Introduction (0:00 to 0:58)

* Life in Norway as an American.

* Nick Kamran’s Norway Story.

* Recognition of donors, making this podcast possible.

Why Norway? (0:50 to 6:11)

* The first thing everyone asks me, “Why Norway.”

* There is a long and short answer to that question.

* The short answer will be answered in this podcast.

* The long answer is a book I am working on: “The Middle-Aged Man’s Guide to Divorcing in New York and Starting Over in Oslo.”

* I’m on page 278 or 86,000 words but still have a long way to go.

* The book is called, “A Middle-Aged Man’s Guide to Divorcing in New York and Starting Over in Oslo.”

* Choosing between four countries:

* Singapore,

* Qatar,

* Switzerland,

* Norway - The Minnesota Connection.

* Learning Norwegian on YouTube:

* Teacher from Kristiansand Teaching the alphabet:

* https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DJCK_KYSXMM (Alphabet 1)

* https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vGOH98ZtWoY (Alphabet 2)

* Karin the Norwegian Teacher:

* https://www.youtube.com/user/Crienexzy

* The American accent in Oslo

The Journey (6:12 to 13:26)

* The Leap of Faith.

* First day in Norway.

* Skilled job seeker visa process.

* Working as a nanny at middle age.

* Developing a routine to maximize the day.

* Early Morning – Gym (Evo Fitness),

* Late Morning – Job hunting,

* Afternoon - Norwegian School and chores,

* Evenings – babysitting and networking at the bars.

* Getting the job!

* It took exactly 3 months, 12, days and 10 hours,

* 153 applications, 5 interviews, and 2 offers.

* Courageous or Crazy: where is the line drawn?

Working in Norway (13:27 to 14:42)

* Characteristics of Norwegian Corporations,

* Various workplace scams I heard about or witnessed,

* This is a topic of a podcast by itself.

Becoming Norwegian (14:43 to 17:42)

* Permanent residency in Norway takes three years (refer to UDI.no).

* Norwegian Permanent Residency (PR) requirements for skilled workers.

* 250 classroom hours of Norwegian.

* 50 hours of social studies and history.

* Pass social studies and language examination.

* Compare and contrast to the American process.

* Talking to strangers in Norway and other social etiquettes.

Envy, Jealousy & the State (17:43 to 22:16)

* two words American’s hear but really don’t understand until they get to Europe.

* Personal information is public in Norway. There are several sites that tell the world where you live and even how much you make.

* Gulesider

* 1881

* Proff.no

* The Truman Show, starring Jim Carey, analogy.

* The state's agenda to disable human spirit and character, keeping people in their place.

* The tradeoff between government provided security and personal freedom...