Oh, Racism we know you so well!

"Obama is an Arab." What does that actually mean? That he is from the middle east?Amazing, and this thing about his middle name, wow they just can't let that go. Now on the other hand I am an American citizen and I have lived in the US for a significant amount of time. Racism did not just 'go away' at the end of segregation. This is not some integrated society. All you have to do is drive around a few neighborhoods in any suburb and realize that its quite divided still (this is of course the case for the south). Now of course this conversation is going to talk about Bill Ayers. How long ago was it that he was voted Chicago's man of the year? Ah thats right and lots of republicans have worked with him as well. The real patriot was Ayers, a man who didn't like the way his country was going (for good reasons Vietnam was a horrible war that had no right to be fought) and decided to do something about it. I am not excusing his actions, but I am putting forward the case that he can still be a patriot. I know the media is showing us snapshots of the real population and that we are seeing many of the radical incidents and not so many of the normal ones. On the other hand I've met these types of people before and I would say that in many cases the 'liberal' media is doing a good job showing the party for what it is; rich white guys voted for by dumb white guys.

Corsi as the nutty cookie

Jerome Corsi was arrested today for visa irregularities in Kenya. Its been a while since I took an in depth look at the man and I wasn't particularly surprised by what I found out, but more so at the actual depth of what he goes about saying. To call him a liar is to be mild. The only problem is that I am not blaming him. We have a 'free' country in the USA which means one is entitled to hold any beliefs that one would like to (including idiocy). Corsi is a classic picture of this. We also have a free press who can publish whatever they like (well not quite but thats not the point here). I am blaming you. Thats right I am blaming everyone who buys the book of a liar and lets it influence them to the point of not voting for a man based on lies. This man obviously has quite an audience. What does that say about America?

Cigarettes and Burgers

I am wondering about this; that soon there will be pictures of black lungs on the cover of cigarette cartons around the world. Who is it that is really pushing for this? I imagine there is a lobbying group around somewhere called the 'uptight citizens association' they are one of the few groups who believes that subliminal messages really do alter your perception or that people apparently have no choice about whether to smoke or not (yes its addictive but one can still say no).

Here is my proposal then; when you buy a hamburger at any fast food chain, can we put a photo of a fat person on it? Could this then also be done with cars? When a person buys an SUV and lives in the suburbs can we put a photo of melting glaciers on it? I just don't see these things happening, but for some reason its cool to be aggressive about smoking. Seems like a long time ago, I don't remember when, people knew how to make up their own minds (and thus are responsible).

How to insult people.

There are actually very few moments in my life that I find myself taking offence to what people say. Most times I try to laugh it off or just ignore it. I can't however ignore someone who may become president of a country whose passport I hold.

"I'm not one of those who maybe came from a background of, you know, kids who perhaps graduate college and their parents give them a passport and give them a backpack and say go off and travel the world." -Sarah Palin. By making this statement, she is saying that the only point in having a passport is to go backpacking in Europe (something I have still not done). She has in a sense mocked all the people in US who have a passport and have used it for work or studying purposes. I find her to be covering for her own lack of interest in the world around her. You can take a person out of a small town but in this case you can't take the small town out of the person (and small towns are not any better than big cities).

What is even more disturbing is this continual talk about America's role in the world: "We see America as the greatest force for good in this world" and Hitler thought he was doing us all a favor. America as a religion is truly a sick ideology that is being sold today, and to hear these people talk about it you'd think they'd forgotten Mossadegh, Vietnam, Segregation, and a whole host of other things they'd like to forget about. If you are still confused and you can't understand why people might hate the US then go back and read your own history.

The fact that Sarah Palin is a vice-presidential candidate shows that a little bit of ignorance goes a long way.

The Nobel Literature prize

Today I found out that one of the heads of the Nobel Literature Prize selection comittee has accused the United States of being to 'insular' and 'isolated' as well as going on to say that the writers tend to go with the flow of mass culture. I found this interesting and disturbing at the same time. Of course according to the article, found on CNN, the Nobel people have been accused of 'snobbery' and so on. I've gone back and looked at the list. Of those I have read, I can understand why they have been selected. Granted I am not trying to say that the selection process doesn't have its errors and problems. Aside from Phillip Roth however, there aren't too many American novelists who I think are eligible right now. I do think it is a shame that Nabokov never got his due but that is life.

My candidate for this year is not American either. I put my vote in for Milan Kundera the Czech/French author.

Humpty Dumpty and George Bush...

Well this is going to be interesting. After telling us for eight long years about how great the market was and pushing all these free trade ideas around the world, it seems that humpty dumpty(the american economy) has had a fall. Don't get me wrong, I am not claiming to understand this giant mess, but I think one thing is fairly obvious at this point; the corporations aren't going to have the effect of all the kings horses and all the kings men. Even better, from my perspective mind you, is that now that the neoliberalism is sinking the government is trying to jump in and rescue it. Essentially what is happening then is that W is becoming a socialist. While I love the idea, because that is what I am at heart, I know that he is doing it under the pretense of helping a victim. Who is the money going to go to? To the people it always goes to; the ones sitting on top of the pyramid. Don't want to take my word for it? Well its ok, you won't have to.

Kids with Guns and the Last Waltz

So my thoughts on Finland...Well hmmm why do they sell guns this easily. Sorry I take that back why sell guns at all? If you want to hunt I understand you are upset with me, but then again you aren't exactly hunting for survival purposes, so why wouldn't it work if the government were to rent you the gun for the event and then you bring it back under very controlled circumstances. The same should be true for the US. There is no point in selling hand guns in stores. Don't like it? Maybe sometimes its good not to care what some people want.

On a happier note I watched the Martin Scorsese documentary about The Band titled "The Last Waltz." For anyone who was a fan of music of that time, this is a must watch. The quality of the music and the performance as well as the things the members say between the songs are incredible. Its another reason why Scorsese is one of the best out there and yes Dylan's last three songs brings down the house.

Ask for your water front back...

So I made it through Kundera's Ignorance: A novel in two days and I have to say it was right in line with the other two books of his that I have read; sharp and to the point while telling an amazing story. He has a way of turning the everyday situations in relationships into pictures of life that are unforgettable.

Someone sent me this link and I thought I would post it. Tell the government you want your waterfront back...

Shiva, Kundera, and a case of the Mondays...

It was time for the European Social Forum this weekend and I didn't actually make it which was ok, but I did manage to find out that Vandana Shiva was there and that she was asked what she thought about Sweden. It turns out she has been here a few times as Ingegerd(Lumes) told me, but anyway she said that it was sad about Sweden, because we just to be a nation that was a good example of solidarity among the people and now we are run by corporations. Couldn't agree more. Why are we falling for this idea that corporations can run things better than the government? Corporations don't care about people period.

I decided tonight that the goal for the rest of the year is to read all of Milan Kundera's books. I don't know if I will actually make it, but it is an admirable goal. So now its one in the morning and I need to go to bed. Emphasize need.

Nuts for the chop

Today I read that in Poland they are considering castration for all pedophiles. Well that is just great. Isn't this so nice, we'll fix all the problems really quickly and easily and make sure they can't do any of their dirty stuff anymore. No actually this is quite horrible. Don't get me wrong I am not in any way standing up for these sick depraved people, but I am thinking that there are always going to be innocent people getting caught and then something is taken away from them that can never be given back. Way to go Poland, you just proved you are a third world country, now go build a missile shield for your conservatism.

Thursday down time

I should be reading this book by Adorno that I have, but I'm not of course. I should be doing a lot of things but I don't have the motivation right now. I don't have any reason to watch sports now until October so that will probably help. I am what they call a master of procrastination. The only problem is that I only procrastinate when I am at home, otherwise I generally get things done.

I want to get a swimming pool membership and start going two+ times a week. Easier said than done. When I was at FSU the pool was a five minute walk away and every semester it was something like five times I used it. I also want to take yoga classes but don't have the nerve to go by myself and then be with all these people who've been doing it for years and I can't even do the simple stuff.

Anyway its time to pick up Adorno and then some of Sylvia Plath's poems. I love libraries.

Why we don't win football matches

I sat there on Jeff's couch eating a cheap pizza and drinking french cider and almost crying as the Swedish National team spent ninety minutes of disgrace against Albania and ended it with a 0-0 draw. I saw the same attitude that I saw throughout Euro 2008 and what I've seen more and more of lately with Swedish sports: fear. We are a better team than Albania, we have better players, and we have more routine. It didn't show up at all, in fact it looked more like Albania was going to score first for most of the match. I kept clenching my fist over and over as the midfielders lost the ball again and again, as Källström disappeared after five minutes, and as the players looked like amateurs chasing warriors around the field.

In Sweden the answer is very simple: we don't think we can win. Or if we do we deny it and talk down about it and tell ourselves that we shouldn't think that way. How dare a nation with our size sit and think that it can win a world cup. We've almost done it before, so why not again? I know we don't have the Pele's, the Ronaldo's, and the Maradona's of the world, but honestly that isn't what wins a world cup. The attitude wins world cups. I would prefer if the swedish players would talk to in the interviews about how they know they can win, that they believe in themselves, that small nations can do big things. Look at the Olympics, we whined the whole way through when we should have been trying harder and believing. We don't need apologies and I admit I don't like the Hubris that most are capable of, but I would like to see an attitude that says, hey we are small and we can win, and even if we don't we'll fight like hell for it!

Things to think about...

There were many better qualified women in the republican party that should have gotten the VP position.

Every "liberal" sex education that I have ever been through has told me that the only real preventive is abstinence (they don't need a whole course just to explain the ramifications of no or don't)

Getting married at 17 to help your mom seem like a real peach makes me about as sick as having bubonic plague (there is no way we will ever know what those kids really want)

American patriotism has an odd aroma similar to...early stages of Fascism

Someone said McCains "opportunity" wouldn't involve giving more money to medicaid, too bad, I always had this crazy notion that government was by the people for the people-Most times its really the elite playing as if they are for the people

McCain finally found a way to get media coverage...just wasn't quite what he really wanted though

International Housing Offenders

I was reading an article in one of the local Lund newspapers and came across an article that noted that of the 2000 exchange students for this semester, only about half of them were able to get university accomodation. The others apparently had to go look for private rooms. The article also noted that they had talked to the people at the IHO and they had said that they couldn't put students in the St. Lars buildings which were used last year because of a lack of quality. The IHO people seemed almost sad about this.

Let me say something. I visited the St. Lars dormitory only once and that was around this time last year. I have to honestly say that I did not know that it was possible for a Swedish housing office to rent rooms in a building like that. The buildings were used for some sort of hospital care, but that doesn't go half the way in describing what it felt like to be in those rooms. It felt like you were living in a mental institution. To my knowledge there were no Swede's that were forced to live there only international students. The Lund IHO is one of the most foul things I have come across in my travels.

Do your pants hang low?

The time has come to speak of many things...as Lewis Carrol would say and perhaps it isn't pure coincidence that he is quoted in this post.

I was reading CNN the other day, I know its odd but bare with me, and I came across another article about a county banning the wearing of pants in such a way that a person's underwear is showing. I find this extremely disturbing on several fronts.

1. How is it possible in a free country for a government to tell an individual how to dress. I understand a ban on nudity but boxers are still a long way from nudity. This smells of fascism and ignorance.

2. Why is a city going to waste money on controlling how people are dressing? Isn't there better things to do like stop speeding cars and fight against drugs.

3. Depending on where there is a ban on not showing your underpants, if you are caught doing so and taken to court, you may have to register as a sex offender. This is playing with people's lives over a fashion statement.

All of these laws depend on the local council's assesment of what is and what isn't decent. I can imagine a group of old conservative white people sitting in a circle somewhere discussing how they can make life difficult for young people. I wish I was wrong but that is what I suspect is taking place. If I was living in these places I would cut myself a pair of minishorts and run around town. No officer they aren't boxers but please tell me how do you define what is and what isn't underwear. Fascism, fascism, in the form of decency.

Final Thoughts: Sweden vs. Greece Euro 2008

I've always been out of Europe for the major tournaments. In 2006 I was stuck working while Sweden got knocked around by Germany and of course there is no real place for fans to go in the US to watch the games on big screens. Thats why being in Europe for a tournament has been amazing so far. Everyone is watching the games and there are flags out on every street. So that brings me to Sweden vs. Greece.

Folkets Park in Malmo was showing the game, so I decided to go there to watch it. I invited everyone I knew and one person showed up. I find this strange but I've accepted it. I got to the park halfway through the Russia Spain game and found that it was already starting to fill up. Then by kick-off, it was packed and people were standing on all sides. So what were the chances we would win? I felt that it could go either way but that Greece probably had it in the bag. Sixty-six minutes later the guy guarding Ibrahimovic disappeared for a second and without even hesitating Zlatan fired the goal of the tournament so far past the Greeks. Everyone in the park were on their feet chanting his name and screaming. Malmo is incidentally his home town as well. Then came the second goal which though not pretty, took all the air out of the Greeks.

For the Swedish national team which was struggling the last few weeks and had many assuming we couldn't win a game, this came at just the right moment. I've finally been in Europe for a tournament, I've tasted the fruits so to speak, and its amazing, beyond words really.

Enchantress of Florence; Not his best

Its hard to really jump on Rushdie for anything that he's written. However with his latest offering I find myself a bit confused and wondering what he was getting at. True the story is not terrible by any means but it has the feeling that he tried to run through it without really exploring certain themes as deeply as he could have. So I have to say it makes a good case for being an airport bookshop bestseller. More Satanic Verses please.

Afghanistan is a bad joke

When he leaves office, a certain someone will probably point to a country in South-Central Asia and claim that this is where he made a difference and that things are getting better all the time and so on and so etc, etc, etc.

What he will ignore is that right now someone is on death row for speaking out against Islam. While Freedom of Opinion is part of the constitution, apparently you just can't say certain things. So the moral of the story is...nothing has really changed except the names of the people running the place. How many millions have been wasted?

Movie Review: Goodbye Lenin!

I guess I sort of already knew what the movie was about through hearsay as well as having heard about it on the radio. Simple story, boy in East Germany has a single mom and a sister. Mom ends up in the hospital with a coma and when she wakes up she wakes up in a united Germany. Of course the shock of her finding out would be too much for her and so he has to convince her that she is still living in the East.

Its funny, its sad, and even say a bit romantic. I think to understand some of the humor, you have to have lived in an eastern European country or have visited one soon after the end of the Soviet Union. Daniel Bruhl is excellent as usual and so are the rest of the characters. I think I was almost crying at some parts. Is that enough? Go watch it.

A neo-liberal solution of sorts...

Since the World Bank and IMF not to mention the WTO have such amazing ideas I thought I would apply them to United States Armed Forces. The US military is a government entity and therefore grossly missmanaged (many generals would agree with this, war is to important to let politicians make decisions). The budget is gigantic and the results meagre at best. Two countries have proved this point; Afghanistan and Iraq. Here the US military has invaded and tried to 'liberate' two people groups. The cost of the operations has been immense and neither one has by any means reached a point where they could be labeled as a success of any sort (after all the primary goal was to defeat Al Qaida, not nation-build).

So here is the neo-liberal solution; allow the army to act as a private security force. It already does this in many ways with Nato and other organizations, but it would be better run if it went where the invisible hand of the market directed it. This means that countries with a strong economy would remain protected and that their armies would be free to seek the best markets. It might even be possible after a time to stop using tax money to finance the military. Technology would only benefit, as the market forces would encourage further innovation as the alternative would be losing the market to other actors. Anyway it might save americans a lot of money that could be spent on other things.

Moving Backwards; an American Tale in two parts

Part I

Bush is comparing the 'terrorists' to Nazis. It is impossible to compare the two groups of people. One was intent on genocide while the other has never expressed such ideals. Honestly the Nazis had quite a bit more power than the terrorists have had up to this time, and there were quite a few sympathizers in the US (Lindbergh to name one). The only way that the two could be compared is that the US has at times contributed to the forming of these two different types of problems (German debt and third world intervention).

Part II

Hillary and John have this idea that removing the gas tax will somehow be good for people. The only the gas tax will really accomplish is to make more profit for the oil companies and lead to an increase in pollution. Plus there goes all the money that is meant to keep roads drivable. This is a move that is nothing more than 'populism' and a way to get voters, not something that is actually feasible. When the dust settles the joke is on the American people.

Norwegian Wood

I finished Murakami's Norwegian Wood last wednesday. The more I read Murakami the more I am impressed with his writing. Of course I am sure that if I were to be reading them in Japaneese I would be getting more out of them and would likely find them twice as amazing. However, I do not have the luxury of reading them in Japaneese for the simple reason that I have never studied that language and probably never will. Not that it wouldn't be good, I simply haven't the time.

The story is sad and romantic all at the same time. Its about loss and growing up and this review is starting to sound like all the other reviews you read in other newspapers around the world. Basically I found that the story was not so much unique in the way it dealt with death, suicide, and love but more just that I found it too hard to put down and couldn't help but relating to the characters. Plus it makes you laugh.

Moving Backwards: a Russian tale...

They had nuclear missiles in Moscow rolling down the streets for a parade a few days back. They were celebrating. Odd that some celebrations feel more like threats but then again that is Russia. While many of us look back on the Cold War as a time of insanity for both sides (for who builds that many nuclear weapons and remains sane), it appears that Russia is going back to embracing that period as a golden age. Must be the same loonies who are in favor of reconstructing the Berlin Wall.

I want to live in a world where parades don't consist of tanks and nuclear weapons please. A world where loonies are required to take counseling sessions. So here is my recommendation. Bush and Putin need to voluntarily step down and do volunteer work in Afghanistan for two years.

Currently Reading Norwegian Wood

Well so I'm hard at work on this paper on Orcas but I managed to pick up a copy of Murakami's Norwegian Wood which I've had on reserve at the library for about a month now. Apparently its so good there were originally fourteen people in front of me in the line. I have to say for being a small town Lund has an amazing library.

I'm heading to Germany by buss again tonight. That means I have eight hours to just sit and read as much as I like. Hopefully I can finish Murakami by the time I get to Berlin and be halfway through the books for the next course. Next stop sunshine and german beer plus a girl I love more everyday.

Haruki Murakami, Bill Bryson, and Champagne

I finished a travel memoir about Australia today by Bill Bryson and I have to say it was hilarious. I would heartily recommend it to anyone who would enjoy such a work of non-fiction and I must say I think I have a better understanding of the land down under now.

Then I went to the library today to drop off a book and decided to look at the shelf with new books. I picked up a book about Champagne and then in the older fiction section I found a copy of Murakami's Sputnik Sweetheart. So I am looking forward to sawing my way through them.

The exam went fine and now all I have to do is a paper on how polluted Orcas are (its horrible actually) and get a seven minute presentation whipped up and ready for Monday.

Question of the Day

If three American Mercenaries shoot an old Iraqi man in a city somewhere in Iraq and no one is around to see it, does the old man even exist?

Film Club and Exam time

Tonight is the first official meeting of the LUMES film club. The idea behind the club is that the movies watched will in some ways be relevant to what we are studying and also as a way of learning about the world as a whole i.e. not just watching hollywoodizations.

Its also time for an exam tomorrow and then a paper and presentation are due on Monday which make it an exceptionally fun little weekend. Its not all bad though, travel plans are waiting in the wings plus the sun is shinning.

Oh yeah.... tonight's movie.... The Constant Gardener

based of course on the Le Carre novel of the same name.

Absolut Idiot: Or how Americans portray themselves.

Last week there was a mention in the Swedish news that an ad by Absolut Vodka had offended some Americans. Then in Sweden it wasn't reported about again. Now I've scoured the internet for a bit and found that the add was quite a hot topic. I have to say I find it amusing. The only thing the add is trying to say is that in an absolut world (i.e. a perfect world) from a Mexican perspective, a good portion of what is currently the USA would still be Mexican. Then people get offended and pour their expensive vodka down the drain and threaten boycotts.

That says a lot about some people. If you pour out a bottle of vodka over a piece of ancient history instead of having a laugh then there is something wrong with you. Most Americans are not very familiar with that bit of history. Many know Texas broke away from Mexico, but most fail to understand that it was because slavery and owning weapons were illegal, two things that southerners were quite fond of at the time. After the war the US forced Mexico to 'sell' territory at half the price offered before the war so that it would no look like they were taking it. There was nothing honorable or heroic about that war from the American side. Pure Greed. Absolute Idiot: a person who becomes offended over advertisements.

Ezra Pound and Paul Auster

Well I tore my way through Rushdie and managed to finish it off at around three in the morning on Sunday. I have to say that I think this was his best novel since the Satanic Verses. Tomorrow I am going on a field trip to a toxic waste site in Teckomatorp, Skane. That sounds like loads of fun.

On Sunday I also went to the library and thankfully they are open on that day which is somewhat odd for Sweden, but I am not complaining. I picked up the Cantos of Ezra Pound and Leviathan by Paul Auster. Of course I don't believe its possible to go wrong with Auster but I'll keep it updated and I'll also let everyone know my thoughts about Mr. Pound.

sex-obssesed Republicans and the war in Iraq.

We all know that Bill Clinton dropped his droors in the oval office and let a certain Lewinsky blow Dixie on his magic troll flute. This brought about a shitstorm and led to succession of scandals. But what was it really all about? A blowjob and a lie? Pretty sorry stuff actually. The French especially must find this absolutely ridiculous stuff, of course right now they can't get enough of Mrs. Bruni but there was a time of legends that included Mitterand and Felix Faure (Famous for dying in the middle of a blowjob). Seriously this is too good to be fiction.

So what does all this have to do with everything currently going on now. The Republicans were absolutely sex-obsessed with the Clinton Affair and did all that they could to have him kicked out of the White House for a blow job and a denial. Seems awfully funny that they would be so silent about these massive amounts of weapons of mass destruction that are all over Iraq. I guess it just depends on who is doing the lying, or perhaps WMD's just aren't sexy enough.

Salman Rushdie and the "Ground Beneath Her Feet"

Its been a while since I felt ready to plunge myself into one of Rushdie's bizarre worlds of tragedy and magical realism. Of course everytime I've done so, the end result has been an amazing story that is hard to put down despite all the other things I probably should be doing. Fear not dear reader, for this time I am actually ahead in my readings for LUMES which is the first time in history. Not the last though I guarantee.

In "The Ground Beneath Her Feet" Rushdie takes into a love triangle that consists of two rock and roll stars and a photographer. In his usual excellent and extremely sharp prose style he takes us through their somewhat humble beginnings in Bombay (Pre-Mumbai). If the reader is interested I would recommend starting on Rushdie's masterpiece "The Satanic Verses" which he will never be able to beat no matter what magic tangle of words he is able to produce in the remainder of his life.

Spring Time at Berlin Zoo

Islands in the Stream

Another Hemingway novel that someone found in a used bookstore in London. This is always the best way to find books. When you least expect it something pops up out of nowhere. I'm a third of the way into the book so far and I have to say that unfortunately I do not consider it to be in the same class as "The sun also rises" or "For whom the bell tolls" but its still ok so far.

Before this book I read "The passion of New Eve" by Angela Carter. If you haven't heard of her, she was a writer who was mainly active in the sixties and seventies and wrote a good deal of post-feminist literature. I'm not going to give away the plot by any means except to say that it was surrealist and magical realist at the same time. It also made me really uncomfortable. Worth a read.

A blueberry or not a blueberry?

This debate seems to come up every so often when North Americans hang around in Sweden long enough. Swedes call these small berries that grow in shrubs along the ground blueberries and this drives the North American visitors insane and they can't understand this concept at all. I will hereby clear the whole mater entirely so that there will never be any confusion again.

Blueberries (Vaccinium Cyanococcous) grow only in North America. What we have in Sweden and call Blåbär, which is often translated literally into English as Blueberry, is in fact properly called a Bilberry (Vaccinium Myrtillus). If the two species were put side by side it would be obvious that they are not the same and once a person has tasted them it will be even clearer.

In Medias Res: I'm not Stiller (Max Frisch)

Frisch comes recommended to me by a beautiful German who tends to recommend really good books from her culture. Of course Herr Frisch was Swiss but that is beside the point. So "Stiller" so far has been quite interesting.

It begins on a train in Switzerland where a man is detained and accused of travelling under a false passport. He is then accused of abandoning his family and having lived on the run for over six years. He denies all this and further denies that he is in fact this hunted man named Stiller. How does one prove identity?

Well I'm not done with the novel yet, nor am I half way through, I do however recommend the book and am enjoying it.

Here is a link to a page on Max Frisch (The author).

Introducing: The Frankfurt School....

No bloggerism today no sir. Read this link and think think think about it.

and... Props to Adorno.

Frankfurt School

Book Review: Tender is the Night

I admit first off that the last time I touched a book by Fitzgerald was junior year of high school and that at that time I could probably not understand a lot of what was going on. However as a whole I did not appreciate his stories or his prose style....then I was twenty three and decided to give this American favorite another try.

All I can say is that I was impressed and depressed all at the same time. The amount of pain and heartache in the book is enough to make anyone shudder. Then take into account that the novel may as well be a portrait of Fitzgerald's European experience it makes it even worse. I have to say that I recommend it even though its a painful read.

Book Review: The Invention of Morel

I use wikipedia a lot. Whether searching for books or just exploring various topics such as Foucault's philosophy, its my tool for gaining a background understanding on a topic. Of course it helps that everything has to be read carefully and further investigated before trusting whatever source was used. Still its a nice place for references.

With all that said, I have to admit that when it comes to genres of fiction my favorite has to be magical realism. The most common authors in this genre have to be Gabriel Garcia Marquez, Isabel Allende (House of Spirits, as recently she seems to have sold out for airport pop fiction), and Salman Rushdie (Satanic Verses). A name that many may not have heard about is Adolfo Bioy Casares. His most famous work is a short novella titled The Invention of Morel.

The story deals with a condemned man who has escaped his imprisonment and while on the run from the law has learned of an island that is cursed with a pest. He chooses to go to the island anyway as if he doesn't die, then at least no one else will follow him there out of fear. Once he reaches the island he finds out that there is more at work than just a pest. He discovers that a scientist invented a machine that records people and projects their images. The machine works on tide and wind power and thus the recordings are played over and over. The man also discovers that once you have been recorded, you will die and your essence will have been transferred to the film. So what does he do when he learns of this and falls in love with one of the early victims? He adds himself to the mix.

An excellent novel if you can get your hands on it.

A Film Review: Life is a Miracle

This blog hasn't been responsible for much recently besides introducing the blog from last post. So I thought I'd try something new. I've been a fan of movies now for a long time and also I do a lot of reading. So at least once a week this blog is going to have a book or film review.

For those unfamiliar with European film (as the hollywood hegemony continues in its notoriety) I introduce Emir Kusturica and his masterpiece "Life is a Miracle." The story deals with the ethnic conflicts that ripped the former Yugoslavia apart. It is two things at once, a romance and a sort of comedic tragedy. I believe black comedy is the way they would put it in swedish. One interesting aspect is how he deals with the war itself, never showing any battles but just letting the audience view it through the eyes of the protagonist Luka. Kusturica is somewhat of a genius and I would have to recommend his other movies as well as this one. If you like "Life is a Miracle" then check out "Black Cat, White Cat" and "Underground."

The amount of politics that is on display is also quite interesting to follow in the film as well, but I am not going to give away too much.

A shout out...

I don't usually send links to other blogs very often but I read this one at least once a week so I thought I'd pass it on.

http://www.monbiot.com/

Hope anyone reading gets as much out of it as I do.

Can you hear it... The silence of disappearing Freedom

Its in the news. A certain sly someone is trying to listen to conversations. It leaves me feeling sick. Did anyone ever offer these people a copy of 1984 or do they just believe that what they are doing is really for the 'people's best'? It's for your own protection they say. Yes, every time they take away your freedoms, they are really storing them up for you in a freedom bank on the other side of the mountain where once this 'terrorism nuisance' has been dealt with, we'll all get back to our lives. Keep listening Sir, listen to the sound of time running out on your sad spell in the oval office.

You probably won't read this...

But I'll say it anyway. I love you more every day and my heart aches to be with you.

A hero of our time...or why the Soviets suck.

I present to you Raoul Wallenberg. A man responsible for saving thousands of jews during the Second World War in Nazi occupied Hungary. He set up a system that allowed jews to become Swedish citizens and then be moved to Sweden. To do this he set up buildings all around Budapest that were supposedly "embassy" territory and thus could not be searched. A true hero of our time. So what happened to the good man...
Well the Soviets came rumbling into town and you know they were allies with the good old boys as in the USA and the UK and what did they do? They arrested Mr. Wallenberg and held him in the Soviet Union until he died from a heart attack. Another reason the Soviet Union should be mocked.

An ode to Tricky Dick....

"You better watch out for those crazy enviros..., They're a bunch of commie pinko queers!"
-Richard Nixon, 1972

Well that pretty much sums the man up.

Big Brother

Its a perception that Sweden has more of a Big brother relationship with the government then the USA. I don't buy this. Why else do I have to file a tax report with the USA when I don't live there. Keep your bomb building fingers out of my wallet.

Pre-Election Blues #32

Skeptical is one word to describe my attitude. Change is the word that everyone seems to be talking about. I'm not buying it. The United States is locked in an election battle and it looks like its going to be more of the old trench warfare. In the last two elections the nation has been split down the middle. Its basically a fifty-fifty situation. That gives me the feeling that change isn't going to be very possible. One reason is comfort. The middle class is quite comfortable. As long as they aren't terminally ill, they enjoy a consumer lifestyle with few consequences. Sure they have to have a job to get healthcare and they end up paying a substantial amount for this. Most families have two cars and drive everywhere they go. Obesity is growing like a tumor and there doesn't seem to be any chemo therapy that can cure this phenomenon which is a combination of a stressful lifestyle (imagine rush hour), bad eating habits, as well as a general distaste for sweating (remember everywhere you go you have air conditioning). Comfort is the key word. This is where the voting comes in. Americans are going to vote in the way that keeps the comfort most attainable.

Another way to look at it is the fortress mentality that is growing in the United States suburbs. Everyone builds their castle and when its complete, they don't need to go out and see the world. With internet and cable tv widely available, the world comes to them. The war in Iraq is something that only exists at the touch of a remote, as all American wars have been in the last century (though some were closer to the radio). Gruesome pictures and reality are airbrushed so that it looks like a UN peacekeeping operation in Sweden. No one really knows why the war was started any more. From the beginning it was argued that something had to be done and that consequences would stem from doing nothing. War is the easiest thing for a country with a military the size of the United States's. Hell according to some its even good for the economy. Who's next? There is no denying that 9/11 was a horrible and despicable act. However U.S. military intervention around the world is an equally horrible and despicable act.

So when the candidates are on tv asking for votes they promise more comfort. More prosperity because that leads to happiness and satisfaction. Change is just another step towards comfort. No one really wants or is able to make big changes. Business is good so why move the ship in another heading? Until the ship is leaking it doesn't need to be renovated. Until its sinking there will be no rescue attempt.

Somewhere in Europe...

Early Friday morning a man was spotted at the train station in Lund. He was dressed in a black jacket and was carrying a duffel bag. He looked as if he were about to begin an adventure. The cold november air surrounded him as he shuffled up and down the platform trying to keep warm. When the Oresund train finally put in five minutes late as usual, this man borded it and wasn't seen in Lund again for the remainder of the weekend. I suppose he is off visiting someone he loves and having that adventure. Hope he's got a pipe to smoke and a nice book to read on the buss.

Women and Men

Imagine you are a woman(for some of you this won't be so hard). You are gang raped 14 times by a group of seven men. When your situation comes up in court, you are not viewed as a victim but instead as a perpetrator. Your sentence is six months imprisonment and 200 lashes. The men's sentences range from one year to five years. Seems far out and completely strange, at least from a scandinavian perspective doesn't it. Then the truth comes out. This just happened in Saudi Arabia. The glorious allies of a certain oil addicted nation in the northern hemisphere with a little white hut in a town designed by the French when they were friends. With friends like these who needs enemies?

Mr. Brown, Anti-American, and the little island that could...

Gordon Brown has now announced that he is not anti-american. This from an article at the BBC homepage. Good for him. Its nice to know that he is willing to be friends with a country that is much like his own in some ways. They are both interested in ruling the planet(in an economic sense not in a traditional colonial sense although Irag, Afghanistan, and Puerto Rico would likely have a problem with this theory). Both countries' governments don't seem to have that big of a problem with pollution or the rabid consumerism that plagues western culture(not that the mainland has done much better). They are also in bed together on the Iraq war(spooning is more correct) and it would look quite bad if these two life partners suddenly had a break up and one decided to favor the EU(which would give it a better economical chance considering it is the biggest market in the world and the US may very well be fading off into the sunset of history). Both countries have had hard times getting used to the fact that indeed the whole world is 1. not envious of their success 2. most of the world would prefer their own language as oppossed to the cultural hegemony that persists from these two and 3. would like an apology from them for their military and economical bullying for the last couple of centuries. If Mr. Brown likes to stay in bed with Bush and the Yanks that is fine, but the rest of us should be warned that they aren't exactly going to pass their next physical either.

Just an update thats all.

Call the fire trucks, call the media, tell everyone but don't tell your mother. The beast is awake and breathing. There are sightings all over the map. The North! The North! It came from the North! It twisted and our earth shook. Trees were uprooted and the lakes became rivers and reached their slender fingers to the boiling, salted drink that is the sea. Call the riot squads and tell Nato.

The hero is alive though he is bogged down in the beauracracy that is education. C'est la vie. Three courses in and counting....

Hmm.

Everything goes down better with a glass of postmodernism.
-Unknown

Oh the things you just might be doing...

I support dictators around the world as long as my Nikes are those extra couple of dollars cheaper. I whine about vegetable prices and then purchase Avocados from South Africa. I want to be rid of petroleum issues but continue to have to rely on it to get around. By keeping my reliance on petroleum, I keep the world economy going which allows for disparities in wealth that are as clear as night and day. Your neo-liberal leaders would tell you this is good. It gives them something to work for. What the hell do they know about working? The western way of life is a fantasy that capitalism has shaped by raping the rest of the world. Thats strong? Yes the truth generally is.

On a happier note more good swedish music...

Suburban Kids With Biblical Names

The Hero Shot

Le Weekend

Here is Saturday. Here is the Lund City "Night of Culture." The program is quite diverse and offers what appears to be something for everyone. After I finish studying some more for my final next week, I am going to go to the Poetry reading in the City Theatre at seven this evening. Hopefully it will be quite stimulating as I need some literary stimulation.

I've been reading Herman Hesse recently but it was rather dry so I had to take a break and read Murakami's "After Dark" and some of Nabokov's short stories. So then tomorrow is football practice for our program as we take on another grad program on wednesday. I'm playing defense and am planning on modeling myself on Puyol and Cannavaro. Back to the books.

Things to do oh the things to do...

So much going on but not really. What I mean is that I should be studying all the time that I am not in class but that would make me a dull boy now wouldn't it? School is fun I guess. Its one of those things where when you are in class you don't know what to do and when you are at home you don't know what to do. I need to go to Malmo on friday and ride my skateboard, it doesn't really solve anything but its nice all the same. New Jens Lekman is out but I haven't spent the money to purchase it yet. I am waiting for Lund library to get it and then I intend to burn it, not that I am advertising doing anything illegal mind you(cough).

For those of you that actually care about the weather, I generally don't but some do, its been really grey here. This is Swedish fall weather, quite rainy and meant for those kind of people who like to lay in bed with a glass of wine and a good book. Its also good for those of us who like to cook as it encourages us to stay home and do that. I need to go mushroom picking again but I'm not quite sure where to start. You see we have this great law in Sweden called everymans right which means, dear readers, that I can go to any forest and pick the mushrooms that I want. MMM delicious. I feel a Rissotto coming on.

The Concrete Jungle Indians

I've been reading Dagens Nyheter for the last two days both online and at Cafe Ariman where they have the daily edition and a story was in there that caught my attention.

Its a growing trend in Europe as well as the United States to live in an urban or suburban environment and drive around in an SUV(stadsjeep). Not only is this a waste of fuel but it is also leading to a need for bigger roads to accomodate such big vehicles. Does someone who lives in say Stockholm or Miami need to drive around in a Hummer? If anyone chose to answer yes to that question then there may be something quite wrong with them. So now the younger people in the cities have started to react to what is essentially a class status symbol. Enter the Concrete Jungle Indians.

This is an unorganized gang of young people ranging in age from thirty to twenty years of age and coming from various backgrounds(though many are university educated or currently students) who have had enough of this waste. They go around at night and let the air out of the tires on any SUV they can find in the city of Stockholm. Then once the task is complete they put a note on the window letting the driver know who is responsible for his flat tires and why he shouldn't be driving an SUV in the first place. Bravo! Down with the upper middle class and their consumerist excesses! Take the Subway instead and read a book, its a great way to skip this rush hour madness. Don't have a subway or good public transport? Start voting for someone who believes in it and doesn't have a career in oil in the family history.

Lund Life Kids!

Sitting in my super comfy room listening to Beck on the shared music network. I have to say that I must thank someone named Remi for that. Excellent taste. The weather has been nice and rainy. That is actually perfect as it keeps you focused on studying and cuts out ways to waste time. Well skateboarding isn't exactly a waste of time now is it but it isn't helping with the degree either. I do hear the board calling my name for this weekend as seeing how Malmo has one of the best skateparks in Northern Europe that calls for a visit. That isn't the point of this post.

A certain couple I know have been having problems getting into a certain organization that they have been wanting to get into for a while. This means that they are coming back to France for two months starting next week. You know who you are. I have an extra mattress and there is a room here in Lund waiting for the two of you when you come explore an amazing little city and then there is also Copenhagen here for the weekend. Welcome, Welcome.

Lund Day 1

I stood in line today. Ok well I also sat in line as some of the lines were like playing musical chairs, the winner being the one who gets to check in and then get their key for housing. So that makes me an official grad student at Lund University. I must say I am absolutely stoked out of my mind at this point and am hoping that things continue to be as amazing as today. I also must say I like my room. Imagine a country where a dorm room means your room(with private shower/toilet), and that is what I have. The only thing that I have to share is a kitchen but its still less people than at the Foundation in Tallahassee so its not even bad. Tomorrow is the first official day of class and I have to buy some books and start reading. Oh yeah and then I have this really beautiful visitor from Germany coming to see Lund for the first time this weekend so its going to be fun.

Adieu, Adieu

Today it ends. A year ago I arrived at Arlanda, I think it was early in the morning and I let my eyes search the buildings as we drove through Stockholm on the way to the place I've been living for the past year. I am jumping out of the plane again today. I think when I go downtown to buy a book to read for the road I am going to feel every minute of the last year all at once. Lightning is cliche but we'll use it. Will I be back? Something tells me its a distinct possibility. Nothing is guaranteed and if it was would it be fun? Stockholm I bid thee adieu, Lund I plant my flag on your soil and ask for nothing more than an adventure.

Stockholm countdown.

My year in Stockholm is winding its way down and soon I will raise my flag and sail from these shores. The south is calling my name. I hear it when I awake. I hear it in my dreams(maybe if I ever dreamt I would). I'm moving to Lund on Sunday. I'm starting a two year program in Sustainable Development and Environmental Science. My motto is what is life without a challenge. Here it comes with its steel toed boots to kick me in the teeth. How will I respond? Will I get back on my feet and take it as it comes. I remember that sweaty boxing gym I used to frequent in Tallahassee when I think of a fight. I remember the stale gloves and headgear we used to don to practice destruction. I remember the blows as they fell, one after the other. I stood there I took it. I remember every time I was hit I only wanted to hit back and win. I want to feel that way in Lund. That I'm going to get back up no matter how hard I get hit.

What do I know, its only grad school. Drama Queen.

A quote for today.

“To the last, I grapple with thee; From Hell's heart, I stab at thee; For hate's sake, I spit my last breath at thee”

-Captain Ahab

Swedish Music

I heard this song a few years ago on P3, which is swedish government radio, and I really liked the general tone as well as minimalism of the music. I would like to recommend Raymond och Maria. Their first album came out in 2004 and since then they've released one more album. It turns out that they played Kägelbanan about two months ago and I missed that but then hey there is always Lund and Malmö so here is hoping they drop by their this year.

P.S. My favorite song is "Ingen vill veta var du köpt din tröja"

Enjoy

Riga to Berlin

Back in Stockholm as of yesterday. Feels strange to come home. I came back to an empty house and realized that it won't be mine anymore in nineteen days. I'm moving to Lund to begin studying Sustainable Development and Environmental Science. But before the summer came to an end I had to set out on one little trip that took me from Stockholm to Riga and finally Berlin.

Latvia was slightly melancholic as it always is. I don't know if I've talked about it before but its nice to go visit but I know that there is nothing there for me. I don't think I'll go back for a year and next time I go I want to take someone with me. A certain somebody from Berlin named Clara Anders that I've very much fallen in love with over the past few months.

Berlin was amazing as always and this time I got hooked on riding a bicycle and now I will have to go beg my mom to let me take hers when I go to Lund. That will cut travel times by quite a bit and would be easier than aquiring a bike there(considering that they are known to be very expensive there.) Anyway sorry for not updating in a long time.

Ah, to travel again

Well all my faithful readers here is an update. Ruco and Kristi were here and we had a blast together, we took a lot of photos and I'll probably end up posting several of them. Then since they had the travel bug I caught it to.

That means that tomorrow I go to Latvia for a week and then Berlin for two more. According to my friend Raimonds there are going to be waves in Jurkalne, Latvia tomorrow and I am going to be riding them if everything goes as planned(when does that happen).

Then Berlin. What can I say my heart is there.

Sir Rushdie

Well this little bit of news is bound to become a firestorm of protest and violence in various places around the world. Salman Rushdie, 'Controversial' writer, has been knighted by the English monarchy. Considering that he is one of the most loathed people of all time in the Muslim world, this is a very interesting turn of events in the world at large.

The man is an incredible writer and his books are absolutely amazing. Why the hatred then? 'The Satanic Verses' which was published in 1988 was banned in many countries after it was accused of mocking Muhammed('The Prophet'). Rushdie was then forced to go into hiding after a bounty was placed on his head by various groups and he is wanted dead by the Iranian government.

Its wonderful to know how very tolerant of free speech these people are that call for his death. It was also nice to see England do its own thing despite it not being so popular with certain areas. Then finally what kind of religion/culture can call themselves righteous and then want to kill someone for writing a book that they didn't agree with? How many of the protestors/clerics have read the book?

Jens Lekman(or how swedish indie was saved)

I don't know how many of you have heard of him. His name is Jens Lekman. You can buy the albums on Itunes as far as I know. Do it if you like good music with clever lyrics. I know we're known for Abba and other such schlager acts but this is absolutely amazing and I am hooked so bad that I am sitting up at 1:30 in the morning listening to the songs that some people have posted on MySpace. Jens Lekman is Amazing.

Stockholm Derby

For those of you who read this blog you know that I've been to a few of the Hammarby(A Stockholm Football club) matches this last year. It turns out that this coming tuesday is the Stockholm Derby between Djurgården IF and Hammarby IF. For anyone who understands a European rivalry, they will understand that this kind of match can deteriorate into madness and bloodshed. Hopefully that won't happen where I'm sitting on the 19 of June at Råsunda. To make matters worse Djurgården is number one in All-Svenskan and that makes this even more of an important match. Hammarby(Vi är Söder!) is going to demolish Djurgården.

Berlin, Berlin, what can I say?

I think that when travelling you can only plan so much. No matter how much you plan however, the best parts are still the random things that happen when you least expect it. An example would be the Kennedy Museum in Berlin. Its located next to the Brandenburg gate(in Pariser Platz). It turns out that the day I was there it was also JFK's ninetieth birthday. That meant free entrance and free champaigne(never one to turn down a free drink).

I think its always hard for me to travel and be around other tourists. The smiling faces at Checkpoint Charlie were hard to swallow. That people have made a conscientous decision to make money off a tragedy is a bit rough(of course this is opinion and not straight fact). But to be honest of all the cities that I've been to I would have to say that the tone and attitude in Berlin was the most amazing so far. I just wish I could speak German. Where I stayed in Kreuzberg was also incredible. The cafe's and bars. Drinking beer in the parks. A lot of memories. I will be back.

Surprise Surprise

It looked good. My health that is. My arm was out of the cast and I'd started getting it back in shape. I had a ticket to Berlin and all was well in the world. Then on friday fever, burning fever. Saturday comes and while looking in the mirror I noticed several little red dots on my body. Hmm.

Turns out I have Chicken Pox for the second time in my life. What can I say when things are good here, they're good.

Not that much going on....Honestly

Well I guess that that is really wrong. Things are happening all over the place. Everything is in bloom and green, but you don't come here for the weather. As far as musical news goes the Beastie Boys are coming to Gröna Lund(a theme park in Stockholm on the waterfront). That may well be one of the highlights of the coming summer. Otherwise I'm trying to recuperate my arm and need to start looking for a job to make some money. I need to buy a computer and hopefully have a little money for travelling this summer(late july/early august).

In other news I'm going to Berlin for five days next friday. I've only been to Frankfurt in the past and my friend in Berlin has guaranteed me that in comparison Frankfurt wasn't jack. I think I'm inclined to believe that.

The Baltic Tango (For Estonia)

There is this news item that got everyone's attention these past few days; the removal of a Russian(Soviet) war memorial in the capital of Tallinn, Estonia. Its provoked outrage and hate and by this point maybe even tears. Having lived in the Baltics for seven years I would like to say a few things about this event.

Russia is arguing that this monument represents the Russian(Soviet) soldiers who died liberating Estonia from Nazism. I'm calling bullshit on that. Russia and Germany were bedfellows before they were enemies and they'd already worked out who was going to get Estonia; and the winner would have been Russia. Russia can tell the rest of the world that they liberated Estonia from Germany, but what they don't tell you is that they didn't leave until 1991. That makes it an occupation, which is the same thing as the Nazis were up to. Yes I just compared the Nazis to the Soviets(Russians) and I'll do it again if I have to.

The next question then is who was worse? I'll go ahead and say the Soviets. In the end due to their failed communism and autocratic state, more Estonians(and Baltic people) than under German rule in World War II. Then after that there is the question of Russian people in the Baltic and their treatment. First off in most countries and Europe as well as the United States, a person isn't permitted to attain citizenship without being able to speak the language. Most Russians in the Baltics have showed a complete lack of interest in integrating in their new countries and when they were part of the Soviet Union they showed no interest at all in their new homes. The Russians that live in the Baltics were mostly imported after World War II. This is a very old trick by a conquering nation, you add your people to the country's demographics and that way prevent it from becoming a terror hot spot. Of course you have to make room for these people so you send the locals to Siberia.

In the end what really is amazing is that there are still Soviet(Russian) monuments left in the country at all. Maybe even more amazing is the Baltic peoples ability to forgive and not throw the former conquerors out of the country. If a sovereign nation wants to pull down a monument to occupation and near genocide then they have that right and the west and the Russian government have no right to say anything about it.

Because no one says it better than someone else...

A few classic lines from a classic:

A true friend stabs you in the front.

Democracy means simply the bludgeoning of the people by the people for the people.

I sometimes think that God in creating man somewhat overestimated his ability.

--Oscar Wilde

The Wednesday Warning

So with any luck the cast will be off some time next week. Stockholm is starting to bloom and everyone is out and walking about in all the latest spring fashions. Its so beautiful and all I want to do is skate and not wear this cast around. Anyway so while this cast thing has been going on, I also ran out of contacts so I've been wearing glasses for the last two weeks which I haven't done since high school. I could also use a shave really bad. As for the hair its still growing. Here's hoping I can find a job so that I can scrape up some money for travelling.


On a more serious note....I think everyone has heard the news by now. There's been a tragic event in the city of Blacksburg. I would like to offer my condolences to all the affected family and friends.

For Mr. K. Vonnegut

Some of you will know that I was very sick a few years back. That during that time there were moments when all I had left was fifty dollars in my bank account and a long drive to Jacksonville. I spent two weeks in bed reading and during that time I found something that made a difference. Thank you Mr. Vonnegut for your insights, your absurd characters, and your beautifully minimalist prose. You're one of the things that got me through that time.

To anyone reading this, if you haven't read any of Kurt Vonnegut's books then please take the time and do so. It will be worth every sentence and minute spent.

Or as he himself would say about his own life: So it goes....

A certain written word

A certain South African blogger is known for putting poetry on his blog. Usually its pretty good. I thought I'd put some on here today because there really is nothing else going on.

David Kirby is a professor at Florida State University. This is a nice verse of his.

Dead Girl Takes Packet Boat to Provincetown

Awaiting a long drawn out Spring

So with this global warming thing on the tip of every one's tongue and the back tail of every conversation, I present the city of Stockholm. A million and slightly more inhabitants, busy busy bees, moving back and forth on a daily basis. This is where the weather enters the stage right. Its been uncommonly warm and nice for an early April. Its nice and its alarming all at the same time. The weather bears striking similarities to the early trace feelings of love. The buds on the trees aren't ready to burst forth in shades of green and the flowers are a ways off. But the smell is in the air, but alas I won't be here next year.

Next year I'll be in a small university town about a half hour by train from Copenhagen. Visitors welcome. See everyone in Lund.

so a lot has happened

It turns out that the guy who's job I was covering finally got out of jail and so therefore I am now once again unemployed. Spring is here in someways. The sun is shining and its inspiring. So inspiring that I decided to go skateboarding the day after I lost the job and then proceeded to break my arm. A lot of time in the hospital and then I finally went home(no operation). Of course before passing out in bed I decided to check email and then I found out that I have been accepted to the master's programme that I had applied for.

That means that sometime in August I will migrate to southern Sweden and the city of Lund will be my new home for the next two years. Now all I need to make all this so much better is to wait four weeks for the cast to come off. The hour hand always moves slower when you're looking.

Ladiesmen and gentlewomen...Uh or uh....

This is a public service anouncement. The author Aron Hendrix, who is a.k.aed as Sven Josefson on odd days of the week, has turned 23 years old. A milestone? Hardly considering its just a day at a time with no real planning involved. An event worth celebrating? I worked the whole day and then had a beer after my shift, rode the subway home reading King Leopold's Ghost in Swedish, and now after 4 cl of Jaegermeister I'm writing this.

Andrew Bird on Sunday. Excitement is the word that best describes the feeling I have that is associated with this event.

Bob Dylan decided to do something unusual and now he's going to play three shows in Sweden. One of them at a club a block away from where I work. Of course the tickets were sold out minutes after they were available to the public. Oh well. Life goes on someone once said. I'd burn him in effigy if I knew who he was.

East vs. West

I'm stepping out on a limb here. Movies aren't to be taken to seriously is what someone has said in regard to the movie 300, which I haven't seen yet so that is the limb part of this. So its okay then to be historically inaccurate then? Its okay to portray an empire of the past as a group of warmongers and barbarians, I can't wait to see the U.S. portrayed in 200 years as a bunch of greedy racists who think of only one person me, me, me. Did I mention that the U.S. should also be portrayed as warmongers then? They always pick on smaller and weaker nations.

This concept is fairly common in the U.S. history that I have come in contact with; if the Greeks had lost then democracy would not exist. Your eyes would not be scanning these lines now. Fatalists! Ha, its nice to know that your entire existence hung on these 300 men. Otherwise you wouldn't be running the show today right? Its sad the Persians didn't win. Maybe the world would be a better place.

What is going on....

Due to a twist of fate I now have a full time job. If you happen to stop by Il Tempo Ristorante off Götgatan and order an appetizer or desert then four nights out of six I probably made it. It appears that the guy I replaced isn't leaving the Swedish penal system anytime soon.

On another event notice, and I'm sure anyone reading this is tired of these, there is a nice exhibition of Alphonsé Mucha at DansMuseet until the end of March.

Tonight on the subway I had an interesting experience. A three hundred pound Turk wanted me to try and understand how his epilepsy medication prescription worked. Once I finally convinced him that I had no idea he then proceeded to talk about football for the remaining part of the journey. Apparently this guy bets, not a lot according to the tickets he showed me, on all the Uefa cup games. He told me I should try it sometime. I think I'll spend my money on books instead. Which reminds me, I've been reading a lot of the Beat generation poetry. Highly recommended.

Derby Warning

I hope most of you reading this are aware of the recent problems concerning football in Italy. Well for those of you aren't fully aware of which games are dangerous and which ones aren't should think about this; is it a derby game or not. A derby would be a game played between two teams of the same city that are extreme rivals. Thats where the Italian(Serie A) police officer died and thats where the coach of Sevilla(La Liga) was knocked unconscious by a fan throwing an object(labeled missile by most news sources). Stockholm is also a city known for its violent derbies. Last year the derby between Hammarby and Djurgården was halted after 51 minutes of play due to fans storming the pitch and hitting a linesman in the head with a coin. So be ware of the derby! Then again Djurgården is going down this time!

Berns

Mr. Strindberg wrote a novel that deals with Berns. It so happens he wrote the Red Room(Röda Rummet) in 1879. Note to readers at this point; most of these facts are borrowed from a certain internet source for biased knowledge, otherwise known as Wikipedia so before you run off at the mouth to friends be sure to double check.

Anyway, back to the main event, Berns is still there in Berzelli Park in Stockholm. Its still a fancy get dressed up suit and tie kind of place. They also have fantastic concerts there. I saw Sufjan Stevens play there a while back. On March 27 there is a free show at Berns.
Eleni Mandell is playing. Listen to her profile songs and if I'm not working that night I'll see you there.

Working Man

Sven got a job. Hurray to working nights! Hurray to getting paid better than back in Tallahassee. This might be a shortlived hurra however seeing as how I got the job when one of the other cooks ended up in jail for two weeks(don't ask don't tell). Then today, or last night really was pay day. Everyone who works in Sweden had their checks hit their accounts last night and that means party.

When I got off at midnight the whole Slussen area was already packed. People so drunk it makes college towns look conservative. Then there was the misogynistic lover, presumably high on something that isn't green and smokable, trying to get aggressive with his girl at the station. He had her in tears and wouldn't leave. Thank God there were real men standing there making sure he kept his paws off her. Someone even offered to make sure she was home safe. All I could do was tell him to stop. I felt so ineffectual.

Working for now....

So I'm working at this place off Götgatan. It's called Il Tempo. Italian Food that is extremely high quality. The place is nice and not too big. Of course its also only a three man kitchen so the size is just right. I started on the cold side doing the starters and the desserts. Everything is made from scratch and its very tasty. The desserts are the best of any place I have been in a long time.

I got the job by leaving a resume. Then when I didn't expect to hear from them they called due to one of their employees beeing in jail on a two week stint for unknown reasons. So that makes this a temporary job seeing as how if he gets out in two weeks then I'm unemployed again. Oh well at least I get the experience, the money, and the job reference.

Moderna Museet

Once upon a time there existed, although this was immediately debated due to certain philosophers disbelieving it, a man named Pontus Hulten. He went on to be one of the most distuingished museum directors of all time until his death last year. Some of the places he has catapulted to fame are the Moderna Museet in Stockholm and the Pompidou Center in Paris. If you don't know the Pompidou center then I suggest you get in touch with the theory of architecture.

Next week at the Moderna Museet in Stockholm an exhibition is opening featuring the works of Robert Rauschenberg. If you don't know who he is then you can stop reading this now. Otherwise check out the exhibition. It starts the 17th of February and goes until the 6th of May.

Saturday night(Sunday morning)

Boredom besets me like a pack of wild hounds on a bloody fox-(Goodie Mob)

I'm still sick and even better today my voice decided that it wanted to go, so now I almost can't talk at all. Of course there was nothing on TV and the book I'm reading had reached a really high and dry point. So otherwise I'm hoping that I can find a job next week as it is time to start earning some cash for the summer and potential grad school.

I also realized that I had missed another concert when I found out that Bright Eyes is also coming in March but of course the show has long been sold out. Of course I blame no one but myself for being bored, ok maybe I'm going to blame this cold as well.

Goings ons

Bush is talking about sending more troops. Another bad idea in a six year series of terrible ideas. I know lets invade a country without UN approval and carry out our version of justice. This will of course include discrimination against anyone of middle eastern descent. Who gets hurt? Maher Arar and the fam. More great ideas from a sinking ship's captain.

I've got a cold and have spent the last two days reading the Godfather in Latvian. The FIS world cup is taking place in Åre, finally as snow held the competition back three days. Imagine that suddenly we had the problem of having to much snow.

Otherwise the job search is so so. I guess I'm upset because I haven't found a place that I would really like to work at yet. The search continues....

Football is Murder

No this isn't a new Smith's album. The Italian Football League(Serie A) and all the amateur leagues have been cancelled indefinitely. Why? Due to a police officer being killed by fan violence. I have to say that I am going to have to give a lot of respect to the leaders who made this decision. Cancelling something that is more important than God for a lot of people is a tough decision. Its hard to do the right thing often but it appears that the Italian Football Federation is doing it. Much respect to them.

Well what do you know?

So I still don't have a myspace. I don't think I will ever have one. Tonight it did make me so very happy though. I was browsing the music section looking for something new and I came upon Andrew Bird, who I've been listening to a lot lately. Then while I was listening to the songs they had available to listen to I noticed he was on tour at the moment. Turns out he's touring Europe. Turns out he's coming to Stockholm in March. Turns out that it wasn't sold out yet and now I have a ticket.

I'm still going to sulk about missing Spektor but this more than makes up for it. STHLM what can I say? Its got a nice music scene.

The Job Market Day 1

I went all over town today in search of a way of making money. I need to make some nice cash by June so I can see a little bit more of the world that is out there. I handed out my CV a couple of times and even talked to a manager who said he had a place for me in the end of February. That would be nice but its a little long to wait. So that means that tommorrow will be day 2. Other than that I snapped my skateboard in two, but of course that happens every so many months. It was nice to have the hook up on a cheap deal this time and not pay the Swedish price for a new board(100 USD or slightly less).

I've been listening to Iron and Wine, Andrew Bird, and a little of this and a little of that. Check out Architecture of Helsinki which is also not bad. Otherwise life is going on like it always does. Sometimes ups outnumber the downs, but mostly it just stays average.

Regina Spektor or why to buy tickets early....

Regina Spektor is sold out for her appearance at Berns. I am more than upset. That was the only reason I was looking forward to March. Lesson learned: buy tickets in advance when I know the show will be good. I guess I could scalp, hmm. Some loser will sell the ticket.

The wedding was nice and somehow I ended up as unofficial DJ for the evening. Al Green and Marvin Gaye it is then. Hard to choose wedding music I must admit. Couldn't play a lot of nice stuff that just didn't fit the mood or the age. In the end though I finally got in some Beatles, The Smiths, Leonard Cohen, Dylan, even Jimi Hendrix(not Hey Joe). When we were cleaning up I managed to get everyone into the Daft Punk mood and we were dancing more than cleaning. A funk band played the wedding and they were, well they were really nice.

I'm back in Stockholm and looking for a job now so that I can travel in the summer. I think that I am also looking for something in France to work so that I can surf for a while and pick up the language. It would be nice!

A wedding in January...

Its not raining outside, not right now anyway. The lack of rain does not by any means imply that the weather conditions are anywhere near ideal for a white wedding. All that was decided by the bride and groom though of course.

Sven Josefson, his street name, has chosen to write this in the third person. It isn't an ego trip or some form of randomness, it just is. His father decided to be a derrier pirate and take the digital camera with him. This means that there will be no documentation of the event as a whole. He finished East of Eden and is now hard at work on a biography of the late, great Jimi Hendrix and after that he may even tackle Garcia-Marquez autobiography. Reading is growth. Unless its Romance novels of course.

Marie Antoinette is in the mix for tommorrow. Most have said its a debacle but Sven is going to be a gonzo journalist and envestigate this one for himself. P.S. Sushi is cheap in Riga, especially if its without fish(avocado). P.S.S so is booze and tea.

Weekend Update

Despite my love for the environment and preserving it, I have decided to board a Ryanair flight Riga, Latvia on the 15th of January. An old friend is getting married and I am going to mourn with him. No, actually I'm going to party at the wedding until the sun comes up. I'll be there for a week and stay with my old partner in crime Viesturs Celmins. After that week long stunt I'll have to come back to my current dwelling place in STHLM and get a job.

I haven't heard yet from the powers that be at Lund University but then again I probably won't hear from them until April. I don't really know yet what I'll do if I don't get in. I've been thinking about living in Spain and France just to learn the languages. If anyone out there knows of any job opportunities please feel welcome to send an email or leave a comment. Thats about all thats going on.

Book recommendation of the week: Everything is Illuminated by Jonathan Safran Foer

Le Monde

The winter is hibernating this year. Santa Claus couldn't believe his eyes as he watched the glaciers he has called home break up in front of his eyes. Bears were attacking Russians in the Siberian forest when they should have been sawing logs. Skiiers are realizing that they may be practicing a dying art. Is Holland worried their entire country may be lost to the sea again?

This is not the climax of our story. We have discovered on the other hand that there are no heroes. This may be upsetting at first but truthful none the less. The climax is still a few years off. It involves soaring water prices and petty conflicts that can be traced back to nationalism. Blame the West. Blame the White man. Everyone else still has a choice though. What is really true of our new century is that we are in the middle of a giant storm. This isn't a new development, the world has always been a storm.

What we are learning slowly and painfully is that there is no captain at the helm and all the officers are children wearing the costumes of adults and using their language.

Strindberg, Riga, and 2007

The fireworks are dying down and the holidays are officially over. Things fell through with the ski-resort plan. Instead I have a ticket to Riga, Latvia for the 15th of January to hang out with some friends and go to a wedding. I might go back down to Copenhagen next week as well. Its a possibility. Upon returning from Riga I will be re-entering the job market. That probably means I'll be cooking again. C'est la vie.

I am looking forward to the summer though and seeing some new places. Spain, Portugal, and Morrocco are all on the Menu as of this posting. Instead of drinking in a bar for New Years I just took shots with strangers on the Metro ride home, thanfully they were in possesion of a bottle of Tequila. Here's a quote from Strindberg, if you have no clue then wikipedia him.

“People are constantly clamoring for the joy of life. As for me, I find the joy of life in the hard and cruel battle of life - to learn something is a joy to me.” -August Strindberg

After the Flood

December the 25th came and went and we were never given the snow we'd been promised by the meterological gods of the local television station. Perhaps what was needed was a blood sacrifice but that just isn't my style so we'll keep the clouds and the heat(meaning that its not freezing). I've been reading, because I want to and because I've been sick, and would have to recommend H. G. Well's classic The Invisible Man. If you like dark and dreary, fitting for the weather, then read it.

In other news a family friend named Ilya is visiting Stockholm as he is on break from the tyranny of Bible School(Joking!) There is a hockey match tommorrow at Globen so we're all set to check out that. Djurgården vs. Luleå. I don't like either team but its hockey.

New Years plans? Hmm. Find a busy bar with a nice female to male ratio and look for the tequila. Sounds nice.

sometime somewhere

This beast is awake and roaming the landscape. Thank you for driving carbon emiting vehicles and keeping the animals of the north from hibernating. Your planet would like to thank the major car corporations, governments, and other individuals who are exploiting our planetary resources.

Anyway Stockholm is cold but you didn't come here for the weather. I will be in Riga, Latvia this coming January for the wedding of a friend/pastor. It is always amazing to go back there and see friends and how much is changing so fast. It seems that I have a job after New Year that will involve me beeing far from Stockholm and up north. Details to follow at a further date. Otherwise I'll probably be making Italian food in some kitchen in downtown Stockholm which isn't a bad option either. By the way it is Christmas time in case anyone was unaware. I won't hear if I get into Lund until April so that is still quite a ways off. The truth is it isn't in my hands anymore.

Other news? Brother comes tommorrow to visit for a week or two. Beer and wildness to follow....

Agent Orange still around

Another round of applause for the imperialist powers that be in DC.

Watch this and be proud if you're from there

All this by the way for no good reason at all.

Red Hot Monday

Monday, Monday, Monday

Tonight was the first night of the back-to-back Chili Pepper's concerts at Globen. If it wasn't sold out then it was only a few seats from being there. I, of course, waited until all the good seats had been taken and was therefore forced to deal with pubescent teens who had to get up and move out of the aisle every other song, trying to get my original seat from these same teens, and also a drunk who was dancing uncontrollably with a beer in his hand all over our section. Due to his aforementioned dancing the beer was quickly appearing on the clothes of those in his way. He also tried to pour said beer on a man dressed in black with a metallica t-shirt and stereotypical long rocker hair, sad to say the man in black wasn't having it.

The RHCP themselves? Absolutely animatedly awesomely amazing. Something like that, if you get to see them live then pay whatever it costs and enjoy an amazing show. If anything watching Flea play bass is an experience in itself. Kiedis jumping around was amazing enough besides having what is the best voice in rock music today, and for the past twenty years I might add. Bottom line....See them Live! No I didn't take any pictures, I go to concerts to enjoy music not to show my friends what the artists look like on stage.

December

Stockholm is officially dark now. Everyday it feels like precious minutes are vanishing into the impending winter darkness that is enveloping the land. I like it. This means that summer days will be twice as long.

I just bought my ticket for the Red Hot Chili Peppers concert in Globen on the 11th of December. They are playing back to back shows at Globen and I think by showtime both of these dates will be sold out. Stoked is the right word if I was trying to describe my feeling about the coming show.

A while back(a week or so actually) I was on the road(or the rails) in Scandinavia in search of adventure and some of that adventure was staying in a hostel that was actually an old train car. This is what it looks like when your roomate uses the mirrors for fun.