my cosmo geek week, part I

My intention was to write a long, rambling-ish post about some of the inspirational stuff I've done this past week. My cosmo-geek week. But I realised just now that it'll be a lot longer than I had intended, so I'll make a part I and II of it instead.

Here goes part I -

:: I managed to snap one of those much coveted tickets to the annual Women in Tech Stockholm convention (WIT always takes place on March 8, naturally), this year 1500 tickets were gone in 120 seconds... As you know I shy away from fairs and places that attract a lot of people in general. The introvert me hates it. That I entered and attended countless of cat shows for years and years is in hindsight bewildering, I know.

But I have been known to attend TEDx talks and Geek Girl meetups, and enjoyed myself - if not the "do mingle!" element. I'm a grown up, I can chose myself and if I chose to watch, listen, learn and be inspired 'only', well that's nobody's business but mine. Especially not when I've paid for the tickets. - and this seemed liek a great opportunity for inspiration and learning.

The day before the WIT 2018 there was a sort of kick off breakfast talk at tech giant Tieto. I'm not a morning person, having to leave home at 5.45 am to be sure to get to the venue - the company headquarters are situated really inconventiently - by 7.45ish did not fill me with joy. But I'm so glad I went. The talk was held by IT Woman of the Year 2017, Malin Cronqvist, the founder of charity platform Help to Help.

Which funds scholarships in Tanzania and Uganda via transparent crowdfunding. Which, unlike most major charity organisations, make sure the money get where they're supposed to. A remarkable example - in a country with 56 million people (Tanzania) there are 236 dentists and 20 anaesthsiologists. Whopping numbers of wrong.

The talk was so. very. inspirational. A simple and very hands on idea that can make real change happen. And by empowering women we are empowering societies, countries, the world.



:: The WIT conference in itself was exhausting, way to much people, not enough breaks and certainly not enough food for such a long day. But also very inspiring, some talks, discussions and interviews were great, others very less so. You can watch all the sessions at the WIT website. But from my personal point of interest view I enjoyed talks from these talented women the most -

Joy Buolamwini, "the poet of code on a mission to show compassion through computation". You should watch her enlightening about bias in algorithms. Who codes matters, how we code matters and why we code matters, to fight misogyni and racism.

A panel discussion about #metoo and the extended misogyni within the tech industry, Swedish hashtag #teknisktfel (technical error).

Computer science professor Danica Cragic, who specialise in robotics and just won the award Tech Woman of the Year 2018.

The breakout session Starting up, Starting over: What startup life is really like.

A message from the (female) mayor of Stockholm, Karin Wanngård, that our fair city is a #awomansplace - "Equality in Sweden isn't perfect, but it might be the best that we have in the world." The website is worth an enlightening visit.

A panel discussion on building sustainable businesses. One participant was the co-founder of Gigafood, an acclaimed plantbased catering and sustainability business.

Inventor and engineer Anna Svensson, the woman behind the world's first integrated solar panels - yup, before Elon Musk - at the company SolTech Energy. 

Helena Samsioe, co-founder of Globhe, drone delivery and drone data on demand.

Then I left a bit early, which was a relief after 8 intense hours. And with me home I got loads of inspiration.

:: Part II of my cosmo-geek week will be about the above sweet, endearing and tear inducing sculpture called "Kerstin shall save all the animals" which is part of the annual spring salon since 1921 at art museum Liljevalchs. And quite a few other favourites I got at the exhibition too, how about pieces with though-provoking names like German philosophers with cats, the bulldog Rolf (made from old nylon stockings), 365 days of yoga, Rabbit with carrot (crocheted), The Introvert House, The pig mother, I wish I was beautiful as a swan, could fly and wear red high heels?

:: It will also be about my first, belated meetup with my new friend I met via the integration project Kompis Sverige (Buddy Sweden), it took me 2 years to get a proper match.

:: About an unexpected compliment from a ticket collector.

:: And about the fact that my obsession with fondness for bobbaloos has, for various reasons, turned into an obsession with fondness for the Japanese collector doll and goodluck charm Sonny Angel.



:: For now, let's end this post by contemplating that moment, upon arriving at a job meeting, and you're met by a wallpaper that looks like "one of your outfits has turned into a building" - not my words but they perfectly captured the situation. Needless to say I'd love to have a dress in that exact same colour and pattern like that green, tpriped wallpaper.

on being a cool cat

If last week went down a path of new interestingness, this past week has most certainly continued on the same trail. Such weird coincidences, slightly more synchronicity than serendipity, a lot of 55. Life right now. And the most interesting thing amidst all this I can't control, is that I'm getting pretty good at just remaining a cool cat. Not much choice other than that at this moment in time.

As may be known by now, patience isn't my greatest sport. I want things to move along, develop, be better, greater, as awesome as they can be as soon as possible. But when life doesn't want that at the same speed, we're forced to listen and adapt. And there are so many benefits to being patient, including health ones. Good things come to those who wait is more than a cliche. Cool cats listen.

The job interview went great. Plus two hours went by so quickly - and no I've never had such long first interviews. It wasn't really like any other interview I've been to, fascinating. Didn't have any obvious gut feelings pro or con afterwards, but a few days later I woke up early and had a sudden insight. And they've kept coming ever since, quite the list by now. I'm obviously not the only party or candidate involved in this process, so who knows what'll happen in the coming weeks. But whatever happens I've learnt a lot more about myself from that long interview, meeting these people, or perhaps it just confirmed what I already knew. What I want. And once again, it's enthralling really, how everything is connected. It's a small world.

To be honest, I do believe last year's grief recovery process unleashed something within me, not only allowed me to let go of certain particular painful parts of the sorrow, but also opened my mind in a way I have only touched on before. I'm not sure how to write about this without possibly sounding a bit doolally. But I'm not. Not in that sense anyway. But these past six months I've had the strangest feelings of premonitions, there's just no other way to describe them. Very tangible things, situations coming true. So much more than your usual gut feeling. Very grateful they've only revolved around positive matters or at least situations and disappointments through which I, and others, have gained valuable insights. Touch wood I might add.

On a lighter note, I'm quite pleased with my new glasses. They are indeed green horn-rims, and the style is not something I'd usually go for, but being basically blind as a bat when I try on new frames I thought they looked decent and pretty cool - remember my dad had something similar when I was little and a bit funky 60ies style is never wrong. And I firmly believe you should try something different whenever you have to get new glasses.

I'm glad I liked them when I picked them up and was able to actually see through the glass. I decided to get a second pair this past week, you always get a second pair for half the price at my optician of choice (for 8 years now). Pink, but not any of the two pink I chose from the other month.

A pretty cool side effect with these glasses is that you apparently get an immediate vampire look. No, my eyes aren't quite as shiny green no, I wish. But the iPhone PS app (one of my favourite photo editing tools) is revamped (oh the pun) into something quite fun to play with, try it if you haven't. Plus it makes those gray hairs look less unbearable, even if I'm getting better every day at not caring... I've been called Snow Queen from this photo a few times by very different people, which made me laugh, it's quite ominous. But I do promise I have no poisonous apple or other vengeful things up my winter sleeve. And I'd much rather be a Cool Cat.

A cool cat who managed to snap one of those much coveted ticket to the annual March 8 Women In Tech day conference in Stockholm. Have always missed out, but this year, after a pretty nerve wrecking 5 minutes with server crash I got one. The 1500 tickets were gone in 2 minutes, so needless to say I'm pretty chuffed I was one of the lucky ones...

Another fun thing that happened during the week was that I found myself stepping into my favourite shoe shop on my way home (ages since I bought shoes, believe it or not), it was a sale and I wasn't going to buy anything, oh no. Then I saw that one of my favourite ART models, one of the pairs that were ruined by the leaky roof in October, were on sale in my size. So what is a gal to do? While trying them on I chatted with another customer about how awesome the brand is, she was so inspired that she got the same shoes. And then we decided to meet up in May in our same shoes and have ice cream. Love little chance meetings like that, who knows what might come from them? In this case, vegan ice cream for sure.



Also, if you haven't already seen this clip from the Ellen show - I can't believe she's 60! Vegan diet, kindness, love, humour and dancing are the not so secret ingredients to that I'm sure - when she got her beautiful birthday gift from her wife, you must. Keep tissues close at hand though, you'll bawl your eyes out.

And what touched me most was the quote "To be loved is good, to be understood is profound." - and that is so true. To be understood, truly, that must be the base on which love is built. Simple and challenging at the same time. As life in general.

What will happen next week? If this first week of February is anything to go by, add to that my expectations of great things of course, it will continue to offer bemusement, delight and surprise. Which are things cool cats naturally appreciate.

start a fire

Rounded off a great, inspiring and (as an intro/ambivert) exhausting week with a cinema visit. Something I rarely do anymore, partly because to be honest I think movies are best watched in the comfort of your own sofa. Where you can pause, drink as much tea as you want, have pee breaks and not having to deal with uncomfortable chairs and people. Partly because there are very few new movies I find interesting enough must watchs for a hefty movie ticket price.

That said, I really enjoyed this movie. Despite not being a fan of the musical genre one of my favourite movies are 'Singing in the Rain' and 'La La Land' is the modern version of it. Granted I was a bit distracted by my own thought processes in the beginning of the movie but was soon immersed in the magic of colours (oh the dresses!), music, humour, dreams, love, life and drama. Emma Stone was simply brilliant, a well deserving Oscar winner obviously. The 'I Ran' scene is one of my favourites, her facial expression says it all, sweet revenge.



The melancholy of the 'City of Stars' tune is beautiful. And when I heard 'Start a Fire' with John Legend it was difficult to not jump up and dance. Promptly new favourite to living room dance to (in void of starry summer skies). I dare you to sit still.



Despite the ending being of the very wistful kind I'm not sure it would have been an overall better movie had it had a happy overly sweet Hollywoood ending. That said though, I believe that people whose paths cross that much are meant to be together. Yes, I know it's only a movie, but these things happen in real life too. It actually happened to my parents. I love that story. And one might say I'm the living proof and fruit of serendipity - perhaps that's why it's my favourite English word?

The upcoming week promises to be even more hectic. I'm not complaining. I adore and am deeply grateful for how so many things seem to fall into place this year, especially this autumn. But now and then my brain would appreciate a bit of slowness to adjust and accept. Then again I know that some weeks are conciderably slower than others and then I'm impatient and a bit peeved.

I've also become one of those daft people who look forward to the weekend. Ever since I started my own business I've felt like pretty much every day is like a weekend because I own my days. But this past year I've come to relish my weekends, or specifically my caturdays. For brain rest and oxytocin galore. Because as a general rule, no calls or demands.

But my basic notion is that it's such a precious thing, owning your days. I decide when, where and with what I work. And mostly I don't have to be available on specific times, if we haven't agreed on that beforehand. If I decide to have a day off in the middle of the usual work week I can. Because I'm my own boss. Which is gold, with a capital G. And whatever did we do before the smartphones?

As much as most of us, from time to time, are guilty of routine surfing and obsessingly checking updates for the dreaded FOMO (fear of missing out), I also believe it has brought so much freedom when it comes to remote work, freelancing, running your own business. Even if we also have to be aware of our own behaviours when it comes to living authentically, being present, the smartphone and the internetz in all its glory can never ever outdo the magic that comes from real life meeting with people and fellow beings.

Remember I wrote about the struggle of grey hair I don't care? I actually don't think a lot about that greyness these day (hooray, on the path of progress, a year older and wiser). What I've come to be annoyed about though, is that I feel that despite my new routine of weekly hairpaks the end bits of my hair begun to look worn. So I decided to cut it myself. A clean cut of 5 centimetres. And now I feel like it's about 20 cm shorter, and I will have to start the growing process all over again. Ridiculous, but never the less true for me. Oh the importance of hair.

On another lighter note of luxuary problems, I briefly contemplated getting a pair of new shoes. And for those who know me, you do know of my deep fondness for a special kind of shoes (El Naturalista and ART all the way, baby). But these days shoe shopping isn't without complications. Because of I no longer want to be part of consumerism, LOHAS is the thing. Always. And hand on heart, do I need another pair of shoes right now? Plus, do my best this days to stay away from new leather shoes, if it isn't recycled or non animal derived. So I decided against it.

Then I thought about how the things I want most passionately now are things money can't buy. And also felt that money can be much better spent than on shoes one isn't in desperate need of. Which would not have been a thought I'd much entertained a few years ago. Then I'd simply gone and treated myself. All these seemingy little, insignificant things that show progress. Can I choose not to buy a pair of coveted shoes, I can do anything. And so can you.

hello teamwork, you are kind to me

Exactly a year ago I had just returned back home from Schwarzwald and an amazing week of growth and insight, where I marvelled, laughed, cried and ate amazing vegan food. I still haven't written a proper post or two about it, but one of these days...

The trip I wanted to take for this year's birthday won't happen. And I'm thinking it's fine to save that for when I have something real to celebrate, some accomplishment, not just the fact that I've survived another year. So I've decided I will spend the day in solitude, acknowledging how far I've come this past 1+ year and mapping out where I want to be in a year from now. Go for a long walk, think and enjoy the amazing colours October offers. Anything but being social with anyone but myself.

Then suddenly forecast says it will be raining cats and dogs (sadly not literally) on Wednesday so now I'm thinking a plethora of vegan snacks and watching feelgood movies in the sofa, covered by cats, all day would be the way to go. Just being kind to myself and anything but birthday-ish.

Because I desperately need to be kind to myself right now. Partly because as much as I love what I'm working with these days, these past few months, I'm exhausted. I've realised that it has been such intense times. A lot of new people to relate too, new working tools, new clients, adjusting to demands and expectations, and in some cases not having enough background information, meetings, pitches, talks, lunches and networking. And being an intro/ambivert those things take a lot of energy, even when it's inspiring and great. Partly because home related issues.

Too much of the good things. Throw in some bad things and hello there exhaustion. Before the weekend I got some news about an upcoming job meeting which got my gut feeling alarm bells chiming loudly. To cut a long story short I'd much rather have a gastroscopy than attend that meeting, but since I'm the only one based in Sweden in the Dream Team, I didn't feel I could say no. I mean, I've grown so much this past 1+ year so of course I could do it, I'm a professional, I'm great, I'm competent, I'm convincing, I'm unlimited. Etc. Even if I also felt, to be honest, I/we were caught up in something that wasn't our issue to deal with.

Then we had a talk today, we the Dream Team, and the guy in England said he will fly over for the meeting "because Pia needs the support." And I was simply blown away by that kind offer or rather matter of fact statement. If I cried a bit out of gratitude and relief afterwards? Of course I did. Have I mentioned that I work with really good people now?

Still have other, potentially heavy things, to deal with on my own. But just the fact that I don't have to deal with that gut feeling alarm bells meeting on my own is just such a relief. United front of competence, strengths that compliment each other and more voices of reason. Just what I wanted but didn't feel I could ask for.

And admittedly I don't like to ask for help. I'm no damsel in distress, without issues when it comes to showing weaknesses. Strong and independent, that's what I am, need to be. But I've come to realise that asking for help is also a sign of strength. That noone knows and can do everything (obviously) on their own all the time. And that our weaknesses is what make us human. And also strong.

But that sometimes strength comes in numbers. That is something I most certainly learnt through the grief recovery process. Not always easy to apply and accept in your daily life, when stress is involved and expectations are confusing though. So someone taking a very practical and sensible approach, when your gut feeling screams beware, is simply very welcomed.

And I wasn't even stressed that someone offered a kind helping hand, I won't even argue the environmental issue about flying, just being grateful that someone was able to read between the lines. I do believe my mind has evolved since I was so stressed out by a drive offer to the station four months ago.

Sometimes you just have to accept a kind offer. And it is after all what teamwork should be about, having eachother's backs. Next time it's my turn to offer help where help is needed, to read between the lines.

you are unlimited

Ever since I began gulping down tea pot after tea pot like there was no tomorrow back in high school, accompanied by philosophical discussions about life - 

because that's what the Humaniora students did. Well, at least us who actually thought a lot did, which to be honest, looking back, the majority of my class mates probably didn't. I loved high school, I just  didn't have much in common with most of my class mates though. But then again I've never been interested in having a gazillion superficial friends when I can have a few close and important ones. And that I had, hence the philosophical discussions over lots of tea - 

I've known that in tea is wisdom.

It's even better when that fact is proven by the tea's equivalent to fortune cookies - Yogi tea quotes.

These above and below ones I got recently and they both struck a special cord for me. 

Because you see, I've been spending the majority of these past few weeks working hard on a special work project - yes it has finally begun! -, which has left me in different measures exhilarated, stressed, amazed, confused and dash annoyed. I guess this is what agile teamwork is, which is great in a way - especially when our different skills seemingly blend together so very well, that's the amazed part, because I don't know these people and they don't know me yet and still, smooth working... - but I also think there's a need for more structure.

Things like, can we please schedule the online meetings and the most important update phone calls a few days ahead. If possible, when possible. And since I'm obviously the last one onboard I don't have the full story of the project and its background, beginning to grasp it obviously after these intense weeks, but still, the lawyer and (semi)control freak would have liked to be a *bit* more in the loop before I got started.

On the other important hand though, and here's the exhilarating part, I've learnt so much during these weeks only. Thrown headfirst into a project with no clear roles or really specific tasks as such I've done so much more than I thought I signed up for or was suppose to do. 

Simply because a) it's such a worthy cause (brand), b) I always approach things as a great opportunity to learn new things (and practice old ones) even if there might be initial kinks and c) when there seemingly aren't any specific roles I might as well do the most of it, enjoy the headfirst situation and get to work. 

Because you know what, the upside of slightly hazy areas of responsibilities is that noone can really object to who's getting things done, as long as it's within the brief and with the mutual goal in mind. This part we're working on now is only a first step of many in a long project. It will hopefully get a sign off this week so we can move on to the next. 

Going above and beyond what I intitially thought would be my role, well it has been fun, really fun. Somewhere down the line it will pay off in different ways, opportunities, karma etc. And when I was feeling stressed and confused a few days in to the project I got this tea quote telling me I'm unlimited and yes, yes of course I am! And since I am a Jill of many trades, why not expand on that?

For me this experience so far has also been a real tangible test on that thing I have such difficulties doing, the one thing I've been blog talking about for years now, but also the one thing that has been coming much easier for me to do ever since the grief recovery process. To trust the process. And the gut feeling. To breath, relax and let my inner (semi) control freak have an extended holiday on some tropical island far far away.

And even if I'm well-used in working with overseas clients and remote work we've then basically worked via emails and Skype. This time there have been other project management tools as well as more phone calls in 2 weeks than I've probably had in the last 2 years - you know, I the odd phoney... And since our little team are situated in Finland, Sweden and England respectively we communicate in some delightful blend of Swedish and English. Which has actually added to the fun.

The curious thing is that when I began writing this post I thought I was going to write about how much more we needed structure, specific areas of responsabilities, what do we expect from eachother, to be able to perform better, avoid misunderstandings and unnecessary stress. I still partly think that would help, but at the same time it has been a fascinating and unusual ride of trust. And a more positive experience and full of learning in a reasonably short amount of time than I ever thought it would be. Looking forward to whatever will be next.

And then the first few weeks in September there was a sudden, unexpected influx of various new job/clients opportunites. Even if I well know by now that over 50% of them always fall through in general, for various reasons, I got a bit flustered. Because what if many of them would lead to something more substantial than just a thought and initial meeting, and that they paid enough and/or were interesting enough, which would I have to chose to decline? And could I really afford to not say yes (both from a financially and the FearOfMissingOut point of view)? 

Or should I just see the next 6 months as a gritty working period, adding to my portolio of experiences and building financial stability? And the silver lining is of course, for a free spirit like me, that I mostly work from home - proud place of awesome pink office - and can usually set my own work schedule just as long as I meet the deadlines.

But as a part of my new trust the process stand that has so far worked out for the best, things partly fell through as usual, partly will begin shortly and more later this autumn. Things happen when they are meant to. Life is much better enjoyed when you bear that in mind. 

Which, again, is not the same as just sit back relax and wait for things to happen. Be active in a way that your comfortable with, and do step out of your comfort zone regularly, and take responsability for the energy you put out into the world - which will be the topic of my next post, the wise words doesn't come from me, but more of that next time.

Not only over these past few weeks, but over these past few months I've been grateful for so many things, for so many experiences, for so many people that have suddenly come into my life and changed me and my path forever. And when I feel flustered, disappointed, even deflated at times, I always remember all those things I'm grateful for. What has truly been the worst 1,5 years of my life has also been one of the most evolving and yes magical even, 1,5 years of my life. Especially these past six months. Which brings me to this second quote I got a few days after the above one.

Grateful. Always.

hello apple tv

I've always prefered watching movies and TV-series on a big TV-screen and I absolutely loath watching them on the computer or iPad - the experience with a tiny screen is poor plus it's crap for the eyes. I so prefer the HD-recorder before every play-app or online experience available.

Since I most certainly don't belong to the Apple cult (but enjoy the iPhone very much and the iPad reasonably so) I've never been very interested in all their other gadgets. To be honest I am a bit of a not-so-closet technology antagonist in general, even though obviously I can be smitten by its vast opportunities and potentials too.

That said, apparently the Apple TV is a nifty li'l thing that changes all that. It's actually more useful that I imagined. And the resolution is vastly superior to the TV and HD. Suddenly watching movies and series via the different channels online-services is so much easier and satisfying.

I haven't explored the possibilities a lot yet, but apart from a few missed series easily catched up on without having recorded them, I think it's great fun that you can enjoy a screening of your own pictures both via the iPhone but also via Flickr on the TV now.

The more technical savvy bobbaloos think it's a fab gadget. In fact they toppled over in excitement.

are you an internet cat expert?

This month's theme at the Internetmuseum - Swedish museum on the internet about the internet - is #webkatz and there are chronicles about lolcats, cats vs dogs and such. And there is a quiz about your knowledge in internet cats. All in Swedish of course, but if you happen to know the lingua, or your webcats for that matter, I think you'll find it to be rather fun!

I'm happy and relieved to report I apparently hold a Ph.D. in internet cats knowledge. Good to know all those decades spent with cats have come to good use.

on the pia day 2015

My name day of 2015 was unpretentious but rather sweet - and unlike last year I wasn't the least bit sniffly -

• I got a lovely T-shirt with a pineapple print - a life without a pineapple tee, bah humbug! 
• I had fika with a cute carrot cake - although why do they insist in slicing it way before serving, obviously it does get dry in the display without a cover.
• I had to work - writing copy for a bicycle dealer. And I dream of a really pretty new bike, but I know I'm not really big on biking so it's most likely not worth the money. My pink bike will do for me still.
• While working I enjoyed my first tulips (locally grown climate compensated ones of course) of the year alongside a swell, as usual, soy latte.
• I also managed to spruce up the Prosit website, by following instructions and common sense only. And figuring things out myself, even though I'm so not interested in coding and such, is quite rewarding. I like to keep things simple still, less is more, but now it's at least a responsive website and easy to read and navigate on a smartphone too. Welcome to Prosit's new and improved website ~

on the first day of 2015

I was woken up by an unknown drunken caller at 6 am who felt a dire need to leave a rambling message on the phone. Unhappy, tired bunny.

I had a piece of the left over gooey chocolate cake from yesterday. Happy bunny tummy and soul.

I had nearly finished work - yes even on New Year's Day, no rest for the wicked Prosit, because I do love writing and I do love a decent invoicing - when suddenly the Wifi didn't work on the computer didn't work. When I turned the computer off - you know, the fine three months old one I bought in September... - a fail message appeared on the screen that didn't bode well. Fingers crossed it will have sorted itself out during the night. Oh, go on, call me a miserable bunny.

Needless to say I am wondering what this might mean for the brand new year. Mixed blessings?

prosit has a new computer

Say hello to my and Prosit's new computer! I'm so pleased to finally get it. The old one, which came to live with me 4+ years ago, has been acting up more and more lately so it was time to look for something new. And this is what I decided on. It's a HP Pavilion and I feel it offers what I'm after as well as being rather snazzy looking. I'm so glad to have a white/silver computer this time, it's fresh and inspiring and hopefully we'll spend many years (well, at least 4+) together in a most prosperous way!

I've just ordered what I hope to be a fantastic customized skin for the new PC, very Prosit it is, because surrounding oneself with beauty and inspiration is always a good thing to do of course. And then there'll be a proper case for it. I'm hoping that I can get one from Swedish company P.A.P, like the one for the iPad. But it may be the silly little case of they only make cases for MACs. So if that's the case (no pun intended) I'll try and find another sturdy cover that's made of recycled materials.

The new computer has been inspected by the small sized woollies and I think they're pretty impressed. They have also promised to do their bit with keeping it clean and fresh with their little pink vacuum. If not there may be a case of restricted cafe visits and with-holding pastries. And that would be disastrous from a bobbaloo point of view I'm sure.

make happy things happen

This week could have, should have been the start of something great and exciting. It didn't happen. Not because I didn't try my best, without doing something outrageous, it just seems that sadly some people (which falls into the category "I don't get them") you just do not get through to.

To cut a long story short (and without details of course) I'm gobsmacked about the ungraspable fact (in this particular case) that apparently people (some people) working in sales aren't really interested in visibility, creating a buzz and improving their sales figures. Business people not interesting in making happy things happen, wanting to move forward, lacking curiousity and decisiveness, I simply don't get them. And to make things even more incomprehensible, my gut feeling tells me that I did get through in parts. I saw sparks of yes. And then there where a glitch in information and communication, not to mention focus. Alas.

That something which has so much potential isn't cared for properly and with passion, it really makes me both mad and sad. What a waste of opportunities, connections, time and energy. What was the point of it all?

It's such a disappointment it didn't happen. It would have been the next logically step of something beautiful. That much I'm sure of. I'm glad there are other paths to tread. So for now I'm mulling things over, talking and thinking things through, regrouping, working with other tasks and chose to be happy about other matters instead. Like the following;

• 
  

~ Apparently I'm now one of those for-unknown-reasons popular people on about.me - fun of course, but I still don't get the real usefulness of the "service". And as much as I appreciate a good compliment I'm not very happy about unknown people adding me to weird collections like "Facebook friends". 

Since we're not friends on Facebook for real (I'm not a fan, far from, of the media in question, my profile isn't searchable and I'm selective whom I ask or add as a friend), for me it's such a bizarre thing to do, make a collection like that with people that you have no idea who they are and claim Facebook-friendship.

On the other hand I'm touched by being added to fine collections like "Sparks", Makers" and "Eclectic Spirits". The internetz is indeed both weird and wonderful. Like people in general I suppose. Of course.

Cheers!



~ I now own a pair of yellow boots. They are gorgeous (and paw inspected). They were supposed to have been electric purple, but they are indeed yellow. The story behind them is that since last September I've been oogling a pair of fantastic looking electric purple (and I don't even like purple, but some hues are indeed irresistable) boots at the El Naturalista website. They didn't have my size then and it never appeared on site so my conclusion is that they never produced any in that size. When the sales came there were still no size 41 in purple sadly, but a very perky yellow pair were. Who can say no to walking in winter sunshine?

They are lovely looking, but I also noticed, after walking a lot yesterday, that the sole is quite a bit too thin for my liking. With El Naturalista I'm not used to the nuisance of too thin soles of shoe which allows you to feel the tiniest pebble through the sole. The boots are not uncomfortable per se, but walking on cobblestone streets or gravel is really not nice. At all. I do have extra insoles that usually do a good job, when needed, so I'll try those next time. But I don't se myself doing any long walks and long days again in these yellow beauties alas.



~ I got such a nice compliment on Yelp today, it made me really happy "Hi Pia, what AMAZING and cute pictures you take, I love them! Will follow your cool food-adventures from now on :)" It's great that people take their time to give such lovely feedback. It only costs a bit of time and it can make someone's day. I got a similar, matter of fact compliment last Friday, face to face. I'm still really chuffed about that one too. I repeat, dare to compliment!



Despite being quite disappointed about the above, initial fact, I have to say that this first week of March has been lovely. It may be due to a distinct feeling of spring in the air, but I also sense something else, something promising and wonderful, unknown and yet to be revealed. So I continue to be expectant and curious. And overall happy, because really despite setbacks and certain things not going my way, I have a lot to be grateful and chuffed about. I chose to acknowledge and rest in that feeling, when certain matters are not as peachy perfect and happy as they ought to be, in an ideal world.

cat, pony and pug ad

If my new internet provider wasn't already 3 Three I'd seriously consider switching to them after seeing these silly, hilariously adorable ads (very few commercials can instigate such urges in me...). I especially can't stop looking at the dancing pony one. Go watch, it will cheer up any kind of day!

Sing It Kitty

Dance Pony Dance

Pug one

Pug two

about.me

Not sure why I (about a year ago) decided to join the about.me site. One of those "it's free, why not try it" things I guess. A year later I have to admit I'm still far from sure what the purpose is. And when I ask around people either don't know what it is or have the same attitude towards it as I have. Noone I've talked with has it as a part of their social media strategy.

So why do I still have my about.me page? Well, mainly because

• I thoroughly enjoy that you can create a really cool tiled background with your Instagram photos. Thus I update it regularly. (It looks especially awesome on an iPad.)
• I also enjoy the idea of a supersized, dynamic online business card (of sorts). I shy away from having a really long bio, because noone really care to read that through anyway. Via selected apps I link to Twitter, Blogger, LinkedIn, Flickr and Instagram instead, if anyone would like to know more.

I've also found that

• Their customer service is really friendly and swift, when there's a glitch or question.
• People tend to view other people's pages quite a lot, much more than they give compliments about them. Although you do get compliments regularly, far from always from people you feel you can compliment in return. So a "thank you!" and then a pass it forward to someone's page/photo/bio you enjoy is my way to deal with that.
• To use tags on your page (a maximum of 10) is a great way to find likeminded people. 
• You get added to weird collections like "Viewed", "People I thanked", "People who glanced at me" and I have no idea why one would even bother with that... 
• But you also get added to nice collections like "Creative people", "Amazing people" (oh my!), "Interesting people", "Compassion for all life" (how sweet is that?!) and of course "Twitter friends".
• I've only made a collection of "Twitter friends" - obviously I don't really see about.me as a networking site for me per se. Perhaps that will change.

How about you, do you have an about.me page?
Is it a part of your social media strategy?
If so, how and have you had good use of it
from a business point of view?

stress relievers for the 21st century

To be honest, sometimes (often) I'm convinced every (many) gadget we bring into our lives just keep adding stress to it. Since they are rarely flawless and when they don't work as they are supposed to (which, come on, happens more often than we like to admit) we spend lots and lots of times fuming and tearing our hair, not being able to fix it ourselves and not getting the speedy service from helpdesk or customer service we need (and pay for).

But nevertheless these gadgets, upon them we often depend (or in some cases get addicted) both as work tools and entertainment thingies. They can certainly bright our lives up in certain aspects. And make work run smoother.

That is, when they work as they are suppose to.

My threesome above are things that can as easily be stress relievers as stress instigators, depending on how they act. But right now I prefer to look at them as relievers, since at this moment in time (touch wood) they do work. So

a) My new friend the pocket wi-fi, a mobile broadband I can use at home but also bring with me as I please.

As I've been moaning about for over a month now, my broadband hasn't been working in a pleasing way at all. The week before Christmas it began acting up in a bad way regularly. I had hopes it would be something temporary, I find that contacting customer service is just such a time-consuming task in general when it comes to these things and they are rarely very helpful. There are always some excuse for it not working. Either it isn't their fault or they can't see anything being wrong with the connection 'are you sure you've checked your cables and routers and whateverish out properly?'

This has also been a recurring issue for these past ten plus years with my internet provider, Telia (the largest telephone network operator in Sweden, used to be a public authority and also the only phone operator when there was still a monopoly in Sweden). All these years when I've regularly contacted the customer service because of the broadband not working they have never admitted to anything being wrong with it, but it has miraculously begun working again after the contact. In general though over the years it has never worked as well as it should do given the service I pay for.

Many times have I thought about unsubscribe and change my internet provider, but somehow it boils down to a case of plague or cholera. This time though I had enough. After having dealt with the customer service asking really stupid questions (which I had already answered) when I reported the failing broadband connection, after a technician visit who claimed it was the old modem's fault but it then turned out it wasn't. Two weeks without any proper internet connection at all at home (for some reason the computer can't connect to my iPhone, but it can connect to M's, so I had to work during nights to get things done), a lack of sleep and no solution in sight I simply had enough. I broke up with Telia (as far as the internet goes, still have them as provider of landline and mobile, but I will certainly look into other solutions there too). And never has a break up felt so good.

Fingers crossed my new provider and its pocket wi-fi will serve me well for a long long time to come.

b) Yes the iPhone is a fabulous gadget in many ways - even though it leaves you feeling very fragile and exposed when it gets stolen... - but really, one of its very less than pleasing features is the fact that it really needs to get recharged so often (at least for us who takes lot of pictures and edit). I'm not at all pleased about the fact that we're so dependent on electricity and available sockets with all these new gadgets.

c) This is a seriously nifty thing - if one is able to look pass the part of depending on things needing to charge so often - the pocket charger. I've had it for a couple of years now. And I have to say that the (stupid) stress I felt when I couldn't find an available socket when out and about is no more, since I always have this one charged and ready to help in my handbag. Fully charged it can recharge an iPhone five times around.

All these gadgets, all these things we depend on these days, how they've changed our lives and habits. Not sure if its for the better or not. Most days I think it's awesome, but when they act up and there isn't a simple solution to the nuisance I question that. And think about the countless hours and days we spend trying to solve all these new problems of the 21st century, of the 21st century gadgets.

I guess the stress relief or stress cause is a case of the daily form. At this moment (keep touching wood) I prefer to see them as relievers. And oh did that break up felt good! It cheered me up, to finally say, enough, be gone. What a relief.

sunday matters

~ defrosting. the freezer (thank you snow and cold weather for that opportunity) was well well overdue for that. it took six plus hours, work and patience. but i am now a proud owner of a frost-free and clean freezer.

hopefully that'll show a bit in the next electrical bill.

~ fuming. over the fact that my broadband still isn't working at all as it should. for everything gadgety that's supposedly meant to make our lives better, improved and easier there are hours upon hours of nuisance and fuming over them not working and trying to solve problems. hours upon hours of our lives never to be seen again.

~ crocheting. one of my two major yarny projects at this moment is this above lace shawl. i bought the yarn for it 2-3 years ago, but as it isn't a pattern per se but more of an inspiration there's a lot of thought, measuring and counting that had to be done and that's not my favourite things (the measuring and counting) so i haven't gotten around to start the work until now. 

it's super sweet alpaca yarn, very delicate and i can see this shawl taking ages and ages to finish. it is so time consuming. but i'm sure it'll be a satisfying piece to have finished. one day. in a not foreseeable future alas.

~ thinking. about life and love. about ideas, dreams and visions. that some of us have them in abundance. that others have not. or at least it's seemingly  impossible to get those others to share them. and that makes me really really sad. because more often than not sharing is caring. and i don't know what's worst, to not have any ideas, dreams, visions or not being able (or willing) to mediate them. to the people that supposedly mean the most to you.

sometimes i wish i didn't have a brain that insisted on contemplating and analysing quite so much. but most of the time i do love my brain, it's a bit mad, a dash creative, a splosh inspiring, a sprinkle compassionate, a drizzle loving and overall rather fun to hang around with on a daily basis.

~ preparing. for the week to come. it's going to be brilliant.

little green friend

One thing I can't be blamed of is certainly embracing new gadgets and every shiny, hip and new It-thing wholeheartedly at first release and glance. Quite the opposite actually, I'm usually rather sceptical and prefer to wait and see, analyze, read reviews and hear views from different sources. My dislike for the uncritical group-mentality is as strong as ever regarding this.

That said, I'm obviously no stranger to, after analyzing the pros and cons, the usefulness, intrigued by opportunities, curious to learn about new areas of creativity, getting a new gadget.

So, with help of recent great news and opportunities, on the last day of summer Prosit picked itself up an iPad. And a green smart case for immediate protection. So far we have an amiable relationship and I'm sure we'll grow quite a fond connection given more time and exploring together.

Tomorrow we'll have an outing involving a workshop about drawing on iPad. Which will be something completely creatively new for me. Once upon a time I used to draw quite a lot, I haven't for many years and I don't think I was ever very good at it, there are many other creative outflows I'm a great deal better at. (Thus more satisfying to spend time doing.) But with new techniques, new ways of doing old things come new opportunities and I feel quite excited about this. The amalgamation of old and new can do that.

What's your favourite gadget/s and why?
Do you feel it has made your life and work easier?
Or does it rather rule your life and choices?

new flickr

i rarely make a lot of fuss when websites get revamped, eventually all will in one way or the other. mostly for the better, at least in some ways and the rest one gets used to, after a while. and after all, many website services are free, even if we as users are providing the website with their business, for free.

the other day flickr was launched with a new design. and i can't stand it. it's fugly with a claustrophobic feeling - pretty much everything i dislike with the flickr app has been adopted by the website - it has an awkward look and i loath infinite scrolling. the old interface is still very much a part of flickr and it all looks very messy and confusing as far as i'm concerned.

so far i've come across so many bugs i don't know where to begin grumping (my "favourite" might be the one where you try to change the layout to a more manageable one and it only sticks until you edit a picture then it's back to the awful infinite scrollingness. or you follow a change your layout link and end up with "oops it looks like you followed a bad link").

basically, at this stage, the only thing i like with the new design is the option to make a new cover/header.

in my opinion flickr just isn't a user friendly, easy to navigate website that offers a simple way to manage a substantial amount of photos anymore. it takes ages to edit picture details and obviously a vast amount of time doing it, which makes it massively offputting from the start. unlike before the photos and pages take forever loading. of course things can improve, but what's the point of launching something that clearly is far from ready to be launched with its bugs galore? to me it just seems highly unprofessional, premature and haphazardly done.

and, like so often in this world, why making a massive overhaul of something that basically just needed a bit of modernisation and tweaking to be awesome? newsflash, just because something is supposedly more modern looking it doesn't mean it's better or more user friendly. this is certainly one of the big drawbacks and misconceptions of the internet (and people's view on the world i'd say); just because something is new it doesn't mean it's better, brighter, smarter and more useable. 

to be honest i don't care much about a free terabyte, the pro account offered limitless storage anyway. and full resolution photos, well, how about the resolution limits set by the computer screen. if you're interested in the new/old flickr accounts this article might answer some of the questions regarding that and pricing.

i've been on flickr since 2007 with a pro account - which has been an affordable service indeed - and i have almost 30.000 photos uploaded. countless hours spent uploading, editing, blogging, communicating in different groups, admiring the never ending talent, creativity and quality of other people's photos. for me flickr has been both a great extra security online backup for my photos, a portfolio and of course an endless source of inspiration and awe.

i fear that has come to an end. i hope i'm wrong, time will tell, but i have a distinct feeling that flickr and i will not be happy together anymore. which actually makes me quite sad.

what's your opinion on new flickr?

articles worth reading

A while back someone hinted that for sanity's sake it's a good thing not to watch or read the news, I gave it a try and I after a couple of months sans news as such I have to say it's a huge relief not to deal with the enormity of human stupidy, evil and pain and the way it's package by journalism. Of course there's no escaping the odd glimpse of it here and there (and human madness is obviously non escapable) but still, switching channels when the news are on and avoiding newspapers have brought a new kind of serenity. If you already haven't, you should give it a try!

That said, the Internets and magazines are full of fascinating and thoughtprovoking articles galore not exactly news-related. Here are some I've enjoyed, for various reasons, recently;

~ Green space means more for satisfaction than neighbourhood's average income

~ What's your social media personality, a lurker, peacock or ranter?

~ Elementary school goes all vegetarian (this IS news but such happy, awesome news indeed!)

~ A piece about the growing vegan movement in Israel

~ Why humans don't want other animals to have rights

~ The joy of creative ignorence, flip your fear into creativity


How about you, have you read something interesting,
great, thoughtprovoking, inspirational, heartwarming
recently you'd like to share?

a brand new pia k stockholm website

Finally I've gotten around to revamping the Pia K Stockholm website, something I should have done ages ago, but better late than never. It's a work in progress and far from finished, but I kind of like it like it is, not a lot of words, or pictures, just a few glimpses (but links to more of them). Plus simple contact information. Really, what more needs to be, if you think about it. In this world were we're drowned in information, texts and images, all the time, everywhere.

I'm glad I got around to the revamping with the new MOO cards arriving, perfect timing really.

I've been crocheting a lot of bowties recently - more of the happy bunch later - bitten by the springtime cotton yarn bug and of course, the endless thing that is lovely colour combinations... I'm glad M has not been negative at the thought of actually wearing them. Bowties are such a dapper little thing, wouldn't you agree?

the power of introverts

I've never concidered myself outgoing and extrovert, even less so with age, but on the other hand I've never seen myself as shy and anti-social. I love spending time with people I find interesting and inspiring, public speaking is great fun (come to think of it, it's been far too long since I did it last), but I am equally happy to spend time with myself, reading, writing, knitting, pottering around the house or being by myself in a public place.

I don't do the group thing, because I find it incredibly dull and uninspiring, plus it tends to be filled with extroverts that dominates the conversation and aren't the least bit interested in anything than talking about themselves. Listening isn't a word in their vocabulary. I've always prefered the one on one thing, or at least not a big group thing, it's just so much more rewarding intellectually. I want to really listen, I want to really be heard, I heart meaningful conversations with inspiring people, one on one. Something that was confirmed on last year's Geek Girl Meetup.

Recently I stumbled over this article on Twitter, about caring for your introvert and about our society not nearly making enough room for that type of personality. It stroke many cords in me, in fact I cried a bit.

When I posted it on Facebook a friend linked her comment to this Ted-talk with Susan Cain about the power of introverts. I hadn't heard about her before, but I obviously loved it (and she was a lawyer, see lawyers never lose their appeal) and cried some more. It's full of wisdom and goodness, like letting introverts be more themselves in this chaotic world full of problems and madness, the more likely they are to come up with creative solutions extroverts would not.

I also loved, loved, loved her little list of three things -

1) stop the madness for constant group work - I truly loath group work, always have, always will, but that doesn't been I don't think we should talk, meet, discuss ideas, interact and work together. It's just a very bad idea to force people to always do the group thing, many of us do not thrive with that, many of us are very less than creative and effective in such milieus.

2) unplug more often, go into the wilderness and have your own revelations

3) take a good look at what's in your suitcase and why you put it there - you have to listen to her talk to get the background to this

And in a world full of (extrovert) people that constantly try to surpass eachother with load voices, have the courage to speak softly. Yet no less meaningful words, rather the opposite, just look at the introvert Gandhi. Who did what he truly felt he had to do, not because he wanted attention for himself.

I wish people, this world, could be more wise and see how different personalities compliment eachother, instead of lauding the one who talks the loudest. Listen to the one who speak softly next time and encourage others to be quiet and do the same.