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The Swedish Cultural Scene

Discussion in 'Free Fire Zone' started by texson66, Jan 13, 2009.

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texson66 Ace

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brndirt1 said:

Here in Billings, every Christmas time there is a local FM station here that always broadcasts this poem, to be read with the proper timing and timber of; "'twas The Night Before Christmas":

LUTEFISK LAMENT

by Charlie Boone & Roger Erickson

'Twas the night before Christmas with things all a bustle
As Mama got set for the Christmas Eve tussle.
Aunts, uncles and cousins would soon be arriving
With stomachs all ready for Christmas Eve dining.
While I sat alone with a feeling of dread,
As visions of lutefisk danced in my head.
The thought of the smell made my eyeballs start burning.
The thought of the taste set my stomach to churning.
For I'm one of those who good Norsemen rebuff:
A Scandahoovian boy who can't stand the stuff.

Each year, however, I played at the game
to spare mama and papa the undying shame.
I must bear up bravely, I can't take the risk
of relatives knowing I hate lutefisk.
I know they would spurn me, my presents withhold,
if the unthinkable, unspeakable truth they were told.
Then out in the yard I heard such a clatter,
I jumped up to see what was the matter.
There in the snow, all in a jumble,
three of my uncles had taken a tumble.

My aunts, as usual, gave them "what for",
and soon they were up and through the door.
Then with talk, and more cheer, an hour was passed
as Mama finished the Christmas repast.
From out in the kitchen an odor came stealing,
that fairly set my senses to reeling.
The smell of lutefisk creeped down the hall
and wilted a plant in a pot on the wall.
The others reacted as though they were smitten,
while the aroma laid low my small helpless kitten.
Uncles Oscar and Lars said, "Oh, that smells yummy,"
and Kermit's eyes glittered while he patted his tummy.

The scent skipped off the ceiling and bounced off the door,
and the bird in the cuckoo clock fell on the floor.
Mama announced dinner by ringing a bell.
They pushed to the table with a yump and a yell.
I lifted my eyes to heaven and sighed,
and a rose on the wallpaper withered and died.
With wooden legs I found my chair
and sat in silence with an unseeing stare.
Most of the food was already in place;
there remained only to fill the lutefisks space.
Then Mama came proudly with a bowl on a trivet.
You would have thought the crown jewels were in it.

She placed it carefully down and took her seat,
and Papa said Grace before we could eat.
It seemed to me, with my whirling head,
the shortest prayer he ever had said.
Then Mama lifted the cover on the steaming dish,
and I was face to face with the quivering fish.
"Me first," I heard Uncle Kermit call,
while I watched the paint peel off the wall.

The plates were passed for Papa to fill.
I waited in agony between fever and chill.
He would dip in the spoon and hold it up high.
As it oozed on the plates, I thought I would die.
Then came my plate, and to my feverish brain
there seemed enough lutefisk to derail a train.
It looked like a mountain of congealing glue:
oddly transparent, yet discolored, the hue.
With butter and cream sauce I tried to conceal it;
I salted and peppered, but the smell still revealed it.
I drummed up my courage, I tried to be bold.
Mama reminds me, "Eat, before it gets cold."

I decided to face it, "Uff da," I sighed.
"Uff da, indeed," my stomach replied.
Then I summoned that resolve for which every breed is known.
My hand took the fork as with a mind of its own.
And with reckless abandon that lutefisk I ate,
within twenty seconds I'd cleaned my plate.
Uncle Kermit flashed me an ear-to-ear grin,
as butter and cream sauce dripped from his chin.
Then to my great shock, he whispered in my ear:
"I'm sure glad this is over for another year!"

It was then I learned a great and wonderful truth,
that Swedes and Norwegians, from old men to youth,
must each pay their dues to have the great joy
of being known as a good Scandahoovian boy.
And so to you all, as you face the great test:
Happy Christmas to you, and to you all the best!

(me again) I myself am Norwegian almost complete, only third generation American, and I can't stop laughing when "Sven Soderquist" does that poem. I finally found the lines, and copied them down 'cause when it is on the radio I'm usually in my pickup and laughting my ass off.

Click to expand...

ROTFLMAO! Loved that poem....I gotta forward this one to all my swedish cousins in south Texas! Thanks Clint!

__________________________________________
[SIGPIC][/SIGPIC]
“The first lesson is that you can't lose a war if you have command of the air, and you can't win a war if you haven't.” - General Jimmy Doolittle

texson66, Jan 15, 2009

#21
Wolfy Ace

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Apparently, Swedish culture is mostly about their tall hot blondes

Best World War 2 Comics

Wolfy, Jan 15, 2009

#22
dgmitchell Ace

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TA152 said:

If you are even luckier you could be related to one of the ABBA members !!!!!!
Click to expand...

Aren't they about 100 years old by now???

dgmitchell, Jan 15, 2009

#23
Kai-Petri Kenraali

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Wolfy said:

Apparently, Swedish culture is mostly about their tall hot blondes
Click to expand...

Just ask Tiger Woods about that...

Kai-Petri, Jan 15, 2009

#24
C.Evans Expert

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brndirt1 said:

Here in Billings, every Christmas time there is a local FM station here that always broadcasts this poem, to be read with the proper timing and timber of; "'twas The Night Before Christmas":

LUTEFISK LAMENT

by Charlie Boone & Roger Erickson

'Twas the night before Christmas with things all a bustle
As Mama got set for the Christmas Eve tussle.
Aunts, uncles and cousins would soon be arriving
With stomachs all ready for Christmas Eve dining.
While I sat alone with a feeling of dread,
As visions of lutefisk danced in my head.
The thought of the smell made my eyeballs start burning.
The thought of the taste set my stomach to churning.
For I'm one of those who good Norsemen rebuff:
A Scandahoovian boy who can't stand the stuff.

Each year, however, I played at the game
to spare mama and papa the undying shame.
I must bear up bravely, I can't take the risk
of relatives knowing I hate lutefisk.
I know they would spurn me, my presents withhold,
if the unthinkable, unspeakable truth they were told.
Then out in the yard I heard such a clatter,
I jumped up to see what was the matter.
There in the snow, all in a jumble,
three of my uncles had taken a tumble.

My aunts, as usual, gave them "what for",
and soon they were up and through the door.
Then with talk, and more cheer, an hour was passed
as Mama finished the Christmas repast.
From out in the kitchen an odor came stealing,
that fairly set my senses to reeling.
The smell of lutefisk creeped down the hall
and wilted a plant in a pot on the wall.
The others reacted as though they were smitten,
while the aroma laid low my small helpless kitten.
Uncles Oscar and Lars said, "Oh, that smells yummy,"
and Kermit's eyes glittered while he patted his tummy.

The scent skipped off the ceiling and bounced off the door,
and the bird in the cuckoo clock fell on the floor.
Mama announced dinner by ringing a bell.
They pushed to the table with a yump and a yell.
I lifted my eyes to heaven and sighed,
and a rose on the wallpaper withered and died.
With wooden legs I found my chair
and sat in silence with an unseeing stare.
Most of the food was already in place;
there remained only to fill the lutefisks space.
Then Mama came proudly with a bowl on a trivet.
You would have thought the crown jewels were in it.

She placed it carefully down and took her seat,
and Papa said Grace before we could eat.
It seemed to me, with my whirling head,
the shortest prayer he ever had said.
Then Mama lifted the cover on the steaming dish,
and I was face to face with the quivering fish.
"Me first," I heard Uncle Kermit call,
while I watched the paint peel off the wall.

The plates were passed for Papa to fill.
I waited in agony between fever and chill.
He would dip in the spoon and hold it up high.
As it oozed on the plates, I thought I would die.
Then came my plate, and to my feverish brain
there seemed enough lutefisk to derail a train.
It looked like a mountain of congealing glue:
oddly transparent, yet discolored, the hue.
With butter and cream sauce I tried to conceal it;
I salted and peppered, but the smell still revealed it.
I drummed up my courage, I tried to be bold.
Mama reminds me, "Eat, before it gets cold."

I decided to face it, "Uff da," I sighed.
"Uff da, indeed," my stomach replied.
Then I summoned that resolve for which every breed is known.
My hand took the fork as with a mind of its own.
And with reckless abandon that lutefisk I ate,
within twenty seconds I'd cleaned my plate.
Uncle Kermit flashed me an ear-to-ear grin,
as butter and cream sauce dripped from his chin.
Then to my great shock, he whispered in my ear:
"I'm sure glad this is over for another year!"

It was then I learned a great and wonderful truth,
that Swedes and Norwegians, from old men to youth,
must each pay their dues to have the great joy
of being known as a good Scandahoovian boy.
And so to you all, as you face the great test:
Happy Christmas to you, and to you all the best!

(me again) I myself am Norwegian almost complete, only third generation American, and I can't stop laughing when "Sven Soderquist" does that poem. I finally found the lines, and copied them down 'cause when it is on the radio I'm usually in my pickup and laughting my ass off.

Click to expand...

This is good, VERY good. I can't give rep points yet, but will as soon as the site allows me to.

Lost are only those, who abandon themselves) Hans-Ulrich Rudel.
:ww1ace:

C.Evans, Jan 15, 2009

#25
C.Evans Expert

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Kai-Petri said:

Don´t forget Carl, I saw her first....
Click to expand...

Heh heh, I've got you beat. I first saw pics of her about 6-7 years ago-and found that I could instantly fall in love w/ her ;-))

Lost are only those, who abandon themselves) Hans-Ulrich Rudel.
:ww1ace:

C.Evans, Jan 15, 2009

#26
Halldin Member

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Sorry my dear Carl.
I'm waaaaay ahead of you.

My Grandfathers Uncle: Stanley Halldin, 981st Field Artillery Battalion.

Halldin, Jan 15, 2009

#27
C.Evans Expert

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Halldin said:

Sorry my dear Carl.
I'm waaaaay ahead of you.
Click to expand...

Dammit! ;-)) I'm about 6,000 miles farther away then you are--Grrrr.

Lost are only those, who abandon themselves) Hans-Ulrich Rudel.
:ww1ace:

C.Evans, Jan 15, 2009

#28
C.Evans Expert

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Halldin, i've got one that will make up the difference-which is an old Norwegian saying that goes: "A thousand Swedes, ran through the reeds, chased by ONE Norwegian". ;-))

Lost are only those, who abandon themselves) Hans-Ulrich Rudel.
:ww1ace:

C.Evans, Jan 15, 2009

#29
Halldin Member

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Haha don't get me started in the battle between Sweden and Norway. It's endless! ENDLESS!
But! I got cousins and uncles in Oslo, so I'm quite neutral.

Well, gotta counter fire, very old, but classic:
Two Norwegians were fishing down at the local lake. Suddenly, one of the men gets a salmon on his hook.
- "I got one! I got one" He shouted to his friend.
They pulled it up and laid it down on the ground.
- "Uhm, how are we suppose to kill it?" The Norwegian said.
- "I got it! Let's drown the bastard!"

My Grandfathers Uncle: Stanley Halldin, 981st Field Artillery Battalion.

Halldin, Jan 15, 2009

#30

C.Evans likes this.
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Halldin said:

Haha don't get me started in the battle between Sweden and Norway. It's endless! ENDLESS!
But! I got cousins and uncles in Oslo, so I'm quite neutral.

Well, gotta counter fire, very old, but classic:
Two Norwegians were fishing down at the local lake. Suddenly, one of the men gets a salmon on his hook.
- "I got one! I got one" He shouted to his friend.
They pulled it up and laid it down on the ground.
- "Uhm, how are we suppose to kill it?" The Norwegian said.
- "I got it! Let's drown the bastard!"
Click to expand...

:lol: OWCH! Great one BTW;-)) I can only offer ya a for now as the site will not let me give ya more rep points yet.

Lost are only those, who abandon themselves) Hans-Ulrich Rudel.
:ww1ace:

C.Evans, Jan 15, 2009

#31
Halldin Member

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Haha thanks.
There are thousands of "Norwegian stories", and Norwegians use exactly the same "Swede stories".

My Grandfathers Uncle: Stanley Halldin, 981st Field Artillery Battalion.

Halldin, Jan 15, 2009

#32
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Halldin said:

Haha thanks.
There are thousands of "Norwegian stories", and Norwegians use exactly the same "Swede stories".
Click to expand...

I'd love to find a site with them listed. Heh heh, reading them would probably make my Grandfathers blood boil. He too was born in Oslo ;-))

Lost are only those, who abandon themselves) Hans-Ulrich Rudel.
:ww1ace:

C.Evans, Jan 15, 2009

#33
texson66 Ace

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Well, to defend the Swedish honor....here's a Norwegian Yoke Page...

Norwegian Jokes

__________________________________________
[SIGPIC][/SIGPIC]
“The first lesson is that you can't lose a war if you have command of the air, and you can't win a war if you haven't.” - General Jimmy Doolittle

texson66, Jan 15, 2009

#34

brndirt1 likes this.
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texson66 said:

Well, to defend the Swedish honor....here's a Norwegian Yoke Page...

Norwegian Jokes[/QUOTE

You get a 10 out of 10 for this one.:-D
Click to expand...

Lost are only those, who abandon themselves) Hans-Ulrich Rudel.
:ww1ace:

C.Evans, Jan 15, 2009

#35
Za Rodinu Aquila non capit muscas

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Wolfy said:

Apparently, Swedish culture is mostly about their tall hot blondes
Click to expand...

Yes. And they are soooooo right!

Quousque tandem abutere, Catilina, patientia nostra...

Za Rodinu, Jan 15, 2009

#36
Halldin Member

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You got 'em Texson!

My Grandfathers Uncle: Stanley Halldin, 981st Field Artillery Battalion.

Halldin, Jan 15, 2009

#37
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If you have any questions about Swedish culture, just ask, I'll be glad to answer them.

My Grandfathers Uncle: Stanley Halldin, 981st Field Artillery Battalion.

Halldin, Jan 15, 2009

#38
urqh Tea drinking surrender monkey

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But you cant eat Norwegians....

British Army 1939-1945 - World War II Tribute Video

urqh, Jan 15, 2009

#39
TA152 Ace

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Why did Saab and Volvo sell out to GM and Ford ? Seems like the cars have suffered for this change IMHO. I have never driven a Saab but Volvo's used to be great cars.

I need a bailout of only $500,000

TA152, Jan 15, 2009

#40

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