Why?

I won't claim I've 'taken to running', but it happens. Twice this spring is, well, two times more than all of last year...

But why? Why on earth??

Could it be...

- The taste of blood in my mouth?
- The sound of my near-asthmatic wheezing?
- The feel of insects in my hair and mouth?
- The odd and worryingly recurring inclination to run uphill and walk downhill...?

Or...

- The look of pride on my son(aka PT)'s face, when he sees I actually did it?
- The sense of being out and about
- The pride in managing to turn down that Coke I've offered myself while running...?

Or...

- That I can use an app for it, that will tell me how far I've gone and where?

Nah. That would be so childish. That must be it  ;)

randoms

Ireland's President is in town - Oslo is full of Irish flags, and flowers in Irish colours - I love it!

And Monday Martha Wainwright was in town! (Yes, she's Rufus' sister, but her music is her own!) Her concert was truly amazing - what a voice! You can see her perform on her own blog, if you want a sample... And afterwards, there was a meet & greet. See, we're practically sisters ! And yes, that's an R.E.M. T-shirt I'm wearing...

R.E.M. in Oslo!

And I was there. More importantly - Mike, Michael and Peter were there, without whom it wouldn't have been so much fun. And it was great! But first there was The Disciplines. Norwegian band with Ken Stringfellow added. They were playing as we entered and may have been good, but I wasn't really paying attention.

The Editors followed. Now, I might have gone to see The Editors even without R.E.M. - they've got some great songs - and a very cute drummer (Ed Lay) ...

(I digress, as usual...) As it were, I couldn't quite lose myself to (or in) their music, the fate of any support band, I suppose!

And then R.E.M. entered the stage... It was a grand night! I have no great zoom lens, but rather sharp elbows, so managed to be as close as 2 ft away from Michael (Stipe!) at one point... Their setlist, and a rather excellent review of the whole evening - provided you read Norwegian - can be found at Helene's blog, where you can also see snippets of songs. I recorded some too but have been too lazy busy to upload them so far.

A fabulous mix of new and old songs, an excited crowd (for Norwegians, ie. there were even hips moving) and a little banter in between songs ...

- "I know you hear this all the time, but you really are such a beautiful people!"

- "I heard you've got gay marriage over here, that's great! You get gay marriage, we get ... John McCain... We really, really, REALLY hate our government"

But we love you, R.E.M.! Can't wait till you get back next time!

Not quite dead...

Today I've been baking. A lot. And will do some more baking tomorrow. I haven't decided to become a baker, but tomorrow there will be 4 brand new 8-year-olds in the house (and in the world, at that!), so naturally - there will need to be a constant flow of cakes! And lots of family coming to celebrate with us.

Saturday we'll be "celebrating" by going to a music festival in Oslo and see Rufus Wainwright (and others) - first time for the kids! They're quite looking forward to it, actually - to see this strange character that has their mother going all gooey... And to celebrate Rufus (?) - or life, actually - Norway has just passed a new marriage law, finally establishing equal rights for everyone, no matter who you love!

That's all folks, I'm off to finish my baking session for the night...

Norway's national holiday today!

Today was 3 degrees C and rain. We didn't stay outside long after the parade... Even the smallest town has a children's parade like this - Oslo has a big one, walking past the palace (the royal family waves at the passers-by for hours on end...) - and the weather is no excuse! But last year wasn't too bad, here's a sample :)

After the parade this year we went home, put all the kids in the new tub (kingsize...) and had cakes and ice cream at home... Same, same, but different ...

Another German invasion!?

There are German soldiers in the street... Looking strangely familiar - but then I have seen a lot of films from & of the war... (Incidentally, the white building at the top of the photo is where I work.)Now, I'm not that dumb... I realise they must be making a film of sorts (some streets were blocked and parking only by permission by the police - besides, the cameras sort of gave it away...) - but this still gave me the creeps... Closer up ... This is the Norwegian Storting (The Parliament) - and except for the crane, this is just what it looked like back in April 1940...
And a jolly good morning to all of you too! Or should I say - Guten Morgen?