See the world! Without even leaving your easy chair!

Ok, so it's not the world, but it's a start.








Norway

Those Crazy Norwegians....

To illustrate the point, here's an excerpt of Kate's very rough translation of Odd Boerrezten's _The First Norwegian_:
Slowly the glaciers began to shift and melt and pull back north, grumbling all the way. This caused a more habitable climate to begin forming in The First Norwegian's homeland.

What does The First Norwegian do now?

What do you think he would do?

One would imagine he would turn his face toward the sun in ecstasy--as he has been unable to do for 200,000 years on account of mist and snow flurries.

One would think that he would thank the gods that have finally blessed him with good fortune, the chance to lay himself down in the sunshine on a bare spot and let the glorious rays warm his blood.

One would think that he would sit himself down among the first spring flowers, follow the course of the first birds of summer with big, worshipping eyes....

...Or something like that, now, when all things are possible.

But no. Naturally. Not The First Norwegian. This is what The First Norwegian did:

As soon as The First Norwegian notices that things are no longer as they had been--change, something has happened, what has happened?--he gathers his children and his wives together and staggers confusedly down the road, desperate and despairing, searching for the ice. What became of the ice? THE ICE! Searching for familiarity.

The ice in front and The First Norwegian right behind. Sodden and stumbling down a snowy path, that's how he came here. To the chosen land. To Norway! Welcome!

[Norge, ved Mjoesa]
This is near Mjøsa, Norway's largest lake.





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