Ballet at Stockholm's Royal Opera House

On Saturday evening a friend and I got to experience the sheer joy and wonder of a child going to a ballet for the first time, and in a magnificent building too.

She walked into the entrance of Stockholm's Opera House and said "it's so beautiful!". We sat on a seat waiting for our friend and studied the details in the ceilings, she was fascinated.

Our friend arrived and we took her up to look at the costumes, she was enchanted.

She then bounced into the Gold Room, captivated by its beauty.

The ballet itself, Coppelia, delighted her. And us.

And she was thrilled to see the photo and the write up in the paper the next day, and know that the prima ballerina was none other than fellow-Melbournian Nicole Rhodes.

All in all it was a wonderful way to spoil a little girl, and for us to indulge in living life through a child.

If you are at all tempted, tickets are available from 160 sek, half price for children and youth (up to 26!!). It is a long way between the seats and the stage but can make for a cheap, magical outing.

And intermission in the cafe adds to the excitement and the luxury.

Thank you my dear friend, for a wonderful evening.
From both of us.
xxx

A Golden Stockholm

We live in a golden world at the moment. If I stand in the middle of our apartment I see golden leaves everywhere I look.

Out our bedroom window.

Off the balcony.
Out the loungeroom window.
And out the kids' bedroom window.

We need to appreciate this golden colour while we have it.

This is what it looked like just a week or two ago.

Autumn! I love the colours of autumn.

Tjejmilen -from zero to ten in six months!

Six months ago I couldn't run a kilometer, three months ago I struggled to run five, yesterday I ran 10.
Words hardly describe the exhilaration I felt as I ran that last kilometer, knowing I could do it, seeing my kids standing on the sidelines waving and cheering and crossing the finishing line with 25 000 other women. It was one of my really proud moments in life. I ran 10 kilometers!

Goals are important to me, and I need to feel the pressure to keep my motivation up so when my friend Rebecca challenged us back in March or April I was fast to take up the challenge - the 5km Vår Ruset in May. While I really enjoyed it I found it a struggle, I wasn't used to running the full 5km so I found it hard going.

Even before the run we started talking about Midnattsloppet and Tjejmilen and I signed up for both - I needed something that would force me to keep running over the summer and something that would force me to go further. It worked. I spent many a morning running along the waterfront when we were at the cottage in Canada.

I was really looking forward to Midnattsloppet, although I was nervous about it too. A couple of days beforehand I found out my friend was not running and I would be going in alone at night, running and coming home alone. The idea of having no friends to run with, no-one to cheer me along and no-one to meet up with afterwards took all the fun out of it and I decided that afternoon not to run. As hard as the decision was the deflation was relieved by the sound of pitter, patter on the windowsill that night. Running in the rain and in the dark would have taken any remaining joy out of it.

The time finally came around for Tjejmilen, a 10km women's run around the beautiful Djurgården. I was looking forward to it and even if I wasn't as fit as I was a couple of weeks ago I knew I could do it.

What started off as a cold, overcast and windy day turned into a beautiful afternoon with the sun shining and a perfect 16 C. Five of us met up a couple of hours beforehand and all travelled to Gärdet to where the run would start.We hung out together, did our warm-up together and then all ran our own race, or walked as was the case for Anastasia (and Molly) who was suffering from slipped disks. The nice thing about this run is that you could do it with a stroller or walking poles which opened up the even to thousands of women.Not everybody loves to be in a crowd. You spend a fair amount of time zig-zagging your way through if you are not in the right category and there is always a chance you will trip over someone else's feet. You might even get stressed running with so many people around you. But I love it. I find it so interesting. Not only did I have beautiful scenery to look out but watching all those around me kept me so distracted I hardly noticed the kilometers passing by. The sport drink and energy tablets helped along the way too, as did my music, the bands, the DJ's, the cheer squad and all the people who turned up to cheer us along! It really makes the event a whole lot of fun!

I'm the slow coach in our team, but only by about 10 minutes so I'm ok with that. Even Anastasia was faster than me and she was walking with her daughter! But these girls really inspire me to run and to keep running, even when I don't feel like it. And nothing gives me a better workout nor makes me feel really good like a run does. Just writing about this is enough to make me want to put my running shoes on, even if my legs are a little tired today.

So what's next? Lidingöloppet for women (10km) perhaps? Or Hässelbyloppet maybe? Now that I have started I don't want to stop, I just need to keep finding the carrots that will be my incentive. I like being fit, being able to run for a bus and not thinking anything of it, being able to run about in the park with my kids without heaving. I love the feeling of saying "I did it", especially to the man that scoffed when I bought running shoes a year ago. I love the feeling of a good workout, I want to be a good role model for my kids and I don't want to go back to where I was just six months ago.

Meeting the challenge is exhilarating!

Barnvagnsrullet - a terrible long weekend saved by a sunny cycling Sunday

After being stuck at home with a sick child all week, and another who had to be home because of logistical issues (1+1= 2 bickering kids), I was oh so grateful to get out today, head into town and get some exercise.

Kieran has strep throat - a first for us although an apparently common childhood sickness. It also meant that we were in quarantine once we got the diagnosis - two days of antibiotics to kill off the bacteria that had infested this throat and ears - and that was after he had been at home on the couch for 3 days! Mum wondered what that was called in Aussieland and I'm still not sure - perhaps we just never got it as kids. Still, she was glad that the doc didn't give antibiotics for a virus - little does she know that docs NEVER give antibiotics here unless they have to, and NEVER for a virus - only for bacterial infections!! Many complain about how hard it is to get the GPs to write prescriptions, and even then they are pretty mild doses - not a bad thing if you ask me.

So, 5 days later, a little boy who is revived and full of energy - sick of lying around and ready to have fun. And a big sister who had also been home because of logistical issues who was absolutely bored. Add to that a man who is in the busy period of his year and who is even less keen than usual to leave the cave and go on adventures.

Just to spice things up a bit none of our friends wanted to come out and play this weekend, they were all busy with their lives - lives that didn't include us(!) - hear the indignation in my voice? ;-)

AND if that wasn't bad enough one of my closest friends broke the news to me of her inevitable departure......

Luckily we got out on the bikes today and saved the weekend. Feeling ridiculous I put on suncream this morning and packed our raincoats along with our picnic and off we went. With Kieran on the back of Ty's bike and Makaila in the chariot towed by me we headed through town and over to Gärdet to Barnvagnsrullet.

Barnvagnsrullet is a family day organised in Stockholm, Gothenburg and Malmö and sponsored by Metro. The sponsoring was so good in fact that the little gocarts, the facepainting, and the novelty balloons were all free if you could endure the long queue. There were also a few sponsors giving out free stuff and a quiz walk (tipspromenad) with prizes being lotted out to those with correct answers. It was a fun, festive kind of atmosphere and the kids enjoyed watching the facepainting, paddling in the water and hanging out at the TomTits stand. Makaila had a turn at the gocarts and we ate our lunch listening to the music and watching all the activities.

The kids swapped spots for the journey home which meant Kieran could nap in the chariot while Makaila got a faster ride. And she wants to know why I get upset when her father rides his bike without any hands!! Sure its fun but not with my daughter on the back!

I do love riding the bikes into town - there is a lot happening, a lot to see as we rode along the waterfront the kids saw boats & ferries, ducks, dogs, people walking, kids playing, trains, trams, buses and all the other things that interest little kids. There is always a chance a crazy person will step out in front of you so being in the driver's seat you need to stay focused. Saying that we almost only rode on bike paths in and back and any pedestrian crossings are clearly marked so you can be ready to brake, just in case. You see so much more on a bike, you smell it, you feel a part of it. Bicycles and Stockholm are a fantastic combination.

We only did a 20km round trip but there are several hills and a big bridge to be encountered along the way, so my legs are feeling it tonight - that best kind of tiredness. And I am so glad I put on the sunscreen, Ty is looking very red here beside me....

Tax day in Sweden - where is the festival of yesteryear?

I used to chuckle over the long lines of people handing in their tax declarations at the last moment - the streets would thick with traffic, people driving by the mighty taxation building Skatteskrapan, the only skyskraper on Söder and handing their declaration to staff standing on the street.
There would be music, stands selling hotdogs and who knows what else - you could almost be mistaken for thinking it was a festival. Are the Swedes so happy to pay tax?

Nowdays the Swedish National Tax Board is located in newer, more modern offices a block or so away from the skyskraper. Nowdays this highrise is the home of 600 or so students with the best view of Stockholm, shops, bars and restaurants.

The Tax Board have not only more modern offices but their ways of working have modernised over the years too. Lars Epstein remembers when tax day was February 15th, when the streets were covered in snow and the queues miles long as the majority of Stockholmers not only left it to the last day by hundreds handed it in at the last minute. With the deadline being midnight there were a lot of people on Götgatan all night long. He remembers the orchestra playing, the magicians and their tricks, all the hotdog carts and the alcohol free glögg.

Since the good ol' days we have seen the introduction of pre-printed declarations that require little more than a signature, and then the introduction of the telephone, the internet and the sms declarations!! Each year it gets easier. I can't help but wonder if there is anywhere else in the world where you can do your tax declaration with an SMS? Is there anywhere else in the world where the government knows your every move to the extent that no other information is needed? Big brother is indeed watching....

Having laughed in the past at people leaving it to last minute it was my turn this year, and I was still working on my declaration during the day! Somehow I thought I had another few days - kind of nasty to make it the day after a nice long weekend don't you think? It was my first business declaration in many years - so this time it was not just a case of signing on the dotted line.

I had expected to have to fill it all out on paper as I had a whole series of extra forms that had to be filled in and changes that had to be made on the main declaration, but was pleasantly surprised to be able to do it on the internet. Anyone is able to submit their declaration online - all you need is your national identity number and the code printed on your tax declaration, enabling you to make a few basic changes to the form.

E-legitimation (or e-ID) on the other hand opens up a whole range of opportunities. E-ID is a certificate downloaded off the net onto your computer and in conjunciton with your password it enables you to identify yourself when dealing with many of the government institutions. I'm sure it sends shivers down the spines of all the internet-security-skeptics but it requires the user to have both the downloaded certificate and the password.

So with my e-ID I was not only able to go in and fill out all the forms electronically but I could save them and go back and make changes. What's more I can still go back and make changes up until June something - but then there is no guarantee of getting your return back before Midsummer. It takes away the panic - as long as you get it in by May 4th you can procrastinate a little longer.....

I found it fairly easy to navigate my way through the documents and fill in all the required information - not bad for someone who used to have a phobia!! And was able to ask a very accommodating friend for help with the bits I didn't quite understand. All in all I have to say it is a whole lot easier than it was when I ran a business 10 years ago - which confirms the promises over the years of simplifying things for small business have been fulfilled - at least to some extent.

According to Internet World 3.6 million people had submitted their declaration electronically as of Sunday night. As I sat there Monday without any problems accessing my documentation I couldn't help but wonder what sort of capacity Skatteverket had and would love to know how many others were online at the same time as I was. Despite this record number of internet users only some 857 000 had used their e-ID so far and the overall figures were 5% under the anticipated 60% and much lower that the long term goal of 80%. I wonder how long it will be before they stop sending out the paper declarations?

As Lars Epstein says: The party on Söder on tax day is over. Click on this photo to see his photos of the deserted streets. The party it well and truly over!

A celebration of the success of Nyföretagarcentrum. Thanks to Maud Olofsson for earmarking 1 million SEK!

Monday night was the Final Gala held by Nyföretagarcentrum in Gamla Stan here in Stockholm. Nyföretagarcentrum is a non-profit organisation with offices around the country, sponsored by government and businesses. Their goal is to promote start-ups and support small businesses in general - which it does with huge success. Of those who start a business with their support less than one percent have gone bankrupt after three years and 80% are still active and on average have 2 employees. That is pretty impressive results!

During 2008-2009 SNC has made a particular effort to encourage women not only to start businesses but to make use of the resources that are available - largely thanks to the money that has been eartagged by Maud Oloffsson. Våga Språnget, Starter Programmes, networking groups and inspiration evenings have been the focus of their Investment In Women campaign.

Monday night we were invited to attend a celebration of what SNC have achieved so far. We were treated to red carpet attention, champagne, dinner and a night of celebrating successful women.

The red carpet into Nalen.

A few of the Våga Språnget group from the spring of 2008.

Karin, Anne, Monica and Theresa

After the initial introductions from the evening's mediator Lydia Capolicchio, and Anna Nedeby Bar-Am, CEO for Stockholms NyföretagarCentrum we listened to a discussion on women in business held by a panel.

Carin Holmquist Professor Handelshögskolan in Stockholm
Mikael Wolf CEO Swedbank
Kicki Theander Founder Middagsfrid
Sten Nordin kuhiphr Stockholm Municipality

Some 350 men and (mostly) women listened and contributed with their own reflections - inlcluding the myth that it is difficult to start a business in Sweden.

While I was listening a security man walked up past me to the front of the audience - odd I thought. A few minutes later Maud Olofson Minister for Enterprise and Energy, Deputy Prime Minister, Ministry of Enterprise, Energy and Communications stepped up onto the stage and I realised - ok, yes, I am in the presence of a national politician and I guess they do need their security force.

Maud was presented with a Thank You card by CEO for SNC Anna Nedeby Bar-Am on behalf of SNC as a thanks for ear-marking 1 million crowns to promote women in business. Maud went on to read some of the comments on the card written by the women (me included) who have benefited from this 1 million crowns.
As I listened to her speech about women, entreprenurialism, business, the recession and Sweden I couldn't help but be reminded of Pippi - seeing her standing there in her red shoes.

And finally, after dinner, wine and music the winners were announced and presented with their awards according to four categories.

From left to right

Angela Monroe, Monroe Design
Anna Kjellgren, Strå
Maud Olofsson, Näringsminister
Maria Rindstam, Båtskroten
Leyla Anabestani, Freja Assistanstjänst AB

And I didn't come away empty handed either - I got a nice diploma for participating in Våga Språnget.Monday's event was to celebrate the results:

• 1 666 women have started a over 1000 companies
• SNC have conducted 4 925 advisory sessions
• 388 women have participated in the Starter programme
• 60 women have participated in Våga Språnget
• Almost 300 women have participated in networking events.

Do you have an idea brewing away in your mind? Are you a small business in a period of change or in need of support, advice, expertise? I can't recommend SNC enough - they are a fantastic resource! Not only are their staff skilled and knowledgeable but they have endless contacts and have a huge range of experts available to assist those in need - all that and it is free too!

The beautiful Asknäs Gård - now being run by our friends Robert & Sandee

is a gorgeous property out on Ekerö, one of the islands of greater Stockholm, that dates from the 1700s. It includes a pub/cafe, a function room for up to 90 people, a bed & breakfast, rentable cottages, stables, a farm shop, stables, beautiful gardens with old apple trees, a fully functioning asparagus farm and all with a view of Lake Mälaren. It is on oasis close to the heart of Stockholm city.
This year our good friends Robert & Sandee will be running it with their friend Abbe. After last year's roaring success running Kafe Kajak, this season promises to be an exciting one - both for them and their guests! They opened this weekend for the summer season and let's hope this was a warm start to a long hot summer.

So if you are looking for a place to escape, head out to the idylic Asknäs Gård. Take a walk in the gardens, eat great food and explore. There are not many places like this around anymore, not this close to town.

You can also follow their adventure on their Catering Allt blog or on Twitter.

Podcasts In Stockholm's Underground Railway

Since some time in March carriages on the green line in Stockholm's subway have been decked out with podcast boxes.

I didn't think that much about it when i stepped on to the train last week, except that I noted it was one of the new trains with advertising on the outside. But getting on the train it was apparent that this was no ordinary carriage and there was an overwhelming feeling of red. Every single advertising opportunity in the carriage was taken by SR's new podcast posters.

Under every second or so window there was a box and the poster above the window told you what podcast was available - just insert your headphones, press the reset button and listen to the podcast available from that particular box.

Both a cool idea and a clever marketing concept. You can download other Swedish podcasts from SR's website, including a range of podcasts available in English.

Why sit and stare at the wall, the paper or out the window when you are on your way somewhere when you can listen, learn and be entertained? It makes perfect sense to me - now I will just have to remember to throw in my earphones.

Processing the Geek Girl Meet-Up

Fantastic to see how much Swedish publicity there has been since this event, with coverage from SvD both before and after (here, here and here), Aftonbladet, MedieVärlden and VeckoRevyn.

As I posted earlier, the day started with registration at 9.30am and as usual when I attend meetings, seminars and the likes I did not know a soul - the GGM was no different either. I have to confess I was a little star struck throughout the day, to think that I was mixing with girls that had attended the very exclusive (in my books) 24-hour-business-camp and I recognised some of the names and the projects discussed throughout the day.

The meet-up was opened by the three instigators Andie Nordgren, Heidi Harman och Mengmeng Du with Beata Wickbom as moderator.


Beata is by far the best moderator I have seen here in Sweden - her style was sharp, to the point and extremely productive. She encouraged networking to the max and gave the girls every chance to put themselves in the spot light, speeding up a process that can otherwise take eons. It kind of reminded me of the American style of the BNI meetings and each time someone in the audience made a comment or asked a question she had them up on their feet, concluding with what challenges they were facing in their work and what they were looking for.

In the lead-up to lunch she did the same thing, singling people out, asking their challenges and want they wanted, then turning to the rest of the group to ask if anyone could help with that. In minutes she had strangers making contact and then eating lunch together to discuss something of mutual interest.

It was potentially a horrifying moment for many - the sort of necessary pill that needs to be swallowed, but one that you feel all the better for having taken it. No jante law allowed here!

In the short term nothing sprang to mind, at least no immediate challenges that I thought this group could help me with, but had I had more time to think about it I could have used the moment more constructively - I will know for next time! I ended up joining others to talk to a venture capitalist - would love to have a little cash injection into my project..... or find someone to work with.

Even though it was very goal focused and we were asked even when we registered online how we would contribute, there was no doubt that the atmosphere was a friendly, relaxed one - everyone was there because they wanted to support women in the industry and be with other women from the industry. Many expressed their frustration of being in male-dominated world and were clearly thrilled at being a part of this gathering. And everyone was welcome - from students to experts. The range of women seemed to be wide, with the web being the common interest and surprisingly I didn't feel out of my league the entire day - I even got to contribute some information/tips during a couple of my conversations and send a link off to someone with something I had found (!) It seems I have gathered some knowledge in the last couple of years.

The presentations were only 30 minutes each, including question time, so things went pretty quickly. I made notes and with my laptop on my knee it was great to be able to get straight out onto the net and check out the things they were referring too. I got lots of ideas and inspiration but I think the most valuable presentation I listened to was Anna Oscarsson's use of Bambuser and how she covered the recent Pirate Bay trials. I was highly impressed by her and Bambuser and will be having a close look at it soon - as is often the case - I knew it existed but just have not had reason nor chance to find out what it is really all about. It opens up a whole lot of interesting opportunities. Watch her summary of the Geek Girl Meet-up here:



There were plenty of other presentations that I thought were great, interesting and would like to listen to again, so as to be able to better absorb them. There were also plenty of presentations that I missed and would like to have seen. Annika Linde made a live broadcast from each of the presentations although the connection was not the best so unfortunately they are not the best recordings. They are all in Swedish but you can check them out under Recent Activity on her Bambuser page. I plan to listen to what I missed! From what I understand it was a spontaneous action that was appreciated by all and I have no doubt that preparation will be made for filming at the next meet-up.

If anything was missing from this action-packed day it was time - it went so fast and there was little time to get your teeth stuck into anything and limited time to chat to the other participants. It was one of the few occasions here in Sweden where I have found it very easy to talk to people, everyone was open and approachable in a way I have not seen elsewhere. In fact I think I can safely say that the quality of this day was far superior to any of the other entrepreneur events I have attended here in Stockholm.

Most of the girls continued on and went to an afterparty in Gamla Stan - as far as I know everything from the day/evening was covered by an impressive list of sponsors. These girls have got talent - they pulled off a very informative and inspiring day, attracted all the right people and managed to get sponsors to foot the bill. That's quite an achievement. I will be much faster to sign up next time!

You can read more here: Twingly Blog Search, Flickr, Twitter (didn't manage to get my Tweets to register on there), Swedish Bloggy and Jaiku.

Swedish Prince Carl Philip's own silverware on show at Svensk Tenn

Svenskt Tenn open a new exhibition tomorrow and it will include silverware designed by our very own Swedish Prince:
Setting the table The exhibition elaborates on the table-setting theme using classic, modern and other styles, with a large selection of our most beautiful products. It also shows how table settings can signal new thinking, harmony, extending the boundaries - and also awakening curiosity and bringing pleasure.

It seems that our Prince has been studying design the last couple of years, initially at Forsbergs Design School here in Stockholm, and then at the Rhode Island School of Design in the US where he apparently won a competition to develop the logo for Martha's Vineyard Museum, under a pseudonym.

The Prince has now followed in his great uncle Sigvard Bernadotte's footsteps as a designer working in silver and the silverware is the first to be launched under his own brand CPB. The production is in cooperation with MEMA/GAB, one of Europe's leading producers of handmade silverware.
The only photo I have seen of the silverware is in SvD but they do not have the article online. Good for you Carl Philip I say, but unfortunately there seems to be a lack of overall publicity for the event - in true Swedish style we will undoubtedly find out more after the opening of the exhibition. I found an article in Swedish Elle and a couple of local papers and this blog (Swedish) for those who can't get enough of royalty. Not even any info on the royal website nor a CPB website - is this another example of jante law??? Anywhere else it would be shouted from the highest rooftops!

The exhibition will be on until May 7th and the silverware will be available in store from the middle of April.

Edited to say I found this photo - click on it to see where it came from:
At the end of the blog post you will find a link to another post about the competition in the US.

Geek Girl Meet-Up March 28th

Heading to an all-day conference on Saturday, which was brought to my attention by fellow blogger & Twitterer Kiwi Raiha.

I feel a bit like a fake as I have never considered myself a Geek Girl and programming friends immediately spring to mind before any vision of myself does.....

Saying that I am very interested in social media and the development of the internet, and almost all the topics on the agenda are extremely interesting.

The Web First on Internetworld
The change to thinking web before paper & how newspapers communicate through social media.
Miriam Olsson, Internetworld

Flash och 3D
Emma Nwaugo, talks about audio visualisation and Papervision as well as about her latest flash project, a quick game application in a whole lot of things I don't understand.....

From Idea TO Site With Wordpress And A Little Determination
Andie Nordgren shows how Wordpress can transform your idea to a site. With the right plugins and the right thinking Wordpress is a great system for much more than blogging. Build your own site on site, if you want, or just listen and learn.

Opportunity Capital
Venture capital industry rom the inside and what you need to know to get ahead.
Katja Lepola, Grädde Invest

From Idea To Mobile Service
Build your own service with tools from Mobilstart. Start immediately with a ready-made service or investigate your own solutions using Mobilstarts API.
Katrin Calderon, Telenor Mobilstart

10 Rules for Development of Services on the Internet
Paula Marttila

How I did a life report from the Pirate Bay-trials
Anna Oscarsson

Sociala media in large organisations - the culture is more important that the tool
Helena Lindh, IBM

The Apes' invasion of office life - technical and social toys
Paulina Söderlund Modlitba talks about her projects from MIT Media Lab. Monkey Business is about soft robots that can give a sense of what your colleagues are doing. GlobeToddler is a way form parents to communicate with their children through a soft toy that also lives in a virtual world.

Ada Lovelace and other stars from the IT heaven
Karin Adelsköld

Me and my beloved mobile!
I love mobile phones. Since 1994 I have had about 40 of them and tested over 100. I always have about 8 mobile phones with me which I change depending on what I am going to do. Get a peek into mobile passion taken to new heights!
Suzanne Fors

API and webhooks - what you need to know to understand the next level of the web
Andie Nordgren

The Future is Soon Here - media trends in the coming years.
Paulina Söderlund Modlitba talks about her work at Bonnier and the media trends they have identified for the coming years, as well as the challenges facing the media industry.

How do you create mobile content for girls?
I work as a project leader at Telia where girls are an important target group and one that we have started focusing on. We have created a mobile site for girls: http://m.tete.nu which is just the beginning of something I think is very interesting. I will speak a little abou how Tête evolved and what our intentions are for the future. I will talk and show material as well as ask questions and create a discussion if anyone wants to partake. If there are any applications, sites that you have created yourself that should be on Tête. If you want to see a Tête sms send one to 71160
Suzanne Fors

New Media - old organisations. A discussion about motivation and the spread of knowledge around social media.
A discussion about motivation and the spread of knowledge of social media.In my work I try to encourage colleagues and motivate why it is so important to keep an eye on microblogs and blogs as a part of the usual business intelligence, but often find opposition. What do you do to not lose heart and still have constructive and good arguments as to why it is important?
Sandra Jakob

Library 2.0 - lessons from an educational program about webservices for librarians.
Ingela Wahlgren talks about how the library world is taking on new web services through the use of course model 23 Things.

OPK 1998 – pre Geek Girls
Gitta Wilén and Lotta Holmström

Women + Computer games = True
Lina Eklund from Stockholm's University talks about her research of girls in the World of Warcraft and how girls react to games and the game world. Are you a gamer? Discuss the world of games and meet the rest of the game nerds at the Geek Girl Meetup in a discussion after the seminar.

Curious? If you can read Swedish you can follow the Meet-Up on the web.

Victoria's Wedding Date Announced - Book Your Hotel Rooms Now

With the Royal date of June 19 2010 being announced just a couple of days ago, hotel rooms are already starting to be booked.

It seems that many hotels have daily prices - so the price on the day the hotel is booked is the price you pay - even if the booking is for June 19th 2010.

The announcement has been made on the Royal Website, sadly the translation has not yet been made into English - you would think it would be done at the same time, considering the international value of such news.

Victoria and her Daniel will follow a long line of Bernadotte weddings on June 19 with Victoria's own parents being married on that day in 1976.

It has been interesting to follow the coverage of the Royal Family ever since the news of the engagement. The wedding has sparked debate about the relevance of royalty, who will pay for the wedding with a facebook group calling for it to come from the royal budget (not the taxpayers'), whether or not it is time for the King to abdicate and hand down the reins, whether or not she should be marrying a commoner and what public opinion's response is, the commercial value of a wedding and a royal family in terms of tourism, the effects of the wedding on public opinion and the 200th anniversary of the Bernadotte family in Sweden, discussion about his title and the equality issue - why does he become a prince but a queen becomes a queen, how the royals handle the press and the feedback on YouTube, what will his role be, as well as how he waves and how hard it will be for him to learn the ropes.

Read a comment in the media yesterday that this royal wedding does not have that much international interest and that few Europeans would probably even know we had a Crown Princess!! Classic example of Jante Lagen - and amazing that it exists even on this level. The statistics on my blog of visitors from around the world prove otherwise!

If nothing else hundreds, thousands of news articles have been produced on Victoria, Daniel and the royal family - both here in Sweden and abroad.

SvD, SvD2, DN,

So Much For Spring!

Again - even if you never looked outside the window you would be able to tell from all the blog/Twitter/facebook updates that we have snow, again.The kids were thrilled. Makaila was up, dressed and ready to go by 6.40am!!

Welcome Spring!

And so we have the Equinox, the days are getting longer than the nights and our little part of the earth is warming up, ever so slowly.

Welcome spring! Your presence is cherished.

Daylight & Sunshine In Sweden

Well officially we still have 2 days left until the Equinox, or Vårdagsjämning as it is called in Swedish but as of today we officially have 12 hours of sunlight!!

And to celebrate the sun is shining brightly here in Stockholm.

If you were a computer nerd that sat in a dark room and never looked out the window you would still be able to tell the sun is shining based on everyone's facebook and twitter updates!!
Are we happy to see the sun shining and the days so long or what??

Being Homeless & Finding An Apartment In Stockholm 2

I wrote a couple of days ago about my friend Lynessa. She was interviewed again this week - this time by DN (one of Sweden's 2 national morning papers).

Part of her dilemma came from not passing the income requirements for the apartment she applied for, despite the fact that she saves each month. Her her number in the queue finally came up a couple of weeks ago (after years of waiting) and she was called to look at an apartment, but was number 60 something. This particular apartment was an expensive one so everyone ahead of her said no. She was so thrilled at the opportunity to get a first hand contract and not have to move every year so she said yes. The problem is she didn't pass the income test because she was not permitted to include her child allowance money - yet there is nothing more guaranteed than child allowance in this country. We get it until our kids turn 16 - no matter what! Had she been able to include it she would have been accepted and she would now have her very own rental contract!

It turns out that the huge property company that owns half of the apartments here have changed the regulations and now allow you to calculate in the child allowance - but that doesn't help her. All the same it is amazing, and fantastic that she managed to bring about change!! It might help some other family struggling to find a place to lay their hat for a while.

Here's hoping that soon, very soon her living situation will improve and she too will get the stability in life that so many of us take for granted. I know how relieved she will be to no longer have to look for a new place to live each year.

DN1 and DN2.