Happy Belated Labor Day!

The first of May is Labor Day in Norway. It was celebrated in Gjovik by a parade and political speeches. It fell on a Tuesday this year, so lots of employees had Monday off as well for a nice 4 day weekend. I was grateful to get all that time off from school, as the weather is too nice to be cooped up in a classroom. I joked to a classmate that I have "senioritis"--I just can't get motivated to study when sitting out on my patio with a good book and a glass of wine is an option!

Speaking of senioritis, from May 1-May 17, graduating seniors are "russ." The teen in the photo is "russ" as you can see by his red overalls. The next couple of weeks will probably be a little noisy around here, as the students drive their russ vehicles around, perform silly pranks and drink copious amounts of alcohol. It looks like a lot of fun, but I do question the timing--the students will take their final exams after the 17th of May. After all that excess, I wonder how well they will do? To read more about the "russ" experience, click here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Russ .