indulgence

me talking about me (and other things)

Sunday, November 28, 2004

Ironing

Finally I did do some ironing and to tell the truth, I was quite excited about it. Here I got these nice lacy kerchiefs from my grandmothers, white batist with their initials sewn into them. I use them as platesets now. There I got old napkins, strong linen, all of them older then 40 years, some of them from the first decade of the last century. Again with names or initials of so many people, now passed away. Some, few, of them are still handwoven and got a tiny red number sewn into them, probably parts of grandmothers' dowry. Think about it: "40 white napkins, no. 16 is missing!" °Old, white bedcovers with crocheted borders. The mother of my father came from a quite prosporous farm in eastern Germany. Of course they lost everything in the time of war and I am astonished how many things they still could take with them, fleeing on grandpa's fisherboat over the baltic to Danmark. The good china and silver and such they put into a hole in the garden so it would not brake or get lost. Not astonshingly everything had dissappeared when they came back for a visit many years later.

Saturday, November 27, 2004

Darkness

I think,that when you live in Iceland you really get to appriciate Christmastime, whatever religion you are in or out. December IS the darkest month of the year and as northernly as we are we see and feel and taste the darkness enveloping us. The body energie drops many levels and one could sleep all day long. I did, today and read. So, the Christmas spirit and customs keep us alive. Nearly everybody puts this sweet light decorations up at their houses, there is baking and eating of sweets. Tomorrow is the first advent and I will stick little candels into oranges and invite children and grandchildren for "adventu kaffi". No, I will not bake now, or just a tiny bit. I decided to buy the cakes this time. You know, low energie level.

Friday, November 26, 2004

Web Page

Instead of writing into my blog now I would like you to take notice of my new Web Page which is being borne now. It is a difficult dilivery but I am learning. I hope to keep it up and that people will read it. I am trying to get the site into a search machine but am having difficulties. Whish me luck!

Thursday, November 25, 2004

I got a life

Looking at my blog and reading kjánaris comment I realized, that I DO have a life. (Sometimes I wonder). So, there has been no time left for this blog, sorry. But the weekend is coming. Maybe I will get around to ironing now?
Till I have time, I think of you! (Specially when I see a cow or toiletpaper)

Monday, November 22, 2004

Coca Cola

I have known for a long time that you can use Coca Cola to get rusty nails shiny again. Now I learned that you can use it as a toilet cleaner. Just tried it out, works fine. I don´t yet know, what it will do to the environment used that way.

Sunday, November 21, 2004

Back In Town

Yes, I did go to the countryside and beautifull it was! No sky between heaven and me, virgin snow on rocks and hills. On the way over the mountains I saw for the first time whisps of hot air over the old lavafields. Mother earth is alive beneath our feet. We know that on Iceland. Rivers encrusted in ice, waterfalls frozen into strange shapes.
Friendly warmness embraced me at my daughter´s home, newly baked bread and three loving grandchildren. We drove to the eggwoman to get egg for our breeding mashine: 21 days and there will (hopefully) be chicks, six months and these chicks will be beautifull and lay eggs (hopefully). We were invited to coffee and cake, accepted and had a nice chat about chicken, horses and cows. Otherwise we kept ourselves inside and watched the temperature go up the next day, from
–18 to –5 and –2 when we left for town.
So I am back and finished reading: ”The dead sea scolls deception” by Michael Baigent and Richard Leigh. It´s an interesting book for those who like to know more about the origins of christian church and the possible ways for the church not to tell about it. It is rather academic and printed on quite bad paper which makes it tiring to read.
I loved the book “the no.1 ladie´s detective agency”. It is a book which touches the heart and has much more depth in it than I expected. Strange that it should be written by a white man! I already bought another one from the same author (Alexander McCall Smith), “Tears of the giraffe.” But that has to wait, as I am now reading “angels and demons” from the some author as the “Da vinci code”, Dan Brown.
So I have no time to write anymore, I must go and read!
Have a nice day!

new pictures

There are a few new pictures to look at. Hope you will like them

Tuesday, November 16, 2004

Snow

Today it did snow. See pictures in "my pictures". Not tiny, white stuff like the other day but 15 cm in three hours. Lucky, lucky me to have gotten snowtires yesterday, I would have been stuck somewhere. Iceland is the land of the extremities: glacier and vulkano, ice and hot springs, no snow or too much of it. I love it!
I went into a bookstore... no I will tell no further, not now. I bought a microwave on a great sale and a white christmastree with lights already on. Today shopping was nice :)

Monday, November 15, 2004

Empty school

Probably only a teaecher can appreciate how wondurfull an empty school is. It is quiet, it is clean, it is peacefull. Time to work without noisy kids interrupting. There have been 7 weeks like that, minus some days. 7 kids in one big school and today none. The latest news on the strike as I don´t think that it has yet made the international press. We got an offer, which we rejected. About 75% voted for the strike, 92,5% voted for rejection.
Yesterday there was set a law by parliament that the teachers should go to work. They didn´t, most of them. Sweet me, of course met on time, I really didn´t know our special class would shut down and... I have had to fight for other things. I was too lazy going home again and had, as I began with, the luxus of an empty school, few good people and enough to do. I lost myself in goggle and siccors and paste. I don´t have any idea how tommorrow will look.
AND I got my wintertires! It took only one hour. But it´s booty days now, so wintertires is a must.
AND the old, nasty, smelling fridge is out of my living room!! It took only 10 days!! My oldest daughter and her man were the angels, got a big kiss and dinner for it.
Me tired, me go to bed and read.

Sunday, November 14, 2004

Post skriptum for shopping: books

Yes, you got me there. I forgot bookshops. I loose myself in bookshops and rarely get out without another book. The most dangerous bookshop is in London airport Heathrow. When we fly to Portugal we got a stopover for seven hours. Yes, you can buy quite a load of books in seven hours. The only restriction is your strength to carry them. I think, last time when I was alone I bought ten. The time before Monika drew me out after five. Why Heathrow? They are so much cheaper than in Iceland.
When I have the choice of two books I buy the fatter one. I mean, you get more in 600 pages than 200, don´t you? Of course I also look at the authors. But take care not to buy the same name too often, most of them get really bad after a time. The cover picture also tells you a lot. Then read the backcover and when you are satisfied to that point, read some sentences in the middle. It can be a flop, then you got a garbage bag. The last of my books to go there was a late one of Patricia Cornwall (well?).
Sometimes you get good tips in newspapers. But you would not want to buy bestseller no.1. More often than not it is trash what tells you a lot about the people who buy books.
Amy Tan you can always buy, up to now at least, Margaret Atwood, Alice Walker as well, Marilyn French – but that are no news for readers.
Newly I look for books from the modern chinese and japanese culture. The most interesting thing about that, I feel, is that we all are truly homo sapiens and that differences in human feelings and behavoir rarely exist undir the flimsy skin of conventional courtesy and different religions.
And don´t forget them, the sweet books you read when you want to rest your brain; where the black haired woman is bad and the blond is the good one and the hero rescues all of them. Try Wilbur Smith and you get lost in adventures in far away countries. And then there are so many more …
Yeah, I love me books! (see pictures under “my pictures”, yes, I´ve got a big house.)

COLD

In the end I didn´t go to the countryside. Wintertires and that. you know. In the 12 o´clock news yesterday there was told about two accidents on the suðurlandsroad because of icy streets. So I stayed at home.
It is gasthly weather outside. An icy wind is howling around our house, the trees are shaking their heads and there comes white stuff falling from heaven, not really snow, it´s too cold for that. And I still have to go out of the house. Yes, shopping. I know, I hate it. Some shops are open here on Sundays. Lucky we. Have a nice day, I hope it is warmer wherever you are.

Saturday, November 13, 2004

Thinking while knitting

I remembered the “quick eat competition” in TV. As, like, how many hamburgers can you eat in two minutes? I don´t like this. I mean, food is something to chew, thanking mother earth for giving. Food is something to savour the flavour. To look at, to anticipate, to indulge in. How about a new competition, the quickest quicky you can do with as many partners as you can get in two minutes? No, I don´t like it.
OK That´s what grandma thinks while knitting ….

shopping

What is it, all these jokes about women and shopping? I HATE going shopping, it is work. Have six kids and all those that are attached to them and go shopping. It is exhausting. And then it is said we should go and exercise our body. Men, do you know the power it takes to push a brimfull cart around crowded corners? I mean, who would be going shopping if we poor women would not do it? Men??
And buying clothes .. ok, maybe if you are young and slim. The other day I saw this wonderfull, lacy undergarment in the shop window. Against better knowledge I went ohh and went inside to try it on. Never, never again. Life is learnig. Of course they didn´t have it in my size, but I tried on what they offered me.. Never before had I realized I was THAT fat (a nice number 18.) Had I not been a grown up I would have started crying. Let my children laugh about my big pink unders, I feel comfortable in them and they on me.
Of course even I need new clothes from time to time. But as seldom as possible. You are in this hot, tiny, claustrophobic cell; where do I put my bag, my scarf and my wintercoat and then I fall down, trying to get into too slim trousers .. oh, no. And shoes? I rarely buy shoes. I got two pairs of sandals, Ecco, one brown and one black and home knitted woolen socks. My daughters have given up making fun of me. I got one pair of black shoes when it must be. And, when the snow really gets high I change into sweet little boots. And that´s it. Yes, really, just look at me, walking down the street. The sandals however are a little bit nasty at work in recess, they got those little stones there on the ground which love to steal themselves between shoes and feet, so I stand there, prodding stones out of my sandals when I should be playing with children...
Enough now, off to the countryside..

Thank you

Thank you dear friends and family for your sweet feed-back on my blog. And I got two new pins!! I walk around my house with a big smile on my face.

Friday, November 12, 2004

me and my life

This week was a lot like the old one. Therefore, I will not bore you by getting in and out of sweet smelling baths.
The day today: snow, more than powder and I am considering what to do with the summer tires on my car. Should I go and change and wait and wait and wait? Or should I just risk it driving like my sweet little car (Pegeout 206; bright red) is equipped now? But, I would like to go to the countryside once again tomorrow. But then I could lend my husbands car. But I think, he has summertires too. Why is life so complicated?
The point is: I don´t have the least longing to go out of my nice, warm house. Even not to buy something interesting. There is enough food in the new fridge – yes, the old one still decorates our living room, bets taken for the futur - after my husbands small birthday party yesterday- three children, two inlaws, three grandchildren –. I bought me a new book yesterday: “The No,1 Ladies´ Detective agency” by Alexander McCall Smith and I still have to finish reading the “wind-up bird chronicle” which I really have fun with and discusses the question: What IS reality? Which of the many possible possibilities in life are the real ones? Where are the connections between one person and the others surrounding him?. It has 607 pages and even I need some time to get through it.
I have knitting to do: I started some days ago a small infant jacket and am trying for the first time knitting “two sides” so you can turn it around and use it both ways. It´s fun, but nothing to knit during looking at television, at least I am not able to do that yet.
I still didn´t iron..

Sabine´s way: working with children with autism. First lesson: Ignore

Before I start going once again: Thank you, known and unknown people for your encouraging feed-back on my pages. And if there would be, but there isn´t, negative feed-back, thank you too, I like to learn new things. Anyhow, feed-back is what keeps me going. Just imagine everybody would ignore me?

It is fascinating to realise how every grown-up feels the compulsion to tell a child what it should NOT do. Today even a mail delivery man at school felt the compelling need to say to the pupil I was with - we met him at the maindoor going inn after recess-: "You should not do this."
For you to understand the following argument, I think I should tell you about my work and I am very proud of it, from every point of view. Me, our team and our working conditions.
As I told you somewhere before, I am a special teacher in a special class for autistic children. We got two big and bright rooms with moveable partitions (see photo in my album. Hmm, it got lost in cyberspace, try again later). We can shop nearly everything we need. We got 7 (!) children, age 6 to 16. (And five computers). We have one room for the "little ones" and the other for the 3 teenagers, possible to mix. We have the use of all the school and all the classes as we find it suitable. We are a staff of 6, 3 full time, the rest part time job (I work 70%). Yeahh, we live in Iceland!
So, we have these programms going. Between other fascinating methods one is exstinction. You just ignore the behavoir you don´t want. Yes, it is as easy as that. The child is kicking, spitting, biting, yelling, throwing things: ignore. Believe it, children between 6 and 8 can´t really hurt you. Older ones? I don´t know really, the older ones at our school have learned not to. It is unbelievable, how quickly undesired behavoir dissappears. Like my sweet little pupil. He was really angry, yelling. No reactons. Then he started throwing things, first small, then bigger, then something really big. Looking at me: don´t you see what I am doing? As I kept on looking out of the window and nobody reacted, he shut up, drew a big breath and said: "go to sleep." Laid down on the sofa and listened to music. Next time? No next time yet, in a week. You get it? No comments for a week and I will stop writing this blog. Will I? No, maybe I get one comment in between and it will make me really powerfull to go on once more. And that is the problem.
There are these people I started with. People in and out of school who don´t work in our special class, in the bus, in the shop, wherever, they feel compelled to say: "Oh, stop this." "No, you may not do this." Wow, I got attention! Let´s do it again. What else can I do to get attention???
I got spitting mad the other day. And of course, told the people who ignore, not the other ones. But they do understand what I am talking about. At least, our kids are clever. They do behave, when they have learned, when I am around, or one of our team (most of the time.) And that´s nice for me/us. And, let´s not be unfair. Other people do learn this too. Just give them time (how I hate giving other people time but probably that is what learning in life is all about).
Wonderful to blog... I can go on and on and nobody interrupts me.
Of course we do more than just ignoring. But that´s a good starting point. The next thing you would do is praising until you get blue in your face. And having fun … but that is a new chapter. If you want to hear more about this, I will tell you later. I will, even if you don´t want it, as long as you will not ignore me :).

new pictures

I spenT many hours putting new pictures into my blog, but it does not look as I wanted . The Families should have to be together, there should be only one picture of a kind, my landscape hopped into "friends...you just look at them anyhow'
iT´S FARTOO LATE...GOING TO SLEEP!

Sunday, November 07, 2004

Thinking on Sunday while baking.

I know, that you all are very excited how my plan for Sunday did turn out!
Yes, I had a bath, I did my nails and shaved my legs. (Am I getting too private?)
I did not read yet, however. And I did a little bit of ironing. And I am baking a cake, it is in the oven right now. Something with pastry and a filling of marcipan and eggs and peaches.
But there is another thing I would like to share. I am sure that some of you, if not all, have wondered: Why sex in the barn?
You would probably not believe it, but I am the shy type. When somebody starts talking about sex ot making bad jokes I get red. I feel the blood surging up into my face and can´t do anything about it. So, me, I am in the barn, with some of the children, grandchildren and guests. And you know this rooster, he does it all the time. If you think about it, it´s logical: He´s got a lot of hens and these hens lay a lot of eggs and he has to be buisy to make sure that his seeds are to be carried on to further generations and that there are going to come little chicks out of the eggs. But logic isn´t the first thing coming into my head in situations like that. So, my face becomes red like a moon at dawn. Happily it is ratherdark in the barn but I felt like embarrassed. I know, horses do it too, and cows, and sheep. But they do it somewhere private, most of the time, far away on the meadows.
So, I thought, I must get used to it, life must go on on the fleshy side too. And as you already have sex in the city on TV, so why not sex in the barn in my blog?

Saturday, November 06, 2004

A Week Later: Saturday Morning til Late Afternoon

You probably know this feeling: You go to sleep Sunday evening and wake up Saturday morning and you don´t know where the week has gone. It has evapourated and the only thing you know is: you are one week nearer to death and the next month´s salary - I don´t get a check, they put it straight into my account,
My week was not like that. Monday seems eons away, looking back from Saturday morning. Still I know what I did do on Monday: I went to work at nine o´clock, was there until half past one, went shopping for dinner and visited in hospital. Probably I went early to bed, usually half past ten, eleven and than I read some.

Now: "The wind-up bird chronicle" by Haruki Murakari. A book I like and will buy more of the same author if I find some. On this blog side, I intended to give you a clear, witty and comprehensive critic on the books I read, but now I have difficulties with that. What is the taste of people? What is the essence of a "good" book? Many books regarded as "good" I feel like terribly boring, beside the point of my life and sometimes quite impossible to understand. I suspect, that it is just this incomprehensibility that makes the critics go "ahh" and "ohhh" because few people will admit that they don´t "get it".
But, as I am at it, a few words about the books I did already mention: "The da Vinci Code": An exciting thriller with the now so fashionable strong female character, interesting, but not mind boggling probable possibilities about the origins of the christian church and an end that is questionable but interesting.
"Middlesex" is a very clever book with bewitching prosa, sweet, full of humour, tragic and many facetts of human life. Parts of it may be a little longdrawn, but you get carried away and learn something new.
Try also to read “the bride stripped bare” by anonymous (Nikki Gemmel) if you want some sensuous female sexuality. A daring book with unsuspected twists.

But back to my week. On Tuesday I went after work and bought me a new fridge with a freezer. Not because my old one was not working any more, no, just because I longed to have a new one, clean and shiny. So I just went and bought it. Such a new luxus for me, having been a housewife without own money for so many years, to go into the next shop, to say, "Oh yes, I would like that one" and pay in cash. The new fridge also looks nice in my kitchen. And it is so much smaller than the old one, with light that is working, so now things will hopefully not get lost and smelly!
The only problem: The old, ugly, dirty and smelly one still stands in the middle of the living room as nobody has yet visited us who is strong enough to carry it down the stairs.

Wednesday was the day I put washing into the machine. In half a year from three machines a day down to twice a week. Did somebody say I didn´t have a sweet life? Empty nest syndrome MUST be a syndrome men invented, what else could a woman want to be than a mother? O, dear men, many, many things!

On Thursday I was exhausted, all that washing! As I am not the happy owner of a dryer, I had to hang all these wet pieces on a laundry line after work, fell for half an hour into bed... yes, work was crazy too, no lunchtime even. Then I drove my car to a garage where it got a new exhaust. That are the costs of countryside trips. My husband was so sweet to drive me to my painting class where I finished, yes, believe it, three pictures I had been working on for some time. See the first one on my photo page when it gets there. Not willing to be bothered with cooking I bought a ready to eat fried chicken and some potatoesalat.

On Friday, my dear friends, I made extrawork and extra money, came home half past two and slept through till five o´clock. The weather is sleepy, too. Not cold, not warm, grey, rainy without rain, chilly wind, in short, uncomfortable. I admire the people jogging up and down our street. No, I don´t. I shake my head: Nurds, put up the footrest in my easy-chair and keep on watching "whatever" on TV.
Marinó comes home for dinner. We are told, he has been sick in the stomach. Maybe that´s why he is so hungry: Dinner: meatballs in sweet sour souce with rice, bred and cheese, flatkökur and butter, cake, more bred and cheese, sweet cake, in the end we drove him home. But in between he was sweet and hugging and watching TV.

Saturday morning, 10 o´clock: My husband has cleaned the kitchen and coffee is waiting for me. He is buisy cleaning his room (it was in great need). What a nice way to wake up! After a sweet hot bath with foam and nice smells I start cleaning too, the living room, dust from the shelves, dirt from the floor, olive oil on the dinnertable, I like it nice, spik and clean but unfortunately it doesn´t keep. Usually I don´t clean more than a corner at a time, but today I am in the mood for it. So I take the stairs too, the hall, my bedroom, the kitchen, my study, start sorting papers, pens, drawers...yes, the garden is left.
I will dare to plan my day tommorow, an extraordinary luxus. I will forget the ironing - still waiting from the week before - I will take another bath but not shampoo my hair this time, I will relax in bed and read, I will bake a wonderfull cake (and eat it), I will visit one or two friends. I am so excited if I will be able to do this!