Those of us who Sleep

On my last trip to Copenhagen, in the spring of 2007, Olle and Luisa took me along to see a performance of Herr Schreber by Livingstones Kabinet. I was extremely, extremely tired — the combined effects of jetlag and reboot having caught up with me.

By despite my fatigue — and the fact that the show was almost entirely in Danish — it poked me in the eye in a very pleasant way. To the point where, once I returned home to Canada, I emailed Peter and Nina — the Kabinet — to order a copy of their CD Those of us who Sleep in Other Peoples Houses. Peter emailed back, in part:

I’ll mail you a copy of “Those of us who sleep” and let’s say you can buy me a beer if we meet again in Copenhagen or elsewhere.

I was touched by his generosity and resolved that, indeed, I would buy beer when next in Copenhagen. Which is now. And so last night, with the matchmaking of Luisa to thank, Olle, Luisa and I were treated to a wonderful evening at Peter and Nina’s house. I did bring beer — bottles of Czech beer from České Budějovice secured from the corner kiosk — and enjoyed a meal and conversation well into the night. Peter and Nina have two daughters, both delightful and entertaining in their own way. There was Scotch, and fantastic ice cream, and unicycle riding, and the gentle singing of hymns in Danish by daughter and friend at the grand piano.

It was a wonderful finish to my two weeks in Denmark.

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