Changing lanes

I've decided to start a new blog and change languages. : ) So, from now on you will find me at http://blabarochmjolk.blogspot.com , in my native tongue. That means Raspberry Swirl will be on hold for a while but who knows, I might just revive it one day. Still, as for now the new blog is where I'll be.

Go Hillary!

Don't ask me why but I really, really don't want Obama to become the Democratic nominee for the Presidential election in the US. I like Hillary! It's not cause she's a woman (I'm nowhere near being a feminist) cause that would be lame but I really do think she would do a great job. She's got the same qualities that Madeleine Allbright had. Granted, Allbright got points in my book for agreeing to do a dream sequence in Gilmore Girls. Soooo funny! Comparing Obama to the Kennedys is just sad cause that's history and it ain't coming back. Obama just doesn't make me care about things. Go Hillary!

On a smiliar note I can now say that it's 99,9% sure that I am going to Washington DC in May for a week's conference. There are still a few quirks to work out ( like booking a flight, registering, finding a hotel etc.) but then I am off. I've never been on that side of the pond but I've been a sucker for it f-o-r-e-v-e-r so woho for me!! It doesn't make it anymore boring that I'm going during election year. Woho! I know I kind of live the illusion that Josiah Bartlet reigns the White House but that's fine with me. I've been watching reruns of The West Wing and it's actually making me feel better about work. As if working in the West Wing of the White House is even remotely comparable to working in the administrative office of a University... ; )

A change would do you good...

If you ever come to Sweden be ready to talk about the weather. If you ask a Swedish person how he or she is, there is a real chance that you will get a reference to the weather back. Something along the lines of 'I'm ok, how could I not be when the weather is great!' or 'Well, you know, the weather is really getting to me'. So we're constantly 'under the weather', come rain or shine. I try to get over the weather but it's difficult when you live in one of the rainiest places in Sweden. People from the south of Sweden complain about it being dark up north but I'd take the darkness anyday compared to this all-year-long-greyish-fog-dampness that signifies life in this part of the country. Frankly my dear, it sucks!

I took a ginormous trip down memory lane last weekend as two of my favourite tv-shows growing up came into my possession, Remington Steele and My so-called life. I wanted to marry Remington Steele when I was little and despite the angsty tone of My so-called life I wanted to be Angela (hey, who wouldn't want to make out with Jordan Catalano?). The shows turned out to be just as good now as they used to be back in the day funnily enough. Usually it's the complete opposite of that. Unfortunately the plug-in thingy to my headphones broke inside the computer sometime mid-Sunday so now I can't listen to the shows unless it's through the crappy laptop speakers. I'm glad the computer or the sound aren't broken but still, I want my headphones to work. Now there's a small headphone plug-in thingy that I don't have the tools to get out, yet. I think a trip to the great Swedish store 'Claes Ohlsson' after work is in order. : ) Or else I'll find a computersurgeon who can operate on it and get it out.

Things that look down and things that look up...

One word: stomach flu. Ok, so that's two words but still. ; ) 'Tis the season apparently. Luckily I don't have it, yet, but people in and around the office has it so cross all fingers and hope for the best. On my way home from work yesterday I bought a huge bottle of Coca Cola, just in case. I don't know if it's true that Coca Cola works or not but at least it makes me feel prepared, just in case. I hate stomach flu, passionately. It's by far the worst non-lethal thing you can catch.´

For the first time in years I'm actually excited about this year's book sales. We have one every year around the end of february and I used to go early in the morning when I was younger. Once I even went at midnight just to see what it was like (early is one word for it). The last couple of years I haven't been all that excited thought but for some reason I feel good about books this year. It might be that I managed to finish two (Stardust and The Interpretation of Murder) when I was in Spain for Christmas. I haven't really felt good about books in a couple of years either so that could be it. I'm already making a list of what to look out for, just in case. I'm just hoping that my expectations won't be deflated once the sales catalogues arrive. Ah well, for now I'll just be excited and enjoy that. 'Tis the little things...

Back after the holidays!

Months and months have passed and no posting. Now I'm back though and although I know better than to make promises I can't keep my intention is to post more regularly now.

Anywho, holidays were great. I spent 4 weeks with mother dearest on the Canary Islands. Very unlikely for me, I know, but I have to say I didn't really miss being home for Christmas. It's not like there was any snow at home either. In the town where I work there were 22 minutes of sun in December... Is that even possible?! So it should come as no surprise that it's been grey, grey, grey since I got back. Wonderful and uplifting. Really.

I've had a lot of time to think over these last 4 weeks, both about work and about other things. I've focused on 'other things' though. Like for example why so few Spanish people speak English. Seriously, goat farmers in Mongolia know more English than a person working in a shop in the Canary Islands (or the airport in Madrid for that matter). They can be snotty and damn right mean but they don't know I word in English. The girl at McDonald's in the Barajas airport in Madrid didn't know what 'take away' meant... Hello, you're working in M-C-D-O-N-A-L-D-'-S! Take away is your middle name for crying out loud! So, for me it was 4 weeks of trying to figure out what people were saying and answer as best I could (which is an achievement seeing as I have never taken a class in Spanish). I got the overall picture most of the time but if someone asked me for something specific (like a pen) I was lost. I picked up quite a number of cursewords and slang though. Always good to know.

After my vacation I can also say that I officially suffer from vertigo. I should get a t-shirt saying so. Mum and I took several trips up in the mountains but there was one trip, to end all other trips one might say, which really made me sure I would die. We took a bus (they use huge buses for tiny roads) and sat in the front seat to get a good view. Only thing was the view made me pale as a sheet and mum giggle hysterically, trying not to gasp everytime we rounded a hairpin corner in the teeny, tiny road. I've never been so scared in my life, I'll admit to that.

Being back at work is both ok and not. I guess I really have to figure out whether the current situation is worth the energy it takes or if there is more to life than this. It's weird because things could be amazing but instead I'm still caught in this situation where I'm not able to concentrate on that which I'm supposed (read hired) to do because I have to cover other seats as well. It's pretty tiring in the long run. February will most likely be horrible to say the least and March will not come far behind. On the other hand plans for May are looking up although nothing's really settled yet. And then it's June...

Everyday mysteries

Ok, so it's been ages since I last found enough energy to post on this blog. Explanation? Too much work. As simple as that. Not that things have changed to the better or anything but this morning I took time. New motto: take time! ; )

The busride to work is always a good place for thinking. Most of the time you think about work, what to do after work, what to eat for dinner, what's on tv etc etc but every now and then something happens that breaks the pattern and makes you think about something else. This morning was one of those times. I wish the topic of thought had been something amazing but instead I landed on 'why do grown men giggle in falsetto?' . Let's face it, it's not exactly manly manish, is it? Handsome men who look like they just walked off a Hugo Boss billboard and then they open their mouths to laugh and... *cringe* Anywho, maybe that's what makes life bareble for the rest of us? : )

The rest of my life smells like paint right now. After 1,5 years my landlord finally decided it was time to repaint my kitchen, bathroom and walk in closet (aka the storage room). Of course they made this decision at the worst possible time for me but hey, my flat will be nice for Christmas. So two days in a row the painter has been around, doing his business, and I've come home to a place smelling like a big can of paint. Nice, fresh but smelly. It really did turn out very nicely. And I got a new lightswitch in the kitchen cause the old one broke (*gasp* they only last 40-odd years?!?) and they put in lightbulbs that are energyfriendly so *clap* *clap* for landlord. Now if they could only fix it so that the windows keep the cold winds outside of the flat, that would be great. Well, I'll probably have to wait till Christmas next year for that. Can't be too picky...

Weekend? Not where I'm standing

Normally Fridays mean woho-the-weekend-is-around-the-corner-and-oh-how-much-sleeping-I-will-do. Not for me though. Not this weekend. I'm looking forward to a day at the office tomorrow. Lovely. I stayed untlil 18.30 last night and I'm staying a while today. Then I'm going back tomorrow. Lovely. Really. Can't wait.