KSena's Journal

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.

I... don't even know where to start this post. o.O

Let's see... I took over the @sweden Monday 13th. Was a lot of active users following it, around 104'000. So there was a lot of questions and comments being thrown at me. But not more than I could keep up with. The nasty ones I just ignored. :-)

It was fun. I tweeted about my days. I tweeted about my city, Borås. I tweeted about books, since I am a librarian. Gave tips for reading about Sweden. What you can do coming to visit Sweden, and what fun there is to do in different cities.

Just what I'd expected to do on such a Twitter account. And the same thing I did, pretty much, when I was a voice for Sweden on The Swedish Number. Only this time I had to write my answers and to a lot more people then I had done then. So it was all fun and games...

Until after midnight Saturday night (swedish time). When Donald Trump held a speech where he talked about refugees and terrorist attacks. "Look at what's happening in Sweden. Last night in Sweden..."

I didn't know about this. Until suddenly A TON of people started to ask the only swede awake. On Twitter. @sweden. What is happening? Are you OK? Is ABBA fine? Have Måns Zelmerlöf been hurt? Etc, etc, etc... Et infinity...

I was left with thinking, what the FUCK is he talking about? Checking all the sources I could think off (because fact-check, people!), I came to the conclusion it was bullshit. And proceeded to tell the followers as much, mostly to reassure everyone and inform, you know?

This went on for all night until I noticed the time. 3:45am. SHIT! Kiddo usually wakes up at 7am, so I hurried to bed for a bit of sleep.

Woke up all groggy and shit and cuddled kiddo in the couch. And checked @sweden twitter. Between 800-900 mentions. HOLY HELL!!! Obviously I couldn't answer everyone, but I answered a few here and there, and kept informing and reassuring that NOTHING HAS HAPPENED!!!

And (gladly) after I had started to wake up, the media-circus started...

First a web-page/web-news page called Mashable mailed me questions about what had happened.... And then, hold your hats, BBC who I did a live-interview with right on air. And Le Monde (from France), DMed me and mailed me. After that, swedish media got in on it. And they to contacted me.

So I had the two MAIN NEWS SHOWS here in my messy home interviewing and filming me. WTF??? Both Rapport and TV4News.

After than it was the local newspaper that called and did a phone interview, Borås Tidning.

At this point I'm so flabbergasted, I had no words. To me, it was no huge deal. I'd spread information, spoke the truth and been myself. That's all. But these people seemed to see it as if I'd spoken against Donald Trump. *shrug* I suppose in a way I had, but I didn't and still don't see it like that.

Next news-site that contacted me and did a phone-interview was The Local who has swedish news in english. And the Daglige Blad from Norway.

And then... BBC contacted me AGAIN!!! X-D So I did another live-interview with them.

That was the last one I did on Sunday. I'd promised both myself, peting73 and Alexandra that I wouldn't do anything after 6pm at night, since... family is the most important after all.

I went to bed quite late again, since the storm had not stopped on the account. I was still the swede of the week on @sweden. And Sunday night was my last night, so I wanted to keep information coming for as long as possible before I had to logg out. So I did. There was still TONS and TONS of questions pouring in and I answered as best I could. Tweeting information and news as best I could. Until finally I was to exhausted and logged out and collapsed in bed.

You'd think since I was not the swede of the week on Monday I wouldn't have anyone calling me? Wrong! SO wrong!

I'd gotten emails during Sunday from the public radio here in Sweden about doing a couple of mornings show Monday morning. So I had to get up early, since the first one was to call me at... 6:45 am.

So at 6:45am I talked to the morning show in Stockholm. 7:15am I talked to the local radio-show Radio Sjuhärad... And at 7:30am I talked to the the morning show P3 Morgon-passet.

After that I threw myself in the shower taking a shower and after that getting makeup on, because after that...

I was to be on BBC (AGAIN!). This time it was BBC News (what??!?!). I didn't know if they wanted with my face to on Skype, so hence the makeup. Proved they didn't need that, oh well...

My mom came over that monday, THANK GAWD! Because during the day I was contacted by CNN in New York, USA.

I... had no words at this point, and more was to come... So we scheduled an interview late that evening my time. (After Alexandras bedtime.)

Mom helped me clean a bit and we hung out. Went to pick up Alexandra and we stopped at the playground, which Alexandra wanted. And when we hung out by the playground I got a phone call from one of my colleagues who jokingly called me the celebrity. Then she said that there'd been a call to them asking for my phone-number. From the swedish government. WHAT??? Of course it was fine if they called me. So they did.

And it was the Head of Staff at the Minister for Foreign Affairs Margot Wallström. Who called to give me an official thank you from the swedish government.

WHAT??!??! I was beyond happy I was sitting down at that point, let me tell you.

Mom stayed with us all day, until bedtime. I even dozzed off leaning against her at one point after dinner. It felt wonderful. I swear to anything holy, I'll always need mom. She is my piler of support when things storm around me. She, peting73 and my best friend spicehobbit.

Anyway, later that night CNN called me up on Skype, and everything got set up and all. They were very very professional and effective. The interviewer, live on air and everything, was Brooke Baldwin, apparently. I couldn't see. I only saw my screen, but apparently they had me on image on the show. They had to cut it short though, since Donald Trump announced new members of the White House staff. Which was fine, really!

You'd think that was the last of it, but no...

The day after, Tuesday, I was doing a live-thing on Facebook with a couple of people from The Swedish Institute who runs the @sweden twitter account and are responsibel for it. It was weird but also a lot of fun.

That, however, was the last of it!!!!

Today I've just stayed home and not done a damn thing. GEEZES CHRIST!

So... How was your weekend? X-D *LOL*

And here's all the links to everything I've done. Only thing I couldn't find a link for was the Norweigan newspaper. :-) In case you wanna read, listen or watch. If it's in swedish, I'll make a note for it.

( All the interviews about the swedish incident aka #lastnightinsweden... )

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

But apart from that, things goes quite well... It's just so damn cold and the winds really bite into you. Not my idea of fun, I can't say.

Yeah, I'm all outside nearly every day now. I make up reasons to get out and fix things, because I'm not a person who enjoys going out for a walk... I think that's boring and blah... So, errands everyday.

I've also sold a bunch of stuff on Tradera (swedish Ebay) for over 200 dollars. o.O It was my old medieval clothes that I sold, all in real wool and real linnen. And sewn by me. So I put it for auction, for less than the material was worth I think. And then I still pulled in that much! Totally impressed!

So currently my little walks is to send that stuff off. And since not everyone pays at the same time, it creates a walk for me everyday. :-)

When I'm at home, I sit mostly on the computer. I've ended up totally obsessed with YouTube. There's a few YouTuber that I follow, and man... I really love watching their stuff! There's some really fun people out there, and some are really talented to! :-D

I also spend a TON of time on Twitter, Plurk and Instagram.

Oh, and to keep warm me and my best friend have joined in all other fans of the company Kränku. For serious, they make the best tea you can get your hands on in Sweden! o.O And the company has now turned 40 years! So every month they have a monthly tea this whole year! :-D So I'm gonna drown in tea, but I don't even care. :-D

It's hard to understand that I've been on sick leave this long... My poor replacement is not having an easy time btw. He is a really sweet and kind guy. REALLY! He really really is. Problem though. You gotta have some balls and be a bit tough on that school, or the kids will run right over you. They're a bit like animals that way. They see one itty bitty weakness... They attack and will exploit that weakness like hell! Not physically, obviously, but mentally. So yeah... And since he to is an previously bullied kid, he has a bit of troubles with pushing back against that. I've gotten a bit further in process than he, so I can just give as good as I get when the kids go mean like that. Me and my boss has been there a few times to support him, but I mean... I jump at crutches. I can tell the kids off, which I'm good at, but that's pretty much all I can do. :-P

When I go back to work I won't work full time right away, so it'll be the both of us then for a while. I think that's good. Makes it a good transition, so to speak.

Anyway, some fun stuff! :-D

I've discovered that the graphics community, that makes these shiny icons for me and also all the blinkies I have at the bottom of each post... It was a dying community, but for some reason... It has a revival right now! :-D There's users coming back to LJ, at least in that community! TOTALLY COOL!

And I had a comment with sireesanwar that it's easy to not dare to make new friends on LJ, but really... Branch out! There's so many awesome users still here, so why not? :-) I know I have a quite a few new friends that I really appreciate here on LJ. :-) Not to mention I know there are those reading my LJ that are not LJ-users as well. :-D Totally appreciate those to!

Then I have to say, I had a bit of squee over an old fandom the other day. I nearly woke up the kid when I saw it! X-D But the new Pirates of the Caribbean movie is fast approching. Oh no, you say... Not another shitty one... And I was thinking the same. Until I saw the trailer the other night. And dude. It looks like they are going back to the dark / wacky / adventure that made the first three so good. Also... Cursed Captain Will Turner is there! :-D I can't even tell you how excited I am about that! *giddy* So check it out!



Johnny Cash music in a pirate movie? Well... I'd say it WORKS! :-D Brilliant! Looks really good! I thought I was way over that fandom.

I was wrong. X-D

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