Week 10

Friday

I got to eat a most delicious pastry at morgenbrød again. The last time I had this one, I described it to Zac and said I thought it was a Danish kringle.  He want to the bakery to find one and said he didn't see anything with that name. He bought something labeled wienerbrød and it was good but not quite the same.

So tasty and yet so controversial.

So Friday, when I saw it sitting there, I asked my colleagues for clarification.

Chaos ensued.

Me: "This is a kringle, right? Not a wienerbrød?"

Coworker 1: "Yes, kringle."

Coworker 2: "I thought it was a wienerbrød? Kringle is a circle."

Coworker 1: "Maybe it's just part of a kringle, so we can't see the whole circle to know it's a kringle."

[Googling and a lot of Danish chatter.]

Coworker 1: "A kringle is a circle or a...kringle...shape [shows me a picture of a pretzel]. So this is a wienerstang."

Me: "WienerSTANG? Not wienerBRØD?"

Coworker 1: "WienerBRØD is small and short [holding up hands to show like the size of a maple bar]. WienerSTANG is longer like this. Stang is like a pole. Or a stick? Like a pole [inappropriate hand motions] or a stick. So...a Wiener pole? Do you say pole?"

Me: "We could say pole."

Coworker 2: "No, not pole. A pole is straight up and down. It's a rod. A Wiener rod."

Coworker 3: "Actually, I think this is a borgmesterstang with borgmestercreme inside."

[Laughter.]

Coworker 1: "Borgmester is like mayor. So a mayor's pole. With mayor's...cream...inside."

[More Googling, more laughing, and some discussion in Danish.]

Coworker 2: "This is a wienerstang."

Coworker 1: "OK. It's a wienerstang."

So I guess it was settled.

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You all know Zac loves European metal music, and one of the huge perks of moving over here is that we would be local for all the great music festivals, including Copenhell. Copenhell is a huge open-air metal festival they hold every year, and Zac often laments that he can't attend, especially because the lineup frequently includes some of his very favorite bands. We missed it by about two months since we moved over here in August and the festival is in June, but we vowed to go in 2024. Nate (Zac's brother) said he would join us, too!

On Friday morning, I happened to glance at my phone on the walk back to my desk from the great wienerstang debate, and I saw that Copenhell 2024 tickets were going on sale at 10:00. I pulled it up on the screen, I was ready to go, and right at 10 (after some fussing with which card to use...my U.S. card still tries to verify me through my U.S. phone number, which does not exist), I purchased 4-day tickets for me, Zac, and Nate. It's going to be a totally surreal experience.

I'm a little concerned that I've only heard of 3 of the 22 bands already announced, and I can only claim to legitimately know songs from 1 of the 3, but I think there will end up being around 75 bands playing. Last year, I knew (and liked) a bunch of them, so I'm hoping more familiar bands will sign on as we get closer to June.

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Zac had been trying to figure out which beer he had at the "slow beer" bar last weekend and he finally saw it listed on a website (by chance) as one of his coworkers was showing him a different beer. He sent me a picture, and I asked him if he wanted to come to Fredagsøl (Friday beer) with everyone since it was the first Friday of the month. He declined and went home instead.

I rode with Thomas since I didn't have a ride and he didn't know where to go. We were the first ones there though, and he was very skeptical. He asked me if I was sure we were in the right place. I assured him we were and suggested we order a beer and find a table. When I looked at the type of beer they were serving, it was 100% the exact beer Zac had texted me earlier that day! He missed out.

Liselund IPA from Bryghuset Møn

There were more than twice as many of us attending as last month! I even knew two people in another ALK group that joined, so we raised our glasses and said, "Skål!" from across the room. I had nice conversation and then Vibe dropped me off at the top of the road on her way back home.

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I had promised Harrison we could decorate for Halloween, so I hauled our single plastic tub of Halloween decorations upstairs and we put them out. It didn't take very long, but it was fun for him to re-discover the things we had saved. We all hung out as a family, Zac decorated the record shelf and played Halloween music on the speakers, and I read Harrison some Halloween books. (Grandma Debbie even joined us for a couple of them via video chat!)

This jack-o-lanter is audio-activated. Whenever someone opens a soda or does the dishes or sneezes, he shouts, "Haaaaappy Halloween! Ha-ha-ha!" Usually, we put him up high so that we can't turn him off and he can annoy us all October. Now that he's reachable, Zac has requested he be turned off twice already.

Saturday

Khloe was supposed to go to a birthday party for a girl in her class, but just before we left, she told me her stomach wasn't feeling very well. After pressing her a little, we agreed to drive toward the party and she could make a decision on whether or not to attend by the time we arrived. She decided she probably shouldn't go expose her friends to whatever she had picked up from Kaden, so I texted her regrets to the hostess from the parking lot.

Since we were planning on shopping for a record player and some bike things we needed near the party location, we carried through with those plans. Zac has his eye on a Pro-ject X2 B, but he wanted to look at some before committing, so basically, we just browsed and talked to a guy. I bet our new records would sound great if we could play them...

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Harrison has been really hurting for a kid his own age to play with at home. He has a good buddy at school, but when he's home, he's constantly just hoping Kaden or Khloe wants to go on a bike ride or jump on the trampoline with him. He always says, "Can I go knock on Asger's door?" or "Can I see if Mads wants to play?" but those boys are like Kaden's age, and it breaks my heart to have to tell him that they do not want to play Bruder trucks with him because they're so much older.

Vibe told me about a woman, Tanja, who lives just down the road. She used to work at ALK, her middle son is friends with Vibe's middle son, and she has a younger boy, Johannus, who is much closer to Harrison's age (he's about 14 months older than Harrison though). Vibe gave me Tanja's number last weekend, but I knew she was busy, so I waited until this weekend. After some continual prodding from Harrison, I texted her and tried to arrange a meet-up.

Fortunately, she was open to it, and she brought Johannes and his big brother, Valdemar, to meet Harrison in front of our house, then we all walked over to a little football (soccer) field by our house so the boys could play. Of course, Johannes doesn't speak very much English yet, and Harrison doesn't speak very much Danish yet, but Harrison got brave and introduced himself in Danish ("Jeg hedder Harrison.") and asked Johannes's name as well ("Hvad hedder du?").

They were both pretty shy, but Valdemar helped to bridge the gap and translate a little, and in just a few minute, all three boys were playing football (soccer) and having a great time. When they were done, we walked to their house and Harrison and Johannes played games on the trampoline. Johannes showed Harrison his room and we agreed to have more play dates another time.

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Zac asked what we should do for dinner and I suggested we try making frikadellers. They are a very Danish food and are essentially a flattened pork meatball. They are usually served on rugebrød (rye bread) as a smørrebrød topping or as a main dish with boiled potatoes and vegetables.

I found a recipe, we bought the ingredients, and we made them! 

Zac did most of the work, and he even made a delicious white pepper gravy for the potatoes. As his own little touch, he made bacon crumbles to top them with.

They tasted *so* good, and we will definitely add them to the rotation.

For dessert, we bought some sweet Belgian waffles and some salted caramel sauce. We still have some delicious vanilla ice cream left from International Day, and this seemed like a good way to fancy it up a bit. It was also insanely delicious.

Sunday

It wasn't a very wild day. We just cleaned a bunch of shelving, did a bunch of laundry, and unpacked a lot of our things. I also helped Harrison build a huge fort in his bedroom - he's been really enjoying the boxes and blankets. He is also SO excited for Halloween. He got a hand-me-down costume from Vibe's son, Arthur, when they left the U.S. to move back to Denmark. Harrison calls it the "Devil's guard" costume, and it comes with a big plastic axe and glowing eyes. He basically wears it constantly and just walks around trying to scare us. He also likes to dance in it. Monster Mash and Spooky, Scary Skeletons are his go-to songs for being creepy.

Just getting the not-so-everyday things shelved was really fulfilling. I put away the camping gear (although Zac's coworkers said that we can't use our orange tent because in Denmark, the tents have to be neutral colors to blend in with the surroundings and not ruin the natural feel of the area), the summer stuff (lifejackets, beach towels, etc.), holiday decorations, extra shoes, and the photos/keepsakes. I also made some piles to deal with later, but at least they are sorted.

Also, I found a respectable game and puzzle shelf built into the wall in the basement near the storage shelving, so I present to you the (severely pared-down) "game closet."

I guess I cut off a bunch of the puzzles at the bottom, but I was trying to avoid photographing the giant pile of LEGO stuff that I still haven't done anything with.

We also hung up some of our wall decor...

Plant propagation racks are ready and waiting!!

The kids are back in the stairwell.

...and we helped Khloe set up her room more thoroughly. We hung her cork board, her mirrored hook ledge, and that huge canvas she got for free (she still needs to paint it, but she picked out the spot). I helped her tack her fairly lights around her bed, and she's very happy with how things are turning out.

Note the giant canvas on the wall at the end of the bed. I can't wait to see what she paints!

Zac was feeling a little under the weather all day, but he still found the energy to make an incredible breakfast, play War! (the card game) with Harrison, help the neighbor move a foosball table, and cook us a magnificent pasta dinner. Gosh, I love that guy.

Monday

Zac was feeling pretty sick with his cough Monday morning, so he opted to stay home. Staying home when you're not feeling well is encouraged in Denmark, and we essentially get unlimited paid sick days here, so it seemed like a good idea for him to rest up.

I drove our car to work! It was only a little scary. I think the thing that makes it scary is just not being familiar with the area and the roads, not the car itself. It drives nicely.

I did it!

At work, I had an analytical training that lasted all morning. I was in a different building for that, and as I sat in their break room, Lene said, "Hey! Zac is on the board!" And so he was.

Can you find him?

After work, Kaden talked to me about his decision to quit basketball. He said it was hard to understand everything in Danish, but I sensed it was more than that. I asked him if he would still play if everyone decided they were going to speak in English from now on and he looked hesitant. He said he also didn't think it was very fun and that he wasn't ready to play so competitively. I asked if he'd enjoy playing competitively with friends and he said yes, so I think at the crux of the issue is that he doesn't feel included even though everyone is nice. It can be hard to break into a group that's been together for a long time. He wrote an email to the coach, and I tried to swallow the fact that I had already bought him shoes and paid half of his season dues. :)

As you know, Khloe is involved in the Limenas theater group here in Birkerød, and parents are definitely expected to help. I had clicked the little boxes next to commitments that would come into play a little closer to showtime in January, but then an email went out about helping with costumes and I couldn't help myself. I signed up right away for several 4.5-hour shifts.

Listen. I *would've* picked costuming right from the get-go, but I figured I'd need a sewing machine and I couldn't bring mine to Denmark. When I got the email, it said "no sewing experience needed," so I decided that meant there were jobs that did not require you to own a sewing machine. If I have to volunteer, it should be something I love doing.

I wanted to take pictures of the work we did, but the whole theater group is very close-lipped about the shows until the main performance, so I couldn't get pictures of the things I helped with. Instead, please enjoy a photo of some sewing supplies and my hand covered in white paint.

Oh yeah. I seam-ripped some shit.

Guess what I was doing?

The group of people I worked with were very kind and welcoming. I didn't say anything when I first arrived, but it seemed like everyone was kind of chatting about what we were going to do that evening and they all laughed (but of course I didn't because I didn't know what they said) and then they kind of started just looking back and forth at each other. Someone spoke in a suggestive tone so I took the opportunity to say, "I'm sorry. I don't speak Danish yet."

The woman in charge said, "Oh!" and someone next to me said, "Oh, LINDSEY!" and I figured out that she was the person I've been emailing with about whether Khloe should stay in theater or not.

So then the person in charge said, "So we will try to go around and do introductions in English if that's OK?"

I said, "Oh, you can all speak Danish! I don't mind. I just won't laugh when you all laugh and it will make me seem like a psychopath."

They all thought I was very funny, but it's actually one of the biggest social struggles I face here. Who would've thought?

Anyway, introductions were in English, several people had conversations with me in English, and I really had a nice time.

Khloe had fun at theater, and Zac picked us both up at the end of the night.

Tuesday

Zac was feeling much better, so he was ready to go back to work. He rode the bus early. I rode my bike for the third time and won Thomas's challenge!

See how fast I'm going? Whoosh!

Yes, I am blurry and I look weird, but it's hard to take a selfie when you're biking down a hill.

The bike path is so pretty!! See the sheep on the right?

We spent the evening playing guitar and unpacking more things. It's fun to rediscover our stuff!

Wednesday

Harrison packed up his lunch, water bottle, rain coat, and rain pants because he was going on a field trip! He's writing a blog post about that, so won't say more. :)

Thursday

I got SUPER brave and drove Harrison to school today. It was uneventful, which was good.

We had an online parent-teacher conference with Harrison's teacher, April. She said Harrison was respectful and good at joining in their class conversations. He started the year at reading level E and is already at G, which is where they want the kids at the end of the year. He's good at math and has a solid understanding of all the things they have been doing. He works well with anyone she groups him with and says he only needs to really work on his handwriting neatness. So all good things. :)

Khloe had a special 3-hour theater get-together at the far end of town, so we dropped her off and hoped she would have fun. After some sad, lonely texts, she found some people to connect with and ended up having a wonderful evening. Phew!

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Sorry for the lack of pictures from Wednesday and Thursday! I hope Harrison finishes his blog this weekend, and maybe I can get the other kids to write something, too!