Snusmumriken

Around twelwe today, I realised that I wouldn’t be able to finish my exam, as the probably-phneumonia had prevented me from working enough during the first four days of it. And as I actually had been ill, and as i actually had the sick leave in the pocket i wound up using it. I think it was a wise thing to do, and I think it’s all solving itself for the best. My advisorperson is letting me retake the exam before starting my summer holidays, which means that the only big consequence will be me starting my summer holidays later than planned. I’m rather relieved by that. I was expecting this to have the rather unfortunate consequence of me having to have a round of exams in august, which would be pretty stressful.

As i’m feeling alot better than I did, I got a good deal of work done on my other school stuff, which felt good, and around nine I went home feeling rather accomplished.

After coming home, I’ve had a really nice time. I’ve repotted my plants, and they look alot happier than they did before. I found a big flowerpot on my way home from school, and thought it would be fitting for my chilli plant. Unfortunately, I planted it about two inches too deep. Changing soil and cutting it back must be pretty stressful for it, so I guess I need to wait a few weeks before adding more soil to the bottom of the pot. It looks like a sick kid in a too big pyjamas.

I’m pretty fond of the little birds eye chilli. It has provided me with nice smelling nice tasting oddly pungent mini chillies for a year, but lately, it has looked a little under the weather. Lene pointed me in the direction of the hagegal forums, and the people there were really helpful, and has given me tons of advice on how to prevent it from dying. Hope it works.

On another note, the bread I baked today raised to about twice the usual size. I think this “baking all the bread I eat”-project of mine is giving me some sort of baking-superpowers. Unfortunately this also means that it takes more time to bake, so I’m circling the oven and knock the bread every 5 minutes hoping that it’ll be done soon.

Now. I’m living on the westside of oslo. I live in a shared appartment in a functionalistic living block from 1930. It’s nice. It’s got lots of lovely stuff that i’ve always wanted. A dishwasher. A lift. A bathtub. A waste-something (Søppelsjakt). But i’ve always had lots of plans for my hypothetical future home, and whenever spring comes and the sun is heating up the concrete of the building. Whenever the 7th floor turns tropic, - i start looking for alternatives. Here are some of my alltime probably never gonna happen - favourites.

Caravan
For some reason, i’ve always wanted to live in a caravan. Not the “stand in one place” variety, but rather the german kind that moves around. Not the “behind a car”-kind, but the “this is a car”-kind. I’ve been looking at ads every spring and autumn for quite a few years now, but it hasn’t happened yet, although there are affordable ones out these. The problem is parking and electricity. Renting parkingspaces are pretty damned expensive, and I fear I would be rather afraid of the dark whenever I ended up in the woods.

Eco villages and hobbit living.
I’ve been looking at different eco villages ever since i learned what it was some years ago. There are several in Norway: lofoten and Hurdal. Most seem to be extremely family oriented, which I guess is nice for the families, and alot sadder for the random single person looking for a nice farming community. I guess one of the awsomest eco villages around is the danish eco-manor Svanholm. It looks to be awsomely collectively run with common kitchen, kinder garden, farmwork, and even cars, all of which appeals to my inner communist - besides it’s basically self supplied. The backside is the very high “joining in” fee. It does look pretty damned tempting though. Another extremely awsome looking one is the village of Lammas in wales. The houses are of the “build it yourself from stuff you find and recycled materials”-kind. A nice example is this house right here. It really makes me want to become a hobbit. The problem is of course that I’m no farmer, and I don’t know if I really want to become one. Still I’ve been looking at all the cheap norwegian farms around in norway, that are empty and which wants people to buy them… and it would mean that I would be able to hold goats and make cheese. I’ve always wanted to hold goats.

Eco domea
Eco villages aside: at one point I want to build my own house. Partly because it would make me feel very manly, partly because there are so many cool ways to build. One of my alltime favourites, even cooler than building a big campsite out of discarded moelven barracks, is the eco domes. There are building plans and stuff on the website I linked to. In norway one would need to build a basement and so on before erecting the actual domes, but they are indeed really nifty looking. I’m dying to make the awsomest house in the world.

But returning to reality… i’m making a second batch of improved wheat and chickpea bread, and I’m being a good girl and writing my exams. Functionalistic living blocks from the 30’s aren’t half bad. Although they, unlike both the hobbit houses and the eco-domes, don’t look like they’re fetched from a Thore Hansen illustration.

Since my last post, i’ve been to finland, and to england, and i’ve ben high and low doing loads of stuff that I’ve been either planning to write about later, or just pushing to the back of my head. I just came home from Solmukohta and Finland where i and Martine made a larp, and where I got all kinds of inspiration for stuff i don’t really have the time to do, but sorely want to. I might write better about it later on. The real reason why i’m updating, is to tell everyone that I can’t find my phone. It’s probably somewhere in the luggage, seeing as i had it on the plane, but if anyone needs to get hold of me, it’s probably easier if you contact me here, on facebook, on mail or skype or even call my neighbour, Mikael. I’ll get back in touch as soon as i manage to.

1. My back is burning. The doctor said “you probably have hypersensitive skin” when i sked her if i was about to get an infection from all the work out machines, the all day sessions in front of hte computer and all the guitar playing, - but she just told me to eat painkillers and keep on doing whatever i usually do. She didn’t even get a blood sample to check for infections. I’ve been eating four rounds of ibuprofen+paracetamol a day like she told me to, but refrained from… doing back-exercises at the gym, writing too much on the computer and playing guitar. It got a bit better. As the doctor said it was the skin that hurt, nothing muscular, i tried using that ZON cream, but that make it worse, not feeling your skin and still hurting underneath isn’t nay fun. And then i had to write on the computer today and the day before, and i ended up playing guitar because i wanted to and BAM. Now it pains so much it’s hard to focus. Sensitive skin my arse.

2. I have found the appartment of my dreams.

3. My mother talked to some person at the bank, who said “yes she’s a student, but she can get a “first home loan”, seeing as she has lots of savings and seeing as she can rent one of the rooms to someone. But now i talked to the bank, and of course I am chanceless. To be allowed take the fact that I’d be renting out a bedroom into consideration when buying a place, it needs to have it’s own toilet and it’s own kitchen. I’ve never had my own kitchen or toilet. Ever. What kind of a rule is that? I know i could manage. I’ve been budgeting and i know it would work if they would give me the money. But when they won’t, and when the man on the phone sounded really patronising, like “oh, you think you can get a loan when you have one and a half year left of your studies, you are so cute”-patronising. It’s no use. I’m not trying that again until… a long time from now.

Does that mean that the only way to buy an appartment is that my parents get a loan, buy the house, and then gradually transfers it to me?

This was an annoyed rant. I’ll write something smarter later on.

I’m sad now.

I took today off until noon in order ot do all the things i haven’t had the time to do lately. I did my laundry and went to the post office. I should have gone to the library too, but I forgot. Instead I took a walk in the neighbourhood, and it was sunny and nice. On my way home, I bought a chilli plant, and it’s really pretty and colourful and full of tiny red chillies that I can use when cooking. I don’t know how to care for a chilli plant, but I guess
I’m bound to find out.

I took some stem cuttings from my stevia plant, and added soil and did nice things to my other plants. The day I was dumped, well aware of the symbology, I took cuttings of my lovely stevia. I planted one in a bowl Aksel had given me for christmas, and one in an old pewter can that had once contained olive oil. The symbology of it all can’t have slipped past the plants either, cause the cutting in the bowl died after only three days, while the other one still lives. It hasn’t started to grow yet, but it lives. Still, holding on to the symbology I wish it would start growing soon. Grow plant, grow!

Tomorrow there’s another concert with the lovely maud. I’m really looking forward to that.

I’ve forgotten to change the name on my mailbox. I was wondering why I hadn’t recieved a semestercard, which again prevents me from buying a student buspass, and why the bank-passwordthing i ordered hadn’t arrived yet. I completely forgot that our address doesn’t come with an appartment number. Where does the recipiant free post end up, - can i go and claim it at a post office, or do I have to order everything once more?

I’ve got so much to do this week. Whenever that happens, I get a strong urge to creep into bed and just read a novel, so I’ve started rereadeing his dark materials, so I’ll be prepared for the film whenever it comes.

This image is hotlinked from my mother, who posted more photos of me moving. I’m in the process of unpacking the bags now, but I end up spending quite a bit of time in bærum, thus it takes a bit longer than necessary. I feel a bit like Anne from the book hus og hjem by Helle Helle, though I guess her reluctance to unpack is real, while mine is… being somewhere else. I don’t feel like i’ve moved in yet. But I will. I know I will.

It’s weird. On one hand, I can’t wait for life to start again. I want to read and study and feel like I’m heading somewhere. This holiday thing feels like an interlude of sorts, not like life. Not like how life is like. Not even how it’s supposed to be. On the other hand, real life starting is synonymous with Aksel leaving and going back to his real life. It feels a bit weird to have a boyfriend who’s not a part of my real life, and whose real life I’m not a part of. When he comes to visit, the real life stops; there is an interlude; I don’t study much; i interact less with others; it’s as if i want to savour every moment he’s around. It’s like being little, and only being allowed sweets on saturdays. It’s the sweet longing of never getting quite enough. There’s an up and a down to everything. Seeing as I’ve spent most of my life as a single person, I’ve come to enjoy being the centre of my own life. I get that now. But then there’s the longing, and the frequent urge to be somewhere I cannot be.

But it’s summer. It’s warm. I’m having my summer holiday. I should just take it easy. Most of the time, I do. Last sunday, I watched twin peaks with aksel, and I made cherry pie. Yesterday, I had coffee with my uncle. He has a tiny one octave accordion, that I tried to use, but didn’t really manage. I’ve been reading lots of good books and comics. Time is on my side. I’ve got so much of it. Could Life be much better? I really don’t think so.

This weekend has been spent looking at appartments. Seeing as I’m trying to find people who are looking for roomates rather than an empty appartment, It’s a weird little procedure. On one hand I’m looking for a place to live, along with thousands of other students, on the other I’m looking for people who wants to live with me, and who sees me and thinks that “this is a person who will fit into the home we have made”. I’ve only been to two viewings this week, and I’ll most probably end up going to two others during the next. I’m not really nervous. I will probably find a place to live, and everything will work out, but when I’m there, in a new house with new people, I get really self concious. It’s an audition based whether or not I’m able to let my personality seep through during the 15 minutes the viewing lasts. I won’t know if it’s successful or not until i’ve got an appartment, not until I have lived there for some months. But here’s to hoping.

Yesterday was nice too. I made crumpets, which is way too tedious compared to the result. It took forever. And Aksel made a banjo.