that special feeling

Remember I wrote about a new and interesting project I accepted in the beginning of the year? But also a project that initially left a bad aftertaste due to financial reasons - I'm a freelancer not a serf, and seriously, if companies don't pay reasonable money to the ones that actually do the very job in the end, us freelancers, then that will never ever be good practice or decent behaviour, is that really what your company wants to stand for?

That said, to not be engulfed in the financial resentment of not being reasonably paid - which have and will happen to us all one way or another sooner or later - I've decided to always, always look at it as an opportunity to learn new things, grow and be a more well-rounded (professional) person, add skills to the CV and not least do a great job before I move on. Because badly paid or not, moving on is the fabulous option at the end of a gig we freelancers have, we're rarely bound to any lengthy contracts.

So what have I done these past few months then, part time? Well, I've been contracted subconsultant in the role of career coach for international talents. An integration project specifically targeting immigrants from different backgrounds and countries with the common denominator being they have an academic degree.

I've put in lots and lots of hours, I've been moved, nagging, hopeful, annoyed, impressed, angry and very happy. But for the financial reasons it has been a fantastic learning and growth experience. And as it turned out, surprisingly enough, also a great way to make a real difference both in a single person's life as well as in society. Noone can change everything but we can all make something change for the better.

The heartwarming outcome for one of my participants - an electrical engineer from the African continent - has been that after finishing his 12 weeks traineeship, at a large Swedish corporate group that's also one of Europe's leading generators of electricity, he has been offered a permanent position with them.

Which made me so incredibly happy to hear. And not least seriously proud to be a part of the process. The company itself, or rather the employees I've been in contact with, have also impressed me a lot, their honest solution orientation, getting people on board in the project and openness. Kind of blown away about it all actually.

To be a subconsultant is obviously not financially sustainable, but I will forever be grateful for this experience. And the people I've met, the stories I've listened to, it has made me into a better human being. And made a real difference. On so many levels.

I've always seen myself as a champion for animals and animal rights - because those rights are intricately linked to women's rights and human rights (and not least sustainability), I just wish more people could connect those darn dots by now! - and obviously deeply concerned about environmental issues, climate change and sustainability.

But as much as I know integration is an important issue that hasn't been taken very seriously for decades - and look what that's led us - I've never, for various reasons, seen myself as someone working with such matters. Nor have I seen it as a sustainability issue, but I've come to realise social sustainability is equally important to environmental sustainability, without either we can't have a stable and sound society and world. Or a healthy future, if there's still a chance of that.

I don't know where the road will lead me from here on, professionally and privately, but I'm open and expectant for whatever exciting things, opportunities and people that will cross my path. And again, so very grateful to have been a part of this. Turned out I was pretty great at connecting with the right kind of people and doing a job I'd never even concidered. And somehow this experience has tickled my ol' lawyer-gene and background. Who knew.

And that special feeling? Well, that's the magic blend of stepping outside your comfort zone, learning new things while applying your skills, doing a great job, meeting new, interesting people, making a real difference working with others, being a part of something more hands on substantial than writing web copy, content or managing social media channels. Even if its always rewarding with satisfied customers, and fun tasks, I have to admit that so far those assignments haven't touched my soul in quite the same way as this one did.

This was simply rewarding on a whole other level. And that's a warm and fuzzy feeling I want more of in my professional life. Though from here on, accompanied by a reasonable payment, thank you very much, Future.

Yours truly with gratitude,
P

EDIT: On July 26 I had my very last project meeting with my last participant from Syria - the outcome was just as happy as for the electrical engineer, he got a job offer! This time in hotel management and booking in the largest Swedish hotel chain, with hotels mainly in the Nordic countries but also in the rest of Europe. Once again, hello warm and fuzzy feeling! 

stockholm winter, five days later

Well, this is what I call proper Swedish winter, finally! Only five days later and Stockholm is covered in a thick, fluffy layer of snow. It may be impractical of sorts, but it's not too cold and as long as the streets aren't nasty and icy I love all the snow and the winter wonderlandish look of it all. The weather report says rain soon, but until then, gorgeousness it is -



Behold a hardly visible snowman city family (pre covered in single malt whisky aka dog pee).



Nearly visible on the left corner, one of my favourite Stockholm cafes.



You can't help but feeling a bit sorry for the poor chaps who has to endure the weather all year around - remember this poor guy?





Whilst the small sized woollies du jour were mesmerized by all the white stuff, they were also really happy to get inside and have a pastry. Like small sized woollies always are.

the amazing bobbaloos and their magic castles

for this weekend i was very much in need of refilling my happy account. it has been a topsy turvy week, in unexpected ways, both good and bad and with far too little sleep. thus happy account as well as good sleeping needed refill.

i do believe the mission has been accomplished. yesterday was sunflowers and good. today we enjoyed the last day of toy car outing 2014. and the summer weather lingered on. plus we made the bobbaloos very happy. they got to rub shoulders (and pick nose) with royals - though of course, like me, they only enjoy castles for their fairytale charm, certainly not in any monarchy or hoity toity way.

and castle spotting. not only one, but two. it could have been three but i fear that would indeed have been too much excitement for small sized woollies to bear. (besides they did get to visit a castle yesterday too, the one with the sunflowers galore.)

svartsjö castle and drottningholm castle (a bit of versailles in stockholm).

and we had a pretty great apple-astic brunch too. at favourite place äppelfabriken (the apple factory). all and all a fine round-off to the toy car season. and the weekend. and the bewildering week. all set for a week of many splendid things to happen now.

sunday reds

It seems like it has been raining constantly in Stockholm for a week now. Nature loves it. The mood and mind not so much. But Stockholm is pretty no matter what. And in great company with good conversation, lots of laughter and not too shabby food even the gloomiest of days get a rosy lining.



Who knew there was even such a thing as a photobombing AND flashing angel! As I was trying to capture the meet cute of dogs there he jumped out in front of the lens. Neither descret nor modest.



And there was a dire emergency involving a strawberry cream pastry. Luckily the tantrum was avoided.

In all its simplicity it was a pretty sweet, red day to round off another mostly good week, the first of May. I'm looking forward to the next one, Mmay it be even sweeter and rosier. And please, bring warmer, sunnier days too.

red lips on a roof and waste lions

One of many things I love about Budapest is the fact its a city that brims with fabulous architecture - both old and new, although I prefer the old and romantic bits - and great  public art with a twist that you can find in the most unexpected places. Like red hot lips on a roof.



Or worn waste paper baskets on a row, on a backstreet, adorned with little lions heads.

In fact I don't think I've been to another city with so many little delightful, thought through details in architecture and public art that can be found here, there and everywhere. Unnecessary from a practical point of view, but very pleasing to the eye and mind. Old and new.

height is the new size and other lessons learnt in budapest

Here follow some interesting things I learnt in Budapest;



1. That it's apparently important to (some) men to be a few centimetres taller, that one can become that in a "very discreet and natural way" (with special shoes) and that one in doing that can get the attention of a dumb looking posing, pouting model. Height is the new size.

I have to say that a) spending time with a dumb looking posing, pouting model sounds utterly boring and unsatisfactory imho, but I guess someone who would actually pay to get ridiculous heightening shoes like that doesn't have much in ways of a brilliant brain anyway.

b) as a tall woman I have to admit that yes height is rather important (shallow as it may seem), but that, as most always, a great mind, a lovely personality and brilliant conversations trumps pretty much everything.



2. Rosewater lemonade is surprisingly lovely, refreshing and somewhat enchanting to drink.



3. Too many (semi)naked humans can be overwhelming and scary for small sized woollies (also known as bobbaloos). To be honest, I'm very much inclined to concur with the bobbaloos on this. (That said it was a grand bath and wonderful architecture, got some great pictures of the outdoors baths and its guests in Budapest I will share later.)



4. To spell the name "Pia" is apparently super difficult for staff at Starbuck's, but to pronounce it is easy peasy. Also noticable is that to drink soy latte regularly (like once a day on holiday) can cause unwanted wind related issues.



5. Important messages to all men can be written in a very pleasant way.



6. The scariest of statues on the eeriest (but beautiful) of cemeteries is much less scary in the summertime. Though albeit doable still far from easy breezy and pleasant. (However this grand cemetery, of which I will write and show more later, is such an absolute must visit when in Budapest though!)



7. There's nothing quite like snatching a pretzel in the morning. At least not when you are very small and totally adorable.



8. Hungarian really offers a plethora of unfortunate brand names from a Swedish point of view. And with that a lot of giggles and laughs. (You have to google this one.)



9. When sore feet are in desperate need for blister relief you can always rely on Swedish plasters. And that aloe vera is THE thing for most everything. And that the number with three sixes can hold good things too.



10. Last but not least; icecream and sorbets should never be served in any other way than the rose way. Really.

climbing siegessäule

One of the highlights of my 2011 will be the climbing of Siegessäulle. In having finally done that I can actually check off one little life dream. Which holds a certain melancholy satisfaction in its little own.

The experience was briefly mention in my "the berlin-to-do-list". Now some more photos and words, because a golden (angel) moment certainly deserves a post of its own.

:: The monument was raised, only as a column initially, in 1864 as a war victory monument. Which is just a sad and horrific reason to erect a monument of course, but obviously this is how people like to boast about killing eachother and not much has happened since where human madness is concerned.

 

:: In 1873 there were apparently more war victories to boast about and the column was re-inaugurated now with the golden Victory angel on top. She's 8,3 metres high and is said to weigh an astonishing 35 tonnes. To get that big girl up there must have been a lot of work...

:: The golden victory angel's nickname is Goldelse, which translates Gold Elsa, and it's a rather sweet name I think. Kind of takes the edge of the monument's bellicose, violent origin.

:: The monument was moved from its original place (in front of the parliament) in 1939 and it escaped WWII without being harmed. After the war ended the French wanted to destroy the monument, as it was seen as a nazi symbol, but the British-Americans vetoed that. Which I'm grateful for, without it where would angels congregate? And what little dream could I then have checked off my to-do-list in 2011?

:: If you haven't seen “Der Himmel über Berlin” you really should. Besides it being a fantastic movie (one of my favourites) in its own, you get to see some titillating scenes featuring Goldelse. And the sequel "Faraway, so close!" is wonderful too.





:: The 67 metres high monument is situated in a heavily trafficed street circle - parking the car in what can be described as nothing less than a busy highway, getting out of the car with other cars in high speed swooshing by, then try and scutter over the same 'highway' to get to a pavement can possibly be the ultimate big city experience. I'm glad Germans in general are excellent drivers... - and it's reached via pedestrian tunnels under the 'highway'.


can you spot a swedish car?


:: In july 2011 I finally climbed the 277+ spiral stairs to reach the trellis balcony. It was very very windy and pretty crowded given the very limited space. The views were spectacular - even on such a cloudy day - and really, Berlin is quite a green city amongst all its concrete, exhaust gas galore sinful citiness. And looking up the golden angel's dress - even with my non-fondness for being close up and personal with statues - that was magical.



:: Climbing up and down, and spiral staircases are so not my favourite stairs, those narrow steps plus the excitement (even if you're not a bobbaloo) left me strangely both tired (lactic acid legs plethora) and uplifted the rest of the day. Pure magic.

:: The dream day was rounded of in a perfect way, also golden, with one of the, if not THE, best meals I've ever had. Vegan food, raw food, gourmet food. Pure bliss. And more of that in a post of its own.

the berlin to-do-list

Before we left I had a written as well as mental list of things to do in Berlin (ah, the list-bliss!).



:: Climb Siegessäule – check. 
Anyone who’ve seen “Der Himmel über Berlin” (one of my favourite movies) know this monument, the place where angels congregate. I’ve been fascinated by it ever since. It has been a little dream of mine to see it up close (even with my thing about statues). Now that dream is fulfilled. We climbed the 277+ spiral stairs up and down, 50 metres up in the air on a small, very windy, trellis balcony I could stare up the golden angel’s dress. It was pretty awesome. Perhaps a small step for mankind, a big step for me. More of this later in a post of its own (it takes ages to select photos to upload...). This is the Shoe Per Diem-post about the golden moment.

:: Go up the TV-tower – check. 
One of those Berlin-things-to-do. You can see for miles and miles, which I suppose might be interesting, more for some than others.

Bonus-info: I also had an aha-moment standing in the queue for the two elevators "I wonder if they have one lift that only goes up and the other only down?" M stared at me dumstruck, but really only the most brilliant of minds can understand such mind-boggling reasoning, right? Right.



Overall, what I found most interesting up in the crowded tower was that I could spot the tiny specialized El Naturalista-shop very quickly from up there (only been there once, yes such is the spell of El Naturalista...). I hadn’t planned to visit it, since the range they carry is pitifully small. But I did. And I’m very pleased I did since I found one pair of shoes I missed out on earlier this year. Which of course brings me to:

:: Roam the shoe sales (naturally El Naturalistas only) – check. 
As one can never have too many comfortable, pretty, colourful, quirky shoes. It is kind of a deranged clever sport to find what you're looking for when it comes to El Naturalistas, you never know which colours and models the limited shoe-shops have to offer. Last year it was no problem to get size 41, this year that was sadly a trickier thing, but many 39, 40, 42 as well as smaller left. A pair of oxfords for autumn would have been lovely, but nope, not to be found. My general impression was that the sales weren't as overall fabulastic as last year, but on the other hand I am pretty specific on models and colours I'm my feet are looking for. Granted, they did well after all.



I am however feeling a tad bit silly about two pairs I got in the same fantastic denimblue shade turned out to be nearly twins at first glance (not bought in the same shop or on the same day), but really, looky, looky, the stitches and heels are quite different. Really. Suitable for different occasion.

:: See more castles - alas, only one, in Lutherstadt Wittenberg and that was not even a decent and proper castle in my-book-of-castles.

:: Visit Beelitz- Heilstätten - check. 
Some 60 abandoned old hospital buildings some miles south of Berlin. Goodness. Me. The eeriness, the beauty, the sadness, the decay. I'm so not a really daring urban explorer, but wow, I'd love to go return and explore some more... Soon-ish in a post of its own. For now Shoe Per Diem moment here.

:: Revisit KaDeWe - check. 
Had a lovely bobbaloo lunch in the Wintergarten top floor restaurant and did some food shopping. So. Much. Loveliness.

:: Get a vegan bag, preferably by recycled materials - check. 
Found a sporty red/white thing at BagAge at a very appealing price.

:: Get a pair of open-toes Birkenstock slippers - check. Obviously.

:: Buy a box or two of Nestlé white chocolate curly wafers - a guilty pleasure. They are lovely to feast on every five years or so. Didn't find.

:: Go to Berlin city beach - check. 
One of the best moments in Berlin where had at Strandgut. De-loveliness galore.

:: Visit the sand castle exhibition - no check.

:: Visit markets – flee markets - see above.

:: Enjoy meals at at least one new vegetarian or vegan restaurant - check. 
Only visited one new, but since I had one of the best meals in my life at that top notch vegan restaurant that counts for a lot. As it will get a post of its glorious own I will not spoil the *surprise* by mention its name just yet...

:: Eat at Yellow Sunshine vegetarian fast foodish diner again - check. 
Yum. But for the generous sprinkle of German sprouts on top of that salad... Seriously.
Edit: Oh I usually love sprouts, but there have been severe EHEC-cases reported from Germany, which apparently came from sprouts (that hadn't been handled correctly), these past few months. At least 20 dead only in Germany. So, until all clear-to-eat, no German sprouts for me...

:: Visit my friend and her family - sadly not, they were away on holidays of their own.

:: Eat several breakfasts at Café im Literaturhaus - check. Forever heart that place. One of my favourite places on earth in fact. The ambiance, the food...

:: Have a Berliner Weisse per day - oh noes, only had two. Both at Strandgut. But we did took some bottles with us home. So one can still enjoy Berlin in a bottle now and then.

:: Have cakes at Tillmann bakery - check. We saved them for the boat-trip back to Sweden. 66% of them were enjoyed by us both, 33% admittedly went into cake-heaven (not the tummy).

:: Take photos of this and that things I missed last year – semi-check.

:: Buy ice tea at Tee Geschwender – semi-check. Bought two. Would buy more to take home. Saved that or the last day, then oh vey, the shop was closed due to cash-desk issues. Sad face.

:: Buy something small at Berliner Zinnfiguren - check. A wise owl. Will get a post of its wise own.

:: Ride the tram - no check.

:: Practise mindfulness, be in the here and now, relax and don’t worry – semi-check. Some days were easier than others. It doesn't help when you get a rather upsetting work-mail on holiday *which you can't help but open*.

:: Have a walk in Tiergarten park - no check.



:: Visit old airport Tempelhof - check. Fascinating. Eerie.

:: Take a picture of the bobbaloos at Brandenburger Tor - for some reason, no check. We only passed in the car. And somehow old Tor photos just aren't the same without them bobs... So, well, if one lacked reasons to return to Berlin...