Hockey fight and Sunday school

Just a "typical" weekend in Bossier City, Louisiana. Of course, nothing can be typical if it involves me...

On our way from Houston to Louisiana we had a short stop at an old friend's house. Mister T. is a real hero in the most noble way. Over the years he donated 50 gallons of blood thus saving God only knows how many lives. I met him 3 years ago when I first came to Houston and it was a real blessing to catch up with him. In his free time, he trains dogs. On the picture, you see Cheers, a 7 years old super smart Labrador in action.

In the car I had a crash course on the oil industry, drilling, refining and general Q&A from a real expert. Hopefully next time I talk to my friends in Norway I will have a clue what are they talking about...



Saturday night is always a good opportunity to go out and do something fun. This weekend I was fortunate enough to be able to go and see a real hockey game. Doug said that I must be real desperate if I came to hot Louisiana to watch a real ice hockey game, but hey, the fights are the same everywhere and besides, it's quite cold here at the moment!

The game was fun, but to be honest, the best part was the fight. I know, not your usual answer from a Christian girl, but who says we cannot have fun? Though both fights were fake and staged, I really enjoyed them! :) It always amazes me how great these kids are on ice!

Taking me to a hockey game gave a really good excuse to Doug to ditch his Sunday school teaching...on ME! Hah! Just because I was on the SHIP (not boat, not boat, not boat!), come from a country with a funny name and happen to live in No(r)way doesn't really qualify me to be a good speaker. Thank God the group was great and very polite so I believe it wasn't too bad after all.

And next on our agenda is the Independence Bowl, a big football game between Texas Aggies and Georia Bulldogs. Cannot wait!!! :)

Merry CHRISTmas / Kellemes Karácsonyt!

I received this video from an American living in Hungary and now I am posting it from America to show you how the city I was born looks like at CHRISTmas. Enjoy the video (only from the blog, not through the email update).

Kellemes Karácsonyi Ünnepeket kívánok Mindenkinek! Ez a video inkább a külföldieknek érdekes, ti mindennap láthatjátok Budapestet kivilágítva. (csak a blogon keresztül látható.)

It's NOT what it looks like...

Well... How how to explain this picture?

Would you believe me if I said "It's not what it looks like?"

Oh, come on. You gotta believe me! I am a nice Christian girl! Why would I get handcuffed??? It was a misunderstanding (so I heard...) I was totally innocent! Really!

I saw many movies where they can get out of the cuffs, but after MANY trials I had to admit defeat. If your hands are handcuffed at the back, the only possible way to run fast is to bring your hands to the front. I was struggling hard, but couldn't accomplish the task. But to let you know, it's NOT because my back part is big! Simply my arms are too short, OK?!

After the initial fun I managed to convince the officer to let me go. I promised him I will not eat this much again for dinner! :) See? I can look innocent. And he was indeed a very nice officer...

Caroling and hamburger

One thing about Sandy is that she is always busy and she drags you with herself. That is the only logical explanation why I found myself in front of a school bus filled with friends from church ready to go caroling...

It's a nice tradition and the church had an amazing choir so why not bless others? I guess we went for the experience, too. We had a few addresses on the list and ended up having a great time. Now those who know me are aware of the fact that I cannot sing. Not one bit. That's why I always managed to stand next to somebody who had a great voice and was singing loud enough to overshadow mine. :)

At the end the bus driver let me sit there for a picture. Don't worry, I was not driving!

One thing about America I don't like is the huge hamburgers. They taste great, but it's usually so big that there is no way you can eat it without making a mess. Hence, when I received my lunch the other day naturally I grabbed my fork and knife. Boy, you should have seen the people in the restaurant... :) Apparently it's a big NO-NO! You must eat with your hands.

Once I get back to Europe I will have a T-shirt that says:

Please excuse my manners. I left them in Texas...

My American TO DO LIST – Christmas special

My American TO DO LIST for Christmas

• Caroling – checked
• Eggnog – checked
• Letter to Santa – See photo
• Wrapping xmas gifts in front of the fire - checked
• Christmas parties and dinners – checked checked checked checked
• Live nativity scene – checked
• Listening to Messiah while drinking hot apple cider – checked
• Walk around neighbourhoods to take pictures of overdecorated houses – sooo checked (see separated blog entry with pictures)
• Talk with Santa – checked
• Work out in a gym – checked
• See the ultimate Christmas ballet, The Nut Cracker – checked
• Lit advent candles – checked
• Put up a fake Christmas tree early December - checked
• Stood in line for hours in shopping malls – checked
• Enjoy 22 Celsius and sunshine all day – checked
• Buy everything on SALE – checked
• Get sugar-high before noon - checked
• Mistletoe – None so far! :)

Missed anything? Let me know, there is still time... :)

Ex convicts for breakfast, haircut for dinner

At the caroling I met a lady who works for Operation ID, a free service for ex cons, formal drug addicts and homeless people to help them get their papers and ID cards back. It sounded interesting so I went. On our way into the building the line was already long, some of them were waiting since 5 in the morning. We were not sure if we should just walk by them without even looking or noticing them, or we should be polite and at least say ’good morning’. They solved it for us, almost all of them welcomed us with some polite greetings.

Once inside I got introduced to the security guard. My friend told him that I was from Europe. He got super excited and asked me: Do you speak EUROPEAN? :) And he was dead serious! As a matter of fact, I speak several languages, but European is not one of them. It’s a shame, really... Anybody out there willing to teach me some European? I’d be forever grateful! :)

The doors opened at 9 and soon I found myself with the first person; a middle aged African-American man who was in need of an official ID. He had no birth certificate or anything to prove who he was except his prison ID with his name and mugshot. We filled out the necessary papers and while my friend asked some questions I had an excellent opportunity to observe these people. Most of them were African-American and the first thing that stood out for me was that they were all VERY polite. It made me think. Is it because Americans are generally polite? Or people in the southern US are even more so? Maybe because he is black and the humble attitude is rooted in the fact that once they were slaves to while people? Perhaps it’s the fact that they are in need and it forces them to be polite towards those who are in position to help them. Or maybe, just maybe it has something to do with them being human beings just like us, except that they have been treated poorly by society and they appreciated our efforts... Who knows.

(before the cut)

Later that day we were supposed to take part in a Christmas dinner at the Nehemiah Center where Sandy volunteers a lot. This is a place for mainly Mexican and African-American families who have different needs. You find here lessons for adults on business, managing your household, teaching basic English language, day care center for kids from 2 to 18 and many more. It’s a great place, a wonderful ministry and as such, always in need for more donations. Have a look at their website and if you can, please contribute and make Christmas special for these people. Thanks!

We went there early so I joined the 3 year olds. The good thing is that you don’t need to be any special, they gather around you in no time for storytelling and playing. I was reading a book with a small Mexican boy when 2 black girls with lovely hairdo came and started to braid my hair. They were fascinated by my red hair – something they have never seen before. Soon other kids joined them too and I found myself sitting in the middle of the room with 4-5 kids pulling my hair in every direction. Kids are creative; they used wooden clothes’ pins to keep my locks in place.

Suddenly one of the little girls walked around me and with bright shiny eyes she showed me her hands. One had a pair of scissors in it the other had some good 15 cm long red hair in it and it looked very much like my hair. By the time I started panicking she managed to cut quite a bit. I tried to be angry with her, I really did, but I just couldn’t. She was so proud of her work and so happy that she could play with an adult- size doll with red hair... OH well... Could have been worse. This was a great gift to a young girl and as for me, the older young girl... I suppose my hair will grow back soon...

BREAK / SZÜNET

Howdy Y'all,

I have been B-U-S-Y as in Stop the World for a second, please...

Some bullet points:

• got an unwanted haircut by 3 year old kids
• went caroling at night
  
• spent a morning with ex cons, formal drug addicts and homeless people
• got handcuffed by an officer
• is currently living in a house with 3 boxer dogs
  

I will write in details about my last couple of days, but here is a great message for you today. I was in a church in Dallas this morning and heard a great preaching on Luke 10:38-42, a message i want to pass on to all of you as we enter Christmas: (please exchange XXX with your name)

"XXX, XXX, - the Lord answered - You are worried and upset about many things, but only one thing is needed."

Don't be too distracted by shopping, cooking, cleaning the house, worrying about traveling, just take a deep breath and think about the only 1 thing that's needed: JESUS and His saving grace in your life!

MERRY CHRISTMAS MY FRIENDS!

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Hello Mindenki!

Ismét naggggyon sűrű a programom; itt van néhány pont:

• néhány 3 éves levágta a hajamat a hozzájárulásom nélkül (szerintük poén volt)
• voltunk karácsonyi dalokat énekelni egyik este
• pár napja volt drogosokkal, elítéltekkel, hajléktalanokkal foglalkoztam
• egy rendőr megbilincselt
• jelenleg 3 boxer kutyival lakik egy házban

Hamarosan írok erről bővebben is, de meg akartam osztani veletek egy üzenetet, amit ma a templomban hallottam Dallas belvárosában: Lukács 10:38-42. (tegyétek az xxx helyére a saját neveteket)

"xxx, xxx, mondta Jézus, szorgalmas vagy és sokra igyekszel, de csak egy szükséges dolog van."

A nagy karácsonyi bevásárlás, vendégek, takarítás, utazás, rohanás közepedte vegyünk egy nagy levegőt, és gondoljunk arra az egy dologra, ami szükséges: Jézus, a Megváltó az életünkben!

ÁLDOTT KARÁCSONYT MINDEN KEDVES BARÁTOMNAK!

Houston

Just some random shots I took from the car...

Pár vegyes kép, amiket a kocsiból fotóztam...

The weather is a bit foggy - it seems like these people literally live in the clouds. :)

Az idő kissé ködös - úgy néz ki, az emberek itt tényleg a felhők között élnek. :)(downtown Houston at 2 pm is a ghost town) (Houston belváros, délután 2 óra, kísértetjárta)

People sometimes go overboard with decoration. Night lights are coming soon.

Az itteniek néha túlzásba viszik. Az éjszakai fényekről jönnek képek hamarosan.

Charity run - only in America!
Jótékonysági futás - csak Amerikában!

3rd Sunday of Advent / Advent 3. vasárnapja

As we are approaching the reason for the season, I would like to ask all of you to slow down a bit, take some time to reflect on what's really important ... and then enjoy this blessed time!

On Sunday I went to church with Chuck and Sandy to the First Presbyterian Church of Houston. It's a HUGE church with several services and Sunday schools. I joined my friends who teach 2 year olds to have an hour of fun with those little ones. We tried to tell them the Christmas story, but got corrected by one of them saying "it wasn't a donkey, it's a horsey!" Duh, what was I thinking???

We joined the service at 10 and it was beautiful. The choir was singing Christmas carols, hymns and the rows were so packed that it was hard to find seats. What's real amazing though, is that this church is full on other Sundays, too!

Sandy and I went to run some errands and we came across this massive truck. I know, things are big in America and everything is bigger in Texas, but this is overwhelming! :)

For the evening we had tickets to Tchaikovsky's Nutcracker, a must-see Christmas ballet. I have seen that show a few times when I was young, but the only thing I could recall was the mean mouse who attacked the girl. Sandy has never seen it so we were both very excited as we entered the theater hall. Man, it was huge! And really nice.

The show was amazing! I believe I matured enough to a point where I could really appreciate what I saw and was truly blown away by the dancer's talent. And of course, the music was fabulous! We even had the chance to take pictures with some of the cast in costumes and finally I could reconcile with the evil mouse. :)

At the bottom you see a short clip of one of the most amazing dancers in the show (only available through the blog)

On the way home we stopped at Swirl, a frozen yoghurts place where you can fool yourself by saying "it's healthy", but in reality all the toppings make it just as bad as any other sweets. But who the hell cares??? It was soooooooooooooooo delicious!

A perfect day. Again.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Ahogy közeledünk a karácsonyi ünneplés igazi okához, vegyünk egy mély lélegzetet, szusszanjunk egyet a nagy rohanásban... és élvezzük ki ezt az áldott időszakot!

Vasárnap elmentem templomba a barátaimmal, mit mondjak, HATALMAS! Több istentisztelet is van naponta meg képzés a gyerekeknek. Chuck és Sandy a 2 évesekkel foglalkozik és egy őrára csatlakoztam hozzájuk. A karácsonyi történetet próbáltuk megtanítani nekik, de folyton kijavított az egyik kislány, hogy az "nem szamár, hanem lovacska". Hogy én még ezt sem tudom... :)

A 10 órás istentiszteletre mi is beültünk, és igen jól tettük. Egy hatalmas kórus énekelt karácsonyi dalokat. A szentély teljesen tele volt, és ami igazán meglepő, nem csak most vasárnap, hanem mindig tele van!

Délután autókáztunk a városban és ekkor láttam meg ezt a monstrumot. Tudom, Amerikában miden nagy és Texasban meg még nagyobb, de ez azért már túlzás!

Estére jegyünk volt Csajkovszkij Diótörőjére, amit karácsony tájékán érdemes megnézni! Kiskoromban láttam többször is, de a gonosz egereken kívül nem emlékeztem sokra. Sandy meg még sosem látta a balettet, szóval mindketten nagyon vártuk már. A színházterem ismét csak hatalmas volt és nagyon szép.

Az előadás hihetetlenül jó volt! Úgy tűnik, elég érett vagyok már ahhoz, hogy értékelni tudjam. Tátott szájjal néztem, ahogy a táncosok repkednek, dobálják egymást mintha súlytalanok lennének, és mindehhez az a csodás aláfestő zene... A végén lehetett fotózni a szereplőkkel, nekem pedig sikerül megbékélnem a gonosz egérrel. :)

Alul az egyik híres jelenetet látjátok a videón (csak a blogon keresztül elérhető). Nem semmi ez a pasi!!!
Hazafelé menet megálltunk egy Swirl nevű bárban, ahol fagyott joghurtot lehet venni, a táblák jelzik, hogy épp milyen ízek vannak, és magadnak öntesz annyit, amennyit akarsz. Azzal ámítod magad, hogy hát ez mégiscsak egészséges, de a feltétek után éppolyan kalóriabomba, mint bármeilyik más édesség. De ki a frászt érdekel? Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaanyira finom!

Egy tökéletes nap! Megint!

Some pictures / Néhány kép

We are entering the busiest time of the year so my life gets more busy then ever. And I am lovin' it. We did some shopping... and I had my camera with me. Enjoy "America"... :)

Elérkeztünk az év legforgalmasabb időszakához, én is egyre elfoglaltabb leszek. És élvezem!!! Voltunk vásárolgatni, a fényképezőm persze végig nálam volt. Íme "Amerika"... :)

Crash-course on American football at McDonald's.

Gyorstalpaló az amcsi foci megértéséhez egy mekiben.





Jelly Beans store. Pure heaven! :)

A mennyben vagyok, ismét! Jelly Beans bolt (zselés cukorka rengeteg ízben)

Guess which shop I went into? :) If you guys don't behave well, this might be your Christmas gift this year... Yes, it is exactly, deer pee...

Vajon melyik boltba tévedtem be? Ha nem viselkedtek, ez lesz karácsonykor a fa alatt... Igen, jól látjátok, csomagolt szarvas pisi...




These are REAL! No comments...

Ezek IGAZIAK! No komment...

And I saved the best for last.
My dear beloved GENTLEMEN in my life! This is your one and only opportunity to tell me your size and I am more than happy to buy one of these for you! (Funny thing is that they only sell them in adult sizes and it's in a country that rejects such underwear...)

És végül a legjobb cikk.
Drága ÚRIEMBEREK, akik életem részei vagytok! Itt a soha vissza nem térő alkalom, hogy elmondjátok, mekkora a méretetek és én örömmel veszek nektek egyet a képen látható ajándékok közül. (a legviccessebb az egészben, hogy csak felnőtt méretben árulják őket és az amcsik nem hordanak ilyen alsógatyát...)

30

Wow. WOW! I mean, seriously, w-o-w.
I made it! I managed to stay alive for 30 years!

I wish some of my primary school teachers would read this blog... they had doubts...

OK, some of the best birthday wishes I got:

"Time and Tide wait for no man, but time always stands still for a woman of thirty."

"Your birthday is a special time to celebrate the gift of 'you' to the world."

"Age is strictly a case of mind over matter. If you don't mind, it doesn't matter."

"And in the end, it's not the years in your life that count. It's the life in your years."

"Live your life so that when you come to die even the undertaker will be sorry."

"You are only young once, but you can stay immature indefinitely."

"Inside every older person is a younger person - wondering what the hell happened."

"You are young only once, after that you need some other excuse. Happy Birthday"

Thanks a lot for all the calls, e-mails, sms messages at 2am, Facebook wall posts, birthday cards you guys sent me. I felt appreciated, loved, remembered and cared for. Cheers!

Had a lovely dinner in a fancy South American restaurant in downtown Houston with Chuck and Sandy. An amazing variety of flavours poured out on many plates and my stake came EXACTLY how I love it: medium-rare, but more on the rare side. :)

OK, off to go shopping...

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Hűűűűűűűűűhaaaaaaaaaa!
Túléltem! De most komolyan, sikerült 30 éven át életben maradnom!

Bárcsak néhány régi tanárom olvasná ezt, nekik voltak fenntartásaik...

Nos, fent néhány jól sikerült köszöntőt olvashattok, de csak angolul, magyarul elveszik a lényeg, ezért nem fordítottam le mindet.

"Csak egyszer vagy fiatal, utána más mentséget kell találnod."

"Minden felnőttben ott él a gyerek, aki azon tanakodik, mi a fene történt!"

Köszi mindenkinek, aki írt, telefonált, hajnali 2-kor sms-t küldött, Facebook-on írt a falamra, kártyát küldött, igazán jól esett! Köszönöm!

Egy puccos amcsi vendéglőbe mentünk néhány barátommal Houston belvárosában, ahol igazi dél-amerikai kaják között válogattunk. A steak-emet pedig úgy készítette el a szakács, ahogy igazán szeretem: közepesen átsütve, de inkább véresen. :)

Na pá, mentem vásárolni...

Some pictures / Néhány kép

The weather has significantly improved. From snowing to 22 Celsius. I am NOT complaining :)

Az idő kifejezetten javult, a havazásból 22 fok lett. NEM panaszkodom. :)

A few nights ago we went to see some Christmas lights in town. I had a fight with a snow man...
Pár napja elmentünk sétálni, hogy a karácsonyi kivilágítást megnézzük. Összevesztem egy hóemberrel...

My plane, a Boeing 747 Jumbo Jet. A real beauty! / Egy igazi szépség: Boeing 747 Jumbo jet.

Waking up in America / Felebredni az USA-ban

This is just a short note to let everybody know that I made it safely to Houston. Actually the traveling was looooooooooooooooooong, but fun.

I left my house at 6.30 pm on Friday with 21 kroner in hand. The bus ride is 29, but the driver was a nice guy and he let me get on anyway (he even asked for my number, but I told him I am leaving the country so there is really no point in it. :) )

My flight from Stavanger to Oslo was delayed due to bad weather conditions in Oslo. These are the moments when I am thankful for a long layover between flights. So, we arrived to Gardemoen (Oslo's airport) shortly after 10 pm. The check-in counters and transit area are closed for the night (how silly!!!) so I had to spend the night with my big suitcase, my carry-on bag and my laptop. I had a really good "poelse" for dinner (Norwegian version of hot dog with fried onions, shrimp salad and sweet mustard) then I walked around for 30 min to find a socket for my computer. Finally I found one right next to a check-in counter. Since the hall was empty I thought I give it a try and sit in their chair. :) You won't believe me, but I was sitting there for 5 hours watching Heroes season 4 on my laptop without anybody even finding it odd! :)) Just a side note, I love that series and I was so happy to see Sylar coming back. I know I know, he is the bad guy, but hey, good girls are often attracted to bad guys, specially if they have dark hair and dark eyes...)

Around 5 am I checked in my big bag and went to the waiting area. The flight to Frankfurt was short and uneventful - thank God. Frankfurt airport... or as known among world travelers, the "worst European airport" lives up to his name. Man, it is amazing how easy it is to get lost there. I went through 3 check points where they asked me for my address in the US, but apparently each time I had to spell that one out for them again and again. Wonder if they were just bored... ;) I had a lovely chat in German with one of the shop assistants there and to my surprise the words were coming to me in Norwegian first. Yay!

Once the boarding started I was face to face with a Boeing 747 Jumbo Jet. What can I say? It was beautiful. Really, from every angle. Even the economic class seats are comfortable and relatively big. I was next to the window, little behind the wings so I had a pretty good view. As the plane was about to take off, we could hear the engines firing up and suddenly this massive masterpiece started to run. No matter how many times I have flown before, it never seizes to amaze me how these huge iron birds conquer the laws of physics. Unbelievable.

We flew for 10 hours, mostly around 1000 km/h, about 11000 meter above sea level. There were moments when I could have glimpse of Greenland, all covered in snow. Other times I watched movies like Julie and Julia (I think that movie haunts me...) and Wild Hogs with Tim Allen (now, this movie I loved from the first second to the end credits. Highly recommended if you wanna see REAL MEN. :) ) I had salmon with red wine for lunch - a nice surprise on Lufthansa!

Houston welcomed us with a bright sunny day and surprisingly low temperature. I was told to "bring only a light sweater just in case" but it was freezing. Hopefully it will improve soon. Entering the US seemed easy this time. The Chinese guy who did customs asked me for the reason of my visit. I was tired so I told him the first thing that came to mind: "I live in Norway. It's dark and cold there now. I wanted a change." He laughed at that and welcomed me to Texas. Cheers, God is good!

We drove home and I went straight to bed. I woke up around 3 am (that was 10 am according to my body) but I quickly convinced my body that it's still early. The next time I woke up the clock said 11.30. after a hot shower and proper breakfast we drove to McDonald's for some coffee. I am NOT a fan of said fast food chain, but they had free refills and the coffee was quite good so we stayed there for a while. I am using the Internet here while Shawn tries to explain me the point in a game called (incorrectly) football. :) So, touch down for now folks...

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Ez csak egy rovid beszamolo az utamrol. Siman, epsegben megerkeztem Houstonba, igaz, hosszu volt az ut, de turheto. Pentek este fel hetkor jottem el otthonrol, 21 korona volt a zsebemben, a buszjegy ara 29, de a sofor jo fej volt, felengedett. meg a szamomat is el akarta kerni, de hamar meggyoztem, hogy epp elhagyni keszulok az orszagot, vagyis feleslegesen teper. :)

Az elso utam rogton 1 oras kesessel indult, mivel Osloban hatalmas hovihar volt. Na, ilyenkor nem banom, hogy a 2 ut kozott hosszabb ido telik el. Kicsivel 10 utan ertunk Gardemoenre (Oslo reptere), ahol a becsekkolas meg a tranzit resz ejjelre bezar (micsoda hulyeseg!). Szoval, reggel 6-ig voilt idom a nagy boronddel meg a kezipoggyasszal meg a laptomommal. Vacsorora ettem egy igen fincsa "poelse-t" (ez a norveg megfeleloje a hot dog-nak, plusz ezen van raksalata, szaritott-piritott hagyma es edes mustar). Kb 30 percig jarkaltam korbe-korbe a repteren, mire talaltam egy konnektort, hogy a gepemet bekapcsoljam. vegul talaltam egyet a becsekkolos pultnal. Mivel a terem ures volt, gondoltam, miert ne... beulok a szekbe, es meglatjuk, mikor dobnak ki. Nem fogjatok elhinni, ott ultem 5 oran keresztul anelkul, hogy barki is megszolitott volna! A Hosok cimu sorozat negyedik evadat neztem, es csak zarojelben jegyeznem meg, hogy nagyon orulok annak, hogy sylar visszatert. Tudom, tudom, o a rossz fiu, de hat nem ugy tortenik, hogy a jo langyok a rossz fiukra buknak? Kulonosen, ha ilyen kifejezo sotet szemuk meg sotet hajuk van...

Hajnali 5 korul vegre leadtam a nagy borondot es atmentem a tranzitba. a reulout Frankfurtba esemenytelenul telt, hala Istennek. De a Frankfurti repter... nem veletlenul hivjak ezt "Europa legroszabb repterenek" - joggal. Orulet, mennyire egyszeru itt eltevedni. 3 ellenorzesi ponton mentem keresztul, mindenutt bediktaltam az amcsi cimet, ahol lakni fogok, de ugy latszik, vagya rendszernek nem tetszett, vagy az orok unatkoztak... Az egyik boltban elbeszelgettem egy eladoval nemetul, es megdobbentem, hogy nemet helyett eloszor norvegul jottek a szavak a szamra. :) Hurra!

Beszallas elott szemtol szemben alltam egy hatalmas Boeing 747 Jumbo Jet-tel. Mit is mondhatnek. GYonyoru! Minden szempontbol! Meg a turista olsztalyon is kenyelmes, aranylag nagy ulesek vannak, a szarny mogott ultem, ahonnan jo kilatas nyilt. Felszallaskor lehetett hallani, ahogy beinditjak a hatalmas turbinakat es szinte azonnal ez a hatalas mestermu gurulni kezdett. Fuggetlenul attol, hanyszor repultem mar, tovabbra is lenyugoz, amint ezek az oriasi vasmadarak legyozik a fizika torvenyeit. Hihetelen!

10 oran at repultunk atlagosan 11000 meter magasan 1000 km/h sebesseggel. neha megpillantottam Gronland hofodte teruleteit, maskor filmeket neztem. (Julie es Julia, ami nagyon aranyos, vagy Wild Hogs Tim Allen foszereplesevel. Na, ezt mindenkinek csak javasolni tudom, igen jo film az IGAZI PASIKROL) :) Ebedre lazacot ettem voros borral - koszonet a Lufthansanak!

Houstonban napsuteses ido vart minket es meglepoen hideg volt. Azt mondtak nekem, "csak egy konnyu pulcsit hozzal". Remelem, az ido hamarosan javulni fog. A belepes ezuttal siman ment. Egy kinai pasi vegezte az interjut, megkerdezte, miert jovok ide. En faradt voltam, es az elso gondolat, ami a szamra jott: "figyi, en Norvegiaban elek, ott sotet van es hideg. Kellett a valtozas!" O csak nevetett es mondta, hogy "Isten hozott Texasban". Hurra, Isten jo!

A barataim hazavittek es en egybol aludni mentem. Hajnali 3 korul felkeltem (ami ugye nekem 10 ora volt), de hamar meggyoztem a testemet, hogy koran van meg, ideje visszaauldni. Legkozelebb fel 12-kor keltem fel ismet, ezuttal mar zuhanyoztam is, reggeliztunk is, es mentunk a Mekibe egy kaveert. Nos, tudjatok, mennyir enem szeretem ezt a ceget, de a kavejuk meglepoen jo volt, ingyen ujratoltik ha kered, es az internet is ingyen van. Most epp innen irok, Shawn meg nezi a tv-ben a helytelenul focinak csufolt amcsi jatekot. Most probalja eppen megmagyarazni nekem a lenyeget. :) Na, majd folytatom.

Big Adventure / Nagy utazás

OK, I am all set and ready to go. I packed everything. Oh, what a statement... Well, I packed a lot of things I think I will need, probably there are some that I won't need and hopefully there is nothing that I should have packed but forgot...

Here is a song that fits my mood right now, sorry, it's in Hungarian, but try Google translate for the lyrics. (it doesn't come up in the e-mail updates, only available through my blog)

I would appreciate prayers for safety, no complications and a fun journey. Thanks!

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Rendben, bepakoltam mindent! Na jó, talán többet is, mint amire szükségem lesz, de remélhetőleg minden megvan, ami kell és nem felejtettem el semmi fontosat...

Búcsuzólag itt van Presszer Gábor Nagy utazás című dala (ez emilben nem fog működni, csak a blogon keresztül lehet meghallgatni.)

Köszi, ha imádkoztok, hogy minden simán menjen és biztonságosan megérkezzem!

Fáradtnak tűnsz, mintha nem a régi volnál,
Hol van a tűz, hol van az a mindig sóvár régi láz,
Az a régi égi láz, amivel beléptél, s megszerettelek?

Nagy utazás, azt mondtad, hogy ez az élet, s nem halunk meg,
Az ember soha el nem téved, égi láz, a bizonyos égi láz,
Tőled kaptam, majd meghaltam, majd elégtem én.

Mivé legyek most nélküled?
Hová megyek így nélküled?
Te meg csak ülsz, fáradtnak tűnsz,
Tovatűnt szép ígéretek, nélkülük én hová legyek?

Nagy utazás, a vonatunk újra indul,
Nagy utazás, most a vágyunk már megint új útra visz,
induljunk el hát megint,
Gyere velem most az ígéret szerint!

Nagy lesz az út, de mi ugye mégse várunk?
A vonatunk nekilódul, újra száguld, régi láz, hajtja az a régi láz,
Tőled kaptam, majd meghaltam, majd elégtem én.

Elindulunk, elindulunk, az éjbe megy a vonatunk,
S az éjszaka, az éjszaka, a puha testű éjszaka,
Vonatunk kattogó zaja.

Mint régi jó barátokat, majd úgy fogad, majd úgy fogad.
Egy utazás az életünk, azt mondtad hát, megint megyünk,
Nagy utazás az életünk...

Swine flu protocol for Christmas / Karácsonyi H1N1 etikett

• Because I might have it...
• Because Christmas is about relationships...
• Because we are living in this multicultural world...
• and because I cannot sleep now anyways...

How to greet people in this time of mistletoe, swine flu and emotionally charged moments?

HANDSHAKE:

• very Norwegian thing to do
• gives you a good first impression of the person, his/her mood
• flu-wise it's safe if you run together to the bathroom afterwards to wash hands
• cannot be used when mistletoe is involved
  

HUG:

• 1 handed hug with a small tap on the back: Typical American thing to do. Very impersonal, but it should give you a good excuse to look behind the person and check out the next guests. :)
  
  
• 2 handed hug without muscles: the worst greeting ever since it's quite meaningless and you have extremely good chances of getting swine flu due to close proximity, it's more of a show for the audience than means to greet somebody.
  
  
• 2 handed hug with muscles: emotionally charged moments are ensured here, the greeting is more personal. Flu-wise you are safe as you don't face each other.

KISS:

• kiss on the cheek: very Hungarian, actually I find it less personal than a hug where your whole body needs to touch. Quick and efficient way to say hello without really doing much. Useful trick to avoid mistletoe embarrassment. :)
  
  
• 2 kisses, one on each cheek: even more Hungarian, with the beautifully embarrassing possibilities of both of you leaning towards the same side for the first kiss. My personal favourite! :) As far as swine flu is concerned... it's nice to have company when you are sick anyways.
  
  
• kiss in the air: snobbish, but it certainly helps to avoid swine flu so highly recommended. Though it defeats the purpose of mistletoe...
  
  
• kiss on the lips: obviously this is a limited option and requires lots of emotions or at least one tiny little mistletoe hanging somewhere nearby. It certainly helps spreading love and swine flu...

Hope these help you survive the season...

Saturday - spoil me rotten / Szombat - a királyság csúcsa

This week I am down with the flu, but I have great memories to look back to. I woke up on Saturday with a really bad head ache, running nose, leaking eyes, sore throat... yeah, the classic symphtoms of flu. Except that I made a deal with God that I will NOT BE sick today. So, quick check in the cupboards and I woke up my empty stomach with a crazy mixture.

• First I had a shot glass with some real Hungarian spirit called Pálinka (stronger than Tequila just in case you didn't know)
  
• This was followed by some aspirin with hot tea and honey,
• then I added some fish oil capsules with the fuzzy vitamin C bomb just in case.
  
• The result: I nearly fainted under the hot shower. :)

BUT!
I felt much better a few hours later so I could attend a fancy breakfast with my good Australian friend, Camilla on the top floor of a fancy hotel in Stavanger. It was more like a brunch, but who cares, we had a great time and could admire the wonderful view of this cool city.

We drove to my house to pick up the food for tonight's party, did some more food shopping and ended up in Camilla's kitchen. Between decorating cakes, baking pizza-rolls and struggling with opening containers we managed to come up with some crazy cards for the Activity game.

I cooked real Hungarian food for the family so we could have dinner before the guests arrived. Around six pm people started to show up and slowly the living room was filled with laughter, chats and fun. We did a quick round of "who you are, where are you come from and which Bible study do you know Reka from". It was such a unique mixture of people, we had all five continents represented! Now, THAT'S the kind of party I had in mind. Receiving gifts and cakes were just the icing on the cake - quite literally!

Liar liar is always a fun game, specially if you keep the rules and you give 2 true and 1 false statement of yourself - well, needless to say, not everybody managed to accomplish it, hence the constant laughter.

When it came to blowing the candles, we ran into some discussion on the meaning of said act. In Hungary we believe that you need to make a wish, blow the candles and if you manage to blow them all, your wish will become true. Some Americans, however insisted that the number of candles still burning represents the number of boyfriends I will have during the next year. (ups... in this case, it's gonna be a busy-busy year for me haha). Anyhow, I went with my tradition and before I took a deep breath I tried to come up with my very own personal wish for the next year.... and guess what... i came up with NOTHING! Isn't this a blessing? When you cannot think of anything that you lack of, need or really long for!

Praise God for the gift of contentment!!!

Now, the game Activity may be called differently in various countries, but the simplicity and beauty of this game captures everybody immediately, even the most stoic, introvert and she people. Of course I had the best time just by watching my friends act out, draw or explain certain phrases to their team members. It's amazing how much you can find out about people just by watching them compete with one another in a friendly game...

To make it more interesting I offered them a few wild cards, meaning they could come up with tasks for me to act out. I was surprised (not) when the first thing was "pole dancer" (but only because they scrapped "striptease"). The second one was waaay to easy so I suspected a twist: apparently regardless of what i was doing they were sooooo clueless that the best guesses were "chocolate, stars, submarine, red wine" to my VERY ACCURATE mime of "seat heating in the car". :) Of course somebody had to come up with "Darwin's theory of evolution" just because he wanted to see me doing monkey. :) But the last one was my clue to get some fun. The card said "macarena", which they guessed in no time and since they were so familiar with the concept, we found the music and I got them to do the Macarena dance together. Olena, my pregnant friend was filming it! Boy... i have 15 good blackmailing materials for next year!!! :) TUSEN TAKK!!!

Thank you all for coming, contributing, making this significant number (29) a special one for me. Oh, did I say 29? well, you know, when you reach this age, 1 or 2 years aren't matter any more. So again, thanks for celebrating with me my second 29th birthday, the best I had so far! And special thanks to the men for dressing up, i simply looooooooooooooooooooooooved it! :)

Ezen a héten otthon fekszem betegen, de remek emlékeim vannak, amire visszagondolhatok, hogy jobb kedvem legyen.Szombaton szörnyű fejféjással, csöpögő orral, könnyező szemekkel és fájó torokkal ébredtem... igen, klasszikus influenza tünetek. A baj csak az, hogy Istennel megegyeztünk, hogy ma NEM leszek beteg. Mentem is a szekrényhez, hogy jól felrázzam a gyomromat:

• éhgyomorra egy igazi jóféle házipálinka
• ezt egy forró tea követte citrommal és mézzel, amivel bevettem pár aszpirint
• és hogy teljes legyen a kép, egy C-vitaminos pezsgőtablettával megittam pár halolajos kapszulát.
• eredmény: majdnem eldőltem a forró zuhany alatt. :)
  

DE!
Tény, hogy sokkal jobban éreztem magam utána, így el tudtam menni egy ausztrál barátnőmmel, Camillával egy puccos hotel legfelső emeletén található éttermébe reggelizni. Inkább brunch volt ez (reggeli és ebéd egyben), na de kit érdekel, a kaja fenomenális volt, és remek kilátás nyílt erre a király városra.

Hazamentünk hozzám, hogy összeszedjünk mindent, ami estére kell, meg persze beiktattunk még egy bevásárlást is, majd tűztünk hozzájuk kaját készíteni. A tortadekorálás és pizzatészta gyúrás között az Activity játékhoz írtunk vicces feladványokat.

Mielőtt a vendégek megérkeztek, gyorsan benyomtunk egy magyaros vacsorát, amit sikerült nem odaégetnem! Hat körül kezdtek szállingózni az emberkék, és a nagyszobában rohamosan nőtt a hangzavar. Egy gyors bemutatkozókör után kiderült, mennyire vegyes a társaság: mindenféle bőrszín, nem, életkor, nemzetiség, mind az 5 kontinensről. Na, EZ AZ, amit én jó bulinak hívok! Az ajándékok meg a torta csak a bónusz volt.

A Hazudozó játék mindig vicces, különösen, ha sikerül betartani a szabályokat: 2 igaz állítás magadról és egy hamis. De ahogy el lehet képzelni, 1-2 mérnöknek még ez is nehézséget okozott. :)

A gyertyák elfújása körül kisebb vita alakult ki, én ugye a magyar vonalat képviseltem, vagyis kívánj valamit, és ha sikerül minden gyertyát elfújni, teljesül a kívánságod. Az amcsik amellett érveltek, hogy ahány gyertya égve marad, annyi pasim lesz jövőre (nos, ha ez igaz, sűrű évem lesz hehe) Mielőtt elfújtam volna a gyertyákat, próbáltam valamit kívánni... de nem jutott eszembe semmi. Hát nem nagyszerű, ha nem tudsz olyat mondani, ami nagyon hiányzik, nélkülözöl, vagy marhára vágysz rá???

Hála Istennek, nagy ajándék a megelégedettség érzése!

Az Activity-t talán máshol máshogy hívják, de a játék egyszerűsége és természete folytán mindenkit magával ragad azonnal, még a legunalmasabb, legmagábafordulóbb, legfélénkebb embereket is. Persze a legjobban én szórakoztam, miközben a barátaimat néztem, akik vadul mutogattak, rajzoltak meg beszélhet, csak hogy az ő csapatuk nyerjen. Bámulatos, hogy mennyit meg lehet tudni emberekről, ha megfigyeljük, ki hogyan viselkedik egy játékos versenyben.

Hogy ne panaszkodjanak, a játék végén adtam nekik pár üres cetlit, hogy ők találjanak ki számomra feladványokat. Nem döbbentem meg, mikor az első cetlin "rúdtáncos" szerepelt, de mint utóbb kiderült, csak azért ez, mert a "sztriptízt" elvetették). A második gyanusan könnyű volt: hamar kiderült, hogy a játék lényege az volt, függetelnül attó, MENNYIRE EGYÉRTELMŰEN mutogatom el a "kocsifűtést", olyan válaszok születtek, mint "vörösbor, csillagok, tengeralattjáró, csokoládé". Persze, hogy valakinek fel kellett írnia a "Darwin evolúciós elmélete" koncepciót a cetlire, csak azért, mert akarta látni, hogy csinálok majmot magamból. :) De az utolsó volt a legpoénosabb. A cetlin csak egy szó volt: makaréna. Na, ezt se perc alatt kitalálták, és mivel ennyire egyszerű volt, gyorsan felállítottam mindenkit, hogy akkor csináljuk egyszerre a Makarénát. Oléna, aki terhes volt, videózott. Nos, mit is mondhatnék... 15 zsarolható barátom van jövő évre! KIRÁLYSÁG!

Nagyon örülök, hogy ennyien eljöttek megünnepelni ezt a jelentős számot (29)! Izé, miket beszélek, 29-et mondtam volna? Háááát, igen, ebben a korban már 1-2 év ide vagy oda... :)
Szóval, a második 29. szülinapom igen jól sikerült, sokkal jobban, mint az első! Ja, és a pasik igen kicsípték magukat a kedvemért! :) Nagggggggyon bejött!