Happy New Year!!

"Yesterday is history. Tomorrow is a mystery. Today is a gift, that's why it's called the PRESENT" =))) Kung Fu Panda 

Another year has passed. New adventures have been experienced! New people have entered my life....a few have exited. Seasons have come and gone! .....but I am still here.....in Switzerland, a little less lost ;)), looking back at 2010 and at the same time very much looking forward to 2011!

Just like last year, I will openly reflect a bit on the biggest highlights in my life during 2010 and at the same time mention some of my hopes and ambitions for 2011.

Feelings

2010  Very happy and in love! Having improved my physical condition in record speed (for those who didn't know, I had quite a bad issue with my back and had frequent Lumbagos). My doctor told me I have excellent health and values. A great year!!

2011  I hope to stay like now - happy, in love ♥, satisfied and with a great curiosity about the future.

Holidays

2010   Due to a very hectic year at work, I didn't have as many long holidays this year as I had originally planned, but at least I finally got to go to NEW YORK. Then we also went to Paris, Como (IT) and Sweden.

2011  Will start the year by going to the Dominican Republic for 2 weeks. In February, I will have one week of holiday here in Switzerland as I'm having veeeeery lovely visitors coming
here. We also have a long weekend booked to go to Rome in April. Sweden is on the list as well for this year.....and then, let's see if we have any more time ;)

Shopping

2010  Well...... I went to New York in February 2010 and oh my did I do some shopping!! ;) VERY difficult to say what my favourites were, but for sure the blue, Marc Jacobs coat that I bought is on my list and also the Michael Kors handbag. You can find them all in this blog post: http://linda-lostinswitzerland.blogspot.com/2010/12/day-12-favourite-wardrobe-items.html

2011  I'm actually hoping that 2011 will be a year when I spend less money on all kinds of shopping. What I would like to buy though is a new laptop, a new bike and a camera that can stand to go below 13metres under water......but for sure there will be some fashion pieces in there as well ;)

Life changing events

2010  Meeting Chris ♥, the birth of my amazing little niece, Cindy ♥, moving in with Chris, loosing my grandmother =(( (and my last grandparent). A very sweet but also sour year...

2011  Difficult to say. I honestly prefer not to speculate in these things... Maybe a change of jobs late 2011 or 2012? Hmmm... Let's just wait and see, shall we?

Meetings

2010  I had the pleasure of being invited to dinner by my favourite author and one of my greatest sources of inspiration, Paulo Coelho. It was, without a doubt, one of the most interesting dinners I've ever been to.

2011  Hmm....no one specific in mind, but I would like to take some photography lessons, so maybe a really good photographer?

Blog happenings

2010  I managed to get an interview with one of my favourite singer/song-writers, Kate Havnevik, and posted the outcome here at the end of October. I also had a number of guest bloggers, which I found very refreshing and interesting! I recently also completed the "30 day blog challenge". I loved this as the topics were pre-defined and made me write about things I probably normally wouldn't.

2011  I hope to have some more guest bloggers here and who knows, maybe also a new interiew? 

Professional achievements

2010  Barely surviving......but while struggling as much as this, you also learn the most and boy have I learned a lot!

2011  Another postponed activity was the APICS exams I had hoped to study for and pass last  year. I hope 2011 will be the year!!! Am looking forward to studying a bit.

Music

2010  Kings of Leon!! I heard their music for the first time in April 2010 and it was love at first hear!!!  Songs like "Sex on fire", "Notion", "Closer" and "Pyro" have been the most frequently played songs. I also  fell head over heels in love with "What I wouldn't do" by "A fine frenzy" and it has been on my mind for more than a quarter as the soundtrack of my life somehow ;)) 

2011  Hmm.... I'm curious about the upcoming 2011 releases from Sixpence None the Richer, REM and Amos Lee and am of course also hoping for the release of Kate Havnevik's album.   

Projects

2010  I mainly just tried to improve my blogging and photography....no specific projects were started and completed unfortunately.

2011  So in my update last year, I had as a project for 2010 to start writing a book.....well, I have not started, so I am really hoping to start writing one this year! Fingers crossed xxxxx

I would also love to join a womens soccer team, if I can still qualify that is....and would also like to start taking tennis lessons.

Movies

2010  "Avatar" was am amazing experience in 3D! Also really enjoyed "Inception", "A single man" where Colin Firth is OUTSTANDING and "The secrets in their eyes".

2011  So I haven't yet seen the latest "Harry Potter" and this is for sure something I'm really looking forward to. Other than that, I think 2011 will be a great movie year!! "Barney's version" looks very interesting and so does "Rango", "Black Swan", "Never let me go" and "127 hours"...and I'm sure there will be MANY more!

Foods

2010  Oh my! This year will forever be the year I remember by falling in LOVE with cheese fondue!! It is without a doubt my new obsession.....

2011  I hope to make more sushi in 2011. I want to improve my "rolls" skills and make pretty inside-out ones. I also want to try to perfect my Rainbow Coloured Cupcake recipe (mainly the frosting) and to try to make this amazing Lemon tart that a friend (Anh) made for us once. It was AMAZING and she has kindly given me the recipe. I have just been a teeeny tiny bit scared I can not reach the same perfection =))

Mistakes

2010  Surprisingly not that many....but one really funny one was going to the wrong St Anton! Hahaha!

2011  I'm sure there will be some....and you will probably also get to read about some of them.

Resolutions

2010  My 2010 resoulution was to take better care of myself!! (less stress and not worry too much). It's with great pleasure I can say that this was with excellence succeeded!! ;))

2011  To focus more on personal development work-wise, have a good balance between work/personal life and to keep up the same pace, quantity and quality of exercising.

Last but not least, I would just like to say Thank you so much for all your support during 2010! Hope to see you here also during 2011 ;)

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!! May all your hopes and wishes come true ♥

xox

7 things.....

Frida, from the Swedish blog Fraidi, is encouraging her readers (I'm one of them ;)) to tag along on writing "7 things about yourself that you probably don't know", or at least most of you don't know.

Well I'm in and here goes:
1. When I went to school, I had such a bad voice that I was not allowed to participate in the school choir... I had an issue with my vocal chords. Either way, pretty tough news for a 9-10 year old girl who LOVES to sing. Consequence: I have had it as an ambition ever since, to prove to people (or at least myself) that, one day, I will be able to sing without people closing their ears with their hands and making uncomfortable faces ;)
2. My favourite subjects in school were Athletics/Physical training, English and Chemistry.
3. I have a great fascination for the life and works of Sylvia Plath and LOOOOVE the movie Sylvia, where Sylvia is, very well, played by Gwyneth Paltrow.
4. I used to play soccer when I was younger. It is the only one sport that I am passionate about and it really makes my heart beat faster! ....so I restarted again, here in Schaffhausen,  playing with a bunch of guys, for fun. I am now looking for a womens team in the whereabouts in Schaffhausen to start again actively.......if I qualify and can keep up of course.
5. I listen to heavy rock music when I'm upset (especially Godsmack and Soilwork). I LOVE IT and it somehow always manages to calm me down or at least take the edge off.
6. When I was a child, I was often confused with being a boy. Partially because of my short hairstyle, but also because I liked to dress and act like a boy and I was also quite rough.
7. I am struggling a bit with fear of heights. It's getting better, but....................I cried when I went up in the Eiffel tower.....and let's just say, I have no desire to ever go up there again ;)


So now, to my readers with a blog: TAG ALONG!!! ....and share the link in a comment so I can read yours! ...or if you don't have a blog, you could also just leave your 7 things in a comment to this post! Entertain me/Us!

xox

Dear Crystal Ball.....

Do you have the answer? Or suggestions? Please do let me know..... 

xox

A post Christmas/pre New years update

Coucouuuuu!

I hope you all had a lovely Christmas, spending some quality time with your near and dear ones.... I also hope you have some nice plans for New Years eve?

I thought I'd write a quick update, since it's been quite a while since the last one....mainly due to the 30 day blog challenge, which was fun, but also time consuming ;)

Currently, I'm

Happy about: So many things!! Impossible to pick one...... My life in general maybe?

Disappointed about: Not being able to go home for Christmas this year because our flight was cancelled and not having the next trip home planned & booked.

Looking forward to: Going to the Dominican Republic in 15 days!!!Thinking about: The just mentioned trip of course, the amazing fish fondue we had on Christmas Day and what to cook for New Years eve....and also still a lot about the future and especially about my next step/move work-wise......not entirely straight forward.
Listening to: These songs on repeat:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P8a4iiOnzsc (Thanks Therese!!)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7G0_eN36QVc (Thanks Aryan!!)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gFp7q-IJqno
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yoAPmLrGcQM
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gGSfHn0CxCk

Worrying about: Another snow chaos, preventing us from going on our trip.....but I'm keeping all fingers and toes crossed!

Hoping: ...that when I try downhill skiing for the first time (on New Years Day), things will go well (at least I think I have a good teacher;)))!!

Laughing about: The memory of myself, walking home barefoot in the snow from the annual company Christmas party because of hurting feet. Oh my goodness!! Hahahaaaaa!!

Wondering: How my new tennis racket will feel when I play with it for the first time!!

Planning: To finally take the PADI diving certificate during our trip to the Dominican Republic =))

Smiling about: ....one of my Christmas gifts! I got this fabulous Marc Jacobs watch (see pic on right) from Chris and if you have been following my blog for a while you will know it was mentioned more than twice ;)) I LOOOOOVE IT!!!! =p

Also very happy about the hike we made on Sunday, up a very snowy and at times quite steap hill, to the Hagenturm. It was an amazingly beautiful day with sunshine and untouched powder snow!!
Inspired by: ....being in love!

Thankful for: Being able to spend Christmas with Chris family. Really really lovely!!

Wishing: I had some more time for holidays as I desperately want to go home for at least a week.

Sad about: My grandmother who passed away a little more than a week ago"! She was an amazing lady....... =((

Wanting: ...it to be Thursday as I've taken Thursday and Friday off.

Feeling: Calm, relaxed and veeeeery ready to go on holiday!

xox

A New years outfit

The new-years outfit by anderssonlinda featuring platform shoes

Someone asked me a question on my Formspring about what I was wearing at the Christmas party. This is not exactly the same since I used Polyvore to create this outfit and the shoes and earrings that I wore were not available there....but this is almost the same ;) 

xox

Day 30 – My Love

You have heard it before, you may not really believe it, but sometimes, when you least expect it, the unexpected happens. You are in a place, maybe unusual to your habits, out of what may be your usual comfort zone, expecting absolutely nothing (as usual) and having given up on the dream of LOVE....or at least given up on the kind of love you once used to dream of (...and maybe even had before life came along with its sometimes painful reality showers?). Maybe you are even at an all time low, thinking happiness is just not in the stars for you, already trying to figure out your "back-up plan" for this "what-if" scenario as surely, no one could possibly ever love you for YOU? Well, believe it or not, but these were the circumstances under which I met My Love......


I will surely not share all the details with you here, but nor will I lie ;) The first meeting itself was not under any kind of fairytale circumstances, but so far, the ever after has been. 

He is a truly fantastic and positive person with a sparkling personality and energy! He is amazingly kind and considerate, but also knows when the limit is reached. He is clever and fun to be around and he inspires me in the "I-wanna-write-a-song-and-join-Greenpeace-kind-of-way!! He is loyal to the ones he love, keeps his promises and pays attention to the little things that make every day life magic.
He makes me laugh out loud, believes in me, respects me, always supports me and pushes me forward. He makes me want to be a better person, one that can compromise. He makes me feel like the luckiest girl in the world, someone who is special, at least to him, and he makes me believe in the future, in love and in "happily-ever-after". He makes my heart sing ♥


xox

Day 29 – My dreams & ambitions

I want to let go of residual sadness, stubbornly lingering on from the past, weighing me down, limiting me and I want to be a better person from it.

I want to move constantly forward, to keep evolving, to discover new things, to love, to learn, to travel, to laugh, to dance, to feel, to cry, to keep dreaming. I want to achieve my current dreams and dream up new ones while celebrating the success of the ones achieved. I want to be a part of helping people I love achieving their dreams. I want to remain curious and to be less afraid. I want to inspire and be inspired. 
The only ambitions I have where the goal is to stay still are to stay in love and to rather remain a little bit naive than becoming hopelessly cynical.


My dreams & ambitions are simple: I want to LIVE.


xox

Day 28 – This is what I miss

I don't really miss anything big in my life. Honestly! I am very happy with my life and I have never felt more content. Hence, this post will be focused on the small things that I miss while being away from my home country, Sweden.....besides the obvious, BIG things such as friends and family.


I miss.....
- The sea
- Färska räkor
- Space (we are only a little more than 9 million Swedes on an area of 449,964 km2/
173,745 sq miles)
- Winters that are so cold that the white, fluffy snow stays for months
- Smågodis
- Summers that are warm, but don't make you sweat without effort
- "Make-your-own-salad-bars" for lunch
- Julmust
- Stockholm
- Frozen lakes that I can ice skate on (safely ;)))
- Sugar-free, flavoured, sparkling mineral waters 
- My favourite chocolate shop (I know, who knew this was possible living in the Mecca of chocolate, right?)
- Being able to go to the cinema and watch movies, subtitled, in their original language
- Store opening hours that suit a late worker
- Brända mandlar (burned almonds)
- Easily finding healthy AND yummy vegetarian food in restaurants
- Great shopping


xox

Movie recommendation - Shrink

Shrink (2009)
3.5/5


In Hollywood, people in need revolve around Dr. Henry Carter, a shrink: Jack, an aging star wants permission to cheat on his wife; Shamus is a director who's a cokehead; Patrick is a high-powered germophobic producer; Jeremy is a young writer looking for a break; Jemma, a high-school student, is skipping school; and Kate is an actress facing her mid-30s. 
Henry's wife recently died; he's grieving, blaming himself, smoking lots of pot. Henry's friends try an intervention; someone steals a patient's file from Henry; Patrick's assistant, the pregnant Daisy, sees promise in Jeremy's work; and, Jesus, Henry's drug dealer, sells him some potent weed. Can anything good come of this?
Source: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1247692/


Shrink is a movie that so utterly well describes the feeling of desperation. Desperation that makes people do almost anything to feel something, to feel something differently or to feel nothing at all. I would describe it as "Californication" meets "The hours".
Kevin Spacey is great as Dr Carter!


This movie doesn't have great reviews and I can't help but wonder why? It is somewhat slow, but truly heartfelt with some really great acting performances! Prepare yourself for a slow start that develops into a really interesting film experience. Give it a try!


Watch the trailer:

....or read more about it here:
http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/10011435-shrink/

Enjoy!
xox

Day 27 – My favourite place

I think the best way to demonstrate this theme is in pictures ;))
So, in no specific order - here goes:

The Stockholm/Roslagen Archipelago

Strömsholm

In the arms of Chris 

(I don't care if it sounds cheesy, it's nevertheless true ;))

xox

Photo blog: Winter in Schaffhausen!

  

xox