So this is what I was thinking the other week. I was in our neighborhood Target store, getting Pete's prescription filled. The boy (he's probably a younger man) that helped me was the same guy that used to help me before our time in Denmark. And it struck me...all this time, while I've been gone, you've been here filling prescriptions at this Target store in MN.

While you've been doing that, I've been searching the beach for fossils with my kid, I've been driving through the Alps, and jumping out of my car to yell at a Danish woman in the hospital parking lot. But you've been here. Doing this. And now I'm back - doing the same.

My husband needs another overseas opportunity offered to him. I'd be out the door in no time. (But sadly there is no chance that's happening anytime soon).

On another note...

This is my new car.

Link Here

Well, not this one exactly...I have a white, 2010 Corolla S. There were a lot of cars out there with good gas mileage estimates. But I've been a Toyota owner before (Camry, Sienna, and Corolla), so it was destined to be Toyota again.

I will say that we briefly looked at available hatchbacks, and none of them can really compete with the trunk space of a Corolla. I couldn't even fit my son's bike in the back of a Versa. What good is that? I fit my son's bike, plus stuff for a weekend up at the lake, plus a rain barrel, plus three passengers in my Corolla.

I also advocate the "Drive 55" concept. I've noticed that people have slowed down their driving considerably in the last couple of years. But the average seems to still hover around 65 mph.

Why not try 55?

The last can

of tuna has been consumed. The cupboards and the freezer are almost empty. This is at the same time both good and bad. Although I know we are leaving in less then a month, I still can't shake that slightly manic feeling I have when the shelves are bare, and I have no car to get to the store....or maybe its late Saturday or Sunday, and even if I could go, the stores would be cleaned out of merchandise or closed.

I wonder how long it will take me to re-adjust to U.S. store hours/ availability/ convenience when I return. I know it will probably take longer than two weeks, because during our visits back I still had bouts of "DK grocery store panicking".

And if you're a bit eco-nuts like me, check out this link that has a calculation for converting energy used to CO2 amounts.

As I walk around here, it seems the majority of people line dry their clothing. Energy is expensive, space is sometimes too tight for a dryer, plus an average model will run you at least $1000. I have a dryer here, but I use it to fluff. I'm planning on continuing to do this when I get home.

But I have to wonder - what will the neighbors think. A while back a facebook "friend" of mine commented on how quaint it was to see his neighbor's laundry out on the line (in MN, on a nice sunny day). His friend's responded with remarks about hillbillies and such. Why such a negative reaction to something that isn't *bad*?

Doesn't 80% of the world line dry their cloths? I was listening to The Gestalt Gardner on Mississippi public radio last night, and he said that if people are not forced to do the right thing they just won't. Like this new composting law in San Francisco. Its doable - so why not do it.

We were the second neighborhood in the City of Minneapolis to be able to get these same sort of composting bins that they would haul away weekly. I could put just about anything in these - food, bones, milk cartons, frozen food cartons, pizza boxes. At first my husband protested about having to decide which garbage can to throw things into. But he soon caught on - and then it was no problem. When we left and the house sitters moved in, they quickly abandoned the compost bin. Too much effort to separate out the compostables from the non. Really? So I guess I have to agree with the Gestalt Gardner.

I guess the thing that always sticks in my mind is a t-shirt I saw on a young girl here. It said - Think About My Future.

And I do.

Well, since the moving companies are coming to asses our junk this week, I decided I should start to do a little work myself.

One item they want for insurance purposes is a list of everything plus its value. The list with values is no problem for me. I can remember almost to the dollar how much I paid for everything that I have. What is a bit distressing is the amount of junk we’ve picked up over the last year and a half.

I mean, it doesn’t feel like I’m out there shopping all the time, but I walked through the downstairs rooms this morning noting all the new things that have appeared in our lives and I ended up scribbling out over 4 pages! And I still haven't gotten to the dreaded *room* upstairs that’s full of all the miscellaneous junk that we rarely use.

Oh, yeah. I also have an entire corner piled high with shoe boxes, wine boxes, and zip lock bags full of rocks, shells, and other things stolen from nature - some of them still very stinky. (The movers will hate me. But I will offer them coffee during their cigarette break to try and make up for it.)

When I get back home I’m going to take that pledge to not buy any new stuff for a year (except school cloths, paint…things like that). Craig’s list – here I come.

This last statement is sure to give my husband a slight heart attack. Which is odd, you'd think the 4 pages of new junk would do it, but no, I think it'll be the latter. He's got *big plans* for our return to the land of plenty.

One thing Denmark is full of - at every turn - is brochures. They have them at rest stops, obscure parks, and the entrances of main (and not so main) attractions. Outside the library in downtown Odense is another place for my favorite freebies. Yesterday I picked up Odenses skove. Is gives maps to and details for 7 forest areas in Odense.

I had the car for the day and the weather was decent so I thought - why not. Peter and I drove on over to Kratholmskoven - et væld af kilder (The Kratholm forest - a flood of sources) with a GPS address of Brogårdsvej 90.

It was lovely, right up my alley. Floodplain along the Odense Å, bordered on one side by steep sloping forest. Lots of little drainageways flowing down to the river. The vegetation was great - goldenrod, rununculus, bulrush, and jewelweed...all similar to the kind we have in the U.S. but also just different enough for me to question myself as to what I think it really might be. Even my high energy 5 yr old was quite happy to just sit near a steam, listen to the water, and poke around at the bugs for a good long time.




Also in my book was Næsbyhoved Skov, which I had been meaning to check out and is located in pretty much north downtown Odense. The *big* thing there is an old castle mound. It was just OK. We were the only two people there except for that stray young guy who popped out of the trees at one point. I know people park their babies on the street to sleep here, but still, I don't always feel 100% completely safe.

I also saw this dying mushroom which somewhat resembled a morel. But I don't know if they have those here.

Røjleskov Area

Recently, another friend loaned me a Funen book - this one is Exploring the Funen Countryside (the other one was titled Fyn on Foot). Both books are a few years old (like maybe 10) and both had a limited number produced...so if you go looking for them - Good Luck! And I mean that, I'm not being sarcastic here.

This past weekend, I chose the NW Fyn route which begins in Strib, circles around Røjleskov, down to Gamborg, and then over to Middelfart (although we did the route in the reverse). Here are my pics from that day sans Peter for the most part. I'm a soil scientist by schooling - so I really like seeing things like the slumping clay cliffs.



Being from MN, and having camped out LOTS on family vacations in the western U.S., I get a kick out of Danish campgrounds. Here they pack everyone in like sardines, and the people stay for months like this. It has its good points though - everyone gets access to lots of beach and woodsy areas.

Seeing the cut reeds down in Gamborg was interesting. These stacks could have easily filled two -maybe three- large barns. Is this what the thatched roofs are made from? I've read more than once that when grazing on these wet areas is stopped, the giant reed grass moves in, choking out all other vegetation. The tall grass also affects wildlife use of the area.

The beaches in Middlefart were pretty much 'swimming' beaches. Clean, wide, lots of sand up to the water, marina areas, playgrounds. Nice, but not the kind of place we like to poke around so much.

And the beaches we visited near Strib and Røjleskov had lots of live clams, the dark ones and the white ones. Rich wants to try to eat some of these. I'm not so sure. I saw one woman on the beach looking over the rocks and carrying a small hammer, and another guy carrying a small shovel. What are these people looking for? I'm guessing geodes and clams.

My latest chunk of amber found this weekend. Nice.

Østerskov

We headed down to the southern tip of Langeland this past Saturday. We hit the north tip of the island last year, and I have to say, the south tip is completely different.

The northern area had swimming beaches and summer homes. Down south is knobby topography and lots of farmland. The klints (or cliffs) were quite a sight, as were the frolicking "wild" horses (imported from England and not really so wild - an older man said to us). But the amount of birds was just incredible. We constantly saw groups of them flying offshore just above the water, and you could also hear a giant group of them out in the water past eyesight. The weather that day was also extremely still - So still in fact that the morning fog never really went away. Odd for DK. Here is a link.



This past week I made high roast chicken by myself (last time the hubby did it). It really is THE way to cook a chicken. This time around the potatoes were a bit on the greasy side, and I over-cooked the asparagus. But that chicken was YUMMY.


And here is one of the most gorgeous rocks I've ever seen. Too bad the car gets parked a good half-mile from the beach where this thing lives. I've thought about dragging it in my big Mexican blanket, but I think that would look too much like a body. Its hard to tell from the picture but this rock is probably the size of my 5 yr old.

Just another week *something* in the Danish calender

The Danes keep track of time by weeks. Week 12, week 36, whatever. Can't you just say July 12, or the second week in July, or something? Other wise I don't know when you're talking about. But I'll admit that it could just *be me* since I have these visual number lines and calenders in my head. And no, they're not straight.

Peter and I went out for a walk today in a partially undeveloped/un-farmed area near our house. Its rained a bit the last few days, and the depressions have water in them. There is nothing I'd like more right now that to put on some knee high rubber boots and trudge out there to see what's going on. But - I didn't bring my waterproof boots, and its private property. The wetland plants here are similar and yet different than the ones in the U.S. I wish I had someone to be my field guide for just one sunny day.


Also near our house the logging continues. Denmark has quite a lot of forested areas really, and so I'm holding out and giving everyone the benefit of the doubt that they are good managers of this sort of thing.


But my biggest job this week is going to be to finish a knitted gift for another little girl. I originally envisioned a sea princess crown, with a shell pattern border. Very delicate and lacy. But that kind of thing doesn't stretch, so I wasn't sure that a good fit could be had. After a few other failed ideas I think I've finally settled on a mermaid necklace. The idea is seaweed, mingled with fisherman's net, lots of beads, some shells, and some bling-bling embellishments. I'm working on the fisherman's net part now. I've basically taken my thinnest yarn, split it in half, and am knitting on my smallest size needles. Its going to be a bit abstract and not pink - so I hope it goes over ok.

Leftover Night

For dinner yesterday I decided to reheat the vegetable curry from a few nights ago. To it I added some forgotten kafir lime leaves that were in the freezer, and did up a side of some kind of white fish, and some cauliflower.

I shop lots of different shops here in DK (well - except Bilka) to get my groceries, and I buy my fish from Lidl. Their salmon is the best I've tasted, and they also have a big selection of other types of fish. My little guy even likes their whole breaded fillet of pollack - much better than any fish stick in this country. Have you ever tried a fish stick here? Its like eating garbage, old garbage. Nasty bad.

Anyway, our gourmet fillet of some kind of fish was nummy with the curry. Back when we used to live in Ames, Iowa I often ordered a fish/kafir lime/curry dish from Thai Kitchen...it was to die for. Ames might be a small town, but it has sooooo many great restaurants.



And I finished up my latest knitting project - a cozy for a hot water bottle. Did you just get creeped out? My husband did when he first heard the idea. But I'd been surfing for new projects, and listening to my knitting podcasts and it seems to be THE THING to do. Plus I accidentally stumbled upon some water bottles at a shop in the mall, and then that was that.



I'm making two - one for me, and one for a gift. And I won't be trying it out fully (filling the thing with hot water) until we move back to MN. It gets darn cold there in the winter, and I think this will be a more environmental option than my electric blanket.

Back Off

We have an ongoing discussion (I used a nicer word here) at our house.

My 4 year old likes to stand in front of the microwave oven, because he likes to get the food out when it beeps (such a sweetie, he loves to help out). But my husband inevitably ALWAYS tells him not to stand in front of the microwave. Then I roll my eyes.

Seems like our discussion doesn't have a concrete "right" answer either. Ask TreeHugger: Can I Stand In Front of the Microwave?

I've also noticed that not many Danish households have a microwave. And I found that odd, since they are pretty energy efficient. And I would expect the Danes to be into that.

So I asked some friends. They said that Danes believe that there MAY be certain *health concerns* associated with these ovens, so although they are not banned (like Red Bull), most people don't have one.

But I've also heard that the Danes are now starting to eat leftovers (due to increased food prices). Maybe this change in eating habits will necessitate an increase in microwave use.

Got Silk?

If I was at home right now I'd be doing this - Silk green caps. I've found soy milk here that's pretty good, but honestly, Silk is the best. And this contest is right up my alley.

And I'd be buying one of these - a home energy use monitor. I'm not a gadget person, but I saw this sort of thing on a British show last night and I got all excited. I don't really care how much money my energy consumption is costing me - as a friend of mine would say...it is what it is. I just see it as a way to lower my impact on the environment. (For example, the monitor would likely show that recessed canister lights use LOTS of energy. Thereby prompting you to turn them off, or get efficient bulbs.)

But I'm not *at home*, instead I'm dreaming about giant, deli meat sandwiches and iced tea - really good iced tea - with ICE. Our freezer here has virtually no room for ice, and its not sold at the stores. Rich HAS to have ice in his water, and he prefers more ice than water. I bought some vodka and tonic the other day and when I got it home, only then did I remember our ice predicament. So I allowed myself 4 mini ice cubes. That doesn't make too bit a dent in the ice stash for me to have to make more.

And why did I buy vodka?? I'm not a vodka drinker. The problem was, it was a good brand at a good price. So I bought it. This may be one way I'm becoming a bit Danish-ish. They love a deal, and when one is presented, even though you wouldn't normally buy the thing, you do. Honestly, rather than cutting down on alcohol consumption I think it just makes it worse. Carloads of people driving to Germany every weekend to buy cheap booze. Car fulls of booze. I mean you'd have to be crazy not to buy it. That is what happened with me and the vodka.

On my mind

Since I've seen this video, the song has been repeating through my head. Makes me want to take a spunky walk out to the back yard to add to the compost bin.

This is a photo of the compost bin in the Manatee building at the Odense Zoo. Its probably about 12 feet high, and at least double that width. They use a ladder to climb up and toss stuff in.


Below the video clip is a link to making your own compost bin. You might think that keeping a small one inside your home smells, but it doesn't. We had an indoor trash can dedicated to compostable waste - food, bones, milk cartons, frozen food boxes...

I can't remember the actual cost, but for not much more $$$ per year we got a special organic trash can which was taken on the same day as our other garbage. We were the second suburb within the city of Minneapolis to have this service offered. Overall I think its a good idea, because you could SEE just how much of your total waste was compostable (rather than burying it in a landfill). The only downside would be that a separate gas guzzling garbage truck would have to come to take it away.

When I moved here to DK, I was surprised that they didn't offer the same service. I had it in my mind that this country was super eco friendly and would be having me separate my garbage into a bunch of different bins. But the only thing that doesn't go in the garbage is paper. I've read that they incinerate waste for energy - but still, I thought I'd be actively recycling a bit more than I do.

Human Guinea Pigs

There is this British show called Human Guinea Pigs on cable here. They take a group of five British blokes in their mid-twenties and perform "experiments" on them. For example, tonight was - what happens when you have too much vitamin C; MP3 players will make you deaf; pepper spray (ouch); and fight or flight (they had Ollie run around the track as fast as he could once, and the second time they put a bacon suit on him and let loose a German Shepard. He did run faster the second time). Its like Jackass - but with a purpose and an explanation. Love it.

And, I added a few new links to My Sites this morning - Groovy Green, The Compact, and Crunchy Chicken. I would love to take the homemade pledge, or the don't-buy anything-new-for-a-year challenge (we could maybe try month by month on that one) - but the big problem with either of those two challenges would be birthday parties. Unless you know a kid really really well, and are fast crafty - you have to go out and buy something. We have a party this weekend, and a gift list was sent out, but other than a skim-over, it went in the trash. I don't generally like working off a list - so we'll see how she likes her light-up neon, sphere-forming jump rope.

I am living the mantra of the slow food movement though. It makes me feel good, and it makes me crave Chipotle burritos.

I think I'm in love with the salmon here. And that's probably a good thing, because I also think we are going to have to stop eating pork here - at least the hog-lot kind. In MN we got our pork (what I liked to call "happy pig") from the Barrett farm. Grandpa got just enough pigs for those who wanted meat, and he had them live outside, with the cows, having a short but good life. So, I felt relatively guilt free when eating them.

Here it seems the hog-lot problem is just as bad as at home. Maybe even worse since, after the US, Denmark is the second largest pork producer in the world. For a country the size of maybe Michigan, I don't think that's a thing to aspire to. And even this morning, the Danish teacher was telling us that a large chicken farm in Svendborg (30 miles away) has to kill all of its birds due to bird flu (not the really bad bird flu, but something that could morf into the bad one).

So, we are going to try to drastically reduce our pork consumption, which is a bummer for two reasons. The first being that Peter lives of bacon, and more recently pork chops. For a kid with a limited diet, we need to feed him whatever he'll eat. Second, I recently came to a solution for my moral dilemma with eating pig (since they are supposed to be like three-year-old children, who wants to eat a child, plus have you ever looked at their eyes...they have people eyes). Anyway....I decided that if I passed out in a pig pen, they would eat me. So, why not eat them.

Dinner last night was salmon, some yummy green beans, and bean salad on couscous.