About

I am from Michigan’s Upper Peninsula, a fact that has had deep effects on my life and way of living.  The picture below is of Lake of the Clouds in the Porcupine Mountains along the shores of Lake Superior.

The U.P. (as we call it) is a vast wilderness area that is sparsely populated.  It was settled (after the native Americans, that is) by many Scandinavian immigrants.  So there is a large proportion of Swedes, Finns, and Norwegians up there.

My mother’s parents came from northern Sweden (near the Finnish border) and my father’s parents came from Finland.  We were always told that we are half Swede and half Finn, but a recent genetic test revealed that I am 100% Finnish.  Which makes some sense because that far northern area of Sweden was once part of Finland.

So, what am I doing in Kentucky?  Well, in the pursuit of my career as a veterinarian, I moved to various places but finally landed in eastern Kentucky and have been here since 1984.  Also, the winters are MUCH milder down here (big understatement).

During my formative years it was typical to get 300 inches of snow per year up there!  Of course, as kids, we loved all the winter sports and activities.  But I’ve seen enough snow for one lifetime and I really don’t care to see any more, thank you very much.

Sven of Kentucky