What did I find in my garden?

Having a garden means that you need to take care of it...well... at least try to.  One day I was gathering leafs and I saw a white paper. It was a note to one of my neighbours from the Swedish Enforcement Authority/Kronofogden - (the people who takes your belongings if you do not pay your bills) saying that they wanted him to contact them.

So what is it doing in my garden? What strange thing to find in the garden! So what do I do next? I guess that the neighbour saw it and throwed it away and that is why it ended in my garden. So, would you feel ok to knock on your neighbours door saying - I believe this belongs to you? Not really! So what about dropping it in his letterbox...well I do not want my neighbours to see that either so what did I do with it? I throwed it in the bin. 

The New Year´s Ghost?

At 10:00 o´clock in the morning on the first day of 2013 my home phone rang. I was too slow and did not answer in time. I checked on the website who phoned as I did not recognise the phone number. It was a former colleague. I thought that was strange...but well I got to phone him up. I rang the number and he answered. I wished him Happy New Year of 2013. I said you phoned me was it something you wanted to reach me about? He said no I did not phone you. Well it is your number I checked that. He said the celullar phone is loading in the electrical socket and I have not used it this morning as I am in bed with a terrible hangover. Was there something you wanted to tell me he said jokingly. I laughed and said ditto. 

Could this REALLY happen? 

Well who knows, a couple of days ago my phone started to send out SMS on its own. These were SMS which got stuck and were never sent about 1,5 month ago and then suddenly my phone decides it is time to send them. I had several questions from my friends about my strange out of the blue SMS. Just some examples "Let the cat out". "My cat is Indoor" "My cat is outdoor".
Spooky isn´t it?

A stranger shared her most vulnerable moment with me

Every morning I saw them, a couple in their late fifties, always walking hand in hand to the bus. We started to say good morning to each others as we took the same bus. Then I stopped seeing them together. Only the lady took the bus and always alone. One day she sat just behind me in the bus and started to talk to me. I said come and sit beside me. The lady said that she was moving from the area. She showed me photos of her new apartment she just had bought.  I asked her why are you moving? Me and my husband are getting a divorce. Her voice trembled and she had tears in her eyes when she commenced her story.

- Me and my husband we work at the same company. That is why we go to work together. One day when we came home he just said " I want a divorce". We had been together since we were young and had decided not to have children and when we retire we planned to travel together and maybe live abroad. 

Her husband had found another younger woman at the same company they worked for. It turned out that everyone knew except her that her husband was cheating on her. She would meet this other woman by the coffee machine and see her former husband there. I really felt so sorry for her. How awful to be forced to see both her former husband and the new woman at work. She could not avoid them. What a horrible situation for her.

Now what was waiting for her around the next corner?

I had just met a stranger who shared her most vulnerable moment with me.

Dusty man

My friend and I were travelling on the train and we were sitting opposite each other and a man was sitting beside my friend. Suddenly the man turn to me and asked:
- Do I have dust in my face?

I was surprised by his unusual question and he was indeed covered in fine dust. He wiped his face and started to tell us why he was covered in dust. I have been up high blasting (Swedish blästra) a multistory building and I am returning home.    

Well there is nothing really remarkable about this but it was such a weird question to ask a totally stranger and of course it had to be me. Then again I have been offered raw fish to eat by a fellow passenger so I should not be surprised anymore....

The icon Björn Borg

Some summers ago I spent an evening with my family at a restaurant in the archipelago. You could not book a table in advance so the headwaiter had a handwritten waitinglist and called out our names when it was our turn to get seated. When we waited Björn Borg and his wife, son Leo and friends showed up. My husband said well you will see now we will have to wait longer as of course Björn will have the redcarpet treatment and be seated before us.  To his surprise Björn Borg had to wait like everyone else.

We were seated and soon after that the Borg family two tables away. Björn was dressed in a sun bleached former black t-shirt now grey and army camouflage shorts. Plain and simple.

My daughter could not believe that his son was a boy as he had long hair so when we came home to prove that Leo was a boy I Googled a photo of Björn Borg. I found a photo from Nice a year ago and to my surprise he had the same clothes! The t-shirt was not that bleached but other than that he dressed the same. So now we have learnt that Björn is laidback and really seems like a genuine nice guy who would not jump a queue. In my book he is an icon and a very nice one too.

The yogurt lady

Waiting for the train home. Sitting down on a bench at the train station. Beside me reading the newspaper a lady suddenly exclaimed : - Really...they found a yoghurt which was 7 years old at the supermarket shelf for sale. This is crazy! I replied that I also had read that and it was indeed very strange. Then she talked about the other news in the paper. When the train arrived she said I normally do not speak to people just like that, but I got so surprised and upset. Take care and goodbye!

So I am the human error

I guess in most countries you are registered by the authorites with your name, address and so on and then you will get a unique number combination. This number should be used in all contacts with the authorities. This identity number will follow you for the rest of your life from birth until your body decides to check out. 

Like everyone else I also received an ID number. When I was around 9 years old the authorities or the church phoned my parents and said that I had to change my ID number as it was something wrong with it.

I have checked that about 75000 people in Sweden have changed their ID number mostly due to authority mistakes like wrong gender, wrong birth date or protected identities or change of gender. In my case it was the wrong control digit. I have calculated the risk of this happening on a population of 9 million inhabitants and the result is : 0,83%.

That is REALLY unusual!

  

I am REALLY not married!?

A longtime ago I lived alone having a single life in a small apartment. One day I received a letter with a bank statement for a Mr Olsson. I phoned the bank and I said  - There must be a mistake as Mr Olsson is not living here. The bank clerk responded: No Mr Olsson lives at your address and it is your husband. - No This is not correct I am not married and I can assure you that Mr Olsson does not live here. The clerk did not budge/give in so I hung up and that was that.

I luckily had a friend who worked at the IT department at this bank and she knew that I indeed was not married and did not live together with Mr Olsson. She seeked in the old bank records in the basement and found out that Mr Olsson had lived at the same address 20 years ago and she changed the records so I would not receive any more letters to my "husband".

Where am I?

We had relatives for a visit who had never been abroad before so we proudly showed them the Old Town in Stockholm, Sweden. Walking down the main street in the Old Town talking about how similar it is to Tallinn in Estonia. One relative suddenly asked very seriously: - Are we in Estonia now?

No further comment is necessary....

The "helpful" husband

A nice romantic candle light dinner in the moonlight at an outdoor restaurant at the Island Andros in  Greece.  My husband and I had just finished the main course and suddenly something dark came flying and landed on my back.
I tried to see what it was but it was impossible as I of course could not see my own back and I also had a black sweater. So I asked my husband what it is??? He did not reply. I asked again but what is it? He said let us order dessert first. I got REALLY annoyed. You must tell me what it is! He just called the waiter and asked me what do you want for dessert? We ordered dessert.
I said take it off me what ever it is! Now rather angry. He said I do not know what to do..still not telling me what it was. Take a fork or knife and push it off me. I am getting borderline hysterical as I still do not know what it is. He took a fork and waived it and a big flying cockroach fell down under my chair on its back. So my beloved husband had let a cockroach sitting on me with no care in the world. I do not know what you would have felt but it was for sure not a romantic dinner anymore.

The chance is so little that the calculator cannot handle it....

The last evening of our vacation in Athens. Sitting with family on their balcony glazing out in all the high storied buildings made of Concrete. Everyone is sleeping except another family in the opposite concrete building also at their balcony. Nothing strange about that. Before I continue I would like you to think about how many inhabitants Athens has (around 3,8 millions) and then how many seats an aeroplane has (150-200 seats). Have you done that now? OK let us continue...next morning at the Athens International Airport we are checking in and to our BIG surprise our balcony neighbours are also checking in on the same flight back to Stockholm. I REALLY tried to calculate what the chance of this was on the calculator but failed. Can anyone calculate what the probability in percentage is of this occurrence?   It must be pretty slim....actually the calculation said 0,1%. I have not figured it out what the chance is that we are living at the same street yet...but it must be pretty rare...

Scared of a French beret

Going home from work sitting on the train as one normally do. We had just been shocked by what happened in Norway at Utöya. The maniac who killed so many innocent young people so ruthlessly.

Suddenly a man stepped into the train and started to talk loudly to all of us in the wagon. He has a black beret like the one you think French people have but you never see them wear. He carried a cat carrier minus the cat. He said: - The Brains of the people from the South of Sweden...waiving his arm and the cat carrier.

 After that my only thought was to get out of the train as fast as possible. I had to wait for the next stop and I was anxious of what he was going to do next. I was very scared.

Then at the next stop he stepped out as quick as he has stepped in. I draw a sigh of relief.

Some people look crazy and they are indeed crazy and some people like Anders Breivik looks normal but he is insane.

 

The Angry Carpenter and High Five Abdi.... Arga snickaren

- Hi may I borrow your mobile phone? A bad odour reached my nose. I had just sat my bottom down on the train seats tired from a full days work and was on my way to send an SMS.  I looked up and saw a dark smelly man with dreadlocks around 25 years old. I replied - No, it is my work phone so I cannot. - He said I really need to get in contact with my friend Anders and I have no money loaded in my mobile phone. I said well ok I can send an SMS for you. He said - Oh great that is very kind of you. My name is Abdi what is yours? So, I sent an SMS to his pal Anders telling him that Abdi wanted him to phone. Then started a rather surrealistic moment in my life. Abdi told me that he was homeless, alcoholic and a drug attic. He had a good job at a care center and he had no financial problems. I asked him - What happened to you? He said that he got anxiety and could not keep his job. That is indeed understandable. By now it was dead silence in the waggon as everyone around wanted to know what is going to happen next...He told me that he had a girlfriend but she was cheating on him and she wanted him back and to show it she kisses his feet. I asked - I hope you did not take her back? Abdi said - No of course not I don't like that kind of behaviour. I said that was good. Then he reached out with his arm and said : HIGH FIVE! So, there I was sitting and "High Fiving" a drug attic. I never thought I would do that....
Well, not only high five we also had our knuckles meeting in a Knuckle High Five during the trip. Why is not Anders phoning me? Well I do not know maybe he cannot at the moment. 
Please can´t you phone him for me? I really need to talk to him. You know who it is? No, I don´t. Well it is Anders, the Angry Carpenter. Eh....ok I did not know what to believe....I thought well I am already in this situation so why not. I phoned this person. - Hi, my name is Siv and you do not know me but Abdi wants you to phone him. - Ah, yes.. Hi I know but I am in the grocery shop but when I have bought my food I will phone him. - Great thanks I replied. Thanks he said. Well, it was the Angry Carpenter a famous Swedish TV host. Abdi told me that he was going to be on telly 2014 and the TV host was going to help him to get his life back on track. Abdi took out a bottle of beer and opened the capsule with his mobile phone. He drank a little and continued our conversation. I have a friend "The Greek" who I have known since I was a Child and Abdi said some not so nice Words in Greek. I said my husband is Greek. Abdi then proclaimed - If you have a boyfriend then I will not flirt with you as that is not ok.  Knuckle High Five!  His phone rang. Abdi by mistake pressed the wrong button and he lost the call. - What shall I do now he asked? - OK I will send a new SMS. " Hi Anders pressed the wrong button, please could you phone again?". Abdi said that previously he was lucky with the ladies. I said I do understand that as you have humour. So my 20 minutes train journey was soon to its end and when we got of the train together his phone rang again and finally the two were connected. I waived goodbye and he thanked me and I am now looking forward to Watch TV next year to see if he indeed succeeded in getting back on his feet. Good luck Abdi I REALLY hope you will have a better life!    

Look your friend behind you!

We were at the supermarket and I was concentrating on placing our shopping in the bags. Then my husband said. Look your friend is behind you. So I turned around and looked at the person behind me in the queue waiting to pay for their shopping. I stared and the person stared back. It took me two seconds to realise it was not a friend it was Di Leva. A very differnt type of artist. He saw me staring.
I cursed my husband to put me into that strange situation. Well, Di Leva bought feta cheese and he was not dressed in a dress today.

Stopped by a film crew.....

We were driving along a small countryside road as we were going to a remote cave. Suddenly a man dressed in a bright yellow vest stepped out infront of our car and held up his hand stop us. My husband being of Greek origin said " He is going to rob us!". The man put an orange cone and a road sign in front of us and the sign said "filming". He said: Could you stop here for just 2 minutes as we are recording a film? Could we refuse? No, so of course we stayed. We saw a van with a trailer and some lights. When it was time to drive again we passed the trailer and saw who they were filming it was for a commercial for the supermarket ICA.  The actor is ICA-Jerry. So what is the odds of being stopped by a film crew? REALLY small!

Here is a photo of ICA-Jerry. 

The Big Brother show and I

I watched TV and it showed a trailer for the new Big Brother show and suddenly I saw our car on the Big Brother show! What!? Really?? How did this happen?

The show had a game of whom could change the Wheels quickest and our card was during this game jumped on by a dwarf and he destroyed our car smashed the windows.

We had for some months ago given up the car to be destroyed and dismanteled at a junk yard. The junk yard had phoned up my father and said that the car was in such a good condition so they asked him if an employee could drive to and from the yunkyard even if the car was "scrapped". My father being the kind person he was said yes but he never agreed to have his car on TV. So I phoned the manager at the junk yard and told him that I had seen the car on TV. His response was: Yes was it not fun!? Well as you saw now the car will be scrapped. My father did not appreciate the humour. Anyway what a shock and so unexpected.
From a scrap yard to a TV SHOW!  

Nothing is like it seems...

On the underground where I spend my commuting life to and from work I encounter strange people and some may argue that I am strange too nevertheless...one day a saw an elderly man walking around with a car seat for an infant and the a little bundle of joy in it BUT something felt wrong..such a small baby with its grandad without its mother!? So I had to take a look at the baby. To my big surprise it was not a baby it was a baby replica all dressed up and in a blanket!? Really!!?? 

Love is in the air..

On the bus we noticed a semi-bald man sitting infront of us. Can you see what I see???

I can see a heart!

Princess Madeleine and I

http://www.hellomagazine.com/tags/princess-madeleine/

Our princess Madeleine is getting married. I was out and about at Östermalm in the city of Stockholm, Sweden and there she was strolling around with noone not even a body guard.
Sunglasses and jeans like a normal Young woman.
I said to my husband: "Did you see who passed by?".
He replied: No.
I said: It was princess Madeleine.
He said: No, Really!? Are you sure???
I said: Yepp!

Dangerous childhood?

When you grow up your parents of course want you to be safe and have good friends. My mother decided to help a neighbour with her son during day-time when this neighbour worked. So this young boy was playing with us all day long for some time. Later on in life we realised that the child we had at home became a notorious criminal/bank robber who served 12 years in jail.  A member of militärligan.The creme de la creme of the police had to hunt him down. So I can say that I hanged out with a dangerous criminal in my young years.

Funny old man who wanted to have som fun

I was going to buy an Easter egg at the Swedish supermarket. Standing in the queue waiting in line. An old man with a walking frame. He was standing behind me and he was going to buy some crisps and two bottles of Fanta.
Then he suddenly said: "Malheureux, Malheureux". Which means unhappy unhappy in French. Then he started speak Finnish: "Satans Perkelä" which are some cursewords. Then I understood that he must have lost his marbles...of course he then turns to me saying: "I am going to joke with the male cashier."

He then put a big Absolut Vodka bottle with alcohol in it and put it together with his shopping. I said well good luck. When the cashier saw the bottle he shouted out " Take that away I do not want the bottle here". The old man said to me
" One cannot joke with Swedes"....