A pragmatic birthday

Yawn. Christ, I'm tired. I've got my semantics & pragmatics brick of a book lying next to the laptop and should be reading it to prepare for tomorrow's lecture, but I just cant bring myself to open it.

Pre-summer has arrived, complete with outdoor ficking and Italian ice cream from Glasskulturen to be eaten on Stortorget, and so I have suffered summer's first sunburn. Not as bad as it could have been, but it's there. At least it's fairly flattering shade of red... Yeah, right.

Oh, oh! Happy birthday, Ida! For you to enjoy on this special day:


(Psst - sadly, I don't own either the photo, from Ten Inch Hero, or Priestly. Or Mr. Ackles himself, for that matter. Oh boy, do I wish.)

Doesn't it tickle you to know he's wearing a kilt in that photo?



Had an awesome time last night, with great food, some excellent music - damn right REO! - and good company. Ida has cool friends. *approves* Although I totally blame those boys for my humming I Can't Fight This Feeling all day. I managed to refrain from singing it all while making the CD, and now it's stuck. Great. And all I can think is, "He sings it from the hair."

Right. Semantics. I'm off.

"Fika"

Fika: fee-kah - verb, fika, fikade, fikat. Practised by a large part of the population, though especially by young people and particularly students. Commonly practised at cafés, but can also take place in a kitchen/living room, or on a blanket. Includes drinking (coffee is often involved, but can easily be replaced by tea, orange juice, soda, smoothie, hot chocolate, or even water), sometimes eating (baguettes are common, as are croissants, muffins, scones, and various cakes), but most importantly, chatting. The occurrence of drink and food may vary, but the chatting remains consistent - a person skilled at fika may be able to pass around three or four hours of time in one spell. Sometimes, cigarettes may also play a part, but after the banning of smoking inside this is mainly during summer when the outdoor cafés are open and picnics are possible.

Seriously, the English language needs a word for "fika". Unbelieveable that such an important phenomenon doesn't have its own word - my dictionary defines it as "having coffee", but coffee really doesn't need to be involved.
Logan, invent one!

Quitters, all of us

So, Lugi lost. No more handball for my boys this season, no semi-finals, no final, no nothing. And, you know, I could live with that. I could live with that if we'd gone out fighting, fighting hard and just not making it. But losing by 21 to 31 against Skövde of all teams, after a game so fucking horrible and sloppy I couldn't even watch the last ten minutes, that is not okay. Damn, guys. What the hell happened? What happened to the team that hasn't been beaten at home in Lund all season? You chose this match to let them break that suite?

I'm giving up on Neurolinguistics, two weeks into the course. A part of me doesn't want to. I feel like a quitter, and I mean, it's interesting, I know that, theoretically. I want to think it's interesting, but I just don't feel that it's interesting. It's too much science for me. If I never hear the words 'neuron' or 'features' again, I'll be happy. And it sucks, because I really wanted to take this course, and I wanted to enjoy it.

Semantics and pragmatics, on the other hand, that is interesting. Today we got the question, "What is 'meaning'?" (in the linguistic sense of the word, first and foremost). And you try explaining - or just discussing - the word 'meaning' without using the word 'means'! (A problem which is apparantly called 'circularity'.) It was totally confusing and awesome.
I think we did come to a conclusion of sorts in the end... I at least got fond of the term 'learnt association'.
This is the kind of stuff I want to focus on.
And now I really want to study the phonesthemes in onomatopoetic words. I've never really thought of them - morphemes have always been the smallest meaningful units in the language to me, but she's right, the phonesthemes do mean something.

Don't mess with Metallicar

So, Easter's over and there has to be about four pounds of candy in the house, the majority of which is my mum's, but still. Heh, she has nothing on Nicole, though - girl had a bag full of Easter egg candy that had to weigh almost seven pounds. And she shared it, too. Can't believe it's been so long since I saw her, she's gotten so big. And I remember holding her when she was christened, this tiny little baby who fell asleep the minute I took her.

I got into a car discussion yesterday with my dad, uncle and my little cousin, who knows a good deal about cars (and who's really not very little any longer, I tend to forget that). They actually wouldn't believe me when I said that Metallicar was an Impala. My own father claimed that she was a Ford Mustang, the others (who haven't actually seen the car) said that no one would think a Chevy Impala was a pretty car, but that it was big and ostentatious. And then they all said that the Impala was a typical 'raggaråk'.
Ostentatious?
Raggaråk?!
First thing I did this morning was getting picture proof, but it turned out that my father had done a bit of browsing himself last night and admitted that he was wrong.
That's right. You do not mess with the -67 Chevy Impala around me. I'll admit that the other years' models aren't as good looking, but oh, the -67... That's car porn at its finest.
And don't you forget it.

I sprained my ankle again. Wearing friggin' sneakers, just walking and minding my own business just about to go into Mondos. Maybe it's time to go and get it checked out, see if there's something to be done about it. There was talk of surgery on it a few years ago, but they decided against it in the end. But seriously, four or five sprains (I've actually lost count) since December... Something's gotta get done.

Payoff

All the work I put into that damn Theoretical Grammar exam paid off. I screamed so loud when I got the email my mum thought I saw a mouse and then I started bouncing so much my amulet fell of its cord. Oh well, I was going to buy a new cord anyway.

And can I just say how much I love my mum? No one makes me laugh like she does, and she doesn't even mean to. Just yesterday we were talking about old ice creams, and my dad and I remembered the smiling clown who had a chewing gum for his nose. My dear mother looks at us, rolls her eyes, and says, "No, no, you're both wrong, the gum was his belly button."
Our reactions:
...

Turns out that the ice cream she'd been eating was, according to her, a naked clown with a pea sized gum for a belly button; which led to a discussion about my mother having ice cream kinks, what kind of twisted kiosk would sell an ice cream like that, and finally how it could have been called 'Magnum Navel' and been part of that campaign based on the mortal sins. And because my father and I have the same sense of humour - that is to say, we are both twelve - it ended with us imagining a girl licking a naked clown while a sexy voiceover whispers 'lust' and laughing so hard we cried. Just a regular Thursday night at the Pernryds'.
I guess you had to be there.

Ida and I were talking the other day about how annoyed we used to get when someone used too much English words when talking (in Swedish, for all nitpickers who know who they are :P)... I mean, shouting 'offside!' when watching football was all right, but otherwise English expressions were just plain annoying. And now, I'm totally overusing stuff like 'dude', 'son of a bitch' and 'awkward' - gee, I wonder why that could be? - and one of my main goals is to work "I'm lovin' you like a two dollar whore" into a conversation.
How things change.
(You rode in an Impala. Without me. You bitch.)

Happy Easter, everyone!

Damn you, Eve, it's all your fault.

You know, for ten or so days every month, I really, really hate being a woman.

...

- Are you okay?
- Am I okay?
- Yeah.
- I just helped you steal some dead guy's confidential psych file. *beat* I'm awesome!

Yes, Ava is indeed awesome.

So, the current song I can't stop playing is Blue Oyster Cult's Fire of Unknown Origin. You gotta hear it. The one on the album with the same title, though, not the one on Agents Of Fortune. That version's just not as good. Animals' House of the Rising Sun has had its fair share of plays lately, as well as AC/DC's If You Want Blood (You've Got It).
And whenever Carry On My Wayward Son comes on I still just want to sit back, close my eyes and enjoy it. Same with Renegade. Oh, and The Hollies' He Ain't Heavy, He's My Brother is also gorgeous.

God, I'm glad I'm not deaf.

Pass it on.

"The best moments in reading are when you come across something - a thought, a feeling, a way of looking at things - which you had thought special and particular to you. Now here it is, set down by someone else, a person you have never met, someone even who is long dead. And it is as if a hand had come out and taken yours."

I finally sat down and took the time to watch The History Boys today, and if the above quote (or gobbet, if you want, though Hector would have at me) doesn't tell you, it was just wonderful. Differed from the play quite a bit in places; most of the monologues are naturally gone, and parts of the dialogue, which admittedly made me a little sad - a few bits I really love were cut, like Scripps coming to the conclusion that God is "this massive case of unrequited love", that he should get real and that we don't owe him anything. But, either way, the essence was there, I laughed a lot and it hit all the right points. And I may or may not have shed a tear or two at the end, with Mrs. Lintott and the boys and the future laid out. Lockwood's fate especially came as a bit of a shock, even though afterwards I remembered Charlie having mentioned it.

The scene where the boys, Hector and Irwin discuss whether or not you can - or should, even - teach the Holocaust will definitely have a place on my 'Best scenes' list from now on. And I decided it needs to be shared with you. Mr. Bennett, Mr. Hytner, I mean no harm in reproducing this text.
Yes, I know, it's long, but read!

Akthar: It has origins, it has consequences. It's a subject like any other.
Scripps: Not like any other, surely. Not like any other at all.
Akthar: No, but it's a topic.
Hector: They go on school trips there nowadays, don't they? Auschwitz. Dachau. What's always concerned me, is where do they have their sandwiches, drink their coke?
Crowther: The visitors' centre. It's like anywhere else.
Hector: Yeah, but do they take pictures of each other there? Are they smiling? Do they hold hands? Nothing is appropriate.

*snip*

Hector: Why can't we simply just condemn the camps outright as an unprecedented horror?
Lockwood: There's no point, sir! Everybody will do that! "The camps an event unlike any other." "The evil unprecedented." Et cetera, et cetera.
Hector: No! Can't you see that even to say "et cetera" is...monstrous? "Et cetera" is what the Nazis would have said. The dead reduced to mere verbal abbreviation.
Lockwood: All right, not et cetera. But given that the death camps are generally thought of as unique, wouldn't another approach be to show what precedents there were? Put them, well, in proportion?
Scripps: Proportion?!

Dakin: Well, no, not proportion, then, but putting them in context.
Posner: But putting something in context is a step towards saying it can be understood and that it can be explained. And if it can be explained, it can be explained away.
Rudge: "Tout comprendre, c'est tout pardonner."
Irwin: That's good, Posner.
Posner: It isn't good. I mean it, sir!
Dakin: But when we talk about putting them in context, it's only the same as the dissolution of the monasteries. After all, monasteries had been dissolved before Henry VIII, dozens of them.
Posner: Yes, but the difference is, I didn't lose any relatives in the dissolution of the monasteries!
Irwin: Good point.
Scripps: You keep saying, 'good point'. Not 'good point', sir, true! To you, the Holocaust is just another topic on which we may or may not get a question!
Irwin: No! No. But this is history. Distance yourselves. Our perspective on the past alters. And looking back, immediately in front of us is dead ground - we don't see it. And because we don't see it, this means there is no period so remote as the recent past. And one of the historian's jobs is to anticipate what our perspective of that period will be.

I love those boys. They seem know the characters so well. Samuel Barnett is everything I imagined and hoped Posner would be.

"I'm a Jew, I'm small, I'm homosexual, and I live in Sheffied. I'm fucked."

:heart:

Oh, and by the way, Logan - I also got a DVD box with no less than five Almodóvar films. Hable Con Ella, Todo Sobre Mi Madre, Mala Educación, Carne Trémula and Átame. Yay!

Our Lord Of The Rings (extended versions) marathon was great. Although I really do hope we didn't burn out the DVD player...
And I want a kitty of my own.

Just about a mile from Texarkana

It always takes me a few days to recover from London... Not in an especially bad way these days, I seem to have gotten rid of the stubborn post-London depression that used to hit me, but still. The city takes a lot out of a hillbilly like myself who's not used to it anymore like I was.

But yeah, I had a really good time. Unzipped! was just awesome - four guys, stuck in a departure lounge after a week in Spain to celebrate their A-levels, waiting for their plane to be ready for takeoff because the transport carrying the little plastic milk containers had been delayed on its way to the airport (which made me giggle because I immediately thought of The Hitchhiker's Guide To The Galaxy and the ship that had been delayed because of napkins). Lots of laughs, rudeness, offensive language (and hand gestures) and great songs, like "Brits on Tour", "Why Do We Say 'Gay'?", "Thursday Night" and "Left Spain". The fact that Haydn's character made a My Fair Lady reference made me snort out loud all on my ownsies. Fantastic show. Seeing it with the girls made it even better.

Possibly my favourite exchange in the show, discussing whether or not Pete got laid:
- You couldn't bag a bag of beans!
- Or a cabbage!
- Potatoes!
- You couldn't bag a turnip!
beat
- You are so gay.
- Why are turnips gay?!
- They're funny shaped!

Although this was awesome, too.
- JB... You know earlier, when you were talking about 'who we are'. Did you mean, who we are as a group, or who we are as, you know, individuals?
- Well, Jordan, mate - you know - I can't remember exactly what I said, and, I'm pretty sure it was a load of bollocks anyway.

And there was a lot of shopping done. So much the guy in security frowned at me and complained that my bag was heavy. Well, screw you, buddy, not your problem. You're not carrying it. He might have heard what I was thinking, because he got all snippy and made me take of my boots when I went through. But hey, now I've got two new pairs of jeans and several new tops. God love Dorothy Perkins. Oh, and I got The History Boys DVD! I haven't had time to watch it yet, but I'm planning on sitting down tonight with a 'Do not disturb' sign on my door. I can't wait, been dying to see it ever since I read the play. I could still kick myself - or someone else - for not getting tickets to the show.

Oh, and, when you hear someone at an airport say on the phone just before boarding a plane, "Just one more hour and then I'm done. I can do it," you get just a teensy bit nervous.

Someone should so open a KFC over here. Yum. And Starbucks.

Still can't get CCR's 'Cotton Fields' out of my head.

Quick Supernatural note... Show, I love you to bits, you know I do, but please, please, you have to start letting there be fallout from dramatic episodes. I fucking loved 'Heart', damn, the ending was awesome, but what takes away from it is knowing that it's most likely not even going to be mentioned again. Same with 'Bad Sign'. Fantastic episode, so much potential, and no mention of it the next week. Please. Consequences. I'm begging here.

Quickie

Yay for free wireless internet at hotels!

Having a great time - awesome to see the girls, absolutely loved 'Unzipped!' and had a huge grin on my face for most of the evening (when it wasn't sad). Lovely to see Haydn again, and in something where he gets to show off his actual voice. Because dude, he is good.
The parental units loved Avenue Q, which admittedly surprised me a little. They're usually a bit reserved with praise.

Oh, and I gotta say, my haggling skills have vastly improved since Madrid, where I ended paying a higher price than the original one. A green leather coat from one of those tourist traps at Oxford Street, reduced from 499 quid to 299? Ten minutes and he offered it me for 100 quid.
And I resisted. Ha!
Might go back tomorrow and see if I can get it down to 75, though.

Proudiness

What? If 'truthiness' is a word, so is that.

So the exam last week apparently went well. Really well. Once again, study group does its job. Frida, we so rock.

Three questions A question and a half left on the 'theoretical grammar' exam to finish before tonight. I can do this. Well, except for the Dyirbal/Arrente/split ergativity question. That one just confuses me and the answer consists of rambling.

So, RENT and Lord of the Rings marathon next weekend. That should be something. Now we just have to set a day for the Supernatural (and Gilmore Girls) marathon as well, and it's all good.

---
Okay, the three ways we know of to mark the relationship between the different arguments in a clause are word order/the order of the phrases, case systems (the ergative/absolutive or the nominative/accusative), or verb agreement. Then we're supposed to discuss other possibilities. What other possibilities, dammit? Those are all I can think of!

WWBD - What would Buffy do?

Fyra timmar på akuten, vätska i mellanörat, spänd trumhinna, inget att göra, flyga på fredag.
Terrific.

- I barely have any skin left on my palm.
- I’m not touchin’ that line with a ten-foot pole.
*snort*

Ow.

Why, why did that doctor claim regular antiobiotics weren't needed? This fucking hurts. I can't focus on my 'theoretical grammar' exam, and now I have to go to the doctor again tomorrow. Damn it all to hell, I don't have time for this crap right now.
Ow, ow, ow.

So stop your love on the road

I have a feeling the party last night wasn't good for my ear. Lots of fun - trying the water pipe was most definitely interesting - but bad. Seems like I'm now totally deaf on my left side instead of just almost deaf. No, Logan, I'm not losing my hearing completely, stop freaking me out! But I do hope that it proves to be extremely temporary, because this is a bloody awkward feeling. And it still hurts. Stupid doctor who wouldn't just give me normal antibiotics.

One exam down, one to go. I'm crossing everything that I won't have to do this one again - felt like the chances of having passed were pretty much 50-50 when I left the hall.

I bought shoes today. Pretty, pretty shoes that were actually my size, which doesn't happen often. You know, I think they're making the shoes larger these days. Size 37 used to fit my feet without problem, but the last couple of years even size 36 tends to be too big most of the time, and I sincerely doubt that my feet have already started shrinking... That's something I'd expect to happen about forty or fifty years from now.
It's not fair. I refuse to start buying my shoes in the children's department. Being a kid on the bus is one thing, being one in the shoe store another.

And once again with the timing

Trust me to come down with an ear infection the same week as the exam. It's probably been going strong for a few days, and I haven't been able to go to the doctor because I couldn't waste the time and miss out on study group. But with all the 'ouch' moments I've been having I couldn't put it off any longer and went today, and now I have a little arsenal of medicine to take - drops and two kinds of pills, three times a day. Awesome. I wonder what the odds are of them killing the infection before 2pm tomorrow so that I can focus on writing about the acoustics and phonetics of speech. And other fun stuff like psychoacoustics and larynx muscles.
I hate drops. That crunching sound that happens when they trickle down and hit the eardrum is horrible. Truth be told, though, I'm actually ridiculously relieved that it turned out to be just a simple ear infection - for a while I was worried that it was a wisdom tooth playing up. That wouldn't have been something you could solve with pills and drops.

I'm still stuck on whether that segment in the spectrogram we were trying to figure out earlier today was a lateral or a nasal. It was definitely a sonorantic consonant and my instincts are still saying it was an [l], but it could be either. Maybe [ŋ]?
And I have no idea why I can't let it go.

I got away with paying child's fare on the bus again today. Twice. Score!
That's another thing about growing older, isnt it? That you suddenly start being happy when someone thinks you're younger than you actually are. I remember it used to be the other way around not too long ago.

Great friggin timing

Damn it, damn it, damn it! (Notice how I'm not saying 'fuck'?)

I've been studying at the library the last few days, going through the questions we've been given, and now, packing to go to study group and go through it all, I cant find the damn papers anymore! A whole friggin pile is missing! The only ones I've got left are the articles, the spectrograms and the exam. All my questions and reading directions, gone. I must've left them there somewhere.
Damn it, damn it, damn it!
No, wait, this actually deserves a 'Fuck!'

---
Frida, I really do owe you that cup of tea.

Did you know her?

Inspired by Gustav. 50 facts/opinions about/from me, one that isn't true, and you get to guess which one.

1. Was born in the year of the Rat.
2. Am listening to CCR's Bad Moon Rising while typing this.
3. Got my first digital camera when I was sixteen and earned myself the nickname 'Paparazzi' within less than a year.
4. I get on well with my parents, most of the time, except for times when my father calls me lazy and complains about the fact that I'm studying something that will lead me nowhere.
5. Despite getting along well with my parents, I would really like to move away from home, but can't afford it.
6. Kept myself from reading Harry Potter until I was all of 21 years old.
7. I'm unnaturally afraid of msn and never use it.
8. I watch way too much TV. But quality TV!
9. Got Rupert Grint as one of my celebrity lookalikes on My heritage.
10. Am a master in procrastination, which this survey is proof of.
11. I very much appreciate a sarcastic and smutty sense of humour.
12. The first time I dyed my hair, it turned a strange sort of mix between pink and orange after a while.
13. I sing in the shower.
14. If I have to choose between Burger King and MacDonald's, I'll go for the latter.
15. Cried like a baby when I graduated in 2003 and still get a little teary when I hear Fame's Give Me Your Love because of the way the song was used at the graduation ceremony.
16. Grabbed the leg of a guy sitting next to me on the plane once, mistaking it for an arm rest.
17. I don't even remember the last time I turned on the radio on my stereo. I have no grasp whatsoever on today's music.
18. My friends mean the world to me.
19. Am of the firm belief that clowns are evil. Evil, I tell you!
    
20. I can still get away with paying a child's fare on the bus.
21. I have never shoplifted.
22. Most Swedish films I've seen, I've disliked. Only exceptions are Tillsammans and Den Bästa Sommaren.
23. When I get off the train at Liverpool Street Station, my first thought is always, "Home."
24. Ended up in the Red Cross' tent at a Red Hot Chili Peppers concert after being squashed.
25. Had Tiger Python around my neck when I was seven years old.
26. Have been to a gig on a boat.
27. I've gotten used to beer and even learned to like it after years of not drinking it.
    
28. Favourite is Corona or Sol.
29. Single gal.
30. Sometimes wish I weren't, like when I see couples snuggling together while waiting for the bus in the cold at night.
31. Jensen Ackles is hot, and a really good actor.
32. Chad Michael Murray is neither.
    
33. Got one unfair grade (in Swedish) and one extremely undeserved (in gym) in all my years at school.
34. I've already reached the point where birthdays become something you dread rather than look forward to.
35. I will never agree with the death penalty.
36. Although I actually did, at one point, in anger, when someone close to me was subjected to meaningless violence and suffered badly. Nothing like a hospital vigil to turn your opinions around, if only for a while.
    
37. "Belligerent" is one of my favourite words, for no particular reason other than that I like the sound of it.
38. Have fainted twice in my life, both times the day after my appendicitis operation.
39. Was the teacher's pet in middle school and hated it.
    
40. Before I got my new hard drive, the most played song on my iTunes was Jump Little Children's Cathedrals, played 42 times.
41. Once started singing Popular from Wicked during a lecture without realising it.
    
42. Scottish accents make me melt, as do Welsh, Liverpudlian and Irish ones.
    
43. Will likely fall for a guy who makes me laugh.
44. I've actually lost count of how many times I've seen We Will Rock You.
45. Voted 'No' to EMU.
46. Get very absorbed and, well, loud, when watching handball.
47. Been mistaken for a Brasilian.
48. I always start smiling when I hear Green Day's Minority.
49. People who use the "She/he acted/dressed in a provocative way" line in the defense of a rapist are scum.
50. The only two horror flicks that have really scared me are The Ring and The Shining.

There you are!

The plastic is coming!

I have to say, SVT has really been raising the game lately when it comes to television. First Veronica Mars, which while it isn't my thing personally, is still from what I hear a very good show; then Supernatural, and you know my feelings on that one; and now Doctor Who. I think this is another show I'm going to enjoy, judging from tonight's premiere. Crack, so far, but really cool crack.

Plus, this is at least one series where I won't have to get distracted by being shallow. As awesome as Christopher Eccleston is, I will never understand the calling him hot.

---edited to add---
And, something on the topic of SN... What Jared wants to see.
No, no, no. Jared, dude, seriously. Do not put ideas like that in the heads of evil geniouses like Kripke and Gamble. And Kripke, don't you listen to him. If you do that, end it like that, I'm gonna hunt you down like Snuggles. You hear me?

Top fifteen 'sniff' moments on TV

Here we go! No ranking. And I take no responsibility for spoilers.

1. Everwood, the Pilot: Father and son screaming at each other in the middle of the street. "- I wish you'd died instead of her! - Well, I wish I had too, you little bastard!"

2. Buffy, Becoming Part 2: Buffy killing Angel to save the rest of the world.

3. Supernatural, Children Shouldn't Play With Dead Things: Dean finally admitting to Sam that he knows their father is dead because of him, and that he wishes he hadn't woken up. "I was dead, and I should've stayed dead. You wanted to know how I was feeling. Well, that's it. So tell me... What could you possibly say to make that alright?" Cue tears from both Dean and me. Dammit, Sam, hug your brother and tell him you're glad he's still there!

4. Gilmore Girls, Hammer And Veils: Lorelai confronting her mother about her reaction to Lorelai's engagement. "Why don't you care? Why have you never cared? No matter what has happened to me my entire life, you've never been happy for me, and that hurts, Mom, it really hurts!" Oh, Gilmores.

5. Supernatural, Everybody Loves A Clown: Dean beating up on the Impala. When he turns on his car, things are really, really bad. Kills me every time. Had there been ranking, this would've been number one. Sniff.

6. Desperate Housewives, I Know Things Now: Bree abandons Andrew at the side of the road in the middle of nowhere. "- Mama, Mom, please don't do this. - I have to. I can't be around you anymore, I'm just not strong enough." Andrew may have been acting like a right monster, but I felt so sorry for him. And for Bree.

7. Grey's Anatomy, Losing My Religion: Izzie on the bed with Denny, crying, while the others are trying to coax her away. "An hour ago he was proposing. And now... and now he's going to the morgue. Isn't that ridiculous? Isn't it the most ridiculous piece of crap you've ever heard?" I cried my friggin eyes out. And I'm not even a regular Grey's viewer!

8. Buffy, Forever: Buffy explaining to Dawn her behaviour after their mother's death. "I've been busy because I have to. I have to do these things 'cause when I stop... Then Mom's really gone. *crumples*"

9. Supernatural, In My Time Of Dying: John's I'm-so-proud-of-you speech/goodbye. And even though those have been done to death, no pun intended, Christ if Jeffrey Dean Morgan didn't know how to deliver it. "- I put too much on your shoulders, I made you grow up too fast. You took care of Sammy, you took care of me. You did that. And you never complained, not once. And I just want you to know... *chokes back tears* ...that I am so proud of you. - Is this really you talking? - *stifles manly sob* Yeah. Yeah, it's really me." Because when John Winchester is being nice, you never know if he's possessed. And why didn't Sam get a goodbye like this? The bastard. I had a sort of love/hate relationship with John as a character... I loved him, but that doesn't mean I didn't want to yell "Shut up!" at him many, many times.

10. Everwood, Home: The final montage with everyone preparing for Colin's operation. Sniff.

11. Dawson's Creek (shut up!), ... Must Come To An End: Jen recording a message for her daughter to see later when she's older and Jen's gone. "Be sure to make mistakes. Make a lot of them. Because there's no better to learn and to grow, all right?" Fine. It was cheesy and sappy, but it was also really sad!

12. Heroes, Company Man: The Bennets on the bridge. Oh, he really does love his little Claire-bear.

13. The OC, The Metamorphosis: Summer's call to Seth. "I'm sorry I'm such a mess. It's just… I miss my friend."

14. The Office, #2.06: David pleading for his job. Poor man. So utterly clueless.

15. Gilmore Girls, Last Week Fights, This Week Tights: Jess hopes for reciprocation and gets it. All together now... Aww.

Phew. Okay. That took longer than I thought it would.
Agreeing, disagreeing? Anything I missed? And if you don't have any 'sniff' moments of you own, well... It's not my fault you're coldhearted!

Oh, by the way - overtone singing is awesome. I still don't get how you do it, but I think that's just as well. I prefer listening to it anyway.

The truth doesn't make a noise

- I am not aggressive.
- Oh yeah? She won and I told her I actually let her win, and suddenly she just jumped up and started kicking me. In the kidneys.
- Oh come on, mum, you didn't really - ?
- Well, I did win! He did not let me!

That's my family for you.

So, my laptop is finally all set up. I got a new harddrive yesterday - 160 GB, hell yeah! - and have now spent what seems like many, many hours re-installing all essential programs, transferring files and arranging music and photos. My eyes are tired, but I've been having a blast. I've also discovered the awesome iSquint that really really smoothly converts media files like .avi and others to .mp4. Watchable on your iPod. It's like heaven.

There's an overtone singing festival this weekend and I'm extremely tempted to sneak off to the concert tomorrow. The singing sounds peculiar and very fascinating. And kinda pretty, too.

For my girls who are going through a shitty time, I love you. Take care of yourselves.

And because the quote was too awesome to pass up on...

The loss of innocence

You know you're losing the innocence and joy of childhood when it's raining outside and all you can think is, "Thank god, this will get rid of all this damn snow." When you don't spare a thought for all the children who are most likely weeping with disappointment at their playground turning green and brown again instead of white. You don't feel bad for them when they come dragging sledges that will be of no use whatsoever on the damp grass. You just gloat and revel in white turning into grey and sinking into the ground, and look forward to the day when you can start wearing your favourite ballerina shoes instead of clumsy, worn boots.

So, I finally managed to book tickets to Avenue Q for our London trip. Middle of front row. Pardon my squeeing.

Hotmail is being stupid. I hate not being able to access my email, what if I have a funny youtube video from someone? Or an important email, or, god forbid, messages on myspace or LJ? Yes, I know that theoretically I could log on there, but really, that's way too much hassle unless there's actually anything new. Hotmail is being very inconsiderate.

Looking in windows, knocking on doors

Seriously, when your eyes start tearing up at the sight of a man in a dog suit making a bed, you start wondering whether you're a woman or a mollusc. Good thing I was alone. But I heart Finding Neverland.

And the Oscars are done. I'm slightly disappointed that Adriana Barraza lost out on the 'Best female in a supporting role' award - she was amazing and lost it to a former American Idol contestant. No, I'm not going to judge since I've yet to see Dreamgirls, but still. Barraza deserved it for her performance. I did start bouncing with happiness a little when I read that Alan Arkin won 'Best male in a supporting role', though.
Jack Black and Will Ferrell were hilarious.
"- I am going to fight the nominees! - Ryan Gosling! You're all hip and now. Well, I'm gonna break your hip, right now! - Hey, Peter O'Toole! You're a legendary in England, I don't care. I'm gonna beat you down with my Nickelodeon award! - Mark Wahlberg! Where are you? I won't mess with you. You're actually kinda badass. Once again, I hope we're cool, you are very talented."
Comedians at the Oscars are apparently the saddest men alive.

We finally had our Supernatural season two marathon yesterday, at least the first half of it - seven episodes, six hours, with a break in the middle to eat something. No better way to spend the day. And like I said, Ida, you know I could've been mean and insisted we watched Croatoan, too, and made you suffer for a while like I had to. Heh.
You know, I used to be completely addicted to Gilmore Girls and Lost, I still enjoy Desperate Housewives to some exent and I think Heroes is awesome, but none of them has ever actually made me think "Damn, I love this show" while watching them. This one does.
They've named an upcoming episode after a Johnny Cash song. You know, just when I though I couldn't love Eric Kripke any more. As if him writing in a script 'Cue music, and you can take take your anemic, alternative pop and shove it up your ass!'" wasn't enough. The man is my favourite showrunner ever. Even though he is a bastard more often than not, in the best sense possible.

I just realised today that I still remember some of the Swedish lyrics to the Gummi Bears. How is that even possible? *hums*
Bumbibärssaften, den magiska kraften
Och visst blir man stark om man dricker utav den...

No way, bitch.

Ooh. Ooh. Let's move on from lists and other fun stuff to something that has me growling and hissing and spitting with frustration and anger. I'm doing this one in Swedish, though, because as comfy as I usually am with English, no way am I thinking clear enough to be able to express myself properly that way tonight.

I Kvällsposten idag finns en intervju med Marko Huttunen, ledamot (m) i Landskronas kommunfullmäktige, som protesterar mot att tidningen Gringo ska öppna redaktion där. Nu kan jag tyvärr inte hitta intervjun online - den finns säkert om man söker rätt, men jag är uppjagad och oförmögen till koncentration (jag kan tala om att jag var så ilsken att jag stammade när jag läste upp intervjun för min mamma) - så jag citerar ur tidningen som jag har bredvid mig.

Vad har du emot Gringo?
- Jag ogillar deras jargong och jag tror att Landskronaborna tycker likadant.
Du tror det? Du kanske borde låta dem protestera själva i så fall?

Vilken jargong menar du då?
- När de slänger sig med uttryck som "shoo bre" och "ey len". Det är inte rätt sätt att hantera det svenska språket på.
Ooh, du... Det var här jag började bli irriterad. "Inte rätt sätt att hantera det svenska språket på"? Säger vem, om jag får fråga? För det första, så påverkar det inte det svenska språket eftersom det inte är svenska. Det är som att säga att ungdomar som använder ordet "coolt" hanterar svenska språket på fel sätt.
För det andra, om jag inte har helt fel, så bestämmer inte enskilda personer över språket. Till och med jag som självutnämnd språknörd kan se det. Jonas Hassen Khemiri, vi behöver dig.

Men om man ogillar Gringo är det väl bara att låta bli att läsa den?
- Jo, men ibland kommer Gringo som bilaga i Metro och då är det lätt att man läser den ändå.
... Jag har inte ens ord för hur löjligt det här låter i mina öron.

Du skriver att folk kommer att bli provocerade om Gringo kommer till Landskrona. Hur menar du då?
- Gringo riskerar att bli en del av samhällsdebatten.
Jaha. Och?

Tycker du inte att samhällsdebatt är någonting bra?
- Jo, men dels kommer de säkert att börja älta om integration och sånt, men sedan finns också risken att de diskuterar varför så många röstade på sverigedemokraterna.
Djupa andetag... Djupa andetag...

Är det någonting man inte borde prata om?
- Jo, men Gringo är bara ännu en anledning för folk att rösta just på sverigedemokraterna.
Jag... Jag... Det var när jag läste de här sista raderna som jag exploderade en aning. Människa, hör du inte hur du låter? Skulle Gringo vara en anledning att rösta på sverigedemokraterna? Vi pratar om en tidning. En annorlunda, intressant skriven tidning, för guds skull.

Jag känner inte Marko Huttunen, har aldrig hört talas om honom förut, och kan inte uttala mig om hans politiska förmåga. Men om jag skulle basera min åsikt om honom enbart på hans svar i den här intervjun skulle jag vilja fråga hur i hela friden han fått en plats i kommunfullmäktige.

Som min pappa uttryckte det en gång... "Akta er, nu kokar hon."
Ja. Ja, det gör hon.

All you never needed to know.

Veronica ville ha en sån här, och what V wants, V shall get.

1. Vilken svordom använder du mest?
Fan, mierda, fuck, och goddammit. Ja, jag svär gärna på andra språk.
2. Äger du en iPod?
Oh ja. Hade inte klarat mig utan den.
3. Vilken tid är din väckarklocka inställd på?
Det beror förstås på om jag har föreläsning eller ej. Det vill säga, antingen 07.30 eller eller 09.00.
4. Hur många resväskor äger du?
En rejäl, som jag fick när jag skulle flytta till London.
5. Använder du flip-flops?
Jag har försökt i flera omgångar, men mina fötter är inte skapta för att gå i sådana och jag får hemska skav. Sorgligt nog har jag fått ge upp.
6. Var köper du dina matvaror ifrån?
Konsum/Coop, för det mesta.
7. Skulle du hellre ta bilden än vara med på bilden?
Jag föredrar att vara bakom kameran. Definitivt.
8. Vilken var den senaste filmen du såg?
Bewitched, med Nicole Kidman och WIll Ferrel. Och la Chenoweth! :heart: Inget speciellt, men okej.
9. Du får ledigt idag. Umgås du helst med en hel barnfamilj eller med en vän?
En vän.
10. Om du vann på lotto, vad är det första du skulle köpa?
Det allra första? Hmm... Ny kamera, antagligen. Kanske en flygbiljett till Australien.
11. Har någon någonsin kallat dig lat?
Jodå... Det kan nog ha hänt...
12. Tar du någonsin medicin för att hjälpa dig somna snabbare?
Nope. Aldrig gjort.
13. Vilken CD ligger i din CDspelare just nu?
Min nyligen egengjorda mixskiva med blandade rocklåtar; Rolling Stones, The Killers, Nirvana, Green Day, Blue Oyster Cult, Triumph med flera.
14. Vilken är världens bästa artist just nu?
AC/DC. Jo, faktiskt!
15. Har någon berättat en hemlighet för dig den här veckan och i så fall VAD?
Hehe, ja, på sätt och vis. Fast det är bara hemligt för en person, och det är liksom en överraskning.
16. När var senast någon stötte på dig?
En utekväll på Wermlands för några veckor sedan.
17. Vad åt du till middag senast?
Kinamat, tre små rätter.
18 Använder du huvtröjor?
Inte så mycket nuförtiden, men det beror mest på att jag inte sett någon riktigt snygg. Jag har faktiskt en viss standard, vet ni.
19. Kan du vissla?
Om du med 'vissla' menar ett oregelbundet gnisslande, så ja.
20. Vem var den senaste som ringde dig?
Mor min, för att kolla om jag kunde hämta upp maten på vägen hem från föreläsningen.
21. Vilken är din favoritåkattration på ett nöjesfält?
Snurretoppen! Det vill säga, Virvelvinden. Eller Berg-och-dalbanan! Jag tycker om nöjesfält.
22. Tror du folk pratar bakom ryggen om dig?
Ibland, men jag är ju en aning paranoid.
23. Vilket riktnummer befinner du dig i?
Jag är Lundabo.
24. Tittade du på tecknat när du var liten?
Absolut. 'Här kommer Piff & Puff!' *nynnar*
25. Hur stort är ditt närmaste köpcentrum?
Ganska litet... Konsum, Netto, en pizzeria och ett konditori.
26. Hur många syskon har du?
Jag är ett alldeles ensamt litet barn.
27. Är du blyg inför det motsatta könet?
Det beror väl på situationen.
28. Vilken film kan du alla replikerna till?
Ja, alla och alla, men The Fellowship Of The Ring sitter ganska väl. Och RENT. Och West Side Story. Ehrm.
29. Äger du några popband t-shirts?
Hehe, ja, en Savage Garden-tröja från 2001. Jag var ung.
30. När flög du senast?
I augusti.
31. Hur många stolar står kring ditt köksbord?
Sex stycken.
32. Läser du för skojs skull?
Inte så ofta nu när man har en massa kurslitteratur att plöja igenom, men annars, definitivt. Jag älskar att läsa.
33. Pratar du några andra språk?
Engelska ser jag nästan som mitt andraspråk... Spanska också rätt bra, och så teckenspråk och lite italienska. Mycket lite.
34. Diskar du din egen disk?
Diskmaskin. Fast jag skulle nästan hellre diska min egen disk än att hålla på och tömma den där jäkla stora maskinen.
35. Har du gråtit offentligt?
Visst har det hänt. Och om tårar på bio eller teater räknas så har det hänt en väldig massa gånger - om ni är obekväma i sällskap med någon som gråter så gå för guds skull aldrig med mig på Les Misérables eller Blood Brothers, eller för att se RENT.
36. Har du en stationär dator eller en laptop?
Både och, faktiskt, men min farmor och farfar ska få överta den stationära på lån.
37. Försöker du alltid lära dig nya saker?
Så fort jag kan.
38. Vill du just nu göra några tatueringar eller piercingar?
Oh, ja. Jag vill jättegärna tatuera mig igen, men jag vet bara inte var jag ska sätta den.
39. Tycker du att killen borde bjuda på första dejten?
Nej. Såklart att det är trevligt om han skulle göra det, men borde? Icke.
40. Kan du kasta macka?
Ja! Jag är döbra på att kasta macka.
41. Har du någonsin varit på Jamaica?
Jamaica? Nej.
42. Vad har du med dig in på bion?
En näsduk. Man vet aldrig om soundtracket är sorgligt nog för att få en att börja lipa.
43. Vem var din favoritlärare och varför?
Åsa. Engagerad, intensiv, krävande och en jättehärlig människa. Och handbollsintresserad.
44. Har du dejtat någon av en annan religion?
Med tanke på att jag själv inte anser mig ha någon religion, så...
45. Vad har du för väder?
Det snöar. Snöar! Boo hiss.
46. Har du en blogg?
Nej. Sånt otyg sysslar inte jag med. Slöseri med tid.
47. Vilket var ditt favoritämne på gymnasiet?
Svenska, engelska, spanska, bild.
48. Gillar du att flyga?
Nej. Så mycket som jag har flugit de senaste åren måste mina odds vara rejält dåliga vid det här laget, och varje gång planet lyfter tänker jag att det måste vara dags för kraschen snart.
49. Vilket personlighetsdrag är ett måste hos en partner?
Personlighetsdrag? Förmåga att älska en annan människa, gälls det?
50. När sov du senast på golvet?
När jag firade min 20-årsdag i London. Sov på golvet i hotellrummet som jag delade med gänget.
51. Vilken är din favoritdrink?
P2!
52. Gillar du din boende-situation?
Jag skulle gärna flytta hemifrån, men jag har inte råd. Och visst trivs jag här.
53. Vilken är din mammas hemstad?
Bjärred, om det nu kan räknas som stad.
54. Din pappas hemstad?
Malmö.
55. Hur många timmar måste du sova för att kunna fungera?
Minst sju för att fungera ordentligt. Men jag fungerar hyfsat på fem timmars sömn också, någon enstaka gång. Inte i längden.
56. Är dina dagar fullbokade och stressiga?
Nej, inte direkt. Men stressad kan man vara ändå.
57. Hamnade du ofta i trubbel för att prata under lektionerna?
Ibland. Men oftare för att spela luffarschack.
58. Vilken är din favoritfrukt?
Honungsmelon, gröna äpplen, vindruvor, nektariner.
59. Bryr du dig om antalet kalorier i det du köper?
Inte så att jag räknar dem, men jag försöker ju att inte köpa saker som jag vet är onyttiga. Fast nån gång får man frossa!
60. Hur gammal blir du nästa födelsedag?
23. "God, I'm so old!"
61. Är du petig när det kommer till stavning och grammatik?
Ja. Ja, ja, ja.
62. Tror du på liv på andra planeter?
Så klart. Om universum är oändligt, hur höga är oddsen för att det bara skulle vara på Jorden som det finns liv?
63. Vem var den senaste personen som gjorde dig arg?
En okänd typ som trängde sig på bussen. Grr.
64. Tror du att Gud är man eller kvinna?
Två ord. Alanis Morrisette. Nej, jag tror inte på gud.
65. Vad var det senaste du åt?
Middagen som jag nämnde tidigare.
66. Kommer du bäst överens med personer av samma kön eller motsatta?
Hyfsat lika, skulle jag vilja tro. Men det är klart, med killar får man ju aldrig bathroom-bonding.
67. Hur valde dina föräldrar ditt namn?
Huh. Ingen aning, faktiskt. Måste fråga.
68. Gillar du senap?
Senap är ondskefullt.
69. Vad säger du till dig själv när allt känns svårt?
This must be Thursday. I never could get the hang of Thursdays.
70. Skulle du någonsin hoppa fallskärm?
Jag vill, jättegärna. Och nån gång ska jag prova.
71. Vilken karaktär från en film påminner mest om dig själv?
Det har jag faktiskt aldrig tänkt på.
72. Har du någonsin köpt något från tradera, vad var det senaste i så fall?
Nix.
73. Tycker du om att krama folk?
En kram förlänger livet. Så, ja.
74. Skulle du säga att du är trendig?
Heh. Jag tror inte det.
72. Äger du en digitalkamera?
Två, rent av.
74. Stör det dig om någon säger att dom ska ringa men inte gör det?
Lite irriterad blir man ju om man väntat på ett samtal som inte kommer.
75. Vilka böcker, om några har fått dig att gråta?
Oh, på rak arm... Ett Öga Rött, Montecore, Romeo And Juliet, Les Misérables. Och... Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire. Ja, ja, jag vet, jag är en riktig mes.
76. Tycker du att du är attraktiv?
Ibland kan jag tycka att jag har mina ljusa stunder.
77. Vad är du allergisk mot?
Damm.
78. Får du dåligt samvete efter du ätit kött?
Nej. Det är alldeles för gott för att få dåligt samvete.
79. Om du var född av motsatt kön, vad hade du hetat?
Albert. Fråga mig inte varför.
80. Vem av dina bloggisar vill du helst veta allt detta om?
Tja... De enda återstående svensktalande läsarna som bloggar är väl Gustav och Logan, så ifall ni känner för det, grabbar, sätt igång!

Oh, baby, baby, it's a wild world

Say hi to baby Elin. Isn't she beautiful? I just want to hold her and hug her and squeeze her and pet her and... I should probably stop before I get to naming her George.
I can hardly believe Nicole used to be this tiny... Now she's almost seven and has a little sister to take care of. How time flies.

If you needed a reason.

Valentine's Day is a proper waste of time and, to borrow Heather's expression, "sux sweaty goat balls". For Christ's sake, why do people need a special day to show that they care about each other? It's just an excuse for the stores to sell more lingerie.
We went out to the union and had dinner and ignored the whole thing. Or, well, tried to. The band kept dedicating songs to 'all the singles out here tonight'. After being forcefed some real downers (I think it was Just A Gigolo that triggered it), Ida summed the whole thing up: It doesn't matter that you're single, because love sucks anyway. Well, that's one way of putting it!

Supernatural this season is more often than not angsty enough and that's one of the reasons why I love it to bits, but it can also be awesomly cracktastic when it wants to. I mean... Alien abductions where the worst part isn't the whole thing with being probed - "again and again and again, and then one more time" - but instead being forced to slowdance with a lovesick sighing alien to Lady In Red under a disco ball? Seriously, do you need another reason to watch the show?



I almost slept through the whole of yesterday. Came home from the lecture, started seeing spots, realised that a migraine was on its way and went to bed. Woke up at six, had dinner, went to bed again for an hour. Got up, ate some chocolate, watched a bit of Mulholland Drive, went to bed and slept from midnight to ten this morning. Damn, I really must've had some sleep to catch up on.

Working double time on the seduction line

Thanks to Frida, if I ever get married, my future groom will be seeing me walk down the isle in the church to the sweet sound of AC/DC's Highway To Hell. I will expect him to headbang. Also, the first dance is going to be either Let Me Put My Love Into You or You Shook Me All Night Long. I'm leaning towards the latter, just because I love it a wee bit more.
Seriously, what could be more fitting?

Well I'll be guiding and we'll be riding
Giving what you got to me
Don't you struggle
Don't you fight
Don't you worry cause it's your turn tonight
Let me put my love into you babe

or

Had to cool me down to take another round
Now I'm back in the ring to take another swing
The walls were shaking, the earth was quaking
My mind was aching and we were making it, and you -
Shook me all night long
Yeah you shook me all night long

Oh, I'm not kidding. It's gonna be awesome. I almost want to get married just for that to happen. Volunteers?

Gah. Now I'm gonna be singing Shook Me... all day. I love that song way too much. Damn you, Supernatural, for making me addicted to the Back In Black album.

Stupid.

Grey's Anatomy is stupid.
Snow Patrol's 'Chasing Cars' is stupid.
Jeffrey Dean Morgan and Katherine Heigl are stupid.
Shonda Rhimes is stupid and really, really mean.
Crying over a damn TV show is also stupid.

And here is the new me with glasses. I like them.

The good versus the bad

The good stuff is that my ankle is better. And my glasses are awesome; watching TV with them on was like discovering a whole new set of colours. It's weird, though - I wore them when I went out, and for some reason I felt shorter than ever before. I don't know why, but the ground seemed much closer. And it's not like I really need to feel any shorter than I already am, you know?
Also, we're going to Grand Hotel's litterature evening on Wednesday to hear the awesome Khemiri.

As for the bad stuff, my cold is still hanging in there. My throat feels weird and I have this annoying ticklish feeling in my nose all the time.
And, I had a dentist's appointment this morning during which my dentist discovered that one of my lower jaw wisom teeth is starting to pop up, and it's apparently facing the wrong way. Or something. I didn't quite get it. Possibly because I stopped listening right after she said that the best thing to do was to get it out. I'm not entirely sure whether she saw the fear in my eyes, but I dont think so, because the next minute she had cheerily moved on to asking me about the difficulties of finding an apartment in London.
Logan, teeth suck, dont they?

Possibly the best line ever:
Always take down your Christmas decorations after New Year's, or you might get filleted by a hooker from God.
I for one am laughing on the outside.

För associationsleken:
Det jag tog från den här bilden som Gustav lade upp var vindruvorna, och kanske på grund av vår lilla sammankomst hemma hos Frida fick de mig osvikligt att tänka på fest med ostbricka. Mmm, brie. Och så skickar jag stafettpinnen vidare till Veronica!

In which I try (and fail miserably) not to curse

Oh, how I would love to pull a Lara right now... But I'm not as gifted as she is when it comes to cursing, so I will settle for fuckfuckfuckfuck (se, Gustav, jag sade ju att jag svär som en borstbindare) because I've sprained my hopeless fucking ankle again. Yeah. Just doing something as simple as crossing a friggin' street. You'd think that'd go smoothly, but not when you're me. No, when you're me, your ankle suddenly - without warning or reason - gives way in the middle of the street so that you have to limp the 400 meters left with tears in your eyes, begging God or whoever, anyone, to just let you get home and sit down.
I hate my fickle fucking feet.

On a slightly brighter note I picked up my new glasses before this happened, and wow! I can see!

Oh, and it's been a while since one of these. Not for a lack of making them, trust me, more for sympathy with my readers, but here we go.
I want an Impala for my birthday this year. Please? She's so pretty, and I promise I'll pet her and wash her and call her baby. Never mind that I don't have a driver's license.

Och just det ja, jag blev ju utmanad! Jag funderar, Gustav! Har inte hittat någon lämplig bild än.

Sniffle

I have a cold coming, and I thought I'd post before it takes hold completely and leaves me unable to do anything but whine.

Wednesday is a long day. Two different sets of lectures, one in the morning and one in the afternoon. I've gotten so spoiled with only having two or three hours a day for the last couple of months. Funny thing is, though, I don't mind at all. Sure, it's a little tiring, but it's too much fun to be annoyed. And it's great to see how many are taking 'Grammar' - we're practically as many now as we were at the A level.
You know what else is great? Picking up your exam only to discover that the grade you received was wrong and that you'd actually done better than you thought you did. That's quite nice.

I don't want to jinx anything, but there might be a very, very good reason to go to London and see Avenue Q this summer. I'm keeping everything crossed. Fingers, legs and toes.

By the way, Supernatural spoilers are teh awesome. I dont know how I'm going to be able to wait for over a week. And Jared and Jensen make me giggle - in an interview they were asked what kind of movies they watch, answered that they both like Westerns and then... Well, elaborated.

Jensen: When I was six years old I used to get up in the morning, put on a leather belt with two six-shooter cap guns and roam around the house. Very little's changed.
Jared: Me too. I still wear arseless chaps around the house, actually. I'm a special kinda cowboy!

I pity Jared's publicist.

The jig is up

I'm tired. This whole only having lectures twice a week... Sure, it sounds neat, but it's really not. Having nothing to do somehow takes away all my energy. I need a job. And dudes, we need to arrange that study group we were talking about - a few more weeks of this hanging around at home and I'm going to be stark raving mad. So now, I'm going to drag my ass up into town, shop for some gifts, maybe sit down and read for a bit a the café. Tomorrow I'm going swimming. I need to find some sort of structure, get a routine. Do something besides yawning.

Oh, the Swedish cast of Avenue Q was on TV the other day. My reaction was... Eh. 'It sucks to be me' - 'Det är skit att vara jag'? "Det är skit att va' jag! Det suger helt fett!" Sigh. No, I'm not getting into the translation debate - again - but you can see where I'm going, right?
The puppet voices sounded more childish than anything else. Christmas Eve was sort of, well, bad. I'll still want to go see it, of course, there's no way I could resist. But you are all running the risk of having me bitching afterwards. Not that me bitching is new.

Oh, one more thing... I know I have what you might call and odd taste in music, but please, people, tell me you know where this is from.
Oh mama I'm in fear for my life
From the long arm of the law
Lawman has put an end to my running
And I'm so far from my home

Heh. I found this the other day - I think it's from the second grade. MiniMe.
Ah, tonight is the night of ogling. Yes, yes, it's Supernatural night.

Definite reason for squeeage

I just realised that I forgot to tell you...
I passed the second exam as well! Languages of the world. Verb agreement and Klingon. I passed! Hell fucking yes, it's over! I'm very tempted to make a little bonfire with the booklet... When the weather isn't as rainy, of course, I wouldn't want the fire to die down when it's only eaten half the book. Everything's gotta go. Leave nothing.

As it happens, some of my - lovely, fantastic, amazing, awesome - coursemates have now got this adress as well. Crap. That means I'll have to start watching what I say around here. I never mentioned the cocaine we snort together in the bathroom during breaks, did I?

Had a great time at Frida's last night, but the evening was soiled just a little by stupid buses that don't manage their time schedule. Waiting for the bus for 40 minutes at half one? Not fun. Very, very cold.

I get my glasses next week sometime. I ended up choosing a different pair than the ones I showed you guys on here, but they're quite similar to the first pair. Just not quite as framed. It's going to be very interesting getting them - during the check up I realised that I actually do need them for the lectures.

Choices

Okay. Since I will likely be getting glasses, I have narrowed down my options to two pairs. I'm sort of leaning towards one of them, I think, but I'm not telling you which one, because I'd like to know what you think.

eta: Okay, so now I've already decided, but do tell anyway.

I fell into a burning ring of fire

Lyrics quiz solution:

1. ACDC - Shook Me All Night Long
2. Kansas - Carry On My Wayward Son
3. Snow Patrol - Chasing Cars *point to V*
4. Johnny Cash - God's Gonna Cut You Down
5. ACDC - Back In Black
6. Beth Nielson Chapman - Say Goodnight, Not Goodbye
7. Nickelback - Photograph *point to V*
8. Athlete - Chances
9. Metallica - Enter Sandman
10. Triumph - Fight The Good Fight
11. Keane - We Might As Well Be Strangers *point to V*

I'm very disappointed in the rest of you. You should hear me clicking my tounge.

I passed the 'Language Acquisition' exam! One down, one to go. And I'm so counting on having to complement on the other one, but at least it's done for now. So now, we move on to 'Theoretical Grammar' and 'Human Voice and Speech'... Damn, I love this.
Looks like I really will be trying to do an extra five credits with 'neurolingvistik' - this is the last semester they'll be doing that course until 2009, or so. I really don't want to wait that long. What made me extra sad though, was that 'psykolingvistik' is done. No more. That was one course I was definitely looking forward to taking.

We're seeing 'Rocky VI' tonight. Puffy Stalone and Milo V, I can't wait. But do not go see 'Holiday'. You'll be nauseous from all the sugar.

Lund was never so beautiful.

I am finally home after being stuck in Stockholm for longer than was planned, thanks to the fucking storm that really ought to have been given a more menacing name than 'Per' (I mean, seriously). The journey home took eight hours instead of four and I felt like falling to my knees and kissing the ground when we got off the train. But SJ did all they could - got us a room at a four star hotel when we couldn't get home, and then first class tickets part of the way when the trains started running again. I can't complain too much, at least not about them.

Invasion! was as amazing as I remembered it, and the audience reaction at the beginning was absolutely awesome. The infiltrators were sat just two rows down from us, so we had a good view of their progress from mildly amused to "Dude, what the fuck is this shit?!" It started out with some annoyed hushing, but when the boys decided they'd had enough and made to leave people actually stood up and yelled at them to sit down and shut up while we were busy giggling like mad and trying to hide it. They must've felt so silly when they realised it was all part of the show. I know I would have.
Bahador Foladi is still incredible. When he came on stage for that horrifying, final monologue of the show, my heart just started pounding. With dread, because I knew what was coming, and anticipation, because he acts it so, so well. I thought I'd try and transcribe that one, because you should read it. I think it might be my favourite part, but I'm not sure. It's impossible to choose.

My kind, kind Languages-of-the-world lecturer gave me a couple of extra days with the exam, since I was stuck without my laptop and unable to finish on time. So now, I'm writing the final question and it's actually not going horribly. I haven't had any flashes of brilliance by any means, but if there's anything I'm good at, it's word-pooping.

Solution to the lyrics quiz, which V was the only one to excel at, will be up next time.

Oh, by the way, Supernatural? Was sofa king awesome on Thursday. Best episode yet of the ones I've seen, perhaps, save the season 2 opener. And they used 'White Rabbit'! Finally! Do you realise how long I've been hoping and waiting for them to use that song? And it was totally creepy and awesome (so, I like the word awesome, big deal) and perfect. V, you should start watching season 2, I need someone to geek out with over it.

Hope none of my Swedish readers were hit too hard by the storm and stayed safe.

Lyrics

So, there have been films, and film quotes, and film scenes, and now I thought it was time for a list with music. Lyric snippets are from my 'last played' list on iTunes, and if you recognise anything, you get a cookie.

1. 'Cause the walls start shaking
The earth was quaking
My mind was aching

2. Masquerading as a man with a reason
My charade is the event of the season
And if I claim to be a wise man, it surely
means that I don't know

3. If I lay here
If I just lay here
Would you lie with me and just forget the world?

4. Go tell that long tongue liar
Go and tell that midnight rider
Tell the rambler, the gambler, the back biter

5. So look at me now
I'm just makin' my play
Don't try to push your luck, just get out of my way

6. Don't you fear when you dream
Waking up is never what it seems
Like a jewel buried deep
Like a promise meant to keep

7. I miss that town
I miss the faces
You can't erase it
You can't replace it

8. If I had the chance to start again
Then you would be the one I'd come and find
Like the poster of Berlin on my wall
Maybe there's a chance our walls might fall

9. Hush little baby, don't say a word
And never mind that noise you heard
It's just the beasts under your bed
In your closet, in your head

10. All your life you've been waiting for your chance
Where you'll fit into the plan
But you're the master of your own destiny
So give and take the best that you can

11. I don't know your face no more
Or feel your touch that I adore
I don't know your face no more
It's just a place I'm looking for

When you realise that you have Creedence Clearwater Revival on your playlist, you begin to wonder whether you were born in the wrong decennia.

This is probably the last entry for a week or so - I have two exams, circa ten pages, to finish before the 12th and have asked people to hit me if I try to write anything that isn't about language acquisition or typology. And I wish I could kick my own ass for not ever learning to start in time.

In which she uses three different languages

See that right there? That would be my boys starting off the new year in second place! They're doing well. Funny, the top three at this point are the same as when the season finished last year, only we finished third and I believe Sävehof won. This year, it's our turn. Oh yes, it is.

So, Saddam Hussein is dead. And I know he did horrible, horrible things, but nothing can make me agree with the death penalty. I can't agree that it's right to take one life to get revenge for another.

Ett av partierna här i Sverige vill införa förbud mot att prata något annat språk än svenska i klassrummet såvida lektionen inte är om just det språket. Fint tänkt. Men jag tror att jag har hört något liknande förut...
Jovisst, när man tvingade döva barn att sitta på sina egna händer för att de inte skulle teckna utan istället lära sig tala. Och svenskundervisningen för tornedalsfinska barn (när var det, i början av 1900-talet?) då man gav dem stryk om de pratade finska istället för svenska.
Jag undrar vad partiet anser att konsekvensen av att bryta mot förbudet skulle bli?

Tengo que sacar el perro porque mis padres han ido al cine. Hasta luego.
Por favor, no me pegues por preguntar esto, pero de que verbo viene el 'han' del pretérito perfecto? Es 'haber'? Nunca me lo ha explicado nadie.

2006

Snodd från Gustav med vissa tillägg.

* Dag(ar): 28e januari - alla MGs samlade på Bella Italia. 23e juni - San Juan på stranden i Barcelona.

* Festivitet: Det kan bara bli Novischfesten, minnesluckor och fruktansvärd baksmälla till trots.

* Inköp: MacBook och läderstövlar.

* Film: RENT - från förra året, ja, men inte premiär här förrän i februari. Brokeback Mountain får hedersomnämnande på samma grund.

* Låt: Årets bästa låt har jag ingen koll på, men *mina* bästa låtar för året blir Jefferson Airplanes White Rabbit, Triumphs Fight The Good Fight, Kansas' Carry On My Wayward Son och Blue Oyster Cults Don't Fear The Reaper. Jag insåg en dag att min spellista enbart bestod av 70-talsrock.
Oh, och Jump Little Childrens Cathedrals, så klart! *älska*

* Accessoar: Mallorcaringen som jag numera känner mig naken utan, och mitt tuffa nya halsband.

* Bok: Montecore - En unik tiger, Jonas Hassen Khemiri.

* Inkomna sms: "Han é tankesultan! Grymmaste pjäsen, jag svär fett me cred! Khemiri is Da MAN!" Alltid underbart med delade åsikter.

* Intressantaste: Valet. Gäller även för 'Sorgligaste'.

* Beslut: Att hoppa av lärarutbildningen och satsa på lingvistiken.

* Ord: "Oki" ("I want to get the hell out of here" på Taiap). Och "kebabchaffis". Det är skönt att till och med översmarta författare kan säga fel.

* Citat: "Failure isn't an option because you, like me, are perfect ;-)" (Seriously, dude, you have no idea how much you cheered me up that time - I was close to tears and then you made me giggle!)

* Saknade: Elisabet (men inte mycket längre!). Janice. Los brasileños.

Make 2007 a good one!

Contours

So, we were sitting at Herkules' yesterday and I mentioned that my cousin had gotten glasses for when driving, which got us into a discussion about how a lot of people look really good in glasses. I don't wear glasses, never have, and so I asked M to try hers on, just to see how it felt and to know whether they suited me. I put them on, looked out the window, and Christ was the world suddenly sharp! I mean, I knew my left eye vision isn't perfect, but when I closed my right eye and took turns looking through the glasses and over them, I realised that it's probably a little worse than I thought it was.
A visit to the optician to see whether I should get glasses, perhaps?

Oh - we're going to Stockholm again in January, if I hadn't mentioned that. We're going to see Rent! And Invasion! again. When tickets are that cheap, you can't not go again.

And I'm a sketching goddess. Still can't stop.


Logan, I can't comment on your posts. There's no picture for the word verification. Boo.

Merry Christmas

Biggles and I wanted to take this opportunity to wish you all a very merry Christmas, albeit a little late for the Swedes, but anyway.

(As you can tell from his expression, wearing that hat was far below his dignity. Didn't stop me.)


Happy Holidays!

'Kiyoshi kono yoru'

Yes, today we sang 'Silent Night' in Japanese. And Polish, and Gaelic, and Hungarian, and Vietnamese. And five other languages. While having wine punch and gingerbread snaps and fudge. I'm going to miss this course and these people and our mentor a lot; it seems there are seven of us who are going to do the following 20 credits as well, and a couple who are going to do a few, but that's it.

I'm giving serious thought to doing five extra credits outside the regular 20 next semester. Neuro-linguistics does sound really interesting, it's on next semester (you can never count on a course like that to be given), and our schedule seems to allow the time. And - it's in English, which would be a real challenge. The catch? Three final exams in one week, or possibly two if they're feeling generous. We'll see. I think I'll sign up and then decide when the time comes.

I got the most awesome Christmas present the other day. A refridgerator magnet - hold on, hold on, it gets better - saying "You say I'm a bitch like it's a bad thing". Heh. Well, maybe you had to be there. But Ida rocks.
We also combined study group, preparing for the home exams and straightening out a few question marks (verbkongruenssystem i världen, Klingon-grammatik, och var i världen du kan hitta språk från fem olika språkfamiljer, som har ergativa drag, oerhört komplicerad verbmorfologi och 83 konsonanter men bara 2 vokaler), with a film night watching Dogma. I'd almost forgotten how much I love that film.

Anyone who isn't dead or from another plane of existence would do well to cover their ears right about now.

But I'm a fucking demon.

Read the Bible again sometime. Women are painted as bigger antagonists than the Egyptians and Romans combined. It stinks.

The future always on her mind

My 'Language Acquisition' mentor decided today she's going to make me a doctoral student and sponsor me to write my D paper about 'foreigner talk' in a couple of years. Heh. I heart her. And I heart this course. And I can pass for being Polish or Finnish or something non-Swedish like that, can't I?
I've decided what I want to do with my degree once I'm finished (on the side, of course, I'm still going to be a socio-linguistics professor. I promised my grandparents). I want to be a translator. I'm always complaining about badly translated books; that way I could do something about it. What better way to use an English degree? Ah, I'm already looking forward to doing English. I seriously need to freshen it up.

This whole, I'm-where-I'm-supposed-to-be feeling? I like it.

A small observation: friendship is calling the other person 'bitch' in a text knowing she will laugh her head off when seeing it.

Invaderad.

Stockholm. Invasion!. Skridskoåkning. Italiensk glass. Pizza Hut.
Teatern var fullständigt fantastisk. Och jag kan inte skriva på Khemiriska. Jag bara låtsas att jag kan det.

Och det är förväntan inuti när ljuset släcks och du hoppas och ber att du inte ska bli besviken, och du tittar på töntskådespelarna som pratar goja på scenen och väntar på att få höra mummel och hyssjanden någonstans bakifrån, och när du hör det första sshh-et ni tittar på varandra med skratten i halsen och shunnarna reser sig upp och börjar bråka och invaderar scenen och efter det, det är bara vad som händer där som betyder något.

Vad pjäsen handlar om är fullständigt omöjligt att beskriva. Den består till stor del av monologer, fyra olika skådespelare som framför fyra olika historier som alla vävs in i varandra av föreställningens gemensamma nämnare: Abulkasem. Vem är det? Varför är han viktig? Finns han egentligen?

Det är Bahador Foladis röst som blir mer och mer pressad och som sträcker sig in i dig och griper tag och det är tårögon och nejtankar när de andra skådespelarna kommer upp på scen och ljuset släcks, och sedan det är applåder och darrhänder och ett huvud fullt av snurror och ekon av rösterna du hört, och det är ni som tittar på varandra och vet att en gång inte räcker, inte ett dugg.

Vi skulle gått ut på La Isla efteråt, men vi var båda två totalt så tagna av föreställningen att vi utan att tänka på det bara började gå medan vi pratade om den, och plötsligt insåg vi att vi satt på vårt hotellrum och hade suttit där och gått igenom så mycket av pjäsen som vi bara kunde i ett par timmar. Det är otroligt att man kan skratta och skratta åt det man ser på scen samtidigt som man känner att man egentligen lika gärna skulle kunna gråta, eftersom det är en hårfin linje mellan det komiska och det fruktansvärt tragiska. Mycket balanserande på gränsen och många oerhört tvära kast däremellan.

"En av mina grannar är faktiskt från Pakistan, men han är jättetrevlig! Och jag sa till honom, 'It's okay. You can eat your food and have your parabol on the balkong, but please, please, dont make your daughter wear a slöja when she grows up. Please, for me, let her be free'."

Så, förutom att jag stukade foten under en promenad längs Drottninggatan och nu kör med kryckor igen, en perfekt helg.

Erkänn Abulkasem!

The struggling artist

Per request.


Milo doesnt look much like himself here, more like a cartoon character - so I decided that it's not actually a sketch of him but a sketch of Peter, based on Milo. Neat solution, huh?

JAckles on the other hand, I was very pleased with.


I think my fingers need to rest now. They're aching a little.

Where'd the day go?

Christ, I can't believe it's Friday again. Seriously, time needs to slow down. I mean, Stockholm and Invasion! is freakin' next weekend and Christmas is getting closer, which means this semester is amost over. And that kinda makes me sad. I'm going to miss my uni girls when we scatter.
Ida almost made me laugh out loud in class today, because this course is the most boring course I've ever taken, and so you're bound to get the giggles when your fellow Supernatural CQD:er points you to 'Wake me up when it's my turn to drive' written in her notebook.

Birthday was good. I'm sitting very comfortably in my new desk chair, looking at some lovely black & white posters of Paris that are being placed on my walls soon, and listening to my birthday CD from V. (And actually, I could be wearing my scarf from Harriet and drinking my Monty Python beer from Julia as well... Heh. I love my beer, called 'Monty Python's Holy Grail', with 'Gr' crossed out. Also, it's tempered over burning witches. Awesome.)
There was a family gathering on Saturday, which was nice. Then spex on Sunday, which was the funniest thing I've seen in a long time - it helped seeing several familiar faces among the leads and in the ensemble - and the Lucia medly made me giggle until my stomach hurt. "Mikadonnan står i fönstret! Mikadonnan står i fönstret! Så får vi lov, så får vi lov, att ta oss in i palatset?"
Then went to Kalmar's on Tuesday with my uni posse and M to celebrate a little extra, which was also fun. Although I have to admit I prefer Wermland's/ÖG - it was bit too small for my liking. So, Wermland's tomorrow night, and glöggfest/pepparkaksbak at Anna's place on Sunday. This weekend is not turning out to be that much quieter than the last.

I heart Supernatural. It's rivalling my Heroes love.

By the way, I'm totally in a new sketching phase, and I love it. I particularly love to look at my 'older' sketches from, say, 2003 or even 2004, cringe, and realise that while I'm in no way a great artist by any means, I've actually come a long way since then.