Trans-dimensional portals and Nordic stereotypes.

Hey friends!

Another week in Sweden has passed, and my humans and I are finally getting into some routines. In this week's edition of Adventures of Gino the Dog, I share a bit about how all three of us got sick for a day, how I sit and stare into trans-dimensional portals, how my humans and I have been combating the lousy weather, and a few Nordic country stereotypes.

First, a quick health update: everyone's fine! BUT, in the last week each of us in the Boyer household spent about 24 hours fighting our respective bugs. I'd like to think of this as jet lag's final hurdle. I suspect my quickie illness had something to do with adjusting to new food. My humans have been tinkering with different food options for me, and one particular can of all-the-organs-pate knocked my little stomach out. Now, I'm one of those eat-anything-anytime-immediately dogs. So my humans were alarmed when, one morning, I refused to eat anything. Even my treats! 

Me. Sick for a day.

Fortunately, I was back to my old self by the end of the day. My humans each experienced something similar, although I suspect it wasn't so much related to dietary changes as it was their bodies giving into general exhaustion.

Me. Feeling fine by the end of the day.

Staring into a trans-dimensional portal. 

One of my favorite activities is staring into trans-dimensional portals. I did it in the US. I still do it in Sweden. Author Kurt Vonnegut's semi-autobiographical character, Kilgore Trout, considered them ''leaks'' into another universe. I say, it's only a leak if it's unintended. Here's a picture of me staring into a trans-dimensional portal, where I can see 1) a lazy white dog and 2) a man that very much resembles ManHuman, on his back staring at his laptop.

Me. Staring into a trans-dimensional portal.

 Coping with cold, rainy weather. 

This week, my humans and I have had to adjust to some gnarly weather. Each day, the temperature has been just above freezing with either rain, sleet, or snow. It's made for some short, miserable walks. So, my humans decided to buy me this fancy rain jacket. 

Me, in my fancy new rain slicker. 

Nordic country stereotypes:

Okay, so I heard this story second-hand from ManHuman, so I gotta give him full credit for it. This week he really dove into work, attending multiple teleconference calls related to experiments in Mobility as a Service in the Nordic region. Some background: Mobility as a Service (MaaS) is what ManHuman is studying at his new job. It involves transitioning all modes of transportation--public transit, bike sharing, ride sharing, personal vehicles-- into an integrated, subscription-based service. The hope is that it will encourage households to give up their cars for cleaner transportation options.  There has been some impressive experiments in MaaS in Finland and Sweden, as well as several other European countries. 

So, late this week ManHuman listened in on a fascinating teleconference call with several of the leaders of this field. They called in from all the Nordic countries (except Iceland). After a particularly animated call, one of ManHuman's colleagues offered some candid stereotypes about his experience working with people from the different Nordic states.  None are particularly good or bad, but they're worth sharing:

Finland. Finns are always the first out of the gate! For example, they passed legislation paving the way for MaaS before most people in the country even knew was MaaS was. They're aggressive and ambitious, but they can make mistakes and find themselves having to backtrack to fix them. 

Sweden Swedes like to talk it out. They like consensus. They form committees and make sure everyone's on the same page, and only then do they move forward (together). 

Denmark Danes sit, watch, and pounce. They're later to the game because they observe everyone else make mistakes, learn from those mistakes, and then move boldly forward. 

Norway Whatever Norwegians do, it's their own thing. It's good so long as it's uniquely Norwegian. 

For more stereotypes of Scandinavians, check out Scandinavia and the World Comics.

That's all for week 3. Stay tuned for a Gino-sized update sometime this week. 

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