Getting car and death's bed
The last 3 days I found that everything my wife warned me about – things to do to avoid a cold, proper dressing, etc, etc, that I said no, no, not me, I grew up in the northwest, I am man, I am immune!!!!….well, they came to past…..for me the mother of all “know it all” colds; sneezing, coughing, headaches, running nose, sore throat, aching all over – I even heard my toes coughing, my elbows sneezing.
It all started ……
THURSDAY FEB 16
We were met at the airport after the one hour flight from Stockholm. I was certain they made a mistake and dropped us off in the Dr Zhivago country of snow and barren trees, no color but black and white, stark, yet hauntingly beautiful….shhh, is that Lara theme? The driver, however, dropped us at the Radisson SAS Goteborg….a typically efficient Swedish 4 star. After settling in I went to “walk the Aveniya”, the most famous shopping avenue in Sweden, or so say the Goteborg crowd – not! It can’t hold a candle to the shopping avenues in Stockholm. In any event it was a lovely early evening and I enjoyed the leisure strolling and window shopping in the usual weather – below freezing. After the avenue stroll I meandered over to the city’s largest mall…which turned out to be about 4 or five streets in a rectangular shape covered by glass and thus protected and called a mall…and you could walk within this area to all the stores and if you were careful you could avoid seeing the 9 McDonalds, 3 Burger Kings, and various and sundry other fast foods over and over and over. In between were many nice, unique stores with no connection to the land of McDonalds. The arkitekts, after building the glass ceilings over the streets from building to building, then went about a redesign of the buildings that were once in the area….the ground floors and basement areas. They definitely followed the rabbit warren style – dig, burrow, and tunnel anywhere there was no resistance – then double back, another path, both up and down, building escalators and the necessary hisses (in Sweden, the elevator is called a “hiss” – think about this the next time you are on an elevator, listen, isn’t hiss a more interesting name) when there was a level change. In many areas it was not necessary to build a separate escalator, merely use the one in the store by cutting a public path across the corner of the store. You know, now that I think about it, I don’t recall what they call an escalator.
I wandered the mall watching people (there was a small floor hockey area and a teen tourney was going on, mountain climbing with a safety belt, taking shots at a goalie) and the wondrously erotic window and floor displays, so many having to do with the “we love boobs” theme…I found myself an ardent follower of this theme. At first I thought I was going in circles as it seemed around every corner or up the escalator was a McD – so when I finally found a “sort of” map and listing – I did the plotting and found that I had seen them all. I decided McD must be rewarded so I found one with a window seat, so I could watch the local blonde parade and sat down to enjoy my diet coke with lots of ice. When I sat down I was alone in a large corner area and wearing my wool cap and muffler, showing only my mouth, nose and eyes and of course my gumby coat that makes me look skinny, well lighter, whence I emerge – I guess it was that look I had, or that the corner was empty, but within minutes after I sat down, I was in the middle of a 5 family middle east camp. The adults (all women, the men do not join them when they decide to “sit”). were friendly and enjoyed asking me of Hawaii (in English much better than my Arabic) and their kids were adorable with eyes like glimmering dates. I sat until they left and then I wandered a bit more, bought a moose key ring for my sister and headed back to the hotel…..by now it was dark and well below freezing with a slight wind and, yes, it started to snow!
I had to walk across a ‘square’ that had those old fashioned light posts with glittering and twinkling lights and as you walked you could see these huge flakes floating down – it was surreal, like being in “the glass dome” that I shook as a child to watch the snow fall on various winter scenes....now I was one of them, a winter scene for ‘someone’ to shake again and again and watch me shiver. My last memory was a glimpse of the frozen stream behind the hotel, bordering a park, with a pedestrian walkway, many of the neat old lights, barren willows with branches drooping to the ice on the stream – to be the first to drink of the water when the ice melts, or just tired of bearing the weight of ice and snow, year after year in the idyllic glass dome winter scene?
FRIDAY FEB 17
KATHI GETS HER NEW VOLVO! We were picked up at the hotel by the ever courteous and friendly cab driver. They normally have a local radio station on but when they realize we are of pilgrim stock from afar they put in a tape of what they think is pilgrim music – so far it has been Elvis, Neil Diamond and of course (with much ado) Abba.
Breakfast is the usual, fresh and sweet fruits (honey melon was really sweet), meats, eggs, many kinds of bread, great bacon and sausage, cereals, and the wondrous croissants. Did I mention that they have their own national desert, besides ice cream? It’s called the semplor – think a sort of sweet roll cut in half and filled with a special clotted cream. I of course could not try one as I could sense spouse sensors were out and on duty.
There is a new 3” of snow on the ground as we get into the cab sent to pick us up. On the way I notice there is a huge stadium, a sort of “magic mountain” and a huge swimming/tennis/soccer complex. After a brief drive out of the city and thru the Zhivago winterscape, we arrive at the pick up center. It is the usual efficient Swedish operation – perfectly groomed and chic dressed blondes to greet us – and thereafter always by name – then a man (not blond but graying and ever so formal) goes over the paper work. He gets a cell phone call and grumbles that since Ford took over no matter where they are, night or day, they can be found. The room is all steel and glass and Ikea furniture. The paperwork, bill of sale, licensing, insurance, shipping, etc, etc, is all neatly organized in a leather portfolio.
The man leaves, saying he will be back in a moment. On a hunch I go to the windows where we could see customers going over their cars with customer reps. After a few moments a door starts to roll up and “our guy” drives out Kathi’s car and backs it into a spot. Kathi is all agog, and excited, and drawing attention…..I caught it on film…..the car coming out, not Kathi. After going over the car, instruments, etc, etc, we then wait a bit more for them to take us, and 13 more customers, to a restaurant for lunch. It was good but only the Swedish meatballs will be remembered. There was one guy there, beard, a rugged looking Laplander turning in an old (300,000km) sedan for a VC90 (don’t know the Volvo names) biggest and bestest SUV. He lives just north of the arctic circle. A single guy from Mountain View, couples from airbase in Germany; Alabama, Florida, and Tacoma. They said it was a slow day, usually 30 plus and in the summer 50 plus. Everyone loved the program (one couple was picking up two, he a convertible and she the VC90) and often repeated that they also wondered what the catch was – there is none.
We go for a variety of demonstrations in the safety and environment center. To make a long story short, the “oddest” thing they are close to have ready for introduction is a back seat driver, which of course I told them I already have! It is a co-pilot system that sees lights ahead and estimate their change, brake lights, all manner of things, warn about speed based on object proximity and pedestrian movement – incredible.
+++++readers hint; I do not have my wife with me to correct my horrid grammar, sorry….or spelling.
When we leave, the new snow falling has lightly frosted her car
and she is all nervous driving into the city…I tell her she has a car with a prototype co-pilot system and it will assist her, not to worry. This does not seem to calm her down. We make it back without incidence where the valet will park it safely in the garage.
Kathi decides to walk off her excitement. I decide to do something I’ve been dying to do since arrival. I go to the park by the hotel and walk out into the virgin snow, and make a snow angel. This is where the problems with the mother of all colds starts, I am sure. It is greatly appreciated that no let my wife or daughters know about this, even my granddaughter as she is starting to show the talents of male harassment.
SATURDAY FEB 18
During the night, before Sat morning, I start feeling less than sterling. The first hint of trouble is that I choose tea, toast, juice and muesli for breakfast. Then back to the room to pack where I am lucky that I didn’t leave more things behind as my head is starting to pound, my nose is running, sneezes, etc, all are starting up with a gusto. Turns out all I left was my nylon (snow angel) pants and a tshirt. We load the car and head for Malmo, to the south, across from Copenhagen. I remember little of this drive except it was in black and white and the white was freezing and I was sneezing. Every time Kathi stops for her necessary coke I waddle in and shi shi, get another orange juice and search for cough drops without sugar – which I finally find.
The roads are excellent and when there is an exit marking a town, etc, if applicable it will also say McDonalds – not like the signs of US roads that list the motels and restaurants at the exit – this is a sign entry as if it were a city entry. What influence McD’s must have. I remember little of Malmo except I trudged up and down looking at rooms the desk claimed were twins only to find them to be either king or queen and he insisting they could be made into twins – so he left his desk to show me and then had to apologize and refund. We ended up at the Radisson which was fine as I showered and piled into bed, drinking water and having a cough drop. I also took some Tylenol.
It all started ……
THURSDAY FEB 16
We were met at the airport after the one hour flight from Stockholm. I was certain they made a mistake and dropped us off in the Dr Zhivago country of snow and barren trees, no color but black and white, stark, yet hauntingly beautiful….shhh, is that Lara theme? The driver, however, dropped us at the Radisson SAS Goteborg….a typically efficient Swedish 4 star. After settling in I went to “walk the Aveniya”, the most famous shopping avenue in Sweden, or so say the Goteborg crowd – not! It can’t hold a candle to the shopping avenues in Stockholm. In any event it was a lovely early evening and I enjoyed the leisure strolling and window shopping in the usual weather – below freezing. After the avenue stroll I meandered over to the city’s largest mall…which turned out to be about 4 or five streets in a rectangular shape covered by glass and thus protected and called a mall…and you could walk within this area to all the stores and if you were careful you could avoid seeing the 9 McDonalds, 3 Burger Kings, and various and sundry other fast foods over and over and over. In between were many nice, unique stores with no connection to the land of McDonalds. The arkitekts, after building the glass ceilings over the streets from building to building, then went about a redesign of the buildings that were once in the area….the ground floors and basement areas. They definitely followed the rabbit warren style – dig, burrow, and tunnel anywhere there was no resistance – then double back, another path, both up and down, building escalators and the necessary hisses (in Sweden, the elevator is called a “hiss” – think about this the next time you are on an elevator, listen, isn’t hiss a more interesting name) when there was a level change. In many areas it was not necessary to build a separate escalator, merely use the one in the store by cutting a public path across the corner of the store. You know, now that I think about it, I don’t recall what they call an escalator.
I wandered the mall watching people (there was a small floor hockey area and a teen tourney was going on, mountain climbing with a safety belt, taking shots at a goalie) and the wondrously erotic window and floor displays, so many having to do with the “we love boobs” theme…I found myself an ardent follower of this theme. At first I thought I was going in circles as it seemed around every corner or up the escalator was a McD – so when I finally found a “sort of” map and listing – I did the plotting and found that I had seen them all. I decided McD must be rewarded so I found one with a window seat, so I could watch the local blonde parade and sat down to enjoy my diet coke with lots of ice. When I sat down I was alone in a large corner area and wearing my wool cap and muffler, showing only my mouth, nose and eyes and of course my gumby coat that makes me look skinny, well lighter, whence I emerge – I guess it was that look I had, or that the corner was empty, but within minutes after I sat down, I was in the middle of a 5 family middle east camp. The adults (all women, the men do not join them when they decide to “sit”). were friendly and enjoyed asking me of Hawaii (in English much better than my Arabic) and their kids were adorable with eyes like glimmering dates. I sat until they left and then I wandered a bit more, bought a moose key ring for my sister and headed back to the hotel…..by now it was dark and well below freezing with a slight wind and, yes, it started to snow!
I had to walk across a ‘square’ that had those old fashioned light posts with glittering and twinkling lights and as you walked you could see these huge flakes floating down – it was surreal, like being in “the glass dome” that I shook as a child to watch the snow fall on various winter scenes....now I was one of them, a winter scene for ‘someone’ to shake again and again and watch me shiver. My last memory was a glimpse of the frozen stream behind the hotel, bordering a park, with a pedestrian walkway, many of the neat old lights, barren willows with branches drooping to the ice on the stream – to be the first to drink of the water when the ice melts, or just tired of bearing the weight of ice and snow, year after year in the idyllic glass dome winter scene?
FRIDAY FEB 17
KATHI GETS HER NEW VOLVO! We were picked up at the hotel by the ever courteous and friendly cab driver. They normally have a local radio station on but when they realize we are of pilgrim stock from afar they put in a tape of what they think is pilgrim music – so far it has been Elvis, Neil Diamond and of course (with much ado) Abba.
Breakfast is the usual, fresh and sweet fruits (honey melon was really sweet), meats, eggs, many kinds of bread, great bacon and sausage, cereals, and the wondrous croissants. Did I mention that they have their own national desert, besides ice cream? It’s called the semplor – think a sort of sweet roll cut in half and filled with a special clotted cream. I of course could not try one as I could sense spouse sensors were out and on duty.
There is a new 3” of snow on the ground as we get into the cab sent to pick us up. On the way I notice there is a huge stadium, a sort of “magic mountain” and a huge swimming/tennis/soccer complex. After a brief drive out of the city and thru the Zhivago winterscape, we arrive at the pick up center. It is the usual efficient Swedish operation – perfectly groomed and chic dressed blondes to greet us – and thereafter always by name – then a man (not blond but graying and ever so formal) goes over the paper work. He gets a cell phone call and grumbles that since Ford took over no matter where they are, night or day, they can be found. The room is all steel and glass and Ikea furniture. The paperwork, bill of sale, licensing, insurance, shipping, etc, etc, is all neatly organized in a leather portfolio.
The man leaves, saying he will be back in a moment. On a hunch I go to the windows where we could see customers going over their cars with customer reps. After a few moments a door starts to roll up and “our guy” drives out Kathi’s car and backs it into a spot. Kathi is all agog, and excited, and drawing attention…..I caught it on film…..the car coming out, not Kathi. After going over the car, instruments, etc, etc, we then wait a bit more for them to take us, and 13 more customers, to a restaurant for lunch. It was good but only the Swedish meatballs will be remembered. There was one guy there, beard, a rugged looking Laplander turning in an old (300,000km) sedan for a VC90 (don’t know the Volvo names) biggest and bestest SUV. He lives just north of the arctic circle. A single guy from Mountain View, couples from airbase in Germany; Alabama, Florida, and Tacoma. They said it was a slow day, usually 30 plus and in the summer 50 plus. Everyone loved the program (one couple was picking up two, he a convertible and she the VC90) and often repeated that they also wondered what the catch was – there is none.
We go for a variety of demonstrations in the safety and environment center. To make a long story short, the “oddest” thing they are close to have ready for introduction is a back seat driver, which of course I told them I already have! It is a co-pilot system that sees lights ahead and estimate their change, brake lights, all manner of things, warn about speed based on object proximity and pedestrian movement – incredible.
+++++readers hint; I do not have my wife with me to correct my horrid grammar, sorry….or spelling.
When we leave, the new snow falling has lightly frosted her car
and she is all nervous driving into the city…I tell her she has a car with a prototype co-pilot system and it will assist her, not to worry. This does not seem to calm her down. We make it back without incidence where the valet will park it safely in the garage.
Kathi decides to walk off her excitement. I decide to do something I’ve been dying to do since arrival. I go to the park by the hotel and walk out into the virgin snow, and make a snow angel. This is where the problems with the mother of all colds starts, I am sure. It is greatly appreciated that no let my wife or daughters know about this, even my granddaughter as she is starting to show the talents of male harassment.
SATURDAY FEB 18
During the night, before Sat morning, I start feeling less than sterling. The first hint of trouble is that I choose tea, toast, juice and muesli for breakfast. Then back to the room to pack where I am lucky that I didn’t leave more things behind as my head is starting to pound, my nose is running, sneezes, etc, all are starting up with a gusto. Turns out all I left was my nylon (snow angel) pants and a tshirt. We load the car and head for Malmo, to the south, across from Copenhagen. I remember little of this drive except it was in black and white and the white was freezing and I was sneezing. Every time Kathi stops for her necessary coke I waddle in and shi shi, get another orange juice and search for cough drops without sugar – which I finally find.
The roads are excellent and when there is an exit marking a town, etc, if applicable it will also say McDonalds – not like the signs of US roads that list the motels and restaurants at the exit – this is a sign entry as if it were a city entry. What influence McD’s must have. I remember little of Malmo except I trudged up and down looking at rooms the desk claimed were twins only to find them to be either king or queen and he insisting they could be made into twins – so he left his desk to show me and then had to apologize and refund. We ended up at the Radisson which was fine as I showered and piled into bed, drinking water and having a cough drop. I also took some Tylenol.
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