doings

February-March 2011

5 February. Katie's 11th birthday party was held in the village hall / old school in �rsdalen (click photo, left, for picture sequence). Auntie Pat was shod for the occasion (click photo, right, for enlargement).

6 February. Apart from church, today's activities have included waxing cheeses (click photo, left, for enlargement). Andrew has been working at the ski centre again. Here (click photo, right, for enlargement) in appropriate headgear.

8 February. Trip to the coast, where Pat looked at swans (various sorts), sea eagles and other wildlife (click photo, right, for enlargement).

The armchair priest strikes again. The national newspaper that first published the story about Tracy's skyped sermon during the avalanche came back to do a full biographical interview (to be published presently!). The photographer took a family picture (click photo, left, for enlargement).

11 February. Beautiful sunny day - enjoyed the sun streaming in through the windows at home for the first time this year.

No use crying over spilt milk. Why is it that whenever we make flippant comments on these pages they come back to bite us? When, for instance, we put a picture of deep snow as the 1 April webcam last year (when the reality was green fields and sunshine) there were such deep blizzards that night that we couldn't get out of the valley the next morning. A couple of weeks ago I asked for suggestions for how to use large quantities of milk, adding that Tracy was not Cleopatra, nor did the milk come from asses. Today's milk was goat milk from next door, intended for goat's cheese. Tracy drove down with a large metal vat, which she filled with goat milk and parked on Katie's knee for the journey home. Some time later Katie burst in to the house like a thunderstorm, only much noisier, and rushed for the shower, rivers of goat milk pouring off her as she went. Tracy was outside trying to remove a gallon or so of goat milk from the car seats and carpet. That car is going to smell interesting once the weather warms up for the summer ...

12 February. Busy Saturday; doing the electrics for the downstairs flat with an electrician, lunchtime meeting to get to know the people who've bought the old hostel/hotel up the valley, sledging in the sunshine and making goat-milk cheese (photo, left) with what of the milk isn't designing interesting chemical experiments on Tracy's car seats. Andrew and Matt went skiing at the ski centre.

15 February. Cheese production continues unabated, partly because no-one wants to go out in the car any more. Norway is enjoying a cold few days; -45° near Hammerfest this morning. At least the road is more normal than it was in January - a bit of blustery snow but very dry and clear (click photo, right, for a couple of minutes' drive into the �rsdalen tunnel today).

19 February Beautiful sunny Saturday - but cold: -12° or so here (plus windchill) and it has reached -50° further north. The national news has been comforting us by doing a report from Ojmjakon in Siberia where it was -71-odd° and they only regard it as getting cold (keep the children home from school and so on) when it gets below -52°. Milk is sold only in blocks and a fresh fish outside freezes in just 5 minutes - no-one has freezers! Took dogs for a walk this afternoon (click photo, left, for a short 360-degree film clip from around the house, showing house, lake and river towards the end of the day).

The fact that we're writing here about taking the dogs for a walk says something about how quiet February has been. We were just saying yesterday that we'll be getting complaints soon about lack of content on these pages. But we're very content anyway.

21 February Elsewhere in Norway, the main item on the news is that several German and British visitors to Sirdal have got overtaken by bad weather in the mountains and been found frozen to death in the snow. Sirdal is the same distance from us as our local village of Vikes�, but in the other direction and a long way by road (click map, right, for enlargement). A house owner there has sent pictures of a digger clearing 40-50 feet depth of snow from around their house - an operation which which will cost them around �10000 - for fear that their house would be swept away when the weather changes (it's due to warm up next week) (photo, left - the ground is actually flat behind the house, so there's a lot of digging still to go - click for enlargement). Questions have also been asked this week about the boat Helgeland, which some of you may remember as the fast passenger boat that we used to get to "our" island of Lur�y, the first place where we lived in Norway. After years of successful service it ran aground on some rocks near Lovund (the neighbouring island to Lur�y) and had to be repaired. A few months later it ran aground again on the same rocks and was out of action for months for major repairs. It returned to service recently. Within a week the crew rang in to base. "Yes, we're fine. But we're just sitting on some rocks at Lovund at the moment ..."

Lovund was the island where Tracy and I went to visit a lovely 80-year-old man who we subsequently got to know quite well. While we were there, a neighbour walked in and sat down on the sofa. Our 80-year-old friend turned to us and said: "I don't think you've met my father ..." What reminded us of this was a film clip of a man not far from here who was jogging and stretching very actively in a fitness centre - at age of 91. Another TV film clip showed a 93-odd year-old singing solos in the local church, and today's news points out that Labour's candidate for Balsfjord in this autumn's elections has just celebrated his 97th birthday.

22 February A reminder that sunnier times are round the corner: Beth and her horse Chindit relaxing in the sunshine last year (click photo for enlargement).

24 February In the meantime, the snow and wind continues. Although it's not especially cold (about -8°) the strong winds are making it feel very uncomfortable to be outside, while the snow is being blown into deep drifts. There was a drift a couple of feet deep inside the garage this morning!

A few weeks ago we asked people to vote for fire-damaged Vikeså School in a competition to award money to three deserving schools. Thank you for helping with this - it was announced today on http://klassekassen.no/ that the school has actually won first prize (over �5000) - which they are delighted about.

We've slightly re-arranged the valley and house pictures pages, amongst other things in order to gather some of the odd film clips together and make them more accessible.

26 February "Fitness Fun For Ferrets". Katie is browsing a website to look for exercise equipment for her Guinea Pig, Champion. In the meantime, Champion is trying out "Fitness Frivolity For Fire Engines" (click photo, far left, for enlargement).

"Fruit For Fitness" - oranges now come with a label to reassure us that they are "100% orange" (photo, middle left). I wouldn't have thought we were in great danger of not realising this, but never mind.

Still working on the flat in the cellar - Tracy here having a dusty moment after some enthusiastic sanding.

27 February An anxious moment this morning: just before leaving for church we got a message to say that the road out of the valley had been closed all night due to avalanche (rocks this time, rather than snow). Happily it was opened again just in time!

Andrew is still working at weekends at the ski centre just the other side of the tunnel: here (photo, left: click for enlargement) is part of it (one of the three lifts, plus a little jump (lower middle)) looking very welcoming in today's sunshine. There are clear signs of spring around the place - the lake is half thawed out (photo, right: click for enlargement) and the bird table has been occupied by half a dozen competing blackbirds.

28 February The last day of February - and at lunchtime we were able to stand outside on the balcony in glorious sunshine under a clear blue sky, listening to the cracks and crashes as chunks of ice loosen from the rocks and cascade down the mountainsides.

A last fling for the "Armchair Priest". The national paper V�rt Land - which was the first one to print the story about Tracy's Skype sermon during the avalanches the other week - came to �rsdalen for an in-depth interview, as soon as the road was open again. It's just arrived in print in today's paper (click picture, left, for a complete copy - but it's all in Norwegian, of course!).

1 March. Happy St David's Day!

Carnival day in �rsdalen, in which all the children of the valley celebrate Wales' national day. Actually that last bit was, well ... but the first bit was true anyway. Click photo, left, for a picture sequence.

The website Flightsats today announced its ranking of this year's most reliable airports - and the winner in Europe is Stavanger's Sola airport, with 90.61 percent of flights landing no more than 15 minutes late.

2 March. As the children left for school at 10 to 7 this morning, it was really light - for the first time this year. March seems to make all the difference! After another beautiful sunny day, Andrew returned from school in a tractor (right) - but it was his least favourite make, Valtra.

Three weeks ago (8 February) we were over in Brusand (the nearest bit of coast to here; moped country if you've been following the various stories from there), looking at aquatic bird life and a couple of rather unambitious shops, including the local Coop. This Coop has, unusually, been broken into. The thieves took cigarettes and shaving equipment. At least, they intended to but they accidently left the shaving equipment in a bag on the counter when they left. And they seem to have left the cigarettes in the get-away car which was later found abandoned in a nearby field. The police are now looking for a couple of unshaven men with stripy jumpers, empty swag sacks and who seem to be in need of a smoke.

We mentioned a few days ago that questions had been asked about the fast boat "Helgeland" which had newly returned to service at our old home of Lur�y after its third venture onto the rocks outside Lovund in the course of not much more than a year. We remember the boat very well, of course (it was our main means of transport), including some unforgettably uncomfortable journeys at stormy times of year across the wild stretch of open sea out to the islands of Tr�na. Stormy times include autumn and spring (as well as summer and winter, but never mind). Today it's stormy around Lur�y, and "Helgeland" was photographed in characteristic pose (photo, right - click for enlargement. Sometimes it feels good to have solid ground under our feet.

Sandnes (where Tracy's church is) is the really big smoke around here. There they have streets with several shops, and blocks of flats. And urban problems. Quoting from today's NRK news:

"On Wednesday (i.e. today) the police receieved a report from Sandvikbakken flats in Sandnes about two characters who had been causing trouble in the neighbourhood. They had apparently been hanging around at the flats for several days and been very aggressive, according to the reports. "They've been chasing people", it was reported. As if this was not enough the two have also got into the garage area, where they had no business to be. They left hurredly when the police arrived." (Photo, above left - click for enlargement - shows the police chasing the two troublemakers from the premises).

8 March. Another sign of approaching Spring - today we started cutting wood for next winter! Chopped down three or four trees: not much but it's a symbolic start (some of it's made it down to the garage, left). There's still a good supply of last year's wood which should see us through what's left of this winter - unless the weather turns really bad.

Items in the Norwegian news. In our nearest town (Egersund) someone found that 50kg of dynamite and 8kg of TNT had been forgotten about in a residential house. Because, like its owner, it was old and unstable (and enough of it to make quite a useful hole in the town - a new park, perhaps) the nearest houses were evacuated whilst an explosives team was flown in from Oslo. Once it was made safe the police rang the evacuees to say that they could return home. The nearest neighbour apparently said: "Go back home? I am home. Why?". The police had forgotten to ring him. Further afield, the Oslo police and fire brigade spent several hours early this morning demolishing part of a wall to release a burglar who'd got thoroughly stuck while climbing out of a window. He was apparently very cold. And somewhat embarrassed.

10 March. Heavy snow overnight - and it's still falling. Just been out to Vikes� to recover Matt from a ditch (the car he was driving hit an unexpected snowdrift) and on the way back home had to tow someone up the long hill towards the ski centre.

12 March. Andrew and Matt spent all day yesterday snow clearing as more and more fell!

15 March. Safely home after the wedding of the year so far (there's another significant wedding this Autumn, in addition those people in London somewhere who are jumping on the bandwagon). Lots of snow but brilliant hot sunshine is clearing it fast; the roads are absolutely clear, at any rate!

21 March. Apologies for a long silence - being away from �rsdalen is evidently very exhausting! Still enjoying beautiful spring sunshine which is driving away the snow in the valley - although there's still 5 feet depth up at the ski centre (photo, left: click for enlargement). We had a quiet weekend, including lunch in the "local" cafe at Byrkjedalstunet (photo, right: click for enlargement).

A few people have asked whether the photos of the house could include some of inside. We're working on it; so far a few rooms done here.

Glancing back at the news page last September (when the road had just been closed for its long-term repairs) we glumly noted that the Autumn equinox meant that the days were now shortening fast (and that our days were therefore shorter/darker than in the UK). Today we can celebrate the reverse - as of tomorrow, longer and lighter days can be found in the North!

24 March. The half-yearly village fire practice was carried out in rain and strong winds yesterday evening (photo, left - click for enlargement). As you may remember, the village is its own fire brigade and has a "self-service" fire station: in the event of fire everyone turns out. A damp and chilly experience, even though the temperature has risen well above freezing and the remaining snow is melting fast. We're putting all our snow-clearing equipment away for the summer (without particular regret).

For over an hour this afternoon, all incoming flights into Norway's main airport at Gardermoen were diverted to other airports as far away as Sweden because of a "hang-glider-like thing" observed at 26000 feet on the main flight path into the airport. It is not known what a hang glider was doing at the airport, nor how it got as high as 26000 feet (although it was extremely windy at the time). Is it a week early for 1 April, or was there some terrified individual hanging on and hoping to get back to earth? Had it been a few months ago we might have imagined it was the goat with the trampoline (see story, 1 January 2011).

26 March. This morning Tracy baked for this evening's village bazar, whilst Tim did the spring clear of the garden and gravel around the garage - removing all the debris of winter. Jobs done, everyone settled down to enjoying the sunshine in their own ways: Katie and Matt went for a walk down to the lake, Tracy and Andrew sunbathed on the balcony together with the dogs while Tim headed off up the garden (click photo, right, for picture sequence).. Only one person (Andrew) has ever made it right to the top (an all-day climb); Tim got nearly half way today - a personal best!

All the four copper beeches that we planted last year (called Beth, Matt, Thomas Andrew and Katie - for details see story, 2 July 2010) have got buds growing, to our great relief!

(5pm) It's just started snowing! And the tumble drier has developed a lound banging noise - which we think means an improbable operation on the rear bearings (improbable because of the difficulty in getting parts here) or a replacement. Favourite? Neither, really.

28 March. With his interest in modern art, Andrew has created what they call in creative circles an "installation". They use the same term in double-glazing circles, by the way, but there there's greater transparency. You can view Andrew's "installation", which is a "still life" entitled "Uncle Mort", here. Turner Prize, here we come.

Although here on Norway's relatively-warm "Riviera coast" the snow is vanishing fast, further North it's still falling. Villages have been evacuated due to avalanche danger and in this film clip (click picture, left, to see film) yesterday's NRK news went for a look around Bod� (including the city centre, cars damaged in a collapsed showroom, a view of the train, a trip to the airport, and a visit to a farm just outside the town, where the reporter, struggling out of his helecopter and through nearly 10-foot-deep snow, asks the farmer: "is there much snow around here?").

"I've had enough", said the driver of the school bus after last winter, "I'm not doing another winter". He had a point. The bus leaves at 6.45am and has an hour's drive along some of Norway's worst roads, winding over the mountains and then dodging avalanches - all in the dark and some terrible weather. But there was no-one else to do it, so he had to do one more winter. But now Connie, who moved last year to the farm by the lake, has taken her bus license and taken over. Even though she didn't start until the worst of the weather was over, it's not been an easy ride for her. The bus overheated and broke down last week, so there's a temporary one in use at the moment. And today, the afternoon run back from school was fairly eventful. The highways authority is putting up some new safety barriers on each side of the narrow bridge where the road crosses the river at Malmei. Connie had to steer her bus between the barriers on the one side and a tractor trailer on the other. She managed to hit both at the same time, which delayed matters for a while. From there, the road climbs steeply for quarter of an hour up to the ski centre. The bus nearly made it, before making an unscheduled stop, with the temperature gauge showing well over boiling point. On opening the engine hatch, there was a bubbling and smoking that required a 20-minute stop before the bus could limp along to the highest point on the road and coast down to �rsdalen. We're wondering if they'll manage to get another new bus here before tomorrow morning.

30 March. What do you find when you open the door? Snow, if you're anywhere near Bod� (photo, right - click for enlargement).

Tracy has bought a new car to replace her Zaphira - a solid 4-wheel drive Tucson. To be collected on ... 1 April.