The next adventure took me to Gothenburg. Lord was of course with me there too. I rented a room on Hisingen (an island part of the city), and studied at the AMU-Center, their course for switchboard operators and receptionists. This happened mostly out of circumstance; the employment agency offered various courses, and I chose switchboard operator because a colleague at the Concert Hall had told me about his summer job as such. Besides, technology has always interested me - I never thought about becoming an electrician or auto mechanic (heavens no!), but to my surprise I thrived at the switchboard. My fellow students must have been envious, and could hardly have guessed my earlier difficulty at learning. With ease I learned everything that had to do with switchboards. Typing I had already learned in Malmköping (as an optional subject), and in Gothenburg that skill was developed further. It has been extremely useful to me, and I am of the opinion that typing should be properly taught to all, especially now in the "computer age".
Personal computers didn't exist then, of course. Switchboard operators did! Not male such however, I was something of a pioneer there. The prospects to get a job as an operator were said to be good, but I had prejudice against me. I managed to land one or two trainee placements in Eskilstuna, but that was all.
Don &
Theresia
1985 my long cooperation with Theresia Holmstedt started, and with
Theorikateatern. Theresia was an old schoolmate from S:t Eskil, who
had studied acting in Stockholm. She ran the theatre company
Theorikateatern with her mother, and needed a pianist for her song-
and poetry program. It wasn't long before we travelled around the
country with music programs, and performed at parties,
institutions, festivals. I was also at times employed by the
theatre as clerk, and eventually "chief of computers". I was also
arranger, translator, composer and actor as required.
The summer of 1989 I auditioned at the Folk Opera in Stockholm -
and was hired! A musical was being put up there, but instead of a
part in it, I was offered one in the choir of the opera Figaro
which had already been played for a season. For more than a year I
was in Stockholm, until November 1990. It was an unforgettable
year. Theresia has said I should write a book about it, and I
almost could. I and Lord rented rooms in many places around
Stockholm during that period, and since I had a dog I couldn't be
particular. I had the strangest experiences for this reason, many
of them unpleasant and difficult. At the same time it was a very
productive period professionally. It was interesting to be part of
the Folk Opera ensemble, even as a humble choir member. When that
engagement ended, I had already worked at Kontorsjouren (a
temporary services agency) for a few weeks. At Kontorsjouren I was
a telephone operator of course, and placed in switchboards large
and small all over Stockholm. I enjoyed it, and thought it was
great fun to change companies all the time. I also had other
assignments, from folding papers to reception work, but I became
Kontorsjouren's switchboard expert and actually proclaimed Operator
of the Year there after a fairly short time. It was sad to leave,
but my "living arrangements" eventually became too taxing. (cont)