Random

The Hairsaster.

2009-11-14T15:29:00.003+01:00

Yesterday, friday 13th!

Today, saturday 14th! (unfortunately not taken in daylight, so the colour is a bit off due to the flash)

I hate the short hair more and more for every day, so I decided to do something nice so I can at least find something good to say about it instead of listing all its negative qualities. Now: At least the colour is nice!

Edit: And a photo taken in the livingroom, where the light is a bit different. If I take a closeup photo it looks shockingly pink. The truth is, I guess, somewhere inbetween.

Yarnia

2009-11-14T14:09:00.002+01:00

My hallway looked pretty much like this when I woke up this morning. I keep a bunch of short ends, leftovers, etc in small bundles in a paper bag, and the cat had managed to tip that over and had ALOT of fun.

Flying Fish

2009-11-12T20:58:00.004+01:00

(And a very unflattering view of where I work.)

Click to enlarge.

New Glasses (for the umpteenth time)

2009-11-12T20:43:00.005+01:00

So. Yea. Like a year ago I started the process of quitting using glasses or other vision correction. Sometime early spring the process was done and I mostly see ok-ish without any aids. My insane number of glasses has been gathering dust since that (I think I have something like 8-11 pairs, I am not sure).

Today I ordered a new pair.

LIKE, I DON'T EVEN USE GLASSES ANYMORE!!!

But they were so NICE! I can use glasses when they are that nice!

Recycled black acetate and inlays of recycled wood on the temples. Lovely!

I don't have any pictures except these tiny ones (which might die with time as I couldn't be bothered to save them), but the frames are from Jhane Barnes and the glasses are bought at LensWay.se :)

Here.

Semi-rimless/metal frame, acetate temples with recycled wood inlays.

The final collapse

2009-11-11T20:15:00.001+01:00

Looking forward to hilarious-looking 2012. That trailer was the funniest thing I've seen in a while :D

2009-11-10T20:49:00.001+01:00

And I actually have alot of stuff to blog, I have just been too exhausted to do anything about it. Caught another cold-bug and slept the weekend away in a fevered confusion of weird dreams.

So angry not even mud cake made me happy again.

2009-11-10T20:18:00.002+01:00

Had an emotionally exhausting day at work. Decided it would brighten my day a bit to get those worn ends cut off my hair. And that my fear of hairdressers were probably vastly exaggerated. I mean, even if it happened once (actually twice) before that I got most of my hair cut off when all I wanted was to trim the ends, it doesn't mean it would happen again right?

"COM-MUNI-CATION! is the key", I thought bravely.

So I explained I only wanted to cut the ends a bit, max 10 cm. I showed what 10 cm meant. The hairdresser guy showed too "this much, max". Yes! I thought it would be alright, so I let him start cutting.

He started by cutting off some 30 cm in the middle of the back.

....

.........

...............!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Result: My hair went from below my waist to just above my shoulderblades. In the front it is above my nose. It is too short to put all of it in a pony tail.

I am mightily upset, I almost started crying in the chair. Too embarrassing. (Then he made the damage worse by insisting on blowdrying it all spiky straight which is a look I don't like at all, making me even angrier.)

IMNHO

2009-11-03T21:02:00.002+01:00

I think it is a tad early to put up a christmas tree with lights on November 1st.

My landlord did outside the entrance, so for a bit of christmas preview drop by...

New

2009-11-02T06:19:00.001+01:00

New day, new week - new month. And a new year too. First workday of the new year - and alot of early (pre-noon) deadlines for handing in my reports. Gotta run!

2009-10-31T09:03:00.005+01:00

I need caffeine, a foot massage, and a neck support. In that order.

My hands are doing surprisingly well though, even if it hurt so much I was almost crying last night. They are less stiff than they usually are in the morning. Dunno why my right foot decided to act up, maybe the hands sent their stiffness there to be localised in the toe joints.

Now: Coffee.

Belayed clarification: I went bowling with work.

Wishes and stuff

2009-10-28T20:45:00.003+01:00

My mother asked me what I want for christmas.

I opened my mouth (metaphorically, as it was a written question online) to answer and then shut it again.

The past few years I have decided on a specific item I want/need and I have gotten that, usually in advance or later. It is a really sad business not having any gifts on christmas eve and I usually fall asleep crying. Since this year is heading the same way (already got my birthday gift from mother, two months in advance, ho-ho merry christmas and happy birthday by the way, but I needed it and I am happy, don't misunderstand me.)

Last year my only christmas gift was the one from work, sitting in lonely majesty under my christmas bamboo. I knew what it was cause those rude fuckers at work tore open theirs right in front of me. Still.

So I compiled a wishlist for her. Here you go Mum - you can pick one or more items and surprise me.

First day

2009-10-26T19:51:00.001+01:00

Linus missed me very much, he was quite upset when I got home. Too bloody long away, from dark until the next dark!

Work was ok. They gave me cake.

The Last Night

2009-10-25T19:43:00.004+01:00

It is the last night of my vacation. It has been good. I haven't accomplished as much as I had hoped but I have rested. Even sleeping quite alot longer than I usually do. Now the clocks are reset to normal time, and my working year will start tomorrow morning. In a week there is a new fiscal year too, so one week of catching up with everything from my month of absence, as well as preparing end of month+end of year documents.

I am not sure if I am looking forwards to getting back to work - while the absence hasn't been long enough to stop me from thinking about work daily and dreaming about it nightly, it has been long enough to get some perspective. But I expect that in a week or two I will be just as focused as usual, living for my job. And I am not all that sure that is a bad thing, even though a lot of people seem to think so.

So how did I spend the last day of my holiday?

Laundry, folding away laundry, tidying up a bit in my bedroom, vacuum cleaning, cooking some lunches for the coming day, generally clearing out rubble so I can have a bit of a fresh start of my year. Also I watched an episode of Midsomer Murders, finished knitting a lonely mitten (I have not enough yarn for the second), and tried to solve a crossword in Swedish, and re-read Nick Sagan's "Idlewild". Not a very exciting finish but one that feels satisfying enough!

And more Modesty!

2009-10-25T18:52:00.003+01:00

I have e-mailed the company that had these and asked where they can be bought, I will have to get back to you with that information.

Teatime

2009-10-24T15:12:00.013+02:00

I sometimes see things that awakens a strong desire in me to own them, to use them daily. A shape, colour, pattern, use - mostly a combination.

I am a firm believer in the fact that useful things should also be beautiful (resulting among other things in my latest useful purchase; a bright pink bucket - 2009 pink ribbon edition from Vileda). This is also part of the driving force that makes me try to make things myself instead of buying them if it is within my power - I like my own design!

My latest infatuation is with a teapot from a Swedish designer, Gustav Kristensson. The series Halv åtta contains tea pot, jug and cups in stoneware. According to various press releases it comes in two colours (black and white) but I see photoes of it in two further colours, a blue grey and a heather colour. The company Vardagsbruk seems to share my philosophy of usefulness and beauty combined - Silme stamp of approval!

I really, really want the tea pot. Unfortunately it is apparently not in sale anywhere yet Edit: But it will be in sale from december, in Stockholm at Tehuset Java @Odenplan.

Maybe just as well, because I am at the moment unable to decide which colour of the four I like best!
If I were to get only the pot, probably white or maybe blue to fit in with everything else I have, but I also like the jug and cups, and if I were to get pieces from it all I would like purple or black - or maybe mixing them.. CRAVINGS!

Photos from the designer's homepage http://www.vardagsbruk.se/

(Now with permission)

Saturday morning

2009-10-24T09:15:00.003+02:00

I had set the alarm to 7.00, in an attempt to get used to early mornings before I get back to work next week - and I managed to summon the discipline to get up then too. However it was DARK and rather cold as well, and I wanted to go back to bed. Solution; turn on all the lights in the bathroom and take an hour long hot bath. When I came out the grey light of dawn was starting to penetrate my flat. I am really looking forwards to setting the clocks back an hour - lighter mornings! I know it won't last long but it will give a few weeks respite at least.

A cup of tea and fresh baked bread rolls for breakfast. And some photos from my living room window, taken this morning.

Grobot is growing fast

2009-10-23T11:21:00.003+02:00

It's growing visibly with almost an inch/day. :-O

Follow up to the red beets

2009-10-23T11:17:00.005+02:00

Dinner is served.

And..:

Guess what?

Piggy shot

2009-10-22T21:17:00.002+02:00

I've been undecided about the H1N1-vaccine all summer and autumn, but sometime last weekend I decided I want to take it.

The reasons are multiple and complicated, but I will try to sum them up here, in no particular order, since I have been asked about my decision and gotten very varied responses to the decision.

It surprises me that people are so ambivalent to a vaccine. It is based on the same vaccine used for the yearly flu, there is not much new about it in that sense. The differences from a regular flu has been blown up in media but most importantly it is likely to be an illness alot, ALOT, of people get if it does start to spread for real. It isn't necessarily bad compared to the regular flu (most people find it a milder variation), but you know that time of year when it seems everyone you know has the flu? This is going to hit more people than that. Means its a bigger chance you get it yourself.

So, my reasons.

- I just can't afford to be ill. With the current Swedish system I lose all pay for the first sickday and thereafter 20%. If I get away mildly that is a weeks absence and the equivalent of two full days salary. Alot of money to me. I already was ill one time this autumn (bit over a week), I haven't seen the paycheck yet but I can openly admit I feel some trepidation.

- I have asthma. A regular flu is likely to knock me out for not just for one, but two or three weeks with various breathing problems or lung-related side infections. This one has been harder on the respiratory systems of those with similar problems.

- I was kindly informed by the nurse that my arthritis goes into the same category as HIV and cancer in this case: An autoimmune disease that makes me more likely to get severe problems and side infections if I get ill. So in the risk category two times.

- The side effects are about the same as the regular flu shot every year. I've gotten that once with no ill effects, on the contrary, I am very glad I got it because it changed my life. One winter without flu gave my immune system time to recover so that by next winter it could fight the battle, and I have been much healthier overall since that, not getting knocked out completely by colds/flus 5-10 times a year. So I figure I am not likely to suffer anything much worse by this. And afterall, it is free (for the stockholm residents anyway) so I am not losing anything on it.

And then there are the oft-repeated argument: If as large a part as possible of the population gets the shot the virus wont be able to spread and it will protect alot of people. It will also mean fewer of your coworkers get ill and your workburden won't increase to cover their absence.

I was down at the HC anyway for a cancer screening monday, and it happened to coincide with the drop in hours for getting the vaccine (right now only health personell and the risk groups are getting the shot, VIP in the line so to say). But the waiting room was so overfilled with people wanting the shot that I couldn't stand it - and not waiting for what would probably be hours either - so I went home. Then I, typical of me, forgot all about it until wednesday night. So I checked the opening hours for the rest of the week - thursday morning, thursday afternoon and friday morning. I tried for this morning but failed miserably due to being frozen and tired from not getting enough sleep due to waking up from shivering under my duvet (need an extra heat source...). After lunch I was down there shortly after they opened again - and right about time too, I got the 6th to last dose they had! They won't get refills until end of next week, and apparently they are out all over stockholm. Talk about luck.

So dose 1 gotten, the second dose to be gotten end of november.

Side effects? Yes, but I am not sure what is arthritis acting up because of me being chilled and what is due to the shot. What I know is due to the shot is a muscle knot around where they stuck the needle in my arm which feels like a bad bruise if I accidentally bump it against something.

But yes, I really, really, really want to get warm and Linus just isn't big enough to do much for heating up my bed. He is freezing too.

Catastrophe zone

2009-10-21T16:38:00.003+02:00

My balcony looks more like a warzone than ever, but it is actually just the cleaning left. Everything is sorted; most of what is to be thrown away (dead plants, cuttings, random detritus from planting) has been, the roses are winter covered, the various pots and planters that are to be taken indoors for the winter (and washed) are sorted out and stacked separately, and I have set 30 tulip bulbs, 20 double narcissus bulbs, and 10 snow drop bulbs.

Several hours spent outdoors sitting in spilled earth and on cold concrete - I was glad to get indoors and get changed into warm, dry and clean jeans!

I'll clean the wreckage up tomorrow :)

Now I will make spinach-feta pies. Hungry! What are you going to/did you eat?

Bookmark

2009-10-20T17:56:00.006+02:00

I have started production for the holiday card season. This year will be highly customised I think. Afaik none of the recipients ever visit here so I am taking my chances and blogging the first one...

Double sided (and based on a wish by the recipient and my knowledge of her).

The rainbow effect surprised me since I stuck to the brown scale, but it shouldn't have - I know since projects past that the brown scale contains all the colours of nature. But it was unintended, anyway, and I am not sure if I like it. A paler wash of just one or two browns would have been better. Next time...

Guess what!

2009-10-20T17:55:00.002+02:00

Leaves

2009-10-20T17:54:00.000+02:00

Socks!

2009-10-19T12:00:00.005+02:00

The ones with the space invaders are for syf, cause he told me in irc that I should knit socks for him too.

Early birthday gift

2009-10-19T11:59:00.002+02:00

And the robot is there too, but for some reason only its legs are visible in the photo. It must have hidden out of fear of the camera.

The cat figurine on the shelf above my new monitor (thanks Mum!) I made when I was 19, using a raku oven (wood fired oven where you put the dried item in - you have to mix alot of sand into the clay so it will take the sudden heat change of being put in then taken out and dunked in cold water). The cat is nicer when it is in focus and you can see the details.