Epleslang
There are some days that I wish I was an anthropologist. Or a sociologist. Or a linguist. People are just so darn fascinating.
I was sitting out on the terrace with some of my housemates, just enjoying the sun, when one of them decided it was time to teach me Norwegian vocabulary. Their first choice: Epleslang.
Epleslang is a Norwegian tradition that basically involves picking the apples from a tree that doesn't belong to you. You go after dark so as not to be seen, and you have to be quite stealthy - you know, when you're not giggling. I guess it's the Norwegian equivalent of teepeeing someone's house or going cow-tipping in the country.
When night fell, my housemates insisted we do an Epleslang. My policy is to say yes to everything, right? Well, that means I went along - but seriously considered redefining my policy to include a legality clause.
After our little adventure, my housemates informed me that Epleslang and mischief in Norway, at least in the month of December, is normally attributed to Santa Claus. "Seriously?" I thought, "He doesn't give you presents?" Well, apparently Americans have the Santa Claus story all wrong, because there are in fact three of them. Blue Santa Claus lives in the mountains and wears a pointy blue hat that suggests the shape of his home. Red Santa Claus wears really cheesy red sweaters and lives on a farm. These two are active in different years and are mostly responsible for mischief from December 1-23.
International Santa Claus, on the other hand - you know, the one with the elves and the toy shop - also exists, but he delivers presents on December 24, not the 25th. Oh, and Americans have been misinformed: International Santa Claus actually lives in Finland.
I was sitting out on the terrace with some of my housemates, just enjoying the sun, when one of them decided it was time to teach me Norwegian vocabulary. Their first choice: Epleslang.
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| The fruits of my first venture into the criminal world. |
When night fell, my housemates insisted we do an Epleslang. My policy is to say yes to everything, right? Well, that means I went along - but seriously considered redefining my policy to include a legality clause.
After our little adventure, my housemates informed me that Epleslang and mischief in Norway, at least in the month of December, is normally attributed to Santa Claus. "Seriously?" I thought, "He doesn't give you presents?" Well, apparently Americans have the Santa Claus story all wrong, because there are in fact three of them. Blue Santa Claus lives in the mountains and wears a pointy blue hat that suggests the shape of his home. Red Santa Claus wears really cheesy red sweaters and lives on a farm. These two are active in different years and are mostly responsible for mischief from December 1-23.
International Santa Claus, on the other hand - you know, the one with the elves and the toy shop - also exists, but he delivers presents on December 24, not the 25th. Oh, and Americans have been misinformed: International Santa Claus actually lives in Finland.
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