Wedding bells

Well Princess Madeleine is getting married to her Chris.  He's some millionaire financial adviser who looks like a a cold fish.  They've been living together and I hope that they will be very happy together.  Her statement on Vimeo is so cute although his Swedish really needs some work.  Chris came into the picture after her previous engagement to the hunky Jonas Bergström was broken off (he took up with Madeleine's former friend).  The princess and Jonas were together for 8 years and she met Chris only a couple of months after they broke up.  She says that they are "soul mates" but it sounds like a rebound to me.  Keeping my fingers that crossed that everything works out for the beautiful Madeleine and her Chris.

Nordic Exposure

Reading and contemplating the article "Nordic Exposure" in the August edition of Vanity Fair see the article.  My take on it is a little unique as I lived in Sweden in the late '70s - early 1980's and then again last year so I have seen that Sweden has changed and is no longer the same social-democratic bastion as before.  Sweden accepts many immigrants and the look of a "Swede" has changed from the stereotypical blonde blue-eyed babe to be more all inclusive.  Now just like in America a Swede now could have their roots in Africa, be adopted from Korea, or be a born and bred Swede with grandparents from Latin America.  A.A. doesn't seem aware of this.  The author also states that "The watchword of all Nordic people, their mantra, is "conformity".  The worst social sin is to stand out, to appear even obliquely boastful or pleased with yourself".

While it is true that people and even ads are much more modest than we're accustomed to in the States (for example advertising stating that something is quite possibly the best) in my experience I haven't found that Swedes shy away from new experiences or people but rather embrace them and are interested in them.  Of course we lived in a cosmopolitan part of Sweden, in the south near the continent, where I and my American husband were welcomed with open arms. Maybe meeting someone different is an acceptable way to be nonconformist and thereby a thrill for the "reclusive Swede", but honestly I found Swedes to be in general more well traveled and open than many Americans that I know.  I'm really not sure where this author A.A. Gill is coming from just that he lives in England and doesn't like Wales.  How is it now that he's an expert on Scandinavia?  Here's a pic of a famous Swede that doesn't fit the stereotypes, Marcus Samuelsson, famous chef of Rooster and Aquavit in New York.  He is so cool, more here: http://www.marcussamuelsson.com/about

Buddhaful

Let us rise up and be thankful, for if we didn"t learn a lot today, at least we learned a little, and if we didn't learn a little, at least we didn't get sick, and if we got sick, at least we didn't die; so, let us all be thankful. ~Buddha

My friend Jen posted this a couple of days ago.  Not only is it so funny, it sounds a little Swedish to me!  I think we are one of the only groups of people who actively desist in getting too excited about things.  I mean, why get overeager when something bad could happen?  Don't expect too much, and you won't get disappointed seems to be the idea.  This is why my blog is called "living la vida lagom" because although I love Sweden and its people, I definitely chose to ignore some attitudes and make my own decisions about how to react and respond.  For example it is probably pretty un-Swedish to talk about how lucky you are, but I am.  Very lucky and thankful that I got to live another day!

Lukas 10.18

Grattis på namnsdagen Lukas!

My son is having his "namesday" today (Oct. 18).  This is a Swedish tradition that predates birthday celebrations but no longer trumps them.  There is a name for every day of the year as determined by the Swedish church.  My Christina day is in July and this year I was lucky enough to celebrate it this year in Sweden with my mother and daughter who share this middle name.  Lukas doesn't get to celebrate his day in Sweden this year so I compensated by making him "bullar".  I can't wait until the kids come home from school so they can get a whiff of these cinnamon rolls!  The recipe is attached for those of you who like to bake.  Mums!  Cinnamon rolls recipe.

hair today, gone tomorrow

I cut my own hair today.  To be compelled to do so you might think that I am:
a. cheap
b. impatient
c. crazy
or all of the above (which I am) but also in keeping with the lagom life I am trying to lead I thought why should I waste an hour and a lot of money for a trim?  So I watched a you tube video, made a pony, and snipped off some (too) golden locks.  And FYI, it's not like I live out in the boonies.  We live in a beautiful and serviceable little town with probably more than 20 hair salons that would love to charge me an arm and a leg to cut my hair.  That's what I love about the internet.  All you have to do is think "why couldn't I cut my own hair?" and some free spirit has already done so and posted a video for you.  Thanks out there, glad to see I'm not alone. :-)

living la vida lagom

Living the vida lagom - what's that?  Well according to my handy Swedish dictionary lagom means "just enough".  So "everything in moderation" translates nicely to "lagom är bäst" (lagom is best - the Swedish mantra.)  My new mantra too + a little spice and enthusiasm (exemplified by Ricky Martin's classic song "living la vida loca") 'cause a girls gotta have fun = what this blog is about!