My Job

I am sitting in my hotel room in Vilnius, Lithuania reflecting on the past 2 months of my life. When Arvid and I decided to stay in Sweden and live in Piteå, we had no idea what would happen. I knew that I would have great opportunities to play with Anders and the new Masters guys (Jake and Charles), but how we would live from day to day was totally unknown.

Before leaving for the summer, I knocked on a lot of doors to let as many people know that I was staying in Piteå as possible. I met with a few of the school administrators to inform them of my skills and attributes, and pretty much asked for work even though there weren't any jobs open. I was really nervous leaving Piteå and knowing that wouldn't have any steady work when I returned, but had to put those feelings aside to enjoy the opportunities of the summer.

Just before we moved, the anxiety of the unknown returned. However, it didn't last long. The day we moved into Nygatan, I got a call from Micke. I wrote about Micke a lot last year. He is the advisor to the international students at the school, as well as the coordinator and teacher for the jazz/rock/studio music program (which is the best in Sweden). He was the only person I could go to last year that would help me instantly and I always felt like he got things done. He called and asked me to meet him the next day.

On Tuesday, I met him at 11am. After a bit of a catch up session (he had heard about Arvid through Anders. And, everyone wants to hear a good love story!), he said that he was working at about 300%, and needed to hire an assistant, specifically to work with the international/exchange students. My main duties would consist of taking care of all the non-Swedish students; help them integrate into the community, and guide them in any and every way. I quickly took the job. Unfortunately, we couldn't solidify a salary or the specifics of the position, which caused a few headaches in the following weeks. But, I trusted Micke. I knew he would look out for my well-being, so I started to work right away.

The orientation period began that very next day, so there was no time to loose. I met all the students, and helped organize the 2 weeks of events, classes, outings, and such. I also helped the students with their apartments, laundry, where to go get groceries, how to open a bank account, how to log-in to the school's website, etc...all of the things that I figured out on my own last year. It makes me feel really great that I was able to help these students get acclimated so quickly...all the headaches that occurred at the beginning of my Swedish adventure were worth it!

Along with taking care of these "kids" (yes, they now just call me mom), I am assisting our students apply to study abroad next year. I've gotten about 16 students that are interested so far, which is double the amount of last year!

I am in Vilnius to attend a conference that starts tomorrow for the "Nordplus Music Network". It's compiled of music schools in Sweden, Finland, Norway, Denmark, Lithuania, Latvia, Iceland, and Estonia. They have the funds to give students and teachers scholarships for exchanges, and this is their annual meeting. I'm here to network and learn more about the organization. Not a bad gig!

I will also be traveling to Shanghai and Hangzhou, China next week!!!! I have organized a trip for our teachers (including myself) to visit a University in Hangzhou to help build their music program. Micke set up the exchange a few years ago, and he is sending me to get a new contract between the schools. While I'm there, I get to teach as well! I can't believe I am getting this great opportunity!

The first few weeks of being "hired" at the school were tough because no one really knew why I was still around. But, now I have a little office and more administrators and teachers are used to me being there. I'm also getting more "side jobs". I'm teaching a rhythm class once a week along with the percussion lessons that I taught last year. I also get random assignments to edit translations and write texts in English.

Along with the "job", I am working hard with Jake and Charles and for Anders. We have 2 concerts coming up with week, and a lot of plans for the next 2 years (including a percussion festival in March, a trip to the Ice Hotel to play on ice instruments, a Swedish tour, etc...) We named our group Ensemble Evolution and we're going to start an official business under the name. We hope to get as many gigs as possible!!! More on the group later (I love the guys!)

Arvid is also really happy with my success, but I am even more happy with HIS success. He has had his own web development company since he was 17 or so (that's why he's so flexible when it comes to moving!) He's been looking for more steady work, and a few weeks ago a friend called us saying that his friend was leaving a job at a marketing company in Piteå, and they were searching for a new guy to take his job. Arvid agreed to take an interview, and the following day, he got the job!!! Just like that!!! He is so happy as the Senior Web Developer at More Media. His office is actually in the building connected to the music school....so, we can have a fika together at anytime!

So, we have the apartment, the jobs, the friends, and the love. I miss my family so much, but I know that they are happy with how this adventure has turned into so much more!

Nygatan 34

Arvid and I have lived in our new place for about 2 months now, and it really does feel like home! Moving-in was a bit stressful (when is moving not annoying!), but we got through it all, and are in love with our new pad!

A few photos from the move.... 

 First....we needed to pack up Arvid and Alex's apartment in Uppsala. 3 boys + 4 years = 1 messy place!

 Loading the trailer...getting ready for the 8 hour drive to Norrbotten!

 BFF's are sad to be apart. I am a home wrecker! :)

Pit stop during the drive! (I probably had to pee)

We arrived in Skellefteå on Sunday night, but had to return the van by 8am the next day. So, we stayed the night at Arvid's parents house, then got up early on Monday to make the hour drive to Piteå. We unloaded the truck in about 30 minutes (just the 2 of us). Arvid had to return to Skellefteå to return the trailer, and I stayed to start unpacking...then the real FUN began! :)

 Our building! our windows and balcony are in the back 

The kitched is the first thing you see when you walk in...and now it looks a lot better!

the large living room is so nice! We really didn't have that much stuff, I couldn't wait to fill it up! 

 I LOVE the windows. We still don't have curtains, and I'm ok with it! (hope our neighbors enjoy the show!)

 Balcony! part of it is glassed in! I can't wait until the Spring! 

 Oh, how I love Swedish bathrooms. :-( I miss shower stalls and bathtubs! but, I'm not complaining!

 We bought a new coffee maker right away! 

 our view!!

 our first night together in our new place!

 a new beginning....

 "organized" living room...can't wait to get furniture!

We kept the table from Arvid's old place. For a couple weeks it acted as a work station too. I was checking out the IKEA website while eating dinner!

 Arvid's farmor och farfar (grandparents on his dad's side)  gave us thier couch and chair! We were so thankful! they are really comfy, plus I was able to use the fabric to plan our colors, which was helpful during the big IKEA run!

 I have never had so much fun at IKEA. I'm proud of us for doing our homework, and knowing what we wanted before we went. We spent the entire day at the store, and would have had to spend a week there without the planning! I couldn't wait to get home and put everything together!

 All the kitchen stuff

 I am now a Master Ikea Assembler!

 The big shelf

 We are nerds. We bought our desks before we bought a bed. seriously.

IKEA IKEA IKEA everywhere!

 It's starting to look like a room!

 Our coffee and tea station :)

Floating dish drying rack. so cool!

 LOOK! no computers on the table! woohoo!

 My desk with all my things

 IKEA run no. 2 (it's about 2 hours away)! We needed a few more things, plus I had to get all the supplies for the new exchange students at the school (for my job...I'll write about that soon!)

 The car was filled! we had so much fun shopping for the students...it's not everyday you get to buy 6 of everything at IKEA.

 Thanks for your help, RV!

 When we got home, Anna and Lou were there! Lou was visiting from England, so I gave them a key. It was time for a house warming get together...but first, we put them to work!

 I love the red and black combo :-)

 mmmmm.....I felt like my Piteå family was all together! It was a lovely night!

Cozy 

The apartment has become more like home everyday, but this is what the first few weeks were like! We expect visiters (hint, hint!) :-)

A Swede in Cincinnati

Without a doubt, the highlight of our summer was the three weeks we spent in Ohio visiting my family and friends. It was really important to me for Arvid to meet and get to know everyone in person (and not just on Skype). I wanted to see if he could survive in “my world”, and I can confidently say, he passed the test! 

When I worked out the traveling schedule for the summer (BYP session-USA-BYP session-move to Piteå), I knew it would be hectic and not very relaxing. However, everything went wrong in our travels that possibly could, so getting from place to place was even more stressful than I imagined!

Originally, I had about 3 days between the first BYP session (the Russia fiasco) and flying back to Ohio; I was supposed to get to Piteå on Saturday morning, and leave for Cincy from Stockholm very early on Tuesday morning. However, I got to Piteå on Sunday morning…and as we tried to book our flight from Skellefteå to Stockholm for Monday night, we realized that the SAS (Scandinavian Airlines) changed their flight schedules for the summer (usually there are about 8-10 flights a day), and there were NO flights on Monday. So, in a panic, we had to hitch a ride with our friends Elias and Sebastian who were coincidentally driving down to Stockholm Monday morning. Thank goodness for that! Now, if you do the math, that gave us less than 24 hours for the turnaround between trips where we had to clean out my apartment in Piteå and unpack/repack, not to mention that I had to recover from 36 hours of sleep depravity and emotional exhaustion! Talk about a test of the relationship…but, we were fine!...up at 7am on Monday with smiles on our faces.

The 8 hour drive to Stockholm was fine, and I will always be thankful for Elias and Sebastian! I don’t know what we would have done without them! We stayed in Arvid’s apartment in Uppsala that night (I did about 4 loads of laundry…) and were up at 4am to take a taxi to the airport.

When we got to the airport I was immediately struck by anxiety.  I have never been nervous about traveling, but it seemed that Russia had ruined me. We arrived at the airport in plenty of time, but because it was an early morning flight, there were huge lines, and I was so afraid that we were going to miss our flight. Poor Arvid had to deal with a very unpleasant side of me! But, we were just fine getting through the huge lines, and made it on the flight in plenty time. We had a layover in Paris (where I was once again so nervous! Security is intense at that airport), but made it on the transatlantic flight. However, it was the worst 8 hours of flying that I’ve ever had. My body was so screwed up…I couldn’t sleep, but wanted to desperately…my legs were going crazy (does anyone remember that “restless leg syndrome” commercial a few years back? I always laughed at it…but I think that it exists!), and I just wanted to be home! I was literally counting the minutes until we landed. 

 on the way to the USA!

The lines for customs and passport control weren’t too bad, but we were in the back of the plane…which meant the back of the lines. I had to wait a long time for Arvid to get through his "foreigner" line, but there were no problems. We grabbed our bags and headed toward the exit, I couldn’t wait to see mom and dad!

They were standing at the top of an escalator, waiting with open arms. I wanted to talk and talk and talk about everything that had happened the past few weeks, but I literally don’t remember much from the car ride home (except that it took about 40 minutes longer than it should have because of a sudden downpour and thunder storm...welcome to Ohio!). I do remember that we ate at Rafferty’s and Arvid had his first sip of Iced Tea. Then, when we got home and started to watch a movie, I fell asleep literally face down on the floor of our family room (I missed cushy carpet! They only have wood floors in Sweden!)

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The first few days in Ohio were spent with Dad (he took the week off of work) relaxing around the house and hanging out...

 We took Arvid to Outdoor World. He loved it, and we went back to shop later in the trip!

 Cooking a yummy dinner all together! 

Dad and Arvid really got along great! We even let Arvid in on our traditional father/daughter sushi date, which was a lot of fun, and delicious!

 YUMMMMMM

 haha, we didn't think we would be able to eat it all...but this only took a few minutes to devour! 

During the visit, I spent more time at our neighborhood pool that I have in the last 10 years combined. Arvid was addicted to going to the pool because of the hot, hot weather. It was a typical Cincy summer, but a lot more hot and humid than Arvid was used to. He also slowly began meeting some people that first week (Grandma and Joe, Aunt Kathy, some friends…), but we needed to save our energy for a trip to Lake Cumberland in the weekend.  I think the best way to talk about the trip is through pictures….we had an amazing time!!

Arvid got to know my awesome family in Cumberland fast! They immediately gave him the nickname "RV" (which I use often now), and we had the best time out on the water for three days. Arvid was amazing at all of the water sports (I was less-than) and we had the best time laughing, swimming, and eating (of course)! 

c

 he was a great skier....first time! I was jealous!

 Logan and RV (Loggy called him ballman) got along great! especially since we had to treat them both the same when it came to skin protection! Haha, Arvid's Swedish skin couldn't handle the Kentucky sun!

 On the Seado. I reluctantly went with him. I screamed the whole way, and we eventually were thrown off by a wave. He thought it was funny...I think he'll be paying for that one for awhile :)

 Big dinners! Arvid sure did love American food (everything with cheese!). Everyone else loved the way he ate with a fork and knife. We spent most of this dinner trying, and failing, at eating properly!

 now it's time to relax after being beat up by the skiing and swimming and tubing and seado-ing!

 lunch at the marina :)

 very sad to leave :(

 View from the Weiss' lakehouse! so beautiful!

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Jim (brother) has become a huge baseball fan, so we decided that Arvid needed to experience the all-American pastime…so we took him to a Reds game (plus they are doing great this season!) Unfortunately it was raining the whole time, and the game was delayed in the 6^th inning. But, we saw every great play there is, and I was getting a kick out of explaining all the rules to Arvid (because I’m such a baseball junky….note the sarcasm!) Even though we were soaked, we had a great time! 

 I drove, Jim ran to get the tickets, mom brought the ponchos, and Arvid took it all in!

 The Great American Ballpark

 not looking our best...but having a great time!

 We stayed for a long time during the rain delay. They played an MCHammar concert on the big screen and we had Skyline, Larosa's, and icecream in a baseball cap bowl from UDF before calling it a night. As soon as we got home (late!) they resumed play, and the Reds won! 

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I’m also happy that Arvid was able to meet one of my best friends, Megs. We drove up to her and her husband, Steve’s house in Centerville and had a lovely lunch followed by a stop at Greater’s Icecream. It was important that Arvid taste all of the flavors of Cincinnati!  

 Buckeye Sundae from Greater's - BLISS!

 Megs and Mars :)

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Arvid was really put to the test the second weekend at home. It’s no secret that I have a huge family…and this poor Swede had to meet BOTH sides in one weekend. On Saturday, my Uncle Bill and Aunt Terri hosted a family party in Indianapolis, and on Sunday, Uncle Dan and Aunt Georgia had one in Ross! That means Arvid met about 60 people in one weekend…and that wasn’t even the entire family. Welcome to America, from the Finkelmeiers and the Horgans!! Hehe. Arvid did a great job though, and it’s one of the reasons I love him! He can get along with anyone and talk about anything. Of course, some of my uncles gave him a hard time (cough, cough….Uncle Kevin), but for the most part everyone was just really interested in this foreign dude that I was hanging out with. 

I guess there is a reward for good behavior…on the drive back from Indianapolis, Dad surprised us and pulled into the casino that’s one the way back and gave us each a little cash to spend. Talk about introducing Arvid to the best America has to offer (once again…note the sarcasm!). It was an interesting cultural experience for him to see the locals that frequent the casinos, I’m sure. The four of us had such a good time going form machine to machine…and in the words of my mother…”wait for the machine to call you”. Evidently, Arvid got “the call”. We were sitting there playing, and all of a sudden Arvid’s machine went crazy! He had hit the second largest win on his game!! Mom and I were going crazy and making a scene! We were all so excited, and people were looking at us like we were insane. It was so much fun!!!! He won $300…crazy lucky Swede! A few days later we went to the outlet mall where his winnings came in handy...I had fun picking out his clothes, and he had fun not spending a dime!

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I wanted to do something touristy the last week home, and we threw around a few different ideas; Kings Island, Union Terminal, a show/concert, or something in Newport. We eventually decided to go to the Newport Aquarium because I have never been there, plus it would show Arvid a really cool view of the city. Jim came with us, and we had fun playing around in the aquarium and spending time in Newport on the Levee.  

 View of Cincy from Newport

 making Arvid take silly photos with me at the Aquarium :)

 It was nice to spend time with Jim, too! He knows a lot about the Aquarium so he was a good guide!

 SHARKKKK!

 Arvid was really excited about this $5 burger! it was huge!

 we ate a lot of icecream during this trip! This time it's from ColdStone Creamery!

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We spent the last weekend on a little road trip to Columbus and Wooster to visit Ohio State and some friends playing at Ohio Light Opera. It was nice to have a little time to ourselves and for Arvid to see where I went to college and meet some super friends. We stopped in Columbus first and walked around campus for a bit. We went to the Stadium (most important), then to the new Union (so nice, and I’m jealous it wasn’t there when I was!), we walked around The Oval, and went into the newly renovated library (didn’t spend much time there! Haha) The last stop was the music building, so he could see where I really did spend so much time! 

 GO BUCKS!

 the new Ohio Union is stunning!

 How firm thy friendship...O-HI-O!

After the campus visit, we drove 20 minutes north to meet up with Susan and Joe, my percussion teachers from OSU. It was pretty funny, because we only had about 30 minutes to chat! It was the only 30 minutes that fit in both our schedules, and we wanted to make it work! We had a quick coffee in the Polaris Mall and got all caught up, it was great seeing them. 

I wish we could have visited longer, but we had an opera in Wooster to catch! But, then….traffic hit, and I realized there was no way we would make it to OLO in time. I called Angela and she put our tickets on hold. We were about 45 minutes late, but at least we made it! It was fun seeing an opera together, and funny sitting amongst a lot of gray hairs! After the show I couldn’t wait to see Angela and hang out with her and Alison! We went to a drive thru to get some wine (once again….America’s finest!) and sat on Angela’s front porch with some of the OLO members for a few hours. It was such a lovely night!! I miss Angela a lot, and I’m so glad that she and Arvid got to meet and get to know one another. 

The next morning we had breakfast in downtown Wooster (that’s a joke, because Wooster is smaller than Piteå…but still a very cute place!) with Angela and Alison. I didn’t want to leave, but they had to go get ready for the Saturday afternoon show, and I had more friends to meet up with! The parting was sad, but Ang promised to visit sometime this year, and I really think she will!

 Alison, Me, and Angela! Had the best time with these girls!

We then went around the corner to meet Libby for lunch! Libby was one of the first people I met at OSU (during marching band tryouts!) and my roommate sophomore year. She was visiting her parents in Medina, and had just finished the Bar exam. It was so nice catching up with her, and I couldn’t believe that the plans had worked out so perfectly! 

 Old roomies! now...she's a lawyer and I live in Sweden. Crazy!!!!

On the way back to Cincy, we stopped at Easton and in Columbus again to visit with some old percussion studio friends. Kim and Megan were having a going away party for Dave and Meg whom were moving to Vermont the next day. Talk about a blast from the past….I loved seeing them and reminiscing about good times at OSU. Glad they approve of Arvid, too! :)

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The last few days in Ohio were bittersweet. I was really getting comfortable at home again, and my future in Sweden was very unclear, so I didn’t know how to feel. At the same time, I was done being lazy and was looking forward to being productive again. I wanted to soak up every last second that we spent with mom and dad, and create as many memories as possible with Arvid there. Knowing that mom and dad really really really like him made the trip back to Sweden more comfortable and I can’t wait for our next meeting all together. 

 I'll miss our family dinners on the back porch....

It was an emotional departure at the airport. Mom and Jim sent us off, complete with a meal at Cracker Barrel right beforehand. After so many meals with rich foods, we needed to get back to Sweden to start eating healthy again!

 Goodbye restaurants and fried foods...

 saying goodbye to mom and Jim at the airport

Unfortunately, all of our travel plans were changed at the airport (a cancelled flight from Cincy to New York forced us into an entirely new itinerary…that added a flight from Amsterdam to Stockholm. UGH) which made the already emotional situation a little stressful. In time, we made it back to Sweden. Arvid’s dad picked us up at the airport where were started to make the 1.5 hour drive down to Skellefteå. When we were over half way there, a man called claiming he had Arvid’s bags. When we checked our luggage, sure enough, Arvid grabbed the wrong ones.  We turned around to drive all the way back to switch the bags. The mishap was met with a laugh…I mean, what is another hour of travel?! All was not lost, though….we ended up seeing 4 moose along the road!! Welcome back to Sweden!