The end of one year, the start of another

2014 went by fast when you look at it in hindsight... swoosh! But a lot of interesting and good things happened, and some that we could have been without, as always.  My blogging was reduced due to other things, but here is a little summary of the things I never got time to show you earlier from the year that is about to pass on to history (2014).

WEATHER: There was a very cold and wintry beginning. Everybody learned the word 'polar vortex' with caused low temperatures and snow and ice.

FOOD: Many good Swedish-style breakfasts, which are like true mini-smorgasbords. Kalles Kaviar we have to get at IKEA here in the US. 

CRAFT and ART: Philadelphia and Baltimore Craft Shows, as well as Morristown and Peter Valley. Weavings by AA, trips to Grounds for Sculpture, and much more enlightened and enlivened 2014. This sculpture below by Brower Hatcher is one of my favorites at Grounds of Sculpture... it is really a place worth many visits.  Below that is a piece of one of Erin Wilson's many handmade, innovative artwork quilts, which we love. (The photo doesn't really do it justice, since it was taken with a smartphone.)

SWEDEN: a trip in March to the homeland, led me back to some places I hadn't seen for over 35 years, and Fiby Forest was a wonderful place to revisit. March is usually a cold and dreary month in Sweden, but there are wondrous things if you look closer, red beetles, green mosses, and colorful food (indeed, these days Swedish food is not just boiled potatoes, brown meat and sauce).

IDAHO: Summertime was conference travel time as usual, this time in Idaho, a new state. Up into the dry areas of the Bitterroot mountain range was an experience - hiking around Blue Lake, and being in all the alpine meadows with new kinds of birds and flowers, and views and vistas. I am going back!

PLANTS: Lots of work work focused on plants as usual, especially neglected weeds, lichens, and edible and urban plants. Beauty and wonder is everywhere...

BUGS: But there was also a lot of insects showing up wherever I was, and they too can be gorgeous. Looking at them this year and finding help online to identify and learn about them lead to a whole new world opening up.  I guess I have to learn more about fungi next year...

OPTIMISM: And now, it is the last day of 2014. And, I end with a quote by Cheryl Strayed from her book Wild, on what nature (and life) really is about:

“It had nothing to do with gear or footwear or the backpacking fads or philosophies of any particular era or even with getting from point A to point B. It had to do with how it felt to be in the wild. With what it was like to walk for miles with no reason other than to witness the accumulation of trees and meadows, mountains and deserts, streams and rocks, rivers and grasses, sunrises and sunsets. The experience was powerful and fundamental.”

Winter days in Sweden

I am back from my quick trip to Sweden and its wintery glory.  Due to pure weathery luck, I was there when it was cold (mostly minus 15 Celsius), very clear skies (blue in the day, starry at night), and with plenty of snow (white, white and blue at dusk and dawn). The 'blue hour' is so strong here, it is a real phenomenon. Just look at the photos! :) The high humidity led to lots of hoary frost ('rimfrost') on every tree, grass, and  surface. It was simply gorgeous.  This is how it looked like:


A Swedish winter road.  They put salt on the big roads and highways, but not on the smaller roads.


A plowed winter road.  Nearly everybody has dubbed tires, unless you live in a city.This is how blue it is, this photo is not photoshopped in any way.  Around 2.30-3 in the afternoon in January.  The sun is still up, but with long, long shadows, and it doesn't reach into the forest.


Hoary frost (rimfrost) on branches.


Snow, frost and open water at Ekeby wetlands, the largest artifically made wetlands in northern Europe.  It is a haven for birds and birdwatchers.


Do you see the fox?  He or she was sleeping on the ice, in the morning sun. This is also at Ekeby.


Ice on ice and water in ditch. You can see the area where the water is freezing on the surface...


These ice crystals on the ice were about 2-3 cm big (about an inch).


The ducks were freezing.


Frozen rose hips. These are edible and the Swedes make 'nyponsoppa' from them.


The Eskilstuna River was nearly frozen over. And the sun, even if bright, doesn't get very high over the horizon.  This was about 11.30 AM.

6 days later - photos

Hi - back at work now with internet access, and the photos on New York Times websites are just devastating and so sad.  All that damage!  We haven't seen them before, and seeing them makes the size of the catastrophe so much bigger.

Here is the link.

Kayaking in October

Some pictures from the kayak excursion today to Marvikarna, Åkers styckebruk, Sweden. About 5-8 degrees C in the air, (water temperature unknown). At first a light rain and later during the day some sun occasionally. Strange find was the Anemona nemorosa in bloom. Usually flowers in May, not October! Lunch break with a view and an open fire in IKEAs bestickställ, alias "vedköket", for the hot tea water.

Really good things from our kitchen

Homemade cherry pie and a cappuccino, originally uploaded by Vilseskogen.

My very first homemade cherry pie came delicious! And nect to it, AREA's cappucino in her handmade cappucino mug, ready to be swept into her mouth. Nice things, indeed.

Roadtripping.. part 3: Pennsylvania

Pennsylvania is a giant state, like the big bloated brother next to little New Jersey. New Jersey has the beaches and the people (9 million of them) and is the most crowded state in the US (sigh, I wish I lived surrounded by less people). Pennsylvania has lots of 'empty' space of oak forests, rolling hills, small towns and large towns. Many of the rural towns have been suffering from economic problems from decades, since the manufacturing industry collapsed. We drove through Pennsylvania on our way to Binghamton, and found some nice gems:

Starrucca viaduct, originally uploaded by Vilseskogen.

Starucca Viaduct, the largest, and at the time, most expensive, railroad viaduct in the world. In Lanesboro, PA, USA. Built 1847-1848 by the Erie Railroad, and still in use today.



How about some rubbish service?

The old Susquehanna railroad station, where no trains stop anymore. The station was renovated and made into a restaurant and bar, but that has closed and now it seems abandoned again.








I like the details on old railroad cars, like these springs on an old Erie Railroad box car. Look at those little wood pieces under, how long do they usually last?

More Pennsylvania photos here.