Tuesday, January 31, 2012

Sleep your way to success.

Sometimes, it's nice to have somebody telling you that you should sleep. Even stating that sleeping is the only thing you really have to do. Other tasks are fabricated must-do's. Because, while busy days are good, lack of sleep is not. Those two, as a matter of fact, do not match at all.

The, almost, order to sleep made me think about THIS Ted Talk by Adrianna Huffington, arguing that the best way to succeed, simply is to sleep more. So, while you take five minutes of your precious time to hear her speak I am, at 9:55pm, getting ready to close down for the day.

Good night. Sleep tight. Don't let the bedbugs bite.

Yea, I don't want to have to wear that one. Sleep advice – taken.

Word. That's how they say it, the kids, right?

I like it when the word of the day service from Merriam-Webster sends me words I have good use of. This one, came a couple of months ago, but I find it making a lot of sense every single day of my life:

Cockaigne – an imaginary land of great luxury and ease.

And isn't life a little bit like that sometimes? I believe it should be. More often than not. And if not, we better make our days become days taking place in an enjoyable Cockaigne.




Learning about politics. It's election year!

When you are still relatively new in a city – and even more so, in a country – it's always nice when people invite you to dinners, or parties or just give you the opportunity to experience some of the "real stuff." Therefore, when I was invited to watch the State of the Union Address a week ago, I didn't hesitate to accept. With the Presidential Election right around the corner, of course I would take the opportunity to deepen my knowledge about America politics.

I brought my partner in crime B2 with me and we were warmly welcomed by the couple hosting this little event. There we were, among a dozen Americans, watching Mr. President talk to the nation, trying to convince each and everyone to stay in America to work, because he will most certainly create jobs for all!

And those American sure know how to be political. Food and drinks were crucial on the agenda. Along with the 2012 State of the Union Drinking Game.


Monday, January 30, 2012

Those ordinary, speedy, busy weekdays – I love 'em.

As much as I do like a quiet weekend, I love a little action. A lot of action. As I find myself after a long and busy day at the office, intense reading on the metro, some grocery shopping, an hour of workout, cooking, roasting granola, doing laundry (oh, that poncho really lives with me every single day of the week) and showering – I realize that I am smiling and that I am genuinely happy.

I like taking things slow and when I have a day off I don't want to plan things and I don't want to have to be places at a certain time. But what keeps me cheerful and at ease is a lot of things going on, preferably in high speed and all simultaneously.

Busy Monday and a kick-start to a great week. Keep on smiling, people. Keep up the good work. And keep up that fast pace. I will. All of the above. Because even though weekends are fun, weekdays take up most of our time and I like to make the most out of it – my precious time, that is.




Words that linger on my mind and dreams that don't.

Sometimes, I come across words that seem to be made for me to read. I guess that is one of the reasons I like to read. You never know what words you might find.

"Just because a lot of dreams don't come true, don't mean you give up," was something I read quite a few weeks ago. I have been holding on to that thought and I think about those words sometimes.

They hold a lot of truth. I am not a quitter. I am not one who gives up. But certain dreams are maybe not made to come true. I guess they are just to stay dreams. I am ready to accept that. Because I know it doesn't mean that I am somebody who gives up.

Not everything is in my power. Not all is in my hands.

Accept. Move on. Keep on dreaming. And the things I really want to happen, will do, because I want to.


@TheOffice.

It's definitely a big change working from 8.30am to 5.30pm when you are used to studying. But it's a good change. Even though I am a night person, I like getting up in the morning when the city is relatively quiet and everything around me is yawning, stretching, getting ready for new adventures.

I make sure to take my time, have my coffee and catch up on the news before I head off to the office. I have enjoyed these first two weeks working and I like the routines of getting up early and coming home late. I easily get bored, but working in advertising and learning about a completely new field is so exciting so the routines are just a good frame for my otherwise very different days.

Off to M Street and another exciting day. This will be a good week!


Sunday, January 29, 2012

Weekend along the green line.

This weekend has mostly taken place around the green line. Saturday, we took the metro to College Park to meet up with some Swedes – and one American – to go ice skating. After a four or five year long break from the skates (really, Andersson and Berggren, when did we go ice skating the last time?!) I wasn't sure if I would make it back in one piece. But I did [insert fanfare here] and I had a blast.

Once again, today, we took the metro to College Park. This time to head off to IKEA to spend the gift certificate we got from the Lucia performance in December. Also, Iron Ass really wanted meatballs. I'm never the one to say no to food, so I got myself a portion too. Delicious. We left with happy tummies, a big plant and a poster we are planning on making into one really fine piece of art.

A weekend along the green line and a little bit more. All in all, a very good one. Two thumbs up.







Friday, January 27, 2012

"33 (more) signs you work in PR."

Found this absolutely brilliant article retweeted by my dear friend Tattarn. If you are anything like us, read it and smile: 33 (more) signs you work in PR.

I'm not really there on all 33, but when I think about what I want to do and how I wish to form my life, it looks a little bit like that. And for no.27, well, what can I say. I simply like a well-written text.

"27. You take pride in finding typos in the novels you read (and you consider notifying the publisher)."



How to do it. #Life.

"Laugh your heart out, dance in the rain, cherish the moment.
Live, laugh, love, forgive and forget. 
Life's too short to be, living with regrets."

- Unknown Genius


Enjoy life, my Lovely Ladies. This spring has so much fun to offer us!

Cast me a vote.

So, attending yesterday's event with my friends actually paid off. Am I the best local blogger? I know Anthony thinks I am and that resulted in this nomination. Do you agree? Click below and cast your vote.


It's Casual Friday...

...and we spend the day at – yes of course, Busboys & Poets!


When will they start paying me for all this advocacy?

Colors and just fun stuff inspire me.

Casual Friday = Converse.

So, what IS best in DC...?

...well, that we still don't know. Yesterday, the guests only voted for their favorite people, places and spaces. And everything in between and around.

But speaking of favorites, I was asked the other day to list things I like to do around here and places I like to visit. "That's easy, just write Busboys & Poets," my friend said and while he was absolutely right about that, I still believe there are other nice places too.

My answer to that particular request was therefore that I would try to compose some kind of blog post with good things in DC according to Milon. You will find it here somewhere, so just keep looking if you're interested!



Thursday, January 26, 2012

What's best in DC?

Our dear friend Tattarn has invited us all to an event tonight and we are thrilled to attend. It's the Best of D.C. 2012 voting party and as we enjoy the food and drinks, I guess we will cast our votes on all our favorites in this lovely city. It might be a good evening to explore some new restaurants, clubs, areas, what have you.

Although, I think I might nominate Busboys for "Best place to spend a ridiculous amount of time and all your student budget." It would just make so much sense.

I'm definitely looking forward to some fun tonight. It's been a tiring week on so many different levels and I feel I deserve some fun, relaxing times with lovely people.

Thanks for the invitation!

I wrote a press release – a real one!

Today, I contributed to my very first press release. I mean, a real one. A real one. Not something like this or this. No, no. This was a real piece of information put together to deliver the news about what has been going on and what is yet to come.

I learned some really good stuff from my colleagues, things you definitely don't learn in class. If you're nice to me (preferably by buying me lunch at Busboys & Poets), I might tell you about the small tips and tricks I picked up.

Other than the press release, I have been doing a little bit of everything today; proofreading, putting together some research for a meeting, reading about social media and performing other smaller office duties. I'm getting more comfortable every day. Practice makes perfect and I love to learn how the business works.


Wednesday, January 25, 2012

Morning on M Street.

This is where my day begins. From the Farragut West Metro. Escalators. People running. Smell of coffee. Newspapers. Flower stands (a little question mark on that one). Buses. Taxis. A few brave ones on bicycles. I usually have plenty of time. So I walk with my eyes open. Sometimes stroll. Up the four blocks. And there I am. Morning on M Street.

So begins my day.

Never knowing what to expect. Never knowing how it will end. It's a thrill. I'm a lucky, lucky woman.


Tuesday, January 24, 2012

Don't look, don't touch – feel.

"The best and most beautiful things in life cannot be seen, not touched, but are felt in the heart."

- Helen Keller.

Certain things never fail me.

Evening comes and she wakes up. For real. Miss Nocturnal. This time, it's a little bit my own fault though.

After intense brain and heart activity, my body needed a good round as well. Thank God for the treadmill up in the new penthouse. 25 minutes, 3.05 miles. The other day, I was up there for 55 minutes and fought myself through 5.91 miles. I was pleased to recalculate and realize that it was almost 10 kilometers. Yes! This semester's workout goal is to run some kind of marathon and I feel very confident about reaching it.

Certain things never fail me. And I know for a fact that exercise always does the trick for me. Dear running shoes, never run away from me, always let me run with you. Because a good run sure makes an average day a whole lot better. Wonderful, actually.


Monday, January 23, 2012

Sometimes, a girl just needs a moment.

1.23.12, Caribou Coffee – Sometimes, a girl just needs a moment for herself with her pen and her notebook. Empty pages. To fill with whatever comes out of her hand. Out of her heart. Moments like those, her head is almost never in it. It's there, yes, but only trying to make sense of the paragraphs, sentences, words, morphemes. What do they really mean? Only her heart can tell.

In her heart, the puzzle is being put together – piece by piece. At times, scattered all over the place, but as she has lived and learned, she always comes back to knowing that it will be well organized again. As organized as it can be, that is.

Once the wall has now fallen, she is thinking that it might be time to stop all the lies. It might be time to come to peace with the fact that hers is a heart to be shared, that she could never live a whole life just keeping it to herself.

And that's neither bad nor scary.

The ice was just an illusion. And always will be. What she has is a river, a lake, an ocean full of emotions.

She can dive into the darkest blue or the clearest turquoise. Struggle with the storms or follow the wild waves. The seemingly bottomless sea whispers. It screams, it glitters, it takes her out on adventures that send rushes of adrenaline through her whole system. With her eyes wide open, she doesn't miss a thing.

She will never make it on to dry land, because that's not where she belongs. Her journey is out at sea and how could that ever be bad? Or scary? She has always been a good swimmer and she loves a big ocean. The salty water tickles her skin, kisses her lips, rocks her to sleep. She loves it. She loves.

Sometimes, a girl just needs a moment for herself with her pen and her notebook. Empty pages. Where her heart floats out and reveals its true self. And she knows, that it will always, always be okay.


Some days you just have to look a bit closer for the silver lining.

Some mornings, some days, sometimes, the best skill to hold is the ability to find the silver lining that always is there – somewhere. No matter how grey the morning seems, the day holds a whole lot of opportunities and it will start shining if you only allow it to .

Some mornings, some days, sometimes, you have to remind yourself that the ability to feel is a good one, no matter how grey the moment seems to be. Don't be afraid of listening to your heart. And know that, in the end, being true to yourself will always be a good thing.

Some mornings, some days, sometimes, you just have to look a bit closer to find the silver lining. But it sure is there. Even though you don't always see it, your are so extremely lucky. Remind your heart about that. And keep on being true to yourself. Keep on feeling.


Sunday, January 22, 2012

Sunday as a Sunday should be.

So many people have Sundays as their big anxiety day. I don't. I don't think I ever had. When I was younger, I always had gymnastics on Sundays, which made the day good no matter what. A few years back, I decided to dedicate Sundays to the beauty of life.

The beauty of life can be a little bit of everything. It doesn't have to include hearing the President speak, but can be something as simple as reading the paper in the morning, having brunch with a dear friend, taking a walk with somebody you like, exploring new parts of a wonderful city, having hot chocolate in a cozy café, or whatever pleases you.

Today, I had a long lunch/catch up at TGI Friday's with two good friends. Perfect, just perfect activity. Even though the overall mood at 305 has been a little so-so this weekend, this Sunday delivered and became a Sunday as a Sunday should be.

Thank God For Good Friends!



Saturday, January 21, 2012

Where to focus.

"Never let a problem to be solved become more important than a person to be loved."

- Barbra Johson


Tuesday, January 17, 2012

Two thumbs up. Day one as an Intern, check!

Honestly, I barely slept at all last night. Talk about sova räv – sleep fox. Yea, I know, don't even ask, it's just something funny they say in Gothenburg. Anyhow. Got up earlier than I have in a month and ran out in the rainy Virginia/DC morning.

I smiled all the way to the office. With a heart pounding a bit faster than usual, I admit it. Entered and started breathing. I didn't die. Nobody ate me. Nothing hit me in the stomach so I couldn't breathe. Everything was just fine.

Exciting? Oh yes! Did I feel like The Intern? Oh yes! Will I like it? Oh yes, I really do believe I will. Miss Control Freak – and that would be me – just wants to get to know all these small things and then I will feel comfortable grabbing what's in front of me. I am pretty sure that I will have an amazing time and I know for a fact that I will learn a lot.

And what will I bring to the team? Always my smile and a good heart. That's how I work and operate and so far it has proven to be a good method. Intern Adventure, here I come!


Monday, January 16, 2012

It's Intern Time!

Tomorrow is a fun day. Tomorrow is an exciting day. Tomorrow is the first Internship day. This is the day I have been looking forward to since I decided to move here. This is the big challenge and the adventure that I have been preparing for throughout the whole fall semester.

And tomorrow it's finally time! By tomorrow night, I will write another entry telling you how great it was and how exciting I think this spring semester will be. Because I know in my heart that that will be the outcome of tomorrow. How could it not be?

Earlier today, as I was walking through the capital of the United States of America, I told myself, and my friend, that life is perfect. Indeed, it is perfect. I am such a lucky person for several reasons and you know what, whatever happens – well, I will just play it cool and keep on going.

Arrivederci! I'll be back tomorrow.


What are you dreaming about?

"Dreams"

Hold fast to dreams 
For if dreams die 
Life is a broken-winged bird 
That cannot fly. 
Hold fast to dreams 
For when dreams go 
Life is a barren field 
Frozen with snow.


- Langston Hughes.


Hey Busboys, we like you.

So right. So delicious. So much inspiration – and coffee. There you have Busboys in a nutshell. We didn't even hesitate when we walked in to a packed restaurant and were told to wait for at least 25 minutes.

What to do? Well, we dived into poetry by Langston Hughes, the poet who is the inspiration for the whole concept and strolled around in the bookshop. And then? Enjoyed a long brunch and talked about how great life is.

Oh. The joy of living!




Last days as free birds. And where do we go...?!

Last day as free birds! Tomorrow, the real big adventure starts – The Internship! I'm looking forward to it with great excitement at the same time as I am a bit terrified. But, it's all good.

And what could be better than ending this very long vacation with a brunch at Busboys? I kick started the morning with coffee, treadmill and some ab exercises and now I'm more than ready to devour a delicious brunch.

Have a good one, people. And think about MLK Jr. It's his birthday, if you have missed out on that one.


A new dear friend.

A few years ago, when Christmas was around the corner, me and my brothers and sister decided it was silly to buy so many gifts to each other and all the in-laws. Instead, we made up a system where we only give away one gift each. Since I'm the only one not pairing up (and getting married!) among us kids, I get to keep my gift for myself. How sweet, huh!

This year, my sister and her husband gave me exactly what I wanted. Really. Anybody remember that I've been saying for so long how much I would like to have an ipod? She claims she didn't read it on my blog and I do believe her. She probably just read it from me. Because that's how sisters work.

Anyway, the ipod is a new very dear friend. Now I can enjoy the treadmill even more. Today, for instance, I was in France, Italy, Hungary and Brazil and that trip sure made the indoor running a whole lot more fun.

Thank you, lovely sister, for this great Christmas gift!

Ps. I miss you.

Saturday, January 14, 2012

Reunion – it's the 305 girls' night tonight.

Things are slowly but surely starting to wrap up and get back to "normal." The 305 girls will reunite for real tonight. Tattarn and Grandma have prepared a snack night and later on we will go out for dinner. It's about time to give each other updates on what has been going on these last three weeks.

Let the Roomie night begin. You never know where it's going to end.


Thursday, January 12, 2012

A DC day from the eye of my Canon.

Being-a-tourist-and-enjoying-life-week has come to Thursday and the day, so far, went a little something like this:

Breakfast, reading The Post.

Back to the Newseum with my cool friend. 4D movie rules!

Loving the fact that safety comes first on the Washington Metro.

Walking around U Street. Where does this road lead? Dunno. Let's find out.



Wednesday, January 11, 2012

I will volunteer for the breasts.

As already established, I want 2012 to be dominated by here-and-now-me. And I've decided that that also involves do-things-I've-always-wanted-to-do-me. So just now, I signed up for the Volunteer Newsletter for the Avon Walk for Breast Cancer in DC. It will take place in early May and I want to be a part of it.

For so long, I've been thinking that I want to volunteer. Do something. Anything. Stop thinking. Start doing!

1 out of 8 women in America runs the risk of getting breast cancer. Every 13 minutes, the disease takes a person's life. In Sweden, there is a steady increase of 1-2 per each year of individuals getting breast cancer. I'm a woman. I have a mother. I have a sister. I have sister-in-laws. I have girlfriends.

In October every year, I buy the pink ribbon to put on my jacket. This year, I'll try something new. Just to know that I have at least tried to help, if anyone I know would be that 1 out of 8. Or that increasing 1-2 per cent.

Stop thinking. Start doing. Let's walk.


The Newseum is THE museum.

If you are a museum liking tourist in Washington DC, you are at the absolute right spot. Here you can find the world's largest museum complex, the Smithsonian Institution, with all the museums you could ever want to visit. Almost. Most of them for free too, something very appreciated by a young woman living off a student budget.

If you are willing to pay to enter a museum, which I strongly believe you should be, the Newseum is highly recommended by your blogger. As it sounds, the Newseum is a museum about the news – and so much more! Okay, she is a journalism and public relations student and a news junkie, but this is interesting for everyone. "Journalism is the first rough draft of history," is written on one of the walls of the museum, and think about it: isn't it so?

The building, I believe, conveys a message in itself. It's clear, open and transparent. Kind of how we expect the news to be delivered to us, right? The six story building guides you through a long, informative and interactive journey. I am very convinced there is something for everyone. We are all part of world history and the news, aren't we?

Head off to Pennsylvania Avenue and dig in to the wonderful land of News History. Your blogger will do so again first thing tomorrow morning. There was simply so much to see – and one ticket is valid for two days.

Who? What? When? Where? Why? Everybody – just enjoy!




Freedom of Speech all over the world? According to this map, not quite.

Monday, January 9, 2012

Carpe Diem, Tattarn!

One of my favorite quotations is:

"Yesterday is history
Tomorrow is a mystery
Today is a gift – that's why they call it present"

One of my greatest flaws is trying to live in the mystery – the future, that is. I don't have any particular New Year's resolutions, but I do tell myself that I will try to live in 2012 this year. And as much as possible, stay in the present month.

When speed-forward-me takes over, I always have her think about all the wonderful things she will miss out on if her focus is not here and now. So, 2012 will be the year of here-and-now-me.

So far so good. Yesterday, I enjoyed an absolutely lovely Sunday, just as the Sundays are made to be. A tasteful and long brunch – with two cappuccinos. A long walk, no, try stroll, through Georgetown and all the way up to the White House and The Mall. And that was it. Simple. But simply wonderful.

This city is way too beautiful not to live in, now that I'm here. Tattarn, my dear friend, I know you think it's corny, but: CARPE DIEM [inser silly smiley here].

Cappuccino no.2.

Georgetown University. Or that Harry Potter school, I cannot really remember.

CutehousesinGeorgetown.com.

Mr. President lives here. And a few protesters always live outside.

And this is me – living today! Although, while writing, this picture was taken yesterday.