...went on a mini roadtrip to discover this nearby town, calling itself 'Norway's Cannes' for housing an annual film festival that draws a lot of attention to the region...small town of not more 37,000 without much to see but definitely has a cute vibe to spend a couple of hours, a long street of shops (closed way too early on Saturdays and ofcourse on Sundays like everywhere else in the country) with a lot of immigrant shops, and several cute cafes...but its biggest treasure was definitely this Marilyn statue- completed on the 30th anniversary of her death since her father is reported to have migrated to the US from this town...I believe it was her who said, "I have had too many fantasies to just be a housewife..." Touche :)
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.We've had several evening tea/small-scale dinner parties with the hubby already so when its something like that, luckily he manages to help out and we get through it, but yesterday was my first day inviting just the ladies for coffee and of course 'coffee' doesnt just mean 'coffee' in our culture- you're unspokenly expected to provide baked goodies on the side and I did just that...Mind you I'd never even baked cookies or cupcakes before, something my roommates in college even did...So I got the shortcut recipe for Fondant Au Chocolate (thanks Cecilia!) and voila...It ended up a successful, not too sweet, brownie-looking cake with a cookie-like texture on the top...I'd also bought a strawberry slicer the day before (coincidentally, before I knew Id be baking this thing)- so useful and so fun!...Along with some chopped almonds...that's it....A total of 20 minutes...A definite recommendation....
PS: And oh yea....about the shape, didnt exactly buy cookie cutters or anything pro like that, no no...just placed glass cups onto the original form of the cake pictured at the top and scooped out the newly-shaped forms...
...yesterday was one of those days where i was made to truly feel the term 'reluctant housewife' deep in my very core...all couples fight from time to time, sure...but a lot of times one has to figure out the core underlying issue...for us its cultural differences in the way we were brought up...the hubby is more traditional and domesticated, and i-an only child- was brought up a bit spoiled to fit the needs of my free-spirited personality- completing tasks when i wanted to or felt it was necessary, not simply because i was told to...the hubby is from the military so that also adds to the discipline factor, which i dont quite take well...hopefully storms can pass and signal calm weather with rainbows- similar to the ones frequent here in beautiful Norway....
Its been hours since the hubby left for work and I still haven't had my morning coffee...which means a)I went straight to my laptop to try to get a start on this thing b)I can barely function without caffeine-and coffee in particular- so my first post will be somewhat feeble,l'm aware...but I promise to start writing in full swing soon...For now Ill mention that the wife of my husband's colleague has convinced me and I have joined a Women's Club here with many international members- and they've given me a Board position so it should keep me busy...twice per month anyway...the other days? Y'all will see...But Im sure it'll include more 'firsts' for this city girl, like my recent first time riding a horse, or, :::gasp::: fishing! (I had the fish thrown back into water after catching them!)...
