I know that I’m a bit behind on my blogging so I hope to make that up right now! Almost immediately after I interviewed Beata I had another interviewee named Karin (not to be confused with my supervisor). I thought it was interesting how although I asked Karin very similar questions to my previous interviewee I had completely opposite answers. This was probably because Beata has stayed in America for quite some time while Karin has only been here for three years.
Just for some background information Karin came here in 2009 with her husband due to a job transfer. Overall, her transition from Sweden to America was pretty rough because it was fairly overwhelming and frustrating. For example, when she first got here she wasn’t allowed to have a credit card for a whole year because she had not established credit in the country yet. Karin also explained that when she first came to Chicago she went in to sensory overload because she was not used to the sights and sounds of living in such a congested city. She showed a really good example of this when she showed me two photos, one of which was a picture of her lake house in Sweden and the other a picture at the intersection of Berwyn and Broadway streets. The first picture is serene with the ocean and a cabin while the other is a bustling street filled with cars, bicycles and pedestrians. Although Karin has enjoyed her stay in America she has not considered citizenship because she misses her parents who still live in Sweden.
So far, I have been CRAZY BUSY with transcribing interviews and it probably adds to the chaos already that the museum is in fundraising mode by hosting a gala in a few weeks. Because of this I take occasional breaks from my desk to help set up tables or send invitations. Tomorrow I will have another interview with the owner of Simon’s Tavern which should be fun!
Swedish American Museum 