Misunnelsesverdig

I had a great day at my new job today. Chatted with a couple of new colleagues, who were delightful, figured out the university's class interface program (like Blackboard, for anyone who knows that system), got to check out books from the library (with some initial bungling on my part), and discovered the department's fabulous, shiny automatic expresso/coffee/cocoa machine! Whoopie! I feel like I've hit pay dirt. Who ever heard of an academic department in the US with free beverages?! Plus there's unlimited free copying and a supply room that looks like an office supply store. Not that I need very much of any of that, but the scale of amenities here is amazing. Plus public transportation has gotten even better than the last time I lived here. Trams and subways go every five minutes just a few minutes walk from my office. Oslo has really upgraded the system. The old Nesodden boats are still funky, but that's nothing but charming. It has been fascinating to watch the subtle colors of sky, landscape, and water on my way back and forth across the Oslo fjord. The fjord is starting to freeze over, and it is mesmerizing to watch the patterns of the chunks of ice as the boat makes its way through them. Makes me want to be a physicist (for about a half a second, until I remember why I'm a humanities scholar!).