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The lure of London

I have been granted my student loan! I am quite pleased with the amount, although I was of course hoping for more so I could place the money in high interest accounts and recieve lots of money for free. But I understand that the Norwegian government wishes to avoid voracious students like me taking advantage of their generosity. If I set up a strict budget for myself, I believe I shall manage to lead quite a comfortable, English life. Splurging money on clothing and entertainment is strictly prohibited unless it is the end of the month and I have managed to save up some leftovers for my amusement. Fortunately for me I am not a person with an expensive taste, and I don't enjoy spending foolish sums on brands and gizmos. What I do worry about though, is that I shall be living in the metropolis that is LONDON. I shall be surrounded by clubs, theatres, cinemas, tourist traps and exhibitions - and THAT is where all my money will dissapear to. How can a student withstand the temptations of the British capital? (I can't say I am not thrilled to be living near the entertainment disctrict of Piccadilly though. I am a sucker for musicals, and seeing "The Phantom of the Opera" and "Chicago" is already on my to-do list).

I should be off to bed now, as I am working tomorrow. My co-worker fell and hurt her back, so I am taking over her shifts this week. I don't mind. As you've learned from this blog entry, money can come in handy in London! I also need money as we are all going dancing on Saturday!

Qipao

After a nightmare of a shift at work yesterday, it was fun to spend the Sunday with my dear Dittaru. Jessheim Storsenter was open from 14:00-18:00, so we kicked off the day with a bit of shopping. I was determined to confine myself to window shopping only, but somehow I managed to throw myself over a Belle & Sebastian CD and the Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels OST anyway. I tell you everyone - here is your girl with restraint and self-control. I am not regretting the splurge at all however, as I am loving my new music.

When we got back to my place we dressed up in our qipaos, stuck various objects in our hair and plastered our faces with foundation. Then we ran giggling out to the garden to take pictures. What is life without a bit of photo-whoring to make yourself look completely ridiculous?

I love my qipao, although it is most likely fake silk that I spent far too many Renminbi on at the "Silk" Marked in Bejing. I managed to use my crappy Mandarin to have it fitted by a tailor though - and I am still proud to this day.

Piazza, New York Catcher

I've become extremely fascinated by cover versions and the uniqueness of voices. One of my favourite songs from the movie Juno ("Piazza, New York Catcher" by Belle and Sebastian) has been covered by several people on YouTube, and listening to people's different singing is strangly intriguing. Therefore I decided to record my own cover version of the song. Mind you, it is not me playing the guitar. I'm just completely drowning out the original cover version I found on YouTube, so that the voice you hear is 100 % mine but the guitar is 100 % somebody else's. I have been told that my voice has always been quite deep - both when talking and singing. Sometimes I've wished it to be more delicate and femine, as I think it is slightly too rumbling for this type of song. It should be sung delicatly like in the original version. But hey, we all have to do things our way rather than copying others, and the whole point of cover versions is to present people with a different way of hearing a song. So here it goes.

MY VERSION

HER VERSION

This version is great - she has such a beautiful sweet and delicate voice. This is how I personally think the song should sound like.

Well, this was fun everyone. Must definitely repeat this, despite people caring or not.

August so far

I bought a red chequered autumn jacket from H&M, and while I was expecting to inaugurate it somewhere in London sometime in October, it was inaugurated today. On August 13th. The heater is on, and my mom and I are freezing. It is summer in Norway everyone! A few days ago while I was in Sweden enjoying the sun, there was a massive thunderstorm here. 4000 lightnings struck, and two nearby houses burnt to the ground. Luckily nobody was injured. The rest of us got away with a broken cable TV that is still not working after three days.

I've got lots of shifts at work this week which is great, as I have used what must be at least 15 000 NOK in July mostly thanks to university expenditures. 5000 NOK went to my accommodation deposit, 2000 NOK to my ANSA student insurance, 5000 NOK for a new laptop and DVD burner - and 2000 NOK for flight and train tickets. I also need to buy myself a new suitcase as I am bringing a whole year's worth of stuff to London. That will cost me at least 1000 NOK as I am buying a good quality suitcase this time, and not some cheap Made in Thailand edition that lasted one trip to Beijing and back.

Otherwise I have been playing around with my new laptop, and since I am working during the days I don't feel like a slob for doing so. I'm really pleased with it so far, and its performance is actually better than I expected! The keyboard is really comfortable to write on, and although the widescreen format was annoying at first it is really starting to grow on me. Surprisingly I am also loving the glossy screen, despite critics and users in general hating it. Today I've been transferring photos and music on to the hard drive. I mean - what is a student without heaps of friend photos and music? So far I've got Alanis Morisette, Hang on the Box, Kimya Dawson, Surferosa, Enya (the woman is a goodess!), various classical music, Christmas songs (for December mind you) and the "Le Fabulex Destin d'Amelie Poulain" soundtrack. However, I feel a need to widen my musical horizon, and I am looking for more good music I can take with me to England. I am a great fan of quirky music (Kimya Dawson, Hang on the Box), angry girl bands (Bikini Kill) and singer/songwriters. Anyone has any ideas for stuff I should be listening and fangirling to? Marianne has suggested Morcheeba.

Hurray, here is dad with the Chinese take-away! Going to throw my hungry self over it!

My ASUS baby

They say motherhood is the best feeling in the world. I totally get it now. Look at the beauty awaiting me as I came home from Sweden! My newly arrived ASUS Eee 1101HA baby! Like all annoying mothers I shall pamper and coddle it, and claim that it is the most beautiful little baby in the world. Also behold the delicious pink colour. I am not what you would describe as a feminine girl, but the pink edition had me swooning like a teenager in love.

Because of its small size Henrik has been mocking me for its low performance, saying it is hardly a PC suitable for downloading and online gaming. (Stuff that he values in a computer). However, that is not what I need. I need a work laptop that will help me through life as a struggling, deprived student. It has to be light and portable, and have a battery with a long life span. The ASUS 1101HA fullfill all of my demands. It is a crossing between a netbook and a laptop. With its 11,6'' screen it allows for a much wider area of use than the excessively small netbooks (like movie watching and computer gaming). However, it is much lighter and more portable than your average laptop, and can be slipped into a handbag without further ado. With the ASUS 1101HA weighing only 1,35 kg (CD/DVD player is external) and the battery lasting for over 8 hours (!), this netbook allows me to study anywhere at any time. It has also got a built-in microphone and webcamera so that I can easily chat to Henrik on Skype while in London. In other words, this laptop possesses everything that I need to survive three years of study hell/heaven at UCL!

Just like heaven

The first week of August was spent in the north of Sweden at Henrik's family's cabin near the town of Skellefteå. This was my third visit, and now a summer without a trip to Boviken is unthinkable. Not only because it is the most peaceful, recreational spot in the world - but also because it is the only week of sunshine I get living in rainy, coastal Norway. The cabin is located right by the sea, and only a short bike ride away there is a sandy beach with a lovely camping area and a beach kiosk selling newspapers and ice cream. A lot of time was spent here soaking up the sun and bravely trying to dip our toes into the icy Nordic water. (Okay, so it was only me who did not dare to get into the water). It is truly the most wonderful place in the world - a place that makes you forget everything except what is important in life: You've got air in your lungs.

The view from the cabin. Henrik had the habit of standing on the rocks scanning the water for fish (or "fishus" as he calls them) and running to the kitchen to fetch bread everytime he saw the local duck family swimming by. It was adorable.

Warming my little feet in the sand.

The local beach was as usual filled with Scandinavians desperately trying to procure a tan. I prefer this beach to Mediterranean beaches by far - less crowded, and less middle-aged women looking like raisins due to excessive tanning.

Every night we barbecued by the waterfront. Excellent food, excellent view, excellent company.

Here is Henrik trying to make his way with one oar in a loop sided rubber boat. He did not feel safe at all, and refused to go canoeing with me.

I guess this marked the end of summer for me. Norway has offered nothing but rain for the past 5 weeks, resulting in my mom actually turning the heat back on in the house. However, before heading home I still have three days of impeccable summer weather in Stockholm.