The View from a Drawbridge

Tag: Denmark

  • Only in Denmark…

    …could you make a children’s show about a magic penis.

  • Dancing Cow Day

    I’m already longing for Spring.

  • I Want to Buy Greenland, Too

    The man has lost what few marbles he had left.

  • Cultural Traditions

    New experiences give us a diverse palette with which to paint our lives.

  • Shards of the Past

    So much of our history is oral.

  • The Pansy Connection

    “Is there anything of mine that you’d like when I die? Tell me now, so I can make note of it,” my sister said. (Not that she’s going anywhere anytime soon, I hope, but yeah, it never hurts to have all your funerial ducks in a row.) “Just the pansy picture,” I replied. “As a…

  • It’s Ornamental, My Dear Christmas!

    In case you haven’t heard me lament this fact before: I’m single. At this time of year, that means I don’t bother putting up a Christmas tree. It just seems like too much effort when no one but me will appreciate it. But I can’t seem to give up one tradition: I buy myself a…

  • I Sure Could Use a Nisse

    My mother was first generation American. Her parents came from Denmark. So as I grew up, she would sometimes tell me Danish folklore, especially around Christmas. I was particularly fascinated with stories of the nisse. The nisse was an elf-like creature who lived on your farm, usually in the barn or the attic, and if…

  • Don’t Sail Out Farther Than You Can Row Back

    That Danish proverb has pride of place as a magnet on my refrigerator door. My ancestors were very wise. The also liked to take risks, but their cultural longevity would lead one to believe that their risks were mostly calculated ones. I’ve been thinking about this proverb quite a bit lately because I’ve definitely sailed…

  • Exploring Seattle – Part 9

    I’ve decided that Ballard is my favorite neighborhood in Seattle. I doubt I’ll ever be able to afford to buy a home in this outrageously expensive town, but if I could, that would be the area I’d want to live in. It is rich in Nordic history, which brings me back to my roots. Apparently…