I had no idea there existed a company - probably Spanish - that makes fridges and such things under the label Smeg. Something that amuses the Red Dwarf fanboy in me. (Yes, I'm tired and easily amused.)

Another tough week ended and I'm trying my best to get some rest wedged in between parents and nephew, but without much success. I still feel, well, edgy. Not to mention out of motivation, but that part I simply blame on it being November. Oh well, finally I at least got around to do some of the long overdue cleaning done.

And on a somewhat mood-related sidenote, it seems I'm running out of chocolate and unwatched Fullmetal Alchemist episodes. The latter even though I have been mixing in a heavy dose of Azumanga Daioh in my watching habits lately.

Since my sister, my cousin, my mom and dzioo (a.k.a. four-fifths of the people in this world that I actually listen to for advice) all seemed to be in favour of me doing it, I braved the first snowfall of the year and got the A(H1N1) flu shot yesterday; and am now waiting to be ill. This far, all I have got is an aching left arm like if I had been using it too much, so I'm still waiting for more. Knowing the exact time of infection and being able to actually time the incubation period is kind of odd. I have never taken a flu shot before, so I don't really know how my immunological system will react. But if its usual reaction to wild viri is something to judge by, it should react. Guess it is just confused right now.

(The vaccine bottle seems to label the flu strain as "California". I wonder if that means that the A(H1N1) should really be the "California flu" in layman's language if we were going by traditional labelling, and if California hadn't had better lobbyists than Hongkong did in the 1960s.)

( November weather )

To be honest, I whine too much.

With the exception of two things, I really don't have much to complain about. I have always had good relations to my parents, my sister and her family; I have a couple of wonderful friends who mean a lot to me - even if they aren't close enough to be around in real life, but maybe it is the fact that they exist that is important; And I have a decent place to live and for the time being still at least some kind of financial security. And for the rest I still have my dreams - not even totally impossible ones, even if they are still dreams - and one day they may yet come true. I'm stubborn after all. ^^

(This whole post is also probably a very good example why I shouldn't write things like this when it's late and I'm tired... Oh, well. I can always lock it later.)

(Also note that I only say that I probably whine too much, not that I will stop doing it...)

So tired. It feels like I've been stuck in a constant stress mood for at least the last two weeks - probably more -, with only the occasional hour or so every now and then as a relief and much needed breathing space. And even with all that stress, I still have a terrible time getting things done even close to as good as I want to. Not that I'm the slightest bit surprised, really. Meh, I still hate Swedish autumns in general, and this one in particular.

*reads incoming mail* Wait... I am one of two students who got an A grade on a course that involved statistics?! (OK, so not all that advanced statistics, but still. It's statistics.) And in cooperation with other research methods like questionnaires (icky) and interviews (double-icky) to boot. And with me being chided for being "too quiet" on at least one seminar. Not to mention the course in question was weird in that it was split in two parts by a summer holiday, which meant that you had all time in the world to actually forget what it was about. Oh, and I kind of haven't handed in the extra short report I had to write for being too quiet on said seminar yet. Apparently that isn't deemed too important for deciding my grade, then.

OK, so I should have been doing a lot of stuff that needed to be done this weekend (including some that I didn't even remember I needed to do), but after trying hard without success, I sort of gave up and decided to finally complete and put up the half-a-year old redesign of my fic archive instead. Good way of trying to avoid thinking I guess. But maybe not the best way to spend my time. Especially not since it's still not up to date even though I have written way too little lately.

Yay, it's another election coming up! (Hey, bear with me, I'm Swedish. Having the opportunity to participate in elections outside September every fourth year is still a novelty for me.) Which means funny test results for the shameless election geek that I am. And yes, nighteevee, I've already used my voting privilege, so don't worry. Although had I known it would be possible to actually vote in advance at my uni this last week, I wouldn't have had to walk through half the town to the library voting station the week before. Oh well.

( My political views according to the computers in some selected countries. Such as the ones where I can actually understand the questions asked. )

On a different, but actually somewhat similar topic, an excerpt of a morning conversation:
Me to my dad: "Is it some kind of holiday today since you don't get any morning newspaper?"
Dad: "Yes, it's Sweden's national day."
Me: "Oh..."

I know it is the D-day anniversary, and I know it is EU election day tomorrow. But remembering my own country's national day... Why should I do that?

So. Last paper for the semester handed in, and classes ended yesterday, which I guess means the end of this university year. The odd thing is that I - for what I almost think is the first time in a way too long time - feel kind of sad to get a boring summer break. Funny that it should take that many years at uni before I got to feel like that. Many, many years and first now I get into a class where I get classmates that I actually like to interact with. It's weird. Think if it had been and felt like this back when I first started and really needed it. Oh well, better late than never I guess. Even if it is almost too late. Or in some aspect it is too late, since everyone else have their own circles, friends and families, which limits the interaction somewhat. But still, it has been fun. Really. This last uni year has been, well, interesting. Not happy, happy, happy exactly (hey, it's me, what do you expect), but at least different.

Sometimes I really hate my brain, just because of the left and right halves of it being both powerful. It's both a blessing and a curse I suppose, since I really need the right side of my brain's dreams, wonderful what-if scenarios and potential future images. Especially lately. Without those, I'd be doomed. And I'm also very much in need of my logical, rational left side. Without that, I would be insane.

I just love some of the imaginations and at least somewhat plausible ideas and potential scenarios that my mind is capable of rendering. Because since I apparently do have an equally strong left side brain as well, they are actually that - potentially possible. Not always likely though, but still not impossible. And I'm a sucker for those daydreams, I must shamefully admit that.

But even so, at the end of the day, it's always the logical, rational - and boring - left side that has the power to veto and point out the flaws and unlikeliness in the dream possibilities. And that is so irritating sometimes.

In short, I hate my mind for being essentially me; A wannabe dreamer that fails hard due to his masochistic tendencies to be so damn boringly realistic and responsible in the end.

Now, I'll better go and fight my parents' too fast-growing grass...

It's spring in the air, for several days in a row! Wow.

Today's flattering moment - I bought stuff at Systembolaget (for eventual readers unfamiliar with the honoured Swedish institution, it's the state monopoly store for alcoholic beverages) and to my surprise I was asked to show an ID card; which was many years since I last had to do, I might add. I know people tend to underestimate my age somewhat, but do I really look that young now?

Anyway, I thanked the attendant for her flattering request and showed my ID, on which she responded "Åh, du är ju nästan halvvuxen." ("Oh, you're almost half-adult.") Not exactly the most expected statement, but somehow I really liked it! It's probably a very accurate description of me.