.
Where does all of this belong? Is this model appropriate? I'm looking for feedback here. I am open to modifying my ideas here. I don't know that it's realistic to all live hunter-gatherer lifestyles. But then again, if 2012 is in our future, perhaps my questions are unwarranted.

According to my friends, I've been Californiaized

It's been a few days since I arrived home and (I think) the jet lag has passed. My clothes are clean and my luggage is back in its place in the closet.

Although I miss my sweet sweet friend dearly, there is something so nice about coming home. So in the spirit of my last post, here are some things (in no particular order) I love about California:

• I can call it home! I've lived here for four months, and when I was missing home on my trip, I was missing California. I feel settled in and that I belong here--more than any place in a long while.


• My kitchen! I had a great time cooking in Norway. I learned how to prepare different fish, make mushroom sauce (mmm...mushrooms) and that there are loads of things you can put on bread. But there is something so nice about coming home and baking bread in my own oven. My first loaves: oatmeal cinnamon raisin breakfast bread. Oh yeah. It's amazing.

• My friends and roommate. The few friends I've made here are great ones. And as they say, absence makes the heart grow fonder. My roommate and I get along famously regardless, but I will say that installing a washer and dryer while I was gone made me even more happy to see him.
  
  Here's a pic of him and me in San Francisco a few months back. We went to visit friends and family. It's so nice to have people that care about me in California. It's pretty awesome considering how little time I have been here.




• The food! I know, I know! But food provides energy for life. We have to eat it, so I have decided to enjoy it. And damn! I missed the taquerias. I love spicy food -- peppers and hot sauce of any kind. I am using the word "love" about hot sauce and I am not ashamed. A good friend of mine and I made these huevos rancheros for breakfast a few weeks ago. I guess I eat like a queen in Cali too.



Oh California! Thanks for such a warm homecoming. I feel so blessed to be living in this beautiful state. It's full of possibilities and wonder. I've only begun exploring.

(You will notice the weather is not on this list. Although I love it, it is chili here. It's a humid coolness, and that chills to the bone. I realize that coming from Minnesota I shouldn't complain, and I'm trying not to. It's for this reason that my friends make fun of me for being Californiaized. I dare say I would not make it through a Minneapolis winter now.)

It's pretty obvious I'm Scandinavian

Saturday night was my last night in Trondheim. Of course, being the girls we are, we did it right and went out to the club. It was a perfect night of drinking, talking, dancing and the requisite kebab stand visit.

I have had a wonderful vacation so far in Norway. There are so many things that I love about this place. Here they are, in no particular order:

• My dear friend Johanna. We met in the laundry room of our building a little more than a year ago in Minneapolis. She has shown me what a good friend is, how to be a better friend, and a number of great places, from Billings, Montana to Trondheim, Norway.

• The food!!! Oh.My.God. These people know what they're doing. I've eaten venison meatballs with (freshly picked) mushrooms, salmon filets with lemon cream sauce and pan-fried flounder with butter sauce. And that was just one weekend! My friend assures me that not all Norwegians eat like them. Regardless, I have dined out twice in the two weeks I have been here, and although the sushi was some of the best I have ever had, those meals were probably my least favorite.


• Johanna's family. They are some of the most loving and welcoming people I have ever met. I feel like part of the family. I moved in with her cousin; he had never even met me. I spent a weekend with more of her cousins boating and relaxing on the water this summer. I am leaving after a week and a half of non-stop hospitality from her parents. They're the perfect hosts and wonderful to spend time with. It's so nice to have such great people in my life. And I haven't laughed this hard in years.


• All the water around me. Yes, I know I live by the ocean. But I walk out the door and cross the river Nidelva. The fish market and harbor are within walking distance. It just all feels so right. I think it's the Minnesotan in me.


• The age of the city. This is something that I miss every time I leave somewhere in Europe. The Nidarosdomen cathedral was built about 1000 years ago. Yup. The U.S. just celebrated its 200th birthday. It's just a different world, and I love it.

I have one more day in Oslo, and I am really looking forward to my time there. I am sure there will be more things to love and I am sad to leave, but as an old friend of mine once said: "How can I miss you if you don't go away?"

Thanksgiving is my favorite American holiday

My flight to Oslo was on Swiss Air. I'm a fan. The flight attendants were friendly, I only waited for the bathroom once, wine was free, and the food was decent. Although it was airline food, it was served with real silverware. For some reason, that made it for me. Serve me tasteless pasta and I'll be disappointed, but give it to me with a silver fork and I can't stop raving about it!

My friend and I were talking last night about how  it's the little things that make life so great. I brought up the silverware. She talked about the stranger on the street who complimented her hat. She said that if we paid more attention to the small stuff, the big stuff would hardly matter.

I agree. I have a white board in my room that I see every morning when I wake up. It lists all the things I can think of to be thankful for. Inevitably it has the big things like my room and food -- things on the bottom of the hierarchy of needs. However, most of what is on there are things like wine, friends, pilates, trees, stars, and (of course) my blog.

I have had all sorts of experiences in the past week or so that I am thankful for. And since I don't have my white board, I figured my blog would do just fine.

My friend and her family have had me in their home for the past week; there has been fresh fruit, homemade bread, more cheese (or ost in Norsk) than you can shake a stick at, and all the coffee, water and wine I could want. I truly thank them for their hospitality. I feel like part of the family.

My dear friend in Oslo picked me up at the airport, booked a train for himself and me to Trondheim, and will take a day off from work to show me around the city next week. I am so blessed to have met him through a church celebration of Norway's independence in Minneapolis. Yeah, I know. That's the Universe having a sense of humor right there.

The weather in Trondheim reminds me of Minneapolis around this time. Cold, windy and just a bit damp. Very fall. Very crisp. Thank you to Trondheim for confirming that I made the right decision by moving to California. Although it could get this cold where I live now, it won't get colder (like it will in my former post) and for that I am truly thankful!

Some people say the devil is in the details. I tend to disagree. Don't sweat the small stuff? I don't know about that, but then I don't sweat much of anything. The little things in life are what we really remember. They stick out in our brain for years. If there isn't toilet paper in a restaurant, I would be willing to bet we remember that longer than what we ordered for dinner. 

In the spirit of the little things, I would like to say thank you to everyone in my life that I know and to those I haven't had the pleasure of meeting yet for making it so amazing. I love you all! 

Seeking similarities in a sunless situation

In the last few days I have been trying desperately to shake jet lag. The fact that I am up writing at 2 am would lead me to believe that I've done a terrible job of it. But hey! Because of the time difference I am just having a bit more trouble assimilating to life in Scandinavia.

When I travel, I often look for the differences between what I am accustomed to and what other cultures and countries are used to. The Norwegians shower on the bathroom floor here--the drains are all over the bathroom! The Swedish have a two "mealish" events: one that is all about sweets and happiness and another that is more of a mini meal. You can imagine I am a fan of both. 

This afternoon my girlfriend and I were discussing that looking for the differences might not be the right way to go about things. I mean, we're all creatures of habit are we not? Perhaps we should be looking for similarities so that we can be more comfortable when we're struggling to find our place in new surroundings.

Don't we all experience joy and heartache? Don't we all bleed? Don't we feel cold and dress accordingly? (This is definitely one I am relearning on my vacation in the Nordic world.) 

As the world gets smaller thanks to advances in communication and travel, there is more of a need to assimilate more quickly to different environments. Maybe noticing what we have in common as humans will make that easier. Maybe it will help my jet lag. Maybe it's all just wishful thinking, but be careful what you wish for ... world peace may be just around the corner!