The Volcano House

Since Iceland is a volcanic island, it is logical that there is plenty of information about volcanoes.  At th Volcano House, two films are shown detailing several recent volcanic eruptions.  We had no idea what an eruption entailed with the people in the villages.  We are amazed that only one life was lost in the eruptions and it was because of gas and not because of the lava.

In the same building as the Volcano House is a restaurant called Icelandic Fish and Chips.  We decided to share a tasting plate of their fish and chips.  Good decision, since it left us wanting for more.  We added a mango salad and a bowl of lobster soup, and when we left, we still had room for ice cream from BadaBing.  

The fish was especially delicious because the breading on the outside was very light.  I asked the waitress, who happened to be from the States, what the secret is, and she says it is the spelt flour.  She said it can be purchased at Health Food stores, so Green Acres here I come.  I have read breads are lighter when made with it, too.

The mango salad featured slices of mango combined with nuts and a bread crust that had just a bit of sweetness.  With its ginger dressing,it was yum, yum, yummy.  And Don's lobster soup? Suffice to say it did not last long.  We thoroughly enjoyed this restaurant - not fancy, not showy, just yummy"

Now All We Have Left is the Icing

As we squeezed into our seats on IcelandAir, I began to bemoan the "good old days" when passengers had plenty of room for their feet, airlines served meals, and smoking was allowed . . . Oh wait.  Forget that last one.  Do not miss that one for sure.

Anyway, I was able to switch seats with the man who would have been in the window seat, as I wanted to look for auroras.  He was more than happy to switch, as he prefers the aisle seat, so only Don was unhappy, since he went from an aisle to the middle.  Too bad . . . he was outvoted.

We began to suspect the flight was going to be a little unpleasant when we were all very warm, despite the air blowing.  Before the end of the flight, I was sweating like crazy.  And then there was the fact that we had to pay for a meal, and it wasn't cheap.  But it was not too bad, and we did get a fresh banana.  And finally there was the little girl sitting in the seat ahead of us.  Yikes.  More than once I wanted to tell her mother that all she needed was a little backbone to enforce the word no . . . But I was civil and did not say anything.  I fear that mother is headed for a train wreck.

About three hours into the flight, Don got up to stretch his legs.  I had been looking for the auroras and had not seen any.  After he got out, I looked outside again, and there it was . . . A white sheet hanging out of the sky, suspended in mid-air with streaks of thread annunciated.  Or at least that is what it looked like.  Then it began to dance around, looking like the Mitch Miller bouncing ball.  There was no color to it at all, but for about twenty minutes, Don, our seatmate, the little girl's grandma and I watched until it left.  It was sensational!  

We have no pictures, so we have to see another me before we come home, but last night's show certainly comprised the cake of our adventure, so now all we have left is icing.

Preparations

We knew when we decided to travel to Iceland that we knew nothing about the country, except that it is a geological wonder.  That and auroras are two good reasons to go there . . . And so we are.

We purchased the requisite two travel books, but we have not been very diligent about reading them . . . Until now.  Don pulled them out at the airport, and we are beginning to pore over them.

We began packing early in the week because we knew we had a lot to do.  Since the weather is in the low 40's, we have to take our heavy coats, rain gear, boots, gloves, hats . . . and entire suitcase of outerwear!  Jordy and Nelson didn't know what to think.  They kept taking socks and gloves out of the suitcases.  I hope we retrieved them all.  

Of course, we had the last-minute chores to handle, too.  We did not bank on our sink faucet beginning to leak.  Don started to fix it, but when every piece he touched began to crumble, he just bought a new faucet.  So a thirty-minute chore turned into a three-hour, two-trips-to-Menard's one.  But he got it done.  Mowing?  Done.  Higher fence around the asparagus? Done.  Vacuuming? Done.  Laundry? Done.

The boys will be fine with their house sitter, albeit probably a little spoiled.  In the meantime, we are hoping for clear skies, many auroras, and lots of fun.  Stay tuned.

Boomerang

I read the book Boomerang right after I finished The Big Short.  It is somewhat of a sequel to The Big Short, although it only discusses a few countries and the effect the financial collapse has had on them.  Imagine my surprise when the first chapter was about Iceland and the banking debacle there.  I am so glad I read it before our trip.

This book details the devastation of Iceland's, Greece's, Ireland's and Germany's banking and how they have worked their waysthrough it.  Michael Lewis also describes the culture of the people, which helps the reader to understand how each country got into -and out of - the crisis with varying degrees of success.  Each country's response differed in rather interesting ways.

I highly recommend each book to anyone interested in finance and the global implications of US monetary issues.  I found these books fascinating and frightening . . . 

The Big Short

I had purchased this book for Don several years ago after the housing collapse several years ago.  I decided to read it several weeks ago because it seemed like an interesting subject that I did not understand.

Michael Lewis, the author, has written several books, though I have only read one of them - The Blind Side.  I loved, loved that book and thought it rather interesting that a man could write a book about football and then write about collapsing financial markets.  Turns out his other books are about business, and since he worked on Wall Street, he had the background to write financial missives.  I was impressed with his breadth of talent, and even more so after reading The Big Short.

At first, one has to plow through some technical jargon.  It took me awhile to unconfuse myself, but it was not too hard.  I had to refer back several times, but what I learned early is that I understood more about the products he was discussing than those who were ultimately selling them.  Lewis's explanation of the housing situation was simple enough for me to understand yet complex enough that someone in the field would not feel patronized.

Lewis had to interview many and gain the cooperation of more to tell his story.  He appears to have done an excellent job of presenting the facts not only about what happened but about the personalities involved.  He seems to "call them as he sees them," citing both good and bad qualities of each player in the subprime game.  I found the people in the book to be genuine, and although their greed and choices were infuriating, it was easy to see how some of them were lucky, some were stupid, some were greedy, and some were crooked.

If I had known The Big Short would be similar to reading a mystery, I would have read it earlier.  Although I knew the ending of the story, I couldn't wait to read the final page to see how the story ended.  I know that sounds crazy, but despite the fact that I knew the basics of the housing collapse, I couldn't wait to find out how it turned out for each person involved in the story.  Some gained an amazing amount of money; many lost even more.

This book is one anyone who is interested in business or who invests in the stock market should read.  It will give you pause about who is to be believed, and it will certainly make you question more with whom you invest!

Orange vs. Green

I am way, way behind on my blogging!  Although many topics have presented themselves, I have not taken the time to write about them.  So this one will go way back to St. Patrick's Day.

When I was young, my father always wore an orange tie, in honor of his Northern Ireland roots.  I never thought much about it and traditionally wore orange as well (along with green, as I did not want to get pinched.)

Once I moved to Kansas, I never heard of anyone wearing orange and gradually, I quit doing it.  I didn't have my children wear orange, I never talked of it, and the tradition slowly died away.

This year, St. Patrick's Day was on a Tuesday, the day I traditionally have lunch with a group of friends.  When Bonnie showed up in a bright orange shirt, I asked her if it was intentional.  "Yep," she said.  "My family is from Northern Ireland."  Finally, I had met someone who wears orange on St. Patrick's Day.

So then I became curious about why the tradition died out.  Turns out, logically, during the years of tumult in Ireland, the colors became a divisive force.  Rather than just be the colors of two different areas of Ireland, they were a great source of conflict.  Makes sense.  Those years were while my children were growing up, and I think because of that, not much was ever said about wearing orange or green.  It appears to still be a rather sensitive subject, and so, if I go back to wearing orange on St. Patrick's Day, I will make sure to have plenty of green on, too.

Interestingly, I was at a meeting a few days ago that talked about how the conflict in Ireland came to an end.  I had always thought it was Bill Clinton, but in reality, it was mothers who came together to stop the fighting.  The women had seen their young sons hurt and maimed by the senselessness, and finally they banded together.  I am sure Bill Clinton was quite helpful, but the power of women and their desire for peace was important in the process.

Little Caleb Hoyt

We had to wait a long time - 5 years, 9 months and 12 days - but who is counting?

Finally, twelve days after his due date, Caleb Hoyt joined our world.  March 4, 2015 at 5:58 p.m.  A magical day for the Morgan and Norton families.

After an initial bout of wailing, he calmed down and really has not cried a lot since.  Of course he has had fussy times, but so far he has been a pretty easy little guy.  His mom and dad are over the moon, as are his grandparents.  For the first few days, no one would put him down.  I think now he sleeps in his bed, and it won't be long before he is sleeping through the night.

On his first week birthday, Kenneth took this picture:

It still hasn't hit me that I am a grandmother.  I know it is going to be a fun ride with this little guy.