KSena's Journal

Let's continue with where I left off. With my birthday. Or should I say... the day before my birthday.

Since earlier me, my MIL, my mom and my brother planned a HUGE clean-out off our storage. (All swedish apartments come with at least one storage in the basement.) We decided to clean out both the small one and the bigger one.

None of these storages have been cleaned out since Mr P took over this apartment from his mom. So you can imagine how full they were. The big one, that is like a room, a moderately small room. You couldn't walk into said storage, it was so packed full of stuff.

Now Mr P he is one of those people that say things like: "Let's take care of that later." "Let's put it in the storage for now, and deal with it later." Thing is... that 'later' never happens. Instead our storage just got fuller and fuller and messier and messier. And I couldn't stand it, so I arranged this huge clean-out.

That I wanted my brother there is that he has a calming effect on Mr P. Mr P has a very short temper when it comes to things like this. Not violent, but he gets very angry, annoyed, irritated and such... Usually over dumb things, or small things.

Gladly it went really fast! Mr P and my lovely brother took care of the bigger storage, and they were fast as fuck! We'd rented a small truck, so they drove that back and forth to the waste disposal site and the charity. Me and my best friend Ylletyg took care of the smaller storage, trying to be just as fast. We also bought two storage shelves that we put in the bigger storage so we could get some order to the stuff we decided to keep. Which was not much.

Meanwhile my mom and my MIL took care of Alexandra, amusing her. And made sure there was food, FIKA and coffee plus tea for us that worked. :-)

Once we were done, our storages were probably the most ordered storages in the house. :-D SO HAPPY ABOUT THIS!!!

Day after that, it was my 41st birthday. We took it very easy. Just took the last stuff to charity. Went out to eat lunch at our favorite FIKA-place. Was REALLY nice! And then we visited my MIL, she's awesome so that was also really nice!

Then we went home and just took it really easy. :-) Perfect birthday!

After that, I got REALLY inspired by our success. So I did a huge clean-out of our walk in closet as well. It's not a big walk in closet, actually quite small. Just big enough for mine and Mr P's clothes. And towels, sheets and such. Sounds big? Trust me, it's not. With all the things in there on shelves and stuff, you can only be one person in there at a time.

Add to that all the stuff that Mr P figured we could "take care of later". Yeah, there were so much stuff like that in there to, you couldn't see the floor. I rest my case. :-/ But I managed to clean that place out to! ALONE!!! AND got Mr P to clean out all his old disgusting T-shirts as well! AWESOME!!! So that place is in order to!

Day after that, I cleaned out a small closet as well. It was supposed to be a closet for coats, jackets and such. But… There were SO MUCH STUFF shoved in there that had been in there since Mr P moved in after his mother. :-/ Now we can actually use it for what it’s meant to. For coats and such. Which means…. I could organize our hatrack where you put hats, coats and such when you walk in the hallway.

Fuck yeah! Inspired much? You bet!

So today, I’ve organized and cleaned out some more! Me and Mr P has a shared desk in the living room with our two computers. It’s our nerdcorner. (See below at my current location…) There’s quite a few desk drawers in it, and they were full of just… stuff. So today I cleaned out and organized those to. :-)

Of course, we’ve done other things as well.

In between the cleanin out and organizing, we’ve been on a mini-vacation trip to Kolmården for two days. :-) It was Alexandra's wish to go there, since they have a small amusement park in the middle totally based around the swedish comic and cartoon character Bamse. Alexandra loves Bamse, she has a subscription on the comic, so it does end up in the mail now and then. And she has ALL the cartoons as well. :-) It’s a very very swedish comic, and has been around for so so many years. So I think the part of the park with Bamse was her favorite. My favorite was to see the birds of prey show they had and also the dolphin show they had. I’ve been there a few times as a kid, but it was sooooo different now. :-)

Anyhow, we had a GREAT time while there, even though our feet and legs were very tired. (I tracked how many steps we walked with the pedometer in my phone, and in two days we took about 23000 steps or more… o.O)

It did rain A LOT for some of the first day, but it wasn’t cold so with umbrellas, we had a good time still.

Rain is desperately needed all over Sweden. And well, all over Scandinavia, to be honest. We have a terrible drought right now. There’s wild forest fires in so many places here, it’s crazy. Not close to us, gladly. Mostly in the north of Sweden, past the polar circle (!). Not joking. There’s huge big forests there, and since they are so dry, well…

The king of Sweden, His Royal Highness Carl XVI Gustav was there encouraging the fireworkers the other day. They seem to have most of the fires mostly under control now, but yeah… It’s been somewhat insane.

Anyhow, between all this and a trip to Gothenburg and Universeum (which really is not built for people with a fear of heights… Poor Mr P…), I’ve kept busy. In a good way.

Mr P told me sternly that you’re supposed to relax as well during your vacation, meaning I’m too focused on organizing and cleaning out things. Well, I’m relaxing as well. Promise. :-) I did today, when Mr P took Alexandra with him to the zoo, so I had the whole place for myself for a couple of hours. Bliss!

This entry is cross posted between LJ and DW. Comment where you are comfortable.

Sometimes... sometimes you need to take a bit of a step back, right? I did that the other day on social media. On LJ and DW I've done several clean ups, so it wasn't needed here. But on Twitter and Instagram, it was getting a bit ridiculous. I was following way to many accounts/people, so I had to do a serious clean up.

I mean, online stuff and social media should be for fun, right? Well, combined with the stress of work and everything else, it just added to the stress. So hence the clean up.

Work is really stressful at the end of the school term. Last day of school is on the 15th of June next week. And this whole month or a bit more actually, has been SO hectic with everything that I need to do with the kids and teens at the school. Classes I need to hold and information I need to spread. I have made it, if just, but I did. I am getting WAY way better at planning than I was when I started this work. And I feel more confidant in my role as a school librarian to, which I think has a thing to do with it to. I dare more to demand things and push more for activities I need to do. You know?

It helps, of course, that I've been allowed to go to TWO educations on the University here that my employment payed for. And it was during working hours (sort of), so that was cool!

At home it's been a bit much to, so this term I have gone down to work 7 hours a day instead of 8. It has done WONDERS for both me and Alexandra to be honest. It's just one hour a day, so it doesn't effect my paycheck that much, but it does make sure I feel less stressed and less guilty each day. :-) Win-win!

Also, it's that time of year to. The dreaded Midsummer time.

For those that have been around a while, I dread Midsummer each year. Last time I was so down I am sure I showed quite a few signs of depression.

My beloved Mr P, or Peting, has a friend who USED TO BE his best friend that he goes to visit during Midsummer each year. To him and his friend Midsummer is no big deal. It's just a few days extra off work and a reason to have a small party. So that's what they've been doing ever since I got to know them. Even after he got married and moved 8 hours away from here.

His wife was... special to say the least. I don't use the word lightly, but hysteric is a word that would actually fit her. I've visited there a few times. Last time was when Alexandra was a year. I was not doing good during that visit, let me tell you. Even worse than last year. After that, Mr P went all by himself.

But that meant, he wasn't with us. No big deal, to him. But big deal to me. Because when I grew up Midsummer was a family thing. My aunt has always and still do have this HUGE Midsummer Party the day before Midsummer Eve. Where ALL of my huge crazy extended family go to. These days were about 25-30 people there. (Including spouses and kids.) And when I grew up on Midsummer Eve, we had a smaller gathering at home. And on Midsummer Day the family went to a traditional feast area to dance and hang out.

All family things. Mr P didn't do anything like that, and I guess is not used to it. But him not being with us has effected Midsummer badly for me.

This year though, his friend, who really hasn't acted like a friend ever since he got married to that woman all those years ago, hasn't talked to him all this year. Last year I think he called twice. On his own birthday and then once more to invite Mr P to come for Midsummer. This year he did neither. Probably since he's gotten divorced and has no area to be at for any Midsummer party.

I'm sad for Mr P, he has last what he thought was his best friend. I can't help but feel happy though, because that means he'll be spending time with us. And I need that, I think. I need that very much.

We've been together since 2003 now. And sure, we've had our ups and downs. None of us are perfect. But dammit, he is mine and I am his. And want to be with him and kiddo when there's holidays and shit.

*sigh*

I guess some of the Midsummer blues has set in. :-P Even if I do look forward to it to. I'll get to visit mom, spend some really good time with her, and I do svery much look forward to that. She has retired now, 65 years old, and has taken on the project of clearing out stuff from her house. I'm actually curious to so what she's done!

Anyhow. Over and out! We'll see when I poke my head in here again. :-) Hopefully it won't take quite as long until next time. I do feel better after writing this!

This entry is cross posted between LJ and DW. Comment where you are comfortable.

Oh hummm.... Let's see.

I've been working my ass off. As per usual. Sometimes it feels as if someone has to for these teens.

I did listen in on a conversation with one of our teens, 15 years old in 9th grade, who is already heavy into crime and drugs. Our headmaster was hanging out with him and his friends, also more or less criminal.

Our headmaster had read an letter in the newspaper that he told the boys about (they are boys, no matter what they say or how they act). It was a sister that had written to the newsletter about her brother that had died from an overdose of drugs.

Now these teen boys, we know they are 'runners'. They deliever and sell for the older gang members in the area.

The boy I was thinking off, he got upset with the headmaster for talking about, claiming that the dead brother hadn't known what he was doing, because the drugs he was using were safe.... And that anyone not living in the area is just there to fuck with those living there, and that we all look down on them.

Yep, so that's how the view is in the area where I work. *sigh* For the record I REALLY don't look down on the people living in areas like these. We have two areas in this town that are high in crime and honour-shame culture and many many refugee families.

Me? I'm just trying to do my best at the school, buying and spreading books to try and open their eyes as good as I can.

Don't know why I'm writing this, but as always I'm just writing down what's running through my head.

It's been very calm in the school library lately. It usually isn't, put it that way. It's a place to hang for these kids. They find a comfortable couch, they will sit and and talk and... chill, as they say. "We just want to chill a bit."

Yeah well, when they chill... they end up LOUD. And I have a ceiling that's three stories high, so... you can imagine how it sounds like.

And then there's some issues in the family to, but since I have some of said family reading here, I'll make one of my extremly rare locked posts about that. Because I need to get it out.

Maybe that's why I made this post? Because I needed to just... write down my thoughts. *shrug*

For the record, nothing has ever happened to me there, and I've worked evenings in the regular library in the area. It's like the gangs are mostly fighting each other.

Oh well.

It's the Easter Holidays, so I'll have plenty days off. Even took one extra day off. Meaning I'll have plenty days off to write that post that I feel a need to. :-P

Over and out for now!

This entry is cross posted between LJ and DW. Comment where you are comfortable.