This year, I have picked up a new skill. Well, I am not very skillful yet but I have learnt how to use the tools and understand bits and pieces of the subject. I am talking about carpentry and building works. In Sweden, it is very common to have the locals building their own summer cottages, installing pipes and lights. Basically, most of them are very handy. And this is made possible because there are websites available to guide these builders on the right measurement and safety guidelines with no charge.
I have been visiting the warehouses in Stockholm - Bauhaus, Hornbach, Bygg-Ole to buy roof tiles, pipes, steels, planks, screws, and anything you can think of to build or fix a house. The plus side is I get to learn lots of new Swedish words or maybe old ones that have the same meaning. For example, fjäder can mean both feather and spring. I got confused when I was told that we are going to buy fjäder to support the fixture and in my head, I was wondering how can a feather do that. Haha!
The warehouses here are so large that cars can drive in and park next to the items. They carry the items either on the roof of the car or with a trailer. It is common to see trailers around here. The trailers are attached to the back of the car. If the items are carried on the roof of the car and are longer than the car, a bright flag has to be hung at the end of the item so that the driver behind the trailer can estimate the distance. I am amazed by this. I have never been to a warehouse in Malaysia and I do not even know if such warehouses exist.
