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I have had a day off, a busy day. Right now I am working with the last details before printing. My book is about Fredrik, his life and his relation to his dear daughter Greten and family. That life can be difficult to control, and to realise that biology is sometimes not easy to understand.

I have worked quite a lot with pharmacology and sometimes I miss the Department of pharmacology in Gothenburg. That is why I have written this book where pharmacology plays a little role. The book is mainly taking place in Uppsala where I have studied myself. It has reminded me of various courses I took at that time. I like languages a lot, and I must admit that it has been a challenge to write in my own maternal language. Swedish. Therefore, this is an attempt to unite pharmacology with humanities.

Today I thought of Greten, Fredrik’s daughter. She learns early that life is unpredictable and in a way impossible. Sorry, I cannot reveal more about Greten. During many years I have not know what kind of blood group (A, B, AB or 0) and also what antigen (Rhesus positive or negative) I belong to. To get that information you have to donate blood. So, today I went to see a clinic. I had to measure my Hb (hemoglobin) which is located in the erythrocytes, and that was fine. Then, I could go to next step and to fill in a health declaration. I am now tested for viruses and I have to wait a few weeks to see the results. Then I will donate.

I am happy that my inflammation is rather ok now. I am on training again. That was also part of my day. Back on track.

Suddenly it is very chilly. I have to start to wear a jacket. My weekend was very nice. Lots of reading, and also a visit to the theatre with my colleagues. Usually, I go to theatre twice a year, but now it is a very long time ago. It has been more of musicals. This theatre was “En natt i den svenska sommaren” by Erland Josephson, based on Andrej Tarkovskij´s film “offret”.  A Russian-Swedish drama. I like to watch the scenography where simplicity is my favourite. The scene was beautifully combined with a black and white playing movie with cuts from Tarkovskij´s film. Russian was sometimes spoken. The actors played very well. Sharing a photo.

Lately I have been very bad at cooking, but this weekend I remembered that it is rather fun. I felt very proud since I didn’t need to read a recipe. Making good food is still there, somewhere, but I have to refresh my memory.

Autumn is definitely here. Darker evenings and colder. Soon December, since time passes so rapidly. I am a member of the World Wild life Fund (WWF) and this week I got a very inspiring magazine from them. Lots of beautiful photos of endangered animals and how work is done for conservation. That is why I thought of my voyage to Dubai last New year where I had an encounter I will never forget.

I saw this beautiful bird in the desert and I asked the falconer (Al Saqaar) if I could hold the falcon. It was rather heavy. First I held it on my hand. The falcon was very kind. Then the falconer said “You should put it on your shoulder”.  And I did. The falcon didn’t fly away but stayed on my shoulder. It was a very strong emotional encounter.

The falconer normally protects the hand with a thick leather and cloth cover. A leather mask (Burqa) is tied in place over the falcons eyes when the bird is resting. Simple tools are used to prepare a falcon for hunting. The birds sit on a waker – a piece of round, flat wood attached to an iron rod fixed in the ground and is tethered with a thread (Al Mersaal).

The hunting season is usually during spring when birds migrate from Iran, Turkey, Russia and Syria to escape from cold weather. Wild rabbits, bustards and other birds are the falcons natural prey. Nature, where man and animals interact, is beautiful and fascinating.

Wishing you a “bon weekend”. I will devote my weekend to reading and theatre.

My very first voyage abroad when I grew up was to Portugal. I was 4-5 years old and we went to Algarve. Even though I was so little, my memories from that vacation are very clear. I remember that every morning we went to a little bakery to buy fresh bread. There was also a lot of seasonal cherries that I had during the day. At that time, the beaches were not crowed and I liked to play by the edge of the ocean. And also to build sand castles. In addition, there were a lot of dogs with cute puppies that made me happy.

Today, I meet a lot of people from abroad. Recently, I have talked to a lot of people from Portugal, and I have a rather new interest that I like. I ask, “If you would choose a book for me to read, what would you recommend?”. I do not read the books at once, but when there is an good occation to read I don’t need to go to the book shop and find a book. Very convenient. So, the last recommendation I had was “Baltasar & Blimunda” written by the  Portuguese author José Saramago, and recommended by a Portuguese colleague. I didn’t find a Swedish translation so this book is in English. Looking forward to read it.

Right now I cannot read any books. I read and correct what I have written myself. I have to have so much patience. So, nice to write here to have a little break.

I am addicted to writing so here is a little summary of my week. Beautiful autumn day today. Right now I am struggling with re-reading my writing before it goes for printing. I must admit that I feel a little “empty”. What I have written is probably a concentrate of things I have learnt throughout life. Since the book is taking place in Uppsala, I have thought a lot of my time there. I remember that I was not sure of what I wanted to have as a profession. Therefore, I took extra courses in the evenings. I was very interested in various subjects.

My book touches some upon ethics. What is right and what is wrong? Of course, there are never any clear answers. But, at least, one should think and reflect before making any conclusions. What is wrong today can be right tomorrow. There will always be split point of views about different issues. By coincidence, I saw that there was a book release at NK here in Stockholm where a lecturer, Professor Torbjörn Tännsjö from Uppsala was presenting his new book together with his colleague, Professor Torbjörn Fagerström. I have attended a lecture by Tännsjö once in Uppsala during the course “transplantation biology”. I remember that course very well since it was from molecule to actual life. A huge subject. From interferons to religion.

Recently, I have also watched a lot of movies. Last night, I went to movie with some of my very nice colleagues. We saw the life of Astrid Lindgren. When she was young. A beautiful film with nice scenery and music. I think I understand her writing better now. I got inspired. Her writing and story telling is astonishing. Maybe “Bröderna Lejonhjärta” is one of her best.