Gyroscope
There's been a lot of juggling going on at home. I've been writing down thoughts to share later, and I hope I actually remember what the notes I wrote down mean when I have time to write in detail once we are all settled back in the States.
The kids and I have been reflecting on things we will miss, and things we are looking forward to, so I thought I would share a few things here:
Miss:
- Fun people from Sweden and around the world: Friends, family and acquaintances
- Mattias
- Absence of large billboards along highways
- Food safety
- Safety in general
- (Almost complete) Independence from cars
- Independence and safe travel that the kids can use without me driving them
- Low cost healthcare
- The Lund Pediatric Bipolar Team
- Easy recycling
Looking forward to:
- Family and friends back home
- A "bad for you" breakfast from McDonalds
- Replacing/restocking our wardrobes: the kids need clothes of all kinds, and I need PANTS!
- Less choice in clothing stores so we can actually make decisions
- More choice in grocery stores so we can get the things we want
- Grocery shopping less often
- Free carts at the store!
- Diversity
- Back to business as usual in the working environment
- Seeing USA with new eyes
Beautiful People
I haven't been writing a lot lately (or at all), and I keep waiting for a moment when I can summarize everything. Priorities!
Every time I have a moment where I might have time to write, there's something else to do that is more important. Or something happening.
Last night, the Meetup Group had a farewell party for me. The theme was All American, and everyone donned their red white and blue. When I came into the room, I was struck by several things.
First, was just how beautiful the people in the group are, and second, how lovely the party setup and location was, and third, how completely uncomfortable I felt at the idea that all of this had been arranged for me.
It was such a lovely night. I wish I would have taken more pictures. Luckily, there were some gorgeous pictures taken by other people at the party.
So much has been happening, and so much has been going on in my head that I want to write down, but time is moving against me- and as more significant observations come to me, I feel like I will never catch up.
I've had a mounting feeling for a while now that I have changed so much. The differences in me that I am seeing, between when the girls and I arrived and now, it's nothing short of amazing all of the things I have realized about myself- good things and bad. There is so much I want to change, and so much I want to hold onto.
Outwardly, I have let myself go. Inwardly, I have grown, and changed, and become as comfortable with who I am as a person more than I have ever been. I see myself. I see other people seeing me. I see I need to change. I see I need to hold on to the good things that I value in myself.
The most important thing to note right at this moment, is how thankful I am for all of the Internationals I know here in Malmö, Skåne, and Copenhagen. Each one of them is so unique and so wonderful to know. I feel so honored (almost embarrassed) to have been celebrated yesterday.
And amidst all this work to do here at home to get ready for our trip back to USA, I want to make a special effort to spend time with these people before I go. Because it will be a while before I see them again.
I love these people. I'm so lucky that so many of them love me back.
Saying Goodbye in Style
My awesome organizers from the Malmö Internationals group are throwing me a going away party. It's such an wonderful thing for them to do, and I am so thankful.
These guys dedicate time, energy, and resources to making the Malmö Internationals group a very active and successful group- and I could never have grown the group the way it has grown without their dedication!
Let it snow! Or not...
It's no secret that I love snow. I love lots of snow, enough to go sledding in and make igloos with the kids.
But it never snows in Skåne. At least not very often. Last year, it dusted once or twice, but for the most part it just rained and the wind blew.
It's a bit annoying that now that I am out in the country, it's been snowing on and off for months.
Not that I don't love the snow, but I hate the fact that way out here, no one plows the roads.
Everyone in town has clear roads, while we have ice and snow still.
Burning
After spending all morning trying to get to Landskrona to get Tyler to school (I was too sick to do anything yesterday and Mattias had to work), I drove home and fell asleep.
On the way up, around 7:45, we hit a standstill. We could see there was a large fire ahead with a lot of smoke, but that was it. We were actually quite close to what ended up being a giant diesel truck that wrecked and caught fire. At 10:15, I saw that some of the cars waiting for the road block to clear were turning around and going through a service ditch on the highway to get onto the other side of the highway.
Bad luck
I got my pay stub for January and it is all wrong.
The consulting company I was working for has deducted my usual salary from the hours actually worked, so now the pay stub says I owe 9,500 SEK?
Ugh. Time to straighten out yet another mess.
Shedding dead weight
We've had a lot of our things listed for sale for a week or so now.
So far we've sold a DS and charger, TV, DVD player, and some speakers. We have a lot of things reserved for other people, and I have to say, despite the sad circumstances around our departure to the USA, it's a nice feeling to start getting things out of the house that we don't absolutely need.
It's like we're getting leaner.
In other ways, we've been really working at cutting costs. We reorganized the living room so that the radiator could heat it the best, and we've been turning off the furnace during the day.
Friends
I keep seeing reminders of the awesome friends I have here in Sweden.
My assistant organizers for the Malmo group sent me an awesome food basket for Christmas. I didn't get it until last week, but it was really nice.
The group is planning a going away party, and a couple of people have let me know that they are willing to help with anything I might need.
It's the best feeling in the world to have that kind of support from people you know and love.
I know when I go back to the USA I will miss these friends so much! I am so proud to know them all.
Too bad, so sad. Sincerely, the U.S. government
I wrote to the U.S. Embassy last night to request assistance getting home. Things just keep getting worse here, and there's no way I am going to find money to afford tickets home by April, but the longer I stay the worse it will be.
I explained that I needed to get home, and that I had a place to stay until I found employment when I got there. I explained I had two daughters, how long we have been here, and our desire to come home to the U.S..
Here's their response:
Dear Sir/Madam:
Brrr
It snowed last night. Fantastic. The only difference between inside and outside is the snow, wind, and we can't see our breath inside yet.
We all slept in the same bed for warmth last night, though Tyler slept on the floor.
When I got up this morning, I put on another sweater and was winding my scarf around my neck when Tayler asked where I was going,
I was only going to the living room.