Word of the day:

tidsförlust – waste of time

Went to SFI after work today. It is a great mix of interesting people. I remember that was why I liked it so much when I went in Nacka. But WOW, how badly managed it is for enrolment. Putting C & D levels through a test that was badly designed and badly positioned. This is my problem with tests, the questions are misleading and can be phrased so horribly that it leads to faulty qualification. Part of why I appreciate design processes, is that it is more about human intuition than correct answers.

Favourite word of the day

Fiffig: Ingenious

It just reminds me of something like this:

Swedish Bonfire Night. A mix of viking tradition and german saints. We met up with Pelle & Ellinor which meant a new opportunity to utveckla min svenska. Pelle seemed shocked when I asked brightly in Swedish, “Do you not burn someone like we do in england?”.

Afterwards we went for a walk around vinterviken where I had a long chat with Ellinor about school and “att rida hästar” (riding horses), not “att köra hästar” , (driving horses) … like some might say.

Being in sweden makes learning swedish has become an all-consuming pass-time.
Tonight was spent at a service design Jam, where 4 teams compete in a ramped-up pictionary game. Part of the game was keeping up with the swedish. All these new words. The mouse in my brain had a hard time digesting each one and by the time it had, the discussion had moved on.

It is something I think I will have to get used to for a while. Always feeling several steps behind.

This beer by Nils Oscar summed up the experience nicely.

After 4 suitcases, 7 boxes and 8 hours later, we have arrived in our new home.

Stockholm’s housing situation has gotten even worse since I last lived here, and we were lucky to get this place over air b’n'b.
Over the past month of flat hunting, I have had on phrase drummed into my head –

‘ljus och fräsch’

It sounds like some sort of dessert and says a lot about swedish accommodation expectations. While londoners search for flats with character, swedes search for ‘light and fresh’.

Our new accommodation has it’s own mantra’s. Good for swedish learning. Here is one which means ‘enjoy the day today’.

via bforbel.com

Being an extremely impatient person, I appreciate those who are so this kind of craft can be created and maintained. I am a sucker for this type of branded content.

via bureauofcommongoods.com

I found Bojana Borak’s clothing range, BokicaBo, via nuzzaci’s blog. Since then her creations have fast become the dominant member of my wardrobe. Wonderful colours, beautiful stitching and shapes you just can’t find anywhere else. I admire the attention to detail in the branding, the beautifully crafted website by Bojana’s love, Nikola Arezina, and the care-free creativity in the art direction.

But the thing I admire most about Bojana is her conscientiousness. It was so great to meet her and Nikola in her studio in Belgrade. A really talented pair.

Go admire her work at www.bokicabo.com

Today I have a frozen shoulder and must refrain from using my computer (I am writing this post in the future).

So 10 things I can/did do today that don’t involve a computer:

1. Take a walk to brick lane and buy some beigels from the bagel shop.

2. Listen to Swedish Radio and fill in Avancerad Ord

3. Bake a Cake

4. Have a Swedish Lesson

5. Fix a hole in a jumper

6. Sit in the sun in the park and read

7. Meet maria and talk about life

8. Have my brother over for dinner

9. Show the flat to some lovely potential flat mates

10. Watch a terrible movie to fall asleep to

Today I was witness to a taxi driver rant on arrogance.

A lady had, according to the cabbie, chosen to ignore his presence and moved from her territory, the pavement, into his territory, the road, while he was fast approaching.

“You know what your problem is”, screamed the cabbie.
“It’s arrogance, pure arrogance.”

This was his conclusion on his years of observation about the Londoner’s pedestrian behaviour.
I wonder if it’s correct. Does London make you arrogant?