Tully's in a Starbucks mug & Janteloven

Is it legal to drink Tully's coffee out of a Starbuck's mug?

Nah, I don't care! I have been waiting to finish up my Starbuck's beans so that I could enjoy the Tully's Husky blend coffee that I got from Heather for my birthday! (Thanks, Heather! It tastes great!) I was enjoying my first cup today in one of my favorite mugs ( the big city mugs from Starbucks. I have one from Basel, Switzerland and another from Munich, Germany.) when Martin called my mobile and the ring is the Husky Band playing Vic'try for Washington (Ha! That's a good one...). It was perfect timing! Husky Blend with Husky Band! ;)

Anyway. . . . .

Today, November 11th, is Mortensdag in Denmark, derives from St. Martin....whoever he was, and there is a tradition to eat roast duck for the occassion. Well, Danes have a really great habit of celebrating things the day BEFORE the actual day of a holiday. So, last night was when you should have roast duck...on MortensAFTEN....the night before. So, I kind of made a fool of myself to my neighbor by saying "No, no, no! It's Friday that is Mortens aften/dag - whatever". But I was wrong, it was Thursday night that duck should be served....but that is not written in the Danish calendar!?!! I know it's a stupid thing to discuss, but it's irritating when you look on the calendar and it doesn't say anything about Mortensaften. It's the same with Skt Hans aften on June 23rd, but's it's Skt. Hans dag that is in the calendar on June 24th, although it is Skt Hans aften when you celebrate with burning the witch and singing around the bonfire. And the same thing with Christmas! The Danes do their big celebrating on Christmas Eve, juleaften, but pretty much nothing happens on Christmas day! Funny, those Danes!

To make a long story short, we are having roast duck tonight on Mortensdag. We will eat it with a Waldorfs salad, boiled potatoes, and red cabbage. Maybe I will take a picture! :)

It's funny how after living in this culture for so long, you begin to notice particularities of the Danish people...things that are ingrained in their culture, which derive from a law about how you should behave as a Danish person...called Janteloven. This law was written by a famous Danish author, Aksel Sandemose (1899-1965) which states simply:

The Law of Jante
You shall not think that you are special

You shall not think that you are of the same standing as us

You shall not think that you are wiser than us

Don't fancy yourself as being better than us

You shall not think that you know more than us

You shall not think that you are more (important) than us

You shall not think that you are good at anything

You shall not laugh at us

You shall not think that anyone cares about you

You shall not think that you can teach us anything

It is most noticeable in the older generations today, but deap down....the Danes got it good. For example, if you are having a job interview with a senior associate, be sure to not give yourself too much credit for what you can do. You must be very modest and say you will try your best.

There was also an occasion that I was at a birthday party for a friend of Martin's. Some of the group got into a heated discussion about Muslims in Denmark and how they should integrate into the culture. Yes, I agree to some extent, but I had to put my 2 cents in and say that it would do some good if the Danes started getting out of their own culture and opening up more to what each person likes individually. That birthday party represented a very typical Danish event as in that it was a very typical way to celebrate: inviting guests to a dinner, serving (typically) 3 courses, wine, and then ending by talking around the coffee table with wine, beer, coffee and music in the background...and of course candles. It's not a bad thing, but it's the way most every Dane has a dinner party. And to make it worse, the interior of the house is going to have a very particular way of being decorated. Similar lamps, similar chair and tables, similar Danish design, similar pictures, similar paint job. Of course, this was in Jylland. Things can have a bit more variety in the Copenhagen.

It's hard to explain everything in a blog entry. A whole disertation could be (and likely has been) written about how Danish people are. I don't think it's totally bad, of course. I can't say that, because I'm half Danish and I have a lot of Danish friends and family. It's just the way Danish people are, and that is difficult for someone who has grown up the American way: Be proud of yourself. You can do it. You are special.