The Year In Review 2009, part 2. My personal year of 2009

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For the sixth consecutive year, it is now time for my Year In Review. A former can be found here on the blog, the former is actually available on Lunarstorm, for those of you who have it. That was where I published it sooner.

This year, however, chronicle divided into two parts. The first part came yesterday, with news and stuff like a normal chronicle usually have. Here is now my own, personal instead.

Contents

  • My 2009
  • Some photos
  • My guesses about 2009 - how did they go?
  • My guesses of 2010




Whoa, where do I begin. It has happened a lot this year, but I will go through it chronologically, I think.

The year started with that I was to finish my studies in journalism at Gothenburg University. Elin and I were doing our final project about Iceland which we had begun with in the fall. We completed it with editing, reviews, and everything that should be done. I was very pleased with our results, and I think that Elin was also.
Then we would read the work of others, and after tough audits and reviews of everyone's work it was over. My studies in journalism college were over, and I got my Bachelor's degree. But most of all: I was finished. What should I do now?

I had already registerd for a class in International Relations. I had planned to do it just to have something to do while I was looking for something else. It was quite interesting to read, but a lot more studying than what it had been in the past few years on the journalism education.

However, I met many great new friends there. Hung out with Johan and Dominik. But above all, I got a good friend who meant a lot to me in the spring. She wants to be known as "Stabben". She lived just one bus stop from me so we met many times and watched movies and studied. But even more contact we kept through MSN actually. We sat and watched the same television programs throughout the afternoon and commented on them. Then we sat up half the night and discussed everything and nothing. We often got very crazy and totally fuzzy. We had a lot of fun.

Me, Katta, Carro and Linda went on roadtrip up to Umeå to visit Andreas. It was a long way to drive, but we had great fun. "Wheeeere’s the soap, grandpa?"

Eearly in the spring we began to campaign for the European elections. In The Moderate Youth Leauge in Gothenburg we did campaign a lot and it was very intense until the elections in June. There was much to do, but lots of fun. Made many new friends there as well, and met most of the candidates for EU Parliament also. But it also felt somehow just as a warm-up before the "real" election that will be in 2010.

The summer I worked on Hallandsposten. Had hoped to work as a reporter but it became editor again. Had lots of fun, however, especially with so many lovely co-workers. Quite a few woolly days and nights with Thomas, Maria, Dalila, Hanna, the photographers and everyone else. I just have to to say character crackers, Brüno, snails and hedgehogs. Okay, the rest of you won’t udnerstand waht I'm talking about, but it makes enough sense for those at “the daycare center” :)

During spring and summer, I had more and more abandoned the idea of finding a job and was instead more focused on doing what I have always wanted to do: go to America and study. In the spring I checked through several options. Katy who I met in the U.S. in 2008 helped me to look up possibilities for studying at Oklahoma University (Sooners!) But I also checked other other things. Daniel would go to Washington with an organization called IBS. I checked them up and saw that they had journalism studies in California. That’s not too bad, I thought. So I applied. And I came in! Was very pleased with this.

During spring and summer it was a lot to prepare for my move to Santa Barbara. This meant the application for a visa, applying for money from the government, go to the American Embassy in Stockholm and get the visa, buy new bags, clothes and lots more.

Then came at last August, and I was to move to the U.S. to study. My dream had come true! It would be absolutely fantastic, I had imagined. And it really has.

Much of what has happened, I have written in the blog already, so I do not take up everything. But some of it are still here.

When I flew to the U.S., it was a lot of stress and hassle, but I got there. In my house waited three Swedes who I came to live with in the fall: Jocke, Andreas and Emil. We have worked out very well together, and had great fun, lots of nice partying and together taught us about the life in Santa Barbara.

We quickly learned to know the other Swedes who were there. Partly because IBS arranged meetings for us Swedes, but also because it was most Swedes in SB at the time. The Americans were still on summer holiday at the beginning, so it was easy to get in contact with Swedes.

Two Americans moved into our house. Our house, I can mention, it has sucked. Flood, mold, rats, non-functioning washing machine / TV / internet are just some of the problems we had. And the area has not been any nice either.

But otherwise, I am as happy as anyone can be. I like everything else, the weather, the city, the country, the school, the education, the college life, the people.
The weather!
Six days in total as it has been raining during the time I was there, the rest have been sunny. In the beginning we were on the beach all the time, but then came the school to take more and more time.
The city!
Santa Barbara is a small town the size of Halmstad, but with more fun stuff to do. And you can sunbathe, swim, shop and do a lot of other things. One can also bike or walk wherever you want to go, it is good. I also usually a few times a week am out running along the beach at sunset. A fantastic feeling and something I had imagined before I came here. And it is as wonderful as I thought.
The country!
It is really cool to live in California and the United States. Much is different, but most are good. Fun to talk English, too.
The school!
An incredibly beautiful located school (even if the hill is tough to climb) and good class rooms for the most part and very good staff. The cafeteria is also good.
The education!
Although I have a bachelor's degree in journalism, I have learned an awful lot during the first semester, which is a very good grade for the school. We have had very good teachers, fun assignments, good standards for ourselves and not too much to study. There have been many hand-in-ssignments, but not so much to sit down and plow through thick books, which I know some others have had.
In the Photo Journalism class, there are two cool things that I particularly liked. Once we were at the fire department’s training facilities where they set things on fire, drove the fire truck, went into buldings woth smoke divers and such, just because we would have to take pictures. And we also had a police officer visiting us and showed his weapon and made an arrest - just because we would have to take pictures.
At the journalism class it was the most fun to follow the mayoral election in November. We had to go around to the various victory celebrations / moarning parties and talking with old and new mayor, and those who have been elected to the City Council.
College Life!
It's amazing to live college life, and what is almost cooler is that most of it are actually like in college films, especially parties. People are drinking from red plastic cups, there are beer kegs, good looking people and a awesome atmosphere.
Halloween must be experienced in the U.S.! Several days of celebration where everyone is dressed up, and as different things every day. It was really fun that everyone really went in to get a great costume. I myself was ninja and Raphael from Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles.
The people!
There are so many wonderful people everywhere in Santa Barbara. I've got so many friends and many very close friends. It is never boring. In the beginning it was mostly Swedish I was hanging with. Maria  and Maria as I had most of the classes with, and Steffi, and the other girls from their houses. Johanna and the other from Chapala has been very cool to hang with. The lovely guys from Victoria (where I moved last week before I went home!) and so crazy people on Garden: P
As the fall continued, I began to socialize more and more with Americans. Above all, I would like to thank Cecily, Lauren and Elyse for everything this fall, and I hope we will have as much fun for spring.

The year ended with the guys I moved in with (plus/minus a few) went to Los Angeles for a few days before we went home for Christmas holidays. Christmas in Sweden (with snow!) I celebrated in Getinge with my parents. Days before and after, I have been around like a scalded rat to meet so many friends I can during the weeks I'm here. It's been stressful, but great fun to see people again. However, I long back to Santa Barbara.

This year I have also been good at blogging. This fall, I have written quite a lot in the blog. Want to thank all my readers for this year, and hope that you continue to follow my adventures even in 2010t. It's also fun to get comments, and it's great that you both commented on the blog, on Facebook or directly to me on msn.

The year has given me an enormous amount of experience, new learnings, new friends and a good life. 2009 has probably been my best year so far.

 

Some photos from this year

 

Graduation from the School of Journalism in Gothenburg in January


The gang up in Umeå in april


Swedish Prime Minister Fredrik Reinfeldt and me during the election to European Parliament in June


Easter party at Carro's



Sunset in Santa Barbara



Beachvolely at the beach in Santa Barbara



The beach in Carpinteria



The Swedes from our house at a Halloween party



Me at Halloween as Raphael



Fire fighter, the photo is taken during a class in photo journalism



Me at the beach

 


My guesses about 2009


From last year's chronicle

  • Victoria and Daniel gets engaged, maybe even get married.

Hah! It was precisely so! They got engaged. Am I awesome or am I awesome?

  • The Sweden Democrats may (unfortunately) win a couple of seats in the European Parliament elections

Ok, there ends my awesomeness. No Sweden Democrats in the EU, however, the Pirate Party.

  • Obama makes a good first year as president

To win the Nobel Peace Prize is pretty good. He decided on the closure of Guantanamo and commenced its work on his health care reform. Hard to say if he had a good year, probably too early to say.

  • Måns Zelmerlöv wins Melodifestivalen

Nope, Malena Ernman did.

  • Swedish election campaign kicks off in 2009 and there will be many political duels (and disgrace) in the fall.

Politics-talk is it all the time. Have not known of the Swedish election-temperature when I was over there.

  • During the Swedish Presidency of the EU, it will be a few protests, but not so as in Gothenburg in 2001.

The protests came in Copenhagen during the climate summit instead

  • I'm moving.

I did

  • HBK wins the national championships in soccer!

It was not really so, unfortunately.



Okay, I sucked on the guesses.

But I will not give up. Here are my guesses for 2010:

 

Guesses about 2010

  • Sweden fails in Olympic hockey, but good in many other sports in the Olympics
  • I will get a great job this summer
  • The liberal-conservative alliance wins the Swedish election, but must enlist the help of the Green Party to gain a majority.
  • During the World Cup in South Africa is an attack of any kind
  • I will win a lot of money in Las Vegas
  • New York Rangers win the Stanley Cup!
  • Anna Anka gets her own talk show
  • Arnold Schwarzenegger says he wants to run for president in 2012



That's it for this year. Hope you have a good time tonight with straight, good food, drink, dance, singing and everything else you might find. We hear 2010!