The greatest love is a mother's; then a dog's; then a sweetheart's. ~Polish Proverb

My life may be complete...

In other news.,.. the dog fight.  I took Freyja for a walk the other day and we met up with another female dog in the neighborhood.  They had met the day before outside my house, when Freyja was on a leash in the garden, they seemed to get on - ie no barking, biting or fighting, so I figured that maybe she would be ok.... Well, I guessed wrong, so she and said dog got into it, when the leash that I had somehow broke and so Freyja went for it - big time.

Next scene me - holding Freyja by the collar and turning her around and around to keep her out of reach of the other dog, whose carers saw fit to screech and run for the hills when Freyja went into attack mode.

Next scene, the folks in the house next door to where we were came running out to help... Thankfully one of them is a colleague from work, she grabbed the other dog and took it to the owners, while I stood there with Freyja held by the collar up in the air... Am amazed I hadn't choked her to death...

She felt so sorry for herself, as did I.... I am such a bad dog owner.

After a few days of gunk coming out from her eye she was ok.  Things weren't made better by her being on heat...  She is not happy with being indoors and leaves her scent wherever she can..

In other news, it's gst, vat, whatever valued added tax time you have in your country... well it's that time for farmers which means that work is quite busy - which is good.  Politics is politics and I realise yet again why I hadn't gone into it before.  Grandstanding and pontificating people really piss me off.  We are a small community and should be working together to try and get things done, not looking for a platform to make oneself bigger than one is... URGH.

I also said I would tell about mum and my trip in June, we are going on a river cruise... from Strassbourg in France to Amsterdam along the Rhine... http://www.baendaferdir.is/baendaferdir/sumar/sumar-2-fljotasigling_a_rin is the link for those that can read Icelandic.  It's fully booked.... probably because 14 members of my family are going.... It started with me and ma, I told ma's sister maja about it - thought it might be nice to have her and her hubby along... He wasn't interested but she was - so two of her daughters and a son in law said yes... We were six, then another sister heard about it.... and another.... we were eight, then the children of the elder sister heard about it... we became 14.

It will be a trip of a lifetime...  I will take mum's dictaphone with me.. I really should update my camera so I can capture the moments as they happen.  

No more silly eating seasons ahead.  All we can look forward to is that the sun is shining earlier every day and setting later... This is the best time of the year!  Also we have had some snow and no winds for almost two days.....  Wonderful wonderful winter weather, and you can almost guarantee that there are northern lights happening somewhere - if not outside my front door!

take care folks... life is good and can only get better!

He that eats till he is sick must fast till he is well. ~English Proverb

No major blog today, am only filling in time between meals - well that's what life feels like at the moment.  Yesterday was cream bun day - today eat till you burst pea soup and corned lamb.

Life is good, very good, but very busy.  Work is pretty intense as is the political arena...

Will update shortly on the major trip that mum and I are about to undertake in June, should be good, a river cruise from Strassbourg to Amsterdam... with 12 other relatives... long story... but all my mothers sisters and some of their children are joining us.

The bloke made the pea soup and corned lamb.... he got extra brownie points for that.

Bed time!  promise to write a proper blog and post soon... In other news my nephew Henry is the cutest little boy ever! and in other other news, Freyja has recovered from her dog fight last week....

What is patriotism but the love of the food one ate as a child? ~Lin Yutang

I've been a tad slack with the blogging business, mainly because most weekends have been taken up with the annual month of Þorri, where Icelanders all around the country get together in their old county groups and eat the food of our forefathers.  To some it is all that is yucky and inedible, I am getting more and more used to it and am actually starting to like some of these special "delicacies" 

 Pickled, fresh, on the bone or in a jelly - how do you prefer your sheeps head? These were taken in the second big blót that I went to - this one with Skaga folk, the first was with Skarðshrepp (my uncles farm belongs in this one)

 Host on the first blót was Bjössi Svavars and his wife Ebba (top photo with their daughter)

 The Skaga blót host was Jói á Hrauni, he's on the left with Bjössi the captain. Jói also prepares a descent shark.... yep the one thats cured for 6 months until most of the uric acid has gone out of it - whats left is a rubbery amoniac tasting piece of meat that is an acquired taste - which I am actually starting to appreciate.  We stayed overnight at Jói's house, which is situated at the north end of the fjord on the western side.

 The men had arrived on skidoos, so they had to make their way home in the same way.  I think they had a really good time - as did I - Skaga blót is very very entertaining.

 The next weekend was the Króksblót .... Freyja by this stage was unimpressed with all my going out and being away .....

 Again, the heads, the jellies, the whale (pickled - in the white icecream container), the pink stuff is beetroot salad - made with cream....the stuff in the jar is shark.

 The neighbours and friends.  Óli Begga and Árni..

 The final þorra meal was last Thursday at my cousin Rúnar's house, - there was a full moon...  one of these days I will have a good camera that can capture these moments.

 Again, the usual suspects, smoked meat, turnip mash, potatoe mash, breads, pickled rams testicles, head jellies and the dried fish and ofcourse shark...

 Rúnar and Eyrún are perfect hosts, the glasses were kept full and we stayed and talked and looked at photos and ate and ate and ate.

 Mum and cousin Guðný looking in old photo albums.

 Cousin Jóhanna and Þórdís (Eyrún and Rúnar's daughter - and my hairdresser) discussing some particularly interesting photos taken in the eighties...

 The really old albums then came out - after which Eyrún showed us her collection of eye glasses....  she had some brilliant ones from the late 70's / early eighties...

Creativity is allowing yourself to make mistakes. Art is knowing which ones to keep. ~Scott Adams

My dog loves my sister A LOT, here she is showing ownership of her!  I also love my sister A LOT and am going to miss her so much when she goes.....   Still, we are used to this - the hellos and goodbyes are nothing new to us.   I know I will see her again soon, and that whilst we are apart we are still together, technology lets us talk to each other whenever we want.  A part of our sister bonding was a course in book binding - run by Vicki, Henry's other grandmother.... what fun it has been!

 But before that... we had a family Þorrablót - (libations to Thor), which marks the beginning of the end of winter...  rotten food to all of you non Icelanders!   This time we kept it small... just us cousins.  Was a really good night!  We actually had this on Wednesday night - Þorri didn't actually start till Friday - but hey, sometimes it's good to have a head start.  Friday - the start of Þorri - is called Bónda dagur - According to the Icelandic on line dictionary 

Icelandic-English bóndadagur
	Husband's Day; Husband's Day; Farmers' Day

The men at work decided to do something special for Bóndadag and all brought in their saddle sacks... Is that what they are called????  with Þorra food and bottles kept in socks.... twas an interesting sight when I came back to work after lunch, they with their saddle bags... thats the word... on the table, bottles of vodka hidden in socks... we also had whiskey during the morning coffee break.  We girls at work felt that we should do something so the boys got a red rose each from us.   Þorri lasts for about a month, then Góa begins... with Konudagur - ladies day..... look forward to seeing what happens then...

 Saturday was day one of the book binding course, a great bunch of people brought together by a wonderful artist and excellent teacher - Vicki....  Here we are checking out other books that Vicki had made and getting ideas for making our covers.

 I do not have an artistic bone in my body - but still managed to make 3 sheets of paper with some stuff on them that would be my cover for my very own hand bound book.

 Unnur and I are the rip, tear, bust sisters, we do most things quickly and with very little attention to detail.  Unnur made a lovely sheet with this piece of plastic table cloth.... really pretty.  

 Day 2 - today, was assembly day....  I was not at my best - having been to a Þorrablót last night and did not get to bed till around 6am, then up at 1pm...  however, I am so pleased with the result!

 Shining up my covers.

 Not bad hey!

 The finished product.... my new guestbook!

 The products of our adventure into art.... I think we were all pretty proud of our bits of handiwork!

Another person Freyja has taken ownership of... Notice who has the better chair...

Snowflakes are one of nature's most fragile things, but just look what they can do when they stick together. ~Vista M. Kelly

 We've had a little bit of weather here on the rock in the last two days, two days that I spent in bed with a cold/flu thingy happening - I think I chose the right two days of the year to stay indoors.

 The snow provides me with natural curtains and an added sense of cosyness.

 I still had a dog that needed walking so I donned snow pants and big down jacket over my pyjamas and took her out to see what nature was doing.

 Snowy walls, this was on the first night, which was followed by a full day of storms and snow, the whole country came to a standstill.  Unnur was stuck in Rvk as no buses or flights were going anywhere inland.  

 She doesn't care though, and as I write this she is sitting on the chair next to me giving me the occasional nudge and whinge about having another walk (she has been outside three times today, once with mum, once with Unnur and once with me.... obviously not enough!)  

 Still it really is a beautiful thing, I love winter, I hate being sick, but when the two happen to happen at the same time - then good.

Hope 2012 is being good for you all!

Rejoice with your family in the beautiful land of life! ~Albert Einstein

Just a photo update this week.  All is back to normal, work has begun - slowly and the meetings are about to start, first one was tonight after work.  Again, just want to give thanks for the beautiful people that are my family....

 I just missed the moment when Freyja had the adoration look towards Maggi.

 the lovely amma and her Henry.... both the cutest and nicest and most huggable people I know.

 The lovely Anna, who has now departed back to southern shores.

 Yes lady, I can walk and give me a couple of weeks and I will be dancing!

 Just love 'em both.

 Totally has everyone enthralled!

 My wonderful nephew and nieces.... What's on the back of my head...??

 The thirteenth night after Christmas  - the last chance to blow things up....

Oh yeh, lets make fire in the snow!

Dogs never lie about love. Jeffrey Moussaieff Masson

I was looking for a quote about dogs and the new year and found nothing, but in my search found a site that gives a dog quote for every day of the year - this was the one for January 2nd... the one for Jan 1 was one that I had used before and is so wonderfully found in my book of the dog that Vicki made for me.... so it was unlikely that I would repeat it here again....and this one was quite apt as the beginning for this blog... for those that watch QI you will know what I mean.

Happy New Year people - hope that 2012 is a great year for you!  I know that it will be an amazing one for me... I turn 50 - it's a milestone that I thought I would never reach - ever...so I figure if I reach 50 then maybe, maybe, I will have left a fingerprint of myself on someones life.


During this last year I have been following an amazing woman in her journey in meeting all her facebook friends - she managed 90% which I think is amazing... I will try now and give her link...  .http://arlynnpresser.wordpress.com/  I know I should learn to embed and all that -I obviously need lessons.... anywho.. check her out... amazing!  now she has sent out the challenge to her "followers" to make a new  years resolution that is challenging - like right out there - not the usual - lose weight, stop smoking, stop drinking..... stuff that you know you won't do - but something more challenging that makes you want to do it... I can not for the life of me think of anything.... other than lose weight, stop smoking, stop drinking.... One that is a possibility though and one that I have definitely put off for over 11 years is to return to Australia.....  umm...I'll think about it... go back and face what I left behind... could it be that bad.. nah - would actually be quite good... who knows. maybe that is my thing for 2012?


But... can't leave you without photos... so will put on here the ones I took at New Years....

 My sister - the amazing one - taught me everything I know about cooking

My bestest friend in Iceland Guðný.... who can resist that smile? 

Yeh, I know - need to get a better camera... bonfire and fireworks at the other end of town.

 The  Australian contingent checking out the fireworks

 Maggi and Guðný relaxing whilst waiting for the Icelanders new years review... a comic spoof of what has happened over the last 12 months... This years was good, twas very very good and cut close to the bone, almost too close for many of our politicians.

 Maggi being the clever man that he is - brought fireworks with him.... hours of fun and enjoyment....

 As Guðný demonstrated with the internal ones.. ie the ones that could be used indoors...

 Maggi glassed up to take on the role of fireworks demonstrator... Guðný probably pissed off 'cos we couldn't find the other safety goggles...(Maggi did buy three sets... he knew how useless me and Guðný would be......)

 Let's light the fire..

 Sorry no fireworks picks... crappy camera remember - so instead there are shots from new years day dinner.

 All rather relaxed and sedate.... so nice

 My sister having quality Henry time... it is going to be hard for her to leave....

The blokes, Maggi - my nephew and bestest friend and the other one... Árni - the one you never lie about.