Monday, bloody monday

Mondays and me don't get along. Never have, never will. The first two hours I feel like I am massively hung over and it pretty much lasts the entire day only wearing off the last hour or so before I hit the hay. This phenomenon is unexplainable and can usually not be cured by anything, not even unhealthy amounts of coffee. Today wasn't as bad as it can be, I got to wake up next to a warm cuddly body, get driven to work and have some laughs along the way and got to spend the first hour in blissfull silence. By all means, it could have been worse. In addition to a pretty good start I am also awaiting a package in the mail (internet shopping satisfies my apparent need for a pen pal) and the evening shift at my other job seems to be filled with mostly, good co-workers. Bring it on Monday! I am armed with coffee and am not gonna let you get away with an easy win!

Going bananas!

As some of you may know, I have an unhealthy obsession with all things banana- flavored. Gum, chocolate, juice, yogurt...anything goes! This summer I found Snapple Banana...and fell..hard! Ever since I have been hunting at a number of locations for the same Snapple. So far, no luck. Imagine my joy when I discovered coconut water with banana. I thought to myself "I like coconut, I love banana. This is a win-win situation!"; and quickly had to correct myself "I love brown hairy little coconuts, not large green organic ones like they picture on the packaging". Hence, my search for Snapple banana continues...I might have to send a sad e-mail to Deli De Luca (fancy kiosk) and envoke their empathy to ship in more banana- flavored Snapple. Please nice deli people!! Save my banana- flavored soul! I am including pictures, steer clear from the bottom one and e-mail me if you find the Snapple one in the greater Oslo area!! I will reward you with a hug!

Shirting the issue

I love getting mail packages, especially if they are adorned with cute moustache tape and a nice card! I ordered the awesomest t-shirt of 2012:
Bitch please, you've got more issues than Vogue

What more could you want?!

And yes...I'll admit I am a sucker for all things moustachy! I love fake moustaches, moustach rings and stickers. Yesterday I even became a little sad when I discovered that the moustache shoes I was vying for were sold out....I'm a moustachomaniac!

Muffins in Bergen

I have finally ventured to the beautiful city of Bergen, known to Norwegians as "that wet place" as it is a well-known fact that Bergen has the most downpour in the country. Luckily for me the city decided to show itself off in the sunshine so no umbrella was needed. "Bryggen", a stretch of old harbor houses still stand to this day (although some of them are so worn the entire house slants to the right) and is definitely worth a look if you can see past all the touristy crap. Unless you of course enjoy buying touristy crap and in which case you can go bananas buying stuffed animals of moose and polar bear and glass ashtrays with the Norwegian flagg on them :)

If you shall ever find yourself in this enchanting town, do visit "Eat My Muffin" where you can eat lovely muffins (pretty much the same as a cupcake if you ask me) and watch people passing by. The muffin I chose was a banana split and it was gooooood, the geniuses had added whole hazelnuts to the frosting which gave a whole other dimension as it was creamy yet crunchy! My gluttonous self couldn't quite make up her mind, so I also bought a salty caramel muffin that I carried with me to the city center. Omnomnom I say!

So yes, I will defnitely go back to Bergen!

Panic!

Busy bee! That's me :) am trying to work, work out and socialize while planning some summer fun! Puha I say! Not easy when you got two jobs, lotsa great friends and a special someone who lives on the other side of the country. I need to remind myself to breathe sometimes...so in the mornings I listen to Sublime with Rome "Panic" which kinda reminds me of old Sublime but with a splash of soul :) This song is also great for working out or just having a quick jigg!

Domo Arigato Mister Roboto!

I finally got a Domo, in London, a week ago :D he is a furry little japanese monster who is guarding the notebooks of someone special! Next, I am hoping to get a hold of a Totoro! How I love little furry japanese monsters :) do you guys have any favorites? perhaps an anime/ghibli movie to recommend?

Empanadas por mono!

Please don't judge my horrible spanish...at least I am trying to learn a new language!
Last weekend I decided to make empanadas with chicken, corn and cheese...melted cheese...drooool..cheese..cheeeeeese...oh..sorry! where was I?! Oh right! The empanadas turned out delicious but the dough seriously inflated, so next time I'm gonna try poking it with a fork before I bake them. Anyone have a good empanada filling? I'll try almost anything once so go ahead and challenge me :) have a muy bueno weekend!

Upside down birdy

To the chagrin of my beloved mother I have decided to add another piece of art to my skin :) so this Easter I went to Invictus tattoo shop in Oslo and got myself a little birdy to go with an older piece. His name is "Upside down birdy" as I have both my tattoos facing the "wrong" way...but they are made for my eyes so why shouldn't they face me?! He is a sparrow with a smart look in his eye and adorable wings and I love him very much. If you ever want to get a tattoo, please see professionals and keep in mind that it is for life (unless you want to go through both the physical and financial pain of laser surgery).

and mommy..I promise! no more tattoos (for a while) :D hirr hirr

Oh, how she misses you

I live with my aunt and her two dogs and this easter she went to South Korea to visit my parents...so now her baby, Bella, sits on the grass looking for her every afternoon. Dogs are a lot smarter and conscientious then we give them credit for and I am pretty sure she misses her a lot. Come home soon! :)

Sunshine is good for the soul

This past weekend I went to Moss (about a 40 min drive from Oslo) to visit a friend. His apartment is awesome, situated right by the railway station and lies in an old villa that had been sectioned into apartments. It is a quaint little town with lots of old wooden houses, piers and beautiful beaches. Today we went for a long walk along the seaside and visited a gallery that lies atop a hill overlooking the sea. The one thing that i thought was cool though was the "closetkitchen" in his kitchen...really smart when you just want to hide your messy countertop! :) Sadly he is gonna sell this charming gadget...so if anyone out there wants a one-of-a-kind let me know!

Duh, dun, duh, dun, duh...CATMAN!

Today....I'm a superhero! What are you? Stay awesome :)

Oooh I say!

Once again...life has gotten in the way of my blog :P I got a new job (making my job count 2) and I was sick...stupid flu! Now I'm back and will try to regain a respectable amount of blogging.. in the meantime you can look at my fabulous face with some even more fabulous glasses! They are sadly made out of cardboard..but awesome none the less! After e-mailing a nice lady at Mulberry she posted them to me by mail :D so after having a less than nice experience in their store they have certainly made up for themselves! Yay for nice people at Mulberry!

Work all day, more money for play :D

Yay! I've finally scored a job..well...at least until march! Which means I won't have as much time to blog, but at least I'll have money to pay off my student loans. Hopefully I can keep on working there for many more months. Please cross your fingers for me as I would like a full-time occupation :) Have any of you guys gotten lucky on the job market lately? It's tough, but I believe the patience usually pays off if you work hard enough!

Frenchiiiiie!

One day, when I've grown up (don't! just don't!) and settled down with an apartment of my own I plan on purchasing a dog. For some years I've thought about getting a Parson Jack Russell terrier...but they are like dogs with ADD on ecstacy! So after doing some internet research (a.k.a. Google) I've decided that the dog for me is a french bulldog; they are cute, small and have big ears just like me so we can look like a family. I have already lined up lots of silly names for him/her :) Like Doug, Croque Monsieur, French Fry, Boo, Booey, Derp, Tuborg, Pooch or Zelda! Anyone else have good doggy names?

C is for cookie and cookie is for me!

Instead of buying candy for my saturday evening fun I decided to bake cookies after a recipe from www.passionforbaking.com. So tonight I'm munching on brownie cookies with a peanut butter frosting. A tip: there is only need for about 80% of the frosting from the recipe as it is extremely filling so don't bother making the amount stated! They are really good and the cookies are good on their own as well! Yummy :) Anyone else baking tonight?

Hunger Games

On the 23rd of March, the film adaption of the popular young adults novel "Hunger Games" hits theaters. As I am a literary geek I of course had to read the book before I see the movie. Saturday night I downloaded the kindle version and yesterday I downloaded the second book in the trilogy! Sometimes I get so involved in a story I need to finish it all in one sitting (Chronicles of Narnia had the same effect on me). From what I've seen of the trailers the casting seems pretty spot on so I'm excited to see what Panem and the arena look like! I guess I'm really into futuristic dystopias at the moment considering I fell in love with "Ready Player One" before christmas. Guess I'll be downloading the final book any day now ;) Anybody else reading the Hunger Games at the moment? Excited about the movie?

A hairy situation

Everyone's been there...the moment in your existence where no matter what you do with it your hair pisses you off! Even my hair seems to be getting sick of itself as instead of bouncy curls and waves it just hangs listlessly past my shoulders. Sadly my favorite hairdresser has dissappeared so I need to go hunting for a new one and I am dying for a dye job! A major dye job...I'm thinking a copper red or something along those lines. Any suggestions? I'm deadly pale so most colors work for me...and I am not going blonde! Mostly because I don't have the money/patience for the upkeep. Does anybody know any good hairdressers that are good with hair and don't charge a fortune? I think my hair might be depressed so if anybody can get me a good hairdresser who can work as a therapist as well I will reward you with a hug!

Mac, mac, mac, MacGyver!!

At my gym they keep showing re-runs of MacGyver, that awesome action show from the 80's that I remember so fondly from my childhood! All of a sudden I'm back to being a fangirl and swooning all over Richard Dean Anderson while warming up on the elliptical machine. Awesome guy who uses the weirdest things to get himself out of trouble! Outwitting criminals with a paperclip anyone? Swoon away...

Break a sweat

This is a rant, so if you don't wanna hear it go to youtube and watch puppy videos instead! I have finally become the kind of person I used to hate...the kind that actually enjoys working out and feels bad when I miss my workout session *hanging my head shamefully*. So yesterday I was at the gym and am getting ready to shower when this sixteen year old skips into the changing rooms. Girlfriend was wearing a sweater and there wasn't a drop of sweat on her forehead!? Now I was wearing a Nike Dri-fit (<3) shirt and I was dripping! Ok...so some people don't have hyperactive sweat glands, but still!!She was wearing a goddamn sweater and NOTHING! I'll admit, I'm not blind, I see the youngins' hanging around the gym all the time. They usually walk around in little groups (herds is what I call them) and while one guy/girl is using the machine the rest stand around and talk. Whereas I used to hang out in coffeeshops or somebodys livingroom at that age it seems like the gym has become the new hangout. They might as well start selling coffee and putting a couch by the elliptical machines! Note to self: get better headphones so I can run without constant giggling in the background!

Om nom nom nom

Crapple! I am having serious apple cravings at the moment, almost enough to make me go....me pregnant? No, I am not pregnant, I swear on my dogs grave! I'm just craving apples: green, succulent, crispy, shiny apples! It seems to be a thing I have, these random cravings that last for a month or so and then disappear like burst soap bubbles. A couple of months ago I kept wanting yogurt and kiwis...if that's not a random combination then I don't know what's right in this world. Today I broke it down a little with a banana....gotta get my yellow in there too! Bananas used to be one of my favorite foods but then my best friend showed me a seriously disturbing banana video and since I haven't been able to eat one without cutting it into teeny tiny pieces. Funny how some associations just stick to your brain like glue. Any weird cravings making their rounds out there?

Groovin' Saturday Night

Tonight I should be out burning some floor with my dancing shoes...but instead I'm sitting at home reading random blogs that inspire me. So I'll save my jiggy moves for another night! Hope somebody out there is making a fool of themselves on the dance floor! Werk it baby!!!

If you are sitting on your couch at the moment, just like me, take a look at this gorgeous lady and her awesome blog! http://tumblr.icanonlybe.me/

Friday Fall

Just something to get your friday started! Have a gorgeous weekend!!!

Trash TV Gold

Don't judge me, but I love trash reality tv...the really, really trashy stuff like Jersey Shore! It's my way of turning off my brain for a limited period of time. If you watch it you will feel seriously smart as well, so why not give it a go?! Anyways, some guy took funny quotes from one of the main contestant/character Snooki and turned it into a song. In my eyes this is genius, it actually turned out really well. My favorite quote of hers is the one about how the ocean is salty because of whale sperm! Hahaha! Makes my day :)

Work it

I was a student for five long years and have amassed a large student debt that I will spend the next twenty years paying off. Sadly my two degrees don't seem to count much on the job market. I loved studying both literature and media, but I do not want to be a teacher and don't think I'll be able to write the next Twilight saga (Stephenie Meyer has a similar degree to me)...so right now I'm stuck scanning the job market on a daily basis. Hopefully I can get a decent job soon, if not I am seriously considering hitting the student library again for another degree (engineering or economics)! It is really upsetting that universities don't make you aware of this or help you chose classes that can make you more attractive on the job market. Are any of you having similar problems? Any idea how to become more popular on the job market?

West coast blues

The past weekend I went to the city of Stavanger (on the western coast of Norway) to visit some people and have some fun :D Unfortunately it rained almost the entire time and hailed on occasion so I can't praise the weather but the visit was a general success! On friday I went to visit a friend who just moved into her first house! As I am only accustomed to friends with apartments this was quite fun! Right now her yard is a huge pile of mud and dirt but come summertime it should be green I hope. She was particularly proud of owning her own mailbox (it's completely separate from the others) and it is a lovely shade of green. Her couch was supposed to arrive on friday (I praised my good timing) but sadly it was still in a container somewhere so I only have a picture of the couch in the store. We did enjoy a delicious dinner and wine from the cutest coffee cup I've seen in a while :) I can also highly recommend the fish&chips at Ostehuset if you should ever find yourself in town, I almost licked the plate clean!!!

Polar Bear

Right now I have a very upset roomie! His name is Bamse (translated: Bear) and he is very sad because I won't let him go outside in the yard. I already let him go outside once and it resulted in loud barking at the rubber toy in the snow. So to be nice to my neighbors (even the evil ones) I am keeping him inside for the time being. Now he is sulking underneath the coffee table and making sad little ruh-roh noises to make me feel bad. The title for this post is fitting because he looks like a polar bear when he plays in the snow. Do not worry though, he does not kill baby seals! Only expensive pillows and my favorite band shirt (Ed Zeppelin anyone?!)....will try to post a snow picture soon! Have a great day!

"I love you like crazy"

I fell in love with a movie yesterday! It's called Blue Valentine and I think we will be very happy together. Don't expect a Hollywood ending with a sunset and romantic music. This movie is about the end of a relationship/marriage and is filmed with a handheld camera to give a realistic and gritty vibe! The awesomely talented Michelle Williams and Ryan Gosling play the couple and it shows how they fell for eachother and how it all falls apart. This movie really tugs at your soul and I can recommend it to anyone who is sick of the typical Hollywood love story! Two thumbs up! (PS: A shirtless Ryan Gosling is reason alone to watch this movie, wink wink!)

                

Inch by inch

This is my latest knitting project. If the weather keeps up I'm gonna have to wear it for warmth! I haven't decided if I want to make it a long scarf or if I should sow it together to make a circle scarf...any ideas?

You pillow fight like a dog

Do you have an interior obsession? Is it candle holders? Throw pillows that obscure your bed? Towles with names on them of EVERY family member (even that weird grand-aunt who keeps forgetting your birthday)? I love pillows, in every shape and size. Pillows that have a funny picture or saying on them is even better, so imagine my delight when I stumbled upon pillows printed and shaped like animals! One little fella came home with me and was baptized Miloux (it's french for awesome, in my head anyways). So now I have a watchdog for my bed to make sure no scary people sleep there and someone to cuddle with when it gets cold, double whoop!

Icy suckerpunch

It is a winter wonderland outside, which is very pretty to look at and at the same time it can be lethal to wander through! So on this dark and starry night I got off the bus to go home and I had to cross this parking lot. Because the weather has been toying with us for the past three months (RAIN!SNOW!RAIN!) there was a glossy layer of ice underneath the idyllic snow. Before I got a chance to get halfway my knee decided to make out with the ice like a hot mess (slut!) and it's probably gonna leave a scar to remind me what an idiot I am for wearing sneakers in the dead of winter. I did however temporarily solve the pain with some fantastic band-aids depicting superheroes! So now my knee has the Flash and Batman protecting it, let's hope they do a decent job.

Love at first laugh

I have a fantastifabulous (yes, it is possible to be both) friend who just started his own blog! He is witty, charming and hilarious so of course I need to show him off a little ;) I've read his penmanship before and believe me, you are in for a treat....with cream and a cherry on top! Click and enjoy!

http://older-and-far-away.com/

Just to show you what kind of a humor we share:

Leaving on a jet plane

Today my mom left, to go all the way to South Korea which my parents currently call home! When you only get to see your parents once or twice a year you seem to appreciate them that much more. My mom should be somewhere over Russia right about now hopefully in a comfy seat with enough leg room. Once, when I was little, my parents were away and my aunt asked me if I missed them..."yes" I replied only to follow up with "What does it mean to miss someone?". What does it mean to you? Hopefully you get to see your loved one(s) soon!

Love you mom and give a hug to dad when you arrive :)

Forbrydelsen

I have to blog about my current obsession- AMCs' "The Killing"! It is a fabulous tv series based on a danish show called "Forbrydelsen" (the crime) and features a very realistic homicide investigation into the murder of a young girl. Unlike CSI they do not find some "DNA in the breath released on the window shield of a burnt car" or something equally fanciful. Instead they must investigate the murder throughout the season whilst the victims family unravels and the lead detectives' son rebels against his mother in different ways. One of the investigators is played by Joel Kinnaman who scandinavian readers might recognize as he played a lead role in the successful "Snabba Cash" movie. If you like a good crime show with a more realistic edge to it then this is the answer to your prayers!! Watch and enjoy every minute!
                          

Ready Player One

I have a confession to make, I'm a reader! I love reading books and my idea of perfection is to one day own a library complete with a wing-back chair and a table for my cognac glass. So it is about time I write my first book review. The book that really blew my socks off last year was Ready Player One by Ernest Cline (Crown Publishing) and that is why I've decided to start 2012 off by telling you about it! I read the book in norwegian, published by the awesome publishing company Vendetta who also had their literary agent himself translate! He did a jolly good job at it, keeping most of the english movie titles in english and staying close to the original material.

My co-worker called the book a combination of The Matrix and Charlie and the Chocolate Factory which pretty much nails it! The plot is played out in a future dystopia where humankind has destroyed the planet and most people spend their time in a virtual world called OASIS. When the creator of OASIS dies, he tells the public that he has hidden a golden egg in OASIS and the finder will inherit his entire fortune and the rights to the game. Our protagonist Wade Watts is an eighteen year old orphan with a special gift for playing eighties arcade games which are frequent in OASIS due to the creators love of his childhood decade. The antagonists are the "eggers" which is a large corporation that uses dirty tricks to find the golden egg.

This book is a must read for anybody who likes arcade games/ virtual multiplayer online games and the eighties. Ready Player One is also a must read for anybody else who fancies a damn good read and wants to escape into a different universe for a chapter or two! I found myself daydreaming at work about what would happen next to geeky Wade and was pleasantly surprised when Mr. Cline managed to twist and turn the direction of the story several times! Hope this has spurned your interest ;) have a great read!
                                    

New year, new opportunities!

Hope everyone had a smashing new years??! I did! :) Good friends, good food and a new years kiss to go with the fireworks! My new years resolution is to finally get a full-time job so I can get a steady income for once in my life! It would be so nice to be able to plan ahead and make a budget for myself and maybe have steady work hours from eight to four! :D What are your new years resolutions? I hope one of them is to enjoy life :)

Since I haven't blogged much lately (I can only offer my profound apologies) I decided to post some pictures from the last two weeks! First up: Børre! Børre is a stuffed bear which I bought at IKEA. Before christmas they had a campaign where every stuffed animal bought meant a one euro donation to a school. In addition they also had a large plexi-glass box were shoppers could donate stuffed toys to immigrant shelters in the neighbourhood. So I did both and strongly recommend you all to do the same :)

Aaaw, there he is waiting to be scanned and paid for! Such a good fella!

Second up is a little Christmas robot I found in a store in Trondheim (the place with the pretty cathedral)! Sadly he was stuck in a glass box...would have loved to have seen him swing his little bell!

If anybody knows where to buy these let me know :) I'm a total geek so this would fit in perfectly in my little collection of christmas decorations!

Lastly I have a picture of my christmas outfit! I am wearing the most expensive skirt I own, it cost me over a hundred bucks at anthropologie in Boston but it is adorable (albeit a little too tight for the mealtime extravaganze I was about to gorge on)! It is not my most festive look but I was trying to avoid stealing the christmas trees' thunder ;)

Anyways, I hope you all had a great Christmas celebration and a fantastic start to the new year!