A string of public holidays and then my birthday on the 21st have made me a very exhausted, very sleep-deprived Big Mama, and my liver and I definitely needed some rest for a couple of days now. At midnight the 20th we opened a bottle of Cava and started celebrating another one of my 50-something years.... hmmm.... 58 to be quite precise. The "wrong side" of fifty-five once again, and speedily approaching sixty. But someone told me recently that 60 is the new 40, due to the youthfulness of today's "older" population, so well.... there we are. I totally agree. Age depends a lot on the person, I think, and mostly it's only a number in your head anyway. (Your body might have become a bit more rickety - but not necessarily)! I've been to parties where all conversation has centered on age, and I've been to others where the old-timers have been so busy dancing that there's been no conversation at all!
Of all things I wanted to go downtown to the Oslo city centre on my birthday, to have a hamburger! This craving must have been induced by the four previous late nights and lots of wine... We went to a restaurant called Fyret - intimate and cosy and good food. We took the underground/metro back, and I'm so rarely on public transport here in Oslo (I'm not proud of this, but it's much easier to jump in the car), that I was a complete nervous wreck by the time I got home. The doors wouldn't open on the train and I had to dodge my way through a crowd of pony-tailed teenagers in the aisle, literally shoving them aside, to reach an open door. Which was in the process of closing by then!
My daughter Sophie explained to me afterwards that there are some stops whose platforms are not as long as the train, consequently they don't open the doors at the back - otherwise you'd of course step and fall right onto the rails! "But Mum - they announce this over the loudspeakers," she added dryly, "but you're so distracted..." I didn't bother to tell her that I'd heard it but not understood what they meant. And neither had my husband. Amateur public transport passengers the both of us!
I refused to make dinner and was instead served a glass of rosé wine while my daughters cooked a taco meal. My granddaughters were here as well and taco is perfect for them. Despite the cloudy weather it was still warm, so we were able to eat on the terrace. A friend dropped by, then a former neighbour with his daughter - and these kind of unexpected and improvised gatherings are often the best!
But I'm throwing a party on Saturday - as I do every year - and hence I've been following the weather forecast closely to see if I can lay the tables on the terrace. The way it looks now is - SUNSHINE!
Having said that here's a little bit about the weather in Norway at the moment: Floods, floods, floods. It's really terrible, and hundreds of people have lost their homes. This is all due to a late and sudden spring and lots of snow melting with the unexpected warmth last week. Our own little stream has nearly flooded, but it's been helped on its way by continuous assistance from the municipal guys, who keep it free of leaves, branches and mud - otherwise it would easily flood the road that runs beside it:
And if anyone wonders about my birthday gifts, well, here they are:
Woolen sweater from Katrin Uri that I've drooled over in the shop for a long time
AND:
London - here I come!
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