it's time

The last day of the year has come upon us. It's time to say bye to 2009 and welcome 2010. Best way of doing it is with some champagne and good friends. And that is exactly what I have planned for tonight. (There are of course other people around the world that I wish I could be with tonight as well, but just know that you guys will be missed).

This year has totally flown by. Honestly, I am wondering where in the heck 2009 went? In fact the whole last decade went by pretty quick... But it's been pretty good, both the last year and the last decade. So I think I will try and continue in the same style, i.e. with a positive attitude and a smile on my face.

Hope everyone has a wonderful NYE and all the best for 2010!!

nutcracker

Hurray for my latest cultural experience!
The Nutcracker was beautiful.

day three

I've had a Swedish food fest today.
Today, day 3 of the Xmas celebrations, is a day of resting. And obviously eating. Rice porridge for breakfast, Swedish meatballs and knackebrod with Swedish cheese (brannvinsost) for dinner. As a snack - blueberry soup and gingersnaps (mor annas original). I am full and sooo happy.

But let's start on day 1:
X-mas eve was lovely and amazingly yummy. Santa came and handed out little gifts to us all and there was a lot of laughter throughout the whole day.




Day 2's celebrations were more "party" like, the champagne glasses were never empty! But I also stuffed my face with lots of great food (not Swedish, but still very good). And it was spent in a lovely location too.



The common thread for all 3 days have been the beautiful people I have been surrounded with. Marta, Micke, Lisa, Vusi and others.

Happy days!

almost Xmas

Good thing I'm a girl so I can multi-task...
Right now I'm working, singing along to Xmas songs, baking bread and making rice-porridge and am just about to wrap a few Xmas gifts as well.

As most of you know I’m staying in HK for the first time for Xmas.
Tomorrow I’m working, but will try and get out of the office in a decent hour so I can start celebrating and eating yummy Swedish Xmas food!! Ant is away in England right now so he is not joining our Swedish Xmas, but I’m taking my English friend Lisa as well as my handsome South African trainer Vusi, so even though it’s a Swedish Xmas it will be international :).

On Xmas day we’re going out to a floating restaurant, they have a buffet on and free flowing champagne, and we’re like 30 people going out there so it should be fun!

26th I will be resting and on the 27th working a bit but also going to the ballet - The Nutcracker, really looking forward to that. Then it’s only 3 more sleeps until Ant gets back and a cool NYE party.

So I think I will survive not being home this year, even though I know I’m gonna miss it like crazy…

Merry Christmas all!!

and then

After the fight I just couldn't stop smiling. I was on such a high.
Which was perfect.
Perfect since we were heading out for victory celebrations!
So we popped the champagne and hit town for what became a celebration that lasted 2 days.

Many more bottles of champagne was drunk and we topped up with shots and some redbulls and vodka as well. We might have arrived in Singapore with bodies that were our temples, but we left that city with bodies like sheds...
But we had fun!






To have wonderful people around one self is soooo important, even more so when living away from home. And with these girls (Vusi included even though he is a man...) around me, I sure do have just that.

Oh, and the quote for the weekend: Stop wanking that cat!

team dynamite

They had a Swedish flag, they had printed team t-shirts, they were loud, they stomped their feet, they nearly lost their voices and they were absolutely formidable! They were TEAM DYNAMITE!!!!!!!!!

4 girls (Katie, Kate, Lisa and Sandra)that flew all the way from HK to see me fight in Singapore. One girl that joined them there (Sarah). And then there was Vusi of course, the man amongst the girls. Thank you Team Dynamite a million times for coming and for being such a fantastic support!!!!!!

I can’t tell you enough how great it was to have you there and it made the whole experience much less scary!

the fight

I arrived in Singapore with butterflies in my stomach.
I departed Singapore with a black eye, a blue swollen lip, a sore nose and a big enormous smile on my face as well as great memories.
What a weekend I have had! Amazing.

So the fight:
Well never got that nervous, and that surprised me, but I really felt like I had nerves of steel. And the support I had in the arena was incredible! I walked though the crowd into the ring to The Final Countdown and it was such a kick. My colleagues and especially my girls - Team Dynamite, made lots and lots of noise and put a big big smile on my face. And knowing that my trainer Vusi was in my corner made me feel safe.

Three rounds of hard punching later the referee raised my hand in the air. And all I could think was: I did it! I f-ing did it!! Amazing feeling.



By the way forget what I said about the landed eagle/dragon. I looked like a giraffe. A giraffe in blue ugly clothes...(sometimes I manage to forget how tall and skinny I actually am...), but who cares, I WON!!

winner

The winner takes it all, the loser standing small......

the eagle

Arrived in Singapore.
Ready to rumble.
Tomorrow is the day when it all happens...
The eagle has landed!
Or should I say dragon...

not so blond

And here I was thinking that I was blond...
Hmmm, not so much any longer...
Time to book a time with the hairdresser I think...
Like the picture though.

pub crawl

2 reindeers and 1 fake Swede.
1 real Swede and 2 drunk boys.
That is actually a lie...
There were plenty more than just 2 drunk boys on Santa's Pub Crawl last Saturday night.
1 knocked on my door at 5 in the morning, he had forgotten the keys...

formidable

I'm a lucky girl who have my very own little support group coming with me to Singapore next week.

E-mail exchange this week says:

Tickets - check
Accommodation - check
Formidable fighter - check
Party to celebrate on Saturday - check
Fantabuloso weekend - check!

If the fighter doesn't come through as formidable, at least the friends have!!
Millions of thanks girls :)

soon

Less than 2 weeks to go now....
Soon!!

amina semlali

Once upon a time I lived in the desert.
Whilst I was living in the desert I worked for an airline.
With this airline I travelled the world for a year.
Travelling the world as a stewardess was hard work, but amazing.

However, even more amazing were the friends that I got during this period of my life.
These friends became friends for life and we are still very close even though we are now scattered around the world. We might not talk everyday, but we are always there for each other, and when we meet up it feels like we've never been apart.

Amina Semlali is one of the friends mentioned above. She is just as beautiful on the inside as she is on the outside. She is smart and funny (and she sings along to the movie Moulin Rouge, just like me :)). She is a political scientist that has spent many years working on Children and Youth issues - both at policy and grass roots level- mainly for the World Bank but also for NGO's.

Now why do I tell you all this? Because it's true. But also because there are some people out there saying things about her that I don't like. Things that are complete lies. And I don't like lies, nor do I like people being nasty to my friends.

As a conclusion:
People - stick to the truth and the world will be a happier place.
Amina - luv ya!

sweet

He brought me warm ginger/lemon/honey water in bed this morning and tucked the duvet closely around me. Exactly what a girl with a cold needs. He is sweet. (And strong like bull! :)) I like.

halt

God damn it. My training has come to a quick halt. I'm sick. Which rimes very badly with being about to have a fight in 18 days... Sitting in my sofa and feeling crap, very annoyed and stressed. Go away stupid cold and headache, quickly or I'll punch you! Hard.

getting closer

The fight is getting closer. And all I can do is train. So that is what I do.

visiting parents

With the parents in town there are less time than usual over for reflection and blogging. Having a great time though!

Yesterday we celebrated my mum's birthday with a visit to China. Went shopping first and then we got pampered in a spa for hours. Lovely.

We have also spent some time on the beach and the girls won over the boys in our board game tournament (of course!!).

hilarious

There are different kinds of mistakes you can do if you are drunk.
Sending a picture of your private parts to your mother is probably one that you do not want to do.
I know someone who did. Hilarious!!

lots of people

I am going to fight in a 600 seater coliseum on the historic Padang in Singapore! The reality just hit me. That sure is a lot of people!! Scary!

But it should be an amazingly exciting night of boxing when the White Collar warriors of Singapore and Hong Kong meet for the inaugural WWCBA Asia Cup.

risky event

I just signed a paper where one of the clauses states the following:

I am aware that my participation in the event involves certain amount of risks. I shall therefore not hold.... responsible for any injury or loss of life which may be sustained by me during the training or event or arising from any cause in connection with the event....

Apparently an event where you hit people in the face is not the most un-risky event to participate in... However, the real mystery is: if I lose my life, how would I be able to hold anyone responsible then anyway?! I'm dead aren't I?!
But, if I were lose my life I would most certainly be floating around on a cloud in the sky with a glass of champagne in my hand. And if you're busy drinking champagne on a cloud, life's not too bad anyway! Even if you are drinking champagne with cotton wool up my nose to stop a bleeding (because if I die from a punch I would really hope that it would have given me my first proper nose bleed!) life's not too bad... And just think of the bonus I'd get once the bleeding had stopped and I'd be able to remove the cotton wool from my nose and breathe in the fresh air I suppose they have in heaven instead of HK's polluted air...

Anyway, I better stop there and assure you, (mum, dad, sister, boyfriend and friends), that I am n o t planning on dying. I am planning on kicking my opponent's ass, standing in the ring with my arms in the air screaming 'the winner takes it all, the loser standing small' and sending that bitch home crying! ;)
So please do not worry!

quote of the day

Quite liked this!

The Ultimate Quote of the day:

"Whatever you give a woman, she will make greater. If you give her sperm, she'll give you a baby. If you give her a house, she'll give you a home. If you give her groceries, she'll give you a meal. If you give her a smile, she'll give you her heart. She multiplies and enlarges what is given to her. So, if you give her any crap, be ready to receive a ton of shit."

bliss

Spending two days in a place with a view like this is bliss. (Even if you have to work a bit despite the fact that is public holidays and you really should be off..., it really doesn't matter that much when all you need is to look up from the computer and the ocean is right there in front of you). Life in HK is good!

knock out

I sound like a man today when I speak.
Too much yelling.
Why?
Cheered like a mad man yesterday when my trainer Vusi fought.
And he was awesome! The guy getting punched in the picture went down like a log.
Boom - Knock out!
Gooooo Vusi!!!!

as requested

A picture where you can see the whole pink outfit (well a whole room of shades of pink to be fair...), as requested. See me, there to the left? Do I get thumbs up or down Tiina?! :)

a pretty attempt

So we got pinked up last night. And before some of us got too drunk, (no - not me, I was very well behaved thank you very much!) I think we made an honest attempt to look pretty in pink.

The picture is taken in the taxi that took us from the Breast Cancer event to the after party in town. And isn't Ant looking very pretty in his tiara? :).

pretty in pink

Am supposed to dress in pink on Saturday. Pink is not really my colour... But I have bought myself a new dress, a dress that is v e r y pink. My handsome date will match that very pink material of my dress with an equally pink bow tie etc. Anyway, am really looking forward to this event, should be a good night for a great cause and will do my very best to try and look pretty in pink.

sunday brunch

If you get a little bit drunk in the middle of the day during a really nice brunch that is ok. A beautiful buffet and free flowing bubbles on a Sunday while talking to great friends and a beautiful man, yep definitely something I can do again. Just ask me.

bam bam

More fighting.
Not me, (well I'm still trying and as this week comes to an end I will have completed 3 boxing session during the week which I feel very satisfied with), but others were fighting last night. And it was good fights indeed. The coolest fight of them all was the fight of my friend Joey. She kicked some serious ass! And although the fight was HK vs. Sweden, I cheered for Joey, loudly! Joey Bam Bam, Joey Bam Bam.

Question now is, do I really dare to do this myslef?!

fab days

The last days have been absolutely fabulous.
I have been surrounded by lovely friends on a beautiful beach and I've been spoilt.
So it is a very happy girl that writes these words :)

bbb today

So the day has come for my bbb-day.
Beach, bbq and birthday celebrations.
And after days of pouring rain, the sun has made its entrance and I am so happy!

Bring on a good day in the sun, good food, even better company and lots of laughs plus a nice little sunset like the above.

b-day

- 'Happy Birthday to me', I said this morning as I unwrapped the little gift I gave myself. And who would ever have guessed that when I opened that gift it was exactly what I wanted! Someone has very good taste. :)

almost 28

So I have a question.
An important one.
What happens to your body when you are, like me, almost 28?
Are there rules that I didn't know of?
Rules that dictate that it's time for deep lines under your eyes to appear and cellulite on your bum?
Well I don't like it!
And just imagine what tricks mother nature will think is cool to play on you when you're almost 35... Jeez Louise...

nervous

I got an email sent to me today.
And the email made me feel incredible nervous. And right now I'm questioning myself... Why on earth did I ever decide on doing this?!

Anyway, email read: Your opponent is very fit cardio wise so I would recommend making sure you work hard on the cardio and don't run out of steam. The first time fighting is very tiring and its important to control your breathing to prevent lactic acid build up.

So guess what I am dong tonight... Yep, hitting the gym.

friday again

It's Friday again, holy cow this week has just flown by again...

Off to watch some exciting fighting tonight. Need to get in a fight mood since my fight got confirmed yesterday - 12 December in Singapore. Got some serious training ahead of me!
And tomorrow we've been promised glorious weather, so I'm off on a junk (boat). Bring on the sunshine, I desperately need to get a tan, am so boringly pale at the moment.

Wishing you all a good weekend.

surprises

Sometimes life is full of excitement and small surprises...

Like a friend lending you a small oven and that you now are able to take out a newly baked blueberry pie from that very oven and enjoy the lovely scent of something home baked.

Like getting that phone call that you've been longing for a whole day.

Like receiving really cool news.

Like finding a postcard in the mailbox.

Like knowing that soon you're due to open that little "surprise" birthday present you bought yourself a few weeks ago.

I say, keep the excitement and the small surprises coming, cause they sure make me smile!

bugger

Don't try this at home kids...



Instead of having a productive night including gym, grocery shopping and baking chocolate cookies, I did this... Bugger.

Update:After some serious cursing I wiped off the blood, went grocery shopping and made some cookies anyway... And why this mess in the first place?: Well after I had just finished putting up my new bookshelves and also put my lovely glass candles holders on top of them, one of the book shelf holders decided to snap and therefore one shelf fell on the other shelf and my whole floor got covered in glass and other bits and pieces. I think I'll go to IKEA tomorrow and complain. A metal bookshelf holder shouldn't snap like that.

my table

For you guys that have been asking about my table, here it is, with chairs and all...