Mammogram

As some people know, I prefer healthcare in the U.S. to healthcare in Sweden.  I don't want to go into unpleasant specifics, so I'll just leave it at that.  But I had a good experience today, and I like to give credit where credit is due. 





Every year and a half, every woman in Sweden, between the ages of 40-75, receives an "invitation" to have a mammogram.  With the invitation comes an appointment time.  One is not obligated to accept the invitation, but it is extended. 

My mammogram was scheduled for tomorrow morning at 8:05 AM.  Because I was not sure of the exact location, I decided to "kill two birds with one stone" and get some exercise while finding the building.  So, while riding my bicycle, it occurred to me that I might as well ask if they happen to have any time available.  So I did.  The woman I spoke with looked and hesitantly said it might be a wait.  I asked how long.  She answered a half an hour.  [In Sweden, if you wait longer than 20-30 minutes for a medical appointment (I can't remember the exact amount of time), you don't have to pay for the appointment.]  I sat down in the waiting room, opened a magazine and was called around 3-5 minutes later.  I was out the door in around 12-15 minutes.  I will get the results via the mail within two weeks.

I asked the woman who did the test how many mammograms she thinks she has done.  In the conversation, she mentioned that there are 100 mammograms booked per room per day.  I guess they must double book to accommodate for no-shows.

Anyway - it was a good experience and since I have done my fair share of grumbling about healthcare here, I thought I would publicly praise this aspect of the system.

Kalles Kaviar

" A very Swedish taste"

Hmmm.  How do I describe Kalles Kaviar.  It is a  kind-of salty, kind-of fishy spread.
First marketed in 1954, it is, I think, the kind of food that although not particularly good, Swede's have grown up eating it and they like it.  I don't think it is bad, but I can't exactly recommend it.
Anyway, what is great is that the company that produces it makes fun of it.  Their current advertising campaign takes them around the world, giving our free taste samples.

The smiling Kalles Kaviar salesman sets up his samples in a city square and happily and hopefully shares his Kalles Kaviar.  But inevitably, the innocent sampler tastes the Kaviar and then tries to politely swallow it.
You can see some of the commercials on YouTube.
Just to get you started, here is the link to Kalle in Schweiz (Switzerland).
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4u9LpPVA1Bg

I saw an advertisement last winter that read something like,

"Kalles Kaviar.  .000003% of Spaniards can't be wrong."  : D

Folkrot

Which means "folk root" - not "folk rot".

I am not sure that I mentioned that folk and bluegrass music are pretty popular in this area.

  As a matter of fact, after hearing my husband play his banjo, a few people have actually said to him,

"I have always wanted to play the banjo."  It's true!  I heard them!!

This is the first year for the Folkrot music festival. 

 Some of our dear friends were going, and since John has had a lifelong love of 

bluegrass and folk music, we joined them from mid-day Friday to Saturday evening.  

It was great fun.

If you are in southeast Sweden next July, I hope you check it out!

The festival staff served very wholesome and reasonably priced food,.

And the fact that this old cooker was utilized in some of the cooking just made it better. 

There were several pavilions where music was preformed. 

I guess I should mention that the festival took place at a horse farm.  

The venue pictured above is, I assume, a riding barn.  

The owners did a great job of modifying the setting to accommodate the festival. 

I know that the musicians would have been happy to play anywhere, 

but I loved the look of these lamps hanging from this barn's ceiling!!

A story-teller and her dog, with children.

Aside from stage performances, there was a lot of jamming going on.  : )

I recall seeing more than one child in this make-shift seaside. 

A wooden shoe fiddle.  

As the story goes: back in the day, 

 a farmer's right shoe was typically worked harder than his left.

 Thus, the farmer sometimes had a spare left (wooden) shoe.   

These poor farmers were also in sore need of a fiddle.  

Spare shoe + need for a fiddle = a wooden-shoe fiddle.  

Obviously!