PAY DAY

The way it works in Sweden is you get paid once a month on the 25th for the previous month's work. So I got paid today for the work I did in September. It must be difficult to only be paid once a month. You have to make sure you can make it to the next pay day. Maybe Swedes are better at managing their money better because of it. Either way it feels good to be paid.

On Sunday we were supposed to play a league game at home but the team asked to reschedule. They didn't want to travel so far for one game. They want to sync it so that they play us and Motala on the same weekend. So instead we played a "friendly match" as they call it against a guys team. It is made of of guys from the ages of late twenties to early forties who still like to play hockey. Johan, our assistant coach, played goalie for them and Jens, our sports manager, played defense for us because we were down a lot of players. It was a really fun game. We won 4-3. I scored on my coach which is always fun. Bohm and I really connect on the ice. I assisted her goal and she assisted mine. We know where each other are and play very similar so we can read situations well together. I can see us being very dangerous together and producing a lot of points for the team. We have an away game this Sunday against Trollhattans which is 4 hours away. Our team has gotten very comfortable with each other now. A very nice atmosphere we got going. Lots of laughs along with working hard and encouraging each other. I broke my stick in the game on Sunday. I never break sticks so that was fun. Bohm had an extra stick that is too short for her so she gave it to me so I don't have to buy a new one.

My new course has started. It is all about population models. Lots of equations and computer exercises. Not quite sure how confident I am about it. The first four weeks are class based and the last four weeks we work on a paper and have no class. I am hoping to work a lot then.

I went to the Linkoping girls game on Saturday to see what Division 1 was like. It sure isn't D1 level. I'd say it is high D3. It is weird to think that that is the highest division in Sweden. I think a lot has to do with coaching.

Our guys team has a game tomorrow so I am going to that with a couple teammates. Should be fun. I am looking forward to the Halloween party that Deb (roommate) is throwing. It's going to be at Bjorn's (Deb's bf) place because it is bigger. I think I am going to dress up as a super hero. Yes, because I have a cape. Made specifically for me. By my amazing G-ma. SHOUT OUT TO MY HOME GIRL LOVE YOU GMA.  I can wear all black and the cape and paint a sweet eye mask on my face. Vwallah (sp?). My team might throw a Halloween party on Friday which will be a good time. We haven't partied together yet so I am interested to see what they're with a little booze in them. They all say they want to see me dance after a couple drinks. Apparently they can already tell I am retarded. BLAH

1 quarter down, 7 to go!

Today my first quarter of graduate school ended. I was up until 4:00 this morning finishing my report and powerpoint. I rocked my presentation. My supervisor said it came together well and the introduction was really nice and another professor told me it was really good. Swedes don't go out of their way to compliment so I think they really liked it. Maybe Union actually taught me some things...maybe. It feels so good to be done with the project. Since I went to the States for the first week of the time set for projects I had to bust my ass to finish it. I survived.

Daniel and Lyndal (materials dude for the team and my goalie) live in Linkoping and they were going to a big grocery store about twenty minutes away today so I tagged along to do my shopping. The store had a foreign section. It was weird seeing products I was familiar with in the section let alone at all. They had chocolate chips, fluff, popcorn seasoning, beef jerky, Reese's, Hansen's soda which I was particularly pumped about, microwave popcorn, marshmallows, peanut butter (no good brands though), and mac and cheese (also not the real stuff).

I decided to cook a ton of meals this evening. I am actually not that bad of a cook. I made ratatouille to go with quinoa and a bean, sausage, veggie, pasta stew thing. They both taste really good. I made a ton of it so some I'm freezing and I won't have to cook for a while or go to the grocery store for at least a couple weeks. It is also a really cheap way. Go Jew in me!

I watched Family Guy with Daniel and it was really funny because I was understanding all of the American jokes and laughing while we was like..."I don't get it." It was a joke about M.C. Escher and M.C. Hammer and I giggled and he had no idea what was going on. Thank you Family Guy for making me feel like home...and making America seem like a ridiculous country.

I substituted at the International English School on Thursday. I was stepping in for two Social Studies lessons. 7th graders and 8th graders. They had homework to do, but I let the 7th graders play Hangman and taught them how to play Heads Up 7 Up. I had my lap top with me so I played music trivia with the 8th graders. They had a ball. When the 7th graders were leaving one of the girls was like "Can you be our substitute everyday?" Yeah, that's right. Look who's awesome. It's really fun. And the 8th graders didn't want to leave when their class was over because they wanted to keep playing music trivia. I think I am an awesome substitute. I don't make them do work and I let them play. That is what a substitute is for. I remember when I had substitutes and it really sucked when they followed the lesson plan. It's a day to enjoy. So I let them enjoy it. And they are very polite kids which makes it more enjoyable. The 7th graders were getting a little too rowdy so I said it had to be completely silent during the Heads Up 7 Up game and if someone talked they had to do 5 push-ups. So I made the class clown do like 20 push-ups because he wouldn't shut up. It's awesome having power.

In case you don't have facebook and would like to see my photos from Sweden I have created an online photo album. Here is the link: http://s1202.photobucket.com/albums/bb369/ostrows/ Let me know if it doesn't work.

It's cold now. And I don't like it. I have to wear layers and a hat and gloves. It's too early for this.

Peace, love, and Heads Up 7 Up

Jag spelar ishockey

So I was in the locker room on Sunday listening to the coaches explain some stuff before the game and I kept hearing "spelar." And it has been a word I've been hearing a lot while at hockey. I asked my teammate Cilla who I was sitting next to if that work meant "play" and I was right! It was such a cool feeling to have figured out what a word meant just by hearing it so much. I never looked it up or asked someone how to say "play." After hearing it so much I figured it out from context. I never believed people when they said you'll pick up the language just from being there long enough. But it has been proven true. 2 months in and I am now starting to get a hang of what the coaches are saying. I'm hearing things over and over again and words are starting to stick out. Like I kept hearing "bra tjejer" and figured out on my own that is meant "good girls." It is nice that I am playing hockey because I am getting directly spoken to in Swedish vs just being in Sweden and hearing people talk Swedish around me but not to me. I have signed up to take Swedish class in January offered through my university. I could have taken it this semester but I wanted to get a base before jumping into it. Come January I think the class will be easier because I have been picking up words and sounds.

I worked 7-4 Monday and today at the warehouse. My body is so tired/sore from standing/walking/bending/reaching. I enjoy it though. I like seeing all the cool stuff Stadium sells. I want most of it. And I get to hear songs I forgot I had on my Ipod because I'm listening to it on shuffle for 9 hours straight. It's going to be nice having the extra cash for traveling/fun things. The International English School called me asking if I could teach some classes today but I was at Stadium so I had to decline. The secretary said a lot of people were sick so maybe they will need me some other time this week. My coaches work construction during the winter when they can't work at the golf course so I am hoping to maybe get in on that a little bit and learn some handy skills.

I find enjoyment in how my coaches translate hockey terms into English. Referees=judges, bench=booth, net=goal, shot=score, backcheck=home (they scream "hem, hem, hem" when they want us to backcheck). It's amusing. Mandy and I chuckle to each other. It is nice having another American to get my jokes and slang.

I got to train the dogs with Karin again. It is so much fun. She rode the wagon while I rode a scooter/bike thing. Two wheels, handlebars, and I stand. Two dogs pulled me while 3 dogs pulled her. We went 14 km and were out while it got dark so we wore bright headlamps and it was awesome being pulled in the dark in the middle of the countryside. The dogs are amazing. They can pull me up hills. I kick a little to help them on very long/steep ones but for the most part they can do it all themselves. And they are so trained and behaved. They listen to Karin so well and know directions and speeds. I've tried to go more than the two times I've gone but our schedules haven't synced right. I can't wait to train them on the snow. Dog mushing...check.

I forgot to tell you about my team building weekend. We went to the golf course our coaches work at on Saturday and stayed the night in a summer house that wasn't being used. The golf course was so pretty. Up against a huge lake in the middle of the forest/countryside. We got golf lessons on the driving and putting range. I did ok. Not as good as I had hoped since I was starting to get the hang of it this summer but I did alright. We had dinner and they provided wine, cider, and beer. It was awesome. We got to hangout outside of hockey which was really good. Everyone bonded and it got our team closer.

I stayed at a hostel in Stockholm the night before my flight to Vt. It was my first hostel experience. I stayed in the large dorm because it was the cheapest. I don't know how I feel about them. It was stuffy and people we coming in all through the night. I didn't sleep well at all. But it could have just been that particular hostel. There was a kitchen that offered free pasta and a lounge with a tv and computers. A ton of young adults were staying there from all over. I was being anti-social that night though so I didn't branch out to meet anyone. Maybe if I was staying there for longer I would have tried harder but I was just using it as a place to sleep for the night. Hopefully my hostel experiences will improve on my trip with Court in January.

Time to watch the new episode of Dexter. Peace, love, and I know like 4 words in Swedish!

Swedish hat trick!

Ok, so I apologize for going so long without blogging. It is the first time I’ve gone this long from writing and it won’t happen again and I have some good excuses for why it has taken me so long to write. 1) I flew back to the States (Burlington, VT) for a quick (4 days) mission trip to get Afton back. It was more like a 6 day trip if you include travel time. Mission accomplished. I’m not going to go into detail, but most of you who are reading this have already been explained to in more detail about the situation. Basically, I had to fix what I had messed up which meant taking a romantic gesture to get my girl back. It worked and I am now happily back with Afton. The trip back to America was amazing. It was so nice being able to ease drop on peoples’ conversations instead of just constantly hearing Swedish. You don’t realize how different home is until you go back and see it with having a different perspective in mind. After being in Sweden for about two months, you can see how different it is from home but it isn’t until you return to home that you really can see how the two differ. The biggest thing I noticed was how “friendly” strangers were. Everywhere I went I found myself having more than a “Hi, I would like blah blah blah thank you bye” conversation. Random things would be talked about with complete strangers. It is not like that in Sweden. There is no customer service. You get what you ask for and you go on your way. At Dunkin’ Donuts they asked me a billion questions when I ordered an iced latte. They made sure I was getting exactly what I wanted. In Sweden if I asked for an iced latte I’d get a plain iced latte with no sugar or milk unless I stated it in the beginning. That is just an example. I really enjoyed eating bagels while I was visiting. Sweden doesn’t do bagels. It’s a shame. And being the Jew that I am, its tough without bagels. Watching football on Sunday was a big thing I didn’t realize I’d miss but I did. It felt good to drive since I don’t have a car in Sweden and I love driving. I enjoyed being able to read everything and understand everyone. Overall it was a great trip back to America. I brought back to Sweden with me tampons (Sweden doesn’t understand the concept of applicators)(Sorry dudes that are reading this J), Halloween stuff for our Halloween party because it doesn’t exist in Sweden, clear hockey tape because Swedes use packaging tape for sock tape which I am not fond of because I need to use my skate to rip it, and peanut butter because it tastes like shit here. Care package ideas hint hint J.

Reason #2 why I have been blog non-existent: The end of my first quarter for school is this coming Friday so I have been really busy working on a final project and finishing rewrites that are due by the end of the quarter. I am doing a project on the effect of traffic on lichens. I had to go around Linkoping and sample 80 trees. I have to write a maximum 8 page (SINGLE SPACED L) report and have a 15 minute presentation on Friday so I need to bust out a ton of work this week. I am happy for this quarter to be over. I am ready for a new course. This last course was “Methods in Ecology” and focused on labs, reports, and scientific articles. Next course is “population ecology” which seems interesting. I think a lot is going to be on computer modeling which I am nervous about because I am not too into programming and modeling but I’m sure I’ll figure it out. Bring it on.

Reason #3: Im lazy. I probably could have written before now but I decided to watch American tv shows on my lap top instead J deal with it.

Let’s see…Hockey. We had our first season game today agasint Karlskrona which is about 5 hours south from Norrkoping. We won 7-0 and I got a hat trick as well as an assist. Pretty baller. I got the game puck which is sweet. I am so happy I am playing here because I have gotten my passion back for hockey. I am having so much fun with my team and everything associated with the hockey. I enjoy the practices and the team is getting closer which is awesome. The intensity is high enough to where I cant mess around but it is not too high to where the fun is taken out of it and it is more of a job than an activity. We have our second season game next Sunday at home which I am excited about. My roommates said they might come to support which would be awesome. And my friend Ethan also wants to catch a game so hopefully I’ll have some fans.

When I got back from America the weather was significantly colder. I was not prepared for it. Its only going to get colder and darker. On a positive note I’ll get to where my kick ass winter hats that I love so much. I work tomorrow at the warehouse which I’m looking forward to because I haven’t worked in a couple weeks because of school. The last week and a half we haven’t had class because we are doing projects. It was a perfect time to take a trip because I wasn’t missing anything. This week is also projects so I am hoping to work because it is hard for me to work when I have class. I wouldn’t spend 8 hours working on my project anyway so I would be doing nothing so I’d rather work.

I promise I won’t make you wait this long for an entry ever again. I am currently sitting on the team bus watching Boondocks Saints with Swedish subtitles on our way home from our game. Bad ass. Peace, Love, and Swedish hat tricks J