No sandcastles

The dumbest proposal I have heard in awhile comes from IOP town council. Apparently there is a big problem with people twisting their ankles on the beach from holes left after sandcastles. A new rule is in the works and a hefty fine to come.

I'm sure the fine reflects what is normally kept in a piggy bank. There will be no shortage of quarters on the IOP.

I don't understand people here, for crying out loud. This is what they spend time on? Wow!

Up wind battle

Last nights meeting was just as Charlstonic as expected. I respect and listen to other peoples wievs and feelings but a little open mindness can reach a long way. I'm against Alambra Hall as the base for a center, so was every one there as far as I could tell. Everyone who spoke was in favor for a center in Mt.P. But boy did people come with the weirdest arguments why the center should not be located there.

I spoke as well, forgot half my points when standing in front of the crowd ( my mind went blank) but some how I got several pats on my back, people telling me I made a good point,from people I didn't know after the meeting. I suppose I got my message through.

To me it's important in two aspects.

1. I make my livelyhood from sailing. No new sailors, I'm unemploeyd.

2. My kids, their friends, heck any kid. It would be a great way to get the kids out, away from video games etc. It teaches camradiere, a respest for the nature, coaches, mates and resposibilities to take care of your equipment.

We do have a lot of other options that our kids can utilize that will achieve the same thing. My wife and I take advantage of this as much we can. How ever, all kids do not like baseball, football etc.

Our Alex does and he gets to play it all. He gets to sail as well with me, he has his own optimist dingy. We are truly blessed.

Politics round # 2

Tonight we go round 2 about the sailing center to be or not to be. I have prepared with some significant research and spent hours arguing with my wife. It will take one heck of a politician to out argue me tonight.

The meeting is taking place at Alhambra Hall where at least one of our fine politicians suggest for the center to be located. It is a very nice and beautiful place, typical low country charm, big oaks with spanish moss. The movie Gone with the wind comes to mind.

And you will need a hell of a lot of wind to get out at low tide, a minor detail.

Keeping up

I have a Face book account that I rarely use, I have how ever found a few friends from the past or rather they have found me. I like that but I don't know what to do next. There are some stuff you can buy and send as gifts, why one would I don't know. I guess the whole idea is to once in awhile get/send a message and people will know what you do and that you're still alive. That's fine with me.

Or you can get updates like I did as I read in todays paper about an old employee of mine who got busted with 7 pounds of marijuana. I know where he will be for the next few years. No need to call in sick.

Or you can blog I guess, that I prefer.

Golf camp

During spring break Alex went to golf camp. He loves playing and he is pretty good at it, he hits a ball about 45 yards (~44 meters). That is far better than his dad does.

Marstrand

What the hell, you don't know Marstrand!

Shame on you.

As your great blogger I kindly fill you in ( Marta is waving and jumping and screaming in the back ground, I know, I know...).

For you Uncle John

This one is for my brother in law John. His darn cell phone ring is the theme from the Godfather. I finally found the original. Guess what, it is played where I had my prom, I never looked better, I rode in a limosine ( some people say I still do).

All I say is John, whe were meant to know each other, what the hell are the odds.

P.S. Marta loves Marstrand, the best fish and chips, the only reason she returns to Sweden, besides the fabulous weather offcourse.

Happy Easter!

Egg hunt

Shoot, Easter is here and gone, off course Fia and Alex got more candy than they have at the consession stand at the freaking circus. We sure had a circus going with the sugar rush.

And the little Milu is on top of it.

What to write

Marta has lately given me crap about my blog, maybe rightfully so but I still do not see her guest blog. I have to admit, lately I have thought about letting the blog die, it is a lot of work. I have all kinds of inspiration, you might think it is our kids.

Wrong!

It is Marta that gives me all I need and some. My biggest issue is that I have a hard time to remember our conversations, I do pay a lot of attention to Marta thank you very much, but truthfully I think she exaggerate. No one can come up with conversations as surreal as her. And with that said I guess you'll have a point, Marta is like no one else.

I write this blog for my children, for them to know what their dad thought about and went through, being married to their mom, as wicked and lovely as she is/was and how I experienced them while they were young. I'm very privileged to be able to do so, I hope that in the future this will still be available to them, as prehistoric as it'll be.

For the rest of you, I will do my best to put you in the mix. That's all I can promise you to do.

Swedish part 4

Since I am on the topic and I found this clip. Every body knows that Swedish girls are it (grej) right. If not, you do now.

Swedish lesson part 3

I say no more. In the late 1800's a third of the swedish population migrated to the US. We had is so good.

Brightwork

The kids and I started refinishing the bright work on Katie last weekend. We got the cabin top done with three coats of varnish. Today it was just Milu and I, good Friday and all I had the day off, Marta didn't, so I redid the toerail, all 67 feet of it in 4 coats. As it is mid/late March and it was a wonderful sunny day I took my shirt off. As I varnish away I heard a womans voice.

M: Jonas, what are you doing?

Jonas: Oh, Hi M,how are you?

M; Good, it is my birthday you know.

Jonas: Really, Happy Birthday!

M: Thanks, it looks good.

Jonas:I'm cheating but who cares, as long as I can go sailing....

M: I hear you, it still looks good.

At this point I start to wonder what the hell, is this woman coming on to me? And then it hits me.

Jonas: I ripped my shorts wide open didn't I?

M: Yes you did and it made my birthday so far.

Jonas: Glad to be at service.

M lives on a 32 footer with her boyfriend about 12 slips out. I laid up on foredeck with a can of varnish and a brush in hand, my legs spread apart, no shirt on, pale as hell ( turning red since I haven't had my shirt off in awhile) reasembling a damn walrus to perfection. I am so grateful she never called the police. I do appoogize for the picture you have in mind by now.

Hola, Hallå!

The spelling queen

Fia is very interested in Alex's flash cards. Marta spells out her name on a Etch-a-Sketch and pronounces every letter as they go.

Marta: S.

Fia: Esch.

Marta: O

Fia: Ough.

Marta: F.

Fia: Eff.

Marta: I.

Fia: Aiy.

Marta: A.

Fia: Eigh.

Marta: And what do you have?

Fia: Alex!

And they start over and Fia always finds it to be Alex that is spelled out for her.

Weekend

Almost weekend, I'm ready for it. I'm a bit worn out, sleep deprived. Have a lot of things going on that I have a hard time not to think about. That sucks.

The weekend is packed with birthday party, bridal shower and I believe that I might have some green beer as well. It's a bit early but heck, can't party on a Tuesday.

I also should do some yard work, clean our cars out and repair the Caddie. Or maybe not.

I think that I just might go for a sail, pass Fort Sumter, through the jetties, into the Atlantic ocean. That's what I do.

Photo by Daan Muller

My girls

Marta gets questioned all the time who's child she is baby sitting, that drives her nuts. I always say I have a hot nanny, that drives her even more nuts.

All this is really strange, the two of them look so much alike.

Fuet

Fuet is a sausage from Spain that is very good. Alex and Fia loves it, specially Fia. Your poor blogger hasn't had a taste in forever, nothing left for me, Marta says it is for our kids ( I sure see her sneak a good bit of it though).

Alex's painting

I still put my head in the sand to avoid realization for how much Marta paid for this. We have it on our bedroom wall and I love it.

Slick

After tonight's dinner, which by the way was very similar to a dish I had the privilege to be served at Senora Maria's house, by Senora Maria herself, a few years ago in Barcelona.

Marta: I read your blog.

Jonas: Pretty cool mast, no?

Marta: Yes honey, but why didn't you blog about Alex's painting?

Jonas: I will, what's the hurry?

Marta: I told my parents you would.

Jonas: You know the log in, why not a guest blog? I've been bugging you for awhile to do one.

Marta: I don't know your log in.

Jonas: Yes you do. Unlike most people I don't use my mothers maiden name, nor do I use yours or our kids names, our dog's or anything remotely close to what one would guess, which pretty much tells you what I use since I pressume you know me by know.

Marta: OUCH! Honey, you are a slick son of a gun.

Worlds tallest aluminum mast

As you may or may not know I'm into sailing and I work with sailing. There are so many cool boats and ideas out there and I go nuts when I find out about them.

Like this, the tallest aluminum mast in the world, 75 meters. Wow. Why they didn't make it out of carbon I don't know but wholly mackerel it is something else. It was built by OYS (Ocean Yacht Systems) for PeriniNavi in Italy.

Tallest one I built was only 28 meters. I thought that was huge at the time.

As much as I admire this project I'm sure glad that it's not me who has to tune the rig, can you imagine?

Silent auction

Last night Marta and I went to a silent auction, a fundraiser for Alex's school. It was in a beautiful house on Sullivans Island. A classic oyster roast and appetizers where served accompanied with beer and wine.

Lot's of different items were available to bid on including 2 paintings that Alex's class had made. The reported value on the card said priceless. Marta quickly found out on which painting Alex had been involved in the making of. His hand is a crab on one off them.

Marta: I'm not leaving with out that painting

Jonas: OK honey, start bidding.

She watches this auction like a hawk and I got regular reports on the process. As I'm outside chucking oysters she comes running over to me.

Marta: I've taken care of it.

Jonas: What did you do?

Marta: I bid a lot of money, it is ours (she gives me a kiss).

Jonas: The auction is over?

Marta: No, but I doubt that anyone is out bidding me now.

With that said she went back inside, happy with herself. I just stood there for a minute trying to
decide whether I wanted to know how much she had bid or not.

As the auction ended the director of the school asked me, " Do you know how much your wife spent on the painting?" I answered her " No, I don't want to know either".

The painting is fantastic, signed by all involved and it is priceless.

Pollen

The older I get the more allergic to pollen I get. My dad gets shots, I get away with a no name brand pill. My eyes are itchy and watery, I'm sneezing and feel like crap most all the time. Today has rained all day, gray and not very inviting.

All this rain will make the magnolia bloom how ever, and the low country never looks better dressed in pink.

She can have it

I over heard a guy talking about his soon to be ex wife. She is battling him for their boat in court. He now says it's not worth the battle, that she can have it.

Well, Marta has said the opposite if we ever go separate ways, she could care less about the boat.

I still picture that the fellow has something like this going on with his boat.

To die like a moose

In a different news paper I found out that a pregnant moose ran it to this couples house and died. What is even more bizarre is the comment from the wife about the event.

" I never in my life thought that I was to experience this"

Really Sherlock, moose's keep running in to peoples houses and die all the time. I take you thought that you were a bit off the common path of running moose. Not to think of the rest of us that sit and think about that any day now a moose will run into my wall and die.

It only happens in Norway.

Sick sailors

In todays paper we can read about sick Swedish sailors. It is sailors on the Tall ship Gunilla that are sick. So much for taking Alex and Fia on a visit. All I need is for them to get sick.














Photo by The Post and Courier.

Swedish twins

Thank you Rikard for the lead.

Breakfast

Every morning on my way to work the different fast food chains advertise their latest breakfast menu on the radio. They all offer the same stuff for the same amount of money. They all mean that their breakfast is best value and what could be better to start your day.

Let me think.

Rat poison

Diesel fuel

Lard

About most anything else would be better for me than their so called food. Not that I eat the better alternatives, I am too darn tired in the morning.

Spring cleaning

Spring has sprung in Charleston. The grass is starting to get green, some pink flower bushes that I don't know the name of are in full bloom, trees are light green and we cleaned Katie inside and out.

Fia gets today's gold star, she is very useful. She stuffed the port side winch full with crackers, she vacuumed up Alex's toy car, the vacuum broke, she lost my screw driver over board and she stuffed the cock pit drain with the handle for the manual bilge pump. It took me an hour to retrieve it, it had to be the aft drain, I really enjoyed myself laying under the fuel tank loosening hoses.

Alex was a good boy telling me what Fia had done just a mere 2 seconds after the fact.

The only thing that saves them are the fact that they are cute.

Love

Love can be a lot of things. You can be in love with material things, I'm accused of being in love with Katie Too, our boat, almost daily. You can be in love with food, movies, sport teams, you get the picture. You can also be as lucky as I am, a beautiful wife and a great family. I wish you all have that. At times it is a bit difficult to appreciate.

Jonas: Do you feel better? ( I'm asking Marta)

Marta: I am, I went to the movies with Pam.

Jonas: Oh, I bet you guys had fun. What did you guys do besides the movies?

Marta: We went shopping.

Jonas: What a surprise.

Marta: Do you remember how much you love me?

Jonas: How could I possibly forget?

Marta: You are going to love my new shoes!

She has, no joke, probably 100 pairs of shoes. Most of them given to her but still. FOR CRYING OUT LOUD, how many do you need. 3 closets full of freaking shoes, one for each outfit but that is a different blog.

She does in all her insanity make herself the most lovable woman on this planet and that is a very good thing, I wouldn't trade to safe my life.