Out on a Limb

It is the small thrills that give life its spice, not the big, well-planned adventures. One of the small things that makes my lazy summer days something more than just idle recreation is harvesting mussels from the bare rock face just a few feet from the boathouse of our southern Norwegian summer house. It is the perfect thing to do on days when the sun is shining from long before you awake till almost midnight, when even going out on the fjord to catch a few fish seems like too much of an effort. There are not many days like that in Norway, so every minute of them is savored, knowing that it might well be another year until the next time cold wind, clouds, and rain agree to leave us alone.