Business as usual

Went with Mr S to the Wedding fare at Grand Hotel on Saturday. I never knew the getting hitched is such a huge business. It's all about tha Benjamins...

If you want you can pay people disgusting amounts of money to do the weirdest things for you only because you are getting married. How about having your initials made of ice on the buffet table? Or having confetti with your name and the name of your significant other on?
Have some woman come over and help you get dressed for 200 euros/hour?

Issues like what should you throw at the happy couple after the weeding. Rice is not good for the birds, confetti can stain the clothes and rose petals can cause an allergic reaction...

Afterwards we had a soup and a few glasses of wine at Cadier before meeting up with sis and Hannah for Yakiniku at Sakkura.

The phone woke me on Sunday, David from work called and guess who had to work on a day off. Oh yes, me! I have to be better at saying no.

Other than working I have been shopping, cleaning the apartment, planned a housewarming party on Feb 17th - am really looking forward to that.
I have also been contacted by some very old friends, the kind of old friends that I really don't consider as friends anymore. But they want to make sure that they are invited to the wedding which won't happen. I have decided to surround my self with people who I like and give me positive energy. I am to tired to do anything else!

Now, I must eat!

Take care/E

Song of the day: Fast Train - Solomon Burke

My evil twin

Girlfriend Jezz brought a person calling him or herself Dan Leffler to my attention. He or she has posted comments on my friends bloggs and webpages posing as me.
If anyone gets an email or a comment from Dan Leffler or EJP (email: serenity_73@gmail.com) then is not me!

Take care/E

Song of the day: The Real Me - R Kelly

Let it snow

Last Saturday the winter really came. I was having afternoon tea with some friends. Going into the cafe the weather was OK... as we were leaving the snow was blowing in sideways. Today it is sunny but really cold. And I am watching the European figure skating championships :)

Met with the Ladies from Sallskapet yesterday. We had a lovely dinner at Ingrid's and exchanged some make up stuff. I walked away with some really nice eye shadows and a fierce top.
Met with sis earlier to go to our favorite shop JUS and their annual sale. I bought a jacket and a pair of pants from POUR. The designer is my friend H's sisters boyfriend....

New on the apartment: We bought a really cool table for the living room. I think it'll work great with the big couch. My apartment is slowly starting to come together :)
I do, however, live with a very neat man. Mr S has filed all my papers in a cupboard, it's a good thought but I can't find them... Annoying! But I guess it's a nice thought from his side.

A nice thing happened at work: I am going to be in charge of the wine cellar :) So for the next two weeks I am going to spend looking through all the bottles. Am really looking forward to this project! It also means that I'll be working on my own and I won't be needing to confront our new Bar manager. I feel quite sorry for him since after two days everyone hated him and he hasn't really improved. I think he is really unsure of him self and need to put people "in their place".

Wedding update: Mr S found a place that seems promising for the party. It down town, we can bring our own booze and it's not too strict. We are going to check it out this weekend.

Take care
/Love E

Song of the day: Like it or Not - Madonna

Me on 2006

My best memory:
- Vacation with my friends on the riverboat in France
- Meeting Mr S
- Proposal from Mr S

My worst memory:
- Dad getting his cancer diagnose

This year I stopped:
- caring so much of what other think of me
- spending time with people who drag me down

I'd love to take back:
- the great summer
- some things I've said that has hurt some people

And I won't take back:
- the promise I've made to myself to become a happier and stronger person

This year I've read:
- Adrian Mole and the Weapons of Mass destruction

Movies I loved:
- Brokeback Mountain
- The Constant Gardener
- Crash

The stage event of the year:
- Cabaret with Peter Joback
- George Michael live

Most played in my Ipod:
- Save Room - John Legend

TV-favourites:
- CSI

Most overestimated:
- A lot of stuff

Most underestimated:
- Every day luxury like sharing a bottle of champagne with friend on a Tuesday

Discovery of the year:
- Digital TV

People who impresses me:
- Ellen Johnson Sirleaf first woman president in Africa: you go girl!
- The doctors and nurses who work for the MSF

Chock of the year:
- I'm getting married (still can't believe it...)

Hallelujah moment of the year:
- George Michael singing Father Figure live

OK, I admit:
- I missed every episode of Prison Break and Desperate Housewives

I'm sick of:
- reading about teen idols and their messed up lives

I'm happy about:
- my man, my apartment, my family a whole year to fill with fun, shopping and friends

Most excited about for 2007:
- getting the apartment in order
- creating a live with Mr S

Take care
Love/E

Song of the day: Relax, Take it Easy -Mika

My name is Bond

James Bond. As one of the last persons on earth I saw the latest James Bond movie this weekend. It's a pre-quel "how James Bond became the man he is" kind of thing.
Daniel Craig did a good job filling Pierce Brosnan's suit. There was a lot of showing of Daniel's well tones body and a lot of poker playing - something for everyone. I did enjoy the body more than the poker games and I mostly enjoyed Mads Mikkelsen as Le Chiffre, he is really really HOT
One thing I like about Mr S is that he really doesn't care if I comment on another man's look.
Like my psycho-ex boyfriend did.
Any way, after the movie we took a stroll around town to find someplace to have a drink. We ended up at Berns where they have an amazing drink list. Had a few drinks while watching the crowd. It's amazing how little clothes some people put on for a night out. Some get away with it but most people don't.
Sunday Mr S and I watched the first season of CSI on DVD. I really love that series.
And then we went out to his office to pick up some stuff. As I entered the door the alarm went off! Eventually a security guy showed up but that was after about 20 mins... Had it been a break in we would have had plenty of time to empty the whole office and leave.

Oh, and one more thing: to the gentlemen who was kind enough to offer me a date. Thanks but no thank. I have found my love and intend to stay with him, married or not :)

Take care
Love/E

Song of the day: Ain't no other man - Christina Aguilera

New Year

Worked all night on New Years eve at NH. Sis and some friends were there for dinner and celebration. Afterwards we went over to sis' place for a few drinks. Since I was working the nest day too we didn't stay late.

The new bar manager has started and I dislike him already. He seems quite insecure and shows it by trying to put people in their place... Well actually he doesn't really speak to me since I'm a waitress and he is the bar manager, but his attitude annoys the h*ll out of me.
Am quite sick of NH so I'll start looking for a new job.

Mr S is choosing between 2 jobs, the lucky guy. He wants them both.
I am trying to talk him out of getting married and into spending the money on a world wide shopping spree for the two of us. He is not convinced yet and I don't think he ever will be. He wants to get married.

Now, my list of 5 thing I want to happen this year:

1. I'll get a fab job, maybe even run my own wine bar
2. I finally get my drivers license
3. We finish the apartment
4. Mr S and I travel to Paris and Rome
5. I will continue feeling good about myself and become a stronger person.


Best wishes for 2007

Love/E

Song of the day: Stay with you - John Legend

Happily ever after

shall we be, my baby and me :)
Mr S gave the the bling bling phone and a new fierce bag that I have been craving. Actually he started out by giving me a scented candle and flavoured tea... not really my cup of tea so to speak...

Christmas with the family went surprisingly well. Mr S loved it. He hasn't had a "family christmas" since he was a kid and I've always had them. I gues you don't miss the water...
I'd still love to spend one christmas in Italy.

I only had 3 days off, so now I'm back at work. It's safe to say that nothing has changed: still a complete chaos. I haven't decided yet wheather I'm staying or not but since I'm not yet financially independent I have to have a job.
Our nem Maitre d' has brought in some of her old staff. They are nice and all that but she used to work in a rock club where they mostly sold beer and a shot on the side. I know for a fact that NH tries to be a bit more high end than that.

Had an interesting conversation with Mr S last night. Recently I've been feeling very happy lately in a surreal way. I guess I'm not used to it. Anyway, I felt like I use to feel when I'm on vacation, like I'm happy now but it'll soon end and then I realize that this won't end...at least I hope so.
The funny thing is that he has been feeling the same way.

Maybe we are a perfect match after all :)

Take care
Love /E

Song of the day: We could be heroes - BWO

Happy Holidays

From all fo me to all of you:
A Very Merry Xmas

Love /E

Song of the day - God rest ye merry gentlemen (trad)

Asking my Baby

Found this on the blog site of one of my fab friends

Instructions:
1. Put your music player on shuffle.
2. Press forward for each question.
3. Use the song title as the answer to the question even if it doesn't make sense.

Will it be ok?
Kiss - Prince (hm, kisses are good thing so I guess the answer is yes)

How are you feeling today?
Separated - Usher (will be working late tonight so won't be able to hang out with friends)

How do your friends see you?
Sunshine in the Rain - Bodies Without Organs :)

Will you get married?
Same Script, Different Cast - Whitney Houston feat Deborah Cox (hm, Mr S has one divorce in the baggage)

What is your best friend's theme song?
Summer Wine - Peter Joback (Hannah, this is for you, girl :))

What is the story of your life?
T. T. P. - Usher (ok, I guess)

What was high school like?
As - George Michael feat MJB

How can you get ahead in life?
I Have Nothing - Whitney Houston

What is the best thing about your friends?
If your girl only knew - Aaliyah

What is tonight going to be like?
I can't let you go - Usher (might be excepting one of those "could you come in a bit earlier"- calls from work then...)

What is in store for the remainder of this weekend?
Larger than Life - Backstreet Boys (it's Xmas and all...)

What song describes you?
Sex Bomb - Tom Jones (why Thanks ;))

Dilemma

Imagine the following scenario:
You have this woman friend, who after a rough divorce with infidelity and the works, is finally dating again. She goes online and finds a man on an on line dating service. They chat on line and talk on the phone and after a while they meet IRL. They really hit it off, no sex on the first date though.
Then he breaks the news: he is married and hopes she doesn't have a problem with that. Your friend is obviously devastated and wants to call the wife and tell her the whole story.

What would you do?
1. Encourage her to call and hold her hand while she did it?

2. Talk her out of calling the wife. She has wasted enough time on this two timing dog and she should get on with her life and leave him in his misery.

3. Call the wife yourself?

I'd go with option no 2. It's not my place to reveal someone infidelity. I do think however that had the wife been a friend of mine I would have reacted differently. I probably would have told her but I would have given her some hints.
On some level I think you'd sense it if your partner is cheating on you. I think that is what they call going through life with your eyes wide shut...


Apartment update:
Almost done!

Wedding plans update:
None

Take care
Love/E

Song of the day: Not ready to make nice - Dixie Chicks

Got to love it

Leonard Katzman - does the name ring a bell?? It's the man who wrote, directed and produced Dallas, the ultimate soap opera. A new TV channel TV4 Gold is all about old series so today I've watched Kojak, Miami Vice, at the moment Dallas and I'm looking forward to Baywatch and Baretta later tonight. Am at home today trying to cure my stomach flu.

The weekend was nice. Friday Mr S came back from Munich with a new job offer and a lovely bottle of champagne for me :) I was totally beat from the last weeks of too much work so I had some wine and take out thaifood and fell asleep around midnight.

Saturday we did some quick shopping for the apartment. I bought another lovely black vase and then we met up with sis and Jocke for an all French dinner. The food was OK - no more no less. I did expect more since the restaurant got some really great reviews lately.

I have deleted Dr C from my cell phone. I can't really see any reason why I should keep his number, it's not like I'm going to call him again.
When I am in "his" part of town I keep looking over my shoulder in case I would run into him. One part of me hopes to met him and "show off" Mr S just to make him see that I am worth so much more and so much better that what he gave me but on the other hand it's no point because I really don't think he cares.

I have also given some of my friendships a lot of thought lately. I need to surround myself with people who wishes me well. I can't stand the negativity and jealousy some people around me seems to live with.

Later today I'm going to make a CD for sis. She seemed quite down on Saturday so I think some good music will cheer her up a bit.

Seems like this summers holiday will be a road trip to Munich, could be great fun :)

Take care/E

Song of the day: Black Velvet - Alannah Myles

With a little bit of luck...

and some work we'll be done with the apartment this week end :)
Mr S is in Munich on a job interview. I really hope he gets that job since that company has an office in Paris and I would love to live there :)

At work it's the usual chaos. But I believe it hit rock bottom two night ago when a large group came in, ordered the most expensive champagne we have and unpacked 3 bags of take out hamburgers... people never stop amazing me. And just to make matters worse the left without paying the bill. Fortunately they were staying at the hotel so we could find them.
The new Maitre D' seems to be an odd figure, I can't really figure her out yet.

Bought three amazing lamps last week end, probably the most expensive lamps I've ever bought but they were totally worth the money. Ran into Stepbro with wife and 2 kids at the furniture store. The kids are cute and all that but I'm so glad that they are not mine and it's not my life. I'm happy living in an apartment with white walls with Mr S.

At the moment I'm working on finding a kitchen we both like, and a bathroom.

Have the weekend off so tomorrow I'm going shoe shopping ;) Haven't bought new shoes in a while. Actually I think I'm going to buy some shoes and then pick up a glossy magazine and have a late lunch and a cosmopolitan or a glass of champagne. Oh yes, sounds like a lovely plan for Friday!

Now back to the laundry.

Take care
/E

Song of the day: Heaven - John Legend

Ups and Downs

On the upside:
- new winter coat from Zara
- got a nice offer from the hotel manager at work: will get a dinner for two all expenses payed by work. Guess I must be doing something right :)
- Sunday brunch with sis and a bit of shopping
- Walk in closet almost done
- New bed delivered

On the downside:
- Didn't know that renovating would take so long
- Dust everywhere
- Too much work leaves no time to play
- Creepy guests at the restaurant (Finnish guy got drunk and fell asleep at his table...)

Mr S promised me that the renovating will be done by next week but I have my doubts. As I think about it the apartment wasn't that bad...

Take care/E

Song of the day: The Max - Prince

Me from A to Z

A is for age: 33
B is for booze of choice: champagne
C is for career: Uuhhmm, still working on that
D is for your dad's name: Roland
E for essential items to bring to a party: bottle of champagne, fierce shoes and a smile
F is for favourite song at the moment: Rise - Gabrielle
G is for favourite game: Tabu and Jeopardy
H is for home town: Stockholm
I is for instruments you play: None
J is for jam or jelly you like: strawberry
K is for kids: None
L is for living arrangements: 3 room apartment with Mr S
M is for mother's name: Margaretha
N is for name of your crush: Mostly known as Mr S
O is for overnight hospital stays: Had a surgery when I was 12 but nothing since then (knock on wood)
P is for phobias: Used o be spiders but not anymore :)
Q is for quotes you like: The world is a stage and you're the star!
R is for relationship that lasted the longest: 1 year and 9 months with Creepy Jealous Guy
S is for sartorial style: Trendy and quite stylish
T is for time you wake up: around 11.30, depends on how late I've worked the night before.
U is for underwear: Mostly thongs or boxers
V is for vegetables you love: fresh spinach
W is for weekend plans: working, sleeping, shopping
X is for x-rays you've had: knee and left foot
Y is for yummy food you make: Green curry chicken and meatballs stuffed with feta cheese, mushrooms and onion
Z is for zodiac sign: Gemini

A life offline

is no life. If you're not on the Internet you don't exist! I have been offline for almost a week now due to moving into the new place. The actual move went quite well but at the moment I live in a total chaos of dust and paper covered floors.
A friends of Mr S (I call him The Kid since he is only 23) is helping us repaint the apartment.
I got to choose the colours so wed will have one gold coloured wall in the outer hall, the living room will be grey and pearl white with a red stripe right behind the TV. Once it's all done I'll try to post some pictures...

Work is the usual chaos, we are under staffed and fully booked. Lately there has been a lot of events: Future Design Days and the Filmfestival. What is it about "arty" people, can't they just relax and have fun?!?! Their parties seems to be more about checking who else is there and who you should avoid...

Sis has met a new man. We had dinner together a while ago and went to the movies, watched Borat (4,5/5). I haven't laughed that much in ages! It is truly a must.
Anyway, I don't really like the guy, he just gave me a bad vibe.... but I have to give him a chance since it was the first time we met and he was probably nervous.

At the moment I am eagerly waiting for the new beds we bought to arrive. They were supposed to deliver them yesterday along with the rest of the stuff we bought but the beds didn't fit in the van. I called the transport company yesterday and told them they must be here before 2 since I'm working today... we'll see...

Last night I met up with some of the girls fr dinner and drinks at Diplomat, The food was a huge disappointment but the the champagne was great :)

Wedding updates: None - focus has been on moving and getting everything in order. But once that is done I suppose we should try to find a nice place for the party. I do tend to spend more time planning the party than the actual ceremony. Wonder what that says about me?!?! ;)

I got my first real paycheck the other day so I intend to spend some money on myself... simply because I'm worth it :)
Winter hit with a vengeance on November 1st. I couldn't get home for all the snow so some of us got to stay at Nordic Sea hotel :) It's amazing how this happens every year once the snow comes. All the roads get blocked and public transports completely break down. It took my father 2,5 hrs to get home, it's usually a 20 mns buss ride...
I can't believe it since we do live in the northern part pf the world where it does snow!

Better get on with something now

Take care/E

Song of the day: My Love - Justin Timberlake

The Latest Fashion

Saw "The Devil wears Prada" (4/5) last night. Really liked it up until the cheesy ending. I don't really believe a girl would give up a career like she did and don't even get me started on the boyfriend! A more unsupportive person than him I couldn't imagine....
But the clothes... and the shoes... Loved them.

Picked up a pair of shoes and a couch at Livingstore for the new apartment. God, we are moving on Sunday and I haven't packed a single thing yet... Today I intended to get started on packing my clothes but I don't know where to start. Maybe I'll just start with my sheets instead. And then I have to make sure that I get my internet and phone connection in the new apartment too.

Apparently the latest fashion in the wedding industry is the Morning Gift To Him (Morning Gift used to be land or a house so that the newly married woman would have something in case the husband would die). These days the morning gift is erotic or exotic photos of the bride in lingerie. Mr S loves it, I don't. I hate having my picture taken as it is and doing it crawling around on a big bed in my underwear... it won't happen!!
I got all this information from a wedding magazine I picked up yesterday after the movie. In the magazine I also found the most depressing articles and ugly dresses. Told Mr S that I'm not the woman who will wear a meringue dress and smile on a pile of rose petals, which is in my opinion a terrible waste of flowers...

Now I should get on with my packing...

Take care
/E
Song of the day: Slow Dance - John Legend

Remember the 80ies

Saw George Michael yesterday and it was really nice. He truly has an amazing voice and the whole concert was very slick, the stage setup was great and the musicians too.

Had a really nice weekend, finally and entire weekend off work!
Friday I went out and picked up a pair of very cool boots from Bianco. Met up with Mr S for a quick coffee. He was in quite a bad mood due to a job offer he got. He wants the job but feels like the terms weren't as good as he wanted them to be.
Negociations continues...
Saturday it was the Home Design/Digital Home fair. It was well worth a visit since we found a couch we actually both liked :)
The Digital Home part of the fair wasn't really my scene. I'm quite happy with my "old" stereo - I've had it for 3 years now and it is apparently out dated.... The thing to have these days is a small box that you connect to your computer and hidden speakers in every room. Hmm, Mr S is getting one of those for the new apartment...whatever makes him happy...

Sunday it was the Travel fair. Not as big as I expected but it was fun. They had arranged a semi blind winetasting (when you know which wines you're tasting but not the exact order) and I am proud to say that I nailed the result :)

Today it's raining and I'm working until 1.30 am....

Take care
/E

Song of the day: Freedom 90 - George Michael

The painting

I'm currently stuck in this game - you're supposed to find 50 horror movies in this painting.

This and working is all I seem to do these days....

Sunday however girlfriend T, Henri - the fashion police and myself are going to watch 80ies icon George Michael :) Should be fun.

Take care!

Love/E

Song of the day: Trouble - Pink

Just say No

I have what one might call a "saying-no" -issue. I find it hard to say no to things. Mostly to fun things like going out for dinner when I've planned to stay in. I never say no to that last drink. You know the one drink you shouldn't have, the one drink that makes you swear that you are never drinking again the next morning.
Unfortunately I also have a hard time saying no to phonesales people, extra working hours and any other kind of charities.
BUT yesterday I said no to extra hours at Huvudsta and this morning I said no to a fundraiser who called and wanted me to donate 200 sek to the deaf. Now I feel bad about that but I rather choose my own charities (usually MSF).

I'm selling my apartment. It feels kind of sad, since I really love it. I have been very happy here but I guess it's time to move on with Mr S. On November 1st we get the keys to our new place. We discussed the wedding last night but we didn't make any decisions more than that we are going to take an evening and try to make some definitive plans. At least we must find a place to have the party. It's weird whenever we talk about or I think about the wedding it's always the party. We haven't discussed the actual ceremony or the major thing: being married. But I suppose every day life won't be that different.

I found a cool movie sale so I picked up some movies:
Crash
Must Love Dogs - saw the other day 2,5/5
Pusher
Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire
The Cave - saw it last night and it was a total waste of time. I'd give it 0,5/5 and now I'm being nice!

Tomorrow I'm taking a course in "Responsible alcoholmanagement"...

Take care

/love E

Song of the day: Oh Father - Linda Sundblad

Job v/s Life

I used to have a life but now I have a job.... or to be correct 2 jobs. I can't say no to Huvudsta because I like working there and at Nordic I'm still the "new girl" so I need to make an impression. If it was up to me I wouldn't work at all just hang around and do nothing.

So we have put down the 10% down payment on the new apartment and it will be officially ours on November 1st. That'll be nice. A friend of Mr S is going to help us with some redecoration and painting. I hope it won't take too long.... I want to move in as soon as possible.

Our party was great and since then it seems like all I've done is working. The job at Nordic is fine, not that many guests which is too bad since the place has great potential. I have a 6 months trial period and after that I'll evaluate it and see how it feels if I want to stay or not. The upside is obviously the money, that I get to do something I enjoy and that I'm having fun. The downside are the working hours - I hardly ever get to sit down and have dinner at home anymore since I work almost all evenings and weekends, I miss out on a lot of stuff with Mr S and my friends and I'm sleeping most of the day and come home late at night.

Sometimes Mr S annoys me. He has so many plans and says that he is going to fix stuff but nothing ever happens. I left a light build for him to change and it was just lying on the kitchen table for 2 weeks until I changed it myself... MEN!

Wedding updates: none I did however look at dresses again but white is really my thing. I don't really know how I want the wedding to be. Mr S says "all I care about is that we do it" But I intend to get married once and then I want every thing to be great. When the time is right I'll bring it up with him. Right now everything has been so crazy with my job and us moving...

Now of to work!

Song of the day: Not ready to make nice - Dixie Chicks