Textcritic's Norwegian Adventure Thread; (Formerly "So, I'm liquidating my assets")

[Textcritic]

Originally Posted by Phanuthier

what kind of stuff would you be looking for?

In the texts that will be featured in my investigation, most of the differences between them appear in perceptions concerning the covenant, the efficacy and function of the Second Temple, the leadership structure alluded to or employed for the community, the extent and effects of the exile, forms of scripture and their meaning, etc. These differences most frequently indicate some variation of religious values within Judaism, which was much more eclectic in its formative years between 400 b.c.e.–70 c.e. than it is now.

[Barnes]

Like the Book of Enoch? I am recently fascinated by pre-flood history and how much different it appears to be.

I also found it hilarious that through the discussion on your research, a guy with a Pilsner avatar asks about a trampoline.

[troutman]

Good luck in Norway!

[Textcritic]

FYI:

For those who have asked about specific items, or if I will be posting an inventory on the site, it will have to wait until next week. We need to make a quick trip to Calgary this week to see family and to re-home the dogs.

[Textcritic]

Originally Posted by Barnes

Like the Book of Enoch? I am recently fascinated by pre-flood history and how much different it appears to be...

1 Enoch is definitely an important text for my research and for the study of the DSS generally. But there are other similar compositions such as Jubilees and some of the lesser-known texts from the Scrolls themselves. My interest is much less in so-called primeval history—although quite often the various depictions of these stories is quite valuable for informing about the people who wrote them in the Second Temple period—and much more concerned with retellings of events that took place after the exile. E.g., the visions in Daniel 7–11, the Damascus Document, 1 Enoch and Jubilees, the Apocryphon of Jeremiah C, Pseudo-Daniel are all texts that preserve alternative versions of the same events from the time of the Babylonian destruction of Jerusalem to the emergence of the Hasmonean Dynasty. In my mind, this is easily one of the most interesting periods of ancient history, and one that is still not well understood.

[woob]

Hey text - Thought I'd bump this thread and see how the move was and how Norway is so far!

[Textcritic]

Originally Posted by woob

Hey text - Thought I'd bump this thread and see how the move was and how Norway is so far!

So this is something that I have been meaning to get to for several weeks now, but it is difficult to find the time.

I will maintain this thread to provide more updates as they occur, just because Norway is awesome, and my family and I are having a blast and we all feel like rubbing it in.

We have now been here for precisely six months to the day. The kids are currently on their winter break, but have settled into the local international school, and while the higher level curriculum presents a significant challenge, they are coming along. We live about 7 kms from the kids' school, which is also within walking distance of the University of Agder where I work, so we all take the city bus to and from school and work daily. My wife just two weeks ago started her Norsk classes, and I expect to begin some time in the Spring, so hopefully we will be speaking the language within the next several months. That has probably been the most difficult part—it is a strange feeling to be surrounded by conversations which I cannot understand.

Work has been a tremendous success so far. I have written a level 2 (top ranked) peer-reviewed article that should appear before the end of the year, and my forthcoming book based on my PhD dissertation is presently with the copy editors.

One of the reasons we were so keen to come here was for the opportunity to travel, and for the kids to experience various elements of European culture. We expect to make a trip to Denmark and Germany this summer (I also have a busy conference schedule starting next month and running through to the first week of August), and we also took the opportunity to spend a week in Egypt last month while the temperatures here in Kristiansand hovered around five-to-eight degrees below freezing.

Winter is DARK. Just before Christmas, I noticed that there were several weeks in a row in which I never saw a sunrise or sunset from my house between the weekends. Around the winter solstice, the sun would not rise until close to ten, and consistently had set by 3:30. That was weird. We're looking forward to Spring, but in the meantime, are also enjoying the ice on the fjord just below my house. How cool is it to play hockey with my kids on the frozen North Sea? SO...COOL...






That picture was snapped the first day we cleared the snow off, and it was pretty rough. Since then we had a brief warm spell, a little rain, followed by another cold snap, and the ice is PERFECT.

So, that's the inlet attached to my backyard; here is a picture from my living room window of an early fall sunset.





So, that's Kristiansand in a nutshell so far. Really, I just wanted to gloat about our daily afternoon hockey games on the ocean...As the occasion to brag presents itself, I will continue to update this thread.

Cheers.

[Locke]

Damn thats cool.

[Textcritic]

Originally Posted by Locke

Damn thats cool.

I know, right?

[Locke]

Originally Posted by Textcritic

I know, right?

Careful, I may just come to Norway and live in your basement....

[Textcritic]

Originally Posted by fotze

You couldn't slap a couple golden retrievers in there?

...we have cats. Does that work for you?

[Knut]

How long did it take you to adjust your budget due to the excessive MOMS on everything.

[Cheese]

^^^ I get the attic!

[Textcritic]

Originally Posted by fotze

Lutefisk and lefse? How is it.

Hopefully I will never know how lutefisk is. They serve it in the restaurants around Christmas, and it smells something fierce.

My wife's parents grew up in Norwegian households, so we always had home-made lefse every Christmas in Canada. The great thing here is that we can buy it pre-packaged at the grocery store, and it is not half bad. The kids will frequently have it with brown sugar and butter in the mornings before school.

[Knut]

Originally Posted by fotze

Lutefisk and lefse? How is it.

The elder members of my Norwegian side of the family have passed on. No more lefse (damn) and, thankfully, no more Lutefisk. Lye denatured cod.... Blech.

Try it once though. It is basically Fish Jello

[Cheese]

Looks like papadom or Naan

[Textcritic]

Originally Posted by Hesla

How long did it take you to adjust your budget due to the excessive MOMS on everything.

Are you talking about exorbitant taxes? Because we were sticker shocked for the first couple of months. The good news is that I get paid 3x what I did in Canada. The bad news is that I will pay about the same amount in taxes this year as I grossed all of last year.

The cost of food could kill a man. A night out with the family is a guaranteed NOK 600 bill (about CAD $110), even if it is just for pizza. My kids will likely not get to enjoy McDonald's until we are back in North America. A Big Mac meal will set you back NOK 120 (CAD $22).

[Senator Clay Davis]

Is the black metal and cross country skiing as good as advertised?

[Tron_fdc]

Are there loads of hot blondes there? When I was backpacking through oz about 15 years ago I swear every Norwegian girl I met was a sexy blond who liked to get drunk and loose.

pleasebetrupleasebetrupleasebetrue

[Textcritic]

Originally Posted by Cheese

Looks like papadom or Naan

They're like flour tortillas made from potatoes. Very tasty.