An echo from the great abyss

Anyone that's in the process of applying for jobs knows that sending off resumes and cover letters is a lesson in frustration. Yet, there does seem to be life in the great abyss that accepts all job applications. I just received an email from a potential employer in Montreal inquiring as to when I will return. It's many steps away from actual employment, but I'm reveling in the small bit of human attention, and I wanted to share the good news.

Healthy and Sweaty

The one request that J and I have received for content was from my Mom (thanks, Mom!), who requested more postings on our everyday life. It's not exactly everyday, but we do try to go to the gym on a regular basis. There's really very little excuse since it's just around the corner and between our apartment and school.

H's feeling friskis (healthy) and svettis (sweaty) after her workout!

I particularly like their advertising, which tells you a bit about how they see themselves, and about how I see myself.

Not that I go around grabbing guys' boobs...

J has made working out tougher these days by making friends at the gym. He's recently befriended a confessed workout sadist whom I will undoubtedly be cursing tomorrow morning!

Hotels which break the mold

Say you're sick of hotels. Budget hotels, luxury hotels, kitschy motels, character hotels, boutique hotels, big-brand hotels, youth hostels, friends' couches... whatever. You want something different, something special, something--dare I say--unique?

To ask is to receive: 20 hotels which break the mold.

What's that you say? 20 ain't enough? Fine. How about a whole website dedicated to unusual hotels of the world? With a "wow factor" rating system and everything. Snap!

Gives new meaning to the expression, "In through the out door," doesn't it?

Yes, yes. It's true. I admit that H indubitably IS the travelmaster (for which admission I've earned the right to call myself the blogkeeper). Together, we are one heck of a snazzy travel-blog team!

Danish wedding traditions

H and I spent some time in Copenhagen, Denmark over Easter weekend. It was, understandably, a rather quiet visit. While there, I met with a new professional contact, UE. We got on well enough that U was kind enough to invite H and me to the reception for his impending wedding in Århus, Denmark. Danish wedding traditions being what they are, we're extremely excited. For example:

Adding to the interest of mealtime are the kissing traditions. Whenever the groom leaves the room, all the men in the room rush over and queue up to kiss the bride. Whenever the bride leaves the room, all the women rush over to kiss the groom. The use of tongue is discouraged.

The wedding we're attending will be between two men, so we're not exactly sure how to manage this particular tradition. H says that this means she can kiss anyone she wants, but that seems backwards. It seems clear that I'll be the one able to kiss anyone I want. In any case, we feel confident that we can manage if we just do as the Århusians are doing.

The wedding will be next Saturday, but I'll be heading over to Århus early. I've managed to finagle myself a spot as a guest interviewer for the incoming class at the KaosPilot school. Details are a bit sketchy at this point, but I intend to enjoy myself pretty much no matter what. Once I've finished, I'll post reflections and commentary over at my professional blog. Don't miss it!

You've got questions

We've got answers. Wat pho? Pho evvy-ting!

Existential angst is no match for our trained masseurs!

How not to order your steak

It's all too easy to let your imagination run away with you when confronted with a language all-too-closely-related to English. At first glance, it would appear that Jensen's House of Bof, brazenly advertising its wares in shameless red neon, has located itself in the wrong district.

When asked how you would like your bof, a strategic answer is "tender."

But then, learning that the sign in the above photo translates verbatim to Jensen's Beefhouse doesn't much improve things. Imagine what it's like being a waiter there: "Welcome to our beefhouse! How pink would you like your meat?" How many times can one dine there before indulging in at least one or two vulgar puns? And then how many lowbrow double entendres can one waiter endure before giving in to despair? There's a verbal reckoning coming soon at Jensen's, and I for one don't want to be there when it arrives.

Remember Estonia

Loyal readers will remember that H was able secure free cruise tickets to Tallin, Estonia for us back in March. I finally got my act together and posted on the trip. Enjoy!

B&J's Free Cone Day!

Just a quick reminder that 17 April is this year's Free Cone Day at Ben & Jerry's shops the world over. Wherever you are, look up the nearest B&J's to get your free cone.

If you're in Sweden, we've located the Swedish version of the announcement. But, of course, it's all to little avail unless you can find your local Swedish B&J's. As it turns out, there's one in Malmö at the Hansagallerian, and we think there's one in Stockholm on Kungsholmen at the Västermalmsgallerian (Corner of S:t Eriksgatan and Fleminggatan; T-stop: Fridhemsplan). Count on us being there in the early afternoon, savoring our free Phish Food.

Where "economists" rule

As many of our loyal readers know, H is currently attending the Stockholm School of Economics on exchange. The main building for the school lies in between our apartment and the Stockholm City Library, which (as we've mentioned) lies only half a block away from us. That puts the SSE practically next door.

Like so many Stockholmian buildings, the SSE evinces a rather ponderous and solemn aspect. But at least it isn't one the grotesqueries which sometimes pass for university buildings these days.

Fee fie fo fum. I hear knocking a tiny someone...

Our apartment is only a bit off to the "left" in the above photos. And speaking of those photos, who is that tiny-seeming someone before the massive doors which admit only the economically initiate?

Bwa hah hah! It is all mine!

It's amazing how big architecture makes you feel small. And that's no mean feat when it comes to my big, bold, beautiful wife. Even in this photo, the massiveness of the building fails entirely in preventing H from owning the place. And who's gonna' stop her? Certainly not me, certainly not the architecture--and I seriously doubt any SSE student would represent more than a speedbump on her path to global dominion.

Incidentally, if you ask really nicely in the comments, I bet y'all could convince H to explain the "Female Economist of the Year" award. Worth a try.

Red Hats off to the winners

Complete results have been published on the Red Hat Challenge website.

We are pleased to report--as you'll notice--that we made second on that list! Following our victory at the Innovation Challenge last November, a second win was perhaps a bit too much to ask. But we figured what the heck--and so we tried to squeeze another hash into the "Win" column when the karmic accountants weren't paying attention.

Thanks to everyone who sent us their support and well wishes!

Göteborg's finest

H and I have finally finished putting together all our posts on Göteborg.

While we hope most of you will remember the lipstick episode (and who could forget that?!), we've also added more material on the urban design and architecture of Göteborg, including a riotous post covering their church devoted to fish. Yes, fish. And shellfish. And mayonnaise. And fish. Yum. And did we mention that it's a church? (OK, so it's not really a church; but they do call it the Feskekörke, which means the fish church.)

If you'd rather skip the serious stuff, you can jump directly to our (always hilarious) commentary on the city and its culture, including the Göteborgeois's potentially unhealthy obsession with mobile homes, xenophilia, highly trustworthy law firms, and overdeveloped sense of direction. We also learned a bit about the demise of the Swedish plan for their own basketball "dream team."

Oh, yes. Almost forgot. Watch out for those mad trams!

Back among our Stockhomies

Yes, you read right. It's apparently not Stockholmians (as we first thought), but Stockhomies. And we are back among them, enjoying the lengthening days and expensive coffee.

Some readers have asked for a few posts on H's and my immediate neighborhood. Happy to oblige. (There will be a few more posts forthcoming on the subject, so stay tuned!)

Notwithstanding Modern architecture's all-too-numerous utter and unassailable stupidities, it also lays claim to a few flashes of genius. Since Modern architecture was pretty much the first global architectural "style," one finds it everywhere. Stockholm as a city is perhaps unfortunate in that it seems to have acquired more than its fair share of Modern crap, but we're lucky in that one of the best early Modern designs lives about half a block from our apartment.

Half Prussian fortress and half wedding cake, the Stockholm public library inhabits the middle ground between civic authority and geometric whimsy.

Erik Gunnar Asplund's forward-looking design for Stockholm's city library

marks an architectural turning point, the more traditional classicism of the early sketches giving way to increasing simplification. The ornamentation was gradually pared down to a few pictorial friezes in bas relief. In the simple, glazed shopfront base completed in 1928, functionalism has already made its entrance.

Apart from the building's historical import, it's extremely convenient to have it so close. H and I constantly raid the library's surprisingly substantial English language section, trawling for fun classics and the better best-sellers. (We've set up our own little "A-Store" on Amazon.com, so you can browse H's recent reads, J's faves, and other recommendations by clicking on the appropriate links over on the right sidebar.) While the inside of the library isn't up to the same standard as the outside (too much fluorescent lighting... blech!), the building still makes for a wonderful backdrop for our urban adventures.

Red Hat Challenge complete!

Well, we've finally finished with the Red Hat Challenge. We had a great time doing it, but we're also glad that it's over, as it had been absorbing a great deal of our time and mental energy over the past several days. Our apologies for the dearth of posts recently. We'll now be spending some time filling in all the blanks we've accumulated over the past few weeks.

In the meantime, H would like to me to broadcast a message from from her to all you loyal readers out there--coming right at you from Copenhagen, Denmark:

Whom do I superlove? That's right! It's you!

UPDATE (11 April 2007): We've been promised that we'll have the Red Hat Challenge results by the end of the week (13 April 2007). Believe us--when we know, you'll know!

We're not in Kansas anymore

No, indeed! We're in Malmö, Sweden. "Where's Malmö?" you ask. Well, it's polite of you to try and draw me into conversation with your questions, but you don't have to pretend to ignorance on my account. Everyone knows that everyone knows where Malmö is.

Here. Malmö is right here. As everyone knows.

And a good thing, too, that everyone (including us!) knows where Malmö is, since we had rather a disorienting experience recently. We were actually enjoying ourselves immensely in Copenhagen when a great tornado swept down out of the Nordic sky and transported us non-stop to Sweden's third largest city.

The "Turning Torso" has become one of Malmö's signature buildings (read: BSS).

OK, OK, so we actually planned the trip to Malmö. As it turns out, H has an internet friend of hers, GS--an Australian man with whom she's played online Scrabble (watch out--it's a really weird site) for years, but had never met in person--who lives here with his lovely wife SN and adorable baby girl C. On our way back to Stockholm from Copenhagen, we joined them for GS's birthday/Easter brunch this past Sunday and had ourselves a raucous good time. Well, in all honesty we weren't all that raucous, but we did eat a lot of bacon.

H and I have rarely met a warmer group of people. And they're Swedes. So much for stereotypes.

The weather has become rainy, so we don't expect to get out much today or tomorrow. Hopefully, though, we'll be able to see at least a little of this compact city. All the natives seem to love it, and there are few better recommendations.

Nice shades!

Hey, H! How many dollars did you pay for those sunnies?

How hip can you get for the mere price of one movie rental?

Damn! That lady can shop!

Classy or sassy?

Seen in a Copenhagen bar:

I'll bet you 5 kroner that this Carlsberg is probably the best beer in town.

Well, I don't really have an opinion about whether Carlsberg is or isn't the best beer. But someone--and I mean someone who has money to spend--clearly isn't 100% certain on the quality of Carlsberg. I mean, in the US, every frickin' thing is "the world's best" or "Number 1" or "Unbeaten in its class" or whatever. The Danes, by contrast, are so... unassuming. (Click to enlarge...)

Jens, Ulf, Niels, and I have been talking, and we're pretty close to 70% sure that København doesn't yet have any beer superior to Carlsberg.

To be honest, I have no idea which beer is in the glass. It's the other thing in the glass which motivated me to snap this photo. Look more closely:

Honey, please stop blowing bubbles in your beer. There are enough in there already.

Who drinks beer with a straw? I mean, is this a bar or a soda fountain? We really liked this bar, so we'd like to think that it isn't the fault of the owner--it's just that the Danes prefer slurping to sipping when it comes to beer. On the other hand, it may simply be that this guy is really fond of straws. Another mystery left unsolved in Denmark.

Stopping to smell the flowers

J takes a moment to appreciate the ironwork outside the European Environment Agency's offices, located in Copenhagen, Denmark.

I shall deesteell zee odeur und makes a nuw fragrahnce--und zees fragrahnce shall be called "La Nature en Fer!"

Goings on in Denmark

Blogging may be a bit light for the next few days, as H and I will be traveling first to København (Copenhagen), Denmark and then to Malmö, Sweden. We're scheduled to depart early Thursday 5 April 2007 and we plan to return late Tuesday 10 April 2007. If we have time and internet access, we'll try to post a little bit, but no promises--we're not likely to have too much time, anyway. Reports on the Danish and Southern Swedes for sure when we return!

Breaking News!

This has nothing to do with Swedish people and their ways, architecture, cake, or coffee. We wanted to share the news that J and I just found out that we and our team were selected as one of the five finalists in the Red Hat Challenge. The Red Hat Challenge is an innovation competition where we gave our strategic suggestions to the CEO of Red Hat, Inc., "the world's most trusted provider of Linux and open source technology." Those who know us well know that we were on the profitable end of the Innovation Challenge at the end of 2006, and we had a great time doing it. Now, we get to present our wacky idea to Red Hat's top executives. We can't wait!

Of palaces and princesses

This past Sunday (1 April 2007), our friends AB and GM took H and me to visit Drottingholm Palace, the official residence of the Swedish Royal Family. One wing is open to the public as a museum, while the other continues to serve as the royal family's living quarters. (Celebrity news note: the youngest princess, Madeleine, has been entertainingly trying to ditch her reputation as the Swedish Paris Hilton; no denying she's pretty--as is her sister, Crown Princess Victoria--but I think they both seem rather too sensible to aspire to the awe-inspiring embarrassingness that is Paris Hilton. Besides, I think PH dips herself in ugly two or three times a week.) Architecturally, both the building and its French-style gardens are obviously inspired by, if not out-and-out copies of, the Chateau de Versailles.

Excuse me, you two. You're blocking my view of the palace. OK, thanks.

In perusing the museum--which contains several notable paintings and craft objects--H was most impressed by the number of portraits of women in which the content and composition both suggested that the women depicted not only held nominally but exercised practically real power. Women with architectural plans splayed before them or with scepters in their hands. I most enjoyed the ceiling frescoes in the grand stair, which contained a few really excellent examples of anamorphosis. (No photos were permitted indoors.)

We also visited the Chinese Pavilion, a collection of buildings on

the majestic grounds of Drottningholm.

King Adolf Fredrik surprised Queen Lovisa Ulrika on her birthday in 1753 with a small Chinese pleasure palace in the Drottningholm Palace park. It was a highly appreciated birthday present as chinoiserie was all the rage in Europe at the time.

The original wooden building was replaced in the 1760s by a more permanent one, which today contains one of the finest European rococo interiors with chinoiserie.

Recipe for architectural whimsy: (1) Visit China. (2) See Chinese architecture. (3) Take notes. (4) Give notes to Swedish workmen. (5) Instruct Swedish workmen to build "authentic" Chinese pavilion. (6) Enjoy.

One of the smaller buildings was apparently also used by the royal couple as a kind of dinner pavilion. The kitchen (now a café which bustles on the weekends) is in the basement, and the section of the floor upon which the dinner table sits actually moves up and down like an elevator. The king and queen were thereby able to have a full-service meal without any servants hovering about. Very clever.

Notice the dark line around the feet of the table...

We had another delightful afternoon with AB and GM, we learned a bit about Swedish history and culture, and the weather was glorious. What more can one ask of a Sunday afternoon?