The new Kat?

The past week has been nothing but a soul bootcamp. Very therapeutic and very lovely. Me and my summer wife Lisa have been up north, where I have my roots. Where mum and dad met at the gas station, he gave her a ride in his boat and that was it. Some 36 years ago.
We also went hiking and that took me to Norway for the first time ever. Funny thing, guess it's too close to go to unless you walk.
Well, some snapshots.
(Note: the following pics may be of offensive nature, but I refuse to wear make up or preppy clothes as soon as I pass the Dalarna border..)


Meditating in front of the fire place in our summer house, that dad built a long time ago..

Yatzy is compulsory since there's no TV, laptops or even electricity..


On the road between Särna and Grövelsjön reinderrspotting is the new black.

The Norwegian "alps". Food break, very appreciated after a 3-hour walk uphill.

At the end of the day we counted this many steps. Impressive..

TIred but happy when we got to our night quarters, after 7 hours.

Food break again, day two, whilst waiting for the boat back to Grövelsjön.

Blueberries - blue sky

I was here! I like that the cloud looks like an ancient viking boat..

Very clean and tasty water, how is it possible to sell bottled water here?

A typical "Cool cloud"-pic

Back at my grandma&grandpas place. Sadly they're not there anymore, but we kept it from tse germans.

Lisa

Granddads old boat. It's had maaaany colours over the years..

The old wooden church in Särna, from 1484.
And Lisa, from 1978.

The family place from the path to the lake. Granddad was born in the house to the left. 9 people on 20m2...and I'm complaining?

Lördagens middag

Nu kör vi!

Beijing duck?

Blood in...

Blood out...

I'm thinking i'm

Boring my hosts for the evening. Found them facebooking simultaneously. Makes me just a little worried.

Powerful

Sometimes sthlm is extra beautiful

Guilt

Work out in Rålambshovsparken.

But paradise for gadgets..

My digital photo-frame

Announcement

This is the guantanamo for flowers.

Damn you Steven

A seagull dropped a poo on my cellphone display this morning.
While I was holding the phone in my hand.
I kid you not.

I'm thinking I should buy a Redbull and find that sucker.

Sure sign of summer

But i'm heading to the office..

Just a thought..

There must be at least three more exotic options to spend a vacation, than a parking lot neighbouring a busy road. Or maybe i'm just old fashioned and mainstream.

That's probably it.

Swedish post

Marstrand har drabbats av ett gäng lätt överåriga damer med ungdomligt sinne. Inget mer med den saken!

Conclusion

I need to get a better work space. But in order to do that i need a new flat. Conclusion: start fixing all the things the Polish 'handy'man ran away from (with my spare keys). Just like me to consider selling when prices dip. But hey. I have a bed up in my ceiling. I'm 30. That about says it all.

Bugger

Unfortunately travelling almost inevitably gives you the travel bug. I've been bitten by it.

So, that's why I'm currently surfing backpacker communities, reading, commenting, feeling like one of them. Only now I am an observer. Six months ago I was part of all that and now I'm a regular 9-5 workforce member. I find myself feeling like a tragic has-been reading these forums.

I wonder if the travel bug is a seasonal creature. A year ago I had quit my job and was seven weeks away from my big adventure, starting in Thailand.

I can't help but catching that vibe again.

I'm infected.

But I like it.

And now I'm reading up on this interesting concept.

(and I also always want to go back to Oz and NZ. I might need to make a lottery plan)

Oz nostalgia..Oct 13th last year

A sweet saturday in sthlm

I happen to have the best niece ever...

Sommar i P1

This is my summer treasure*.
Gonna do me some catching up the next few days. Me, rocks, sun, birds, sea and hours of radio gaga.

*for all you non-swedes - every year the Swedish public service radio picks out interesting Swedes with various backgrounds - actors, artists, professors, austronauts and what not- and gives them roughly 1,5 hours to talk about whatever they choose and play their favourite music. Nowadays you can download podcasts if you're not in front of a radio at 13:05 on a daily basis. It's brilliant, it's horrifying and it's as natural a summer tradition as schnaps, rain and strawberries on midsummers eve. Which is another story to tell.

Es regnet

Real housesitter-weather today, the skies just opened up and currently the parkinglevel in our building is transforming into more of a swimmingpool area, only with cars in it instead of people.

Sick as it may be, the people in this building are honestly happy about the thunder and rain, cause that will give us a boost in business.

Tomorrow I'm back to hating rain and thunder though, cause I'll be going here

And I want it to look like this.

This is sooo good

Fight fire with fire!

Stockholm dreaming

Reports tell us that next week will be supernice and hot: 30-something (kind of like me then ;)
Good thing my sister gave me four days in the Sthlm archipelago for my B-day...
Living the dreammmmm

(Let's ignore the fact that I have shitloads to do at work before that dream kicks in)

?ATC

I have a real"sexandthecity"-type problem. There's this wedding party on Saturday and I have nothing to wear. Totally clueless (oh, and very busy, to add some extra SATC-flavour)
Is there perhaps a gadget out there somewhere that generates party outfits on short notice?

Bring it on people, bring it on.

Note to self

Cable management anyone??
I think my cred as a spokeswoman for wireless homes would plummet if anyone saw this.
So....let's not mention this to anyone, ok?

Meanwhile in Sthlm

It's 6am, I'm ridiculously tired but I just wanted to say that I finally have that safe person in my life. A rock to lean on or something.

His name is Maxtor, and I'm not ashamed to say he is my backup-plan.

Midsummers eve

Back home and I can only say it was the Swedish Midsummer defined. Except for the sun. It's supposed to be cold and rainy, but yesterday was anything but that.
We even finished the evening at the good old dansbana, with a DJ from 1930 and we probably scared one or two families while dancing away.
I won a limbo competition.
Still got it.

Christoffer, salad meister


Some of the good stuff

Saras smile and sara.

The first swim for me, but Niklas is experienced

Mike's gone fishing

Triple play

Marky mark and Justin

games is a compulsory thing on ME.
Of course I won, together with Christoffer.

I have a firm grip of Lisa.

Pleased with the set-up

Socialising

The Midsommarstång is the most important symbol. Originally it has to do with fertility I think and Mike likes his beer.

Now: second half Holland - Russia. Awesome regrouping activity that includes me, sofa, popcorn and diet coke. I'll sort my unhealthy self out some other day.

Easy as.

Business or pleasure?

Finish my Power Point-presentation for tomorrows kick-off, aka "Roll-on" or watch Italy-France at Lisa's....

I'm thinking I'm already heading down T-street...

That's how we roll

dam. I'm knackered, broken, stuffed...this has been a week to remember, that's for sure. Some people may not remember everything, but I certainly do.

We have explored and unveiled the romantic aura around the whole camping concept and I must say, despite the not so glamorous aspects of freezing/boiling in a tent, it really is all that. Cool neighbours, splendid weather, fucking awesome game against Greece and heaps of cold beer and Jaeger all contributed to a week that will be very dreamy in my book for years to come.

I'll also have a good story for the litte future buggers that'll be my grandkids - a mad afterparty with a Swedish legendary world champion. My, my. For some weird reason, that seems very distant at the moment, I had an early teenage crush on him. Very bisarr.

I managed to make good use of my love The Camera and find myself back with 696 pics and close to 0 disk space. For obvious reasons I won't be able to put them all here, but I'll try to locate an online album somewhere.

Over and out, hellish laundry going on..

Oh, what a ride...

Sweden - Greece 2-0

2008-06-10

Will get back with more reports from my week in euphoria...

Now I have to get my tired butt to Toves 30th B-day-bash. Oh my. Need to dry up after this..

Bye, bye 20s

Take a good look...

This is the last pic of me as 20-something...

Gaah...