Songs of the week:
-Dream On - Robyn w/ Ola Salo (evangelic indeed!)
-Epilepsy is Dancing - Antony and the Johnsons ([lyrics:music::wine:food] uhh, perfect match!)
-Graceland - Paul Simon (Tiiiiiggggghhhht)
Animal sightings to or from work:
-1 fox
-2 moose
-NO DEER!?!? Usually see like 60 a week, and no other animals.
Things from the USA I'm really missing right now:
-My copy of Watchmen (thinkin of having my parents send it to me CAN'T WAIT for the movie)
-ALL my Evangelion DVDs (I couldn't find some so didn't bring them back in Dec. :.( REGRET)
-Halo, to some extent (too heavy to bring back xbox)
The mechanical engineering dept. boss was gone this week so I guess everyone took it as a slack week cause there was almost no work for me to do. REALLY boring. Or possibly there just actually wasn't that much work. Here was my Thursday (NOT representative at all of a normal day, just the boringest day of this lame week):
Roll in with the Uppsala mafia at 8:00 sharp. Sign into computer. Open Inventor. Login to part database. Go to foxnews.com. Read pretty much every article. Go to CNN.com. Read pretty much every article. Oops, 9:01 late for coffee break. 9:35, continue reading CNN and move on to LJworld, pitchfork, and autoblog. Continue reading these websites whilst occasionally switching over to the Inventor window to grab the chain I'm modeling and swing it around like a whip a few times to make it look like im at least playing around with the program I should be using to accomplish "work". 11:28, put on jacket and go mill around in the hall outside the big boys room to make sure everyone knows it's lunchtime. Walk to Motor (what we call the lunch restaurant since its in the car dealership and all). Ismet asks me a little about Kansas. I answer with some lame 3 yr old level Swedish. Eat panbiff med indiska kryddor (like indian spiced meatloaf). Wasn't too disgusting as long as I avoided the big yellow puddle of grease that accumulated on one side of the plate (the restaurant is really cheap and cruddy, which is not typical here, but we go there cause engineers are generally stingy). Get back at around 12:30 and surf more internet. Get an email around 14:00 about a part that I messed with a couple months ago and didn't put into the database right when I was done fixing it. Start correcting my mistake. Christopher comes in and tells me since he doesn't really have much for me to do I may as well check every assembly I've ever put into the database to make sure I didn't make the same mistake on those (easier than it sounds). I thank jeebus I finally have something to keep busy. Last 2.5 hours are spent going through each assy I've checked in to make sure it is linked to it's part in the database. Amazingly out of about 75 there was only three I made the same mistake on! And it kept me doing something semi-worthwhile!
Really been thinking this week about somehow changing the format of the blog. These random unstructured posts really suck. But I guess since I'm sooooo lazy about updating that's just the way it goes. I'd really like to have some kind of more structured one topic posts, like music critique, culture update, pic post, work, freetime, etc. type thing. Maybe I'll try to do that.
About to go to "Buddy's", the Irish bar with the BEST BY FAR hamburgers I've had since I've been here. Gotta leave now. When I come back I'll continue this post. Keep that in mind if the, er, "tone" changes. IF YA KNOW WHAT I MEAN.
Back from Buddy's. The service there puts the rest of Sweden to shame. They actually moved 3 people from a 4 person table to a 3 person table so that they could fit the 4 of us in. In the first 2 minutes we were there, we were helped by 3 waiters. That is unheard of here. GREAT service. The hamburger was not as good as I remember, but still a 9.8 by Sweden standards.
Hey I knocked one out early Friday night so maybe I'll get to another one before the weekend is out. I'M GOIN' TO GRACELAND! MEMPHIS TENNESSEE!!
27 February 2009
21 February 2009
Sigh
During the week I always have these grand and profound ideas for things to post on here, you know deep meditations on Sweden, life, learning a new language, the nature of the universe in general. That type of garbage. Of course then when the weekend comes I can barely be bothered to actually sit down and write even though I have the time. Then when I actually do write something I'm usually preoccupied (or I been drankin') and it usually comes out half-assed and fairly boring. Sorry.
I found out on Friday that I finally get to move into the big boys room with the other mechanical engineers. I figured it was coming since there's two guys retiring next month and another in June, so there will actually be space for me, but I finally found out for sure at the engineering meeting. They've had me sitting in a room with three consultants, all of whom I really like, especially Peter, he's real cool. But I think the actual physical distance between me and the guys I'm supposed to be working with has been a big chunk of the vaguely "separate but equal" vibe everyone feels re me. Now we won't have to walk halfway across the building to talk to each other at least. And I'll get a bookshelf. Tight!
Well if I remember any of those super-insightful things I wanted to post over the last week maybe I'll make another post soon. Otherwise see you next weekend.
I found out on Friday that I finally get to move into the big boys room with the other mechanical engineers. I figured it was coming since there's two guys retiring next month and another in June, so there will actually be space for me, but I finally found out for sure at the engineering meeting. They've had me sitting in a room with three consultants, all of whom I really like, especially Peter, he's real cool. But I think the actual physical distance between me and the guys I'm supposed to be working with has been a big chunk of the vaguely "separate but equal" vibe everyone feels re me. Now we won't have to walk halfway across the building to talk to each other at least. And I'll get a bookshelf. Tight!
Well if I remember any of those super-insightful things I wanted to post over the last week maybe I'll make another post soon. Otherwise see you next weekend.
14 February 2009
Pic megapost!
Watching:
Snow Buddies (no I'm not joking, I wanted to see it so piss off) - So terrible and yet so awesome! And so disturbingly similar to porn, I'm all "what's all this story crap, just get to the alaskan husky money shots!!!!"
Looking forward to:
GET HIM TO THE GREEK!!!!! - Aldous Snow is back... ON DRUGS FOOLS! AWESOME!
Listening to:
Pitchfork 500
And let's talk about that. FINALLY finished 497 of them (three didn't down... er I couldn't find them at the store, for some reason, but those bands/songs I had heard so wasn't missing anything). I had really hoped to find a ton of cool new stuff to check out. I found Antony and The Johnsons. That was pretty much it. OUTTA 500 SONGS! C'MON PITCHFORK! You're so much better than that. Anyway, if those were the best Animal Collective songs they could find then I'm glad I've never given them the time of day cause they blow goats and then yak onto the pony. There is some seriously boring shit on that list. There's also quite a few of what I would consider "the best songs ever" that I already loved. Then there's a lot of WTF is that doing on here? But the fact that Lightning Bolt, Brainiac, Slayer, Iron Maiden, and Les Savy Fav and quite a few other awesome bands that shouldn't have but did make the list made me quite happy. I have no idea what they were trying to accomplish (I get the Rolling Stone reference, besides that) but I guess it was something along the lines of add rap, raggae, and some of what they considered underappreciated "underground" songs by bands that you've already heard of but maybe never gave the particular song or album a chance. There is quite a bit of early hip hop that sounds terribly dated, never in a good way. No idea why it was included other than to be cool and "black it up" just for the sake of it. Not that that's a bad thing, there was a few songs falling in that category that I (sadly) had never heard that are freaking great (uhhh, "I Got 5 On It"?). Also; worst song: Rawhide by Scott Walker. WTF?? IT'S AWFUL. Was happy they included "Cry Me a River" by J.T., it's a good song. But Kelly Clarkson? C'mon, now you're just trying to be too slyly hipster ironic. And what's the deal with LCD Soundsystem? I get it, Talking Heads were a great band. Stop cloning their songs already. I mean yeah you can never go wrong, but it's still annoying. Anyway the whole thing just left me sorta confused after listening to it. And now if you aren't bored to death heres some pretty pichers!
I got my phone linking up to my computer again after months of it not working (STUPID GARBAGE WINDOWS VISTA) so I'll post some pics which are from several months ago and possibly summer. Or just tonight in the case of the first one. Sorry if there is repeats from my previous pic post. First in honor of my home slice Schultzzz:
Oh shit! Pretty face is goin' to HELL!
Next in honor of my bro Adam:
Care for some FAGOTTINI with you CHINA WANG?
Just some cool street art and concert poster from downtown Stockholm:
The view from the apartment we were staying in at the beginning of summer in Stockholm:
There's lots of rainbows here. Think it has something to do with the sun being at a low angle in the sky so much blah blah.
I so wish there was some blood dripping and pooling in the second pic. God that would be awesome.
Out.
Snow Buddies (no I'm not joking, I wanted to see it so piss off) - So terrible and yet so awesome! And so disturbingly similar to porn, I'm all "what's all this story crap, just get to the alaskan husky money shots!!!!"
Looking forward to:
GET HIM TO THE GREEK!!!!! - Aldous Snow is back... ON DRUGS FOOLS! AWESOME!
Listening to:
Pitchfork 500
And let's talk about that. FINALLY finished 497 of them (three didn't down... er I couldn't find them at the store, for some reason, but those bands/songs I had heard so wasn't missing anything). I had really hoped to find a ton of cool new stuff to check out. I found Antony and The Johnsons. That was pretty much it. OUTTA 500 SONGS! C'MON PITCHFORK! You're so much better than that. Anyway, if those were the best Animal Collective songs they could find then I'm glad I've never given them the time of day cause they blow goats and then yak onto the pony. There is some seriously boring shit on that list. There's also quite a few of what I would consider "the best songs ever" that I already loved. Then there's a lot of WTF is that doing on here? But the fact that Lightning Bolt, Brainiac, Slayer, Iron Maiden, and Les Savy Fav and quite a few other awesome bands that shouldn't have but did make the list made me quite happy. I have no idea what they were trying to accomplish (I get the Rolling Stone reference, besides that) but I guess it was something along the lines of add rap, raggae, and some of what they considered underappreciated "underground" songs by bands that you've already heard of but maybe never gave the particular song or album a chance. There is quite a bit of early hip hop that sounds terribly dated, never in a good way. No idea why it was included other than to be cool and "black it up" just for the sake of it. Not that that's a bad thing, there was a few songs falling in that category that I (sadly) had never heard that are freaking great (uhhh, "I Got 5 On It"?). Also; worst song: Rawhide by Scott Walker. WTF?? IT'S AWFUL. Was happy they included "Cry Me a River" by J.T., it's a good song. But Kelly Clarkson? C'mon, now you're just trying to be too slyly hipster ironic. And what's the deal with LCD Soundsystem? I get it, Talking Heads were a great band. Stop cloning their songs already. I mean yeah you can never go wrong, but it's still annoying. Anyway the whole thing just left me sorta confused after listening to it. And now if you aren't bored to death heres some pretty pichers!
I got my phone linking up to my computer again after months of it not working (STUPID GARBAGE WINDOWS VISTA) so I'll post some pics which are from several months ago and possibly summer. Or just tonight in the case of the first one. Sorry if there is repeats from my previous pic post. First in honor of my home slice Schultzzz:
Oh shit! Pretty face is goin' to HELL!Next in honor of my bro Adam:
Care for some FAGOTTINI with you CHINA WANG?Just some cool street art and concert poster from downtown Stockholm:
The view from the apartment we were staying in at the beginning of summer in Stockholm:
There's lots of rainbows here. Think it has something to do with the sun being at a low angle in the sky so much blah blah.
I so wish there was some blood dripping and pooling in the second pic. God that would be awesome.Out.
01 February 2009
SkIDReSAn!!!
So I went skiing for the first time ever (yes EVER) yesterday. I think my closest exposure to it until now was the South Park episode parodying late 80's ski resort movies. Er whatever. Speaking of which that episode is freaking super-classic. The payoff at the end??? "Quaaiiidd, start the reactor..." Brilliant!!!
Back to skiing. Wow. It is really really hard. And since EVERYONE here has done it since they are like 8 months old I looked like a complete doofus out there. There's like a baby slope with about a 5 degree gradient and little animal puppets that show the kids where to go, on which I assume the 8 month olds start out. Luckily for my self esteem I started on the next level up where the two years olds were skiing. I think it takes them roughly 45 seconds to reach the bottom of the slope. The first time I went down it took me literally 45 MINUTES, no exaggeration. I spent much of that time on the ground spitting out bloody snow and groaning about the pain in my legs. Ok, there was no blood really, but that's surprising. Little kids for whom it was entirely within their realm of possibilities that Santa Claus COULD be waiting for them at the bottom of the hill (with presents even) were flying by me at 60 mph, and looking way cooler than me in their ski gear while they did it. Anyway, 45 minutes later at the bottom, my whole body was shaking, my inner clothes were SOAKED with sweat, my outter clothes were covered in snow, and I felt that same pukey feeling like after you've run flat out until you, well, puke. I didn't puke and the next time down only took like 15 minutes. By the 5th time down I could kind of keep myself under control, and I only fell down like twice. Then it was time to leave. Next time I'm really hoping to reach bicycle speeds!
Back to skiing. Wow. It is really really hard. And since EVERYONE here has done it since they are like 8 months old I looked like a complete doofus out there. There's like a baby slope with about a 5 degree gradient and little animal puppets that show the kids where to go, on which I assume the 8 month olds start out. Luckily for my self esteem I started on the next level up where the two years olds were skiing. I think it takes them roughly 45 seconds to reach the bottom of the slope. The first time I went down it took me literally 45 MINUTES, no exaggeration. I spent much of that time on the ground spitting out bloody snow and groaning about the pain in my legs. Ok, there was no blood really, but that's surprising. Little kids for whom it was entirely within their realm of possibilities that Santa Claus COULD be waiting for them at the bottom of the hill (with presents even) were flying by me at 60 mph, and looking way cooler than me in their ski gear while they did it. Anyway, 45 minutes later at the bottom, my whole body was shaking, my inner clothes were SOAKED with sweat, my outter clothes were covered in snow, and I felt that same pukey feeling like after you've run flat out until you, well, puke. I didn't puke and the next time down only took like 15 minutes. By the 5th time down I could kind of keep myself under control, and I only fell down like twice. Then it was time to leave. Next time I'm really hoping to reach bicycle speeds!
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