What use is living in Norway during winter if you don’t do a little cross-country skiing? A very boring one since Norwegians are born with skis on their feet. Since they learn so early, they make lousy teachers. Through much trial and more error, I have come to the conclusion that I will remain a poor skier this season.

Even simple tasks can lead to the most unusual adventures… like going to church. The temp was 7F typically requires a two-layer bodysuit, but my Long Johns had cross-country skiing all over them. So, it took extra courage to want to leave the apartment and extra resolve not to get lost.

It’s unlikely that you noticed Google recently published brand new Street View imagery for Norway! So, this means that I can give you a free tour of the city.  It’d be nice if Google had a “Convert to black & white” function to make the imagery more realistic for February. But it does give me some optimism about this summer.

The main grocery store is a mile from my apartment (see map). Like most things in Norway, it’s not open Sundays; therefore meal planning is critical. This particular Saturday, I created a large grocery list and had an interesting adventure.

I can still remember my line manager asking me to consider joining the DNV Trainee program. What a dream! To live in a country filled with fjords, mountains, and adventures waiting to be had. I just have to wait out the snow. In the meantime, I keep repeating “8 month is a long time!” And I’m glad!

Over the last four months, I was co-coaching an 8-10 year-old tackle football team through the Forge for Families. It was a season mixed with struggle and success, but at the end of the season it all came down to one game, “The Super Bowl”.

It was only a matter of time before I raced back out the mountains. This time, Jeremy North joined me for a week in the Gila Wilderness in Southwest New Mexico. We met in College Station immediately after Nathan & Laura’s wedding, departing early Sunday and returning Friday afternoon.

Summer came and went, but not before one trip for the ages. Nathan and I traveled up to the Boundary Waters to canoe for a week before our last semester in college. Our trip by the numbers: 6 days, 56 miles, 27 different lakes, 38 portages, 4 miles of portaging, 3 fish on the line, 2 lost lures, 0 fish…

In July 2007, five other interns joined me on a great adventure to Minnesota’s North Shore to embark on a 16 mile backpacking trip. For having little to no experience, our group did extremely well. In fact, the trip went so well that I no longer consider us as interns but friends.