Lögberg-Heimskringla - 01.08.2010, Blaðsíða 7

Visit us on the web at http://www.lh-inc.ca
Lögberg-Heimskringla • 1. ágúst 2010 • 7
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Are you a member of your local Icelandic Club?
Don’t know where they are or who to contact?
If you do not have a club in your area, are interested in starting one, or joining as an
Individual member, please visit our website or contact our INL office.
Tel: 204-642-5897
Email: inl@mts.net
Wouldn’t your amma and afi be proud?
www.inlofna.org
Are you proud of your Icelandic Heritage?
❏
❏
❏
THE ICELANDIC NATIONAL LEAGUE OF NORTH AMERICA
Iceland’s Honorary Consul General in Minneapolis, Dr. Örn Arnar, was born and
raised in Iceland. He came to the
United States after graduating
from the University of Iceland
Medical School in 1959. He
started with an internship and
a year of surgical residency
at Northwestern Hospital in
Minneapolis and went on to
train in surgery and surgical
research at Minneapolis General
Hospital (later Hennepin
County General Hospital)
1961 – 1966, and became staff
surgeon at the same hospital.
He received an academic
appointment at University of
Minnesota Medical School,
starting as instructor in surgery
and progressing to clinical
associate professor of surgery.
He had advanced training in
cardiothoracic surgery at the
University of Minnesota 1969
– 1970. Then he returned to
Iceland and became the Chief
Medical Officer of the Hospital
at Húsavík, and later he had a
private practice in surgery at St.
Joseph’s Hospital in Reykjavík
until 1972. That year he returned
to Minneapolis and joined
Thoracic and Cardiovascular
Surgery P.A., from which he
retired in 2004. Dr. Arnar
is a charter member of the
Minneapolis Heart Institute. In
1997 he was first appointed an
Honorary Vice Consul and later
a Consul. He became a Consul
General in the year 2000. Dr.
Arnar is a member of the board
of chancellors of the Consular
Corps College. He and his wife,
Margrét, have four children and
several grand children.
A short biography of Örn Arnar M.D.
Þórir S. Gröndal
Fritters are deep-fried deli-
cacies or tidbits. The spelling
is uncannily similar to the Ice-
landic word for news, fréttir.
So, what you are getting is news
regarding Iceland from Florida
and some tidbits too.
The Ft. Lauderdale Inter-national Film Festival featured the Icelandic
movie The Sea, said to be “win-
ner of eight Icelandic Academy
Awards and a hit at Sundance
and the Toronto Film Festivals”,
on June 15 at the Cinema Parad-
iso in Ft. Lauderdale. Since the
date was so close to Iceland’s
Independence Day, the organiz-
ers offered to make this an Ice-
landic celebration. The theatre’s
foyer was decorated with Ice-
landic posters, flags and travel
brochures. DVDs were offered
to the guests. In addition to
about 200 American movie
buffs, there were about 30 local
Icelanders present, among them
the President of the Association
and the Honorary Consul.
There was food and drink
and many of the Americans
sought out the Icelanders with
questions about their country.
Before the movie started, the
President of the Association,
Matthías Eggertsson, addressed
the guests and then his wife,
Marizelda, gave a beautiful
rendition of the Icelandic na-
tional anthem on a saxophone.
The Consul, Þórir S. Gröndal,
gave a speech about his beau-
tiful, unspoiled homeland and
the fine people that live there.
To top it off there was a short
travel feature showing Iceland
in all its glory.
And then came The Sea,
and it was a shocker! It takes
place in today’s Iceland and
deals with an aged fish tycoon
in the East fjords and his dys-
functional family. The story
will not be repeated here but
the main features will be enu-
merated: Endless smoking and
drinking, almost constant utter-
ing of obscenities and cursing,
nudity, many different types of
sexual activity, incest, violence
and talk of molestation, rape
and bestiality.
As the sordid saga ad-
vanced, the sons and daughters
of Iceland could be seen sink-
ing lower and lower in their
seats. When the merciful end
finally came, the Icelanders
sprang up from their seats and
hurried out. The consul could
be seen scurrying out a side
door with his wife. The follow-
ing day, he received an e-mail
from an American that he had
spoken to before the movie. It
reads in part... “My wife and I
were quite aware that the mov-
ie did not accurately depict the
people of Iceland. While I was
watching it, I felt embarrassed
for those from Iceland. We
have seen a number of Icelan-
dic movies, but this was one we
did not enjoy.”
The Icelandic government
has given generous subsidies
to film making for many years.
It also spends a bundle on pro-
moting tourism. Your reporter
thinks that the 200 Americans
that attended the Icelandic cel-
ebration must have been thor-
oughly confused.
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The Sea shocks the icelanders
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A skate “mass” was celebrat-ed on July 20th at Garður on Reykjanes peninsula,
southwest Iceland, St. Þorlákur’s
Mass in summer. Putrefied skate
is traditionally eaten on St.
Þorlákur’s Mass in winter,
December 23, and this is a
new tradition.
In addition to skate, salt
fish and salted fish cheeks were
served and various performances took
place during dinner, which is a charity ini-
tiative, Morgunblaðið reports.
Ásmundur Friðriksson, mayor of Garður and
the skate celebration’s organizer, said 240 people
had already confirmed their attendance and he
was expecting 300 guests in total – a full house.
“We who like skate use every opportunity to
eat it and therefore this celebration has become
very popular,” Friðriksson explained. This year
the profits from the event will go to young peo-
ple living at the center for people with
disabilities at Garður.
This was the fifth time that the
celebration has been held at St. Þor-
lákur’s Mass in summer, July 20. On
that day in 1198, the bones of Bishop
Þorlákur Þórhallsson of Skálholt were
unearthed to be used for invocation.
The Bishop was called Þorlákur helgi,
or Þorlákur the holy, and was considered
a man of miracles in Iceland centuries be-
fore he became a recognized saint by the
Catholic Church in 1985. He is the only
Icelandic saint and the patron saint
of Iceland.
Reprinted with permission
from IcelandReview.com
Skate served St. Þorlákur’s Mass in summer
The fields & groves of NJ VASA PARK
1 Wolfe Road, Budd Lake, NJ 07828
26TH ANNIVERSARY
The Sunday of Labor Day Weekend
SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 5, 2010
OVER
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45+ Craft and
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50+ Performers,
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Kids’ Activities,
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Artisans, Dancing…
FOR MORE INFO, entertainment & vendor lists,
and program updates, or to order advanced-sale
discounted Tickets from the secure “Tickets” link, visit:
www.scanfest.org
ADVANCED SALE: $11
Admission at the Gate: $14 • Seniors $13
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SCANDINAVIAN FESTI I
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