For the non-Swedish speakers, that means "Oh, what wonderful weather outside today!" And it really is a glorious day with cobalt blue skies and bright sunshine. There are even signs of life stirring in the sälg trees.



Today is the first day of summer time. I was actually quite impressed that I remembered to turn the clock forward before I went to bed last night and I'm sort of looking forward to the sunshine ahead.

The days are getting longer and it has been light before 5am. A forewarning of what is to come. The midnight sun is one of those things that sounds much, much better than it is. I suppose it's a cool enough phenomenon to experience as a tourist, but living with it is a whole other thing.

The first year summer I lived here, I was amazed that it really stayed light around the clock. Seriously light. Almost broad-daylight light, twenty-four hours a day. The novelty soon wore off after MANY sleepless nights and after two-and-a-half months went by with hardly an hour of darkness, I was completely ready for the arrival of autumn.

A lot of people warned me about the darkness in the winter time. But after living through four winters here, I have to say that the light in the summer bothers me a lot more than the darkness in the winter.

I think it's one of those things that a person has to grow up with to truly appreciate. None of the Swedes I know here has any complaints about it. Lars-Göran says that all the light in the summer is the payoff for the long, dark winter. I suppose I can see his point, but you can have too much of a good thing.

Anyway, today it's still manageable and the wildlife is out in force soaking up the sun.

There are birds everywhere. Lambi and I took a stroll down to Svandammen park and watched the emerging spring. Ducks (anka) were marching around among the newly emerging flowers and grass, boldly approaching humans for a handout. (Yes I had bread with me!). There were blackbirds (koltrast) digging with their bright yellow beaks under the rose bushes. A fat pigeon (duva) was holding his chest up to the sunshine. Sparrows (sparv) were busily hopping around and quarrelling. Crows (kråka) were making a fuss in the small trees on the perimeter. And a squirrel (ekorre), who must have just woken up from hibernating was carefully watching us and forraging around in the leaf litter.

Then it was off to the marshy area near the harbour to see the moorhens (sothona). I have a great soft spot for these lovely birds. Moorhens are strict looking, tailored, black-and-white birds among the fanciful ducks, the white swans with their orange sealing-wax bills. They have a look of modest purpose, of duty, of restraint.

And then....

One comes up out of the water to join the other birds crowding around for thrown bread, and the exposed feet are a shock, being large, white-green, scaly, reptilian, as if they belonged to half-bird, half-lizard ancestors, and have descended unaltered down the chains of evolution while the birds modified above water into the handy, tidy moorhen shape.

I stood there a while feeding the birds. There were gulls (mås) there and they swooped in and past having caught bits of bread in their mouth as if they were leaping fish. The gulls will get everything if you are not taking care of the others. A tall goose will stand delicately taking pieces from your fingers like a well-mannered person, then turn to slash savagely another competing goose with it's beak: after the gulls, the geese provide for themselves best.

The ducks, apparently clumsy and waddling are quick to snatch the bits that the geese miss. But I also try to feed the moorhens. I feel a bit sorry for them. First they have to get up the bank on those clumsy water feet. And then their movements are slower than the other birds'; the moorhens are poking about after the bits when the others have swallowed them and are already crowding in for more. Yet in the water, there is nothing quicker or neater.

I saw this morning that the BBC has finalised this year's voting for their Top Ten British Sitcoms. I like British television, so was interested in the outcome. The final results were:

01. Only Fools and Horses
02. Blackadder
03. Vicar of Dibley
04. Dad's Army
05. Fawlty Towers
06. Yes Minister
07. Porridge
08. Open All Hours
09. The Good Life
10. One Foot in the Grave

I pretty much expected "Only Fools and Horses" to win, it's immensely popular. I don't like it that much myself though. I'm a bit disappointed that "Fawlty Towers" ended only fifth.

"Black Adder" is still my personal favourite though.

Nurse Mary: Tell me, Edmund, do you have someone special in your life?
Blackadder: Well, yes, as a matter of fact, I do.
Nurse Mary: Who?
Blackadder: Me.
Nurse Mary: No, I mean someone you love and cherish and want to keep safe from all the horror and hurt.
Blackadder: Mmmm, still me, really.

And that goes for me too... ;-))