Sean and I woke up early and got out of he house and ready to find our place in the crowd. It was the wedding day of Princess Victoria to Daniel Westling (once personal trainer to the princess, now H.R.H. Prince Daniel, Duke of Västergötland), and reported to be the largest attended royal wedding since Princess Diana. In Stockholm Cathedral, 1,200 royal guests and dignitaries watched the nuptials, along with 500,000 people who lined the streets, and an estimated 500 million TV viewers from around the world. Due to some confusing television regulations (long story short – all wedding footage is property of a Swedish station and can only be aired live) most major American channels have boycotted the event, which means that despite the constant press here, the coverage in the US was be limited. (No worries, I got plenty of photos.)

First we went to the church, where the wedding was supposed to take place. Because it was already in progress, and there was no way to see what was going on, we decided to follow the map in the newspaper to an area where we could catch a glimpse of the bride and groom on their buggy ride from the church once the ceremony had ended. We wandered for quite a bit before finding the perfect spot, where Sean nearly pulled a groin hoisting me onto his shoulders to catch the video footage. The results were that we got to see the whole city come alive on the big day, and I got to see my first royal wedding!

Enjoy!

The Photo Albulm (Click on an thumbnail to scroll through)

1. The water and milk. The water is so clean and you can taste that they don’t add chorine, floride and other dangerous chemicals. From the first sip from the sink, I’ve been drinking so much just because I love the taste. And the milk is not homogonized, so it’s also got a different flavor. It’s sweeter and creamier, and you can make foam from skim and it’ll stay foamy to the last drop of coffee. I have to use half and half at home in NY to get it to foam, and even then it dissipates within a couple minutes.
2. Watching Sean cut the lawn with his shirt off. Having a house comes with added responsibilities, but this makes it all worth it!
3. Snails. Everytime it rains, we get a yard full of escargo. I’ve never seen so many cool looking snails, Ifeel like a kid when it rains, I get so excited to check out all the different shells. Some of them are really big!
4. The weather. It’s been a little cool still because it’s still early summer, but it’s generally been high 70’s with a light breeze, and clear blue skies. Gorgeous.
5. Exploring the attic. I found loads of old photos up there, some dating back to the Victorian era. Wedding photos, class photos, lifestyle shots… We have no idea who these people are, though I’m sure they’re related to Sean in one way or another. But I’ve been sifting through the photos and clearing the shelves of 1960’s romance novels to make room for these old relics.
6. Learning the language. I’ve not been very disciplined about practicing everyday, but the people here have been so helpful in learning the phrases and letting us practice on them.
7. The food. We have been eating so much fish and fiber that I’m almost back at my middle school weight. Seriously, when I stand straight and put my feet together, my thighs don’t touch anymore.  But that’s for no lack of flavor. We’ve been visiting a lot of farm stands and getting fresh local veggies, but even the meat isn’t as processed as in the US. They don’t use the same amount of chemicals and antibiotics. Sean has dish duty, so I’ve been cooking every meal from scratch, and it’s so much more enjoyable now that we have the time. We sit down every night and light the candles in the sun room overlooking the lake, and use the good serving trays to set out the gourmet dishes I’ve been whipping up. It’s so awesome.
8. Cleanliness. NY’s piss drenched subway platforms definitely have their charm, but one thing I can’t get over is how clean Stockholm is. There are NO homeless people. None. And to see litter is so rare, that I was shocked when I saw a straw wrapper on the ground yesterday. Even at the festivals, the portapotties are impeccable, with flushable toilets, a sink and mirror in each little cabin. And the McDonald’s dining rooms are as nice as a sit down restaurant.
9. The prices. Some things are a little more expensive, but groceries are actually pretty inexpensive if you’re just going for the basics. I look at the receipts on the bus ride home, and I can’t get over – $1 for bread, $2 for eggs, $1.75 for 10 rolls of toilet paper… Junk food is more expensive, but the basics, even vegetables are very affordable.
10. Being so close to other countries. After midsummer, Sean and I decided to visit some friends in London. The flight is only going to cost us about $38USD on RyanAir. Absolutely incredible!

When you have infinite options of how to spend your day, it becomes very easy to let 13 hours slip by and wonder, “Where did that time go?” I spent the last couple days cleaning and organizing, but all in all I didn’t feel like I accomplished much. And being stuck indoors doesn’t really feel like vacation. So, feeling I was at risk for being devoured by a time-vacuum, I decided last night to make myself my usual little to-do list. In fact, being that I am so A-Type, I made two. The first list was of the goals I hope to accomplish by the end of the summer, and the other of stuff I’d like to get out of the way this morning so I can move on and feel like I’m on vacation again. For some reason, there’s just something about a little list that motivates me into a step-by-step action mode and keeps me from puttzing around from room to room wondering where to stick my thumbs.

My Goals This Summer Are:

• Finish my book proposal
• Record Gerry and the Mermaid’s first album
• Play out at least once
• Write, Record, and Edit a Music Video
• Become at least somewhat conversational in Swedish

Those are some hefty goals, but I have all the resources at my disposal, so if I take baby steps, it shouldn’t be a problem. And I also booked a couple films, so it’s just about following through now.

My Task List for Today was:

• Pay my school loans online
• Practice Swedish Flashcards
• Practice Banjo
• Blog
• Email April back and finish a blog for dhdivas.com
• Respond to emails
• Finish laundry
• Contact Swedish Talent Agency about Representation
• Buy another converter so we can start recording

I pretty much did everything but get the converter, but I’m going into the city tomorrow, so I’ll get it then.

I woke up at 10 this morning, and finished my list by 2. Then I puttzed around for a couple hours waiting for Sean to finish working. (He works from home – very convenient for this trip.) It was 4 by this point, a little late to start heading into the city given the bus situation. But we remembered the neighbors telling us that the six original houses in our neighborhood (that includes us) each owns a dock. So we decided to take a little walk and check it out. Okay, now I’m sure you can imagine, but it doesn’t really get much more relaxing than hanging out at the edge of a dock dangling your toes in the lake, watching the birds fly by overhead. All the sudden I remembered why I was here.

This entire trip is an experiment for Sean and I in a new lifestyle. A new way of living. I read this book last year called, The 4 Hour Work Week, and it really opened my eyes to alternative lifestyles. I grew up thinking my only real options were to get married in my 20s, find a house in the burbs and settle down to make babies. I really fought going down this path, and moving to New York was my punch in the face to that reality. In New York, everyone waits till their 40s to get married, buy an overpriced two bedroom condo, and let a nanny raise their babies while they focus on their careers. It was different, but inevitably the same. Plus, after seven years in New York, living paycheck to paycheck in a city that was getting more and more expensive by the minute, I was starting to see why everyone waited so long. Because it’s too damn expensive to buy a condo and have kids in this city. I was overworked and on the verge of a burnout.

But after reading the book, I spent the next year daydreaming about what it would be like if I streamlined my life and got to live my retirement now. I know it sounds really out there, but think about it for a second. What if you didn’t have to wait till you were 60 something to retire after a long life of working hard for someone else? What if you could live your dream life now, even if you weren’t rich? That’s what the author was suggesting…

I didn’t DO anything about what I read. I just kinda let it gestate. Then, in January, at the risk of losing the summer home forever, Sean and I were forced to make a decision and take action. He hadn’t been here since he was 9, and I had never even seen the place, not even a picture. But the idea of the summer home was really nice. And we didn’t want to lose the opportunity. So we had no other option but to say YES. And ever since, we’ve been pushing ourselves to live a YES lifestyle. Instead of sitting in front of a computer all day waiting for it to respond back to us, we decided to go out and do something new, try new things, go see some places we haven’t seen yet, meet some new people. Get out of our comfort zones.

As I was sitting at the dock of the bay contemplating all of this, and taking in the reality that I was here right now doing what I said I wanted to do, I thought back on all those times I felt like a prisoner working a job that I hated (not my job now, I actually really like my current job). But all those other crap jobs I took just to make enough to scrape by, watching the minutes on the clock, wishing the day would be over. Not so I could be doing the million things I wanted to be doing, because I knew I’d be too tired. But just to not be there anymore. I hated that feeling I got in the pit of my stomach everyday, knowing I had to head back to another day of feeling like an underpaid wage slave wishing I was born into a richer family and that I didn’t have to live out this part of my life. Knowing there was something more than this, but believing I would never know what it was.

I know this is really depressing, but it’s true. That’s really how I felt. And as I was kicking my feet in the water I also knew that I can never go back to a life like that. Three months of freedom and bliss cannot end by going back to that kind of prison. Like I said, I really like my current job. Being a makeup artist is so fun, I love people and I love making women feel beautiful, and I can’t believe I get paid to do it. But even with that, I’m already planning my next trip. Freelance makeup gets really dead in February after the holidays – in 2010 I only worked 5 days that whole month. So Sean and I are planning a month long trip to Argentina, where the dollar is strong and we can live like kings.

Anyway, the real point is, I’m really glad we leaped. I’m really glad I took this trip. The first week was good, but I found myself getting frustrated at times and still feeling rushed. I can feel myself slowing down now. I can feel that I’m starting to take my time and make my decisions based on what I really feel like doing, rather than what I feel I should do or have time to do.

We walked home on the little dirt path back to the gravel road, and it was so nice and sunny I started craving some ice cream. But the store would be another three hour trip and it was getting close to dinner time, so I thought it wasn’t an option. We have been trying to avoid processed sugar at all costs, so there weren’t even cookies at the house. Bummer. But then I realized, I could jimmy an ice cream maker out of a couple of pots and pans, and we had some unsweetened yogurt at the house and a couple bananas that were about to turn bad… I found a video on YouTube that gave some basic instructions, and voila! The most amazing sugar-free banana frozen yogurt ever! We chowed down on our guilt-free snack as we made our dinner of fresh pork fillets, grilled peppers and from-scratch french fries. That’s when I realized that all those time-wasting tasks that I thought I hated, like cooking and cleaning, weren’t so bad. As a matter of fact, when you have the time, and you’re spending it with someone you love, they become rather enjoyable.

Here is a list of the average vacation time workers get per country.

Sweden hits near the top of the chart at 33 days. This is something I’m really disappointed about, but I feel very lucky at the same time. As a freelancer, I don’t have health insurance or other benefits, but I can come and go as I wish. It’s an odd trade off that most people wouldn’t consider. But having already been hospitalized and not having any long term conditions that require frequent doctors visits has taught me that I can live without it for now. For me, the trade off is better, because I can work really hard for a while, and then actually REST.

I thought after a few days I’d be a little homesick, but I’m not. Not at all actually. Which makes me feel a little guilty because I know our little dog is going through a serious depression since we left. But I have a lot to look forward to. I just found out one of my closest friends from high school and his girlfriend are going to visit us next month. So that will be our opportunity to do all the geeky touristy stuff I didn’t do this week.

I was also looking forward to leaving for Spain at the end of this month to shoot a horror film in which I’d been casted as the lead. It was a very hard decision, but I had to turn the role down. There were some sexual scenes I just wasn’t comfortable with. If it had been an art film, or if I was being paid a lot of money, I may have reconsidered, but I just didn’t feel comfortable doing the scene in that context. Perhaps I’ll still be able to visit my director friend this summer for a long weekend or something. I heard Spain is really beautiful this time of year.

We Finally Figured Out the Stove

One thing that has been fun that I didn’t expect to be fun is the cleaning thing. It’s a little “Green Acres” – our washing machine hasn’t been working, so I’ve had to do all the laundry by hand. And Sean found a man-powered mower that he’s been using to keep the yard in shape. No one’s lived in the house in a number of years, so it’s covered in dust. And the paint on the outside is chipping, so we need to re-do that… If I were working all the time, I’d be too tired to take care of this stuff and it would seem like a huge hassle. But since we’re making this our job, I find myself taking pride in my work and finding a joy in spending my time making my living situation better.

Other than that, we’ve been trying to practice our Swedish. We downloaded a couple apps from iTunes that I find really helpful. And we also have a couple books and his cousin as a reference. It rained for the first time today, and the yard is covered in snails, so maybe we’ll do a little snail racing to pass the time.

My Fast Little Friend

*** This was from the first two weeks I was here, sorry it’s late – I’ve just been waiting on photos, but I figured it’s time to just post it!

For the majority of Monday we clean cleaned cleaned. Finally the kitchen and bathroom were in working order. During the afternoon, I was surprised to get a knock on the door. We weren’t expecting anyone, but maybe one of his aunts was stopping by. I was surprised to see Anna with the baby on her hip. “Hej!” I greeted her, “Come on in.”

“Hej! Michael wanted me to stop by to remind you about tonight, he thought maybe you would forget,” she said. Forgot. Forgot what. Crap, I know I was wasted the other night, but oh god… How could I really have no clue what she is referring to?

“Oh, yeah? What’s going on?”

“Are you guys still free to come by tonight?” she asked. My mind was really pulling a blank. Tonight? What’s tonight??? This was really not like me. I took a shot in the dark.

“Oh, sure! We’re free tonight. What’s going on, you’re having a grill out or something?” I struggled for a clue.

“Oh, no… The crayfish dinner. If you’re busy, it’s alright…” She could tell I had forgotten.

“OH!” I exclaimed, “The CRAYFISH dinner! I had forgotten, but of course we’ll come! That sounds lovely, what time?” I was relieved, but felt so foolish. She told us the time and said we didn’t have to bring anything. Her brother was also coming and bringing his two kids.

We rang the bell at about 6:30, and Michael greeted us with a smile. We offered them a case of beer and sat around the table. We had four little ones all under the age of 3 running around playing. It was so fun. We sat chatting awhile, and then Anna set the table. Now, apparently, this is a huge Swedish tradition, and generally there’s a big annual Crawfish Dinner every fall. They eat plates and plates of craw fish and drink schnapps and sing schnapps songs until everyone is drunk and full. So far I’m liking the Swedes…

Fresh Water Crayfish

Now, I grew up on the Ohio river, and we had a little creek nearby. I remember my dad catching crawdads and cooking them up, but I don’t remember them looking this appetizing. The fresh water crayfish are kind of gray and small and gross looking, but the salt water crayfish look and kinda taste like mini-lobsters. Most of the meat is in the tails, so it feels like you’re eating a lot because you have to work so hard to crack them open to get the meat out. But in actuality, for the amount of work you’re doing, you’re not eating that much. So the dinner ends up taking a lot longer than a normal dinner, and the longer you’re sitting there, the more you’re drinking. So you can see how these things can get a little rowdy. I’m going to have to record some of the Swedish drinking songs, because they’re really funny. I was really surprised by the schnapps – it wasn’t the sacarin sweet fruity shots I’m used to in the states. It’s actually a really pungent fermented fruit liquor that’s really strong.

After dinner, we broke out the instruments and Anna’s brother pulled out his guitar, and we had a kitchen jam for the rest of the night. I’m so glad we’re getting to know our awesome neighbors…

I slathered on the spf 50, and quickly got dressed. Today was Sweden’s National Holiday (Sveriges Nationaldag) and I had a very important date with the King and Queen. Sean and I navigated the trip into the city with ease. For only our second time, I felt like we were now pros at Stockholm’s public transportation system. I had done a little research that morning and discovered that Taste of Stockholm was being held in the city’s center, and that at some point that evening the King was going to give a speech, but as to the details I wasn’t sure because my Swedish isn’t that good yet.

I had mapped out the first half of our trip, so we found Taste of Stockholm no problem. There was a giant stage with live performances, and rows and rows of food booths on either side of the square, with a gigantic communal seating area in the center. It was swarming with people, and we were starving! So we staked out the best food booths and settled on a little tent that served us something I couldn’t pronounce and a couple beers. We found a seat at the communal tables, elbow to elbow with strangers. I grinned from ear to ear as I tried to non-chalantly listen in on their conversations, seeing if I could make out any familiar Swedish words. As we scarfed down our food I didn’t recognize and couldn’t pronounce, my eyes gazed my neighbors’ plates to see what else I should try. But it didn’t look like anything I’d know what to call anyway, so I figured we could order anything and it’d probably be good. We had a couple different dishes and finished our beers before meandering around the festival some more. There was one thing I could pronounce and did want to get before we left – a french crêpe. But there were six different options and they were all written in Swedish… so I just chose the most expensive one, hoping it was the best! It was covered in chocolate sauce and strawberries with whipped cream and sprinkles, and I loved every minute of it.

Thinking there was nothing else to see, we wandered off from the festival. I had really wanted to see the King’s speech, but I didn’t know where it was or what time it was, so I guessed we were out of luck. But we weren’t even a block away when all of the sudden, like out of a Disney cartoon, a caravan of horses come trotting toward us. There were several rows of horses before I finally saw a black covered carriage, and then several rows of horses following the carriage. They were headed to the castle. “Follow that horse poop!” I yelled with excitement.

“But what if it’s not the King?” Sean asked, hesitantly.

“How could it not be the King? Who else rides around in a carriage??? Follow that horse poop!” I dragged him about 20 blocks, chasing the horses until we reached the castle. The carriage had disappeared, but I knew where it went by the trail the horses had left me. Then I found a good spot behind a soldier standing at attention along the road and waited patiently.

This might not be impressive to some people, but as an American girl raised on Disney movies, I felt like I was living in some sort of magical fantasy. When you watch this video, you will see that I was less than six feet from the Queen. Being raised in America, you kind of forget that modern countries can be monarchies, and I know it’s silly, but I find it fascinating. This particular National Day is also very special, because it marks the beginning of two weeks of celebration surrounding the Princess’s wedding this month to a commoner. I’m telling you that she met this guy at the gym. He was as common as you and me. And in two weeks he will be married to the new Queen of Sweden. It’s so bizarre to me… I will keep you all up to date on the wedding details.

You can see the King and Queen in the first carriage, and in the second carriage, the Prince is sitting across from the Princess, and on her left is her fiance. Anyway, that was my excitement for the day. We left the city and spent the next 3 1/2 hours waiting for buses. The public transportation system I thought I knew so well is on a completely different bus schedule after 9pm, and it took three buses and an extra 2km walk to make it home. We were so hungry and tired when we finally did get in, that we gorged ourselves with paté and caviar and called it a day.