World citizen reflecting from inside the industry that unites our world´s markets, the core bloodstream of a global society… Always curious, open to learn & develop. With a heart beating for sustainable capitalism, diversity and entrepreneurship.
A wrap-up of good thoughts that’s definitely representing my focus in life – enjoy your weekend and be weird! Adding some self-experienced points to the list;
Join some kids and jump in rain pits, or if you can’t find any – jump in bed
Turn on your favorite music really loud and dance silly in your underwear
Change one habit for a day
Invite someone you don’t know and normally wouldn’t meet home for dinner or a cup of tea
Eat a meal backwards (starting with dessert)
Find a swing, add full speed and enjoy the skies above you (especially magic after a night out…)
Walk barefeet in the city (and if you’re weird enough, also include a bar or a club)
Talk to strangers everywhere
See your hometown through the eyes of a tourist
Have fun with poop humor – among grow ups
Let jokes be on your expense, and share the things you’re embarrassed of to loose unneccessary masks
Do something nice for others without expecting anything in return
See a movie, dine out, go to a cafe all by yourself
…klokka er 16 og kaffen fra i morges fortsatt står urørt
…to små barn tester ut variasjoner av “døgning” for fjerde døgn på rad – bare uten festen først
…du sov fra 02-04, da han på 1,5 med feber kom over i senga, og våknet deretter i morges halvt sittende i sengen med to små barn i en krøll over/rundt deg og armen halvveis ut av ledd (dvs at det faktisk gikk helt fint an å sovne i den stillingen)
…håret er fett og stua flyter
…han som er inne med feber på fjerde dag på rad sitter oppå stuebordet med skoene på og spiser en kald fiskebolle rett fra pakka
…du har skåret opp grønnsaker til middag med en liten tass hengende på armen/brystet og den andre hengende i anklene
…han som er minst endelig har sovnet i mer enn 5 min (uten å bli båret/ligge på brystet) for første gang i hele dag
…du har helt sykt lyst på en røyk, men den eneste rusen du kan nyte uten sosial fordømmelse kommer fra sukker eller koffein
Ikke at jeg skal klage, men akkurat DA er det på tide å få seg en ekte HOBBY (inntas i smug i skjul av kjøkkendøra på 5 sekunder).
Du trodde kanskje jeg mente fritidshobby?? Hahaha, da må man jo kanskje først skaffe seg litt fritid 😉
Gir akkurat nok energi til å holde det gående til samboern kommer hjem, og en dæsj til å huske hvor heldig man er som ikke har noe som helst verre/mer alvorlig å klage på 😉 #iLandsproblematikk
Hilsen hun med stort godtelager på toppen av kjøleskapet!
Selvutlevering aka Bridget Jones incident; Det kan kanskje hende at jeg har vært litt sliten i det siste. Eller at det stemmer at hjernen krymper når man får barn. Men innerst inne vet jeg (og de som kjenner meg) at det er en god sjanse for at disse episodene også kunne hendt før.
I går dro jeg til Syd-Koster for å holde et utfordrings- og motivasjonsforedrag for TINEs FOU-ansatte. Parkeringshuset vi hadde blitt tipset om var stengt, så da ble det litt leting på tampen før vi fant et sted man kunne bli mer enn 3 timer. Espen er på jobbtur, så jeg tok med lillesøster som barnevakt.
Første typisk Birgit-episode skjedde da vi skulle gå på båten. Hvor er jobb-visakortet?!! Randi løp tilbake til minibank og parkeringsautomat – men neida.. Konkluderte med at det måtte finnes et eller annet sted langt nedi veskekaoset.. Midtfjords ringte telefonen; “Hej, det är fra Strömstads polis – vi har fått innlämnat ër visakort”.
Det var så fint vær, så vi bestemte oss for å bli en stund på Koster, og utpå ettermiddagen booket vi oss like greit inn på Ekenäs, med skikkelig bra last minute-deal 🙂 Jeg kan jo jobbe hvorsomhelst hvor det er nett, så i morges tok jeg ferga over for å hente bankkortet, legge igjen jobbtøyet og litt saker i bilen, pluss flytte bilen/putte på ny billett.
Setter meg på en benk og sjekker fergetidene, og oppdager samtidig at jeg har glemt å ta med bilnøkkelen (F***!!!!), før jeg går på politistasjonen og trekker kølapp. Sitter der, og tenker plutselig; “Oi, hvor er mobilen??!!” Leter febrilsk, finner heller ikke ruteheftet. Løper ned igjen, og trenger kanskje ikke engang si at begge deler lå igjen på benken. (For en fantastisk ærlig by!).
Etterpå rusler jeg bort til parkeringen, satser på at ingen rapper parkeringsbilletten fra under vindusviskern. Tar i døra av gammel vane – og oooops; bilen står ulåst siden igår(!!). Jaja, da får jeg ihvertfall lagt lappen på innsiden av ruta.
Ser at ferga ligger til kai, ser i tabellen at den går om 10 min sprinter bort (ehmm, overdrivelse “går fort” heter det…) og hopper fornøyd ombord. Så flaks!!
Sitter der i ca 5 min før det kommer en hyggelig mann bort; ” du skal kanskje på den vanlige Kosterfergen du?” Ehh, ja det var jo planen.. “Den går ikke før om to timer, vi skal ut på selsafari”. Hadde selvfølgelig (ikke overraskende) sett på feil tabell……!!
Kapitulasjon: *Tar med meg veska (OG kort OG mobil), og finner meg en cafe*
Kanskje ikke rart Espen og andre noen ganger lurer på hvordan jeg har overlevd diverse langreiser alene i Nigeria, India etc – med både verdisaker og helsa i behold….. Hurra for kaospiloten! 😉
Tror jeg følger hjernen min, og tar helga. God helg!
The past few weeks have been quite hectic, as most of my current work had some kind of important activity this week. Tuesday came with a high-north competence seminar for youth politicians, the Expert Committee meeting of the Heyerdahl Environmental Award was scheduled for Thursday (today), and finally – a fundraising event with WISTA & YoungShip to celebrate the International Women´s Day this Saturday….
I´ll come back to those in separate blog posts, but as you can imagine, parallel work mode and mom mode combined with a tad of sleep deprivation doesn´t exactly make miracles when it comes to chaos rate. Probably, this is something others can relate to as well, but in any case it creates some embarrassing and funny situations. My Bridget Jones incidents….
As when I park my car heading for a meeting, only to return 1,5 hours later and discover that I can´t find the key (which is left in the ignition…!). Or when I join a lunch meeting with industry peers in the Nor-Shipping Advisory Board, return home quite happy after having promoted some views I´m really engaged about – then take a look in the hallway mirror and spot unmistakeable stripes of porridge & snot remains covering the chest area of my black silk blouse.. (can´t believe no-one said anything!)
Those small blunders are great for sharing – after all, people deserve a good laugh.. But sometimes I get more than just a little embarrassed on my own behalf, once again surprised of my own ability for creating my own chaos. Like yesterday;
Last night around 8pm I had changed in to sweatpants and bare feet, hands full (literally – of baby dipers…), when the phone rang. After a period of marathon work including evening & night work after putting Knut to bed, I had a really relaxing afternoon after picking him up from the baby sitter. We even enjoyed a quick bite of Indian food and joined a friend for her dog walk before returning home. Cuddling and having quite a bit of fun before bedtime, my only plan after putting Knut to bed was to curl up in the sofa with some good old trash tv. A very good way of recharging the batteries before a full-day meeting at the Norwegian Shipowners´ Association, to evaluate and discuss the short-list and winner of this year´s Thor Heyerdahl International Environmental Award (which will be presented by the King of Norway 31 March…!). Important to be bright and focused, and it´s very wise to relax in between. Or so I thought, untill I picked up the phone….
Me: -“Hi, Birgit speaking?”
Woman: -“Hi, do you have problems finding us? Are you here soon?”. My first instant reaction was that someone had dialled the wrong number, and I stuttered a confused “what?”. Until suddently I realised.. Something was wrong.. I had made the epic blunder of updating my calendar just a little bit too quickly, without double checking the date again later(!). The thing is, I had organised for my little sister to babysit the following night, in order for me to join the expert committee dinner at the new fabulous restaurant “The Fortress”. The only problem was this; the dinner wasn´t scheduled for Thursday night – it was scheduled for Wednesday night…! Quite logical, as the meeting would start at 9am, requiring the participants traveling into Oslo from other sites to arrive the night before…
-“Uuuhh, oohhhh!!” I stuttered. – “I thought the dinner was tomorrow (anxiety flash!)”. -“Is it now – at 8?”
-“No! It started at 7:30, we´re waiting for you. Will you be joining?”
Oh, holy crap! How embarrassing!! Inside my head, the following dialogue/monologue stirred; “How is it possible, you stupid cow! Here you are, the youngest and less senior of the committee, who really has to prove a good example of how important and beneficial it is to include young people in the more senior industry initiatives. And you can´t event get the date right?! Not even checking the appointment some days in advance to be sure all is correct?! Stupid! Think think – how can I solve this?! Can´t bring Knut, won´t get a baby sitter now. What the f*** do I do?! Have to fix this!”
So…. I promised I´d do anything I could to join, provided I´d find someone to babysit (quite unlikely on such short notice..). Called Espen, who was just finding his seat at the cinema (bummer!). Desperately called my baby sister Randi. No reply. Called again (and again!), and probably stressed her completely out. But – miracle and luck exist – she picked up. And by some fantastic coincidence she was at home working late, with no plans made.. And luckily, my sister is really kind, and with the help of some bribes (paying for cab both ways, Ben & Jerry´s in the freezer, a guarantee that Knut would sleep well so she´d be able to work from here) she actually stepped in, and 5 min later was on her way from Torshov…(!) Can´t believe its possible to be so lucky!!
The following 15 minutes I jumped out of my sweatpants, washed the baby poo remains of my hands, threw a dress from the closet, tied my hair in a pony tail and was ready as she arrived. Stepped a bit too hard on the gas pedal on my way in to town, only to arrive not 15 minutes but an hour and 15 minutes too late(!), as the others were in the middle of their main course. Not exactly fresh from the shower, and without any trace of make-up or illusion of bing groomed. And quite short of breath, after running the few hundred meters from the parking lot. It´s more than a little bit embarrassing to be so extremely late, as foreign participants and senior executives who are super busy actually manage to be on time.
Home office, or just a plain mess?
To make my point; I have now learned that the calendar is to be double checked extremely carefully every week from now. Unfortunately, I know myself well enough to know that this is definitely not my last Bridget Jones incident.. Your treat!
PS; The jury meeting today was really exciting with superb discussions! It was so difficult to award one winner, facing so many great candidates and a very broad span of activities. Now I´ll keep my mouth shut until the 31 March, and I can´t wait for joining the Annual conference of the Norwegian Shipowners Association where the award ceremony will take place..!
PS2; The white fish and chocolate dessert at the Festningen (Fortress) restaurant is highly recommendable – both courses completely melted on my tongue.. 🙂
Or to put it in other words; my best excuses for not spending more energy than an absolute minimum on domestic stuff.
Friends, kids and others don’t have to worry about leaving a stain somewhere; it will blend in perfectly with all the existing ones
Less stress to host guests when you don’t bother about full cleaning before they come. Nobody notices anyway, the place will look like a mess afterwards (=neutralizes the effect of boring prep’s) and referring to No.1 again, the guests can fully enjoy the evening without bothering about crumbs or a bounced wine glass..
Kids’ mess will (probably) be less annoying if it’s propotionally balanced with your own.
In case of insufficient exposure to dust and germs/bacteria, we get more allergic and asmathic(!). Scientifical proof, you are my friend!
It’s always better to be the one who gets nagged on, than being the nagger. Hard to imagine more boring stuff to nag about than dishes & chores. (P.S. Applies for home, does not in any way reflect my views on worklife 😉 )
You won’t get completely stressed out by minor and major home accidents (which occure quite frequently in this home)
The approach is great in combination with second hand furniture, which saves you extra money (= travel funds, as a bonus ref. to the time you already saved on not spending it on completely boring chores
You save the nature from all the bad chemicals & stuff that would otherways be poured down the drain
Nobody will ever blaim you for not having spent enough time cleaning/tidying
People easily feel very much at home when visiting, and if they bother its really their problem
You might even make people feel better about their obvious superior domestic skills, from seeing your clutter, which is a great benefit!
Hope I didn’t offend anyone who puts a tiny bit more perfection into their home than I do – and feel free to share or stick on the fridge door for a rainy day!
Messy, dusty greetings from the undomesticated one 😉
Thank you to all those sending me this hilarious and funny e-mails. You make my day, while I make my own money ;-). Just cannot believe it´s still possible to succeed with these attempts of variously successful google translate e-mails. For the author of this one, however, must say that the English is good (for once!). Steppin´ it up!
What can I say, the world obviously wants to be tricked?!
If the sender; “ministryofficeburkinafaso@gmail.com on behalf of Mr Amissa Yafa (mramissa1990@voila.fr)” happens to read this, I can give you a great tip. Look to Hong Kong/China, and start sending out false e-mail claiming that someone is trying to register my company name as web domain instead. It´s probably much more efficient – or at least, I actually checked it with legal a few years back (first time experiencing it).
• Sette igjen Mac’en på gulvet når du skal roe småtten som våknet hylende midt i skriving av en mail. Spesielt ikke før du har fått gått kveldstur med hunden… #MacMedMarkering
• La døren til gangen stå åpen i 2 sekunder med full vannskål
(også kalt plaskebasseng)
• Glemme å gjemme posen med hundemat (også kalt babysnop)
• La tyggebeinet ligge i hundesengen; det er nemlig flere som klør i tennene…
• Lære småtten at det er gøy å dele maten (med bikkja) – plutselig tar det helt av (!)
• Anskaffe leker som både smått og firbent føler sterkt eierskap til, om det ikke er ønskelig med litt ekstra intensiv herding ift hundesikkel..
NB; For å berolige de som evt vurderer å ringe barnevernet – det var bare den første episoden som fant sted i dag 😉
…gjelder det å la inntrykkene og godfølelsen synke inn.
Her flyter langbordet av stemning (les; tomme vinflasker) fra i går. Jeg er helt alene hjemme uten baby og samboer dagen derpå, for første gang siden – april…!!! Så der de orntli’e og fornuftige flinkis-damene helt sikkert ville stått på huet, ryddet & vasket, sitter jeg krøllet opp i sofaen med flanellspysjbukse, kalde rester fra kjøleskapet og kakao str. XL med Bonanza og julefilm på programmet. Med verdens beste samvittighet. Luksus!!
Det er dagen derpå etter jentenes julebord, og etter å ha måttet kapitulere som vert i fjor var det innmari koselig å kunne ha det her igjen. To langbord klarte vi utrolig nok å skvise inn i spisestua(!) – fullt hus og vel så det.
Jeg legger stort sett lista ganske så lavt for juleforberedelser. Jeg vil kose meg i desember, heller enn å løpe rundt med 240 i puls for å rekke alt som “må” gjøres. De fleste jeg kjenner vet at de verken kan forvente julegaver eller julekort fra meg. For to år siden fikk ti stykker julekort. Det vil si; de kortene jeg skrev året før men glemte til det var for sent.
Tanken om å lage kalender blåste bort med vindværet en gang forrige uke, i et lite øyeblikks selvinnsikt. Jeg er litt håpløs på sånt som krever mye styr på hjemmebane, og helt fornøyd med det. Med noen få unntak. Det å gjøre istand til jentenes julebord er et av dem. Dekke langbord, tenne lys og fakler, slenge på noen never julepynt – men aller viktigst; lage en koselig kveld for noen av de jeg setter aller mest pris på.
Så får det heller være at jeg heller ikke i år rakk å sminke meg eller sette opp håret
, og at huset ikke akkurat hadde blitt rundvasket – folk koste seg, kvelden ble like gøy som alltid, og vi holdt det gående til godt utpå morgenkvisten. Og best av alt, det er igjen masse dessert….
Lenge leve dagen derpå! 😛
Petter Edderkopp ville visst også være med på festen….
My favourite place in the world. Simple, quiet, distant.
Packed with memories of our family. Of neverending time with my father; who I’m still half expecting to see entering the cabin with a load for the fireplace.
Me; “What a great day it’ll be. A walk with friends, 2-3 hours work after lunch. No other plans.”
Life; “Or so you think, motherfucker! Hahh!! Now just wait and see what I’ll be cookin’ and about ready to throw in your face. Starting in 5 minutes from now. You will be sorry you went out of bed this morning. Moahhahahh!! Sucker!”
