Post #5 - Our new Home in Sweden 61.58 N // Anchorage Alaska 61.13 N

There are many places in the world that are highly populated and with just under Ten Million inhabitants and residing in the Northern SUBTEMPERATE zone, Sweden isn't one of them.

Our home in Sweden is just at 61.92 North Latitude, a few short degrees of the beginning of the Arctic Circle which lay at 66.33 that reaches to the tiptop of the world at 90 degrees.  Thank good ness for the Gulf Stream off the Atlantic keeping the winter temperatures relatively mild and summer temps at a balmy 70-80 degrees!  

If you were to divide our most diverse home, planet earth, into regions by climate, where would you start?  Well, its already been done and in knowing about the climatological qualities of these regions we begin to see why people live where they do.

We can break this thing down in four Geographical Zones;;; North Frigid zone, North Temperate zone, (Tropical and Equatorial) Torid zone, South Temperate zone, South Frigid zone.  These Zones can be further broken down into sub categories. 

 The hottest region on the planet is the EQUITORIAL, known as the Torid Zone, which enjoys the most consistent annual solar exposure.  This region includes 13 countries and breaks into the tropics at 5 degrees north and south Latitude, known respectively as the tropic of Cancer and Tropic of Capricorn. 

Nesta is the region known as the TROPICS from 5 - 23.5 degrees north and south.  Think Mexico City to Rio-de Genaro. 

The SUB TROPICS is a sub category and extends up to the 38th parallel.  This could be included in the temperate zone. 

As you follow the earths contour you reach the TEMPERATE zone which occupies 23.5-66.5 AND receives varying degrees of solar exposure through the year.  As you can see by the map America and Europe fall in this regions which enjoy continual ebb and flow of Spring, Summer, Fall, Winter...THIS REGION of the North Temperate Zone is the most populated on the planet.

 
 
 
PS>>Interesting the earth magnetic field which resides at the pole is in continuous movement and can vary between as much as 40 Kilometers or 25 miles daily. 

PSS>> I had a hard time finding population figures for these geographical zones PLEASE POST IF YOU KNOW, Im would be interested. TACK!
   

POST #4 - Jet Lag, Cell phones, Stockholm and a Royal Wedding*

It takes a minute or two to get acquainted with a new country...When we arrived last summer with the kids in tow it was a real stress.  Thankfully I've done this before and now it's just a mater of re acquainting.

As the plane touches down there is a sense of relief...we are finally here but there's so much to be done.  First there is customs, no problem...  My five pound bag of Old soul Coffee didn't set off the alarm.   We exchange our Greenbacks for Kronor and head to the car rental.

There is a royal wedding the day of our arrival!  (Here is a photo of  the happy bride and groom)

I didn't realize that Sweden had a royal family and I'm not sure how all swede's feel about having a monarchy.  When I discussed this with my good friend Sam last year he mentioned that it is a bit of an embarrassment for their progressive modern society to have a monarchy. 

 

I'm curious to know what Swedish people think of their Monarchy.  Please feel free to leave comments below....* I guess the royal family has no real political power and play a more dignitarial role in in national and international policy.

 

On this note - Dad pointed out a motorcade of "Polis" cars and Motorbikes on the Motorway as we approached the city. It looked to be a dignitorial in nature, most likely on the way to the airport.

 

From the Airport we rent a car for the duration of our trip, 28 days. It's a compact car with GPS built which should do the trick.  From the airport we dash south from Arlanda International about 40 Km to a small island outside of the Capitol to my brothers home in Lidingö ( pronounced Leding-ur ) where we will stay the next few days.  

 

When we arrive to the house and our niece Shamala is waiting for us with food and rooms ready. We were very grateful but pooped fro a long journey and ready for SLEEP.... 

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The next day Sunday.  We retrieved our public transport passes "SL Access" and head into the city.  One bus and One train and 20 minutes to Ostermalsorg station.  Cell phones are the first order of business... I have Verizon in the states but the cost for Data Roaming is prohibitive to use here.   TELENOR is one of the biggest cell providers in Sweden so we purchases new phones and data cards for the month.  When we finally arrive to the house we there won't be any Wifi so we must use our phones for all communications. 

 

Like good tourists we had to take in the sights and sounds after all this is my dad and brothers first trip to Europe..While in the city we were greeted by a procession of sorts, a remnant from the wedding. It looked to be a the royal guard on horseback traveling through the streets of the Capitol.   At the lead a horn section playing a quite beautiful foreign song that echoed through the streets.  It was was real treat...

After a short stay at my brothers home we pack our things & travel to a tiny hamlet nestled in a small valley 300 Kilometers north of Stockholm to a place we will work and live and will soon call home...

Tack so micket*

 

Post #3 - Bird stike...The Flight has been canceled*

The flight had been delayed for two hours when the attendant came over the loud speaker to inform us there had been a bird strike upon landing at Oakland  International Airport. 

We had arrived at 5pm with a scheduled departure at 8pm.  By 11 we were informed that the flight would be canceled.  We would not be leaving today. 

We would spend the next two days with my older sister in San Jose.  Even though we were bummed about the delay we took it in stride and the made the most of our time together. 

 

I received a text the following day that we would be rebooked on a low cost carrier called HiFly 48 hours later. 

 

We had two days so in claifornia style, we went to the beach!

Santa Cruz..the fog bank was 200 meters from the shore but it was sunny on the board walk.  The next day we spent in the City.  A gorgous day to be sure.

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Friday was finally here and we hit the airport eirly.  Security was a breeze, 20$ vouchers for food was a nice bonus.   Its interesting to see all the same people arriving to the airport to board the same plane, a plane that had been missed just days earlier. 

You expect that you will never see these people again.  But now it was like we already new each, familiar faces,  all waiting to go to get to the same place.  Some had gone home others had stayed in hotels or with friends but we were all here and ready again for a collective adventure.  The flight was only 30 minutes delayed. 

I don't normally sleep well on planes and this one was tiny.  HIFLY should have been called LoFly.  The TV monitors were from the 80s and didn't work.  The reading lights didn't work either, we'll they did but the wiring was bad and it turned on the lights five seats ahead.  A good joke to be sure.  I could complain more but I wont.  I managed to get a couple hours of sleep on the 10 hour flight.

The flight is a northern passage with a trajectory over Canada, southern Greenland, slightly north of Iceland through Norway and into Sweden.  We could see the ice sheets and Glaciers in the north through intermitent cloud cover. 

 

As we began a decent into the northern reaches of europe the clouds became more sparce and the lush green forests sweden came into view....*

Post #2 - Dear Friends, WE ARE MOVING TO SWEDEN. I would like to share with you our humble story!

Post #2 - Dear Friends, WE ARE MOVING TO SWEDEN...and here's our humble story!

Hey ya'll ...We are moving to Sweden!  Now we are getting ready to embark on an epic one month journey with my dad and brother Keith to Repair and Remodel the Swedish Country School House we purchased last summer!

Many of our friends know we spent the summer in Stockholm last year but our biggest news from that journey was never announced.  With a reserved excitement we decided to share our story with our family and friends on a more personal level.  Now that our plans are more concrete I would like to share this, the story of how we decided to the northern reaches of Europe in the land of Vikings, Fika and Blood Pudding!

 

It's been nearly a years since we sold our house in Sacramento and began a grand adventure that would lead us to stay with my brother and his family in Stockholm, Sweden. 

 

 It was an exciting four months with our young family.  Dylan was 1 year old and Trinity 4 years at the time and traveling internationally was exciting and nerve wracking.   The transition was made easier by our amazing family Todd and Kris and their kids that welcomed us with open arms to their sweet Swedish home on the island of Lidingo only ten minutes from the Swedish capitol.  

 

With the help of my sister-in-law Kris and 19 year old daughter ShamalaTu, Michelle and the kids truly made the most of the summer.  We lived like swedes, grocery shopping, taking the recycle to the recycle stations, stayed up for the midsummer festivities and slept under the midnight sun.

 

Of course we all enjoyed our time at the beach, the kids frolicked like fairy children in the woods and took the occasional excursions into the medieval city.  This was to be one of the warmest summers in recent memory and we took advantage soaking up the Swedish summer with our new found friends and family.

My goal for the summer was to create a series of wood sculptures and share my artwork through public demonstrations.  I hoped that by summers end I would have an opening in Stockholm to show case the work I had created.  With the steadfast support of my amazing wife Michelle I was able to dedicate myself to this task and with in weeks of arrival I had secured a location for creating my chainsaw sculpture and the logs to work with.  I set to carving for six straight weeks and produced a series of wood carvings inspired by our Swedish experience.  

The world had open to us and the future was on our collective mind and I was curious about the Swedish real estate.  I didn't imagine we could actually buy a house.

Still, I began to research and was amazed to realize the affordability of homes in the countryside.  Like in the US, country homes were much more affordable and a spark of possibility waz born in our hearts and minds.  

That possibility would become a reality after the discovery of a gem of Swedish history.  A 1930s country school house and residence came on the market.  Long story short I asked Michelle if she would consider trip to the country.  We planned a trip to view the school house in person three hours north of Stockholm.  So we rented a car and made arrangements for a viewing. 

 

 WE had done this before and we were looking forward to doing it again when we returned to Sacramento in the fall. 

 

 When we arrived at the School House in the Swedish country side it was the quintessential "love at first sight"!  The future that was unknown suddenly passed before our very eyes.  We could SEE the Children being raised, lives being lived, friends being made, artwork being created, dreams being realized,  out of body experiences....ok, so it was pretty cool!  It happened so fast, and it felt right.  We made an offer that day and I set to pursuit the purchase of a foreign home. 

 

I shifted course and for two strait months we perused the a dream and two weeks before our scheduled departure we closed on a HOUSE AND a SCHOOL in Sweden...this is a long story, and a dream made reality.

 

Of course the swede's will be the first to tell you that summer is a far cry from a cold dark winters in this Scandinavian country.   We are sure to face challenges of language and distances from family and friends in a town we now call home.  

 

Now we are taking a leap one that will have its challenges but will surly have it's rewards as well.  We have been studying the language, the history and it's exciting to know that our kids will start school and learn a new culture while opening their eyes and hearts to a new life in a progressive European country. 

 

This is not good bye...  My hope and wish is to create a a home away from home.  As my good friend Sam, who is Swedish said,  this tale is one worth telling it is a story of a reverse immigration.  So many swede's call the United states home and now we will take this opportunity to call Sweden home. 

I'm happy to share this experience.  As we progress and I will post photos of our new home when we arrive in Sweden. 

 

This story has become more than just an amazing vacation.   It has become a life experience that has and will change out lives dramatically as now we are making plans to move to the Swedish country side north of Stockholm in Spring of 2016!

 

Tack So Macket..ADAM!

 

 

Post #1 - PREFACE Writing a blog and giving thanks -

For me this blog will be as much an exercise to develop my writing skills as it will be an opportunity to catalog our personal journey.  

The nature of a personal blog is that I (as the writer) will be telling this tale but I could not make this journey with out the full support of my Lovely Fiancé and life partner Michelle who I will refer to as my wife because that is the status of our heart. 

At the time of this writing our children are at the adorable ages of 5.5 and 2.9 because Dylan will be turning three in only two weeks.  Its my hope that this may be a memento of their tender years and a receipt of our journey they will only have glimpses of in memory.

And for me as an Artist and a father and a man of many hats I'm looking forward to this extraordinary journey into the unknown.

Our family tribe is collectively taking what is and has been a leap of Faith which can be a scary thing.  I have always lived outside the box and i credit my parents that always supported our ideas and allowed us to be free thinkers to make there own decisions and to learn from their mistakes and triumphs.

As we continue to follow our dreams and passion I have no illusions that we will meet challenges in our endeavor. In that regard I am grateful to our loving family and friends for their encouragement and support. 

As we proceed with this exciting pursuit I look forward to sharing our experiences and I will give thanks for the many blessings that we receive each day. 

Arigatou..ADAM*

Post #0 - The critique - Written and Released*

Here is the first post for the blog im about to create..im not a writer and my spelling and grammar can be an atrocity so I will do my best and of course im grateful for spell check and auto correct..

Quite critically I think myself to be a bit of a master of the obvious and even a bit generic at times.  While im critical of this I like to think these attributes are also enduring qualities.   

I have been a professional sculptor for more than seventeen years and a person that likes to draw paint and create since childhood.  While the creative genius of the artist is generally worshiped for its originality my personal opinion is that creative genius is really just a state of being that just "is".   And so I will not try too hard.

I will attempt to share what has been a extraordinary experience for my self and our family and how it came to be...

Your comments  and questions are appreciated!

 

ARIGATOU..ADAM*