Yesterday we brought our sprillans new fluoroscopic egg lamp down to the incubator in the basement, lifted the cover, picked an egg up and COULD SEE THROUGH THE SHELL! We saw the blood vessels, and inside each egg a small spidery dark spot that, according to the brochure that came with the incubator, had to be the one-week-old chicken itself. It was indeed a David Attenboroughish moment (but impossible to catch with my camera)! And waiting is now, if possible, yet more eager. A strange thing though, is that there is a big difference, mentally, between the way we look at the eggs we everyday bring from the hen house in to the refrigerator (eggs we will eat) and the eggs we very carefully brought to the incubator. The same kind of eggs, but the knowledge that these last-mentioned ones might have a future as chickens made them feel like real treasures. But all eggs are treasures, I think. True miracles.

PS. Only a fertilized egg contains the beginning of a chicken. Eggs from hens held in factories are not fertilized, as the industrial hens never meet a rooster. (Drawings atop by me.)

On Sunday we put 19 eggs in the incubator, and then poured some water into the small watertank and turned the motor on. Now and then we run down to the basement to check the temperature and keep an eye on the machine. 21 days (from Sunday April 1) we will do this while waiting. And we keep our fingers crossed that everything will go well. (The nice sign, by the way, is from Järna, close to the café.)

On Friday evening, at the National Library of Sweden, it was the opening of the exhibition Svensk Bokkonst 2011 and also the prize ceremony for the rewarded books. Me, Ingamaj and Jakob was there.

Juryns skrev så här om INGAMAJ: En ljuvlig liten bok med en inte alls insmickrande historia om livets logik och tragik. Utmärkt tekniskt utförande i ett tilltalande format. En skön men tragisk liten bokpärla.

Tack, Svensk Bokkonst!

We have bought ourselves an incubator. Hopefully in three weeks there will be chickens! But at this point a lot of things seem uncertain. Are the collected eggs fertilized? Have they been stored under the best of conditions while waiting for going in to the incubator? Will the thermostat work? Will the automatic egg rotator manage to imitate the care of a tender mother hen?
We have learned that the first step is to collect newly laid eggs, keep them in a cool place with the tip down for at least a day, maximum a week, put them all together inside the incubator... and wait. On Sunday we will turn on the machine. And then the waiting-part will start! (The last two photos from last year, when the children in school took care of extremely newborn chickens.)

I like this (Swedish) magazine. Trädgårdsliv. Always a lot to read and to get inspired by. In the latest issue you can read about Villa Augustus in Dordrecht, The Netherlands. (More photos here.) I'd like to go there.

New in my shop: my latest book Vad har du bakom ryggen?

A year since we came back from India, suddenly remembered the seeds I bought there. Don´t know how old they are or if they will ever grow, but at least I have to give them a try. Inside the colorfully illustrated bags small parcels made of sheets of Indian newspapers were waiting, and in the parcels I found the seedlings. An Indian seed report in a couple of weeks, then..

Indian bookcovers, more here (50 watts)

This book sure does look amazing! Wildwood, written by Colin Meloy, illustrated by Carson Ellis. Some time ago, Ingela sent me this youtube clip. After having seen it I knew I had to go get the book. Haven't read it yet. But I will!

Wildwood Chronicles webbpage

A small corner of the city Oskarshamn, and blueberry sprigs in bloom.

Good Norway illustration: Åshild Kanstad Johnsen and Mari Kanstad Johnsen and Katrin Berge!

Illustrations for Respons, a new-born Swedish magazine. This is a kind of commission that I favor; reading an interesting article, trying to find its kernel, making an illustration out of thoughts. This article, about how the scientists today have to struggle against technocratic monitoring, was a well needed reminder of that I, nowadays, almost never feed my brain with texts longer than the absolutely shortest newspaper notices.

A quick trip to Stockholm. Spoke about my new book (Vad har du bakom ryggen?) at a gathering at the publishing house Rabén & Sjögren and had two suddenly unexpected and unscheduled free hours before going back home. Hurried to see some exhibitions, passed the entrance to the art school I went to during a school term in the late 90s, saw Evert Taube, the yet sleeping funfair, the slumbering plantations in Kungsträdgården and then raced to the train. And when I came back to work it was Friday again.

Maja Qvarnström & Erik Lagerwall, Tjugo i fyra. Mer här.
Morgan Stenman.

1. A ranunculus 2. Footprints under the ice 3. The new light through my windows at work 4. An ex-semla 5. Ingela Peterson Arrhenius (From an upcoming issue of Uppercase Magazine, article written by me. In the Blog Beautiful column in issue no 12, I was nicely profiled by Elisabeth Dunker, Fine Little Day.)