Tatt av kvinnen

First of all, I apologize from Norwegian author Erlend Loe - this entry is not going to be about him. However, the title of his 1993 book Tatt av kvinnen gave me the idea to create this entry. Tatt av kninnen means literally Taken by women, it has been though translated into English with the title Gone with the Women (Tatt av kvinnen rhymes perfectly with Tatt av vinden which is the Norwegian title of Margareth Mitchell's Gone with the Wind). After my little fashion palmares not so long ago I have got completely hooked on this idea of creating lists and I was thinking why not to create an interesting little something with some women who mean a lot to the Norwegian nation. I tried to establish an interesting list by choosing women with very different professions.
Just some thoughts before we start: this is absolutely no ranking and the list is not exclusive at all, these are just the ladies from whom I've heard first since I came here. And one more thing: I omit royalties with intention. (It's not their turn...yet!)

A. Modigliani: Portait of a Girl (1917-18)

Grete Waitz
Let's start with an athlete. Grete Waitz, also known as the Norwegian queen of running was the winner og the 1983 world championship of marathon running (among numerous other great results). Diagnosed with cancer in 2005, Waitz is very engaged in the fight against cancer as one of the founders of organization Aktiv mot Kreft. There is an Adidas collection available inspired by her. Some of her advice (taken from this video) before you buy new running shoes: it's best to change your shoes after 100-150 Norwegian miles (approximately 1000-1500 km) and don't be afraid to put your shoes into the washing mashine on a light program in case they start smelling a bit after some hardcore workout on the treadmill!

Grete Waitz (www.kjendis.no)

Rosemarie Køhn
The first time I've met her name was actually in a book about how to bake bread where she was talking about her Easter bread recipe. Eventhough she was not born in Norway, being the first female Lutheran bishop in Norway (for 13 years, between 1993 and 2006) and the second one in the whole world, she is and important woman in Norway. She is also the author of theological books and a Hebrew grammar (that she taught at the university in her younger years).

Rosemarie Køhn (www.dagbladet.no)

Ingrid Espelid Hovig
Every country has a doyen in certain things. You know, the 'ultimate'. If you ask a Hungarian about the doyen of music instruction, the answer will probably be Zoltán Kodály (his method is still used from the UK til Japan). If you ask a Romanian who the doyen of gymnastics is, they will most likely say Nadia Comaneci (she got the first perfect score on the 1976 Olympics in Montréal in the history of gymnastics).Well, if you ask a Norwegian who is the doyen of food and cooking in Norway, the one and only right answer is: Ingrid Espelid Hovig! This charming 80-year-old lady used to work for NRK, the Norwegian broadcasting corporation as the chef of Fjernsynskjøkkenet (TV-kitchen) and I bet almost every Norwegian family has at least one cookbook from her at home. Her latest book Livretter (Lifesavers) is a cooperation with Eyvind Hellstrøm, the leading chef in the only restaurant in Norway (Bagatelle) that actually has two Michelin stars!

Ingrid Espelid Hovig (www.nettavisen.no)

Mari Boine
Putting an artist on the list is maybe not fair since there are a lot of female artists in Norway but I chose Mari Boine because she is the most famous Norwegian singer who sings in Sami. You might know that Norway has a Sami population that speaks Sami - an official language in the country that is not related to Norwegian. Mari Boine is the proud owner of the Nordisk Råds Musikkpris that is one of the most prominent prizes a musician can get in Norway. And just to close it down with something different: Boine is at the moment the artist with the highest income in the country... ;)

Mari Boine (www.dagsavisen.no)

Siri Tollerød
22-year-old stunning beauty, Norway's most known supermodel. Born and discovered in Kristiansand, Tollerød resides at the moment in New York. This young lady has everything that the fashion industry requires at the moment: a great thinness, a tall forehead, a relatively big distance between her eyes and the capacity to make amazing editorial shots! And the best: she was photographed for a campain of the Environmental Justice Foundation in order to draw people's attention of the horrible fact of child labour on cotton fields. If you are curious to see how comes that Siri is so lucky with her genes, check out this video of her and mother Aase!

Siri Tollerød

I had a great fun writing this entry. I hope you have also enjoyed 'being taken by women'... And since we started from Erlend Loe, I can't wait till being able to read something from his oeuvre. From what I've heard, he is hilarious!
But now... I am off to read Ole Brumm (Winnie the Pooh). This is what I can.

At the moment... :)