Kidnapping and 'torture'
I guess you will see posts on my friends' blogs about this in the near future.
According to good Norwegian tradition the bride and groom will be kidnapped by their friends and severely humiliated before the wedding. As my friends did not have a lot of chance before my wedding it came now - before the blessing in June.

Kelly, Debra, Joe and Amanda all knew what would happen. So when my friends showed up with determination and stern faces they were not shocked.
I was, however.

I will publish more photos - and videos of the event when I get this from my friends.

In short, I was kidnapped and they had me do all sorts of things. Play with toys in a toy store, "Play" the flute (I can't play to save my life) at all the outdoor restaurants in Karl Johan's Street (Central street in Oslo). They had me interview people with incredibly stupid questions - and a sausage as a microphone...

And then, to top it off we played laser tag and paintball. At paintball I was given a protective vest, mask and a bunny mask. No marker (weapon). I was told to run, and the others were given markers.
And instead of paintballs they were loaded with rubber balls. Which hurt more than paintballs.

Despite the vest protecting my torso, my friends are good shots and sometimes decided to aim at unprotected areas. Hence I have over a dozen bruises like this:

Ok. This one is the worst one, but you can definitely see them all. And believe me, I could feel it when I was shot! Ouch!
Next time we play paintball I am wearing pants, long sleeved sweater AND a gun. Thank goodness for that vest though. Without it I would have many dozen bruises.

Stay tuned for more updates.

Just Cruising

Two weekends ago, Vegar and I rented a fun little VW for a couple of days. We went to a mountain region east of Lillehammer that is called sjusjøen. The changing leaves, the moss, mushrooms, blueberries, etc were all soooo beautiful!



While that was peaceful and refreshing, the real adventure began Monday morning! Vegar and I had to wake a little after 5 so that I could get him to the train station on time so he could get to Oslo by 8 for work. At 6 am, though, my brain doesn't run at full speed and I somehow thought the train left at 630 instead of 615! So, he missed the train... which meant we had to drive him to a town about 45 minutes away so he could catch a local train. We made it in time for the train... with some 15 minutes to spare... So I hopped on the train with him and kept him company before he had to leave. We talked for awhile... and then suddenly an announcement came, 'Doors locking.' I ran to the door, but they were already locked! I was stuck on the train with no wallet, no coat... I had my Crocs (sandals), the car keys, and that was it! Vegar paid for my trip to the next stop, which was the airport train station. He had 10 kroner, and I had some spare change in my pockets... that paid for my return trip back to the train station where the car was parked! I felt so silly... no coat and it was 40F/3C and the sun hadn't risen yet. Brr!! After waiting 30mins or an hour, I finally got back to the train station and RAN to the car! Hopped in and went the wrong direction... delaying my return trip to Hamar by 30 minutes because there was no where to turn around on the highway! And I was on a time schedule because I had to be back to turn in my car by 11. So, rushed back to Hamar... trying to keep it under 50mph/80kmph and actually going more like 62 mph/100kmph. Whoops! That could have cost me $300! And it might still cost me that if one of those cams caught me! I was really trying, but I was sleepy, had no cruise control, and find it difficult keeping it at 50 mph when I drove 75+ every day for quite awhile.

I managed to make it back in time to clean out the car and do some quick errands before turning it in. I couldn't for the life of me figure out how to fill up the tank. Finally realized that I had to press the keyless entry button to open the car before the gas tank door would open. Then I had to press it in and it popped right open. Strange.

The car was really cool! Brand new! It had all the bells and whistles... including heated seats! :)

Well, that was the start to my crazy Monday. That day was SO long and busy! By 2pm, I finally had the chance to eat breakfast/lunch! :)