happy birthday to me 2020

A year older, a year wiser but definitely not a year happier. But who is after such an epically miserable  year as 2020? 

So either I’ve aged 10 years instead of 1, or I’ve cancelled the aging process altogether and will save getting older to next year.

In this now small and restricted world it’s obviously been a quietly good day only (which isn’t bad) without a vegan proper cake though - no such bakeries around here and I just didn’t have the inclination to bake myself.

Little mum and I did get this feast from the thai foodtruck on Friday though, shared the fries and half a dish (two with tofu, two with Oumph), then saved the rest for today. And still have leftovers for tomorrow.

And on Thursday I had this vegan Snickers pastry (that actually IS vegan, as opposed to that time before...). Got two to go, so we at least could have something sweet and special with the tea.

With the fabulous vegan bake book I should obviously had baked myself, but with organizing the Vegoforum AND trying to study for sustainability science class as well as other stuff going and life itself on I’ve been to busy, too tired for that. I’m hoping I’ll be able to bake something this upcoming week though.

As for the digital Vegoforum on Zoom, it took place yesterday afternoon. For various reasons I had worried (as I am the worrying kind as well as have my moments of imposter syndrome) a lot about it. But I turned out so awesome that I was both touched as well as very happy. And proud of my work. And my passion. From the vegan food companies, entrepreneurs, innovators to the panel of politicians - three hours just said swoosh and we could have filled much more time. I see it as a very good birthday gift, that also were a great gift to so many others. The day was recorded, it’ll go up on YouTube as soon as I have figured out the editing. Though mostly in Swedish of course. I’ll add the link when it’s ready.

If disappointment had a face, Ågot’s would be it though. The kitties were totally miffed over how I treated the sacred Caturday yesterday. Not everyone was pleased about a day well spent. 

Two more forums to go, in November and December.  Vego och djurrätt i journalistiken (Veg and animal rights in journalism) resp Vego i politiken (Veg in politics). But as I now have a structure from setting up yesterday’s forum I expect the project managing to be somewhat smoother. Fingers crossed.

As for special treats for myself there’s this Marimekko oversized anorak. Little mum think it looks great, but ’it’s not really you, it’s too sporty!’ - well, you’ll never see me wearing it with jeans or anything else remotely sporty hence I will not sport a sporty look in it!

I also got a lovely orange tunic/dress. No pretty 55 year old like last year, which would have been a dream, but those are extremely hard to find, so there you are. 

I also did a Maria Nila colour refresh, blended the last dollop of Bright Red (as I did last October too) with Pink Pop. It’s more red than violet IRL though, but I kinda love it! Last year there was still some shimmer left in late December (almost three months later) so I’m thinking it’ll be just in time for another perky colour pop up for New Year’s.

Now I’m going to get a big cuppa, have dairyfree nicecream, watch a movie (What If always lift my spirits) and have a foot bath. 

As for an epically miserable year, it has still been filled with so many important lessons, and online meeting interesting people in a very different way (still find it quite awkward and exhausting though). And I liked my birthday treats, especially the work-related one. It was serendipitiously good actually. 

As I’m writing this on the iPhone and not the computer (because I loath how limiting that is when it comes to photo publishing on Blogger these days), I have now idea how the photos will turn out when I hit publish. Decent I hope. (Or I’ll have to tweak it computerwise later...)

Apart from REAL climate action, a vegan norm and kindness everywhere my wish for MY new (but remaining the same age) year remains the same as it has been for these past few years - a great job, with my kind of people, working for a better world. 

Happy B-day to Me, Myself and I the 2020 version!

goodbye summer, hello autumn 2020

Or bye August, hello September.

I can't say August filled me with joy and gratitude of the happy things I wished and hoped and worked for. I may have planted some seeds, who knows. But all and all, another disappointing month from my viewpoint alas.

I can only hope I planted some important seeds that will grow into a fantastic bloom asap.

The lovely thing was that I did get a phone call regarding the job I had most wished for, for a so-call-pre-interview-meeting. Scheduled for Thursday. It felt like the digital meeting went reasonably well (as it is darn difficult to tell from poor connections with basically zero visibility of facial expressions and body languages). As it is now 1,5 weeks since, I admittedly don't have any hopes of another interview. Which is unfortunate, since I was a great match and it was a very interesting position with great potentials for positive impacts and growth.

When it was a job I was very keen on (as this one) I used to follow up myself after the meeting/interview, but I don't do that anymore. It's simply a waste of my time, and I haven't been able to convince them of my awesomeness via my application, our conversation, the meeting and every other little detail you can find out via googling, there's nothing more I can do. They've decided to go another way. And my time is too precious to spend thinking and hassling with things and situations I can't change.

If you can't change it, let it go.

Somewhere out there there MUST be a company and organisation that click with me. However truly dispiriting things feel currently. And as far as I'm concerned have felt for much too long now. This is just ridiculous. What do you want from me Universe??

So far I haven't really been able to keep to my fake it 'til you make it plan...



But as for the things I do have enjoyed and felt energized by in my small world in the latter half of August, these are as follows.

The drive in/walk in cinema evenings were really nice. But for another heatwave that week, it would have been better if the movies had begun an hour later since the sun on the screen wasn't the best combo. But of course that's nothing you can really plan for.

Also, it's common sense really, that you don't bring toddlers to a movie and let then run around screaming while you as parents couldn't care less and you yourselves continue with a loud conversations while you all disturb the rest of the audience. There are idiots everywhere.

And even more so post- and during corona I'd say. Why isn't corona-madness a concept wildly discussed yet? Every day there's more and more proofs that it is a real thing.

The movies, Jumanji: The Next Level and Peanut Butter Falcon were both unpretentiously entertaining, however not something I'd been happy to pay for. If I'm honest. The older you get, the more movies you have in your luggage, the more discerning you get.



And somehow, the best thing about those outdoor movie evenings, were the walks home on warm summer evenings with crickets singing everywhere.

As far as the Know Thyself-philosophy course, that honestly annoyed me more than it delighted me. Well I finished that course, got my certificate. And decided, after all, to continue with the second one I'd already paid for. I felt it was interesting enough, concentrating on the Unconscious. I'm now in week 4 and I hope to get another certificate by the end of the week.

Slightly better, and yes interesting in some ways of course, than the initial course, but not really something I'd recommend. It's such a deep and wide subject, it deserves more time and work, and a professor that doesn't mumble rush through the classes. Also some proof-reading wouldn't go amiss.

Tomorrow my Sustainability Science class will begin - which will last until the end of December, at 25% part time. It'll be interesting to see how that'll be! Only digital this year.



This, my friends, is a magnificent piece. A vegan bake book, almost 450 pages of recipes and information on how to make, bake, create the perfect vegan cakes, cookies and pastries without harming animals or our planet.

The writer/baker, Karolina Tegelaar, has written several cook/bake books before this one (I haven't got any of them), but the most amazing thing with this one is that she's written it during 10 (!) years of trial and error baking herself through the pastries so we don't have to. With the motto "You should never settle for less that a perfect vegan cake".

As there's a lot of aquafaba involved in the recipes, I guess you must be terribly keen on making hummus (or any other chickpea dish) regularly if you plan to bake often and lost from Vegansk bakning. Myself I'm planning to start with something small.

And as I haven't had a food processor since 2017, I haven't baked any buns and breads since, and I can only bake cakes and cookies as things are now.

The pictures are lovely too. And the cover design obviously appeal to me, big time.



And on the subject of vegan pastries. This chocolate cake at the newly opened enjoyable cafe is vegan. And surprisingly lovely at that.

However, we were shocked to learn at our visit last week, that the almond hook they said were vegan is not. They contain egg white and has never been vegan. As I know that two staff people (of which one is one of the owners) have said it was vegan, and I've obviously asked very clearly, I'm really very annoyed by this. Had either of us been allergic to eggs it could have had devastating consequences.

Needless to say it's very unprofessional to run a food business where the staff doesn't know the ingredients of what they're selling.

And yes I have offered my services when it comes to the poor vegan selection and now obviously their ignorance. They have not bothered to get in contact.

So beware if you visit Petjo's cafe, if you're vegan, or allergic to any ingredients, you can't be really sure about what the staff claims. Disappointing but true.

They're also opening a bakery shortly, and you know how I miss my favourite city bakeries and their sourdough breads. However my giddy anticipation has faded somewhat after this incident.

The book in the picture, is a very interesting one on the right-wing racist part Sweden democrats (Sverigedemokraterna) and  social media campaigns with links to the Trump-strategy, Sverigevänner (Friends of Sweden, like those cohorts like to call themselves) by Swedish journalist Jonathan Lundberg. It's not exactly a book that fills you with inspiration and joy over the human kind and its intelligence. But alas, not every important read is.

These are indeed dark times, on so many levels and more than ever, we should keep ourselves informed. As well as be the change working against these dark forces in whatever little way we are able to.



On the brighter side of books, I highly recommend this one on Shinrin-yoku aka forest bathing, by Dr Qing Li. Did you know that 2/3 of Japan is covered by forest at the same time that the country is one of the most densely populated in the world?

It's an easy read, full of interesting facts on nature, health, well-being and research. Plus tips on how to incorporate forest-bathing as a routine in your daily life. Even if I think it's very difficult for most of us to do that 3 hours per day... But 30 minutes - 1 hour is better than nothing.



I'm trying my best to get back on track with my 55 books goal for 2020, but I'm still 7 books behind and I have 25 left to finish in order to reach the goal. I'm very good at starting new books, not equally good at finishing them all. As I like to stretch my brain with an eclectic mix, some of them get to be a bit heavy and uninteresting after a while, and the reading gets slowed down.

And to be honest, there are very few books that draw you in from page one and you just can't stop reading. They might still be good, just not enthrallingly good.

I've just started reading this one, and it's truly unique. Monster i terapi (Monster in therapy), by Jenny Jägerfeld and Mats Strandberg, is about four famous monsters in literature being subjected to modern therapy in current society. A fascinating read indeed. before corona hit I was about to attend a writer's talk with Mats Strandberg, and had looked forward to getting some of his books signed (he's an excellent horror writer), but alas it was cancelled. Hopefully there will be a day when real life gatherings of many is possible again...



One of my favourite shops in Stockholm, Krabat 53, was one of the victims of corona, and they had to close down last month. It was such a lovely, quirky, colourful gift shop and most of all it was the place where I got my regular Sonny Angel-fix. Aka the building blocks for my small Japanese nude boy angel dolls-collection.

As I'm not keen at all on paying for them in blind boxes - at the risk of getting a gazillion duplicates - I'll not continue to be the reasonably avid collector I've been for some years now. It'll be a rare treat to get one now and then, as my favourite provider is no more.

But there you are, and obviously there're better things to put your money on.



After the second heatwave of this weird summer 2020, we've experienced much welcomed rains. And rather distinctly cooler weather, too cool for late August, but as nothing is what normal used to be before climate change, one can only accept and deal with it. Even if I'd loved to wear happy summer dresses for some more weeks still.



Slowfashion, OOTD of the week and shoe per diem:

Dress and calf tote, Marimekko
Vegan sneakers, Adidas
Re-Kånken, Fjällräven

(what do you call a selfie in a library elevator?)

Farewell, August, I had so much more hope for you, I won't lie, you've left me sad and disappointed despite some glimmers of beauty and sprinkles of joy.

Welcome, September, will you be my sweetheart, pretty please? I desperately need sparks of progress and positive momentum galore.

know thyself and fake it til' you make it

:: If I had gotten a €$£ for every time over the years I’d thought I would have been a more fulfilled person if I’d studied philosophy/psychology instead of law, then I’d probably be a multi-millionaire.

But IF the grass is greener on the other side, that is one eternal question. The choices we make and the choices we made, and the paths we took and take, were the ones we were suppose to take at the time. So it’s absolutely useless to dwell on that in hindsight obviously. 

Still. So much time to think that these past 6 (!) months without new meetings, insights, inspiration and memories have brought, so much soul searching, introspection, old memories coming to new life, frustration, sadness as well as small moments of joy to savour.

That said, in awaiting of the  Sustainability Science - described as "examining the interactions between human, environmental, and engineered systems to understand and contribute to solutions for complex challenges that threaten the future of humanity and the integrity of the life support systems of the planet, such as climate change, biodiversity loss, pollution and land and water degradation." -

course that starts on the last shivering day of summer  in a couple of weeks, I’m now taking a couple of philosophy courses - Know Thyself, at Edinburgh University/Coursera. Absolutely loved it after week 1 (Socrates, Plato and the likes resonates easily with me). 

But week 2 started to annoy me. Because unlike the great The Science of Well-Being course in spring at Yale/Coursera, which I truly loved and learnt a lot from, the American professor has a forced, mumbling and fast way of talking. With a complicated subject and a lot of philosophical concepts which probably take years to fully grasp, but which the course is trying to cram into 4 weeks (jeez!), that's not a satisfying learning experience.

The only thing I enjoyed with Descartes is that he apparently liked to stay in bed all day and think (one of my favourite things too). Other than that, I have to say I find him to be more than a bit of twit and very full of himself.

I'm now into week 4, and things are picking up somewhat - What is the the concept of Human Nature etc. I'm hoping to take my certificate this week.

Unfortunately I didn't get that the full course is in fact made of three different courses, not depending on each other, so I made the mistake of signing up to part II before I realised it was a part I. And as I had no doubt that it would be another great learning experience, I thought it would be better to read them chronologically. I am now annoyed at myself (though more annoyed at the poor quality of the course, or well, at least lower than I expected from it). 

I'm not exactly looking forward to another class with the same setup and same professor (who seems like a likable and knowledgeable guy irl, just not really inspiring or enjoyable via online learning). I'm not sure one can get the payment transferred to another course, but I'll look into that. Otherwise I'll do it, as not to waste my fees.

One strong conclusion I've come to after these philosophy studying weeks, is that I'm less philosophy inclined than I thought. Law suited me better after all. Or I've just not really come across "my kind of philosophers" yet. Well, apart from Socrates and Plato. Another proof that you always are and do what you're suppose to be and do.

:: Another thing I've realised so far this month - which basically is just a continuation of everything in life coming to a halt since corona, and my last post in June - and despite all the high hopes, faith and trust for August, 

is that this extremely limited, restricted, trapped small life of the past 6 months, with all its worries and stress constantly building up, is really really getting a bit too much now. 

Some days may be better, when it’s easier to savour the good things, acknowledge gratitude, breath fully and feel reasonably hopeful. The other days are honestly pretty sh*t. 

.

And *looking forward* to at least another six more months of restrictions in Sweden (work from home and stay off public transport). Not exactly reeling with joy. 

I’m also convinced there are so so many people out there feeling like this. But we don’t talk much about it, do we? 

On the news the other day they talked about suicide prevention-lines and other volunteer organisations have been overwhelmed with calls from people feeling depressed, lonely and having financial worries (lots of them elderly that are feeling isolated). They need to be get more public funds to manage this. As an example one organisation alone used to work with 30 volunteers, now they nee to be at least 300 to cope with all the distress calls.

It makes me truly sick with all the financial support that go into companies (without any real sustainability demands tied to them) and not people. That there's so much talk about getting back to *normal* and business as usual, hail consumerism. When we are all to aware that is exactly what got us here in the first place. We desperately need to build new and better. Stop eating meat. Stop pleasure flying. Stop depending on fossil fuel. Stop shopping like we used to. Stop being so bl**dy selfish. Slow down. Think. Act. Be brave. And compassionate.

:: And I finally got the palaver Palava facemasks. The fabric is pretty - and I get that when they're made of fabric scraps you can't expect the patterns to be perfectly matched. One should always chose one colour or a tighter pattern to get that - but I have to say that the design itself is lacking. They're too loose, too large. And if you can only chose from child, women, men with no measurements but a one size fits all-concept I guess this is what's to be expected for many of us.

With a no return-policy for facemasks, I need to tweak them to fit better. And I think I have an inkling on how to do it. The idea of re-entering public transport seems awfully far away, but if there'll be a must, I need these to be useful not just pretty (silly).

And when I say pretty, I mean the fabrics. Pretty fabrics that makes us all look like a sligthly kinder Hannibal Lecter, never cool. But cool and fashionable is not really THE thing here obviously. Reasonably proper protection is.

:: I call this one ’fake it til’ you make it’ - these days the things and situations I feel a smile and/or a laughter coming naturally are few and far apart. Duh. (It's a pity having a gap tooth isn't equal to instant happiness when needed...)

And when they do it’s 99 % cat or dog (or other animals) related. Now more than ever I’m not finding humans amusing, the stupidity/not-amusing level has somehow risen to new heights, or sunken to new lows is perhaps a better description. 

(these cutiepies, for example, obviously need a post of their own, I knooow!)

But I’ve heard, that if you force yourself to smile and laugh more, that’s also away to feel happier (even if there are few external factors to feel joyful about these days). So cheers to fake it til’ you make it-smiling! 

:: Haven’t been to a hairdresser for years now. Funny how you get used to diy hair cutting. Guess I wouldn’t get away with it if my hair was straight or I wanted some intricate cut... And I’m not giving up my day job for it anytime soon. But, it works without being totally awful.

Noticed a local hairdresser today who offered suspiciously low prices if it was an hourly rate, but reasonable if it was only a quick cut or a trim. Think I’ll have a little straight cut trim and treat there come autumn. 

:: Inaugurated the flower power dress last week. And had a good fika, vegan breakfast. And did the same today again. A treat that gives a glimmer of unpretentious normality to life. 

:: The thai food truck within walking distance has opened up again after the holidays. There will be a visit later this week.



:: Walks, nature and forest bathing have continued to sooth a troubled soul.

:: On Friday and Saturday it's time for the outdoor drive/walk in cinemas with social distancing and 50 people max. It will be so interesting to see how that experience will turn out.

:: For next week I'm keeping umpteenth fingers crossed for a belter of great news on the job front.

And to sum things up, obviously there are lovely, heartwarming things happening in this small on hold-life too. But I so very much keep wanting so much more. Don't we all?

Next post up, a new vegan food inspiration-post is what's needed! Can I get a buckjump?

savouring a good day during corona

With all the heartbreak, sadness and worries - five months of  limbo life during corona, and extra intensely yesterday - it's more important than ever to fully experience and savoring every little detail of the good days. Like day before yesterday's magic meet cute. And a day like today.



My mother desperately needed to get out of her apartment, now dramatically void of the comforting pitter patter of tiny furry feet and lovable purrs. So we went for a walk down to the suburb center again. This time the goal was simply a fika at the new location for the cafe we visited on that rainy Friday a couple of weeks ago.

The new location is this house, Villa Skoga, built in 1926. Back then my suburb, Kungsängen, wasn't a suburb of Stockholm, there was no highway, no train station, just a pretty rural area a few miles north of Stockholm. It's really fascinating to look at old photos from back then. And also quite dispiriting, given how many lovely nature areas and farmland that have been destroyed for consolidation of dwellings and industries.

A lot of nature resources have been demolished only these almost 30 years I've been living here, and looking at the pictures it's difficult to grasp all the changes, with little or no respect for nature that has happened since then. And the human species obviously still don't connect the dots, as financial growth just isn't possible in a world with shrinking and and limited resources. It's 2020, and we're still heading straight into climate catastrophy on high gear...

But I digress. It wasn't at all this I was going to write about. The climate emergency we're living in is just constantly present in my mind.



The area of Villa Skoga is obviously densely populated now, with mostly charmless block of apartments, businesses and conveniences. The villa itself is still pretty, its location not. But I think the renovation is rather nicely done. It's suppose to become a blend of offices for small companies, a coffice, cafe, and a business hub basically. It can be a good thing.

The interesting thing, for me personally, is the fact that my grandfather actually worked as a landscape gardener at Villa Skoga back in the beginning, many many many years before I was born, before everything changed. And now his grand-daughter lives here. And today she enjoyed her first fika in the garden, he once designed, but which doesn't look anything like it anymore.



The fika was however very enjoyable. I'm glad they had at least one vegan cake (sticky chocolate cake), which was very good. No dairy-free whipped cream though. And only one boring looging plantbased sandwich. Plus a vegan bowl with non-specified ingredients. Ie, a lot of room for improvement to veganize more things deliciously. We need to have a chat, I have suggestions!



I also had my first coffee in five months. Oat latte. It was nice, but the espresso needs to be stronger for perfection. As I've become so sensitive when it comes to drinking black tea, and alcohol, it's very difficult to get to sleep when I do, I have an inkling it'll be the same this evening after coffee. WOrth it though.



Apart form a good fika and a lovely long walk - no walking nazis this time - to clear the body and mind, the best thing today was the weather. On the chilly side, windy and +17C but with the warming sun it was the perfect combination of refreshing and summer.

Hot, stuffy weather just makes me feel sick these days. I find the sun so much hotter and difficult to cope with, as well as inhibiting compared to when I was a kid. Back then we didn't dealt with global warming and a collapsing planet in the same way. It was easier to breathe. Easier to live and feeling hopeful and carefree. It's truly difficult imagining how it must be to be a child today, only having a very bleak future to adapt to, given the rapid pace we're heading there. Sorry, digressing again.



All and all, it was a good day, a simple yet much needed soul soothing day to be savoured. And lo and behold, I didn't really dress like a granny toddler.



Slowfashion, OOTD and shoe per diem:

Blouse, Marimekko
Denim skirt, Levis
Vegan sneakers, Adidas
Re-Kånken, Fjällräven

And nature was green and full with pops of colours, bird twitter, insects buzzing and butterflies fluttering. It doesn't get much better than that, right? Right.

friday excitement in the time of a pandemic

When we're living in a considerably smaller, constrained world, Friday fun or yay it's the weekend-feelings are also very different for what used to be normal.

What started off like a plan for a walk to the suburb center (where the commuter trains and suburb buses station lays, five minutes bus ride from home, 20-30 minutes walk depending on speed and weather) to go to the pharmacy and do some shopping, turned into a five hour project.



Before Corona-bus was a concept - only five months ago, this was a great option for a bit of everyday exercise. Now it's basically a must, if you don't have a bike or a car. I've never been a hypochondriac, but just the thought of stepping onto a bus, not to mention a train, or someone's car actually, gives me the creeps. So walking it is.

Said and done. Left home at 10.15 am. It wasn't suppose to rain until late afternoon, so we had plenty of time to get there and back until that happened.

Or so we thought. Because 10 minutes later the skies opened, and little mum and I had to take shelter under a roof outside a dentist's surgery. For at least 45 minutes, until the rain calmed down.

When we got down to the center it begun to drizzle a bit again. Popped by the pharmacy - surely there must be something better that will heal that darn armpit-heatwave-induced-fungal-infection-which-stopped-me-using-all-the-pretty-dresses that the initial powder, followed by the same brand cream, haven't helped much after a week's usage? I got another cream, and if that helps as quickly as it's said to, I must wonder why non of the pharmacist recommended that one in the first place... - did some grocery shopping, and then the skies opened again.



Perhaps we could pop by a little cafe for a vegan fika with social distancing? I hadn't been toa cafe since March 13. It was a mixture of anxiety and excitement to step into one again. Can't say I was impressed by neither the social distancing measures the cafe proprietor had taken, nor how the guests behaved. But we managed to put chairs out and create our own little stay away-corner of 2 metres distance. Obviously the vegan options were poor, but the chocolate ball and most of all their own almond hook was really nice.



So we stayed there until the rain had calmed down again. Then headed home. We came half way, at the church, when the skies opened up a third time. And spend another at least 45 minutes under a roof there. (Click on the image to see and hear the rain on Flickr)



Only a marginally less granny toodler style outfit.

On the way home we passed the thai food truck, which apparently now will close for  the holidays until August 9. A plantbased phad thai with tofu was called for. I'm glad the paper bag it came in didn't fall apart until I got home. Because yes, obviously the rain had began pouring down again by then.



It was a lovely lunch/dinner though. After a bit of reading I decided to take a nap. Woke up 4 hours later... Had a cup of tea and sandwiches, watched some TV, went to bed again, read, listened to a guided meditation. And slept 9 more hours. I never used to be able to get to sleep or sleep well after having a nap, long or short. But apparently these are extraordinarily exhausting times. And this was an even more exhausting day. What used to be a simple walk with errands that should have taken about 1,5 hours took 4,5 hours with added angst.



This was also the day when I inaugurated the Marimekko Unikko rain poncho I got a year ago. That's right. The heavy rains haven't been around a lot since then, or I haven't been out in them. It was a good rain coverage (might have been even better without carrying a Kånken and a tote of grocery shopping though...).

Plus I feel a bit like Urcellen Ellen, a cute, educational Swedish children's TV-program for us growing up in the seventies, wearing it. I guess it goes well with the granny toddler style sported these days.

And that's how an exciting Friday looks in the time of a pandemic.

One day at a time, people, one day at a time.

thank you february, welcome march 2020

So happy to hear Agnes amazing voice again. One of the two truly brilliant voices that have won Swedish Idol winners since it started in 2004. And this song lift my spirits.

Onwards and upwards, on the very first day of spring (according to the calendar, with climate change it's difficult to know when and where things happen weatherwise anymore alas) a little recap of my February.

• Visited the Spring art salon at Liljevalchs. Like last year it was quite disappointing, compared to the brilliance of 2018. Low quality a la kindergarten art reflected poorly on the few pieces that were truly wonderful and talented. Haven't uploaded all the pictures yet - but for the painting of the black cat Sigge who happens to be the spitting image of my Waldemar. Loved it! - so may edit later or make a photos only post of it later. But you know, I've become bad at keeping my blog word these past years (still no posts of the Freiburg trip. Ages since I posted about the vegan food box adventures, despite promises promises), so who knows...
• Continued to put in volunteer time for Vegoforum, but as it is a practically no budget project it is hart near impossible make an impression om social media and with marketing. It was actually easier to make things happen on shoe string-budgets BEFORE social media. Or well, at least before everything had a price and the algoritms were set in the dispiriting way they are now.
• I've been able to get a few sponsors, which I'm ever so grateful for, but despite looking for decent vegan food sponsors I've come up empty so far. And it's less than a month left. I'm truly surprised and disappointed, since I thought it was a collaborative and supportive community. But there you are.
• On the brighter side I spent some hours at the vegan fair Linköping Vego yesterday, with the Vegoforum-guys. It was such a good day, the train rides, lots of visitors, lots of meeting old and new friends and acquaintances, sampling great vegan food, being inspired and impressed by all the good stuff, and the engaged, good people. Bought some great food items, didn't have time to eat properly during the day, mean to get some at the station before boarding the train instead. But then I was so short of time that I had to jog trot to the train, with heavy heavy bags of food with no time to spare. I felt pretty shitty during those two hours on the train, without food and drink. So when I landed at the central station I had to rush to the cafe, get a wrap and coffee and just stuff myself with that before I had some energy to get myself on the commuter train. In hindsight it was all worth it though, even if my food plans - I always have food plans, since I easily get quite angry when I'm hungry, so plans are good. It doesn't have to be a lot of food, but it needs to be regular - didn't go accordingly.
• I've been to a Rotary-meeting - finally went. after a LinkedIn-contact had suggested it for years - no vegan food at the lunch restaurant where the meeting was held, so I had to have lunch somewhere else afterwards, the average age of the attendees was, as expected, very high. But the talk by Slöseriombudsmannen (The Wasting ombudsman) was very good. Waste as in municipalities, politicians and authorities wasting and incredible amount of tax money every year. We all know it's happening, we are just not very aware of just a devastating problem it is, and noone is accountable for it. Obviously.
  
  

• Have immensely enjoyed various versions of plantbased semla (or semlor in plural) during the past month. This is a new style, and award winning at that - semmelmunk aka semla donut. It was lovely. I even filmed myself eating it. But as I don't know how to embed it in a blog post, unless I upload it to YouTube, and that will never ever happen, there won't be any sharing of that. But this is my happy face after a mouth full. Bought at Söderbergs bageri, vegan donuts two days of the week, great bread and some other lovely vegan pastries too.
  
  

• Have had three extra special, inspiring, empowering lunch and fika meetings with three great women/LinkedIn contacts - one I simply met on a bus last summer, when we just started talking about global warming and climate change (as one does. Even us introverts start talking to strangers on public transports. It is that serious.) Exchanged business cards and now finally had lunch. The other one I met at one of last years recruitment processes. And the third one I've worked with, but never met irl until now.
• The finding my dream job, true purpose, my kind of people process continue to baffle, annoy and honestly infuriate. But after spending so much time figuring out what I want, where I could best serve, find meaning and happiness, I will not settle for less. Anymore. Been there done that, not again. 2020 is the year of Goodlife.
• I have an interview booked for Wednesday. Sounds like a great job, great company. Fingers crossed we'll click. I am however pretty jaded by now, so cautiously optimistic is my middle name.
• Went to a seminar on 'Circular business models for entrepreneurs' with speakers/researchers  from RISE institute. Very interesting. And inspiring. The challenges are daunting. The possibilities endless. 
• Had a pedicure. Much needed. Blissful.
• Bought a sweater in hemp and organic cotton. Or bought isn't the right word since I didn't pay a thing, but exchanged it for the voucher checks I got at the two second hand sales at Bric-a-brac last year. Most expensive sweater I've ever "bought", and I would never pay that much in cash for it. But now it felt like the right thing to treat myself to. 5-7 pre-loved garments out, a percentage of the sales to charity and one garment in. Slow shopping at its finest.
• Went to a seance again. It was a good one. Got a message, it was simple, but so very very  accurate for the place I am in life currently. Comforting, empowering and uplifting in all its simplicity. Sometimes that's everything, when you start to question yourself and your choices, your path. Happens to all of us, at one stage or another in life. 
• Currently reading Marie Forleo's 'Everything is figureoutable' (which, as you know, has been my mantra for, especially these past four years). It's a good read, not a quick one or offering a quick fix, but it makes a lot of sense. As one of those lovely synchronicity things I'm actually going to the release party for the book translated into Swedish in a couple of weeks. So I'm trying to finish the book before that.
  
  

So, how did February treat you? Kindly I hope.

Let's hope for an even better March, more positive, kind and healthy news for us all. Remember that kindness is infectious, and spreading a little joy on a daily basis is a good good thing. For all. Going vegan is of course the best way to spread both kindness, healthy vibes and positivity, so while nature is going green for spring, why not go green yourself? You can do it!