I moved into the apartment a couple of days ago, and I have a luxury problem..it's too hot in the apartment, and I don't understand how I can adjust the heat (gas heating)..Ive pretty much pushed all the buttons that I can push, but it still heats up like crazy,,,so I wander around in the apartment in shorts..other than that, Im looking for someone to take over the apartment so that I can get my deposit back,,its at ground level, and close to the traffic..I've always said that I don't mind noise, but maybe that's because I've only lived in quiet areas...or maybe I'm getting old :-S .....


I have no plans on cooking that much (or at all), yet I still want an apartment with a nice and Fresh-lookin' kitchen...two days ago I looked at the refrigerator and thought: "hey, I don't have anything in there" (no exaggeration, I really have NOTHING in there) so I pulled out the plug (electricity)..no reason for why I should waste electricity on an empty fridge, right? During the weekdays I eat breakfast, lunch and dinner at work...thank God ...or google...for free food, cause I would'nt be able to have a balanced diet otherwise...during the weekends I eat out, or buy takout...:-



When I come too late for breakfast I try to grab sometime healthy from the mini kitchens...so far, not too many chocolate bars have been grabbed....


I swear, the kitchen is dangerous..dangerously filled with calorie-bombs...:-s


Weekend food... =P...yeah, I have no"wifey-skills" people,..=P

The Serenity Prayer

God, grant me the serenity
to accept the things I cannot change;
the courage to change the things I can;
and wisdom to know the difference.

Amen!
..

cheers, y'all.. (that's not part of the prayer, by the way=P)

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Too tired to type..but have been asked to post pics at least..so here's a few..kinda random pictures... =)

I'm in love with these Georgian apartment doors!.

Aaaand your neighbourrr iiiiis......the CHURCH!!! =P

...........Carefully explained...just in case you don't get it...."wait" and "do not start to cross".........really..?....seriously? lol!

The graduation outfit...cap and "gown"..

Google Mi.

Sometimes in life I guess you have to take one step back in order to move forward....sometimes..., taking several steps back can make it easier to take giant leaps forward. At this point of my life,I believe I've taken two steps back...one step back for a decrease in salary, and one step back due to greater distance between my boyfriend and I- geographically, that is, not otherwise =)

Based on conversations I've had with people regarding my employment at Google, there seems to be a great misconception of what the job offers in terms of salary. Let me clarify by saying that: I'm not going to be filthy rich off of this salary..=P Had money been my number one priority, I would sure as hell not have left oil-country-Norway ;-) I do, however, believe that there's more to learn from Google than many other companies.....do I really need to elaborate the reason as to why I believe so? ;-)

First day of work...or "Noogler week", as they so nicely call it, was good. I felt like I was back in school,..and that's a good sign,..it means that I'll be learning a lot.

(* YAh, I had to laugh when I saw these pictures =P)

Hours were spent on listening to what the company has to offer in terms of benefits and perks..pension plans were carefully presented, funds, stocks, health care, insurance...etc. Laptops were given out, and THANK GOD I got a mac ;-)



...Tours were given around the site,..there was a whole lot of handshaking going on..So far, I gotta admit that I love the free stuff..stuff that you spend money on everyday, that doesn't seem like a lot of money there and then, but adds up to be quite a lot..coffee, tea, snacks- chocolate bars, nuts, granola bars, all kinds of juice, and sodas...in every corner of every office floor there is a "mini kitchen"...more like, a kiosk if you ask me,,...where everything is free...I get what they mean when they talk about the famous google-pounds that many gain in the beginning of their employment,,,good thing the gym is free too then ;-)


With every great opportunity comes even greater risks or sacrifices...I try my best to look at the big picture, and I think about the long-term effects/consequences of my choices.....not until recently (this morning, when my boyfriend left to go back home to Oslo) did I realize how incredibly hard this journey is going to be...and I gotta admit that I sobbed when I went back to the empty hotel room after work :-/ ....I'm in it for the experience, and the opportunity to grow..career-wise---personal development and all that cliché stuff....(cliché, but true)....it's going to be hard..but, hey, you can't get stronger if you're only lifting light weights, right?....I'm glad that my boyfriend is who he is..and I wouldn't be with him otherwise <3

If home is where your loved ones are,,,if home is where the heart is..then my heart is in Oslo..but, for now...my job is in Dublin...=)

Status Quo

..Ah, Now I remember why I deleted my other blog; I rarely update! =P...I keep a diary, so whenever I feel the need to write something down I do it there....that's probably why I don't really update this blog. But, several months has passed since last time, so I guess it wouldn't hurt to jot down some words.

- Right now I've got Yann Tiersen's "Comptine d'un été" on replay on my iPod (if you haven't heard it then you definitely need to check it out=)) ,,,so let's see if I can be inspired to write something worth reading..-

Contrary to other blogs I've read recently I'm not going to start this blog-update by typing: "sorry for not updating, I have been soooo busy lately..."..I won't do that, first of all because I don't know who I would apologizing to- meaning I don't know who my readers are (except from the three who follows this blog, lol)..and second of all, I haven't been busy at all...lol!

Ever since the master thesis was handed in, I have done nothing else than applied for jobs. The process so far has been interesting..in the beginning I was restless,,I wanted a job, and I wanted it ASAP! The days were boring and fairly unproductive..besides from one unfinished painting, and one ring that I made for my sister (I love arts and crafts, I only wish it wasn't so expensive to buy all the little things you need to make the stuff you wanna make..) I haven't really "produced" anything..Im used to going to school..having to "produce" a term-paper, a presentation...anything..or at least go to work and make money...so unemployment has been a bit of a journey, I guess you could say. Since September I sent out about three applications every week,,some I didn't hear from, and from others I received e-mails with a polite rejection, or even a harsh one where the title of their e-mail was "Rejection of your application",,,,how mean is that..at least give me some time to get excited about even getting a reply by mail before shutting me down completely =P

One of the first big interviews I landed was with Orkla (http://www.orkla.com/eway/default.aspx?pid=243) , I was told that the interview would last for three hours, and right away I knew that I had to be prepared for a case or two. Long story short, I didn't get the job, but I left with one heck of an experience. Convincing men in dark suits is fun....the harder it is to get a job, the more interesting and intriguing it is to me. I need a sense of accomplishment, and I won't get that if I get the job after only one interview...the longer and harder the process, the better,,,,I know, I'm crazy,,,but I need a sense of confirmation that I'm getting the job because they need someone like ME, with my type of background and experience...and not just because I was available and could fill a position right away..I want to get into companies that "play hard to get" I guess you could say,,,,it makes the chase and the price (getting the job) so much more fun...

After NOT getting the job at Orkla, I moved on..I knew that I wasn't going to get called in for a second interview the minute Ieft the interview room...the position just wasn't for me....too many numbers involved.. too much math,,,,so, I wasn't sad when I got the feedback, just glad and flattered to be called in to one of the biggest companies in Norway..=)

I was called in to other interviews..mainly positions related to HR and recruitment,,but after Orkla's 3-hour interview, other interviews that "only" lasted for 45-60 minutes were just not interesting. Call me judgemental, but one of the interviewers I met ,for a position as a recruitment agent, was dressed in a black leather dress, and leather boots that reached her thighs,,,she had a faux tan, too much make-up on, her hair was blonde, but not natural, and she had silver-looking lipgloss on...it was my second interview for this position, and this lady held a higher position than the first guy I met,,,yet, I had a hard time taking her seriously,,,I dont know, maybe I was too used to seeing people in boring dark suits..something about her just made me cringe,,,some of the words she used also made me take her less seriously...I got an offer from that company, and declined...and guess what? It felt good to be able to decline a job-offer=)...I am not a job-beggar, I'm a resource broker, darn it! =) (or at least that's what Richard N. Bolles says, lol).

Besides from applying for jobs, I've learned to enjoy doing very little. Unlike many people, who take a year off after high school to travel, or just to take a break from school, I went straight to college. It's weird to think that I've gone to school since I was 7 years old...and every summer since I was 6 I spent one month of my summer vacation at a summer school where they taught Vietnamese...I hated it back then, but looking back at it now, I'm glad my parents forced me to go. Anyhow,,,unemployment has been somewhat relaxing..,,to begin with I was so bored..I imagined that this was how maternity leave would be..,,staying at home, cleaning the house, and taking care of your baby....I would go nuts ( Im not ready to be a mom, as you can see =P),,,,but, recently Ive started to enjoy being unemployed..mainly because Ive landed a temporary job ( that doesn't start until Nov 11th),,,but also because this is a good time to take a breather...=)...I will be working until Im 65 (isn't that the retirement age in NOrway?) so a little break from serious work can't do any harm...In addition to the temp work, I've been contacted by a recruiter from a big company...Im not going to say the company name, though,,,,,not yet..because I haven't gotten the job yet, and I'm so competitive that I think I would feel embarrassed if I revealed the company and didn't get the job at the end,,,it would feel like a loss...a public loss...there are a few who know that Im in an interview process with this company..and, I'll leave it like that for now..if I get the job, I'll announce it on my next blog-update,,if not, I fear it may take some time before there'll be another update...because Im sooo busy you know =P....


Until next time :-)