Where is Spring?

The snow is melting off the mountains off in the distance, but the only evidence of spring is the flowers that are finally emerging. I miss the midwestern "feel" in the air of spring, of the warmer, heavier air that leaves no doubt that warmer days are upon us. Of course, in Minneapolis there was very little time that separated the sub-freezing weather from mid-70s weather. People around here talk about the extended springs, but I fear it may be at the expense of summer.

To summarize all my "complaints" about living here, they all center around biking. I wish the roads were wider (there are no shoulders), I wish the weather was warmer and dryer, and I wish this were a larger city with more of a racing scene. On the flip side, we already seem to be living a better life than we had in the US. Commuting by bike is not regarded as an excersise in self-aeseticism like it is in the US. Per capita, biking is huge in Europe. I would offer that at one twentieth the size of the Twin Cities, more people commute by bike. What is lacking are the endless numbers of weekend warriors running around, as they do in Minneapolis- like on the Greenway on a nice summer day. But it speaks to the disconnect in America between staying healthy and living a routine existence. Fewer people in the US seem to integrate biking into their everyday lives. It becomes a separate recreational activity. Ultimately I need to keep my eyes on the big picture.

The other complicating factor is that I have been traveling about 10% for work. I always feel unhealthy when I return. We generally eat very well, and I am not particularly well-rested after travel. Also, it requires a lot of mental energy when traveling with a crew with whom I still have some communication problems. I don't think living in a basement has been good for our mental health either. It is like living in perpetual night. We have a lot of windows, but there is nothing to see. There is a light at the end of the tunnel, and we gave our notice that we are moving out in three months.

I feel the need to highlight the extreme generosity of our landlords. I don't know how clearly I made this point, but rental property is very rare in Norway. Most people buy apartments. Rental property ends up being in people's basements. Lise's brother checked out this apartment while we were still in the US. There was much interest in this apartment, but they rented it to us without even meeting us- despite the fact that we had no jobs or anything lined up. It was a huge stress relief not to have to worry about commuting from Kvitsøy or having to stay with relatives.

I am the sort of person who feels an exceptional sense of loyalty to people that have helped me out, and I feel no different about our landlords. We dreaded giving an early notice (since we will end up living here less than a year), but the laws are different in Norway than the US. Legally we are not breaking the lease by moving out before 12 months. Of course, we anticipated living here at least a year. I planned on 6 to 8 months of unemployment. I knew of several professionals who had been laid off back in the US, and knew it could take many months before a comparable career could be found. How we ended up so lucky is beyond me. We ended up with a decent car, and now the final pieces are falling into place. It will be a long three months as we wait to move in. Anyway, we gave our notice last night, and it was well received- like they were expecting it. Still, we were very lucky to find this place.