Decisions About What To Take

A few years ago, an Air Canada check-in agent asked me (out of pure curiosity) just what kinds of things were in my suitcases. He wanted to know what were the important, just-cannot-live without-them kinds of things that would prompt someone to pay $200 in extra baggage charges. On that particular trip, I had......

• a Costco size box of Milk Bones
• 24 velvet coated clothes hangers
• 4 bottles of green pickle relish
• 3 squeeze bottles of Miracle Whip
• 2 boxes of L'Oreal Excellence Cream hair color
• a large roll of heavy duty Reynolds Foil Wrap (also from Costco)
• Ziploc freezer bags in 2 sizes
• 2 extra large bottles of Tums and Zantac (L.S.' favorite snack)
• 4 tubes of Crest toothpaste
• 8 trade paperback novels
• 6 boxes of Kraft dinner
• 244 Red Rose teabags
• 3 Black and 1 of each color of Canon #6 printer ink
• 6 Packs of Swiss Chalet Gravy Mix
• 1 Costco pack of Shake & Bake
• 2 Costco size boxes of Quaker Granola Bars

I probably forgot a few things....then...and now. In preparing for the move to Stavanger, I had a good idea of what wasn't going to be available because we recently spent 2 years in Denmark (and all Scandinavian countries are the same, right?). I knew I would need Miracle Whip and green pickle relish. The dog died 2 years ago, so I don't need the Milk Bones. I've learned to like Colgate toothpaste, I now have an e-reader, Ikea sells good quality ziploc bags, and I can get the L'Oreal here if I am willing to pay $36 bucks for it. Since the price of extra baggage has skyrocketed lately, I was determined to be more discerning with my choices. I also told myself, I'll come back in May and reload.

In our family, packing is my job. Me, and me alone, is responsible for what comes and goes, and how it gets there....mostly because nobody does it better, and I haven't been shy about gently letting John know his attempts at it are monumental disasters.

For this move, the heavy lifting was already done. A moving company had come to our apartment in Baku, packed everything up and took it off for storage until we knew where we were heading. Right now that's where everything still is....sitting in Baku. We've told them it's to be shipped to Stavanger, but now it's waiting for John's former employer to cough up the money to pay for it. Until he does that, nothing's going anywhere. Can I interject that I have a bad feeling about this....and have since the day it was crated up and carried off? I asked John at the time if there was any chance we could become permanently parted from our stuff, and he assured me everything would be fine. I trusted him, but I hope I'm not sorry I didn't pull from the shipment those things I really didn't want to lose. The shipping cost from Baku to Stavanger including the packing, storage, and local delivery charges comes to $14,000! John is going to choke on that bill if he has to eat it...and I'll probably never let him live it down.

But, for now, back to the packing at hand. I have 6 suitcases to fill. We brought 5 with us, but I was in Orlando alone for 2 weeks; I went shopping. Some things are going to have to be put in storage at the daughter-princess's apartment. I checked the average monthly temperatures for Stavanger and discovered the average high for July and August is only 19 degrees Celsius. There didn't seem to be a need for summer clothes and a dozen pairs of flip flops. All of the winter clothes we had in previous years ended up being packed by the movers, and are warming their cartons in a Baku warehouse. We had to buy all new stuff, including boots, in order to survive the cold Canadian winter we hadn't expected to experience when we first arrived in Canada. Those things had to come, along with a few summer clothes...in case the opportunity (or necessity) arose to escape the dreary, rainy winter weather in Stavanger...as in go somewhere sunny. I got most of the clothes in, abandoning one fall jacket, 3 pair of shoes....and accidentally forgetting John's suit, and all of his sport coats. Something I just realized the other day....man really should take responsibility for his things! I wonder how long until he realizes they're missing.

In the process of packing, I discovered that I had actually brought the Apple TV with us. That was a relief. I really thought I had left it with our shipment. This will get me through some long days faced with foreign language television. I didn't buy any food this time...choosing to live on the culinary wild side, and get used to mayo over Miracle Whip (it's a Canadian thing). I really wanted to get my extra winter coat in there, so I made the sacrifice. There will be no Miracle Whip in Norway....

As usual all of the bags were stuffed to airline capacity. Being a pro, I can usually get within half a pound without going overweight. I asked John to book us a minivan cab for the trip to the airport. What have got with me this time??

• the last 3 seasons of Breaking Bad on DVD
• 2 Paderno saucepans with lids
• 2 extra large bottles of Tums and Zantac
• 1 box of L'Oreal Excellence hair color (because I'll pay $36 once but not twice)

I did not pack the giant sized Toblerone chocolate bar, though; thinking why carry chocolate to Europe? I regret that decision now.

The Decision To Move To Norway

Just before Thanksgiving, John and I were en route to Florida in the little grey Saturn, when a call came from a head hunter about a job in Kurdistan. I think we were somewhere along I-81 in northern Virginia. A few minutes into the call, it dawned on us that the job this headhunter was pitching was one John had already been offered and turned down for the not-so-spiffy compensation package, and lack of warm fuzzy feelings about the company.

So, I'm driving and John is taking his call...it hits me that I had seen a job posted for Norway on this particular headhunter's website the day before. I start wildly gesticulating and whispering 'ask him about the Project Manager's job in Stavanger!!!' John gives me his best combination of 'What are you talking about?' and 'Can't you see I'm on the phone?' looks. I can tell he is getting annoyed, but I persist....he finally inquires...and long story short; here we are in Stavanger.

For John it meant his Florida holiday was cut short by 2 weeks. But it was hard to feel too sorry for him since he'd been pretty much on vacation since June. I was just about to ask him if he was retiring. We didn't think he was quite ready for that yet...so off he went, with a suitcase full of new winter clothes we bought at Macy's black Friday sale. I stayed behind in Orlando, enjoying the unseasonably warm weather. He flew to Norway to check out the company, the position, and the fine print. I expected nightly reports about the weather, the restaurants, and the grocery stores.

It all checked out and the best part was...it was a job he could get really excited about. The company was small, but not brand new. They wanted him to oversee the roll out of a new product; to take it through testing phases and into the market. I think the idea gave him goosebumps (the good kind)....the kicker being that the market they wanted to explore first was North America, and we would be expected to move to Houston in 6 to 12 months. Perfect! We have been anxious to get closer to home for a while, become a little more settled...maybe even buy a house....close to a Kroger....close to Rotel tomatoes because it's the little things you miss the most sometimes.

While John was away, a wrinkle in the plans turned up in the form of a job offer with a big company in Singapore. I had high hopes for continued time in nice hot weather (excessive humidity notwithstanding). I could picture myself planted in an air conditioned high-rise where I could still afford a housekeeper. John, however, couldn't deny his affection for the Norwegian job, so he decided to let the Singapore one go. Sigh....Hope he's not sorry when he sees his first paycheck and most of it is missing.

I'd say the biggest negatives about coming to Norway are the high taxes and the high cost of living (gas costs more than $10 per gallon). The company has given us a housing budget. We might be able to find something we like within it, but from checking out rental prices online, it seems like it might be a bit light, and we'll have to kick in some money of our own. It's not exactly free housing either, the value of the rent is added to income each month (as is the company car), so you have to pay income tax on it. This is the same in most countries, but it's something it took me a while to remember when I was trying to figure out how much money we would net each month.

On the positive side, there were plenty of reasons to come here. Most people speak English which makes life so much easier. You can actually rinse your fruit and vegetables with safe-to-drink tap water. The scenery is very nice, and there is a terrific public transportation system. Buses are clean, frequent, and go everywhere; live close to the commuter rail and you've got it knocked. There is a reliable public healthcare system so you don't have to leave the country to get your annual check-up or see a doctor, for that matter. There probably isn't much in the way of government corruption. Where we lived last, in Azerbaijan, people spoke either Russian or Azeri; you get by with a few words and some hand signals. In Azerbaijan, it was best if the tap water didn't come in contact with your food; buses weren't recommended for expats, drivers were; and "no thanks" on the doctors....come to think of it I was never healthier than when we lived there, though. It was nice that you really didn't need a prescription for anything at the pharmacy, you could just go in and buy what you need...not so nice that you had to try and communicate your needs with your hands.

Another plus was that Norway would be an easy sell to our families back home. My mother becomes an authority on every single place I tell her we are considering for a move. She used to comb through her stacks of National Geographics looking for relevant articles and photos, but now she has Google, and she knows how to use it. I get her feedback much earlier in the decision process than I once did. 

John reported back that it rained most of the time; the stores are closed on Sundays; and that the restaurant food (while priced in the stratosphere) was at least better than what you got in Denmark. Moreover, he loved the company and the people at the new office. The fix was in. He'd be back in Orlando in time for us to drive up to Canada for Christmas. We''d stay long enough to celebrate the New Year and #1 son's 30th birthday, then off we'd go. The date was set and the tickets were bought....January 19th we'd be flying to Norway.