Homesick, for the ..37th time?

Soundtrack: Thomas Dybdahl - A Lovestory

I am such a whiny baby. I am homesick. Again. I sometimes get so surprised about how well my mum knows me.. I was feeling kinda blue, and wanted to call home to hear about summer, sun and wonderful things, and my mum instantly just knew that I was feeling a bit down. And yes, I do call even if I am happy, so it wasn't just that I called. I finally managed to see the sex and the city movie the other day, and I guess the ending was happy enough and it was a nice finale to the show. It just occurred to me after the movie though, all their lives are soooo wonderful and fantastic with fashion, skinny bodies and shoes, but none of them seem to have any family at all??? Only once on the show was there anything about the family of Miranda, other than that the rest of them seem to have no mothers, no fathers, no siblings or cousins or whatever. It's so weird... I miss my family. And I hate the fact that now that I finally live with people that I care about again (the last perfect flat I guess was with Jo and Manu), I have to move again, and risk moving into a place where I don't get along with the people. If I even manage to find a flat that I like in the two weeks that I have left before I have to leave. I think possibly that Sean and Alex find me a bit of a drag though, being all needy and whiny and particular. And that I always assume that people find me to be a drag. I guess that can be tiresome as well.

I start school again next monday. And I start my new training routine. And my "new" day rythm. thank goodness that I start early on this Monday, so that I can't opt out and sleep in. I wonder what it will be like, working out every day. Not going to the gym every day, but making sure that I am active for at least half an hour every day, walking or swimming with Christine or biking or whatever... and studying... for some reason I think that having a fitness routine will make it easier to study though. I often got tired and unmotivated last trimester and wasted heaps of time on procrastinating and so on.. maybe getting fitter will make me more able to concentrate? We shall see....

ch-ch-ch-changes

Soundtrack: A-ha - Stay on these roads

I finally did what I have been going on about for the last 15 months: I moved out. If it hadn't been for the head tenant kicking me out, then I guess I would still be rotting away in that miserable place. So, I am now living in a temporary flat with two mates, and I must say: It is a rather large change to be living with two blokes as opposed to a bunch of girls. I like it. The flat is a bit scary though, I must admit. I hear people walking in the house all the time, I even FEEL people walking as the house sometimes shakes with the steps, but at times I find myself wondering if there are anyone else in the house at all apart from myself (among the living, that is...). So yeah, a bit scary. I just keep telling myself that it is the neighbours downstairs, and so far it is a good enough explanation. Still, I am only here for another month before it's time to move again. A bit crazy to move twice I guess, but then it felt really good to get out of the old flat. And to get into this one, even though it is for a short time only, I will miss it when I go.

I was wondering today whether my bad year is caused by my morals slacking off. I am probably just being over interpretative as usual, and searching for a cause where there is none, but none the less I will have to think it through. After all, I am starting the programme soon, and then I should have a healthy mind as well as a healthy body. I am wondering how hard it will be changing my diet, and how long it will take before I stop craving chocolate. Oh dear.. I can live without many things, but chocolate is hard to give up. Possibly even harder than quitting smoking... after all, I've been eating chocolate since I was a kid. Hm.. don't wanna think about it right now. ;)

Hm.

It seems that with the branching out of Facebook into notes and posts and all, blogging has become somewhat redundant... Everyone knows what I am up to, anyway. And that isn't much, nowadays! Sitting in front of my computer and trying to crunch out words is the only thing I should be doing for the next two weeks, I cannot wait to finish the last two assignments! Then it's writing thesis proposal, working (hopefully) and then in July it all starts over. I think my first class honours is pretty much gone, the pressure is too hard and I don't think I'll be able to get good enough grades for it... *sigh* I guess that won't matter when I finish my Masters degree though. :) Let's hope so.

Woooow, what a long time it has been since the last time I blogged....

I guess time just flew past, without waiting for me to catch up. But now I realise that I miss pouring my heart onto the screen, instantly feeling better about whatever it is that gets me down, or just sharing good times with people. It is time to start over.

The Present:
I am a postgrad, I am now studying Masters of Tourism Management, year 1 (which is honours). We had the first meeting today, just to see the other people who will suffer alongside us.

Truth is, every year here has brought me new friends, new adventures, and I can't wait to start this year's events. To be perfecty honest, I almost think that I returned too soon. People have been too busy to hang out with me, which I quite understand. But I've been lonely. And idle. I suppose those two go hand in hand. What I should have done, is to stay at home and enjoy the company of my parents and friends in Norway for a couple of weeks longer. I remember that I really didn't want to go home in December, and I was bored when I was at home, but just as I got used to being at home again it was time to leave.. And leaving Europe is never fun, although I absolutely love it here. I guess my heart is divided. Going home brings that to my attention anew.

Two more days now before start of term. I suppose I'll just hang around the house, I don't really have anything to do before I start, so might as well just sink as deeply into boredom as possible before the stress starts.

It's good to be back. :)

Home and Garden Show

Show people are a straaange breed... personally I feel like I've had my brain drycleaned, and after smiling for 8 hours straight two days in a row I'm feeling quite strange. My job this weekend was to shut up, look pretty, smile and take people's money. It's amazing how many completely strange and useless products that are on sale, and what is even more amazing is how extremely good these people are at selling them! Who would have thought that they ever needed a thing to glue to your phone so you don't drop it? (I guess I could have needed one at some point. ahem..) And bouncing balls on a string, or a thingamadoo that cleans your windows on the inside and outside at the same time... I felt a bit like I was trapped in infomercial tv after tv-hours, but without a remote control. Eh well, bygones. At least now I can pay the power bill.

Det er også stygt å si det, men i det minste har jeg nå bevitnet det meste av Wellington's white trash - befolkning..vil jeg tro. haha. ;p


Not such a bad idea after a weekend at the Home and Garden show... hahaha. Thank goodness they don't have any of these close to westpac. Thanx Feli - I love this picture!

Liontamer (faithless)

If you place a thing into the center of your life
That lacks the power to nourish
It will eventually poison everything that you are
And destroy you

A simple a thing as an idea
Or your perspective on yourself or the world
No one can be the source of your contempt,
It lies within, in the center.
Only with mellow while your thin enough to slide through

Don't let nothing ride you.

If the sun or the moon should keel away to die,
They would immediately go out .

One.

Swallow don't make a sound,
But tomorrow has to start somewhere.

Newspapers entertain,
Lion Tamers die in pain
This Child wise beyond words
Whose tears flow without seize

When there's no where, left to run to
Let me come to you, let me help you down
For when the world, gives you tomorrow
You're gonna learn to live again

we can learn to go,
or learn as we go

Just to live, for the day
I know it's hard, to live for the moment
Just try, anyway

------

I guess the only way to move on is to really give up. Face it, I don't have a chance.

emotions

I generally hate having crushes. Nothing has changed this time, I really hate it now too. Basically they're just major distractions, that are never acted upon, and thus lead to a massive amount of self critisism and time wasted on being spaced out, imagining that everything will have a happy ending. (gloomy, me? nooo.. never). I have sort of come to the point where I can see land, though. I know that this one too shall pass, and then life will go back to its normal self. It never fails to disappoint me though, how much of a coward I am, and how little I actually think of myself. If I wouldn't pick me, then who on earth would? All these things just make me feel homesick. And homesick I shall be... with this weather, conditions for homesickness are ideal. It's moist, not too cold, sometimes one can smell the salt from the sea.... home. Excactly like home. Predictions are that by wednesday I'll be running around the botanical garden, hugging trees and being completely delirious, longing for the mountains, the fiord, our apple trees, my family, mum's cooking, the glacier, going for rides on dad's bike, late and bright summer nights (that I won't see again till 2010, probably..) , Hansa beer, football on tv, hot afternoon showers, deneb, the big dipper, porkupines sniffing around for bugs.. ok, this is getting ridiculuos. I'm stopping now. *sigh*

unmotivated, and thinking about rugby

I'm supposed to be writing my essay, the last one for my bachelor degree, about some observation stuff that I've been doing the last week. Guess what: I'm procrastinating.. I'm still a bit surprised by the rugby results this morning, All Blacks lost 18 - 20 to France in Cardiff. But then again, how big a surprise was it really? Every game they have been playing this championship I have been thinking to myself: "wow, if they make mistakes like THAT(clumsy handling errors and bad defence.. etc) against Georgia/Portugal/whatever, how on earth will it go when they meet a socalled worthy opponent?" I guess we found out this morning. I've seen so many sad faces this morning though, and I guess I do feel sorry for them. Even I was pissed off at the ref for about 5 minutes. But then again.. it's just a game. It's not like it's soccer or anything... My team is in the lead by 7 points, with only four matches to go! YAY! Bring home the gold, boys! :) HEIA BRANN!

The Play

It seems like a long time ago now, but about two weeks ago we finished the play.

Yeah... I don't really know what more to say about it now, but.. Well, I'll be doing the next year's play as well, because it was that much fun. I reckon we did well, although we had a few mishaps, and a few distractions backstage (read: foul smelling fart, on stage humour that threw us off, etc). I think approximately 200 people came to see us, which is not THAT bad... at least not for an unknown play, in an enirely foreign language, on the other side of the world from Germany. kudos to all my co-play-people. :)

NERVES

OMG... It's the dress-rehearsal already tomorrow! After all the rehearsing, the real thing is finally here. I feel like putting the rest of my life on hold while I do the play this week, unfortunately I still have to do my readings, prepare tutorials and stuff... To all my friends: If u wanna see me this week, go to the play. I don't think I'll be able to do anything else. ^_^

Tipsy on a Tuesday night

Sometimes I wish my family was a bit more together than it is.. we're all separate entities, and sometimes I just wish that it was possible to call one phone no and have them all there. Zzzzz...
Been rehearsing HEAPS lately, I'm getting tired of having nervous breakdowns on stage, I have about 6 of them a weak! Haha, Poor old character, she is a basket case indeed. I like acting though. In a way it is nice to try out a different sort of personality. Talking to my "daughther" the other day though, I started wondering whether I might have more in common with Maria Compass than I have thought of earlier. Not sure how cool that is? Why have I got to be such a fuzzy girl...
Blablabla
I'm completely high on Imogen Heap. Can't get enougn... It's making me spaced out. And I'm in such a fase that I kkeep listening to the same songs over and over again, I just suck out all the energy in them and leave them dry when I'm done. Why do I do that? One should try to preserve beauty.. I just keep listening to the same stuff till I get bored with it and move on..
the play is taking over my nightlife, I'm dreaming about it all the time now... One day I dreamt I was in a theatre in Holland, on a beach, and the people were sooo disrespectful of the actors, and it was a small theatre where the stage was a bar-counter.. ahem. Maybe I've had a bit too many encounters with the Pinot lately...

i'm melancholic. I'm longing for something that I don't know what is. Something is missing in my life, and I just don't want to sort it out. Pathetic, isn't it? I keep feeling like this, I keep nagging about it, but I do nothing.

Spontaniety is dead

It is annoying me how all people are planning everything these days... it's become impossible to just drop in on someone because one is in the neighbourhood, or call someone up to drag them out. Everything has to be planned. People have become boring.

I'm all alone in my flat now. 5 ppl in a flat, and no one is ever at home. :(

Calm sea, smooth sailing

for once, it's been a long time since I had some time to myself now. I've been unbelievable busy since I got back from Norway. I've been balancing my studies, tutoring, acting rehearsals and social life, and to some extent I would say that I've succeeded, and I feel really content in that respect. I haven't been able to interact with all the people that I'd want to, but it's not for the lack of trying, that's for sure. So, to mark the beginning of my holiday, I'm actually going to sleep in tomorrow. The last two weekends I've been up early to do all sorts of stuff, now I finally really can allow myself to sleep in! Then I'm gonna mark the assignment that the students did this week, get that out of the way, and then go have dinner with Trong n Jo. They had better not have forgotten!!! ;)
I need to find a job ASAP so that I'll be able to move and be able to sublet my room over summer. I've just realised, if I want to sublet it I'd better not put off moving till mid November, I probably need some time to be able to find someone to take my room. If I can find someone. all these things to talk about. I've been talking to professors this week, and the professor in charge of postgrad degrees at Vic seems very positive, and I checked with my government that I would be able to receive support, and I got the answer back that it would be 'no problem'. AWESOME. The first three years are coming to an end, and I'm ready to take the next step. I really should reward myself somehow for making it, although I kinda feel like i am constantly rewarding myself just by being here, by travelling to new places and by enjoying my life. I kinda feel like a 'loner' some time though... I mean, my ex is now engaged, he has a son, and they just bought a house. Talk about moving on.. And I can't even fall in love with a decent guy. It's almost as if I'm stuck in some kind of emotional vacuum, I'm wasting my best years... haha, I'll become an old hag before long.. In a way I mean it, though.

Sweet dreams

At the moment I'm dying under pressure, and I suppose I'm going to enjoy the upcoming holiday more than I could ever imagine. Of course I'll be busy as, but that's ok, I'll have time to socialise a bit at least, I imagine.
At the mo I'm correcting essays, writing my own essay and stressing over theatre rehearsals (which I LOOOVE) and a bit over the German assignment that is due this week. Aiaaa.
But anyway, what I wanted to write about was this random dream that I had this morning. I was snoozing, and took the thing a bit too far so I actually fell asleep again for half an hour... And I had this dream about one of my fellow students that I really really do not like. It was a strange dream, I had some kind of deep and meaningful relationship with this guy, and for some reason we were fighting like mad (not physically..). And amidst all this storming, the bond between us was still so strong that we couldn't bail out. I always remember feelings in dreams, and this one gave me a feeling that I haven't felt for aaaages.. It was a feeling of sadness and fear of loosing someone, mixed with love. The kind of feeling that makes u lay down your weapons and reconcile for the benefit of the relationship. And I guess I had some benefit of the dream, when I saw him in class today, I didn't have that feeling of dislike and disrespect that I usually get. He was just another guy. Which is cool, because he hasn't ever done anything to deserve my dislike... I suppose.

well, I guess it's back to work.

-Should I move?

Everyone else has decided to move out, even Anne has decided to start looking for a new flat, and I'm just thinking that if I wanna move then perhaps this is a good time to do it? Jono seemed to think so, and looking at the ads on Trademe I think he is right. There are over 400 rooms available in the city today, and spring is just around the corner...
I'm just wondering who I could get to help me move though. I've moved a lot of times, and I'm sure I've exhausted my friends to the point that it would be hard to get someone to drive for me, even if I do hire a van. This is the consequence of having moved so many times. But maybe I should start looking, and take my time until I find a place that I really feel is the perfect match? I'm never gonna be living with Jo and Manuel again, which was the perrfect flat, so maybe I should start looking for ppl who r about my age, with somewhat similar interests and a sweet as warm/modern place where they share the cooking... I'm gonna have to sleep on it. I guess I really have a the heart of a Nomad.

Harry Potter

I knew that I would be bawling my eyes out at the end of the book, if nothing else than because it was the last book ever, but I could never in a million years have guessed that I would be bawling out of pity for Professor Snape.... JK Rowling works in mysterious ways.
so finally I am prepared to spend some time and energy on the real world again. After finishing Harry Potter it is sometimes a bit hard to get back to the daily routine, and having been sick and not really been able to establish a daily routine at Uni yet has made the matter a bit more of a task. Today has been good though. I'm being slowly integrated into a routine, monday is a pretty busy day, where I have many classes and stuff. I'm starting to wish that I didn't have so many afternoon classes, it's tiring to be at uni having lectures when it is dark outside.

update

Oook, it’s then almost the end of my holiday here, I’m heading off on Friday or Saturday, and at the moment I’m feeling a bit melancholic about it. I would probably go insane if I was to stay longer, I already feel the first hints of madness, but it’s really nice here at the moment too. All is green and bright, there are flowers everywhere, tics and mosqitos everywhere (uuuugh!) and it’s nice and brigth till 1am and from 4am onwards. And what am I going back to? Loïc sent me an email that it was a bit warmer in Welli now, about 10 degrees (!), and I’ve gotten quite used to the warm weather and the summer feeling. I’m glad I’m gonna be busy as when I get home. Gonna see if I can round up some ppl to go with me to the new Harry Potter movie, anyone wanna go?! Give me a holler!

Veeery good news! I have the highest average EVER on my marks this trimester!! Two A- and one A+! And to think that I was almost sure I failed that exam... Gosh, I really have no idea anymore... I’ve been fussing about every single assignment for 301 and the exam, and have gotten good grades for them all. Maybe I have a lot more in common with the Drama-queen-housewife I am playing in the German play than I want to admit... ahem. Being at home now has been a bit stressing I must admit, with regards to the fact that I have so many things to organise in Wellington at the moment. My tutor contract has arrived, I have to sign up for training, I haven’t enrolled in Germ 316 yet and I should have had my first group rehearsal with the rest of the actors in the play this coming Sunday. And I am missing the first lecture in all my subjects because I’m in Hong Kong on Monday! Ah well... It’ll be right once I land on NZ soil, I suppose. After all this relaxation it’ll be refreshing to be a bit busy. Nowadays, I concider it an accomplisment just to get out of bed before 12pm, and if I go out of the house it’s an even bigger accomplishment. ^^ I’m suuuper lazy, just reading books and playing with the new comp. It finally arrived last Monday, and I’m still trying to get used to it. It’s a real step up from the other one. I have wireless now!!! YAY (which is how I can blog normally now.. btw)

I’m gonna try and upload some videos that I’ve made here with myself as the completely over-enthused commentor, should be interesting (=embarassing).

Home sweet home

I've been at home for about two and a half week now, feel a bit cut off from the world without internet but I've managed. ;) Been spending as much time as possible in the sun, and have been to Bergen once and been hanging around teh house and with my dad and mum and stepdad. Dad's new bike is cool! It's super comfy to ride on, kinda wish I had had the chance to ride more... But hey, maybe it's a sign that I am to be a biker babe? lol
Just finished reading harry potter 6 again. I liked it more this time around, but I'm really anxious as to how things will turn out now... *GULP* Poor sweek dumbly dorr... *pout*

And I ordered a new computer! Woha. They finally sent it, I am crossing my fingers that it will arrive in good time. Thank goodness for my tutoring job, without it I wouldn't be able to buy a new one. I'm tutoring Tourism 108, the subject that I wanted in the first place, after a misunderstanding at the faculy. too many tutors suddenly. But that's good, less pressure, and I get along well with Bob, so I'm sure it'll be good. :) And easier! Still waiting for my grades after exams, falling apart thinking of how bad the exam for 301 went and I'm reeeally nervous thinking that I might have failed... *nervous shaking*
I can handle a bad pass grade, but a fail? I'll try not to think about it.... *double gulp*

Anyway, will upload pictures and videos as soon as I have the chance! A bit stumped without a pc and without internet. Trying to enjoy myself even when it rains, and I hopefully will look a bit more tanned when I arrive in Wellington in July! Jo, your brown cheese is soon on its way! haha.

Hope you are all well!

For once, I am the lucky one!

Just sent out a mass text, trying to muster up a crowd of ppl to go see Shrek 3 tomorrow. 11 said no due to heaps of work + exams, 1 said yes... hehehehe. I feel for them all, but I feel sooo good that I'm gonna be done tomorrow!!! And then on Tuesday I travel hoooome!!!

The ball last Saturday was pretty cool. it wasn't as big as I thought it would be, but it was still good fun. :) Everyone got to dress up, look pretty, drink and all that. A bit sad that Mark was leaving the next day, will be different here without him, but he's having fun now.

I should be studying for my exam tomorrow!! I can't find any more motivation right now, so just gonna go to bed and finish tomorrow morning, as with everything else that I have done for this subject.. heh. Seems to have worked though, got an A for my last assignment, which means that I certainly will pass this subject. Good to know. Trying to get used to the idea of being a tutor now, gonna tutor next trimester. Gonna look good on the CV, but darn, it's responsibility! Oh well, pays better than folding sheets through the night. My last two nights at work are this weekend. Whay! Gonna be good to be able to sleep through every night again! And with Thomas gone, I'm not gonna miss the place THAT much.

ok, gonna go to bed now and get some sleep before getting up at dawn tomorrow...

Getting my new bed on Saturday! A real bed this time!! I'm stoked.

New Pajama!

I dig the giraffes. :) I've been typing so much today that I don't have energy to type any more, but I thought I'd share this wonderful event with y'all.

Catching up

I really miss Thomas at work, haven't got any real reason to work there any more now.. heh. I quit my job, effective of 9th of June this year. It'll be good to not have to work during nights any more, I guess I've had my fill. And with Thomas gone, I don't really like it so much anymore. I think, if I move into a house with my friends later this year, that I'll get a cat from the SPCA. An old one, that I can give some good years. :) We'll see, it's a lot of responsibility.

I've been thinking out a few things lately. Wellington is so home now that I'm not even considering checking out other universities at the moment.. hm. And I came up with this geeky list:

You really know that you know Wellington when:

- You get on the bus in the morning, and you immediately think "uh oh" because you know that the driver in front of you drives like a pig

- Someone asks you where the best place to get breakfast in, and you immediately list a few places close to where you're standing

- You always know where the closest ice-cream shop is :)

- someone asks you where it's good to party, and you need them to be more specific about what kind of party they're after before you're able to suggest some places

- you're able to find Tupelo after a few drinks

- you know where to go if someone directs you to the 'Taj Mahal'

- you realise that a guy likes you if he drives towards Mt. Vic (unless you're specificly going in that direction)

Exams are coming up, next week is the last week of studying. Goodness, time flies like always... Before I know it I'm bound for Europe. :)

A Headbanger's diary

Yesterday was the first metal gig that I've consciously gone to for more than... 3 years, I think. It's an environment that I feel at home in, I've been around these ppl for many years when I was living in Bodoe. I'm not entirely sure what I was expecting to get out of this night, but in any case I was set for a real fun night. And I must say that it was. I went with Anette and Elisabeth, both whom are not familiar with the "metal community," I suppose it's not such a big thing among "eager students." (no pun intended).

I had such a good time. What is strange to me, is that both the girls seemed a bit estranged to the concept of dressing up in black and spikes, only to seemingly worship the dark. It's just an image though. I have to chuckle to myself when I hear their reactions to the people that were there, especially Eli that thought they were a bit scary. Being Norwegian at a metal gig in New Zealand is a bit like being a rock-star, everyone wants to know what bands you've seen live, where you are from, what metal people that are from the place where you're from and so on. To me it was a bit amusing that the scary vocalist at the picture above didn't even know that Gorgoroth is from Norway. It also never fails to amuse me how they're dead scary on stage, then transform into normal boys off stage, that are concerned that their makeup is running, or whether they did a good gig and that people are able to hear the words that they're gurgling into the mike. Just another normal guy. :) I felt like home. Like I went back to a town that I used to live in long ago.

The end result is:

1. I had a really good night yesterday, in spite of talking heeeaps of bullshit

2. My neck is über-sore

3. My hearing is severely reduced, and probably need a couple of days to return to normal.

Totally worth it.

The busy days have returned

I'm not too upset that the busy days are back, it keeps me occupied and I don't feel like I'm just wasting my life away doing nothing. Not feeling to well these last two days, got a cold and just trying to get well soon, so that I'll be fresh for paintball on Tuesday. Yee, can't wait!
Goooood news, my mum has decided that she will pay for may airfare to Europe this June, which means I get to go home and experience summer in Norway for the first time in 3 years!! I'm super stoked, and just think that she is the best mum ever and that my brother really is a manipulating bastard. It's sad to feel that way about someone that you look up to and that is your family. I'm not sure if I'll ever get over it, hopefully he will wake up one day and realise that he is wrong to act like a neonazi. My stepdad is applying for Norwegian citicenship now, all the best to him. What is also cool about the trip is that Elisabeth is flying home at the same time, so I will have company almost all the way! It'll be awesome. Now we're planning to stop over a day or two in a city somewhere, maybe Germany or Austria. I have to fly to Europe first anyway so may as well stop over somewhere cool. Italy would be cool as well.. Hmm. I'm longing for Europe, so won't spend my life away from it, I'm afraid. When I finish my education here I want to go either directly to Europe, or just work here for 1 year and then go. I can't see myself settling down in New Zealand, which is funny. For the first time I really feel a sense of belonging, which is awesome, that was the reason why I wanted to study overseas; to try and find out where I belong in the world. And now I know it a bit better, I belong in Europe. Next thing to figure out now is which country.. ;) Think I gotta go to Germany and get a guy.
So, my Easter break is looking rather snug and uneventful. Maybe I'll be getting computer training at work so that I can to day shifts when they need staff, switching to days would be to my liking, as night shifts actually are starting to get me down. It takes up so much extra time, and the pay is actually rather shit, when you think of how much time that is wasted. I've got about 5 hours to myself pr. day when I'm working nights, just because I have to sleep and all. Too much hassle in the long run. So it's official... I'm sick of my job, once again. I guess I'll have to find something that is challenging the mind, when I grow up. Otherwise I won't last long in any profession. Much to think about these days.
I'm loooving German though. Having so much fun with it, reading books and all these days to give my vocabulary a boost. Going to conversation classes with a German intern that is here to ... be an intern? I don't know what these hunks are doing, just hanging around in class, having a sexy accent and being nice to people. A bit sorry that I couldn't find a suitable chinese course, but I'm not dead yet, so there is still time. I don't wanna pay heaps of money for a crash test course that teaches you to say Hello I'm Tina, where is the toilet.. I want MORE.
Ah well, I'm gonna withdraw now to my awesome bed. I got a new mattress in exchange for a sixpack of beer, and it is soooo comfortable. I really have a great bed now. :) Good things are happening. May they keep happening. :)
Peace out.

Could someone please let me out of my head?

A fair question, I'd say... I'm living most of my life in my head at the moment, and rather unvoluntary. Hopefully tomorrow will be a nice exercise to get out of it, we're having a nice st. Patricks day party here in the flat before going out and getting some Irish action on Courtenay and Cuba. Wheee! Can't wait! But first I have to survive work tonight, and sleep a couple of hours, complete my German assignment, pick up my heater and make dinner for Eli. Busy day ahead! Busy days are great, feel like my life is just wasting away in front of the computer and in my head. We had a sendoff for Valerie at Flying Burrito Bros on Wednesday, I must say this place is absolutely awesome! the food was totally amazing. New favourite restaurant.

Back to the dark ages... (like, the 40's?)

This is the new decoration on our toilet door, it's been like this for 3 days now, and it's a bit complicated trying to stay out for the whole day just in case the need should arise...

Been working a lot lately, still haven't gotten into the rythm of uni life, 3rd week starting tomorrow and so far it's all good. I saw theee most cute movie yesterday!! It's called science of sleep, and is about this guy who is having a hard time separating life from dreams.. hehe. ;) Loved it!

It's got sooo many ultra cute animations and things!

Well, as you may understand, I've gone a bit crazy since I figured out how to post youtube on blogger... heheeh

this is what my room looks like :)

My room is tiiidy



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I finally got to the stage where I can truly say that I'm happy with the way the room looks. I'm sure it would look better if I removed the old carpet, but I don't have energy to do that at the moment..

I found it!

Haha, this is one of my absolute fav. commercials. :D

Back to uni

2500-3500words in 3 weeks, getting new bus passes, selling old books, buying new ones, updating my student ID, sorting out insurance stuff, checking that my degree is in order, Deciding to do Masters of Tourism Management, signing up for the rec-centre to use the gym and go to pilates sessions, signing up for tutorials, drowining in new students that are running ard like headless chucks, Meeting up with ppl from last year, getting new password for my scs account, agreed to be class rep for tourism class, got emailed about being a tutor for tour101... Madness. Was it always like this? I like my new professor for German, he's got the idea that we all should try to talk German in class (he's a genious...) which I actually prefer. Mixing English and German is still a bit hard to my brain. Tour 301 is going to be good, it's not an exciting topic but the professor is 100% aware of that, so it's all good. :) N my job at the YHA is going to be one of my classes, so to speak, so that's all good too. Fridays freee! :) And I know that just as soon as I get used to this routine, it'll already be end of the trimester.. :D

HUGE party coming up this weekend though. I guess about 150 ppl are invited *shivers*. could potentially be quite scary, but most likely reeeally fun.

All work and no play makes Tina a mean, lean, shopping machine...

good grief, sometimes it is weird to take a step back and look at oneself from an outside angle... I've been shopping whayy too much the last few days, just as a way of getting back to the day-world.. But good things have happened lately. :) I've been catching up with Anette, Elisabeth, Joanne, Geeta, Alena... It's good to realise that even though a fair amount of people have left there are still quite a few of them left. I have no doubt that this is going to be an awesome year, same as the last two. Same old same old, I'll continue to swoon in the presence of hot Germans, school will be hard but interesting, I'll have tonnes of plans that won't be realised... As long as I can realise a few of them, I'm gonna have a total blast. Gonna sign up for the rec-centre on Monday, and sign up for a few of those group things. It'll be good to have a time shedule to follow when it comes to excercise as well, cuz otherwise I'll be roaming the streets after midnight like last year, which is no good when living so close to the botanical garden (which everyone I know will characterise as a dangerous place after dark, but I just can't see why..). This weekend is Cuba st carnival, there's lots of free concerts, stalls, food, shopping opportunities (gulp) and other fun stuff going on. I'm working both tonight and tomorrow night, but will catch some of the action before heading off to work tomorrow. It'll be sweet as. My fears of becoming broke will probably be realised quite quickly unless I stop this madness, I spent half a fortune on bodyshop products alone today. At least I'll be a nice-smelling broke person..

Dyed my hair brown yesterday, getting used to it now. It looks nice, I look a bit less extreme, which could be good for some purposes. We'll see. One thing is for sure: Monday is the official kickoff of this university year!

HEISSE MARONI

These last two weeks I've pretty much been working, going to Hamilton, and then working again. I went to Hamilton for 5 days to visit Travis and his family. Days were usually spent taking small excursions here and there, evening chillin' with the fam at home. Hamilton is a nice enough city, it's almost like a huge suburb that just goes on and on and on. I quite enjoyed visiting Hamilton Gardens, and one day we went to Mt. Maungatautari, a forest reserve. They had the tallest tree ferns that I've seen so far.. Other highlights include a visit to the Zoo (where I got the coolest hat ever, that will haunt my garden and beaches ard Welli this year, hehehe) and cooking a fabulous meal out of Trav's recipe book. Well back in Welli, and after a horrid weekend at work with hundreds of binge-drinking teenagers, I'm now gonna enjoy a few days in the sun before going back to my cave in the dark night. It's the last weekend I'm working 4 nights though, from now on, I hope I'll be working Thursday and Friday night. Fingers crossed! :)

I'm back! Back from beautiful Germany and Warm and nice Singapore. I am back in little ol' Welli, and finding it quite ok, although I wish I was travelling more, I quite love life on the road. Singapore was nice and refreshing, a perfect end to my shopping spree that has been going on since I got back to Norway in december. Hopefully I still have money to pay for uni... lol ;). I was really in paradise in Singapore. One week of chillin' with Regi and Feli (although it was far from chilly). Eating to my heart's (and belly's) content, shopping, chatting, sightseeing on the river (really corny and touristy but nice all the same), figuring out the bus system of singapore... and of course getting my specs fixed + aquiring an additional 2 pairs. Next purchase will be an extra set of eyes, I think. Bought heaps of pig-accessories, I just love them. :) I'm soo gonna miss all the nice food there...

Bye bye Manuel, bye bye Germany

Germany has been a blast, with lots of visits to castles, churches, bars, a concert and so on. by and by I will put up some photos, just not that easy on the move. I actually quite liked practising my German, which is in dire need of improvement. And of course, I was surrounded by Germans +Swoon+ and the Bavarian dialect is particulary sweet to my ears. I like it. The family was awesome, and not surprisingly, his dad laughs just as loud as Manu himself. Really hostpitable people, gonna miss the atmosphere there. My last days with Manuelchen are now over, and it's sad as hell. This random German, who has been like a brother to me for almost a year... +SIGH+ Damn this curse! It's the curse of the international student, doomed to meat lots of great ppl, only to leave them after 6 months or 1 year. I wonder who the next ppl will b. We've shared many good times, Manu. I'll miss you like hell. :'(

Now that i have left beautiful Germany I am looking forward to some steaming hot days here in Singapore. Damn, it's hot here! I arrived early this morning half dead, as my sleep has been minimal the last days. So, today's itinerary has been rather slack:
05:30 am - arrival at Changi airport
06:55 am - arrival at Regi's quarters
08:00 am to 15:45 - Sleep
17:00 - 19:00 - shopping!
19:30 - dinner yumm yumm
20:00-> - chillin' at Regi's place

Good for a first day. Both my friends are working, so I'll b exploring on my own tomorrow. Gonna go to fix my glasses and to see artworks at the Singapore art museum. Wait for poor Regi who has to workworkwork. Thank goodness for Weekends.

Why can't we have an IKEA in New Zealand!!!?

Happy New Year/Germany

Happy New Year everyone! After spending three weeks being fattened up by parents, I am now on the move again, heading ever so slowly for summer and Wellington. Xmas was nice, with all the food that I have missed, good prezzies and family and friends. No internet at home has made me a rather slow blogger, though.

I am now in Germany, visiting Manuel in Großstadt Polling. It's a small place, close to a bigger place called Mühldorf. Germany is nice, there's a lot of history to be seen here; castles, lots of old churches, old houses... and so on and so forth. I quite like it. It was a bit hard for my brain to follow all the German gibberish at first, but now it's a lot more like a language to me. :) I must sayy, Bavarian German is not exactly book-german. But it's a cool dialect. Time has gone by so quickly here, and already in a few days I'm flying off again. Unbelievable. I suspect that staying here for a while would to wonders for my learning.. something to think about.
So, these days I've spent travelling around Bavaria with Manu, I've been to München, Salzburg, Regensburg, Burghausen - where they have the longes castle in Europe -, Mühldorf... I think that's all for now? Hm. And tomorrow I am not sure what's up yet. Maybe opera in München, maybe a castle somewhere. We'll see. Elisabeth is coming here tomorrow, so we'll be a small Welli-gang here in Mühldorf.. :) Will be nice to see her again, won't have the chance to do that in Welli now. Gonna be a crazy night tomorrow! Wuhu!

Home again

Home at last, after a looong trip. I quite enjoyed Amsterdam this time, spent a day there cruising on the canals and visiting shopping streets and the Van Gogh museum, which was good. :) Had a good trip although I didn't converse much with the ppl sitting next to me, i was sick and actually managed to sleep for the first time ever! I give my new neck-pillow all the credit for that. I never knew that these simple inventions would be so useful. mmmm :)
Now I am home and do nothing but play playstation, watch tv and eat a lot.. I'm gonna get really huuge I fear if I don't exercise some. Oh well, it's only the 2nd day home and I suppose I should get well before I start freaking out about such things. today: SHOPPING!! Finding nice stuff and having parents pay... :) I like b-days. Whee!
Shout out to my Norwegians: Give me a call!

Update

It's been a little while, I suppose it's time for a small update along with some photos..

Lately I've been working more than usual, just to fill my vacation with something.

My birthday was spent bbqing for the first time ever.. usually the only outdoor activities that can be undertaken on my bday is skiing, ice skating etc. So it was really cool. We even had some nice weather. After my birthday Elisabeth stayed with me for a week, so we were 3 ppl sharing bedroom. Actually that's a real holiday feeling, ppl staying over. :) Manuel has been living with me since 29th of November, and is leaving after I leave. It's only 4 days till I leave now! whoa... this last week I've been working and partying on alternate days, it's been pretty full on but with much fun. :) Weird to think that at home it's cold.. it's gonna be real nice to get home now. Spend some time slacking and eating well. Still lots of adventures to come! Thought I'd throw in a picture of the cold as house where I live now.

It's absolutely freezing, and it's summer!!! Gosh. I am really not sure how long I'll be staying in this house. The people are nice but a bit sensitive to noise, and the walls are thin as paper. hmm... In any case I'm not moving till summer is gone. I'm a bit lazy. Gonna go rest a bit now. More pictures later, k? tired. Hope u all are enjoying summer/winter, work/holiday/studies, looking forward to Christmas/CNY/some other obscure holiday, and so on.

My Back... grrr

It's so much stress moving into a new place!!! I've bought so much furniture and stuff. Getting the bed was heaps of hassle, and it's hard as hell so my back is hurting.. grrrrr. I'm going to sell it, first chance I get. hopefully I can live with it for a while...
Other than that, i'm kinda settled in my new place now. Will post a picture soon. We haven't got internet at home yet, something that I really miss, I kinda feel cut off from the world now. was getting really excited about myspace music, it is possible to find almost anything there! Hopefully we'll get the account up and running soon...

Happy Birthday Jojo!

Joanne is turning 21 today. I wish u a wonderful magical day, with lots of fun and games and prezzies. :) Too bad I can't be there to celebrate with you...
Gonna miss living with Jo next year. We'll have to be good at keeping in touch, have lunches and dinners together!

HUGS and Love

My Job

The before and after shots:

BEFORE:

Even after I have cleared away one load, it looks like a bomb has hit the laundry. Lately this has been the rule, I leave it nice and tidy, only to find it back in WW2 state after 16 hours. I suppose it's quite demotivating... The only motivation given by the housekeeper is that sometimes she doesn't complain about small things like placing the bathmats in the wrong place or mixing the coulours of the bath towels... This person must have a very exciting life.


AFTER:

After I've spent 8 hours washing, drying and folding this is what the laundry looks like.






And this is what the linen cupboard looks like:

A brother's love

After 4 years of not talking to my mother, my brother showed up at my grandmother's funeral. I don't know how much to write about this... I was really disappointed when my mother told me how he behaved, and even now he won't talk to her much, it's all cold and he still treats her as though she's stupid and second rank. I just get so angry.. I haven't talked to him for a long while, and now I don't know what I would say if he called. Which he will on my birthday, so I had better come up with something. Most likely it won't be nice though, I really do not know what to say! I've been extremely patient with him these years, but after going to a FUNERAL and behaving like a first class ASSHOLE I'm not sure whether I should consequently call him my half brother. Some bad genes must have come from somewhere. And the whole situation is hopeless, it doesn't help for me to be shouting or to stop talking to him, I've been trying to be diplomatic and solve the issue, but he's really not nice about it.

My mother really is better off without him, she doesn't need someone screaming and shouting that she is stupid every time she needs help with something. I think the only reason why she is trying is because of the grandchildren. But if they're going to grow up being as block headed as their father, what good are they to the world.

Myspace

I got a myspace page. It's kinda cool, there is so much one can do with it! So to check out some music that I'm listening to or whateva, go THERE !

http://www.myspace.com/tina_si_nte_heimesia

rain

Soundtrack: Anneli Drecker - All I know

I must admit, with so many people gone I feel quite lonely, even though I am spending time with the people that are here. I think I handle leaving much better than being left. Today I've been dining out with Anette and Marita, it was quite nice to be in all Norwegian party again, chattering on about food, alcohol quotas, dialects and so on... :) After that I've been stuck here in Stafford, mostly glued to the screen. Living with Loïc is quite different from my previous flatmates. I quite understand it though, it takes time to get out of a routine where one only need think of one self, into having to be considerate to flatmates. It'll work itself out, I'm just pmsing and don't want to do additional shopping or dishwashing. Probably spoilt by pampering flatmates and stuck in old routines.. I want to move out. Into the new flat, away from the ghosts of Stafford. Move on.

Freak accident - not for the faint hearted

I have a friend at home that always manages to get hurt in really weird ways, that shouldn't really be possible. Now, I have the deepest sympathy for her...
Yesterday when I got home, about right after I wrote the last post, I was a bit wobbly on my feet so I fell down, and as I was trying to lessen my fall my grabbing on to the bookshelf my right arm was pierced by a knitting needle... It was kinda groce.. It was going more or less right through the upper part of my arm (thankfully it cleared the bone so it just pierced the muscle), and you could see the other end sticking out under the skin on the other side.. Pulling it out was a not so pleasant experience. I have drawn wisdom from this incident.
1: Drink less
2: Never leave knitting for ages without finishing.
Joanne, when you return next year your scarf will be waiting for you. At last.

Partynight

Keane - Everbody's changing

Drunk happy tina: I wentout today with Mark and Kristof, if was nice but quite different from what I am used to.. I miss Manuel, I'm not used to going ut without him now.. what ami gonna do next year..? Miss miss.. it was a good night though with the guys, met up with Anette and her flatmates at the end, so I finally got to meet the guy that I'vee heard juicy details about, hehee. I guess I'll be ok next year, but I will really miss living with Jo. She has been the one constant thingin my welli life since I got here, now Iwon't see her that often.. *SIGH* "Everybody's changing and I don't feel the same. " Come summer!

Holiday

Today was the start of holidays. Where is the super-summer that the weather people were predicting?!! The weather forecast says that it will rain for 4 days straight, until next weekend and maybe more.. Gosh, I'm bored already. Work yesterday was dynamite, I suppose that's the way it will be all summer.. *sigh* Gonna work my ass off during the next two weeks, thank goodness I have a job otherwise I'd be in big trouble.

Stafford is quiet, both my flatmates left this morning and Loïc moved in while I was sleeping. I want to move now...

I finally got a permanent address here in welli though: I got a Po Box. :)

Departures of another kind..

My grandmother has finally departed this world, after having a heart attack about 3 months ago that took most of what strength she had left in her body. I was getting so sure that I would get to see her one last time before she died...I was wrong.

The last time I saw my grandmother was actually over 2 years ago, during the summer of 2004. It seems like such a short time ago... all the while I've been jet-setting around the world, I've forgotten about time in Norway. It is as though time there stands still and now I realise that it doesn't.

I will remember her as a strong woman, the one she was before my grandfather died, a terrificly scary woman.. Hehe. We didn't get along very well when I was a kid, as I was stubborn and refused to do things that she told me to do as long as I did not see the point in doing them. When I got older, our relationship changed, the woman had changed, she was happy to see me when I came to visit and we had some nice times together. I'll remember her fondly.

..

Had a small get together for Geeta yesterday, as she suddenly decided to leave earlier.. *grumble*. Doesn't fit my shedule very well. Got my last exam this year on Friday. Gosh, then it's back to the books for another 3 days... feels a bit strange. Hopefully I'll learn something about time management before my education is over..

Far vel, Peter

Second friend out. I didn't cry yesterday, but now that I'm alone I found it appropriate to howl a bit while blogging. So my life shifts again. It's going towards the end of the trimester, and people are leaving one by one, some for good, some for summerbreak. I have no idea when or where or if I ever see Peter again. This weird German guy that Manuel dragged into my life. I'll miss you, brother.

Happy Birthday Regina!

My little cutie had her birthday yesterday, and amidst the blogging I forgot to create this post. BUT: here it is! Happy birthday, dear! I remember last year I was travelling home, and rang you up when I landed in Singapore. This year I'm not going back till December! Anyway, I hope you had a marvellous day, ate lots of cake and don't feel guilty at all about it. :) When I come to Singapore in January we should do an extended photoshoot, dear. I couldn't find a single one from last year with only the two of us! Ok, I'm feeling really bad about not sending you presents yet... I promised so many times to do it that I really feel all rotten on the inside, but really, I have had a lot on my mind and shedule. I hope both you and Feli can forgive me for that... *sigh*
LOTS OF LOVE! *muakz*

don't make plans

Today is Gyu Fawkes day, and yesterday there was a huge pyro-show in the harbour. It was great, almost as great as the chinese new year show last year. Or rather, equally beautiful but shorter.


Yesterday we also had our "last" party here in Welli, or rather, one of them, I suspect. We went to a huge houseparty in Thorndon, a costume party with the theme: Circus. It was wild. The house was HUGE, and they had a dancefloor surrounded by a balcony.. the rooms were lit with strange coloured light and all over there were circus posters, stands, signs.. they even had a smoke machine for one of the rooms. Talk about going all the way.. hehe. Must have taken them ages and cost heaps. Anyway, stayed there till 3 and then went to town. It was a quite late night, already started to dawn as we went to bed.

Lilya 4-ever

Sukk. Busy day today... probably tomorrow as well. I've been running ard, trying to get things in order... I'm so preoccupied with organising everything, when really there is no need to. Guess I always get a bit on the edge whenever my world is shifting. Today I watched one of the saddest movies ever... It was about a Russian girl, who was left by her mother and got caught up in human trafficing. Made me feel really sick.. I still have this feeling and I don't know how to escape it. It really happens, all over the world, right in our neighbourhoods..

Flat # 2

I've finally found a place to live. It's at the top of the cable car, a nice as room with windows and plenty of sun. The house is old but the atmosphere is quite nice, I like the place. Anyway, it's an open lease, which means that I don't have to stay there forever if I don't like it. But so far it seems great, the girl is quite nice, and I'll be living with Loïc as well. :) Wuhu! Finally! I don't care that the toilet is crap and the bathroom a bit dodgy, I've had muuuch worse: Recalling the first flat I shared with my X... the bathroom didn't have any light, the sink didn't have any pipes which meant that the bathroom constantly had about 2cm of water (we had "toilet shoes", haha), and no heating in the floors either. This is a lot better than that. I'm happy with my choice today.

Good day

Soundtrack: Kings of Convenience - I'd rather dance with you

After yesterday's sorrows, today proved to be a muuch better day. :) Actually I should have been studying hard out for my exam, but somehow I don't have the proper drive... It'll be fine though. Tomorrow should prove a more effective day (just keep saying that, Tina...)

So instead I spent the evening making Lasagna for my friends! Wuhu! And niice icecream with explicit sex talk afterwards... We know how to party.. lol Oh my god, !xobile

Oh well. better try get some sleep.

P...M...S?

I'm just sad right now.. sooo tired, had a hard night at work. Last night, Manuel decided to have a party, because he finished his last exam. (whee! Good on u manu!) Anyway, I was royally stressed out and kinda ran away from the whole thing... I had a crap as day yesterday. I had to get up at 2 to look at a flat, which prooved to be crap as usual, and because I didn't sleep enough I was too tired to study after I got back and decided to sleep. Woke up at 7pm and didn't get to do any studying again because of the party, on top of that all the ppl were giving me a hard time for working, saying that I was boring and that I should call in sick, and saying that I should give a fuck about this exam.. I am so stressed about this exam! the lecturer has a way of twisting the words in the questions so that I don't really know what it is he is asking for.. it is making me unsure and I cannot bring my dictionary because It doesn't do any good anyway.. So I ran away from the party. the whole day was whasted... Mark has left me in the search for the apartment.. I'm sick of the whole hunt now and will put it on hold till tuesday. I don't have time for this shit! Ahh....

On a brighter note:
I have confidence in this world now. It came to me on the bus. I suppose it was almost like a religious thing... suddenly, watching a traffic light on victoria street, I felt at home again. Not in Wellington(although this does feel like my home right now) but in the world. The world holds my soul at the moment, and I feel confident that anything I need will be given to me at the appropriate time, although I won't necessarily recognise it at once.. Sometime I miss having a religion to cling to, but then I have one of these moments, and it comes to me that I do have a religion. I do have a set of beliefs, I do believe in things that cannot be proved, but still it feels sooo obvious to me. It's good to have a purpose.
No regrets.

10 Things to appreciate on a rainy day

1. I don't have to go out if I don't want to
2. I can sleep till 5 ish
3. Having beers in the morning after a long night of work
4. Two wonderful flatmates
5. Being given the perfect opportunity to stay indoors and STUDY!
6. I will save money because I don't want to go shopping
7. Lots of friends live in the same building
8. If I get bored I can actually tidy my room
9. Croissants and cheese
10. I don't have to work tonite

Flat

I wish I could find a flat soon! I'm getting a bit tired of searching for a flat. I now know how to decifer flat adds:
Magnificent views = on top of a steep hill far away from supermarket
Large windows = Freezing in the winter
Suitable for up to 5 tenants = 3 at most!
Preferred tenants: Young profs = Old geezers with snug jobs
People have this image of what a student is like.. loud, messy, destructive, lazy... I don't really want to lower my standards, just because I'm now a student. I know I'm being demanding, wanting a mint flat without moist damage or shit-coloured walls, but I guess in reality we've got to be quite lucky to find something that will suit everyone. I passed on the one I liked cuz Loic didn't like the rooms. Ok, so one of them didn't have a door.. so what. I saw potential in that flat.. Just keep looking then. I've spent several hours flathunting this week. Maybe 2 hours revising for my exam... It's no good.

Goodbye Lene...

Gosh, what an unproductive day it has been today.. We had Lene's sendoff yesterday... :'( Wasn't feeling that great this morning. It is the official start of the leaving-season... ***SIGH*** She's the first one out, going travelling with her family for some days and then just coming back here for a few hours before leaving, so won't see her again in NZ. I'll miss you, babe. All the good times. Memories.

I miss myself the way I used to be at a certain point in time. At the same time, I do not wish go go backwards.. Strange dilemma. Have been working both Friday and Saturday night, now it's Sunday morning, and I'm chillin' with some beers before heading off to bed soon. Been a quiet night, thank goodness. Today there was a bunch of us who had like an official sendoff dinner for Lene. Damn, I hate these dinners. Novembers suck. This year I'll be saying goodbye to 4 friends: (cronologically) Lene, Peter, Elisabeth and Manuel. I hate saying goodbye to ppl. It's been a year and a half already, and I still miss the first people to leave Welli after getting to know them. All the small memories from when Feli and Regi were here... As I was sitting on the bus yesterday I was thinking about how different places in Welli reminds me of different ppl. I'll list them for you :)

Circa Theatre, Downstage and Bats Theatre: Felicia and Regina
The church on Dixon/Willis: Feli
The church on Church St: Regi
Espressoholic: Jo, Feli, Regi and Kuni
The Malthouse: Kunihiro!
Lambton Quay, outside Supré: Go
My room on 3rd floor in Vic house: Trong. (I miss u as a neighbour, Trong!)
The bench outside Pipitea/Havana: Anette
The Norwegian Consulate: Lene
The water purifier in Vic House/every shoe shop: Joanne
Strawberry fair: My girls ;)
Civic Square: Geeta
Shitty Okey's/the couch: Manuel
The bench on Manners and Willis/Lyall Bay parade: Peter
The bench in the Botanical garden: Elisabeth
Michael Fowler Centre: Travis
Te Aro: Tarz

There's more but I should go to bed.
Mmmm, memories. I carry you all in my heart.

2000 words in 12 hours.... a bit drained and terrified that this is a shit essay... Exam tomorrow! Whoa.. wish me luck... Tuesday! Can't wait for tuesday... maybe finally some shopping??

Wide awake

It's 8:15 am now, and unfortunately I'm wide awake. I have to sleep soon! I've slept about 4 hours the last two days... It's quite worrying. Work last night was quite interesting.. I had to kick someone out, and there was HEAPS of work to be done.. I don't really think about it, but I basically go for 8 hours doing physical labour.. Which to me is quite all right. Think about all the ppl all over the world who do physical labour, and if they're lucky they get paid $1 a day.. I'm working with a Somalian guy called Dayib. I really like him, he is nice to talk to, and he tells me about stuff that I'm curious about. He came here from Somalia about 2 years ago, and I'm learning lots of stuff about Somalia, about how he views his religion (it is Ramadan now), just things that you wonder about but don't talk about. He is a very strict Muslim, which to me is a bit frightening, but it is also really interesting to learn what it's all about, and he doesn't seem to hate people that are of different religions (not that I think that Muslims do, it's just an observation). I'd like to go to Africa sometime. It's nice to meet new people.

I'm sooo busy right now, so I'm sorry to all of yous who are trying to get me on MSN, trying to arrange lunch, trying to talk to me and stuff. I've got a test today, a huge test tomorrow, one essay due by Friday, another essay due on Monday and an exam on Monday. It's a lot... Come Tuesday morning after work, I'm finally going to be able to relax again. Gotta go and try to sleep now. Hopefully I can.

Drowning in assignments

Soundtrac: Technohead - hippie

Today I spent the day in Petone, doing field research for my hostel-assignment. Damn, that place felt lonely.... longing for something that it didn't have. I just wanted to go home after 2 hours.


: the view from... close to the place where I'm building it. This is Petone. The city centre, anyway.




It was a gorgeous day, however, and I actually found a suitable spot to plot my environmentally sustainable hostel. Whay!


This is a sad promenade... it's almost as thought the town has lost something that it once had, and is longing for it.


So, after wandering around for a total of 4 hours, I feel like I know what I need to know about the place. I don't know why ppl would want to come here though, even though there is an absolutely awesome hostel, the town hasn't got much to offer. Strange choice by the lecturer...





I want to go back over there!
Welli, my babe, I'll never leave you for Petone.

Quiz-night

Guess who won the international student's quiznight? that's right! I, Elisabeth, Manuel, Christiaan and Loic .Haha, it was good fun. We had an awesome team name: the Hoff. In the end we came in 8 points ahead of the second team (and yes, there were more than 2 teams..) Manuel even won us two mugs of free grog, and Eli almost won us two more. :) After that we went home and I baked too many buns... We still have some, they're not doing too ok. :D

Good news!

Soundtrack: Snap - The Power

I've got a job! I'm now working two nights a week at the YHA in Wellington, as night manager. It's not at luxurious as it sounds though.. most of the workload is doing the laundry, and then on top of that I'm responsible for about 300 sleeping ppl, secruity checks every now and then, late comers and check-outs in the morning. I think that two nights a week is quite appropriate, possibly I'd go mad if I had to do more laundry than that. On the good side, I get to walk ard with a walkie talkie and feel veery important (snort). ^_^ Oh well, we'll see. Maybe I'll try to get another job on top of that, preferably during daytime. But hey, I'm saved! No more saving (although I really should be concerned about my spending anyway.. heh).

bored

Yesterday we had dinner with all the Stafford-people. 'Twas nice to just sit and talk shit for hours while waiting for food.. We were supposed to meet up with Loic and some ppl, but since it took 3 hours for the food to be served we didn't make it. Oh well, it's not the last chance. Tuesday is the international quiz night again! the goal is to do better than last time!
It's been a while since I was this bored... It's Saturday and since I'm sick I decided to stay home. So, I thought it would be a good idea to call up some friends at home maybe, but guess what. No one in Norway is at home today. Not even mum!

I surreder. I'm gonna read the last chapter of marketing that I wanted to read in bed before falling asleep.

a HUGE pep talk to myself (and to you guys as well)

Make promises to yourself that you can keep, and keep them. Be true to yourself. Start where you actually are today, and take it one step of the time. Don't make plans that are unachievable. don't pursue visions and ideas that will in the end lead to unhappiness. Work hard to reach goals that you perceive as important for your development. Cry whenever you feel the need to, there is no point in holding back. Don't be afraid to show your friends that you care for them and love them. Don't think that love is something that is reserved for everyone else but you. Let go of your fears that are keeing you back. Live in the moment, look to the future, remember the past. Don't compromise your own needs to accommodate the needs you believe that other people have. Don't rely on other people for your happiness. Believe in karma, live by the golden rule. Good things will end, but good things will come. Don't keep yourself down. Everyone chooses their path in life, don't depend on someone else to find your path. But don't be afraid of walking where other people have walked before, if you're going the right way, any path is the right one. Live where happiness lives. Treasure small moments, but don't get caught up in them. Laugh when you say hello, cry when you say goodbye. Follow your instincts. What you need will be given to you when you need it. Trust life.

Travel itinerary time

I finally got round to ordering my trip next year, and already stuff was almost booked out... thank goodness that I had the sense to do it now and not wait. So, not confirmed yet, but I'll probably be going to Germany for a week to see Manuel's place n surroundings before heading for Singapore to see my friends(!) and then onwards to Melbourne and then back to good ol' Welli. It's a familiar route, but I really don't mind seeing Melbourne again, I'm thinking of doing the last year of my studies there even. Ugh, so much planning!!!

Other than that: It's SPRING!!!

Late Happy B-day, Feli!

As usual I'm a bit late, and you'll have to wait for the stuff to reach you.. have faith! Have patience! I did not forget!

I hope you are having an awesome time in Korea, dear! :) Can't believe how fast time has flied since we were all happily living together in Vic house..

Big Birthdayhug from Tina.

Cape Palliser

Soundtrack: Red Hot Chili Peppers - ...

I have news: I am NOT going out at all this weekend. Quite frankly, I'm too tired today, have had a long and eventful day. We (Me, Manuel, Peter and Lene) went for a daytrip to Cape Palliser, and had a joyous picnic among the seals. It was totally awesome, and once again I've managed to get a sunburn.. whay! This summer could prove to be quite a challenge for me I think..
Have to sleep now... sooooo tired. Couldn't sleep last night; heat, nightmares, strong winds, high heartrate... weird combination. Hopefully tonight I'll fall asleep witout complications. And tomorrow: More national parks! workworkwork! last day of the "holiday!"

Felicia!

I DID collect stamps! And glittered images, and notebooks, and stickers of various kinds, and napkins, and phonecards, and little stuffed animals that can clip onto stuff, and paperclips and hats and keychains (!), and Marbles!! yeah, and ponies, and ROCKS (I still do, actually lol), and those cards that you get when you graduate at home (russekort), and the kinder-surprise toys, and pencils/pens, newspaperclippings of my fav band, pins, postcards and letters from my 1000 penfriends haha... and magazines.. and I'm sure that I'm forgetting already lots of things that I tried to collect but never worked out. That's insane... my whole childhood I've been collecting useless stuff. No wonder my mum is begging me to throw away stuff every time I'm home.
It is actually quite nice to look back at my childhood and realise that I've been confused the whole time, it's not new at all!

Which is worse? not being able to verify, or verifying a negative?
I'm glad that some stories have a happy ending.

I'm starting to worry that my nightly trips to the botanical garden and the waterfront are not too safe ventures.. I'm good at worrying nowadays. I worry about the wellbeing of my friends more and more, even though it is not beneficial in any way. I worry that they might not eat properly, that they're depressed with schoolwork, that they make it safe home from town in the weekend...
I'm worried about my grandmother, whether she will stay alive until I come home, and then if she does get better I am worried about how I can make a difference in her life, improve her quality of life. It's quite a selfish thought to just think that she will be at peace when she goes, something should be done to make her feel at peace before she goes. And I don't know how I can do that from here. I used to be good at writing letters for her and I always remember to send her cards for xmas and stuff, but then it was brought to my attention by my uncle that she never reads them, and she never opens her mail. Since then I kinda gave up, and now it may be too late. Creative thinking - - creative thinking. No use in embracing all this negative energy, I'll let go


I distinctly remember giving this advice to a friend some years ago: The world will take care of itself if only I let it. Why can't I embrace that thought right now? Getting out of town next weekend will be good. I need to wash off all this noise and stuff, will be awesome I think.

boing whee

Soundtrack: Prodigy - out of space

uh oh... it seems I've lost my landline. I guess I do need some time away from the city... Today it seems that my brain is separate from my body, at least they cannot co-operate for long stretches of time. Strange... usually this happens when I want to get away from something or a situation.. Yeah, I think I do. I'm not comfortable in my head at all today, there's too much BS going on and I don't have too much control, which is probably why I just wish I was somewhere or someone else. I should run away from home :) Too bad I'm not dressed well enough to do that.

Dinnerparty and picnic.

Soundtrack: Yo Yo Ma: Bach - 6 suites for unac. Cello

Funny how so much of and average person's social-life relies on food..

Monday we had a huge dinnerparty here, something that was just going to be the three of us flatties plus three more ppl turned into twelve people during the course of the evening... And still we would have had food enough for at least five more people. Talk about overdoing it. It was nice though, getting a bunch of current and old flatties over.


Then on Wednesday I had my first picnic this year (weird eh.. considering we're eager picnicers) with Peter at Lyall Bay. He is a nice guy, reminds me a lot of René for some reason, so naturally I adore him. :) It was nice to sit at the beach, listening to the waves and talking about all kinds of stuff. The consequence: I've got a sunburn! It's not even spring yet! Something tells me that my SPF 130 will come in handy this summer.. ahem.
Today I've actually done some work. I know, it's pretty unbelievable, but I've been industrious and have been able to start my first assignment and am well on the way. Yay! Can't wait for Mozart on Saturday!

what really matters in life

I learned an important life lesson today:
Never try to swallow your spit before the drink when you already have started the process of drinking.... Just do it all in once.
What happens is:
You confuse the two processes because they feel like two separate processes, when in fact they are two consecutive parts of the same process. The result: Wrong pipe. This can be very embarassing when carried out in a computer lab full of people who are there DURING THE HOLIDAY writing away at essays when they could have been at home in bed sleeping. Not to mention the fact that you have to go all the way to the toilet to get paper to wipe all the energy drink off the computerscreen...


My grandmother is on the mend again.. which feels a bit confusing as I've already invested quite some time in feeling down and being unfocused on my work. I still don't know how things are though, whether she is really on the mend or just hanging in there. Time will show now I guess.

...

I just wanna whine and whine, but who cares.. probably no one even reads this shit. Seems like everything I touch turns to gold these days, and all the while I'm just thinking what's the point of it all? Everything comes to an end. I'm tired. I sleep so much these days, and still all I feel like doing is sleep some more. I want to socialise, but can't think of what to say. I'm starting to hate people who say "Hey how are you" but actually don't want to know. And I hate myself for feeling down when all I really want to do is to be happy and do silly things like I usually do... I'm sure my friends find me super boring like this, heaven knows I find myself boring. Just as I found my groove again life happens.


I'll get through.
I'm gonna climb that tree in the garden some day soon. Maybe spring is not so far away, then the roses will start to bloom.

My grandmother is dying. My mother urged me to call home today, and she sais that my grandmother is sick, and won't make it this time. My grandmother wants to die.

It is breaking my heart that I can't be there to send her off, my insurance company won't cover the cost because she is 79, and they only cover grandparents that are under 75. I'll dump them next year and find someone else I think. Wankers.

I don't expect much from anyone. I know that it's weird to have your friend feel down without being able to do something about it, that's just life guys. Please don't walk on eggshells around me though, I don't wanna feel like a freak, I hate it how people can act like grief is an unnatural thing. Expect me to be a bit unstabile for a couple of days at least...

God reise, Mormor. Hils til Morfar.

I found it again

sometimes it feels as though I'm losig myself, but the storm is now oficially over! My calm is back. No more uncertainty, no more homesickness, no more sleepless nights. YES!I'm back in the game.

Drunk Happy Tina is at large again!

u guys would not believe this... or maybe you would. I decided that it was time to go, bcause I'm kinda loosing mysekf here, And Kristian insists on bringing me home! It is very nice of him, I think at home noone would careif a girl decided to go home alone. He walked me all the way hoe, like, 2 km(!) from shitty okei's to staffor, which was lucky or I would end up doing something that I really wasn't up for at all, I am sure. funny,.. I could get used to the courtesy of the foreigners, I quite like it, iin fact.
Had a good day, had Icecream wiht Anette, and then a reallu weird start of teh night, was going to go to Tarz' place but just couldn't find my way!! It was far off, I suppose it would have been better to start thgerem rather than to try and find it after drikign... I must say, this catholic church nxt to stafford, it si ringin the bell evry hour, and I'm beginning to like it. I know now when It's fullhoiw, because the bell is ringing. :)
Es friert mich.. Jtzt geh ich ins Btt.

natta. Gla i dåke alle. Klem Tina