Inertia Kills

Stockholm; outside the Nobel Museum

In Sweden, they have this phrase known as “lagom.” The idea of it is “just enough.” That is, everyone has just enough for him or herself so that there’s enough to go around for everyone else. This concept struck me as quite exceptional considering I’m born and bred in the USA- land of the American Dream, where everyone wants to be the best; to have a nicer car than your neighbor; to be more successful than your parents were. The idea that one should be content with “just enough” was a foreign thing indeed. But this idea really works quite well for the Swedes. In a lot of ways, they really seemed to have a lot of things going for them. As one person explained to me, in Sweden (as with most Scandinavian countries), there are not the “haves and the have-nots,” but only the “haves and the have-lesses.” The way of life, though at times appearing rather restrained to me, did seem to result in a very smoothly operating society. Read the rest of this entry »

The shelves upon shelve of liquor bottles began to rattle all around me, at first quietly, and then with increasing violence, until you could hardly hear anyone talk above the sound of the clinking bottles.

Bottles

The main engines had just fired up, and we were about to depart Riga en route for Stockholm. Each evening, there is an overnight ferry that runs between Riga and Stockholm; I thought this would be a fine way for me to get to Stockholm. It is only 109 Euro for an inside double room, so between two people, you’re looking at about 55 Euro apiece for transportation and accommodations – not to mention entertainment and beautiful scenery. Read the rest of this entry »