home improvement tip #2

here's another way of improving your home value, hang up lovely towels:



a closer look at my hitchhiker's towel:

nice pic + funny pic

was out walking with a friend on friday, and took a really nice picture of globen:



and here's a funny one... me and my squash friend, he's at the gym. those dumbbells weigh 1kg each, and he actually is trying his hardest:

more skill to be recognized

so you think you can dance is one of the most amazing shows there is. these dancers are so extremely skilled that it's unbelievable. I'm glad they've skipped the stuff about what happens during the weeks and intrigues and stuff, it's just 100% dance. seeing them in their performances makes me shiver, it's absolutely beautiful to watch. pure skill!

I just signed!

finally signed for getting my license, let's see when my first game is! will probably start on the bench, but it should be fun... today's practice was no good though, had a couple of good shots, but then when we were playing I missed 4 clear chances. can't keep that up.

in other news, summer is gone. there's some cold weather over finland which is affecting us. who said that climate change was coming? so today finally was the historical day, when I wore a sweater for the first time in about 10 years. only wore it to the training and during the warmup, but I think it still counts. and then afterwards too, of course...

recognize skill when you see it

here are two incredibly cool music videos:

yves larock, rise up

ok go, here it goes again

and then I also saw a couple where the woman was blind and possibly deaf, and it was so interesting to see how they communicated. she was holding his hand while he was texting the letters, and thus understood what he was saying. it was so amazing to watch!

kitchen complete

and here's the final pic of my kitchen quotations:

update on encouragement

a continuation of this:

"Be in perfect unity. Never become angry with one another. Let your eyes be directed toward the kingdom of truth and not toward the world of creation. Love the creatures for the sake of God and not for themselves. You will never become angry or impatient if you love them for the sake of God. Humanity is not perfect. There are imperfections in every human being, and you will always become unhappy if you look toward the people themselves. But if you look toward God, you will love them and be kind to them, for the world of God is the world of perfection and complete mercy. Therefore, do not look at the shortcomings of anybody; see with the sight of forgiveness. The imperfect eye beholds imperfections. The eye that covers faults looks toward the Creator of souls. He created them, trains and provides for them, endows them with capacity and life, sight and hearing; therefore, they are the signs of His grandeur."

'Abdu'l-Bahá

this is sick

bulletproofbaby.net just has to be an indication that something is wrong in this world. you have camouflage, armor, gas masks, etc - for babies! sure, nothing wrong with wanting to protect your baby, but isn't it time to work on the other side of it - there's gotta be something crazy when there's a need to protect your baby from these kinds of things!

and then there's a video of the mother putting her baby in one of the bulletproof strolles, and then shoots with and automatic weapon...

early morning

woke up at 7.30 today, a bit earlier than planned, to say the least... gonna be another calm day today.

got a tip by a friend that I should watch zoolander again. I didn't like it at all the first time, as I thought the humor was utterly ridiculous. but she said it's better the second time and that I should give it a shot, so I did.

watched it with a friend that really loved it, and my brother came along too. the movie's about derek zoolander (ben stiller) who's a "really, really, really, ridiculously good looking" idiot of a model. he's been brainwashed to kill the malaysian president, because he's set new laws that prohibit child labor and so, which are of course providers of their clothes and such. and there's of course a new and upcoming model, hansel, who wins model of the year award.

okay, the movie is stupid. ben is extremely stupid. but it's funny at times. there are some extremely stupid comments which make you laugh. unfortunately it's quite uneven in it's humor, with too many dips. but all in all, not as bad as I found it the first time. it did have some really great moments...

calmness

this is my first calm day since last saturday, and it feels good. there's just been a lot to do and go to, so I've been busy, but not stressed. but still need some time to just relax and take it easy. managed to do my dishes now at least...

I'm probably going to try to do a google earth overview of this week later on, because it's been just crazy. the highlight was naturally on wednesday, when I went to norway to see norway - argentina and the "love of my life" - lionel (leo) messi:


he's the kinda guy that really makes me enjoy watching football, because he's always trying to go forward, creating something positive and creative with his style of play. there's rarely a time where he looks back and just makes a safe pass. and that's what I like about him, really makes me happy to see him play. and I think it seems he enjoys to play a lot too.

the game in itself wasn't that good, but it was great to see some of my favorite players live. it was definitely worth it, even though argentina lost 2-1. walking home, I took a picture of the really nice sky:



my ticket:


and the obligatory self-picture:



my friend was probably one of the happiest there. he went with his family to the players' hotel, and got to take pictures together with the argentinean players - messi, saviola, zanetti etc... I can tell you they were quite happy about it! he also met up with the president of the world organization for peace which uses football as a tool for promoting peace. he gave this huge flag to put up at the stadium:



it's huuuuuuuge! and I hope it could be seen from the other side, and hopefully also got shown on tv.

all in all, I was really happy about everything that day, from the barbeque, meeting up with people and the game in itself. only got three hours of sleep that night (had to fly back home and straight to work), but it was so worth it. you can see all the pictures here.

more oreos

was in norway (more of that later), and look at what I found:


chocolate-covered oreos!!!

weird shopping

had
another weird one today, 3 chocolate bars and 5 bottles of c-vitamin... must've looked strange.

spiritual conversations

I had another very uplifting conversation last night with another friend. we talked about spirituality in conversations, being willing to bring up topics that are a level above the routine topics of conversation (weather, sports, work, etc - see here). we had a very good talk about it, not really making any concrete step-by-step plans or so, but mostly just about being the one who "dares"/wants to bring these topics up with people that you know will "support" and encourage you and be interested in conversations about spiritual ideas. eventually people will catch on, because hopefully these topics will be more interesting to talk about than the usual stuff. maybe just by listening at first, and then joining in - everyone has interesting ideas and thoughts, it's just a matter of giving them the opportunity to talk about it.

it was a very giving conversation, so I turned out to be staying up more than an hour than I have planned. and at the end of it she sent me this quote, which I found really interesting and worth thinking about:

In this day, to thank God for His bounties consisteth in possessing a radiant heart, and a soul open to the promptings of the spirit. This is the essence of thanksgiving.

As for offering thanks by speaking out or writing, although this is indeed acceptable, yet when compared with that other thanksgiving, it is only a semblance and unreal; for the essential thing is these intimations of the spirit, these emanations from the deep recess of the heart. It is my hope that thou wilt be favoured therewith.

Regarding one's lack of capacity and one's undeserving on the Day of Resurrection, this does not cause one to be shut out from gifts and bounties; for this is not the Day of Justice but the Day of Grace, while justice is allotting to each whatever is his due. Then look thou not at the degree of thy capacity, look thou at the boundless favour of Bahá'u'lláh; all-encompassing is His bounty, and consummate His grace.

- 'Abdu'l-Bahá -

living in your own world...

I managed to leave my keys at the office today, so it was kinda an eerie feeling to walk in there at 9.30, pick up my keys, and then walk home. should've been a bit more thoughtful when I chose to put them in the bag that I left at work.

played squash for the first time today in 6 weeks, and was surprised that I hadn't lost much. of course the finer details will take a while to get back into, but it was quite okay for now. worked out at the gym as well, first time in 5 weeks for that, so it's all gonna hurt tomorrow.

had a very interesting discussion with a friend about prayer today. it's a very difficult concept to define and understand. I think we're implicitly picking up things on how to pray, without too much reflecting on why we're doing what we do.
we're gonna keep on looking into things, think about it, read different quotations and so, and then hopefully try to make something good out of it.

update on basketball

my pinky finger is okay, but I messed up another two... left index and right thumb. basketball isn't healthy.

basketball!

I'm so excited, I'm soon off to play basketball, for the first time since the... incident. it's been three weeks, and before that another 3-4 weeks since I last played. we'll see how it goes!

my kitchen

I finally got the quotations up in my kitchen and took pictures of them. there are a few missing which I will put up after I print them, probably on monday.

the quotations I have put up all mean something or remind me of something. and besides that, it's always good to read a bit of the Words of God whenever I am in the kitchen. so breakfast, dinner, and usually some sort of snack in the evening, I'll read at least one or two of them. they're kinda hard to miss, as it's pretty much covering everything now.

here they are:


the last one here has two, but they're closely related, and very good reminders. couldn't really choose between only one of them...


a big thank you to everyone for your one-liners :)

let's rock!

one of my days in the states we went to the rock and roll hall of fame museum. as no pictures were allowed to be taken inside, this is the only one I have:


the musuem was really nice to visit, and had lots of interesting objects to watch. many original artifacts from the stars and famous artists of contemporary time - michael jackson, madonna, queen, jimi hendrix, elvis, the beatles, etc etc. we saw one movie with a lot of history about rock and roll, and also another movie about the inductees into the hall of fame. it's a very, very, veeeery wide and inclusive definition of what r'n'r is, I must say, but still fun. another interesting note: ringo starr is the only beatles member that has not individually been inducted in the hall of fame.

after a few hours at the museum, it was time to go eat. it was up to me to choose where to go, and I had only one thing to say, in my best al bundy-voice: "let's rock!" we went to hard rock café and had a wonderful dinner, very, very tasty. unfortunately I have no pics from there, but I can assure you it was some good times that we had there.

found them!

found the oreos I was looking for!


22 kr (~$3) isn't that bad either :)

finally!

for the first time this whole week, I am a) rested, and b) in time to work. decided to take a bit of an early bed yesterday (was sleeping already by 10), as I felt I was getting a little bit ill. got up at 5 am because of football (again...), and I guess it was good with a 4-2-win. I scored all four goals...

then I went and took a pic for id/license/whatever, and took one with my phone as well:


beard gone, hair up, kinda like the good old days... we'll see how it continues.

kids and more

according to jim is not exactly a show I regularly follow. however, in an episode a while ago, something very interesting was said:
"kids see everything as perfect, then they grow up and we teach them to see faults"

isn't that true? as kids we always thought everything was so good and great, that our parents were absolutely perfect and flawless, and that there was nothing evil in this world (except our siblings, of course). but then what happened?

we must practice seeing only good in people, for evil is nothing but the absence of good, just as darkness is the absence of light. if we look only upon the evil, the non-existing, we will not have trained our eyes to see anything in the next world. we will be looking for things that do not exist!

I found quite many quotations from the Baha'i Writings about this topic. I think they're all interesting, so here they are:

"All religions teach that we should love one another; that we should seek out our own shortcomings before we presume to condemn the faults of others..."

"It is my hope that you may consider this matter, that you may search out your own imperfections and not think of the imperfections of anybody else. Strive with all your power to be free from imperfections. Heedless souls are always seeking faults in others. What can the hypocrite know of others' faults when he is blind to his own?"

"How couldst thou forget thine own faults and busy thyself with the faults of others? Whoso doeth this is accursed of Me."

"Breathe not the sins of others so long as thou art thyself a sinner. Shouldst thou transgress this command, accursed wouldst thou be, and to this I bear witness."

"...and magnify not the faults of others that thine own faults may not appear great; and wish not the abasement of anyone, that thine own abasement be not exposed."

"If the fire of self overcome you, remember your own faults and not the faults of My creatures, inasmuch as every one of you knoweth his own self better than he knoweth others."

"Whenever you recognize the fault of another, think of yourself! What are my imperfections? -- and try to remove them. Do this whenever you are tried through the words or deeds of others. Thus you will grow, become more perfect. You will overcome self, you will not even have time to think of the faults of others..."

"... because the most hateful characteristic of man is fault-finding."

"We must be patient with each other, and realize that each one of us has some faults to overcome, of one kind or another."

so how then should we be? the answer: encouraging!
"We must be patient with each other’s shortcomings, and always strive to create love and unity..."

"... encourage [them] to do their utmost to achieve their goals..."

"... encourage them to carry forward the work with even greater energy than before."

"When training and encouragement are effective, a culture of growth is nourished..."

this is something I know I really have to work on. I'm not good at being encouraging, but instead have a tendency to do and say what I shouldn't. in every situation there's the choice of either seeing someone's faults, or instead being overlooking and encouraging. it's a difficult choice, but if the right one is made, I think a lot of progress can be made. it starts with self-awareness.

and as for the kids:
"Encourage the children from their earliest years to master every kind of learning, and make them eager to become skilled in every art..."

"...encourage the child to acquire perfections and goodly manners, warn him against unbecoming qualities, and encourage him to show forth resolve, firmness, and endurance under hardship, and to advance on the high road to progress."

world peace...

... is not only possible, but inevitable. how?

"That which the Lord hath ordained as the sovereign remedy and mightiest instrument for the healing of all the world is the union of all its peoples in one universal Cause, one common Faith."

and:

"True peace and tranquillity will only be realized when every soul will have become the well-wisher of all mankind."

ice cream

there's been quite some ice cream at work (read here, here and here), and now there are stats about the amount of ice cream europeans eat.

surprisingly, finns are in top, slightly out-edging the italians, with $109.90 and $106.47 spent per person and year, in 2005:


read the entire article here.

interesting links

is the Baha'i Faith a cult? - interesting article
famous Baha'is - quite a fun read
smith and dragoman - very calm and relaxing music

indian week!

swedish tv is having an indian week, showing one movie per evening. the problem is that they start so late, and are so long, that it's going to be way past midnight before it's done. today's movie is din jo bhi kahey (translated to "follow your heart" in swedish), and starts now at 10.30, finishes at 12.50... I can't stay up that long to watch :( hopefully I can watch them some other way later on... ;)

in other news, I removed the tape from my finger. still doesn't bend all the way, and feels awkward at times. gonna check and see how it goes. doesn't hurt though.

and I have an insane amount of chocolate at home. have had friends bring some (read: a lot), and then my parents went to belgium and got me something, plus the oreos I brought from the states. I can probably live off this for half a year or so...

update (10.49): I just found about 40GB of indian movies... gonna keep me busy for a while :)

hardworking boss

here's my boss, working really hard, trying to do some maths in his head:

The Golden Rule

Hurt not others in ways that you yourself would find hurtful.
- Buddhism

What is hateful to you, do not to your fellow man. That is the entire Law, all the rest is commentary.
- Judaism

Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.
- Christianity

No one of you is a believer until he desires for his brother that which he desires for himself.
- Islam

Blessed is he who preferreth his brother before himself.
- Bahá'í Faith


how can anyone say that the religions of the world don't come from the same Source? their message is essentially the same; the spiritual parts are all alike, perhaps expressed a bit differently, it's only their social side that changes, to reflect what's going on and changing in society. as Baha'u'llah said: "Be anxiously concerned with the needs of the age ye live in, and center your deliberations on its exigencies and requirements."

missed opportunity :(

I missed an opportunity of generosity today :(

was sitting on the subway today reading the new appendix (is that what it's called?) from aftonbladet, "europaextra". as football season is starting, it's got a lot of information about the major leagues in europe. was a good time spender on the way back home. there's this family sitting next to me and the kid points at the back of the magazine, which has a somewhat nice picture and stuff. and then I hear the dad say "you want one of those? well, so do I..." - and I thought I should give it to him/them, but didn't. I regret it now as I can always take one from work... hrm :(

with football season now started there's a lot to watch. 3 games yestardy, and another three day. doesn't bode well for the future. but some good games and goals.

and it's now been two weeks since I dislocated my finger, and according to the doctor I can remove the tape today. but I don't know if I will, still feels quite bad. I dropped the keys today in the elevator, and instinctively tried to catch it. that really, really hurt.

backbiting and its opposite

this is what backbiting does:

"That seeker should also regard backbiting as grievous error, and keep himself aloof from its dominion, inasmuch as backbiting quencheth the light of the heart, and extinguisheth the life of the soul."

(Bahá'u'lláh, The Kitáb-i-Iqán, p. 193)

and then you have the total opposite, speaking well of someone:

"If, however, a person setteth about speaking well of another, opening his lips to praise another, he will touch an answering chord in his hearers and they will be stirred up by the breathings of God. Their hearts and souls will rejoice to know that, God be thanked, here is a soul in the Faith who is a focus of human perfections, a very embodiment of the bounties of the Lord, one whose tongue is eloquent, and whose face shineth, in whatever gathering he may be, one who hath victory upon his brow, and who is a being sustained by the sweet savours of God."

(Selections from the Writings of 'Abdu'l-Bahá, pp. 230-231)

now... which one do you prefer?

there's nothing as beautiful as...

... stockholm in the summer. took a stroll into town, had a lovely ice cream (orange = quite okay; chocolate hazelnut = divine), and saw people play chess in the park:


long walk home (about an hour), but it was very nice. if you want to see more about how great stockholm is, check out pearlofsweden.com.

spiderpig, spiderpig!

I just saw simpsons the movie and it was much better than I had actually expected, even though I had heard from quite a few that it was good. I was not even planning on seeing it, but then I saw the trailer a while ago and was laughing, so naturally I had to see it. and I'm not disappointed.

it starts out well, with bart's "I will not illegally download this movie" and keeps up with the insightful, ironic hints towards current events, society, religion and people in general. some jokes crack you up, some it seemed I was the only one to get (eg the boxer hitting the dome "under the belt"). but all in all it's a really good movie, not too long (87 mins), and not too much of a story. it's like a longer episode with a lot more jokes.

and if you haven't seen it yet, stick around through the credits to hear the springfield national anthem!

"sequel", anyone? ;)

meta-laughing

laugh at the guy laughing:

and then laugh at the girl laughing at the guy laughing:

I just "finished" Ruhi Book 1!

it's been a while since I finished the sequence of Ruhi books, so I felt that I wanted to go through it again, but only by myself, in my own pace. I decided that every night, before going to sleep, I would read the quotations from one section, and then think and meditate upon it before I fell asleep. naturally, I started with book 1 a while ago (I think it was after pilgrimage), and so last night I finished it. it felt very good, going back and again reading quotations on the Baha'i writings, prayer, and life and death. I'll probably continue this way all the way up until book 7, although that will probably take about a year or so :)

it's so humid outside...

... I was practically sweating just by going outside. football practice left me with an extremely wet t-shirt, my arms were shining, and my shoulder dripping. and that was when I got home, half an hour after it finished. keeps me in shape!

it's been two weeks...

... since I shaved:


think it's time? ;)

facebook at work

somehow we got everyone at work to add facebook. so suddenly we're talking about adding people, different applications, groups, etc... fun!

monthly monthly, part 7

here we go again...

finger
my finger is slowly healing... still taped up, but can at least bend it a bit more. however, not at the first joint, which is where it got dislocated. have to keep it this way until the end of the week, and then I'll have the finger free at least. hope it gets better soon, I really want to play basketball again.

phone
I got my se... phone back. was just a software update that was needed. I might've been able to do it myself, but I couldn't get any contact with it through the computer. may have been another way of doing it. but, 295 kr (~$40) later and I at least have my good old phone. lost all my messages, contacts, calendar, settings and everything else on the phone. luckily I had synchronized my contacts with my computer a while back, so I haven't lost everything, just the most recent numbers (not sure from how long back). and for some strange reason, all the + signs are gone from the international numbers... yikes!

home
I put up a few quotations in my kitchen, but need a few more. it looks kinda nice, and is good reading them to remember different things and situations. there's a reason for each one of them :)
will put up pictures of it later...

uk, canada and us
I'll be posting more and putting up pictures later on. things are a bit hectic right now, but it'll slow down soon, I hope...

listening to music

I have finally figured out why people listen to their mp3-player while riding the train/subway/bus/etc: you don't have to think! it's an escape from reality :)

chicago

my last day of vacation and traveling pretty much ended the same way as it all started, perfectly. I woke up just outside of cleveland (more about my stay there later) at 3.15 am, after having slept for about 3.5 hours. my flight was at 6 am (what was I thinking???) and I arrived at chicago about 6.30 (timezone diff). my bag was the first one out, and now I had about 10 hours until my flight back home. my plan? to visit the House of Worship in wilmette. check out my two previous posts about it: here and here. here's a nice picture:


a few problems presented themselves here. first of all, it'd take me about two hours to get there, despited there being only about 30 km to go. why? train goes into town, and then back out.
then I of course had my huge suitcase with me, weighing about 20 kg. not too fun to have it carrying around with me all the way, so I wanted to leave it somewhere. unfortunately, the check-in didn't open until about 6 hours later, and due to security regulations, there were no lockers at the airport. I'd have to keep it with me all the time.
I took a bit of a chance, going into the hotel by the airport - which just happened to be hilton. went up to the desk, not hoping for much, especially not as I was dressed (very comfy), and asked. naturally they said no, but suggested I could go to the UPS store downstairs and ask. they said they'd do it for $5, and that was definitely worth it. one problem solved, now it was just time to get going. this was about 7.30...

I arrived at almost exactly 10, and went into the visitors' center. I prepared myself by washing my hands and face, and then also visit the cornerstone room:


the cornerstone was laid by 'Abdu'l-Bahá in 1912. I said the Tablet of Visitation for 'Abdu'l-Bahá in there (I was all by myself), and then went into the actual temple to pray. it was just me and another man there, so I decided to try and sit right in the middle, and look straight up at the wonderful dome. looked up at it quite a few times to gather my thoughts and meditate.

as I got out, I was a bit unsure if I wanted to walk out in the gardens to take a few pictures or go into the visitors' center and check out the bookshop. as the weather was a bit cloudy, I went inside, and was surprised to see a couple of friends who had just arrived. we got a bit of a tour of the insides with some very interesting stories, saw a short dvd about the temple (in spanish), and were shown the model architect louis bourgeois built. took him and his wife 8 years to do it:


it's absolutely amazing with all the details, although the actual temple is a bit smaller than the model shows, as it would simply be too big and costly to build.

as I was in a bit of a more rush than they were, I decided to say good bye, go out in the gardens for a last look and a few pictures. here are two that I'm quite happy about:

     
and then it was time to go to the airport, with a big smile on my face... the temple is absolutely amazing with all the small details and artwork, all over. and with details and symbols from all previous religions, it's really a unifying experience. everyone is welcome :)

check out my gallery of pictures from there.


there were also some interesting experiences from the airport in chicago on my way back, but that's for later...

a disgusting burger

this is the The Coronary Burger Special at dangerous dan's diner:

yes, it is that big. what's in it? here you go: "2 8oz Patties, 4 Slices of Bacon, 2 Slices of Cheddar and a Fried Egg on top. Served w/ Fries and Gravy, Can of Pop and Mayo as a garnish for sure!"

it doesn't look good, it's not aesthetically pleasing at all, it's just huuuuge. but, I finished it!

a little bit too much...

I just realized there might be just a little bit too much football in my life at the moment, even though I like it a lot. my next week could look like this:
monday: football (practice with kids)
tuesday: football (my training)
wednesday: football (kids)
thursday: football (mine)
friday: football (kids, tournament)
saturday: football (kids, tournament)
sunday: football (kids, tournament)

and on top of that, they want me to start playing for the seniors soon, I think. at least arrange license for me and stuff. will most probably skip wednesday and friday's football, then we'll see what happens during the weekend.

but I think it's time to slow down a bit... :)

a perfect day!

that is actually how I referred to my first day of vacation when I texted my mom. what was so good about it? let me tell you...

so I wake up at 4.15, after only two hours of sleep. shave, shower, pack the rest of my stuff and get ready to go to the airport. my flight's at 7.10, and I arrive at 9.05. slept an hour on the plane.

my wish was to be able to visit the resting place of Shoghi Effendi, the Guardian of the Baha'i Faith, as I had a 6 hour layover. I had two problems however:
1. it would take me about 2 hours to get there by train
2. I had no idea how to get there

but luckily, I got picked up (go facebook!). and oh how happy I was. not surprisingly, it was raining. after all, it was london. but it didn't matter, going by car there, without traffic, it took us only 45 minutes. so I got to say prayers for a while, and took a couple of pictures. I was smiling pretty much during the entire time prayer session, as I was feeling so happy and grateful to be able to be there. here's a picture of the entrance:

click here for the other pictures of my london day.

so once we were done there, there was still some time left before my flight, so we decided to go visit a friend. he was sleeping (look here), so we got the honor of waking him up. needless to say, he was quite surprised to see me, as we both live in sweden and he was just there for a few weeks to visit family. good fun though :)

we hit up the grill, had a bit of a barbeque, and then it was time for me to get going. got a ride to the airport, and there's a bit of story what happened there too. but first there was something in the kitchen that I really enjoyed, which inspired me to do the same. there were different quotations from the Baha'i Writings up on the cupboards, the fridge, etc, and I thought that'd be really nice. so tonight I decided to do my own, and these are the ones I'm going to print:

And if thou art overtaken by affliction in My path, or degradation for My sake, be not thou troubled thereby.

Rely upon God, thy God and the Lord of thy fathers.

Let deeds, not words, be your adorning.

Be anxiously concerned with the needs of the age ye live in, and center your deliberations on its exigencies and requirements.

True loss is for him whose days have been spent in utter ignorance of his self.

How couldst thou forget thine own faults and busy thyself with the faults of others?

so, london heathrow... first of all, I don't like it. being such a populated airport, I was expecting it to be a whole lot fancier and flashier. well, it wasn't. in the waiting hall, you could see the fans in the ceiling, and it was generally just looking unclean. not too nice...
anyways, in the security check, they had tv screens informing us passengers that they've started with random x-ray scannings of people. as I was standing in line, I see a security guy walking around checking the line for people to choose. I just knew he'd pick me. sure enough, I was "randomly selected" and got a full-body x-ray scan. had to stand in some weird positions, 3 scans done, but in return I got to skip through the whole security line, so it was good :)

this is where I sent a text to mom and said that everything was just perfect. I hadn't even known if I'd get picked up in the morning, so everything beyond that was just excellent. in addition I got to have some barbequed chicken, and got to meet good friends. and also, I found out that I'd actually be on the same flight back to sweden with my friend. yay! had something to look forward to :)

plane was late about an hour and a half, information was quite bad, but got on the plane and no problems there. during the flight I saw two movies, 300 and blades of glory. reviews of those will come later.


got to toronto, and here's some interesting stuff... I was asked to go into a special line/place a total of 3 times before I finally got out. off the plane, everyone was asked to show passports to police standing and waiting. showed mine, and I was asked to step aside. show my passport, and was asked why I am in canada. answered wedding and showed the invitation (good thing to bring it with me!). then it was okay, and I could move on.
again more border control, and I was asked to go into the immigration office. answered same question about why I was there, showed the invitation, was asked where I was staying (no idea, was getting picked up!), and then if I had tickets for leaving the country (great way to make me feel welcomed...). had the ticket information on a printed paper, so that was no problem either. then he asked me what I do and stuff. after a while the guy was quite nice, and even asked me what I thought of stockholm. naturally I told him he should come visit, it's really beautiful, especially in the summer :)

I get out, and right there another police woman is standing checking the paper I had with me all the way from leaving the plane (some info about me and stuff). she makes a big blue mark on it, and I have no idea what it means...
go get my luggage, and another control, tells me to turn right. get there, show my paper to another police, and they say that the woman wanted to check my luggage, no idea what or why.

so I go sit down, listen to some music, and see the police come with two guys in handcuffs. a bit scary...

she finally comes, x-rays my suitcase and bag, and says thank you and lets me go. all in all it took me about an hour and a half from leaving the plane until I got out (it took 30 minutes in israel...), and I get picked up here too :)

about 45 minute ride back, absolutely beautiful sunset. wish I had taken pictures of it... socialize a bit, introduce myself to pretty much everyone, and mingle a bit with the people that are already there. I'm quite tired though, and at 11.30 I go to bed, after being up for about 26 hours. but I'm happy :)

changing patterns and habits

referring to this post, how does one go about in changing patterns of and subjects of conversation? habits are easy to make, and hard to break. does one just say "uhm, I want to talk about more serious/interesting/spiritual stuff"? because talking about such topics creates a closer, deeper bond between people than just superficial stuff. not saying one should take it to an extreme, it's good and fun to talk about other things as well every now and then, but there should be the right balance and mix.

so, how do I go about? any suggestions?

you know your friends love you...

... when you get a card that says "to the happy couple" and inside they have written "we're sending you this card since you're not married, ... not even close..."

thanks!