BBQ American Style!

I always find it interesting to discover what Danes think of American culture. They are inundated with American media, but not much of our food. Of course, you could argue that much of our food is actually stolen from other cultures.

So, what is American food? Well, according to a gourmet food shop in the basement of Magasin Dept. Store, American food includes Orville Redenbacher’s popcorn, marshmallows, Budweiser beer, Bac’n Pieces, and smoked almonds.

Of course Americans are famous for our BBQs. And, all good BBQs require French’s mustard, Heinz Ketchup, hotdogs and ribs.

Best of all, Americans are famous for the cream of mushroom soup. Yep, I bought two cans.

How else do you cook casseroles? Bon appetite … or as we say in the States… dig in!

Happy Father's Day!

Godspeed and Farewell

One of the hardest parts of being an expat family is saying good-bye to other expat families when they move on to other locations.

Monday we said "see you later" (I hate good-byes... ) to our good friends, the Tilley Family, Rebekah, Michael, John, and James.

Thank you for your wonderful, blessed friendship. God bless you as you begin your new life in Kentucky. We will miss you!

This picture was taken on the Tilley's last Sunday at our church, ICC. Rebekah is holding baby James and Michael is holding (hiding behind!) big brother John.

Wonderful, Wonderful Copenhagen...

After a long, dark, winter, we experienced the sunniest May on record! Yep, it's official. This was the sunniest May since they began keeping records in 1920. And, June has been perfect so far!

I wish I could describe how beautiful Copenhagen is when the sun is shinning. The sky is a color of blue that seems impossible to be real. The green of the trees makes the most beautiful contrast against the nearly cloudless, blue sky. The sun is so strong you can actually feel it on your skin... like a warm bath. And, in fact, you have to be careful or you will get a sunburn just walking around town!

Copenhagen is full of flowers -- everywhere you turn -- bursting with brilliant color.

And, the best part is that we have over 18 hours of sunlight each day. It is 23:27 and the sky is a deep, dark blue, and the sunset is still clearly visible.

Copenhageners make the most of every minute of sunlight. Cafes put tables out on the sidewalk, parks and gardens are filled with sunbathers (in all kind of attire!), and everyone is out enjoying the city. And, people are even smiling at each other! Shocking!

May is clearly our reward for surviving the dark winter -- and a glorious reward it is! Enjoy a few pics from around town!

To the left is a picture of sunset off our balcony. The picture below is from the cemetery where Kierkegaard is buried.

This tulip is in Charlottenlund Have. The Oresund Sound is at the end of the grass... look deep into the picture!

From Frederiksberg Have.

Another view from Frederiksberg Have.

The beach at Oresund Sound.

Another view of Kierkegaard Assistens.

Frederiksberg Have.

Happy Birthday, Dad!

Happy birthday, Dad!

As I write this post, my father is still winging his way back to California (he ought to be in Washington Dulles International Airport by now, waiting for his flight home to San Diego).

Last weekend, I took the beautiful train ride up to visit him in Ljungby, Sweden, where he was teaching. I was able to visit the seminary where he shapes the pliable young minds of starry-eyed preachers-in-training, meet a few of these starry-eyed lads, and tour the surrounding town. Here are some pictures from my visit:

http://picasaweb.google.com/JoelWKrueger/LjungbyVisitMay

Dad returned to Copenhagen on Friday, enabling us to spend a few extra days with him before his departure this morning. We had a great time. The weather was perfect, truly as good as it gets in Copenhagen. On Sunday after church, we enjoyed a celebratory birthday brunch down near the walking street of Strøget, the longest pedestrian street in the world. After a lengthy, leisurely stroll in the sunshine back to our flat--and a well-earned nap--we then made our way to Frederiksberg Have, one of the largest and loveliest parks in Copenhagen.

Here are some more pictures from my father's visit:

http://picasaweb.google.com/JoelWKrueger/DadBirthdayPictures

Have a great birthday, Dad!

Silas in CPH

My father arrived in Copenhagen early in the morning on Wednesday, May 14. He stayed with us for several days before heading over to Ljungby, Sweden, where he's now teaching seminary students from the Lutheran Confessional Church of Sweden and Norway.

We made the most of my father's brief stop in Denmark. We've said before that Copenhagen is truly a wonderful walking city. We enjoyed a number of leisurely strolls through our neighborhood, now green and lush after a long winter's hibernation, as well as through some of our favorite spots down near the city center. It's been amazing to see the city literally "reborn" throughout this spring season. We also savored several Danish-style homecooked meals, skillfully prepared by Robyn (I supplied the beer, thankyouverymuch). We've made some wonderful friends during our time here; two days after my father's arrival, we enjoyed a lovely dinner with several of them: our gracious hosts, Michael and Rebekah (as well as their young boys, "Big" John and "Bigger-by-the-day" James), as well as our other American friends, Adam and Melanie.

Earlier in the day, Rebekah and Adam joined the three of us for a tour of the Carlsberg ("Probably the best beer in town") Brewery (http://www.visitcarlsberg.dk/default2.html). The tour itself is (relatively) interesting. But the real point of feigning interest in rooms full of half-rusted brewing machinery from the last century is to get to the "prize" at the end of the tour: a sleek, well-lit bar where one can sample different beers from Carlsberg's extensive selection of brews. And sample we did.

Here are some pictures from my father's visit:

http://picasaweb.google.com/JoelWKrueger/DadVisitMay

Staying connected through laundry

I remember buying my first washer and dryer. Joel and I were just married and we used our “wedding money” to purchase our modest but elegant Kenmore washer and dryer. I was so proud. And, when our house in Carbondale flooded during a terrible storm, it was my washer and dryer that I guarded with layers and layers of towels. I wasn’t going to give up my washer and dryer without a fight.

Our little flat here in Copenhagen is not big enough for a washer and dryer. We use the laundry mat around the corner. It is quite nice and very convenient, but I do miss my washer. Wait, what did I just say? Just my washer? Yep… just my washer. I don’t use dryers anymore!

Actually, many people in Copenhagen don't use dryers. Almost every home has a rather large and elaborate drying rack and there are often clotheslines behind apartment buildings. So, winter, spring, summer and fall, we dry out clothes the old-fashioned way… by hanging them up. And, to my surprise, I love it. Sure, it is better for the environment (a lot better, actually, check the energy use on your home dryer – scary!), and easier on your clothes, but I like hanging my clothes outside because it reminds me of the women in my family. I have only a few very fuzzy memories of family-related laundry events, but I sort-of remember the clothesline outside our first house in Indiana… and a long line of white diapers hanging on it. And, I know that my great-grandmothers and grandmother had to hang their laundry outside to dry… and no, it was never glamorous or fun. In fact, it is a bit ironic: my great-grandmothers, grandmothers, and mother (and the men in my family too) worked very hard so I could one day not have to hang my laundry outside. But, now I have the choice. I can use the dryers (and before I sound too self-righteous, I have to admit I do use them from time to time) or hang our clothes outside. I am happy to choose to dry my clothes outside or on our rack. And, for the few moments I am alone hanging the laundry, I enjoy imagining all the women (and men) before me who took the time to hang laundry and I feel connected. A lot changes from generation to generation… but is nice to know some things stay the same. Things like laundry.

Happy Mother's Day

A Very Special Mothers' Day Wish to our very special mothers! We love you!

Consciousness in Tucson and Vilnius

Not much blogging of late. It's been a busy month: traveling and conferences, increased activity at work, a number of church-related functions...and spending as much time as possible outside, savoring the uncharacteristically warm and sunny weather. The past two weeks in particular have shown Copenhagen at its finest; even the locals concede that it's been unusually lovely. More on that in a future post, however.

Last month I traveled to Tucson, AZ, for the "Towards a Science of Consciousness" conference held biannually at the University of Arizona. It's a massive, colorful "all things related to consciousness" conference that I always look forward to very much. There aren't many conferences where you can begin the morning by listening to a talk on two-dimensionalism and the knowledge argument, hop on over to an adjacent session to hear a discussion of autism and social cognition, and then bounce over to yet another session to catch up with the latest research in transpersonal phenomenological parameters of human sexual experience (those are all bits of real titles, by the way). Fun stuff all around. And this year's conference didn't disappoint. I gave a talk on empathy and moral perception--which is rather a pedestrian topic, alas, in constrast to transpersonal phenomenology and sexual experience. Perhaps next time I will include some saucy power point images in my talk to spice things up a bit.

While I enjoyed the academic portion of my trip very much, seeing family was the real highlight. My parents, along with Travis and Kelly, came over from California to stay in Tucson during my visit. We all stayed at my grandmother's house. It was a great visit. We had the chance to spend lots of early-morning time simply sitting around in our pajamas, sippping coffee and chatting about all sorts of things. Due to my skipping across multiple time zones, I enjoyed the unaccustomed luxury of starting my day at 5:30AM with my grandmother! I've posted some pictures from the visit at this link:

http://picasaweb.google.com/JoelWKrueger/TucsonTripApril2008

A few weeks later, I traveled to Vilnius, Lithuania, to attend the meeting of the "Nordic Society for Phenomenology". I gave a paper on music perception. This conference, too, was very enjoyable. I wasn't able to see as much of Vilnius as I would have liked, but I've posted some pictures from the trip here:

http://picasaweb.google.com/JoelWKrueger/LithuaniaTripApril2008

Be sure to look closely at the picture of the toilet!