tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29379793098611313702024-02-07T22:14:24.760-08:00Tales of Holbo ShireBlogging on Family and CulturePer Holbohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12079712540712231883noreply@blogger.comBlogger85125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2937979309861131370.post-80249064605546583902017-12-20T01:29:00.002-08:002017-12-20T01:29:56.506-08:00Drop the guessing game, ladies, please...<h2>
<span style="font-size: x-large;">A chocking experience</span></h2>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">When I was very young, maybe around 18 or 19 years old, I got my first real grown-up job. On one of my first days there two of my collegues, a man and a woman, where standing side by side working together. Then all of the sudden, he grabbed her behind and gave it a squeeze...<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">My first thought was something like: "Naaa... That can't be right... Nobody would act in such a disrespectful way... I must have misunderstood the situation..."<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">As I turned my head looking at a third collegue, he too looked baffled. "Did you see that too?" he asked. "Ehm... Well... Yeah..." I answered reluctantly "I suppose I did..."<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">What happened after that I really don't know. After all, I was quite young and quite frankly I didn't have the slightest idea how to react. I was chocked and disillusioned. Never in my life had I seen anything remotely resembling that experience. In my world such behavior just didn't exist...</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<h2>
<span style="font-size: large;">The MeToo Campaign</span></h2>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">Now, why am I telling this story?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">Well, I am telling it because that experience has popped up in my head over and over recently as I've seen the #metoo campaign unravelling from a single tweet to global attention in next no time at all.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">It all began with actor and singer Alyssa Milano October 15th this year tweeting her challenge for everyone who had experienced sexual harrassment to use ”Me Too” as a headline. The whole point is to raise attention to the problem and make it visible that this problem is much bigger than most people are aware. That mission certainly has succeede. According to a Danish newspaper, <a href="https://www.information.dk/kultur/2017/10/metoo-blevet-social-bevaegelse-tog-tre-dage">Information</a>, at least 1.5 mio. people had been involved in this campaign in less than four days and since then the movement has gone globally viral.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<h2>
<span style="font-size: large;">Keep the debate on track</span></h2>
<div>
<span style="font-size: large;">MeToo has created awareness. Important and much needed awareness. For that reason alone, it is extremely important to keep the debate on track, whatever that means...</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">Being a man I'm both chocked, worried and angered that this problem is so wide spread. Still I'm equally surprised. Surprised that having this very important public debate going, it seems the usual tendency in these matters to make it a gender war, where men are accused of not taking the subject seriously, when in reality they are just experiencing dissonans in their perspective of the world: because what we read and hear with the #metoo campaign doesn't fit what we see in our every day lives!</span></div>
</div>
<h2>
<span style="font-size: large;">Self Victimizing Men</span></h2>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">In <a href="https://www.facebook.com/Radio24syv/videos/vb.261377963890954/1911026502259417/?type=2&theater">Radio24syv</a> December 1st Asger Juul and Ida Herskind invited three women to debate the campaing in a Danish context. Sexologist Julie Jeune, vicepresident of FOA (a national union) Mona Strib and author Line Knutzon.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">The setting was based on getting a nuanced debate and Mona Strib did well to ensure a fair balance so you should think this would be a great recepie for a serious radio show.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span><span style="font-size: large;">But… unfortunately not many minutes passed before sexologist Jeune let the judges hammer fall on men who've reacted with more extreme measures. For example René Fredensborg who says in an interview that he has decided to not dance at the annual Christmas Party. Instead he plans to stand at the bar all evening with a drink in each hand. ”Well... that way i can't... I wouldn't be able to touch anyone inapropriately” he announces. And this is where Jeune gets really clear: ”This is where men victimize themselves. They shift the focus from what's important. Seriously, this is all bout something very important. More important than men getting confused.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQ3vz-NKDJaNYMx_WerhivoCaxYrpAM21iO8X8COGU7QON2mQGK1QzWm9dYKhyphenhyphenPwK3nja1JSUxkBL1LCho_ABZgXUML-4pzih9r7b3iPDHc9CLHUxQ3EWQ4Ld4BsUg-Q1pTk77LWaXgqZQ/s1600/Barbed-Wire-Cry-Kneeling-Blind-Caught-Terror-1580550.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="646" data-original-width="400" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQ3vz-NKDJaNYMx_WerhivoCaxYrpAM21iO8X8COGU7QON2mQGK1QzWm9dYKhyphenhyphenPwK3nja1JSUxkBL1LCho_ABZgXUML-4pzih9r7b3iPDHc9CLHUxQ3EWQ4Ld4BsUg-Q1pTk77LWaXgqZQ/s320/Barbed-Wire-Cry-Kneeling-Blind-Caught-Terror-1580550.jpg" width="198" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">Knutzon quickly buys in on that definition. She is clearly angry - and that's not just my interpretation. She says so herself. And then she drops the "Kindergarten Card" on the table: ”this Kindergarten attitude, Rene Fredensborg sneeking around without his shoes on and standing with a sour face, demonstrating in the kindergarten, yellow group and won't say anything to (women) or dance with (women) making himself a victim... compared to... the seriousness of all this. Really? this is about women who have been raped! And here we have these adult-babies, man-adult-babies standing in the corner getting all insulted and making themselves the victims? That really makes me mad this morning.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">Well, I suppose the scene is set, then!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">Women are exposed to sexual harrassment on an everyday basis and men are babies standing with an insulted face in the corner?<br /><br /><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">I am somewhat surprised at both Jeune and Knutzon, whom I usually see as rather intelligent people. They should in my oppinion be able to see what's going on here!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">But... apparently not... Hopefully they will realize given some time...<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<h2>
<span style="font-size: large;">Something just doesn't add up!</span></h2>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">In the meantime I would like to present my thoughts on why some men react this rather extreme way.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">As it should be obvious from the story I started this post with, my male collegue's behavious was so strange and previously unseen to me that at first I just couldn't believe my eyes. I was sure I had had to have misunderstood the entire situation. In no way could I ever imagine anyone behaving such a way. In my world such a thing just doesn't happen! So, my conclusion was that I had had to have misinterpreted what I'd seen.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">Never since then have I seen any man do something similar to a woman.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">As I have said a few times: such a thing just doesn't exist in my world.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">Then comes the entire #metoo campaign showing a much broader extent of this problem than I reckognize in my life. How am I supposed to react?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">I see no reason to doubt the stories from women posting with the #metoo hashtag. Why would they lie? Maybe some of the stories have been exaggerated and maybe some of the stories aren't really about harrassment. But I believe the vast majority of these stories are to be taken very seriously.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">The problem for me is, though, that what I see around me every day and what the #metoo stories tell me don't fit eachother. Both world views can't be true at the same time and this creates dissonans in my perception of the world. Something just doesn't add up!</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<h2>
<span style="font-size: large;">Men look at themselves</span></h2>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">How can my experience be so much different than that of the MeToo campaign? I have to ask myself what's going on:</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">- Have I as a man not been paying enough attention to what's going on around me?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">- Do these things happen out of sight and do most women who have been assaulted refrain from calling it out?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">- And have I as a man did or said something that may have been interpreted as inappropriate?<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<h2>
<span style="font-size: large;">Drop the guessing game, ladies, please!</span></h2>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">I'm sure I'm not the only man having these questions. Most men would reckognize that women have a tendency to expect us to read minds, guessing what they moght think or feel. And yes, maybe to some extent we can... But even the most attentive, sensitive of us have limitations in our ability to read your mind.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzLeolrcCbQOKJAGNabBNENH9CUtp6lTAmda8bn1LB9vsdSW6-85ENR4Kb2cUHhBCRp0ZYRzHbVrkhh9u-uK9McnS71zSAkieohH2HmgOltL8b_Ol_gEJMvGEyPxlDNSMzuWKrG6oC3X3A/s1600/man_woman_GuessingGame.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="320" data-original-width="315" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzLeolrcCbQOKJAGNabBNENH9CUtp6lTAmda8bn1LB9vsdSW6-85ENR4Kb2cUHhBCRp0ZYRzHbVrkhh9u-uK9McnS71zSAkieohH2HmgOltL8b_Ol_gEJMvGEyPxlDNSMzuWKrG6oC3X3A/s1600/man_woman_GuessingGame.png" /></a></div>
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">So, seriously, couldn't we agree on dropping that stupid guessing game? It really doesn't benefit anyone! That silly game is by far the greatest obsticle of inter gender communication. It prevents us from learning from eachother and getting to know the other gender better. If we could get only one obsticle removed, when it comes to communication and relations between men and women, this is the one to loose...</span></div>
Per Holbohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12079712540712231883noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2937979309861131370.post-7812645084710465412013-12-25T01:56:00.000-08:002013-12-25T01:56:00.023-08:00The Legend of Hjarnes Island - Chapter 4<h1>
<a href="" name="C4TheVacationBegins"><span lang="EN-US">Chapter 4: The Vacation begins</span></a></h1>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpFirst">
<span lang="EN-US">There was a buzz outside Jenny´s
house the morning of departure. Everyone was excited. Jim and Mike had been up
as early as <st1:metricconverter productid="5 in" w:st="on">5 in</st1:metricconverter>
the morning to get ready and when they arrived, Jenny and her parents had
already set up the family´s luggage in the gigantic courtyard prepared for
packing. The entire setup had Jenny´s dad, Robert, written all over it.
Suitcases and bags had been sorted in size and type and placed in well defined
rows and columns. He was a Captain in the army reserves and loved the
systematic approach to any problem, that being people, animals or objects. He
was just coming out with a cooler box in his hands as Jim and Mike came
strolling down the driveway with one bag each for the week. He set the cooler
down and welcomed them heartily.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“Gentlemen!” he greeted them his
arms wide apart. He shook their hands after turn while commending them for
their foresight to not bring more luggage than they did. Then he leaned forward
and said in such a low voice he might as well have whispered:</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“Those women in there don´t know when
to stop.” He glanced over his shoulder to ensure they hadn´t come out yet and
then continued:</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“You should think they were going
to a deserted island for several years with all that rubbish they want to
bring.”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">He paused for a bit and then
leaned forward again.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“Don´t tell them I said so,” he
pleaded, “or I´ll be in big trouble.” They both nodded in agreement and Mike
even saluted Mr. Mason.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“Yes, sir!” he snapped, “you can
count on us, sir! We won´t say a word!”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“About what?” Jenny said. She had
just come out of the house and was setting down the biggest trunk, any of the
two boys had ever seen. ‘Flump!’ it sounded as the one side hit the rubble.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“What aren´t you going to say a
word about?” she repeated as she approached them.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“If we were to tell you, we would
need to use words, wouldn´t we?” Jim said, “and that´s exactly what we promised
not to do, isn´t it?” Jenny looked to Mike, but no winnings there either. She
set her arms in her side and straightened up.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“I might just begin to regret I
even invited you on this trip,” she said, but with a smile on her face to let them
know she was just kidding.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“Oh, no, daughter dearest,” Mr.
Mason broke in, “first of all, though it was your idea to begin with, you did
not invite these fine gentlemen. Your mother and I did. Secondly, this will be
my first vacation since I married your mother, where there will be other male
participants and I´d be an idiot if I let that chance pass me by. So, my dear:
they´re staying! You mark my words, young lady.”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">Jenny looked at them one by one
trying to keep up appearances, but it didn´t last long. She burst into laughter
and started tripping her feet and waving her arms wildly above her head.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“We are going to <st1:country-region w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Denmark</st1:place></st1:country-region>!” she
sang and took their hands and soon the three of them were dancing together,
although the boys seemed to enjoy the dance less than Jenny. But what won´t you
do for a friend?</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">All that dancing and singing
brought Jenny´s mum outside. She held a plate in one hand and a drying towel in
the other.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“What´s going on out here?” she
asked. Jenny passed her by with a secretive look on her face.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“The boys have secrets,” she
said, “and they are not willing to share them with us.”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">Mrs. Mason lit up in a big smile.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“Everyone is entitled to have
secrets,” she said, “In fact, I´ve got a few of my own, waiting in the kitchen
for you besides toast, bacon and eggs. Come get your breakfast before it gets
cold.”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">The last bit she yelled out to
the three gentlemen still standing by the car, but as soon as Mike heard the
word ‘breakfast’ he practically flew over the bags and boxes and rushed inside
with Jim and Mr. Mason on his tail.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">It was a breakfast for royals and
they all dug in deep, except for Jim who barely touched his food.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“You´re awfully quiet this
morning,” Mrs. Mason remarked, “Isn´t there anything here that appeals to you?”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">He looked up.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“I´m sorry, Mrs. Mason, “ he
answered, “It really looks great. I´m just not in the mood for anything.”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“I´m sorry to hear that,” Mrs.
Mason said, “You do look a bit sad. I thought you would be thrilled about the
trip.”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“I was,” he replied, “till last
night, that is...” She gave him the ‘and now?’ look and he continued: “Well, I
might as well tell you now.” He looked round the table hoping for comfort. Both
Jenny and her parents looked at him. Mike was still busy eating. Then he
dropped the bomb.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“I´m adopted,” he shrugged
looking lost. Jenny put down her fork and knife and they all had their eyes
fixed on him. Even Mike who had his mouth full of delicious pan cake stopped
chewing.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“You´re what?” Mike spat pieces
of pan cake as he spoke.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“My parents told me last night,”
Jim explained, “right after the twins were tugged in. I´m adopted.”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">Mrs. Mason felt his dispair and put
her arm around his shoulder.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“They wanted to wait till after
summer,” he continued, “but I found the papers and they had to come clean.” A drop
of salty water crawled down his left cheek, but he didn´t want them to see, so
he pretended to not notice. Then maybe, they wouldn´t notice either.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“Look at me, Jim!” the
authoritive, but kind voice of Mr. Mason commanded. Jim did and met the comforting
eyes of Mr. Mason.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“It doesn´t matter, Jim,” Mr.
Mason said, “I know this must be a chocker right before leaving for vacation.
But it doesn´t matter, Jim. They love you! Your parents? They love you! I know
they do, because I know your parents... and they love you!” There was a short
silence and then Mrs. Mason pulled him closer.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“And so do we, Jim,” she said
wholeheartedly.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“I know,” Jim said, “That they
love me, I mean. It´s just that... I don´t know... I just feel...”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">Mr. Mason helped him out.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“Lost?” he said.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“Well, yeah... I suppose I do...”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">Mr. Mason leaned forward.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“Jim,” he said, “it´s only natural
to feel lost, but you´re safe and sound with us and we are going to have a
splendid holiday these 3 weeks. Let it sink in and we´ll talk some more later,
okay?“</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpLast">
<span lang="EN-US">Jim nodded with a smile and they
ate the rest of the meal in silence.</span></div>
<div class="Centermarkering">
<span lang="EN-US">***</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpFirst">
<span lang="EN-US">Thor´s
quiet staring made Loki uneasy. He really hated that look and found it hard to
decide if it was meant as caring or demeaning.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“I´m
sorry?” Thor said.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">Most
of the crew probably hadn´t noticed, but Loki heard the anger behind his soft
voice.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“That´s
what I said,” Loki explained, “somehow the console was moved and they are
researching it as we speak. That´s why I chose to speed up the gathering on the
<st1:place w:st="on">Island</st1:place>. Both Tjalfe and Roeskva are on their
way, but I´m afraid they brought some friends with them...”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">He
shrugged as he continued: “...and I can´t see how we can contain it, unless we
bring them up to date.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">Thor
looked at his friend trying to hide his disappointment, though he wasn´t very
succesful.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“And
how long have the scientists known about the console?” he asked.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">Loki
breathed in and leaned back in his chair.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpLast">
<span lang="EN-US">“Well,
I suppose that´s the good news. They´ve had the console for almost a century,
but they still haven´t figured it out...”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="Centermarkering">
<span lang="EN-US"> ***</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpFirst">
<span lang="EN-US">“Come on girls. We´re leaving,”
Mr. Mason called from the car, “We´ve got a boat to catch and it´s not waiting
for us. We´re not the royal family, you know!” Mike and Jim were already
sitting in the car, but as usual Jenny and her mum had very important facial
refurbishing to do before they could leave. Mike had his mouth full of a candy
bar he had brought with him, but when Jenny appeared in the door his jaw
dropped to his chest and the suliva smerged chokolate fell into his lap. His
eyes were wide open as he looked upon the most beautiful girl he had ever seen.
It was as if the light of the sun tenderly caressed her red hair and she was most
definitely glowing.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“Wauw!” he let out, “She is HOT!”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">Mr. Mason turned around in his
seat.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“Ahem!” he said, ”That´s my
daughter you´re talking about, Mr. Baker.”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">Mike was startled and confused.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“Oh, I´m sorry... I... I.. I
didn´t mean to...” he tried explaining himself.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“Take it easy, Mike,” Mr. Mason
smiled to ease Mike´s terrified look, “I´m just fooling around.”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">Then he leaned a bit toward the
back of the car his eyes narrowed and fixed on Mike.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“Unless of course your intensions
are less than honorable, Mr. Baker!”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“No, Mr. Mason!” Mike replied,
again bewildered, “I don´t like Jenny... I mean, not like that... I mean...
She... ehm... I...”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">Mr. Mason burst into laughter.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“Ha!” he said, “Gotcha!”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">Jenny and Mrs. Mason entered the
car and of course they noticed the sudden silence.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“What´s going on?” Jenny asked.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">Mr. Mason started the engine and
they moved up the driveway.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“Men´s stuff,” he said,
“Honorable men´s stuff!”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">It was a long trip from the Mason
residence down to Harwich, where the boat departed. Almost two hours of heavy
traffic. The first half hour Jenny, Mike and Jim had a marvellous time chit
chatting in the back of the car, where they sat on a row playing cards.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">But after a while, Jim found
himself drifting away and looking out the window.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">The typical English rain had set
in, making the scenery outside looking like something from an old silent movie,
only with a hint of color in the else gray picture.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">Coming out on the motorway Mr.
Mason sped up to the allowed <st1:metricconverter productid="70 mph" w:st="on">70
mph</st1:metricconverter>, no more, no less. With this speed it was more
difficult to make out the scenery out there, but nevertheless, Jim still
enjoyed watching the trees. As they went under a bridge near <st1:city w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Springfield</st1:place></st1:city> there was a sound of thunder and
the sky seemed to split into smaller pieces and then moving together again. Jim
smiled as he realized it looked very much like a Power Point show going from
one screen to another. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">A bang and a flash broke the sky
into pieces again and slowly it faded back in its right place. The zig-zaggy
lines of the flash sort of disappeared into the dark gray. Except for one place
where it seemed to stay for a while. Bang! Flash! Again the lines faded away
and once again he noticed that little spot in ske skies where the light didn´t
disappear. After a while that one light even seemed to glow. Stronger and
stronger it glowed. <i>What <u>is</u> that? </i>He
thought to himself, but before he could give it anymore thought, the light
started moving. Swoosj! Right across the sky it swooped like something from one
of those old fashioned Science Fiction movies from the 50´s. The light went
over a hill top and was gone.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“What?” Jenny said. She was
sitting next to Jim and had just pushed her elbow in his side.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“What did you just say, Jim?”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">He turned his head toward her. “I
didn´t say anything,” he answered.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“Yes, you did,” Mike supported
her, “What was it?”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">Jim looked at them. <i>What are they getting at? Is this a joke? If
it is, it´s not a very good one. <o:p></o:p></i></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“Look, guys, it´s not funny,” he
said clearly annoyed, “I didn´t say anything, okay?”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“Alright,” Mike said leaning back
in a defensive position, “if you say so.”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">Jim was really getting irritated
now gazing at them with a fierce look in his eyes.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“Okay, then,” he said, “what do
you think I said?”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">They both shrugged.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“Don´t know,” Mike said, “didn´t
make any sense. You just made some weird noises, really.”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“Yeah,” Jenny contributed, “or some
kind of strange language.”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">Jim looked puzzled and angry at
the same time.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“Weird sounds? Strange language?”
he said, “Could you make up your minds, please?”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“Kind of the same to me,” Mike
said, “But it sounded like...”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">Mike paused and looked to Mr. and
Mrs. Mason to be sure they weren´t listening in. Then he leaned over Jenny and
whispered:</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“like ‘Ass and Ham’ or
something...”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“Mike!” the ever behavior focused
Jenny scolded him, “language!”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">Her eyes squewed at her parents,
but they didn´t seem to notice anything.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“Well, it did!” Mike defended
himself, “You heard it too!”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">They were silent and looked at
each other for a while, but then Mr. Mason startled them.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“There we are!” he proclaimed
loudly, “The port to The Viking Nation awaits our presence!”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">Outside the rain had stopped and
the sun lurked through the white edged clouds casting beams of cheerful light
on both port and boat. The windows of the boat reflected the sunlight as it
swayed calmly on the water as if it knew they were coming and wanted to let
them know how welcome they were.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">Mr. Mason drove through the
paying booth and parked the car as directed by the staff placed strategically
throughout the parking zone. They had to wait for half an hour before they
could drive aboard, so Jenny´s parents allowed them to stretch their legs.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“Don´t go too far, mind you,”
Jenny´s mum said, “you should always be able to see the car.”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">The three of them began walking
toward the water.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“Keep your phones on, so you can
hear them if I call you,” Mrs. Mason yelled, “And don´t go too near the water,
you hear!”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“Sure, mum, no, mum” Jenny waved
and turned her back to her mother.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“She´s such a drag sometimes,”
she mumbled.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“At least she worries,” Mike
replied, “My mum´ll let me play with knifes, if I want to.”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“Yeah, I know,” Jenny replied,
“but it still can be quite annoying.”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">They turned about <st1:metricconverter productid="20 feet" w:st="on">20 feet</st1:metricconverter> before the water
front and walked along the edge talking about how they were all looking forward
to three weeks of absolute freedom to do whatever they wanted.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“My dad says the <st1:place w:st="on">Island</st1:place> is haunted,” Jenny said, “did I tell you that?”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“Yes, you did,” Jim answered,
“several times, in fact. I think we got it about now, though we are so
unbelievable slow in the uptake.”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">She pretended to not have heard
that last bit.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“Well, it is,” she continued, “at
least that´s what the legend says. My dad says it´s just what happens in a
backward civilization when you don´t have science to explain natural events.”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“What does the legend say?” Jim
wanted to know and then Jenny got all excited and told them everything she knew
about the stories of the <st1:place w:st="on">Island</st1:place>. <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:placename w:st="on">Hjarnes</st1:placename> <st1:placetype w:st="on">Island</st1:placetype></st1:place> was small. Only about <st1:metricconverter productid="8500 feet" w:st="on">8500 feet</st1:metricconverter> wide and <st1:metricconverter productid="7500 feet" w:st="on">7500 feet</st1:metricconverter> broad. It was
placed in the fjord of <st1:city w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Horsens</st1:place></st1:city>,
a city with a population of about 40.000 people.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">The legend said that the Island
had it´s name from Hjarne, who was given ownership of the <st1:place w:st="on">Island</st1:place>
as an appreciation for writing a hero´s song for King Fredegod. He and his men
were Vikings and lived on the <st1:place w:st="on">Island</st1:place> as
farmers in the summer and as raiders during the winter. On Hjarne´s last
raiding expedition round 800 AD he and most of his men got badly wounded and
barely made it home. Just a few days after they returned to Hjarne´s Island
they all died and were buried in a ship setting.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“Ship setting?” Mike asked,
“what´s that?”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">Jenny explained: “it´s a sort of
marking made with big stones to form the shape of a ship. The Vikings used to
place their dead on a ship and then they set the ship on fire and pushed it out
to the sea. I guess the ship setting works as a kind of substitute for the real
thing.”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“So, why weren´t Hjarne burnt at
sea?” Jim said.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">Jenny shrugged.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“No one really knows, but legend
has it that the Yetten were close and prevented them from leaving the <st1:place w:st="on">Island</st1:place>.”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“The what?” Mike was baffled with
all that information and he was sure his head was about to explode.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">Jenny sent him a tiresome look.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“Don´t you ever listen? As I told
you before, the Viking Mythology speaks of several godly races. The Aseir are
the good guys and the Yetten are the bad guys. Pay attention, please!”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“Sorry!” Mike said defensively
and Jenny continued explaining the legend. For a long time, the generations on
Hjarne´s Island had respected these ship settings and left them alone, but
around the mid 1700´s people started removing some of the stones to use them as
building materials leaving only a few settings intact, because they were hidden
by plants and trees.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“One stone was left out in the
open,” Jenny explained, “because no one dared moving it. They were convinced the
stone was bewitched and that if anyone was to ever move it, the ground beneath
would open its mouth wide and swallow the whole <st1:place w:st="on">Island</st1:place>.”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“So that one is still there?” Jim
said, “They left it there out of fear of being sucked to Hell?”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“For many generations, yeah,”
Jenny said. She was really getting excited now and her eyes were sparkling.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“But then...”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">Jenny paused for drama.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“Then in the 1920´s a local farmer,
Thomas Jensen, took that stone to build a barn for his cows. The elders warned
him that the stone was cursed and that if he even touched it, bad things would
happen to him. He didn´t believe them and claimed to have touched that stone
many times and he hadn´t felt a thing. So, he took the stone, cut it in smaller
pieces and used them to build his new barn.”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">Mike and Jim stopped walking and
looked at Jenny for the continuation.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“So?” Mike was eager to know
more.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“Nothing happened!” Jenny said,
“At least for a while...”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">Again being the drama queen she
paused to let them fry in expectation. Then she moved on in the story:</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“But then one day...” </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">Jenny was interrupted as her
phone rang. She spoke shortly with her mother and put the phone back in her
pocket.</span></div>
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Book Antiqua"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;">“Sorry, guys, but mum says we have to go back to the
car. We are about to board. I´ll tell you the rest on the boat.”</span>Per Holbohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12079712540712231883noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2937979309861131370.post-27221444334280769672013-12-20T01:55:00.000-08:002013-12-20T01:55:00.082-08:00The Legend of Hjarnes Island - Chapter 3<h1>
<a href="" name="C3AMysteriousDrawing"><span lang="EN-US">Chapter 3: A mysterious
drawing</span></a></h1>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpFirst">
<span lang="EN-US">”I
am sorry to see you leave.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">Professor
Haymann had been the closest thing to a father Britt could have ever hoped for.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">”And
I am sorry to leave, Britt.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">He
was clearing his desk in what had been his office for the past 24 years at the <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:placetype w:st="on">university</st1:placetype> of <st1:placename w:st="on">Yale</st1:placename></st1:place> and he was clearly as frustrated as
she was, although he did his best to hide it.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">”But
those who govern this place felt otherwise.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">By
”those who govern” he meant the magistrate and the university board, who had
finally decided that his theories were too much of a public burden.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">Haymann
was a man holding on to his views and since they could not persuade him to hold
his tongue and at least research the most awkward of these theories on his own
time, they had seen no other option than to let him go.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">He
put the last folder in his briefcase and sighed deeply while looking at Britt.
”So,” he said, ”this is it. Thank you for all your help.” He reached out his
hand and she took it.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">”I
am the one, who should thank you,” she said while trying not to show her sorrow
too much, ”the past 3 years have been the most exciting of my life. And you
have always been there for me.” He put his other hand out and held hers with
both of his.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">”Britt,”
both his words and eyes said, ”you mean more to me than I can tell you. I will
miss you and you are always welcome to come visit me.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">Then
he let go of her hand and grabbed his briefcase.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">”I
will forward my address to you as soon as I arrive.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">As
he left, Britt stood there for a moment, then went to the window and looked
out. He put all his things in the trunk of the waiting taxi and just before he
stepped in, he looked up and waved a heartily good bye. She waved back trying
to smile, but could not overcome her feelings and confusement at the whole situation.
Why couldn´t he take her with him? Or at least tell her, where he was going?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">She
watched the taxi drive away and then turned around. The office looked barren
without the pictures and diplomas on the wall. With a deep sigh she sat in the
chair and took in as much as she could of what was left of Haymanns presence.
Her left hand was fiddling with the knob of the desk drawer as if it had a life
of its own. She turned the chair a bit to the side and looked out the window.
How would she cope when Haymann would no longer be standing at her side and
helping her making hard descisions?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">She
heard a clicking sound as the drawer knob twitched and a wooden plate beneath
the drawer popped out. She took hold of it and pulled it out a bit. Nothing was
on it, but there had to be reason for it to be hidden there. Her hand struck
something underneath the plate, so she took it out and flipped it. A piece of
paper was folded and glued to the plate. She ripped it off of the plate and
opened it. There was a drawing on the paper; A circle with two lines at equal
length drawn as a cross from the edges of the circle.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<i><span lang="EN-US">I´ve seen this before, </span></i><span lang="EN-US">she thought, but she couldn´t
remember where. All she could think of was that it had something to do with <st1:place w:st="on">Scandinavia</st1:place>.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpLast">
<i><span lang="EN-US">Well, I´ll forward this to his new address as soon as I hear from him,</span></i><span lang="EN-US"> she thought to herself, then stood
up, got her jacked from the hat tree by the door and walked out with the note
in her pocket.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="Centermarkering">
<span lang="EN-US">***</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpFirst">
<span lang="EN-US">It
had been almost three weeks and yet there´d been no word from Haymann. Britt
usually wasn´t the type for worrying and though she had been trying to convince
herself that it was just Haymanns well known tendency of forgetting even the
simplest things, she´d had this nagging feeling that something was wrong. Three
days after Haymann left, a group of men in grey coats had shown up at the
university and turned his office upside down. They had left as quickly as they
arrived and the janitor was well occupied repairing the broken wall panels.
Haymanns desk had to be replaced as it was ripped to pieces leaving only the
legs in two pairs with their respective halfs of the desk attached.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">But
more than anything else it was the accumulation of little strange things she
had experienced for a few days that made her decide to act. Sometimes, when she
knew she was alone, she´d had the feeling that someone was watching her.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">At
first she dismissed it as being the grief making her imagine things, but after
a while, she told the magistrate about it. His face had turned white and he
simply refused to talk about it. Or about Haymann for that matter. While it was
obvious why he didn´t want to talk about Haymann´s theories; in fact he had
never wanted to; still she didn´t understand why Haymann´s whereabouts and
actions were suddenly off limits. It had always been one of the magistrate´s favorite
interests and he´d usually be more than keen to spit and course at Haymann´s behaviour.
Up till two days after Haymann left in the taxi, the magistrate had acted as
usual and every lunch break he would deminish the work of his former collegue.
But suddenly he didn´t want to talk about Hayman whatsoever?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">This
morning she had left home and now she was waiting at the subway station. The
train was late due to a suicide attempt down the track and she decided to call
the university to let them know she was late.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<i><span lang="EN-US">What? Oh, no... My phone... forgot it at home.</span></i><span lang="EN-US"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">She
had to go back to get it even it meant she was going to be even more late. Her
whole life was in that phone: calendar, contacts, everything. As she was
walking down the street to where she lived, she noticed a red van parked by her
house with the engine running. Four grey coats came rushing out from her house,
jumped inside the van and left with sqeeling wheels.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">She
waited for a few minutes before entering the building and taking the stairs to
the third floor. Constantly looking over her shoulders she went down the hall
way to her apartment. The door was open a crack and the lock had been ruined.
Someone had been in there, probably the grey coats. She opened the door and
looked inside. Her furniture was scattered all over the place, paper and books
were spread across the floor, clearly taken from the shelves and tossed over
the shoulder. They´d been searching for something, but what?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">She
had a feeling it would be best not to stay there too long and decided to not
even begin packing a bag. Instead she just grabbed her phone and left while
calling her collegues to tell them that she would miss the morning meeting.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">She
finished the call as she came out to the street, threw the phone in a garbage
can and went into a shop to buy another one, then punched the number of the one
man, she could think of, who may be able to help.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“Britt?
Hi!” Johannes sounded absolutely thrilled, “So good to hear from you. What are
you doing these days.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">She
couldn´t help smiling at his Danish accent. So clean and clear. Like most Americans,
she loved that accent.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“Hi,
Johannes, good to hear your voice,” she said her eyes constantly keeping aware
of her surroundings, “Listen, I don´t want to be blunt, but I don´t have much
time. There is something I want you to look at. Can we meet?”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“Sure,”
he answered, “but isn´t Professor Haymann the better man to ask?” She felt sad.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“That´s
not an option right now, Johannes. He´s gone missing. You are the only one I
can trust.” There was a short silence, before he cleared his throat.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“Okay..
ehm.. so... what is it, you want me to look at?”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“Well,
it´s basically a drawing.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“Why
not just scan it and send it in an email?”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“I
can´t get to my computer, Johannes, we need to do this in person.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“Allright,
Britt, what do you want to do?”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“I´m
getting on the next available plane to <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:city w:st="on">Copenhagen</st1:city></st1:place>.
Would you meet me at the airport?”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpLast">
<span lang="EN-US">“Anything
for you, Britt. Let me know when you will be in <st1:city w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Copenhagen</st1:place></st1:city> and I´ll meet you by Lost
Properties, is that okay?” She agreed and tossed the phone in a bush nearby,
then hailed a taxi.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="Centermarkering">
<span lang="EN-US">***</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpFirst">
<span lang="EN-US">“Rumors
have it, that you´ve had quite some fun down there?”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">Loki
looked up at Sif as she spoke. She had always had that dry sense of humor. She
knew very well, that Loki wasn´t all that keen on his job down on Earth these
past 200 somewhat years.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“Oh,
yeah!” he said with a smile full of home cooked food, “Tremendous fun!”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">Sif
returned his smile and put more food on the table. In many ways, Sif was what
you might call an old fashioned housewife. She loved to cook and especially if
the men enjoyed her meals. She was always the first to volunteer for practical
work such as washing and cleaning - even in areas that were particularly dirty.
Still, one would be a fool to underestimate her. And she had a temper every
Aseir knew wisely to react to accordingly. Just like Loki, Sif wasn´t Aseir.
She was a Vane, a race from far away, whom the Aseir encountered severel
millenia ago. In fact, the Aseir and the Vanes had been at war with each other
for more than a century, before they finally resolved the conflict and made a
non-aggression pact. To ensure lasting peace, the two races had agreed to
exchange a group of important people from each race to live with the other
race. Sif was one of the first of these emmisaries and she moved to Asgard,
where she met Thor and they got married. She and Loki were good friends, but
that hadn´t always been the case. In the beginning she really didn´t care much
for him, possibly because the Yetten had given her people so much grief in the
past when unprovoked attacks and raids with senseless killings had deprived the
Vanes of many good men and women. The Yetten were ruthless and made no
discrimination in their actions. Not even children were spared. So, at first
she didn´t even want to say hello when meeting Loki on the streets of Asgard
Centropolis. Loki had been wise and just kept greeting her kindly and helping
her out, whenever he could. He had even done chores that male Yetten usually wouldn´t
even consider touching. And eventually she thowed and began speaking to him.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">With
time they became friends and now Sif was maybe the only one besides Thor, who
had Loki’s undevided loyalty. In some ways, she could even do or say things
that Thor couldn´t. Sif was the one person who could really reach Loki to the
core of his soul. That is: if he had one, which was still, after all those
years of service in the Aseir fleet, a subject for debate with the crew when
ever they thought Loki wasn’t listening.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">That
was a mistake, though. Loki had a special ability: he could change his
appearance whenever he wanted. So, from time to time, when he had a feeling
they were spreading rumors about him or in any other way speaking ill of him,
he would change his form to a lamp post, an animal or, if on a space ship,
maybe a console button or a panel. Sometimes he would make himself flat and
wrap himself around a pillar to listen to what people were saying without them
knowing he was there.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">Sif
sat across the table to keep him company.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“Loki?”
she said, “can I ask you something?” With his usual nag for stating the
obvious, he informed her that by asking she had already asked a question.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“You´re
sooo funny, Loki,” she responded sarcastically, “I heard someone say you posed
as a dog trying to court a girl down there... is that true?”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“Please,
Sif,” he replied, “I would never do such a thing... besides, it wasn´t a dog,
it was a cat...” He paused for a bit to see her reaction. She was still
smiling. Then he grabbed another piece of meat and got to his feet.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Book Antiqua"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: DA;">“And it was all in the line of duty...” he said as he was leaving the
room to go make his oral report to the executive staff...</span>Per Holbohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12079712540712231883noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2937979309861131370.post-56534963905059164162013-12-13T10:00:00.000-08:002013-12-13T10:00:00.325-08:00The Legend of Hjarnes Island - Chapter 2<h1>
<a href="" name="C2TheBirdInThePine"><span lang="EN-US">Chapter 2: The bird in the pine</span></a></h1>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpFirst">
<span lang="EN-US">James Phelps was bored. He was
sitting on his usual seat in the class room close to the window. But his focus
was not on the black board and certainly not on his teacher, the ever talking
Ms. Twinch. Or Tweetie, as all the kids called her for obvious reasons. Instead
he was focusing on what was going on outside the window. Actually, nothing much
was going on out there on the school lawn, but even a bird singing from a tree
top was more interesting than listening to Tweeties tweets.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">It was one of the most beautiful
birds he had ever seen: black with a white tail feather and a beaming yellow
beak. It was sitting at the very top of a huge pine like the angel on top of a Christmas
tree, though Christmas was long gone. It was mid June and there were only a few
weeks to summer break, something James was very much looking forward to. He
just couldn´t wait to get to the end of the last day of the semester and go
home to pack his bags. And then it would be off to <st1:city w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Bath</st1:place></st1:city>. The Phelps family wasn´t exactly a poor
family, but they could not afford expensive vacations. James knew his parents felt
they should be able to give him and his sisters a better holiday and they were
constantly excusing this fact to their children. Especially his mum. And though
going there every year as long as he could remember was getting a bit tedious,
it was far better than going to some exotic beach paradise. At least he thought
so. Besides, there wasn´t much he could do about it and he didn´t want to let
his parents know how he felt. They really did the best they could.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">Another bird flew up to the top
of the pine and the first bird stepped to the side as if it was welcoming a
guest to its kingdom. It even seemed to nod its head, just like a real person
saying hello without using words. James smiled. It was amazing how sometimes
animals seem to copy human behaviour.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">The janitor was mowing the lawn
with a huge garden tractor. He had his thermos on one side and a box from the
local bakery on the other. With one hand on the steering wheel the janitor
managed to drive the tractor while munching loads of sweet bread. Every now and
then he put the bread in the bakery box and went for coffee. For this he had to
use both hands to open the thermos and pour its contents in his metal mug while
driving the tractor with his legs. <i>There
is a solution to every challenge, if you really want to find it,</i> James
thought to himself with a smile on his face.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“What is so funny, James?” Ms.
Twinch was looking at him with frowning eye brows, but he didn´t notice. His
smile had already disappeared and he was staring at the birds in the pine. There
were at least 5 of them now and they were all sitting on the same branch
looking his way. It looked as if they were starring back at him. This was
peculiar enough in itself, but what really puzzled him was that he was almost
sure they had just nodded a hello to him - in unison? <i>No, that can´t be,</i> he thought, <i>I
must have imagined it.</i> The birds shook their heads, again in unison, as if
to say: No, what you saw is real, but don´t tell your teacher...</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“James Phelps! Please pay
attention in class!” Tweetie sounded quite annoyed and he´d better start
focusing on school work, so he turned his head and looked at her. “Yes, Ms.
Twinch, I´m sorry. I was drifting.”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpLast">
<span lang="EN-US">“Yes, you <u>were</u>, but not
anymore, you hear?” she said.</span></div>
<div class="Centermarkering">
<span lang="EN-US">***</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpFirst">
<span lang="EN-US">Out in the school yard, James was
walking with his two best friends, Mikael and Jenny. They had brought their
lunch with them and sat down by the pine. Jenny opened a green lunch box and
offered them all cake. She always brought cake to school, even though they
weren´t supposed to with the school having a food policy against any kind of
sugar. But as long as they stayed out of sight from the principal´s office at
the second floor, they should be all right. At least they hadn´t been caught
ever. As the three of them enjoyed a mouthful of heaven in the warmth of the
sun, Jenny broke the silence with the question, James had expected.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“What were you looking at,
James?” she mumbled through chocolate chips and frosting, “Just now in class?
What was it?”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<i><span lang="EN-US">Can´t tell them about the nodding,</span></i><span lang="EN-US"> James
thought before answering.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“Nothing much,” he said with eyes
focusing on the grass, “Just some black birds sitting in the pine.”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">Of course, Jenny knew him better
than that. He couldn´t fool her.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“Yeah, right...” she laughed,
“and Tweetie is my favorite teacher.” The irritation in her voice made him lift
his head and he looked her in the eyes.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“You were looking at something
much more than a few birds. I could see it in your face. You had one of those
strange experiences again, didn´t you?”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">James twitched his mouth. He knew,
there was no way he could get around it.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“Yeah...” he sighed, “But if I
tell you, you better not laugh this time, all right?”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">They both smiled.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“Hey,” Mikael said spreading out
his arms and looking as if he had just been accused of stealing cookies, “It´s
us.”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“Yeah, that´s what I´m saying. When
I told you abot the cat, you slapped your thighs red and rolled on the floor
laughing.”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“What did you expect?” Mikael
said leaning forward and looking at him through the top of his eyes, “A cat
singing serenades at your window isn´t exactly something you see every day. It
was hilarious! I thought you were joking…”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“Well, I wasn´t! It really
happened and so did the thing with the birds today!”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“What thing,” Jenny asked, “You
haven´t told us yet.” And so he told them about the black birds nodding hello
and the connection he´d felt with them.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“It was as if they somehow spoke
inside my head,” he tried to explain, “as if they had minds.. and their minds
sort of.. I don´t know.. melted with mine?”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">There was a tense silence as they
looked at him as if he had just come out of a madhouse.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“So...” Jenny started, “You kind
of.. connected through... I don´t know... like a kind of telepathy thing?”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">He shook his head.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“No, it was more like.. I just
knew what they knew. I didn´t exactly hear a voice. I just felt and knew
what... well, I suppose what ‘they’ did? I even got the scent of the pine. And
I wasn´t anywhere near it. I was sitting in class.. behind a window!”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">James looked at them half
expecting them to begin laughing any time soon, but they didn´t. They just sat
there, looking at him with their heads tilted to one side, listening to what he
had to say. The silence was creepy and he felt like it was approaching him from
all sides, squeezing him into a closet of silence and darkness. After a while,
he couldn´t take it anymore.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“Look, I know this is all strange
and stupid... crazy even, but...”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">He paused, giving Mikael the idea
that this was a time for jokes.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“You forgot ‘insane’ and
‘delirious...’” he began, but stopped as Jenny punched him in the side with her
elbow.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“Auch!”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">He was about to protest, but then
got the message.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“Sorry, didn´t mean it like
that... go on?”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“Well, I don´t know what´s going
on... But I know I´m not imagining all of this. I really do have some kind of
connection with animals and I can´t explain it. I just know it´s real....” He
paused for a bit, checking their reaction, and then continued.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpLast">
<span lang="EN-US">“I just know it is, okay?”</span></div>
<div class="Centermarkering">
<span lang="EN-US">***</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpFirst">
<span lang="EN-US">“Hi, Jim! How was school today?”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">Katherine Phelps was baking in
the kitchen as he entered and sat down by the kitchen table.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“Fine,” he answered absently. She
had just pulled some of her fabulous home baked bread out of the oven and began
slicing a couple of pieces.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“If you get some spread in the
cupboard, we could have a head start on the bread. And some coffee, if you
want?”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">He got up and went to the
cupboard while his mother finished slicing and brought the bread to the table.
They often did this the moment he came home from school. It was one of his
favorite things. His mum worked as a cleaning lady early in the morning, so she
was off work by noon. His two younger sisters were autistic and went to another
school and his dad usually worked till late afternoon, so this was the only
time during the day when everything was calm. ‘Normal hour’ he and his mother usually
called it.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“So,” she said cheerfully, “Want
to tell me about your day?”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“Nothing much to tell,” he
shrugged, “Tweetie was a bit annoyed with me, because I was drifting.”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“James Phelps!” she corrected
him, using both his Christian name and his surname.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“Sorry, mum. Ms. Twinch was angry
with me, because I wasn´t paying attention in class. She was right, though,
´cause I really wasn´t.”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“Why not?”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">This was one of the reasons why
his mother was the best. She didn´t get angry as many of the other mums he
knew. As long as he knew he was wrong and took responsibility to correct his
mistakes, she would let it rest.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“I don´t know,” he answered
reluctantly, “I saw some birds in the pine tree outside and just... I don´t
know... I just sort of drifted...”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">She leaned back in the chair and
sipped from her coffee mug with a frown on her face as James continued.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“Mum?” he asked, “Have you...? Am
I...? Am I different than the other kids?” She fought back her tears as she
tryed answering his question without revealing too much.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“Of course you´re not different,
Jim. Why do you think that?”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">He let down his eyes looking at
the floor.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“I don´t know, mum. Sometimes I
just feel different. Like I´m in the wrong place and don´t fit in.”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">He looked up again and into his
mother´s eyes.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“I love my family, but sometimes
I feel as if I belong somewhere else than here.”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">She leaned forward and taking his
hands in hers she looked him assuringly in his eyes.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“Jim, you belong here with us. We
love you. We are your family.”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">He didn´t say anything, but his
smile convinced her she had managed easing his worries. Little did she know
that he had seen more in her eyes than she wanted him to. He knew, she was
telling the truth as she saw it. That they were his family, that they loved him
and that because of that love, she felt he belonged with them. But deep inside
her soul, something else had emerged. It had shined through her eyes though she
had done everything she could to hide it from him. He had no doubt in his mind
that he was loved, but he also understood that she was trying to hide something
from him. Something important. And he intended to figure out what it was.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">It had to wait, though. After
all, he loved her and he didn´t want to alarm her. “Thanks, mum... Maybe I´m
just over thinking things...?”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpLast">
<span lang="EN-US">A honking outside broke the moment
and they both went out to greet his sisters...</span></div>
<div class="Centermarkering">
<span lang="EN-US">***</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpFirst">
<span lang="EN-US">That evening, James had trouble
falling asleep. He was lying in his bed with his hands under his head as a
pillow listening to his mum and dad downstairs. They were arguing. Not angrily
and not with shouting and screaming, but they were definitely disagreeing on
something. Something important. Something about him.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“We have to tell him, Henry,” he
heard his mum pleading his dad, “He´s got a right to know.”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“I know, Kate, I just don´t think
this is the right time.”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“When is the right time, Henry?
He´s not a toddler anymore, you know.”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“Look, Kate, can´t it wait for a
bit longer? At least till after <st1:city w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Bath</st1:place></st1:city>?
That way, we can...”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">His dad suddenly stopped talking
and then there was the sound of foot steps up the stairs. James jumped out of
bed, turned off the lights and jumped back in bed just in time before his dad
showed as a shadow in the hall way. James had turned to the side facing the
wall pretending to be fast asleep as his dad carefully shut the door to his
room.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpLast">
<span lang="EN-US">After that he couldn´t quite make
out what his parents were saying downstairs. They only whispered now. But he
knew more than ever before that there was something they hadn´t told him. And
he had to find out what.</span></div>
<div class="Centermarkering">
<span lang="EN-US">***</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpFirst">
<span lang="EN-US">The school bell rang and all the
kids were cheering. This was the moment they had all been waiting for. <st1:place w:st="on">Holiday</st1:place>! On top of everything else, the sun was shining
and there wasn´t a cloud in sight as the three of them ran down the stairs in
front of the school. Mikael had his hands wildly waving above his head
screaming.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“Yaaaaaaay! Free! I´m free at
last! No more torture! The number one menace to society has escaped! I will
wreck havoc upon this earth! Freeeeedoooomm!”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">That last ‘freedom’ he growled
like the devil´s lap dog and twisted his face in the most hideous grimace.
Jenny and James smiled and shook their heads.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“You´re crazy, you know,” Jenny
called to Mike, who bowed deeply in response.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“Thank you, M’Lady,” he said with
a posh <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:city w:st="on">London</st1:city></st1:place>
accent, “I am most grateful for your analysis of my mental state and you shall
forever have my utmost gratitude.”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">Then he returned to as normal as
could be expected of him and returned to her side with his elbow raised as an
invitation for her to hold his arm like an old couple from the past century.
She smiled and accepted the invitation and the three of them walked arm by arm,
Jenny in the middle with the two boys on both sides of her.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“So,” Jenny said, “where are you
both going this summer?”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“Same as always,” Mike shrugged,
“absolutely nowhere. I have a signed and stamped contract with my bed, my
armchair, my TV and of course my loved ones.”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">He placed his hand over his heart
and sighed. Jenny shortly looked surprised, but then she got it.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“Oh, you mean...” she looked at
Mike and they both ended the sentence together: “The Playstation and the iPad!”
and then they all laughed.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“We are going to <st1:country-region w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Denmark</st1:place></st1:country-region> this
year. My parents rented a house on an <st1:place w:st="on">Island</st1:place>
they say has Viking history, but no one knows much about it,” Jenny told them.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“Wauw!” Mike cheered, “Are you
going to Legoland as well?”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">Jenny smiled and drew them both closer.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“That´s what I love about you
guys,” she said, “Never an ounce of envy, because my parents have money.”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">Then she turned her head to Mike.
“I don´t think we´re going to Legoland, though. My mum wants this to be a quiet
vacation teaching us to be humble and reminding us how lucky we are to have
means...” Mike and Jim concurred her: “while kids all over the world are
starving!” and Mike continued: “Yeah, we´ve heard that track before.”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">They walked silently for a while
thinking about it and then Jenny said: “Well, she´s right...” Again a short
silence, before she turned to Mike.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“What about you? What are you doing
this year?”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“<st1:place w:st="on"><st1:city w:st="on">Bath</st1:city></st1:place>,” he answered, “as usual.”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“Aren´t you getting tired of
going to Bath every year?” she asked. Mike´s face went sad. <i>How could she ask that? She knew how he felt
about <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:city w:st="on">Bath</st1:city></st1:place>?</i></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“Well,” he hesitated, “I suppose...
but my parents can´t afford anything else, so... it´s okay.”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">Jenny looked straight ahead with
an awry smile as if she was talking to the air in front of her.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“Wouldn´t you both like to go
somewhere else this year?” she asked. The two boys stopped at the same time and
let go of their friend. They looked reproachfully at her. But before any of
them got to say anything she put her arm in theirs and dragged them further
down the road.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“Jim, you´re not going to <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:city w:st="on">Bath</st1:city></st1:place> this year!” she
declared.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“Yes, I am,” he said in a puzzled
voice.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“Nope,” she insisted, “and you´ll
not be spending your summer playing games, Mike!”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">He looked evenly puzzled.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“I´m not?” he said.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">Then Jenny stopped for a while and
looked from one to the other.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“Boys,” she continued, “you´re
coming with me to <st1:country-region w:st="on">Denmark</st1:country-region>,
to <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:placename w:st="on">Hjarnes</st1:placename> <st1:placetype w:st="on">Island</st1:placetype></st1:place> this year.”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">None of them could speak. This
was just too weird. Jenny, however, was everything but speachless. Her eyes
were sparkling and she obviously enjoyed the moment to its full potential.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“My parents spoke to your parents
and they have all agreed that you two are coming with me and my parents to
Hjarne’s <st1:place w:st="on">Island</st1:place>! Isn´t that great?”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">Jim didn´t quite understand was
she was saying. He couldn´t see his parents agreeing to accept such a gift and
he knew for sure they couldn´t afford it. “But...” he began, but Jenny cut him
off.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“I know what you´re thinking, Jim,
but it really isn´t a big deal. We are driving there anyway and since our
tickets with the boat covers a car with up to 6 people there is no additional
cost for any of you.”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“But food cost money as well,” Mike
said. Then he had a dreadful thought and his face changed to a strange look.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“We are going to eat on the trip,
aren´t we? I mean... it´s not one of those health guru kind of things, is it?” he
asked.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">Jenny laughed. “No, Mike, you can
take it easy. My mum got past that last year. We´ll be eating perfectly normal
food.”</span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">Jim looked at Mike. Mike looked
back at Jim. That´s when they realized both of their summer vacations had just reached
to a much higher level than any of them could have hoped for. They both
breathed in deep and while their eyes lit up along with their smiles the sound
of joyful cheering spread out to entire neighborhood.</span></div>
Per Holbohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12079712540712231883noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2937979309861131370.post-57989225896552386592013-12-10T01:49:00.000-08:002013-12-10T01:49:44.210-08:00The Legend of Hjarnes Island - Chapter 1<h1>
<a href="" name="C1Evacuation"><span lang="EN-US">Chapter 1: Returning to Earth</span></a></h1>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpFirst">
<span lang="EN-US">All
was silent in the dark of space behind the Moon. Silent except for the endless
radio signals rushing back and forth through Earths satelite network. The moon´s
surface lay barren, quietly reflecting cascades of sunlight toward the planet
around which it circled. There in the silence and coming from Earth, a small
vessel approached the place where the American lunar landing module had once
been set down in 1967. The vessel didn´t land, but simply hovered above the
NASA site, humming above the spot, waiting. Painted on the side of the vessel
was a symbol of an eye inside a triangle and next to this what looked like a
giant snake around a ball. It was the symbol of a people once worshipped as
gods by the indigenous population of the planet. In the vacuum of space a cloud
gathered close to the small vessel. Sparkling with energy a bubble of bright
white light grew stronger and from the center of the bubble a large space ship
appeared. It had an image on the side similar to the one on the smaller vessel
and next to it the word “Mjolner” written in Runes. The captain of the small
vessel smiled. He was really looking forward to seeing his old friend and
commander, who´s company he hadn´t had the pleasure of for almost two
centuries. He called up ‘Mjolner’ transfering the security codes and an
appropriate greeting. The response was immidiate and friendly.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“So
good to hear your voice,” Loki heard a voice say, “you are clear to embark.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“Likewise,
Commander Thor,” Loki replied as he entered the code for the engagement
procedure, “I crave for some decent food, so I hope you brought some.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">“You
bet, Loki,” Thor responded, “In fact, Sif is in the kitchen right now,
preparing a hero´s meal.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">Loki
smiled and glanced out the window for one final look at the vast emptiness of
what the Vikings used to call ‘Ginnungagab,’ a word they had taken from the
Aseir language and translated to their own tongue. It simply meant ‘never
ending gap’ and while the Aseir used it to describe the essence of space, to
the locals it was the feared concept that if you ever crossed the edge of the
world, you would fall down and forfeit your life, both the present and the
afterlife.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">Loki
had mixed feelings about the humans. He liked them just as much as most Aseir
did, although he wasn´t technically an Aseir, but rather a renegade Yetten. Still,
something bothered him about the way the Aseir treated them. It was almost as
if they bowed to these barbaric and backwords beings, instead of saving them
from themselves - or at least ignoring them. </span><span lang="EN-US">However,
this wasn´t for Loki to decide and as long as Thor was the commander, Loki would
follow his orders.</span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span lang="EN-US">As he approached the docking area
he recited to himself his report on the progress on the surface. He would
emphasize the importance of Tjalfe and Roeskva and the fact that they still
showed no signs of remembering anything. He knew how important this was to Thor
and he meant to be sure not to leave anything out, however tedious it may seem.
As for the other events, he had no clue what to tell Thor. How could he explain
that somehow parts of their secret had been uncovered by simple humans? It shouldn´t
have happened. It couldn´t have happened. But it had… A small group of humans
were slowly gaining knowledge about the Fyrkat Project.</span><span lang="EN-US"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
Per Holbohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12079712540712231883noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2937979309861131370.post-91055542946072184592013-06-24T02:26:00.002-07:002013-06-24T02:26:58.333-07:00How to deal with your ADHD child #6: The power of expectations<span style="font-size: x-large;">The power of expectations</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">One of the most basic characteristics of mankind is that we are social creatures. We gather in groups to form protective communities and societies. For these communities to work the way they are intended, we need guidelines, without which our societies would simply break down.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">These guidelines are more than just laws, but also norms and culture. But having such rules is not enough. We need ways in which these guidelines can be enforced.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">Breaking a law, you are punished in forms of imprisonment or financial penalty.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Breaking the norms of our community equally results in punishment, although in a different way. Breaking norms, you are punished when people do not welcome you in their fellowship or your social status in the group goes down the drain due to inappropriate behavior.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Because of this, we have developed a strong urge to live up to other people’s expectations in order to achieve social acceptance. This is a good thing. Without it, we would not get the benefits of being protected by our community.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;"><b>The bad news</b></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">However, there is a downside: our urge to live up to other people’s expectations goes for both positive and negative expectations. If you expect other people to be kind and forthcoming, they will try to live up to it – and if you expect other people to be selfish and cold hearted, they will try to live up to that expectation!</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;"><b>The good news</b></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">In every kind of relationship, you can use this knowledge to better the lives of both yourself, your family and your community. When actively working with yourself and trying to change your expectations to be positive rather than negative, you can actually influence other people, because they will try to live up to those positive expectations.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">In a nutshell: If you show your ADHD child that you expect them to do well in school, they will work very hard to prove your trust in them is not misplaced. But if your ADHD child gets the notion that you expect them to do poorly at school, they will not believe in themselves and they will not work toward such a goal.
</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">So, basically, it's your call...</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">-------</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">Find previous chapters here:</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><a href="http://talesofholboshire.blogspot.com/2013/06/how-to-deal-with-your-adhd-child.html" target="_blank">Chapter 1</a></span><br />
<a href="http://talesofholboshire.blogspot.com/2013/06/how-to-deal-with-your-adhd-child-2.html" style="font-size: x-large;" target="_blank">Chapter 2</a><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><a href="http://talesofholboshire.blogspot.com/2013/06/how-to-deal-with-your-adhd-child-3.html">Chapter 3</a></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><a href="http://talesofholboshire.blogspot.com/2013/06/how-to-deal-with-your-adhd-child-4.html" target="_blank">Chapter 4</a></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><a href="http://talesofholboshire.blogspot.com/2013/06/how-to-deal-with-your-adhd-child-5.html" target="_blank">Chapter 5</a></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span><span style="font-size: large;">If you want to be sure to not miss anything, please subscribe to the </span><a href="http://eepurl.com/z8oT1" style="font-size: x-large;" target="_blank">newsletter</a><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i><span style="font-size: large;">What did you find helpful in this chapter?</span></i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i><span style="font-size: large;">What should I do to improve the above text?</span></i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i><span style="font-size: large;">Please feel free to comment:</span></i></div>
Per Holbohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12079712540712231883noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2937979309861131370.post-68804954802092568862013-06-20T01:25:00.001-07:002013-06-20T01:25:37.549-07:00How to deal with your ADHD child #5: What's your Resilience Number?<span style="font-size: large;">Being a father of two children with ADHD issues I have noticed that their reactions to other people’s demands sometimes seem to be arbitrary. Sometimes they take on a task as if they were normal children with no ADHD issues at all, but the next day that very same task suddenly becomes a mountain high obstacle they feel they can’t overcome. Maybe you have noticed it as well?</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">Having ADHD even the simplest task can be overwhelming and in the end may discourage that person the point of just giving up.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">One day their homework is done in almost no time at all and the next day they can’t even find the energy to open their books and get to work, even if their homework that second day is much easier than it was the day before, when it seemed to be like a walk in the park?</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">It may seem strange, but there is a quite simple explanation for this apparently arbitrary behavioral pattern.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">Each day your child fights the challenges of having ADHD and every single battle requires energy. Of course, this is true for all of us, but for the person with ADHD the energy consumption is much higher than that of normal people. Additionally, their level of stress has a huge impact on how well they do when fighting to achieve the best possible life.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">When your ADHD child has a surplus of energy it can perform almost any task as if they had no ADHD issues to fight – but when your child has a worn down battery? Well, basically… Everything is a mess!</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">When this situation emerges, there is really nothing you can do about it. It is what it is: no juice, no movement! But the good news is that there are ways to prevent or at least postpone those situations.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">One of the most powerful tools I’ve ever encountered in my learning experience of being a father of children with ADHD, is the “Resilience Number.”</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">In order to have some kind of understanding on how much more your child can take, you need to get your child to tell you about it. But having ADHD it is almost impossible to say with words how you feel and what you think you can accomplish.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;"><b>The Resilience Number</b> takes care of this problem in the simplest way: instead of trying to encourage your child to explain with words, how they feel, you may have more success asking them to give you a number. This number can be on any scale you like: 1-5, 1-10, 1-100 or whatever you think works best.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">On that scale, the number 1 means that you are completely exhausted and that there is nothing left in your battery to deal with your ADHD issues at all. The highest number means that you’re ready for the world to come barging in and make any demand and you would be able to take on anything as if you had no ADHD issues.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;"><b>How to use the Resilience Number</b></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Let’s say the scale is 1-10 and your child comes home from school.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">You ask about their Resilience Number and get the answer “7.”</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">This means that your child is fairly capable of getting their homework done as long as you’re available if they have questions.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">If you get the number “4,” you may want to let your child rest for a while, give them some time off without any kind of demands. Then, an hour or two later, your child could be ready to get their homework done.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">If the number is between 1 and 3, you might as well accept that their homework will not be coming anyway near to getting done that day.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">If your child’s Resilience Number is 9 or 10, you can easily go do the laundry or go shopping while they complete their homework.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;"><b>The point?</b></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Did you get the point of the Resilience Number?</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">By using this tool you basically get an idea on how much more your child can take and act accordingly.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">If your child has a low resilience, you know it is time to give them some rest in order to "recharge" their batteries.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">This way, instead of exhausting your child and get to a point where nothing positive can be accomplished, your child is given the chance to raise their resilience and then, when they are ready, you can begin making demands.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">You will find this to provide you and your child with a decrease of those not very fruitful battles AND an increase of situations where challenging your child actually improves their abilities both socially and school wise.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;"><b>A note on responsibility!</b></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Being the intelligent and wise parent you are, this probably already popped up in your head, but I’m going to say it anyway, just to be clear:</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">Your child is just as much of an angel as you were when you were young. It’s your responsibility to come up with ways to detect a lie!</span><br />
<br /><span style="font-size: large;"></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">Having said that, rest assured that if you explain to them what the Resilience Number is for and that when using it honestly, it will make their lives much easier, they will – in time – learn to not abuse your trust.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">-------</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">Find previous chapters here:</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><a href="http://talesofholboshire.blogspot.com/2013/06/how-to-deal-with-your-adhd-child.html" target="_blank">Chapter 1</a></span><br />
<a href="http://talesofholboshire.blogspot.com/2013/06/how-to-deal-with-your-adhd-child-2.html" style="font-size: x-large;" target="_blank">Chapter 2</a><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><a href="http://talesofholboshire.blogspot.com/2013/06/how-to-deal-with-your-adhd-child-3.html">Chapter 3</a></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><a href="http://talesofholboshire.blogspot.com/2013/06/how-to-deal-with-your-adhd-child-4.html" target="_blank">Chapter 4</a></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">If you want to be sure to not miss anything, please subscribe to the </span><a href="http://eepurl.com/z8oT1" style="font-size: x-large;" target="_blank">newsletter</a><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i><span style="font-size: large;">What did you find helpful in this chapter?</span></i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i><span style="font-size: large;">What should I do to improve the above text?</span></i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i><span style="font-size: large;">Please feel free to comment:</span></i></div>
Per Holbohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12079712540712231883noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2937979309861131370.post-6364207168736461222013-06-17T02:25:00.001-07:002013-06-22T23:04:23.646-07:00How to deal with your ADHD child #4 Tough Love well practised<span style="font-size: large;">I've already posted a few chapters of my coming book, "How to deal with your ADHD child."</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">You can read them here:</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><a href="http://talesofholboshire.blogspot.com/2013/06/how-to-deal-with-your-adhd-child.html" target="_blank">Chapter 1</a></span><br />
<a href="http://talesofholboshire.blogspot.com/2013/06/how-to-deal-with-your-adhd-child-2.html" style="font-size: x-large;" target="_blank">Chapter 2</a><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><a href="http://talesofholboshire.blogspot.com/2013/06/how-to-deal-with-your-adhd-child-3.html">Chapter 3</a></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">And now for chapter 4:</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">On this blog I brought a post in April 2012 with the title “How to spank your wife” This post is by far the most read on my blog and the reason is obviously that provoking title. The aim of it was to bring some perspective on a term, we’ve heard again and again as parents: “Tough Love.”</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">As is the case with most terms and phrases when they become popular, “Tough Love” has, in my opinion, been subject to quite a bit of misunderstanding and misinterpretation.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">Basically, “Tough Love” is the notion that for anyone to truly show their love for others, sometimes it is necessary to act in a way that could seem heartless, but are done anyway, because in the end, these actions inflict less pain on the person you love than if you had acted differently.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">The challenge is to understand what tough love should be if it is to be a successful tool in bringing up our children and specifically when it comes to children with ADHD.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">Tough Love is a strong tool, but in many cases this term has been used as an excuse to continue feeding patterns, which are really very unhealthy for all parties involved. If Tough Love is used based on a wrong understanding of what it really is, it will have a bad influence on your child and you risk ruining their self esteem.</span><br />
<div>
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">All this applies for every child, but having children with ADHD, it becomes even more important. Children with ADHD usually have lower self esteem than other children, because their lack of understanding social norms makes them act in ways that are sometimes inappropriate. The natural outcome is that for a child with ADHD, verbal abuse, not only from other children, but unfortunately also from adults in their lives, is the order of their world. They get emotionally beaten every day and of course their self esteem is worn down.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">As a parent or an adult working with children with ADHD, you have a special responsibility to try building up that self esteem and the above mentioned issues do not only count in regards to physical abuse, but stretches out to verbal and emotional abuse as well.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">-------</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><a href="http://talesofholboshire.blogspot.com/2013/06/how-to-deal-with-your-adhd-child-5.html" target="_blank">Read Chapter 5</a></span><br />
<br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i><span style="font-size: large;">What did you find helpful in this chapter?</span></i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i><span style="font-size: large;">What should I do to improve the above text?</span></i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i><span style="font-size: large;">Please feel free to comment:</span></i></div>
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Per Holbohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12079712540712231883noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2937979309861131370.post-19266476749035359662013-06-13T23:57:00.001-07:002013-06-14T00:03:12.877-07:00How to deal with your ADHD child - #3<span style="font-size: large;">I've already shared two chapters of my work in progress, the parenting guide "How to deal with your ADHD child."</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;"><a href="http://talesofholboshire.blogspot.com/2013/06/how-to-deal-with-your-adhd-child.html" target="_blank">The first chapter</a> is mostly an introduction followed by a brief explanation on how ADHD affects life, both for the person with this disability and for the entire family.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;"><a href="http://talesofholboshire.blogspot.com/2013/06/how-to-deal-with-your-adhd-child-2.html" target="_blank">The second chapter</a> is basically a test: are you ready to embark on a journey to become a better parent to your ADHD child with all the pain and life value reconsiderations this may hold?</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">In the third chapter I will present you with three key words. These key words are meant to be easy to remember and practically adaptable to your every day life as a parent to an ADHD child.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">Ready?</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Here we go:</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">-------</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><b>Basic key words</b></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">In this chapter I will present you with some basic key words. The aim of these key words is to provide you with something easy to remember that you can always fall back on, when a situation gets tense. To get the most out of this book, I encourage you to memorize these key words and get them imprinted in your heart for quick access in those difficult situations, where things get really troublesome.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;"><b>Keyword #1: Firm Patience</b></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Remember that a person with ADHD is not deliberately trying to be a nuisance. They have issues making it hard for them to interact with other people in the most common way. This is a part of their behavioral challenge. This means that for you to be the best parent possible you need to be patient.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">But there is more…</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">Being patient, however important it is - and it really is! - it does not sufficiently help your child, if it stands alone. There's another element that enhances the power of patience: Being firm!</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">You need to be firm in the way you discipline your children and in the way you pass on your values and share your experiences.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">No child has the experience needed to know right from wrong and for a child to learn, the parents must be firm. This is even more important when raising an ADHD child, because having ADHD makes it even more difficult to sort out issues based on their importance. As a parent to an ADHD child you have to be the filter he/she doesn’t have. Therefore, your firm character is necessary to give your child the best foundation possible to take their first few steps toward independency.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">So, these two put together: Being firm and being patient, become <b>Firm Patience</b>, a very powerful tool in any kind of work raising a child. The patience establish positive relations between the two of you and the firmness raises your child to the best possible base for a good life.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;"><b>Lose the chatter</b></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">When communicating with others we tend to use more words than we actually need. There are many reasons why. One reason is that using words is a sort of tool to get our thoughts sorted, that is: we think when we talk. Another reason could be our wish to be polite in the manner of which we address each other.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">In most cases, this is not a bad thing. It usually improves our communication and helps us building relations with each other. But when communicating with someone with ADHD the excessive use of words has the very opposite effect. One of the basic challenges when you have ADHD is the lack of concentration and the difficulty of sorting which input is important and which is less important.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">And when a sentence has more words than needed to pass on the intended message, the person with ADHD needs to use way too much mental energy in trying to figure out what that message is.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">A person with ADHD has a much better chance of understanding what you’re trying to say, if you lose the chatter – that is: if you get rid of words not needed to pass on your message.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span><span style="font-size: large;"><b>Choose your Battles</b></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Every parent knows this: choosing your battles greatly improves the chance of success. But being parents to children with ADHD, this advice is crucial!</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">Having a child with ADHD you face all the issues of having a ‘normal’ child multiplied by 100. Facing each possible battle you would do yourself – and your child – a great favor, if you stop to think for a second and ask yourself two questions:</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">#1: Is this battle important to take on?</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">#2: Is this a battle that can wait?</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">The first question seems rather simple, but as you probably know it really is quite complicated. Most of the time, we don’t think too deeply about our own behavior. Our actions and decisions are based more on patterns we’ve built throughout our lives rather than carefully considering our options in each situation. And of course it has to be this way. If we took the time to think through every possible outcome of every single choice in our lives, nothing would ever be done.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">But if we are to improve the outcome of our efforts, in parenting as well as any other part of life, occasionally we need to stop for a moment to ask ourselves what the best course of action is – and more importantly: why?</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">The second question is about prioritizing our efforts. Even if the battle in front of us is an important one, it’s not always beneficial to fight it right now. From time to time, it’s better to let it go for the time being and wait for a better time to take it on.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">When asking yourself if the battle can wait, you should include another question: if I take on this battle now, what are the chances that my child and I can win the battle together?</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">Always remember what I pointed out earlier: you are in this together and no battle is won before you both gain from its outcome. If you win a battle, but the outcome does not better the situation for your child, then you really have gained nothing and the battle has been lost for the both of you.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span><span style="font-size: large;">-------</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">If you want to be sure to not miss anything, please subscribe to the <a href="http://eepurl.com/z8oT1" target="_blank">newsletter</a></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><b>And now it's question time</b></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: large;">If you have been following the latest posts on this subject and if I have provided you with anything useful, you might have some questions you would like to ask?</span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: large;">It could be anything: questions about the text itself, questions about ADHD in general or questions about real situations in your every day life dealing with a child with ADHD.</span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: large;">I will try to answer any kind of question to the best of my ability and remember this:</span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: large;">The only stupid questions are those never asked when given the chance, because not asking is the only sure way to not get an answer - and that is kind of stupid isn't it?</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">Additionally, I'd like to focus your attention to my new <a href="https://www.facebook.com/HowToDealWithChildrenWithSpecialNeeds" target="_blank">FaceBook Page</a>, where you can keep yourself updated, ask questions, share your story, give and get advice etc.</span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<i><span style="font-size: large;">How can you use what you´ve read till now?</span></i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i><span style="font-size: large;">Is there something you would like me to elaborate?</span></i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i><span style="font-size: large;">Feel free to tell about your situation and ask me for advice:</span></i></div>
Per Holbohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12079712540712231883noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2937979309861131370.post-54157277511986816742013-06-12T23:01:00.000-07:002013-06-12T23:01:37.625-07:00BookReview: Parallel Lines by Ken Hartis<span style="font-size: x-large;"><b>Parallel Lines by Ken Hartis</b></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;"><iframe frameborder="0" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" scrolling="no" src="http://rcm.amazon.com/e/cm?lt1=_blank&bc1=000000&IS2=1&bg1=FFFFFF&fc1=000000&lc1=0000FF&t=talofholshi-20&o=1&p=8&l=as4&m=amazon&f=ifr&ref=ss_til&asins=B00D7CCRFY" style="height: 240px; width: 120px;"></iframe>
</span>
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;"><b>Story:</b></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">A naturally occuring time portal enables a young man to go back forty years in time. He decides to live a double life, one in his own time and one as Gene Starnes forty years ago. These two lives are always seperated by those fourty years, which of course means that time will still catch up with him as soon as fourty years have passed in both time lines. In the end he needs to make an important decision and his choice holds the dilemma of either risking losing everything or risking the destruction of the entire universe as we know it - and then some.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;"><b>Review:</b></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">A book must be well written for me to really like it</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">It must also have a good story</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">Parallel Lines is a very good example on how these two elements should be prioritized: the book is very well written and as a romantic tale, the story is okay. But that's it. The author doesn't exploit the SF genre nearly as much as he could and the message drowns in over telling a tale that could've been told in half the number of pages.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">That said, I'm quite impressed by the descriptions of roads, buildings and scenaries as they supposedly looked 50+ years ago. They appear to be grounded in the author vastly researching the premises of his book, though I haven't checked any of these details (I'm sure someone out there will...)</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">Finally, this book does hold one of the things that makes any book worth the reading time: it's not finished when you finish it, it makes you think...</span>Per Holbohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12079712540712231883noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2937979309861131370.post-27321234216213369362013-06-12T01:28:00.001-07:002013-06-14T07:32:00.666-07:00How to deal with your ADHD child - #2<span style="font-size: large;">In my last post I told you that I'm writing a book on <a href="http://talesofholboshire.blogspot.com/2013/06/how-to-deal-with-your-adhd-child.html" target="_blank">how to deal with your ADHD child</a>. I posted the first draft of the first chapter and promised to keep posting chapters encouraging you to comment on the content. Today I present you with the second chapter:</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">-------</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><b>Chapter 2: First you decide if you want to go on this journey</b></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">In this book I will present you with some of the situations you probably know all too well. These are situations you and your child find yourselves in on a regular basis and give you both a lot of grief and frustrations.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">Please note the way I phrased this: these situations are the source of much grief and frustration, but not only to you; to your child as well. You are in this together!</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">Presenting these situations would be fruitless, if I did only that. So, of course, to give you some benefit from reading this book, I will also provide you with some tips and tricks that have proven their worth in my own home or in homes of other families, where ADHD plays an important part.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">But before presenting these troublesome situations, I’d like to focus your attention to your own basic standings and understandings. For you to succeed as a parent to a child with ADHD, you need to look inside yourself and ask yourself some questions that may be quite painful to your self understanding. The reason for this is that your basic understanding of what ADHD is and what kind of personal view you have on this disability greatly influences your everyday approach to your child. In other words: these are questions about your basic life values.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">So, if you’re ready, strap on and join me on this expedition to your inner self:</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;"><b>Question #1: Is my child abnormal?</b></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">Interesting question, isn’t it? Reading this book you probably have a child, grand child or some other family member diagnosed with ADHD, but what does it mean? When you look at the child, what is the first thought that comes to mind? Is he/she a crazy person ready for the local nuthouse? Is he/she beyond reach? Will he/she never get a life even remotely close to something resembling a normal life? Or do you believe in the potentials of him/her?</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">Let me say this a bit bluntly: if you sincerely believe there is noting you or anyone else can do for this child and that he/she will never live a life worth living, there’s really no reason for you to read the rest of this book. I can’t help you…</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">However, if these negative thoughts have entered your mind and you believe they are no more than a frustrated person’s reaction to a difficult situation, it’s a whole different story. Those thoughts are quite normal, but they can be dismissed, if you want them be dismissed. So, do you want to change your own thinking? Then read on!</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">If your answer to the above question is something like: yes, my child is abnormal, but who is normal anyway? He/she deserves all the best things in life and I’m prepared to fight for it! If that´s your answer (or if your answer was just plain: no, my child isn’t abnormal, just a bit to the side, but we’ll manage together) – well, then we’re on the same page…</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;"><b>Question #2: Have I ever wondered if it was better that my child hadn’t been born?</b></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">If the first question was painful, this one should be really painful! No (normal) parent would ever think that, would they? Hmm… honestly? I think it’s quite normal to think that… Sometimes we parents think that kind of thoughts, but you know what? We don’t think like that because we are bad parents; those thoughts enter our minds because of our own insecurity. Again and again we doubt ourselves as parents: am I a good enough parent? Do I give my kids all they need? Am I even fit to be a parent yelling at them like I just did?</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">Thinking like that isn’t good, but it doesn’t come from being a bad parent. It comes from our wish to be good parents and every time we think, we are not doing a good enough job as parents, we simply let our deepest desire to be good parents come to the surface. We occasionally think like this, because deep down in our soul, we just want to do better! So, if that thought ever entered your mind – and, if it makes you feel bad – chances are you are a good parent always wanting to improve yourself and do better as a parent!</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;"><b>Question #3: Am I ready to fight both internal and external battles?</b></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">I think most parents, at least those who bought this book, would answer this question with a big “YES!” But you need to think about it in more detail. The journey you are about to embark on is not to be taken lightly. You will face battles you hadn’t even imagined before. Most external battles you know pretty much all about: battles with other parents, who do not grasp the situation and who believe all the issues with your child is merely a matter of bad parenting or a bad willed child; battles with teachers and authorities; and of course battles with the child’s grandparents and other family members, who don’t get how far having an ADHD child stretches your patience and your energy.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">The internal battles, however, are a very different matter. Most of us seldom share our most inner thoughts with others and because of this, we rarely know the truth: that parents with an ADHD child has to fight internal battles, where we have to change some of our fundamental values to better the lives of both the ADHD child and the rest of the family. The journey of a parent having an ADHD child requires swallowing quite a few camels and you may as well embrace this truth sooner than later.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">-------</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Read chapter #3 <a href="http://talesofholboshire.blogspot.com/2013/06/how-to-deal-with-your-adhd-child-3.html" target="_blank">here</a></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">If you want to be sure to not miss anything, please subscribe to the <a href="http://eepurl.com/z8oT1" target="_blank">newsletter</a></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i><span style="font-size: large;">What did you find helpful in this chapter?</span></i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i><span style="font-size: large;">What should I do to improve the above text?</span></i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i><span style="font-size: large;">Please feel free to comment:</span></i></div>
Per Holbohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12079712540712231883noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2937979309861131370.post-15155244392892450682013-06-10T00:59:00.000-07:002013-06-11T23:17:40.315-07:00How to deal with your ADHD child<span style="font-size: large;">I've thought about it for quite some time, but never really got around to it: I want to write a book to provide parents who have children with ADHD with some hands on tips and tricks on how to deal with having an ADHD child.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">But I want to make sure my book is worth the read. I want it to contain information you need as a parent to an ADHD child and I want it to be practical, easy to apply in your every day life.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">That's why I decided to make my first drafts of the book open to you in the hope that you will comment and help me develop the book to be "just the thing."</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">So, with no further ado, here comes the first chapter of:</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<br />
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><b>"How to deal with your ADHD child" - a hands on guide to improve the life of the whole family by Per Holbo, father of two children with special needs.</b></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<span style="font-size: large;">-----</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><b>Introduction</b></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">According to “The 2000 US Census” about 19 percent of the US population have disabilities. In the old days, a disability or handicap was defined mostly as something physical, i.e. the loss of movement or control of your limbs. But in the recent years, this has changed. More and more professionals have come to realize, that there are disabilities not visible to the eyes. One of these is Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD.)</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">Since I am neither a medical doctor nor a psychologist, I will refrain from explaining this condition from a medical point of view. This would be the ‘input’ of ADHD. The aim of this book is instead to explain the ‘outcome’ of ADHD, that is: what are some of the consequences in having ADHD as a part of your life and how can you deal with them?</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">The fundamental base of my expertise in this matter is two-fold: I was diagnosed with ADHD at the age of 35 – and two of my four children have similar disabilities (a boy aged 14 diagnosed with Other Childhood Disintegrative Disorder and a girl aged 12 diagnosed with ADHD)</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;"><b>The basic challenge of ADHD</b></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Imagine waking up every morning and the first thing you have to do is putting together a jig saw puzzle. The pieces of this puzzle are scattered on floors and tables, not only in your own bedroom, but in every single room of your house, so before you can start putting the pieces together, you need to find them. Then, as you think you’ve managed to find them all and begin putting them together, someone comes into your room adding or removing pieces and you have to start over.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">This is one of the ways ADHD can be experienced. A person with ADHD has difficulty figuring out which impressions are important and which are not. To deal with this, they have to put the pieces together. It is important to understand that this is no way to be compared with OCD (Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder.) Having OCD certain actions are performed as a ritual. For a person with ADHD it is merely a need to sort out what is important and what is not – and then sort out what needs to be done first. This is something we all do, but for a person with ADHD it is much more complicated due to the challenge of concentrating on the task at hand and the challenge of being easily disturbed by additional impressions.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">This presents the ADHD child with two basic issues:</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;"><b>Behavioral problems</b> such as:</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Acting on impulse</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Acting inappropriate</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Losing focus</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Failing to fulfill even the most basic requirements and demands from other people</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;"><b>Development problems</b> such as:</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Failing to decode norms</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Not learning as fast as other children their age</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;"><b>An example:</b></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">John has ADHD. He is 10 years old and has just come home from school. The first thing, he needs to do is his homework. If John didn’t have ADHD, he would simply get his books, pencils and paper and begin. But having ADHD this is a much more likely scenario:</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">John opens his school bag to get his math book. As he grabs the book, a cat walks by outside the window. He lets go of the book and goes to the window to observe the cat. His patient mother reminds him of his homework and he goes back to getting his math book. He places the book on the kitchen table, but as he goes for his pencils his focus is once again disturbed by a yo-yo lying right beside his pencil case. Instead of grabbing the pencil case, he takes out the yo-yo and starts playing with it. Again his patient mother reminds him of his homework… and so on…</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">Even the slightest thing can disturb John’s focus to something else than he should be focusing on and it is not a question of bad behavior. He just can’t keep focus on what he is supposed to be doing. The impressions of hearing a bird singing outside the window or observing someone walking close to him catches his attention and he simply forgets everything else around him. He has to focus his attention on these new impressions in order to address them – then, he can get back to what he is supposed to be doing.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">The behavioral issue in this case emerges as failing to do the fairly simple task of getting out everything needed for doing his home work and failing to organize that very task.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">The developmental issue in this case is obviously that not doing his home work will leave him behind in knowledge compared to his class mates.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">-------</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
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<div style="text-align: center;">
<i><span style="font-size: large;">What did you find helpful in this chapter?</span></i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i><span style="font-size: large;">What should I do to improve the above text?</span></i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i><span style="font-size: large;">Please feel free to comment:</span></i></div>
Per Holbohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12079712540712231883noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2937979309861131370.post-46013321798569953472013-06-06T04:37:00.000-07:002013-06-06T04:37:49.059-07:00An old Vikings' Game<span style="font-size: large;">Despite what you might think, playing games is not a new idea in our modern society. Man kind has played games for thousands of years. Both in the middle east, in Africa, America and Europe. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">One of these games is "Kings Pin," which I mention in my Sci-fi/Norse-mythology blend, <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00CQTH8AS/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=B00CQTH8AS&linkCode=as2&tag=talofholshi-20" target="_blank">"Skrymers Glove."</a></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">It's an old Vikings' game in which two teams throw wooden sticks to knock down 5 pawns and a king.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Here's what this game is all about including a description on how to make the pieces to the game yourself:</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: x-large;"><b>Making the pieces to the game</b></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPr1A2zUnDXjz0SEfi3l5W60wiUWFTOvY3b7NoAzavWc5h3nYF-eWPKRwMrilTXWxdZOJBCAYNxaf1H95ZkelGY0-lPPmkL1H_vrtXnCzG2CVVwevPX4osbiCcymjQiiwN18Lc07yteJcO/s1600/Vikingespil_1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPr1A2zUnDXjz0SEfi3l5W60wiUWFTOvY3b7NoAzavWc5h3nYF-eWPKRwMrilTXWxdZOJBCAYNxaf1H95ZkelGY0-lPPmkL1H_vrtXnCzG2CVVwevPX4osbiCcymjQiiwN18Lc07yteJcO/s400/Vikingespil_1.jpg" width="400" /></span></a></div>
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">Pawns: 10 wooden blocks, approx. 2"*2"*4" (remember sanding them to a smooth surface without splinters)</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">King: 1 wooden block, approx. 2"*2"*6" (for aesthetic purposes you could cut a crown in one end and color it)</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Sticks: 6 wooden pegs, approx. 6" long and 1" thick</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Markers: 4 wooden pegs with one end pointed</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: x-large;"><b>Setting up</b></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFgSVdqWxbtPmKMo6X6xYy7mMuUCvbdprAtocyBjr8wuKIlT4Me5JLtcNL0j-T-8r9he-DRa0iqrnzzkpXMwg6qTlDhXFFGc8r_R8eqzKhaddVHHYmmckHYo3bnfKpjmK8ystnlGEZ8ili/s1600/Vikingespil_2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" height="146" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFgSVdqWxbtPmKMo6X6xYy7mMuUCvbdprAtocyBjr8wuKIlT4Me5JLtcNL0j-T-8r9he-DRa0iqrnzzkpXMwg6qTlDhXFFGc8r_R8eqzKhaddVHHYmmckHYo3bnfKpjmK8ystnlGEZ8ili/s400/Vikingespil_2.jpg" width="400" /></span></a></div>
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">The 4 markers are used to mark the playing field. Two markers identify each team's Base Line as shown above. Between the markers, place 5 pawns evenly distributed.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">In the other end of the playing field you place team 2's Base Line in such a way that the 4 markers form a square of any size you want. The pointy end goes into the ground (though it is possible to play the game on almost any surface, grass usually is the most fun, because the unevenness makes it more difficult to hit the target.)</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">Finally, the king is placed in the middle of the field, that is: standing on the spot of where you put the king, the distance to all four markers should be the same.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: x-large;"><b>Playing the game</b></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">In turns and standing behind their own Base Line, each team throws 6 sticks trying to knock over the opposite team's 5 pawns. When the team has thrown all of the 6 sticks, it's the other team's turn. When a pawn is knocked over, it's out of the game.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">If one of the teams manage to knock over all the pawns, the king is the target.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">If a team knocks over the king BEFORE all of the opposite team's pawns are knocked over, that team has lost.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">If a team knocks over all the pawns of the opposite team and THEN knocks over the king, that team has won.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">NOTE! When throwing your stick, you must hold it in one end and do an underarm throw like when playing soft ball and the stick is not allowed to rotate sideways.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: x-large;"><b>Alternative rules</b></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">To make the game a bit more interesting, these additional rules are just the thing:</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;"><b>Traitor Pawn Rule:</b></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">When a team has thrown all their 6 sticks, knocked over pawns are not put aside. Instead the team owning these pawns throw them to the other side of the playing field (they must land on the other side of the king - if not, they will throw again and keep doing so, till they do)</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">Any team having pawns on the other side of the king, MUST knock over those pawns, BEFORE knocking over the opposite team's pawns.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">Any team having 1 or more of the opposing team's pawns on their side of the field, may throw their sticks from where those pawns are standing. (That is: they no longer have to stay behind their own Base Line)</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">When a team knocks over one of their own pawns while it's standing on the opponent's side of the field, that pawn is set aside and is out of the game.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;"><b>Chaos Rule:</b></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">When a team knocks over the last of their opponents' pawns, everyone targets the king with all they have including the team's own pawns (this means that both teams can throw at the king and win)</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">There you have it! Enjoy the game!</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><i>Already tried the game? Feel free to leave a comment:</i></span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><i><br /></i></span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i>Historical Note: There really is no hard evidence that this game was actually played by the Vikings, but it's an interesting idea, isn't it?</i></div>
Per Holbohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12079712540712231883noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2937979309861131370.post-45915119817470641452013-06-03T23:34:00.000-07:002013-06-07T21:45:33.951-07:00BookReview: Paradise Palms by J.R Murdock<span style="font-size: large;"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00CP975AC/ref=as_li_tf_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=B00CP975AC&linkCode=as2&tag=talofholshi-20">Paradise Palms: A Murder Mystery in a Time-Traveling Trailer Park</a><img alt="" border="0" height="1" src="http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=talofholshi-20&l=as2&o=1&a=B00CP975AC" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" /></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">by J.R.Murdock</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00CP975AC/ref=as_li_tf_il?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=B00CP975AC&linkCode=as2&tag=talofholshi-20"><img border="0" src="http://ws.assoc-amazon.com/widgets/q?_encoding=UTF8&ASIN=B00CP975AC&Format=_SL160_&ID=AsinImage&MarketPlace=US&ServiceVersion=20070822&WS=1&tag=talofholshi-20" /></a><img alt="" border="0" height="1" src="http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=talofholshi-20&l=as2&o=1&a=B00CP975AC" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" />
</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;"><b>The story:</b></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Sam lives in Paradise Palms, a trailer park in Minnesota with his girlfriend, Girlfriend (yes, that is her name...)</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">In the middle of the night his childhood buddy, Casper Jr., is killed under very unusual circumstances. He teams up with Detective Andrew and Myra, an expert in Dinosaurs, to solve the mystery.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Meanwhile, Lin Pza Pza, a government freelanced computer nerd calls a government associate to aid her in figuring out why several power surges have occurred the past few months in the trailer park at the same time each night.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">What happened to Casper and why did the police find the head of a troodon, a dinosaur that should've been extinct a long time ago?</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;"><b>Review:</b></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">This is one of those books, where two genres meet. In this case Science Fiction in a more or less old fashioned Murder Mystery setting. Such a mix can be a difficult endeavor, but J.R.Murdoch manages quite well to balance the two in such a way that even though the murder mystery part plays the major role, especially in the beginning of the story, the Science Fiction part of it doesn't suffer (unless you prefer Science Fiction neat and clean, in which case you probably wouldn't bother spending your time watching X-files, Haven or Eureka - or money on this book...)</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">The story itself provides both a dry kind of humor (such as Sam's girlfriend actually answering to the name "Girlfriend" and the stereotype of two old men in the trailer park constantly finding each other hilarious while making jokes on everyone else's expense) and also it contains a story internally consistant.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">A downside to the book is below average dialogue that both seems awkward (as in: noone would actually say some of the things being said) and even a bit too obvious at times.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Another problem is the excessive use of re-raps, specifically at the beginning of new chapters, where the point of view changes to that of another character. I really don't need to be reminded of what Sam was told by Myra when he refers their conversation to Girlfriend. A simple "then he told Girlfriend about his talk with Myra as best he could." Of course there could be circumstances in which new information need to be delivered this way, but in many cases in this book, it really isn't called for.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">However, two things make this book a goodread:</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">The story is well conceived and is built up with both a basic story line and several minor stories going on between the characters.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">The characters are well described and the author has success in making them come alive. Sam is depicted as the complex type. Anyone seeing him for the first time would probably take him for a typical trailer park yahoo, but the reader knows from the very beginning he is not. His relationship with his now deceased father is clearly warm, but in a manly "boys don't cry" kind of way. Lin Pza Pza is likewise well depicted as the child genious trying to grow up and become independant. Of course, some of the minor characters aren't as round, but that just adds to the reading experience - this way it's much easier to get a quick understanding of who is important in the story and who just plays a smaller role in getting the story going.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">Overall the story is more character driven than plot driven and the author does this well.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">This means, that even with some editorial issues and a few typo's, I would recommend "Paradise Palms" to you, if you like the out of ordinary kind of Science Fiction and/or Murder Mystery.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">Personally, there is a whole range of other books I've enjoyed more, but still... it's worth reading...</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">I give it 3 out of 5 stars and stretching for the 4th star...</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">You can get the book <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00CP975AC/ref=as_li_tf_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=B00CP975AC&linkCode=as2&tag=talofholshi-20" target="_blank">here</a></span>Per Holbohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12079712540712231883noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2937979309861131370.post-90788068218621003412013-05-21T23:20:00.000-07:002013-05-22T00:38:40.157-07:00BookReview: The Blaze Ignites<span style="font-size: large;">A little while ago, I posted a review on "Miles of Daisyland."</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">I gave it four stars out of five. But then, as I back-tracked my previous reviews, I found a most disturbing truth: every review I ever did on my blog are four star reviews..!</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">I've never thought myself an all pad-on-the-back-hallelujah kind of critic and to discover this fact was rather unsettling.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">Then, as I thought about it, I suddenly realized why all my reviews have been positive:</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">#1: I tend to stop reading, when a book doesn't deliver</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">#2: I find it both dishonest and disrespectful to post a review on a book I haven't read to the last word.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">The result has been that only books that deliver something valuable have found their way to a review on the blog.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">This must change, if anyone is to take my reviews seriously.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">That's why I've made an effort to grab myself by the neck and fight my way through "The Blaze Ignites."</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">By now you must have guessed my review of this book isn't exactly a five star review. After all, you lot are bright or you wouldn't be reading my blog, would you?</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">Ready for the review? Here we go:</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: x-large;"><b><a href="https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/296916" target="_blank">The Blaze Ignites</a></b></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">by Nichelle Rae (ISBN: 9780988336018)</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Published March 18, 2013 through <a href="https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/296916">Smashwords.com</a></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
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<a href="https://dwtr67e3ikfml.cloudfront.net/bookCovers/b383ae8bd4d67bcc9d5e870f32a197cb3335a3a6" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://dwtr67e3ikfml.cloudfront.net/bookCovers/b383ae8bd4d67bcc9d5e870f32a197cb3335a3a6" width="213" /></a></div>
<span style="font-size: large;"><b>The Story:</b></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Azrel carries the burden of being the physical shell of "The White Warrior," created by the light gods as an instrument to fight back evil in the world.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">The White Warrior has been lying dormant for a long time, but as the evil Hathum rises to begin The Second Shadow, it´s up to Azrel and The White Warrior to save the world.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;"><b>My review:</b></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">I´ve had some serious issues with this book.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">First and foremost, some of the characters seem unrealistic. The majority of the male characters practically juice themselves in emotional doubts that usually work better with female characters. Rabryn, Azrel´s younger brother, who is one of her main protectors and Ortheldo, who has been like a surrogate father to Azrel since her own father´s death, spend the major part of their inner dialogue on rantings about not being good enough and doubting their every move. Men do have feelings and doubts, but we´re not even close to being as complicated as women. (Slap me on the wrist, if you want...)</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">Secondly, this book has roughly 123,000 words - to tell this story, 90,000 should suffice.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Usually you would like the story to build up gradually, preparing you for what is coming, extending the excitement and then, BANG! the action gives you what you´ve been waiting for.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">In this book, the story is built up gradually, preparing you for what is coming, extending the excitement and then... the author seems to think you need a break and a kitkat - because those are the times when she decides to either give you a recap of previous events, a flash back to a characters history or maybe present you with yet another character´s inner dialogue filled with sobbing and crying and doubting themselves or their friends... And when the action finally starts, you´re just not into it anymore...</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">However, the plot, the story and the inner life of the characters all have potential and even with these issues, the book is readable and the story makes sense.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">I give it two stars out of five.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: x-large;"><b>Where to get it:</b></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/296916">https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/296916</a></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><i>Please feel free to comment on my review weither you agree or not!</i></span></div>
Per Holbohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12079712540712231883noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2937979309861131370.post-21461617370654159042013-05-16T02:05:00.000-07:002013-05-16T02:05:26.142-07:00Newly Published: Skrymers Glove<span style="background-color: white; font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: x-large;">Newly Published Science Fiction and Norse Mythology blend!</span></span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="background-color: white; font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">Note: A special offer for you at the buttom of the post!</span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="background-color: white; font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: x-large;">Skrymers Glove</span></span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEht8Py79PNkzuAJqkzF_Dc_macNpleJSa3-1IE27hAvRagQ7rx-ggFDqcVrMS5jIGlRyub-6ToOSmTMURMxFnnMvjy6hIoloV-Imvxsm3AJA67d2jddPcMgkCF-vB6B3B53tsBeR2n0yIag/s1600/SG2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEht8Py79PNkzuAJqkzF_Dc_macNpleJSa3-1IE27hAvRagQ7rx-ggFDqcVrMS5jIGlRyub-6ToOSmTMURMxFnnMvjy6hIoloV-Imvxsm3AJA67d2jddPcMgkCF-vB6B3B53tsBeR2n0yIag/s400/SG2.jpg" width="250" /></a></div>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<i><span style="background-color: white; font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">War in the Milky Way!</span></i><i><span style="background-color: white; font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">Two races, Aseir and Vanes, have allied against the brutal Yetten forces bent on dominating the entire galaxy. During experimentation with the Fyrkat device on planet Earth, two human children, Tjalfe and Roeskva, are abducted by the Yetten and now it´s up to Thor, Loki, Balder, Freya and Sif to rescue them. Unfortunately there is a traitor among them and evidence does point to Loki, Thor´s best friend and Thor struggles with the questions burning inside: could Loki really be the traitor or is something else going on? And will they succeed in saving the children´s lives?</span></i></blockquote>
<span style="background-color: white; font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-large;">Why I wrote the story:</span><br />
<span style="font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">I´m a big fan of Science Fiction and one of my favorite shows is <a href="http://stargate.mgm.com/" target="_blank">"Star Gate"</a> including all of its spin-offs (and yes, that includes the SGU-series, which I found to be much more of a brainy series than than the others)</span><br />
<span style="font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">What I particularly like about these series is the way they integrate mythology from all parts of the world: Greek mythology, Egyptian mythology and Norse mythology. The very idea that all of these mythologies originate from visits on planet Earth from various races of the universe is both intriguing and intertextual consistent.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">However, as I watched the ongoing stories of these series, I found it increasingly annoying that the Norse Mythology was so badly presented, as in 'flawed.'</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">For one thing, Thor and co. are called 'Asgards,' which is a funny way (not funny as in 'rofl,' but funny as in 'hmmm... strange...') of using the name of their home as a noun. The correct name of the Norse gods is 'Aser' in Danish (plural) and in English it would be 'Aseir'</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">But even worse, Loki is depicted as a renegade Aseir, when in fact he´s a renegade Yetten, who has joined the Aseir and more often than not is on the Aseir side fighting against the Yetten.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">I wanted to write a story, where these things were corrected and began writing the story "The Legend of Hjarne´s Island," but after some time I got stuck as I began feeling that there was a story before "Legend."</span><br />
<span style="font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">Then one day, when I was surfing the internet and watching Youtube-videos, I stumbled on <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GGP_G5hHVMQ" target="_blank">this video</a> made by Hauke Vagt, a German illustrator and his brother (who´s name I am sorry to admit I don´t know)</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">The video tells the story of a Swedish diving team, who found a strange object in the Baltic Sea in 2011 and last year they went back to investigate further. Hauke Vagt has produced this video suggesting that maybe the anomaly was an ancient space ship crashing millenia ago.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">I was intrigued at this idea and found it to fit very well with my upcoming novel and decided to integrate it in my story.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">So, there you have it: Skrymers Glove is the story about how Tjalfe and his sister, Roeskva, were abducted by Yetten aliens, (maybe) rescued by Thor, Sif, Freya, Baldur and Loki and their story started the Norse Mythology!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-large;">Skrymers Glove is available at:</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Kindle only:</span><br />
<span style="font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><a href="https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B00CQTH8AS" target="_blank">Amazon - UK</a></span><br />
<span style="font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00CQTH8AS" target="_blank">Amazon - US</a></span><br />
<span style="font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><a href="https://www.amazon.de/dp/B00CQTH8AS" target="_blank">Amazon - DE</a></span><br />
<span style="font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><a href="https://www.amazon.fr/dp/B00CQTH8AS" target="_blank">Amazon - FR</a></span><br />
<span style="font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><a href="https://www.amazon.es/dp/B00CQTH8AS" target="_blank">Amazon - ES</a></span><br />
<span style="font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><a href="https://www.amazon.it/dp/B00CQTH8AS" target="_blank">Amazon - IT</a></span><br />
<span style="font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><a href="https://www.amazon.co.jp/dp/B00CQTH8AS" target="_blank">Amazon - JP</a></span><br />
<span style="font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><a href="https://www.amazon.ca/dp/B00CQTH8AS" target="_blank">Amazon - CA</a></span><br />
<span style="font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><a href="https://www.amazon.com.br/dp/B00CQTH8AS" target="_blank">Amazon - BR</a></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Various formats, including Kindle, PDF and EPUB (readable on most devices)</span><br />
<span style="font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><a href="https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/313829" target="_blank">Smashwords - all countries</a></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-large;">A gift for you!</span><br />
<span style="font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">If you want the book at half price, there´s a 'new publishing discount' right now, which means that you can get the book for only $2.50! All you have to do is go to Smashwords.com and use this discount code: </span><strong style="background-color: #f7f7f7; border: 0px; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 18px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">CL97Z</strong><br />
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<span style="font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>Enjoy the book! And if you´d like to review it, I´ll really be looking forward to it!</i></span></div>
Per Holbohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12079712540712231883noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2937979309861131370.post-77363294481743198432013-05-05T13:26:00.000-07:002013-05-05T13:42:36.721-07:00BookReview: Miles of Daisyland<h2>
<span style="font-size: large;">Miles of Daisyland</span></h2>
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<span style="font-size: large;">by <a href="https://www.smashwords.com/profile/view/ErikGaBean" target="_blank">Erik Ga Bean</a> May 1st, 2013 - Word count: 10,330 - ISBN: 9781301314393</span></div>
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<a href="https://dwtr67e3ikfml.cloudfront.net/bookCovers/c7f4c95e919d1d7fe27688f83b62791925e6bc4e" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://dwtr67e3ikfml.cloudfront.net/bookCovers/c7f4c95e919d1d7fe27688f83b62791925e6bc4e" width="240" /></span></a></div>
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<b><span style="font-size: large;">The story:</span></b></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Jane, Rod and Freddie plan to rewrite their own history using a home made time machine sometime in the 22nd century. The plan is to visit Jane´s great grandfather, Adrian, and convince him to help them by giving him the numbers to win 1261st national lottery draw in 2008. Will our three friends succeed in making the changes in the course of time, keeping the temporal police from finding out?</span></div>
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<b><span style="font-size: large;">My review:</span></b></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">One of the things I appreciate in a book is when the dialogue is authentic and moves on the story. If the dialogue doesn´t catch me, I´m most likely to stop reading after the first couple of lines. "Miles of Daisyland" doesn´t have good dialogue. In fact, it doesn´t have any kind of dialogue what so ever. But, as they say: rules are there to be broken. Sometimes braking a ground rule in writing can make the most impressive effects emerge and with "Miles of Daisyland" this is the case. The book actually gets better without dialogue, because the author seems to use this as a trick to get me as a reader, to consume the story in a very different way than I´m used to. Instead of reading the story as a book, his writing style refers me to sit in the chair beside my grandpa, who is going to tell me the story of when he and his friends from school tried to rewrite their own history. And for all purposes, it works like a charm. I really feel like I´m listening to someone telling me a story in which the storyteller has himself played a part. I was done reading reading the story in less than an hour and I both smiled, shook my head and wondered about the metha physics in time travel. Not many books can do that. I give this book 4 out of 5 stars...</span></div>
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<b><span style="font-size: large;">Where you can get it:</span></b></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">"Miles of Daisyland" is available at the price of $0.99 <a href="https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/311859?ref=PerHolbo" target="_blank">here</a></span></div>
Per Holbohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12079712540712231883noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2937979309861131370.post-84135893323092808542013-05-02T21:28:00.000-07:002013-05-02T21:28:12.520-07:00New Science Fiction underway - wanna help?<span style="font-size: large;">Do you love Science Fiction?</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Do you love Norse Mythology?</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">If so, maybe you will find the idea of a blend between them quite intriguing.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">This is exactly the plot of my Science Fiction Novel, "Skrymer´s Glove," which was published in Danish on the 17th of October last year. Right now, I´m struggling with a translation and will hopefully have the book ready for publishing in English within the next few months.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEht8Py79PNkzuAJqkzF_Dc_macNpleJSa3-1IE27hAvRagQ7rx-ggFDqcVrMS5jIGlRyub-6ToOSmTMURMxFnnMvjy6hIoloV-Imvxsm3AJA67d2jddPcMgkCF-vB6B3B53tsBeR2n0yIag/s1600/SG2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEht8Py79PNkzuAJqkzF_Dc_macNpleJSa3-1IE27hAvRagQ7rx-ggFDqcVrMS5jIGlRyub-6ToOSmTMURMxFnnMvjy6hIoloV-Imvxsm3AJA67d2jddPcMgkCF-vB6B3B53tsBeR2n0yIag/s640/SG2.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">But, alas... I have come to realize I need help. Even though my English is certainly above average, there are issues with grammar and sentence structure, I have trouble overcoming.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">This is where you might come in.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">I´m in search for people, who love Science Fiction (or books in general) and want to help me edit the book for grammar, spelling and the flow of the text. Anyone participating will of course receive a free copy of the finished eBook (I´m working to find a solution, so that you can get a hard copy, but no promises there...)</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">This is how it works:</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">1. Write a comment in the field below or send me an email to: perholbo@gmail.com</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">2. You will then receive a copy of the draft in RTF, which is a standard format that can be opened by almost every editing programme such as word, openoffice and iPages</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">3. Read the draft and insert your comments as you see fit. If you´re one of those people who find grammar to be the most important thing in the world, focus on grammar. If your main competence is in the field of making a text flow, focus on text flow. If you prefer doing body count, please do that. Whatever makes you tick. As long as you comment on the text, so that I have something to work with.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">4. When you´re ready, send the RTF back to me using the before mentioned email. I prefer receiving all comments integrated into an RTF-file, but if you have trouble saving the file as RTF, we´ll work out that problem as well.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">5. I will then read through all your comments and based on them I will edit the book and send it to all of you, again as an RTF-file.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">6. If after reading the edited file, you still have comments, please feel free to do so, but this is not an obligation.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">7. Based on the second set of comments (if there are any) I will re-edit the book and publish it through Smashwords.com, Amazon.com and other channels and you will receive a discount code to obtain your full and freely readable copy of the book in your preferred format, that being any of the formats listed <a href="http://www.smashwords.com/about/supportfaq#Reading" target="_blank">here.</a></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Hoping to see you participate,</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Regards, Per Holbo</span><br />
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<br />Per Holbohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12079712540712231883noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2937979309861131370.post-2546480692774540742013-03-04T22:23:00.001-08:002013-03-06T23:40:53.897-08:00Crime escalator<span style="font-size: large;">Last night there was a documentary on TV2, Denmark, about the new high security prison in Orange County. It was built in 2006 and aims to be cost effective and secure for both inmates and staff.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">The idea is to have 24/7 visual control and the prison is therefore built with a control center in the middle and with four glass cages surrounding the control center.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">The entire prison is equipped with cameras everywhere and they claim there are no blind spots.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">Another basic philosophy at this prison is that the guards are to have as little contact with the inmates as possible. Only when there is a specific reason, they will intervene. Those situations could be fighting among inmates, suspicion of weapons presence, riots or other rule breaking activities.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">As yet another precaution, the most dangerous prisoners are kept in two men cells, where the light is always on, even during the night, when they are supposed to sleep.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">In this documentary, the speaker says on more than one occasion:</span><br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-size: large;">"Despite all these precautions, the rate of violence, attacks on the guards, murders, rapes and the like seem to go only one way: up!"</span></blockquote>
<span style="font-size: large;">As I was watching this documentary, I found myself puzzled... how can it be, that in a civilized society, prisoners are treated like this? It's not only immoral in my eyes, it's stupid! Plain and simple: stupid!</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">One of the most important things we have learned from the studies made by Maslow more than a century ago, is that if people are deprived of the most basic needs, the frontal laps of the brain ceases control to the spinal chord, thereby diminishing what makes us different from animals: sensing the difference between good and evil - and at the same time turning up the volume of our more basic patterns of behaviour: we become less human and release the animal inside.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">So, really it shouldn't be "despite of" these security precautions, but rather because of them.<br /><br />
</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Now, I realize that some of my American readers may conclude that I wouldn't look at it this way, if it wasn't for the fact, that I'm from Europe. You may be right, but Maslow and his theories still stand and if you want numbers to support my claim, maybe these facts can persuade you:</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">In the US 1 percent of the population are incarcerated at any given time. In Denmark, where I live, that number is 0.08 percent. I seriously doubt the Dane is generally morally superior to an American...</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Are these numbers enough to prove my point?</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Probably not, but it should make you wonder if maybe, just maybe, there could be a better way...</span>Per Holbohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12079712540712231883noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2937979309861131370.post-34046409293224863182013-02-25T03:41:00.004-08:002013-02-25T03:41:39.706-08:00A great way to find new books!<span style="font-size: large;">As an author, I want people to buy and read my books, of course...</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">But there is more to it than that. Every author I know has a common trade, a part of their personality that will always shine through our obvious interest to sell books: we love books! We love writing them, of course, but we also love reading them, keeping them on our shelves and enjoying the special magic they possess.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">That´s why authors tend to look at other authors, not merely as competitors, but much more as colleagues and fellow book lovers and as a result, we want our fellow authors to succeed selling their books so that they can be read by a wide variety of readers.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">It´s a challenge, perhaps even more so today than it was in the past. The market for books has changed massively in the past 10-20 years and it is still changing. Books used to be sold in a book store and anyone looking for a book would most potentially go to a book store asking the store keeper about the best books available and they would be advised on which book or books would be the best purchase.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">But today, books are sold in many different ways of which two of the most important are the eBook and the Print On Demand books available on the internet. This is an many ways a great advantage, both because of the obvious preservation of nature due to production being digital or at least minimized to physical copies only to the extend needed based on demand, but also because these new possibilities make books cheaper in general.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">Still, these new ways of selling and buying books has one built-in fault: there are no shop keepers to help you buy the book that would be the best buy for you...</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">Luckily, there are solutions to this problem. The internet is filled with all kinds of sites, where books are rated and/or recommended by readers.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">One of these sites is the Author Marketing Club and one of the best things on this site is that it differs from sites such as Amazon, Sony and Apple in the way that Author Marketing Club doesn´t sell books. All books at Author Marketing Club are recommended by authors and readers instead of the companies who do not care about which books they sell as long as they sell them. In other words, I think this gives you a cleaner recommendation.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">Don´t take my word for it, though... Go see for yourself by subscribing to their news letter. You don´t have to buy anything and there are no costs involved in subscribing. So, why not give it a try?</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">Just follow this link, subscribe and that´s it!</span><br />
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<a href="http://authormarketingclub.com/members/reader-subscribe/"><span style="font-size: large;">http://authormarketingclub.com/members/reader-subscribe/</span></a><br />
<br />Per Holbohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12079712540712231883noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2937979309861131370.post-37384344670690668702012-12-29T21:54:00.001-08:002012-12-29T21:55:08.202-08:00The Hidden Almond<span style="font-size: large;">A few days ago I presented my readers (yes, that's you! pad yourself on the back if you will!) with a <a href="http://talesofholboshire.blogspot.com/2012/12/recipe-ris-la-mande.html" target="_blank">recipe for the Danish Christmas dessert, "Ris a la Mande"</a> (pronounced "Rees a la mang") and I hope some of you tried it out and found it as delicious as I do.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">However, there was something I completely forgot to mention. This dessert can of course be used any time of the year, although it doesn't happen often here in Denmark. And the reason would probably be that there is a certain tradition connected to it:</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">The Hidden Almond</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">The tradition of the Hidden Almond is a simple game and it has a great way of bringing people closer together during the Christmas Dinner or during any other gathering in the time of Christmas. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">Note: In Denmark we have a tradition for Christmas Lunch, were colleagues, the widened family or a circle of friends or neighbours get together and share a meal during those dark days around Christmas (if you've been to Scandinavia during December you know how dark it can be with the sun rising round 7.40 in the morning and setting round 5.40 in the evening)</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">The Hidden Almond goes like this:</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Making the Ris a la Mande the cook saves a single almond after they've all been unskinned. This almond is not to be chopped like the others, but is instead put into the dessert whole. Be sure to stir enough so that even the cook doesn't know where the whole almond is.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">The rest is very simple: everyone digs in and the one who gets the whole almond wins the Almond Prize, which can really be anything you can think of. When I was a kid, the Almond Prize was usually chokolate or something else for the sweet tooth, but in our family we usually get some kind of game and wrap it in neatly like you would a Christmas Present. We've had "Partners," a game of working together, "Donkey," which is an old game anyone can play from the 5-year-old to great grand-pa. In other families I've heard they have the Almond Prize be decoration for the Christmas tree or something creative to pass time together.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Really there are no rules. The prize can be anything you like. Still, I find that the game is most fun if the prize is something we can all share during Christmas.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">As a little side remark I'd like to share with you this great idea for an Almond Prize that will be a great idea if you don't have small children in the house: A goat! - not for the winner, but for an African family, who really need it. I'll make a post on that in the new year, because it doesn't have to be something you do during Christmas...</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhh4U8BTtgsTOTHWxdWzp64ErvmRt_CiVqdQk96yS9S6B_xx-6xcxCi2HezlEPHC2KfGFIrt_eQrDyQ-1oSIRbgZqwvkcmWg4juZhCDZetk9LQMB4YVXBqd8smr6GPJMCqLiB1N650Kx6gX/s1600/2012_06_nye-geder-til-traengte-hyrder.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhh4U8BTtgsTOTHWxdWzp64ErvmRt_CiVqdQk96yS9S6B_xx-6xcxCi2HezlEPHC2KfGFIrt_eQrDyQ-1oSIRbgZqwvkcmWg4juZhCDZetk9LQMB4YVXBqd8smr6GPJMCqLiB1N650Kx6gX/s400/2012_06_nye-geder-til-traengte-hyrder.jpg" width="400" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">Borrowed from www.noedhjaelp.dk (I'll try to find an international equivalent to this organization for a post on helping those in need)</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">Oh, yes, I almost forgot: </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">One of the fun things about this tradition is if the winner can wait to reveal that he or she has won. Hiding the almond in your mouth while keeping on eating your Ris a la Mande can make the game quite fun, because everyone is waiting for the winner to reveal himself.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">A little additional funny thing: not everyone likes Ris a la Mande, but I've never heard about anyone completely refusing to eat it - those, who don't like this dessert, usually have one plate full to participate in the game. My wife is one of those people and in her family only a few actually like the dessert. So... the first few Christmases I had with her family, they all stared as I went in for seconds - <u>after</u> the winner had been found - and then someone would say (usually my wife) "You do <u>know</u> the Almond has already been found, right?"</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">But the truth is: I simply love this dessert!</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">If you tried out this dessert, please leave a comment below and tell me about it - even if you hated it, I'd like to know...</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">If you already tried the game of The Hidden Almond, I'd be happy if you could leave a comment and tell me about it as well... ;-)</span>Per Holbohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12079712540712231883noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2937979309861131370.post-82531477660017565922012-12-25T01:35:00.003-08:002012-12-29T21:56:16.083-08:00Recipe: Ris a la Mande<span style="font-size: large;">It's Christmas Morning where I live and I suppose I really shouldn't be blogging today. However, since the kids are entertaining themselves playing with their Christmas Presents, I thought I'd find a few moments to hand you all the recipe for a dessert, that has been a Danish Christmas tradition for I don't know how long: "Ris a la Mande" (prenounced "Rees a la mang")</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">The name suggests a French Connection, but that's completely off the main road. As it is often the case with Danish, we tend to use foreign terms for things that are meant to be of high quality. Typical Danish inferiority complex...</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">Anyway, this dessert is quite easy to make and in our house it's my job to make it. One of the advantages is that it's a two-step dessert that gives you an evening meal and from some of it you make the dessert. Ready? Here we go:</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">What you need:</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">500g Pudding Rice (Rice isn't just rice and if you use any other kind, you won't get anything that even resembles a dessert - or the evening meal, for that matter)</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">3,5 liters of high fat milk (app. 3,5% fat)</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">1/4 liter of cream (app. 38% fat - you need whipping cream at the least)</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">150g of almonds (hence "a la mande," which basically means "with almonds" - check your french vocabulary)</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">7,5 dl of water (a dl is 1/10 of a liter)</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">1/4 liter Cherry Sauce</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">What is nice to have, when making this dessert:</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">A towel</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">A bed (yes, that´s right: a bed. Just your ordinary bed, that you usually sleep in)</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">A sleeping blanket (the thicker, the better - multiple blankets is just as good)</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">What you do:</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">1: Put the water in a large cooking pot (I use a 5 liter pot, but it really can't be too big, unless you go into industrial mode)</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">2: When the water is boiling, put in the rice little by little while stirring (the stirring is very important, because if you don't stir, it'll burn at the bottom of the pot)</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">3: Let the rice boil for about 2 minutes while stirring (still very important - don't you ever let go of that cooking spoon)</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">4: Pour in the milk little by little, so that the pot will keep almost boiling (if it stops boiling, it really isn't a problem, it just means it'll take a little longer, before the temperature rises to the boiling point again and cooking this meal takes a bit longer)</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">Note: You need to be very careful with boiling milk, because it will very quickly boil over the top of the pot, if you're not careful - if this happens, there is only one way to stop the catastrophy: take the pot off of the stove to let the temperature fall.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">5: When all the milk is in the pot and it is boiling, you have two options:</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">5a: Finish cooking on the stove</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">You can either leave it on the stove simmering with a lid on for about 30-45 minutes while constantly making sure that it won't boil over the top or stop simmering (not the option I would recommend, unless you're in such a hurry, that there is no other way to get it done)</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">5b: Finish cooking in bed</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">The better option might seem a bit strange, but I assure you that not only does it give the best end result. It also has these rather nice benefits:</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">1. It saves you a lot of grief</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">2. It saves you a lot of time</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">3. It saves you a lot of energy and thus it saves you money</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">Option 5b is this:</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">a. Put a lid on the pot</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">b. Wrap a towel around it (this is mostly to make cleaning an easier task - you will find out why)</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">c. Put the towel wrapped pot in your bed (yes, that's right: put it to bed)</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">d. Tug it in like you would a child and make sure the blanket(s) are covering the pot and towel completely</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">e. Leave the pot in bed for about 4-5 hours, but stir every hour or so</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">Note: What happens when you tug in the pot, is that the heat is kept in by the blanket(s) but the temperature never rises - this means that the meal will slowly cook and you don't have to worry about burning it. Stirring every hour ensures that every little grain of rice is cooked properly.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">f. The Rice Pudding is done when it has the consistence of an old fashioned oat meal.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">Note: If you just want to serve the Rice Pudding, all you have to do now is add a bit of salt (careful, it really doesn't need all that much and you can easily destroy it if you add too much - and if you do, it's impossible to save it!)</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">If you want the dessert for the next day, put aside some of the Rice Pudding and put it in the fridge and then follow these instructions the following day:</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">1. Put the kettle on</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">2. Put the almonds in a container that can take boiling temperature</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">3. Pour the boiling water in with the almonds</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">4. With a spoon, take a few almonds and put them on a plate</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">5. Take the almonds one by one and press with your thumb, index finger and middle finger with one hand. This will pop the almond out of it's skin (be sure to catch them with your other hand)</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">6. Repeat steps 4 and 5 till all the almonds are skinned</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">7. With a large and sharp knife, chop the almonds to small pieces about 3-6 mm</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">8. Whip the cream</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">9. Put the almonds into the Rice Pudding and stir</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">10. Put in the whipped cream little by little and carefully stir (if you're not careful enough, you'll kind of "unwhip" the cream, which is not what you want)</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">11. Finally, you heat up the cherry sauce and serve</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">That's it!</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">This is what it could look like:</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<br />
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<a href="http://fredesblog.files.wordpress.com/2009/12/v_gt__5_ris_a_la_mande.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://fredesblog.files.wordpress.com/2009/12/v_gt__5_ris_a_la_mande.jpg" /></a></div>
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;"><i>If you try this out I would be thrilled to hear about your experience with it... So, please feel free to leave a comment...</i></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><i><br /></i></span>
<span style="font-size: large;"><i>Note: There is a great game connected to this dessert - read about it <a href="http://talesofholboshire.blogspot.com/2012/12/the-hidden-almond.html" target="_blank">here</a></i></span>Per Holbohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12079712540712231883noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2937979309861131370.post-78567753046850516332012-12-16T19:49:00.001-08:002012-12-16T19:50:49.030-08:00Schoolyard Shootdown<span style="font-size: large;">"Guns don't kill people, people kill people."</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">We've heard this argument being used from NRA and others whenever there is been a debate on the use of firearms in the USA. Being from Europe I know I might be under then influence of a culture different from the American, but there is one thing I don't get:</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">Why would increasing the use of firearms ever solve the problem of kids being gunned down?</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">Do the NRA really think the solution is to give the kids a firearm of their own?</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">If every single kid in that school in Newtown had a rifle in their schoolbag, I seriously doubt the shooter would've been stopped by a 6-year-old girl pumping him full of lead with a Kalashnikov.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">Of course, the above statement is correct: people do kill people and guns aren't guilty of anything, because they must be held by a human to be of any use. But the same thing can be said about cars, bombs and even weapons of mass destruction.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">Will the NRA any time soon promote the idea that every nation in the world should have weapons of mass destruction? Why not go all the way and pass a bill to let the government equip every school kid with a nuclear arsenal? I mean: if the basic idea of having firearms widely spread among the population is to demotivate villains from using firearms, surely the knowledge that every school kid can press a button to obliviate those villains with a nuclear device would make any gang member think twice about going on a drive by shooting? Not?</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">Probably not...</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">The simple fact is that if that crazy guy had a knife instead of a semi-automatic, the death toll would've been much lower. Lives could've been saved. Lifes of children could've been spared. Is the right to have firearms really so important that it's worth the lives of defenseless children?</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">I don't think so... Do you?</span>Per Holbohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12079712540712231883noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2937979309861131370.post-25569200607484758762012-12-13T20:44:00.000-08:002012-12-13T20:44:00.116-08:00The Remote that will not disappear!<span style="font-size: large;">If you have kids, you may just recognize how the remote control for the TV can be a source of eternal conflict and suffering?</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">The everlasting fighting over TV-power can really rip a family apart and change an otherwise relaxed weekend to outright war between family members - especially if the kids get into the fight as well (joke...)</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">In this struggle for power my kids have a tendency to hide the remote in a place where other members of the family won't find it. Quite often they succeed so well that even the one hiding the thing can't remember where they put it.</span><br />
<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">This power struggle will probably always be there and I seriously doubt we can do away with it. But I actually think my wife found a solution to that other problem of the remote disappearing.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span><span style="font-size: large;">She bought us a JUMBO remote - and when I call it a JUMBO remote, I'm not just talking about the name of it. I'm giving you a very precise description of the thing.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgcazkRBwtMdN-SXAFxg31E5f_D7sBjb4nvNl2TgZTd2UBbqE7KE7JMEQB2F2dctDEooAvuis3fhOyuHWCA6Y08WkQQtVkORgiazPfNmvo8RHIoPHpRHsIVwDof8FEhzmUaNTM7mPlYw4y/s1600/fjernbetjening.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgcazkRBwtMdN-SXAFxg31E5f_D7sBjb4nvNl2TgZTd2UBbqE7KE7JMEQB2F2dctDEooAvuis3fhOyuHWCA6Y08WkQQtVkORgiazPfNmvo8RHIoPHpRHsIVwDof8FEhzmUaNTM7mPlYw4y/s640/fjernbetjening.jpg" width="443" /></span></a></div>
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span><span style="font-size: large;">I'm telling you: that remote is HUGE!</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">With a size of nearly 4" by 8" I can't even cover it using both of my hands!</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span><span style="font-size: large;">This remote is NOT going to be lost any time soon!</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span><span style="font-size: large;">The struggle for power will still remain. It's not an easy problem to solve, but at least now we can turn up the volume on the TV when the kids start arguing... Well... not really...</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">All of this made me think: maybe this would be an idea in the world of international politics? Not mass producing JUMBO remotes of course, but when it comes to weapons of mass destruction, one of the major problems has always been the ability to hide the fact that you have them.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">If the JUMBO concept was introduced for weapons of mass destruction, maybe things would be a bit easier? I mean, even Iran wouldn't be able to hide away a nuclear bomb, if it was the size of Texas, would they?</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span><span style="font-size: large;">So, if Obama, Cameron (the prime minister of the UK, if you are in doubt) or any of the other big players in international politics are reading this blog (and of course I do expect at least one of them does!) Please feel free to grab the idea and make it your own.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">I won't patent the idea. I wont even take my fair share of royalties for it. Hey, you can even take the credit for all I care...</span><br />
Per Holbohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12079712540712231883noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2937979309861131370.post-69973440877579083692012-12-11T21:12:00.001-08:002012-12-11T21:12:34.448-08:00Danish Christmas Cookies<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjauF18qiWxGbJ00VxwCY3hqSJDubig2XR9osALy7xRIMuH5StHGE8QIrRbnw3nmbiB8iRkg6plO6DuPo_aOmJq84flwM38B1SOg3T4LzuIYscJzXaXnmMw8bqqKVVHE_KuwXmWnT68kjGR/s1600/DSC01812.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjauF18qiWxGbJ00VxwCY3hqSJDubig2XR9osALy7xRIMuH5StHGE8QIrRbnw3nmbiB8iRkg6plO6DuPo_aOmJq84flwM38B1SOg3T4LzuIYscJzXaXnmMw8bqqKVVHE_KuwXmWnT68kjGR/s1600/DSC01812.JPG" height="240" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
<br />
In Denmark we have some proud Christmas traditions. One of them is baking cookies and today I want to give you one of the most simple recipes you will ever know. So, without further ado, I give you:<br />
<br />
Finnish Bread<br />
<br />
What you need:<br />
250g Margarine (or butter, if you prefer)<br />
100g Sugar<br />
375g Flower<br />
<br />
What you do:<br />
<br />
1. Make sure your butter or margarine has room temperature<br />
2. Mix all the ingredients using your hands. This is important, because the warmth of your hands is necessary to get the margarine/butter to melt just enough to make the dow stick together. Keep kneading till you get a smooth surface<br />
3. Put the dow in the fridge for a half hour<br />
4. Turn on the oven at 200 degrees Celsius<br />
5. Use a rolling pin to get a flat dow<br />
6. Cut the dow in squares<br />
7. With your fingers squeeze the squares on the side making small sticks like on the picture above<br />
8. Bake the Finnish Bread for 3-7 minutes depending on their height<br />
9. When they're done, let them cool of a bit before serving<br />
<br />
When you take them out of the oven, they should be a bit soft, almost as if they haven't been completely baked. When they cool of they will be just right.<br />
<br />
If you want to add something extra, spreading a bit of pearled sugar on the top is a fine touch (for it to stick, you can put a bit of raw egg on the top and springle the sugar before baking them)<br />
<br />
That's it! Enjoy!Per Holbohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12079712540712231883noreply@blogger.com0