March 28, 2024

Comfy and Cozy, the Danish Way

Rehoboth Ramblings

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What do the words cozy, comfort, contentment, candles, cocoa, cake, and camaraderie all have in common (aside from the alliteration)? They are all hallmarks of a Danish way of life called hygge. (I believe it is pronounced hoogeh, more or less.) It’s getting a lot of publicity over here now, with the best-selling book “The Little Book of Hygge: Danish Secrets to Happy Living” by Miek Wiking, who is CEO of the Happiness Research Institute in Copenhagen.

The author’s name is pronounced Mike Viking, which is pretty funny. Just picture Viking raiders on their dragon-headed longboats sipping cocoa and playing Scrabble on their way to pillage Ireland and England. Straight out of Monty Python! It does make you wonder how some of the nastiest people in Northern Europe during the Dark Ages turned into such nice Scandinavians over the past millennium.

Denmark is considered by many studies to have the happiest people in the world, in spite of damp weather, dark winters, and high taxes. It’s the quality of life there that makes people content. Hygge is a way of life that dwells on warmth, light, friendship, and comfort, and just generally being down to earth and unpretentious. You can practice it in a chic apartment in Copenhagen as well as in a rustic cabin in the woods.

Unlike America, Denmark does not seem to prize hard-charging Type-A behavior. The work culture is very family-friendly and most workers go home by 5 or 5:30. None of those grueling 10 or 12 hour days, striving to get ahead. Those with small children can leave work even earlier. This alone must boost general happiness by quite a bit.

I’m a low-key sort of person who can relate to a lot of the hygge lifestyle. I practically worship the concepts of comfy and cozy. Speaking of Danish, I share their devotion to cake. I like a fairly quiet life and hate bling and flashiness, and I dislike crowds and loud noise. However, I won’t wear wool socks or sweaters, even if it’s January. Wool irritates my skin. Also, I think of board games as bored games. I think I know what hygge feels like when wrapped in a down comforter (well-named) in the winter and when walking in the rain sheltered by a sturdy umbrella.

Flickering candlelight might be very hygge, but I am afraid of the fire hazard. Once when I was young (but old enough to know better) I carelessly left some candles burning on top of an old bookcase, left the room, and forgot about them until I found the top of the bookcase aflame. I quickly put out the fire but ever since then, I’ve been nervous about lit candles.

The Danes are obsessed with light and well-designed lamps, which you might expect from a people in a dark country. I hadn’t realized that it rains more than it snows there. I’m with the hygge folks on the subject of lamps. I hate overhead lights, especially fluorescent ones that make me feel like I’m in a police line-up. There’s nothing like a soft pool of light from a floor lamp or table lamp to make a room welcoming.

Hygge probably appeals to some Americans more than others. If your idea of an ideal vacation spot is Las Vegas or Miami Beach, I doubt that you are a good candidate for this way of life. It’s more in line with staying at a quaint old New England inn or B&B. Also, vegetarians be warned: Danes eat a lot of meat (in addition to sweets) and the book contains a number of hearty recipes. As you might imagine, hygge really comes into its own at Christmas time. There is also a recipe in the book for the very popular glogg, or mulled wine, a winter treat.

It helps to increase the coziness factor of hygge if you are safe indoors by your fireplace while a storm rages outside. Well, yes, up to a point. You want it to be a normal storm not a Nor’easter or, God forbid, a hurricane, which will make you so nervous you can’t possibly relax until it’s over, just thinking of how that old oak tree fell during a storm last year and narrowly missed the neighbor’s garage.

Danes especially prize the spirit of hygge in the winter, but in nice summer weather, you can practice hygge outdoors by going camping with friends (no thanks) or having a picnic on the beach (yes, please.) Danes also love to ride bikes for both fun and commuting to work. All their outdoorsy pursuits must add to the happiness factor because too much indoor coziness makes me think of another word beginning with “c” -- claustrophobia. Still, this little book provides a lot of food for thought.

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