My yesterday dinner (half of it, the rest was a frozen pizza)
Most of the ingredients are from our garden. What a gift to be able to pluck lettuce, pick squash and tomatoes right outside the door. Thanks to my husband who wishes we had a bigger garden!
Min aftensmad fra i går (halvdelen af den, resten var en frysepizza)
Det meste er ude fra haven. Sikke en gave at kunne plukke salat, tomater og squash lige udenfor døren. Takket være min kære mand, som kunne tænke sig en endnu større have.
NEWS-THOUGHTS (kun på engelsk)
Today is the date all applicants to Danish universities learn whether they have been accepted to their first choice, or not. The morning news reported that almost 25% were not accepted at their first choice, so many would have to make a decision to choose another course of study, or wait and try again next year. Additionally there was a huge increase in the number of applicants to nursing school. This last makes me happy. It means that many young people have hopefully realized that it is a good idea to choose a study with a definite job function with very good employment prospects. Not everyone can be (or should be) a Medieval archaeologist, a psychologist or an advertising executive.
After getting a BA in anthropology from CCNY, and having no idea what I could use it for I ended up working as a librarian for a big corporation at, as far as I recall, $8,000 a year, one weeks vacation and living in a crappy apt in NYC (rent was $130 a month, this was 1974)Luckily I was young, attractive and had met my future husband, so I decided to give it a try, escape NYC and return to the home continent (I was born in Europe, my parents emigrated to the US). I bought a return ticket to Denmark and ended up cashing in on the return trip after a few months. It was wonderful to move to a quiet town where there were no shootings, no drug dealers, no homeless people etc. It is still that way, although there are some repercussions and human fallout both as a result of the new member states in the EU and the general urbanization.
To get back to the Theme of the Day- even after over 35 years Denmark, it can amaze me how inflexible some young people can be, when deciding on an education. Having gone through the US system in the 1960's and 70's, where education and job counselling was completely lacking, and I for one was completely "at sea" regarding future planning I felt that the Danish system was a god-send. After learning Danish I took my next education and became a teacher, a profession I have practiced for 25 years.
Here in Denmark we have FREE university level education plus most Danish residents receive a monthly students GRANT of approx. 4500 kr. (approx. $700 US) . This money, which is tax-financed, is to help pay for study materials, housing etc. Grants are not dependent on academic qualifications, as long as a student has been accepted at a school, and participates, goes to exams etc, they get the grant. There is a system of dormitories which are generally more like private housing (no one is sharing a room, although some dorms have shared bathrooms and many have shared kitchens). The rent is approx. 2000-3000 kr. a month, meaning that students CAN get by on what they receive as a grant. Most students have some form of part-time work and are allowed to earn a certain amount tax-free.
Two of my 3 sons have completed a university education debt-free. (one is a PhD, the second an engineer, the 3rd is in 2nd. year at a technical university) So they can start their professional lives without having to pay back student loans. And they have had plenty of fun along the way. I believe any student in Denmark can do this, unless of course they already have a family to support, and then there are other possibilities (bigger grants).
So what is there to bitch about? The idea that the only way to choose an education is to go for what you are wild about (in Danish "brænder for" - literally "burn for") is, in my opinion, vastly over-rated. What you are wild about age 20, may very probably NOT be what you are wild about at age 40. And as a young university student in Denmark you have a very good chance of getting a very good free education - so for your own sake, PLEASE choose something marketable-mainly for yourself, but also for Denmark.
See it as like building a house. Choose something solid that you can build on later. With a solid educational fundament (yes, I mean like nurse, engineer, teacher, doctor, administration etc.) you can easily supplement-you can build on it, you can branch out but you usually don't have to start out all over again (like I did). If you are wild about the educational equivalent of "Castles built of Sand", then listen to the old Jimi Hendrix song, and think a little more about it all.
