next month will be a good one.

not that this one ain’t. On the contrary things are already looking up. but the time they are a-changing and the grass is always greener on the other side so here’s to a speedy end for the month so we can plunge head-first and really put the fest into the festive period.

ok that was an atrocious expression, so shoot me.

the end is near. soon to be unleashed upon the civilian world again, I’m sure that I speak for most of us when I say that its not gonna be easy. Readjusting to freedom sounds like a fairly simple affair but actually it isn’t.

Having had little responsibility and duties during our NS stint means makes it that much harder for us to readjust. Suddenly out of a job and having too much time can be quite surreal. Like the split second after you jam your toe against the bed, there’s a moment of numbness when you wonder what’s going on before the pain hits and you go oh $%#@.

Its quite likely that the hole in our wallets will hit home sooner rather than later, ensuring that some balance is restored to our excess free time i.e we will have to seek employment soon.

i’m actually anticipating december much more than the big O. with it comes the end of the year, and wayyy more joy and fun than anytime else in the year. as usual, i’ve got a few unfinished projects sitting on my table yet I go ahead and look for more, what’s new.

its been good, and i’m quite sure it gets better. never felt this good in ages. maybe i’m living vicariously through you, but our goals are one and the same. too bad there’s no way to bend space/time if not life would take many steps in a happier direction.

hell week is soon to be over, once next week comes who knows the extent of freedom and joy that will come. perhaps I exaggerate a little, perhaps not. just know that good things are worth waiting for

who knew a library could be so interesting. normally you can’t wait to get outta the place when on a school-sanctioned field trip, but its pretty funky when you’re there with purpose.

so help me now, help me to help you. great times await

the extract below taken from

http://leishacamden.blogspot.com

Not that it matters ...

Or does it?
This is a story from the Norwegian newspaper VG, the biggest newspaper in the country, from today's edition. Not that these things matter in today's dog-eat-dog world, but I found it quite touching, and I want to share.
Clarification for the literally minded: I do think these things matter, but I'm sure many will say that they don't. Anecdotal evidence, just a sappy human interest story, bla bla. Whatever. I think that this is a story that some may be interested in hearing. If you're not interested, cork it. I've translated the story into English and am posting it here. The original, in Norwegian, is here.
I'll be cross-posting this to the BookCrossing forum, since I'm sure there are some members there who will appreciate reading it.
I'm sorry about the annoyingly sappy language - this is a speculative tabloid so that's just how all their articles are.

Mary lacked money to fly home to Norway – he saved her love
ÅSGÅRDSTRAND (VG): Mary was a newlywed and ready to move to Norway, but was stopped at the airport because she didn’t have enough money for the trip. Then a stranger turned up and paid for her.

Mary Menth Andersen was 31 years old at the time and had just married Norwegian Dag Andersen. She was looking forward to starting a new life in Åsgårdstrand in Vestfold with him. But first she had to get all of her belongings across to Norway. The date was November 2nd, 1988.
At the airport in Miami things were hectic as usual, with long lines at the check-in counters. When it was finally Mary’s turn and she had placed her luggage on the baggage line, she got the message that would crush her bubbling feeling of happiness.
-You’ll have to pay a 103 dollar surcharge if you want to bring both those suitcases to Norway, the man behind the counter said.
Mary had no money. Her new husband had travelled ahead of her to Norway, and she had no one else to call.
-I was completely desperate and tried to think which of my things I could manage without. But I had already made such a careful selection of my most prized possessions, says Mary.
Although she explained the situation to the man behind the counter, he showed no signs of mercy.
-I started to cry, tears were pouring down my face and I had no idea what to do. Then I heard a gentle and friendly voice behind me saying, That’s OK, I’ll pay for her.
Mary turned around to see a tall man whom she had never seen before.
-He had a gentle and kind voice that was still firm and decisive. The first thing I thought was, Who is this man?
Although this happened 20 years ago, Mary still remembers the authority that radiated from the man.
-He was nicely dressed, fashionably dressed with brown leather shoes, a cotton shirt open at the throat and khaki pants, says Mary.
She was thrilled to be able to bring both her suitcases to Norway and assured the stranger that he would get his money back. The man wrote his name and address on a piece of paper that he gave to Mary. She thanked him repeatedly. When she finally walked off towards the security checkpoint, he waved goodbye to her.
The piece of paper said ‘Barack Obama’ and his address in Kansas, which is the state where his mother comes from. Mary carried the slip of paper around in her wallet for years, before it was thrown out.
-He was my knight in shining armor, says Mary, smiling.
She paid the 103 dollars back to Obama the day after she arrived in Norway. At that time he had just finished his job as a poorly paid community worker* in Chicago, and had started his law studies at prestigious Harvard university.
In the spring of 2006 Mary’s parents had heard that Obama was considering a run for president, but that he had still not decided. They chose to write a letter in which they told him that he would receive their votes. At the same time, they thanked Obama for helping their daughter 18 years earlier.
In a letter to Mary’s parents dated May 4th, 2006 and stamped ‘United States Senate, Washington DC’, Barack Obama writes**:
‘I want to thank you for the lovely things you wrote about me and for reminding me of what happened at Miami airport. I’m happy I could help back then, and I’m delighted to hear that your daughter is happy in Norway. Please send her my best wishes. Sincerely, Barack Obama, United States senator’.
The parents sent the letter on to Mary.
This week VG met her and her husband in the café that she runs with her friend Lisbeth Tollefsrud in Åsgårdstrand.
-It’s amazing to think that the man who helped me 20 years ago may now become the next US president, says Mary delightedly.
She has already voted for Obama. She recently donated 100 dollars to his campaign.
She often tells the story from Miami airport, both when race issues are raised and when the conversation turns to the presidential elections.
-I sincerely hope the Americans will see reason and understand that Obama means change, says Mary.
*Not at all sure about this part of the translation. The Norwegian word used is 'miljøarbeider', I don't know what the exact English word for that is or even if there is one, and I don't know enough about Obama to say what job of his they're talking about.
**This is my translation of the reporter's translation of the letter. From English to Norwegian and back to English. So obviously it is not correct word for word.
And here she is with her husband and the letter.

every day brings me closer to the end of full-time service, no prizes for guessing that my mood improves by the day, my outlook on life gets brighter and i harbour more hope for the world. ok that may be stretching it a lil bit but you get the general idea.

yup thats it. wait. you were expecting more? like how much more? more lengthy exposition on impending civilian-hood would most certainly be quite boring. an indepth discussion of social issues would be uncalled for and unlikely seeing that I haven’t really been thinking much lately. a recollection of recent exploits and happenings would be sorely lacking visually due to a lack of pictures, so that will have to wait till I acquire a decent camera

next month will be a good one.

not that this one ain’t. On the contrary things are already looking up. but the time they are a-changing and the grass is always greener on the other side so here’s to a speedy end for the month so we can plunge head-first and really put the fest into the festive period.

ok that was an atrocious expression, so shoot me.

the end is near. soon to be unleashed upon the civilian world again, I’m sure that I speak for most of us when I say that its not gonna be easy. Readjusting to freedom sounds like a fairly simple affair but actually it isn’t.

Having had little responsibility and duties during our NS stint means makes it that much harder for us to readjust. Suddenly out of a job and having too much time can be quite surreal. Like the split second after you jam your toe against the bed, there’s a moment of numbness when you wonder what’s going on before the pain hits and you go oh $%#@.

Its quite likely that the hole in our wallets will hit home sooner rather than later, ensuring that some balance is restored to our excess free time i.e we will have to seek employment soon.

i’m actually anticipating december much more than the big O. with it comes the end of the year, and wayyy more joy and fun than anytime else in the year. as usual, i’ve got a few unfinished projects sitting on my table yet I go ahead and look for more, what’s new.

its been good, and i’m quite sure it gets better. never felt this good in ages. maybe i’m living vicariously through you, but our goals are one and the same. too bad there’s no way to bend space/time if not life would take many steps in a happier direction.

hell week is soon to be over, once next week comes who knows the extent of freedom and joy that will come. perhaps I exaggerate a little, perhaps not. just know that good things are worth waiting for

who knew a library could be so interesting. normally you can’t wait to get outta the place when on a school-sanctioned field trip, but its pretty funky when you’re there with purpose.

so help me now, help me to help you. great times await

the extract below taken from

http://leishacamden.blogspot.com

Not that it matters ...

Or does it?
This is a story from the Norwegian newspaper VG, the biggest newspaper in the country, from today's edition. Not that these things matter in today's dog-eat-dog world, but I found it quite touching, and I want to share.
Clarification for the literally minded: I do think these things matter, but I'm sure many will say that they don't. Anecdotal evidence, just a sappy human interest story, bla bla. Whatever. I think that this is a story that some may be interested in hearing. If you're not interested, cork it. I've translated the story into English and am posting it here. The original, in Norwegian, is here.
I'll be cross-posting this to the BookCrossing forum, since I'm sure there are some members there who will appreciate reading it.
I'm sorry about the annoyingly sappy language - this is a speculative tabloid so that's just how all their articles are.

Mary lacked money to fly home to Norway – he saved her love
ÅSGÅRDSTRAND (VG): Mary was a newlywed and ready to move to Norway, but was stopped at the airport because she didn’t have enough money for the trip. Then a stranger turned up and paid for her.

Mary Menth Andersen was 31 years old at the time and had just married Norwegian Dag Andersen. She was looking forward to starting a new life in Åsgårdstrand in Vestfold with him. But first she had to get all of her belongings across to Norway. The date was November 2nd, 1988.
At the airport in Miami things were hectic as usual, with long lines at the check-in counters. When it was finally Mary’s turn and she had placed her luggage on the baggage line, she got the message that would crush her bubbling feeling of happiness.
-You’ll have to pay a 103 dollar surcharge if you want to bring both those suitcases to Norway, the man behind the counter said.
Mary had no money. Her new husband had travelled ahead of her to Norway, and she had no one else to call.
-I was completely desperate and tried to think which of my things I could manage without. But I had already made such a careful selection of my most prized possessions, says Mary.
Although she explained the situation to the man behind the counter, he showed no signs of mercy.
-I started to cry, tears were pouring down my face and I had no idea what to do. Then I heard a gentle and friendly voice behind me saying, That’s OK, I’ll pay for her.
Mary turned around to see a tall man whom she had never seen before.
-He had a gentle and kind voice that was still firm and decisive. The first thing I thought was, Who is this man?
Although this happened 20 years ago, Mary still remembers the authority that radiated from the man.
-He was nicely dressed, fashionably dressed with brown leather shoes, a cotton shirt open at the throat and khaki pants, says Mary.
She was thrilled to be able to bring both her suitcases to Norway and assured the stranger that he would get his money back. The man wrote his name and address on a piece of paper that he gave to Mary. She thanked him repeatedly. When she finally walked off towards the security checkpoint, he waved goodbye to her.
The piece of paper said ‘Barack Obama’ and his address in Kansas, which is the state where his mother comes from. Mary carried the slip of paper around in her wallet for years, before it was thrown out.
-He was my knight in shining armor, says Mary, smiling.
She paid the 103 dollars back to Obama the day after she arrived in Norway. At that time he had just finished his job as a poorly paid community worker* in Chicago, and had started his law studies at prestigious Harvard university.
In the spring of 2006 Mary’s parents had heard that Obama was considering a run for president, but that he had still not decided. They chose to write a letter in which they told him that he would receive their votes. At the same time, they thanked Obama for helping their daughter 18 years earlier.
In a letter to Mary’s parents dated May 4th, 2006 and stamped ‘United States Senate, Washington DC’, Barack Obama writes**:
‘I want to thank you for the lovely things you wrote about me and for reminding me of what happened at Miami airport. I’m happy I could help back then, and I’m delighted to hear that your daughter is happy in Norway. Please send her my best wishes. Sincerely, Barack Obama, United States senator’.
The parents sent the letter on to Mary.
This week VG met her and her husband in the café that she runs with her friend Lisbeth Tollefsrud in Åsgårdstrand.
-It’s amazing to think that the man who helped me 20 years ago may now become the next US president, says Mary delightedly.
She has already voted for Obama. She recently donated 100 dollars to his campaign.
She often tells the story from Miami airport, both when race issues are raised and when the conversation turns to the presidential elections.
-I sincerely hope the Americans will see reason and understand that Obama means change, says Mary.
*Not at all sure about this part of the translation. The Norwegian word used is 'miljøarbeider', I don't know what the exact English word for that is or even if there is one, and I don't know enough about Obama to say what job of his they're talking about.
**This is my translation of the reporter's translation of the letter. From English to Norwegian and back to English. So obviously it is not correct word for word.
And here she is with her husband and the letter.

every day brings me closer to the end of full-time service, no prizes for guessing that my mood improves by the day, my outlook on life gets brighter and i harbour more hope for the world. ok that may be stretching it a lil bit but you get the general idea.

yup thats it. wait. you were expecting more? like how much more? more lengthy exposition on impending civilian-hood would most certainly be quite boring. an indepth discussion of social issues would be uncalled for and unlikely seeing that I haven’t really been thinking much lately. a recollection of recent exploits and happenings would be sorely lacking visually due to a lack of pictures, so that will have to wait till I acquire a decent camera