I’m taking photos of distinctive objects around the house for a treasure hunt, for Ingrid’s mystery/spy-themed birthday party this coming weekend. She and her guests will also get to decode secret messages, play with fire to uncover hidden messages written with lime juice, etc.


I took the day off and went for a walk through the Erstavik and Nacka nature reserves. I started in the east and made my way back towards “civilization” (i.e. the subway network).

The photo is of Lake Lundsjön right at the beginning of the trail.

The walking trails were clearly marked and easy to follow, with signs that said where the trails would end and how far that end was. I wish there was an overview map, though, that would show the trail network as a whole, covering both Nacka and Erstavik. I wanted to walk along lake Källtorpssjön in the afternoon because of the beautiful views we got there this summer. I knew exactly where I was, and where the lake was, but finding a trail to take me from the one to the other was not so easy. I ended up backtracking several times because the marked trail went off in an unexpected direction, and in the end I just forced my way through the bush to get where I wanted to be. A bit boggy and muddy, but I got there.


Autumn colours in Kronobergsparken.

I am winding down all my projects and responsibilities at work, so apart from “knowledge transfer” sessions with the team in India, I sometimes don’t have much to do. So I go for walks near the office. I like Kronobergsparken. It has a steepish hill in the middle, so you cannot see from one side to the others, which makes the park seem like larger than it really is.


Cherry tree in autumn colours.

  • His head is full of monsters and weapons. Clouds look like pistols; random shapes in leaves look like monsters; anything long and round is a cannon or a “pepperer”; if it’s extra thick then it’s a bazooka. Not that he has any idea what any of these things really look like.
  • He likes patterns and shapes. There are name magnets on the whiteboard at school (that show which kids are there and which have gone home), and when Adrian moves his to the “home” box, he arranges them all in equal columns, or in the shape of a tree, or something like that.
  • He tried basketball after school but didn’t like it at all.



A day late, we baked a birthday cheesecake.


Puberty is making its entry. Ingrid’s body is changing. She is starting to get breasts. She is tired in the mornings, which she never used to be. And – probably related to some hormonal changes – she is no longer always warm. Now it’s her complaining about the cold when I’m feeling fine, rather than the opposite.


Our (by now traditional) birthday sushi lunch at the conveyor belt place in Kista. Just Ingrid and myself this time, since Eric and Adrian were on a scout hike.

We mentioned Ingrid’s birthday to a member of the staff and she was brought an umbrella drink, which was a real “cherry on top” for her.


We went out to hunt for Pokemons, since there was some kind of event today. It was a success.

The kids’ interest in the game is waning somewhat, just as mine and Eric’s is growing. (Yes, Eric has also started playing.) It used to be Adrian asking to play every day on the way home from school. Now it’s more likely to be me.


Less than a week after we bought new shoes, I’m repairing them already.

Tying shoelaces requires more patience than Ingrid or Adrian has. Both of them are quite finicky about how tightly they want shoes to fit their feet, so if the shoes have Velcro straps, they rip them open and re-close them again and again to get them just right, and the Velcro wears out in a few months. These elastic laces with a lock are both comfortable and convenient, but the producers can’t have tested their durability at all.

Zippers are actually pretty good, but unfortunately rare in kids’ shoes.