Social Requirements

I lunched with my aunt and uncle today. I fried up boiled potatoes and sliced sausage, and then I bid farewell as my uncle drove me to town, where I met up with Maria Lundberg to work in a coffee shop. We have declared Thursdays to be our study days. I caught the bus home and cycled over to Oscar and Jenny's place in time for dinner. They were in the midst of putting up Christmas decorations--Oscar is American and wishes to pack as much Christmas into the month as he can--and their living room was a mess of boxes filled with tinsel and tiny light-up Christmas trees and snowflakes and Santa-on-a-motorcycle. Oscar put up strings of colored lights and a plastic door on the balcony, though he felt unhappy with the empty patch and wondered what he would put up in the space. He turns to me. "It ain't over 'til the fat man needs shades to look at the balcony."
I helped to unscrew the bottom of the tiny trees and put in batteries, which is a bit like trying to put candy into a spring-loaded Pez dispenser.

Once I had cycled back home, I had barely settled into my chair before the doorbell rang, and Joakim our neighbor was at the door. We had a brief conversation about renting his apartment during Christmas as ours is much too small for the guests we intend to have, and eventually the conversation landed on the inevitable question. "So, what are you doing now?"
I squint. "Right now? I'm enjoying my hamsters."
"Hamsters?"
"Yeah. I'll show you."
I whirl around and march back inside and hand him one of my snowy furbies."I'm watching The Devil Wears Prada."
He sat down for a bit, and I ploughed ahead in the conversation, as I am apt to do. We talked about his upcoming internship at the hospital, childhood Christmas calendars, the high median age of Swedish church goers and what exactly a pastor does. (He was confused over the matter.)

Oh, and Spencers Trousers sent me a package in the mail, an envelope filled with cloth swatches. I had been admiring their sturdy plus fours on their webpage and asked for a sample to be sent to my address. Of course, I could never afford their trousers, but if I did grow ridiculously wealthy and was in need of a pair of plus fours, Spencers Trousers is where I would turn. Now, you may say, what do you need swatches of tweed for? What will you possibly do with them?

Why, make tiny tartans for my hamsters. Of course.