Snoreway?

The weather was amazing today- warm and almost springlike. I rode to Sandnes to buy new brake cartridges and was pleasantly surprised that they cost less than expected. All they had were Shimano Ultegras, but they cost no more than in the US. I installed them and resumed riding. I noticed that I had worn completely through the pads, and the metal backing had ground into the rim. I hope I haven't created too much rim damage. There was literally nothing left of those rear brakes that I had installed just prior to moving.

I needed to be back by 2pm, so I didn't ride very far. I went back to Vaulen to check things out under a sunny sky. Vaulen is a tiny penninsula that sticks out into the fjord that our apartment overlooks.Looking back toward our neighborhood, Gausel. That big hill is a NATO headquarters that is next to our apartment. Actually, if you were to keep driving up the hill we live on, you will come to their gated entrance with their prominently displayed sign forbidding any photographs. We live next door to a target.

Photographic evidence that the sun was shining today.

A wonderful place for a flat tire. By the way, this photo was taken just after noon. Observe how long the shadows are, already (or rather, still).

That is what I consider a serious cut. Rather than booting it, I put on a spare tire, in addition to changing the tube.

With the sun so low, some areas are almost always in the shade.

Like my fancy mtn bike/touring shoes? Hey, they are easy to walk in. You wouldn't even know they had cleats. My horrible twist tooth cog is even showing rust.

One chronically filthy bike.

Afterwards, I bought groceries. In Norway, red peppers are cheaper than green peppers- opposite of the US- and they are each individually wrapped. Bread is served in bulk, so everyone in Stavanger has handled your loaf before you bag it and buy it. We never have ours sliced at the store, but you can run it through a slicer if you want. In the lower right corner are skoleboller- a mysterious pastry with coconut and frosting- highly addictive stuff. Eggs are sold in the half dozen- and they don't sell mega extra extra super large eggs like in the US. These are real eggs laid by real chickens. Your choice is white or brown. I don't get it either. I also picked up a tube of my favorited cookies or biscuits or whatever they are called- the only item not on the shopping list. All that is left are the raspberry preserves and plastic wrap. I was told to buy the wrap, but had no idea what it was called in Norwegian. I also went crazy looking for it.

When you arrive at the store, you need to grab a cart from the outdoor corral. They don't have strange cart wranglers like in the US. Rather, you need to insert a 10kr piece to release the cart, otherwise they are all locked together. When you finish shopping, you take it back to the corral and insert a little key that locks it back up and that releases the 10kr piece. It is a brilliant idea. Another oddity is that we must pay for shopping bags. It encourages recycling, although we tend to recycle them by using them as garbage bags at home. They are very high quality bags, relative to the pastic bags in the US? Paper or plastic? All you have is plastic.