Right.

And so the student finally became a teacher. A strange experience, I have to say, but nonetheless quite satisfying; especially seeing as this had been my dream since more or less... err... I first heard my mom tell me stories about her own teaching experiences when she was one. It all really sounded so much fun -- a lot of hard work, mind you, but fun. I guess topping this off with low pay (at least as far as Norway is concerned) will give you even less of a reason to become a teacher. However, what influenced me at the end of the day was not only Mom, but also the teachers that I've had over the years since Elementary up to this day. Many of these people had this kind of twinkle in their eyes, this kind of glow while they taught us. They were really "in to" the subjects they were teaching and had this vigorous enthusiasm that rubbed off on all of us -- at least as far as yours truly is concerned. That and the willingness to listen to us pupils/students to better their classes and adapt their skills to better suit our own skills and personal characteristics. All of this is what I admire in these people. All of this has influenced my decisions in life. All of this fueled the fire, if you like.

My parents have also been a huge influence on me. They have always been influential and supportive of me in whatever decision I've had to make in life. Influential in the sense that I've always listened to them when they told me about their experiences in life and their advice based on that and their perception of me. This may perhaps sound a tad controversial to some, but for me this has been more of a positive influence rather than a means of "brainwashing" me into becoming what they want me to be. (There is a difference. :-)) Consequently my parents have also been supportive in the sense that they have let me evolve into my own person, if you will.

Um, I don't really know why I write this here, but I guess I just wanted to get this down on... err... pixels? Yeah, that works.

Signing off (@ work, for now),
Elise

Christmas time is here again!

That was a tribute to all you Beatle fans out there who might be reading this humble blog.

Aaah. At home at last. And I haven't been able to update until now as I've been busy with work and stuff. Stuff as in shopping Christmas gifts and sleeping. I haven't had proper time to rest since I got home as I voluntarily jumped on the bandwagon of vacant evening shifts at work. I'm done for now, but I've let them know that I'm available for other vacancies should they need more workers.

Anyway, tomorrow's the Day with a capital "D". All gifts have been bought, cards have been sent (albeit only one - and kinda late at that...) and I can't wait to put my feet up for some days and just relax.

Grades have gone as expected for now, but I still lack the results for SFG. Frankly I'm a little concerned. I mean, conventionally, we should get our grades before Christmas, right? For all I know it could just be that our teacher hasn't gotten the grading done before vacation, but still... I can't help but feel a little (i.e. slightly) distressed. Nevertheless, all that can be done is just to wait.

Meanwhile, I also need to get done my application to my pedagogy year next fall. I kinda wanna apply to more than this uni, as it only has 360 vacancies reserved for students outside the profession study program. I just want to make sure that I can complete it next year and not have to postpone it more than need be. Ideally, what I want to do is apply to various unis across the country and see if I get in anywhere else. Just to have something to fall back on in case things in Oslo go completely awry.

Anyway, academics aside, I haven't gotten the chance to see all of my friends yet, but I hope to do so as much as possible within the coming days. Seeing my best friend again was really nice. Obviously she's looking forward to her Big Day (i.e. the one after Christmas), although she appears to take it all with an air of ease. A good sign, I think. Besides, it won't be a big one either. They aren't exactly the people who like to have big and lavish parties in the first place. I still can't wait, though! :-D

Another thing I can't wait for is resting this vacation and really absorb the Christmas spirit. Me, Mom and a friend of hers went to a concert yesterday at Bjergsted (you know, the one with Bettan and Rein Alexander) and although it was almost straight after work and I was utterly knackered, it was still a really nice way of getting into the spirit. When it comes to Christmas songs, these guys can really evoke that warm, fuzzy feeling inside that you used to have as a child during Christmas - or at least a slight tinge of it. They even did Celine Dion and Andrea Bocelli's "The Prayer". As in most cases, it doesn't beat the original, but it was still quite good, though. Not much of the vocal acrobatics from her side as in the original (not that I care for too much of it in a song, mind you), but it was still good.

So, without further ado, I round off for now with this Christmas greeting from the Beatles and a slightly tweaked Christmas classic - just to set you all in the right spirit. Or at least close to the right spirit... ;-)





Signing off (*bells jingling*),
Elise

*pants*

More... time... please... Lord...

2 study groups today. Hispan. Lit. Need to know when the authors/poets lived. Literary eras.

Systemic Functional Grammar. Need to get definitions sorted. Know how to analyze, describe problems in analysis. Beneficiary? Receiver? Target? Scope? Range? Difference between these, please???

I need more energy. I need more time. 2 days (plus the rest of this evening) before the double Judgment Day.

I'm tired yet slightly panicky (well, not exactly panicky, but neurotic nonetheless; I always am, but this time a little more than usual). A slightly unfortunate combo.

Ayayayayayayayayayayayayayayayayayayay. Ayúdame, por favoooooor.

Time is ticking out. And I'm not sure if I like it. I'll like the aftermath of this double Judgment Day, but for now I need to make sure I know it all to be able to survive it and not run away screaming like a maniac. Or, alternatively, crying like a baby. Either reaction is NOT good. In fact both are negative inscribed appraisal, i.e. bad. Uy.

Enough whining already. Pucker up.


Signing off (whimpering),
Elise

Exam theme song? Whatthe... huh?

Long time, no blog. Let's just say I've been really quite busy these past few weeks. I started with my exam reviewing in the beginning of this month and feel rather good about that, as my first exams will be on Dec. 4. Uy. So, where's my confidence at? My reply in this case would be "no comment". A great big part of me just wants to get this over and done with.

Meanwhile, a small tradition of my unconsciousness has been to find a theme song for the days before and during the exams. Yes, it's a rather peculiar tradition of mine, which I really wasn't aware of until a few days ago, as so far I tend to get a song stuck in my head for no apparent reason throughout this time. It just pops up in a few weeks before exams. And it doesn't necessarily have anything to do with them or have anything related to overcoming an obstacle. My first semester here in Oslo I had a S&G song in my head, "Feelin' Groovy". Now this one has at least a connection with destressing, at the very least. Then there was... what was the song for my second semester, again? I kinda appear to have forgotten. I think it was a tie between A-Ha's "You are the One", Bananarama's "Nathan Jones" and Ylvis's "Reven på hønsejakt" or something. Now, I don't remember much of my 3rd or 4th semesters, but according to my YouTube list, I must have listened to Billy Joel's "River of Dreams" or something of the likes in my 3rd semester and Elvis and Céline Dion's "If I Can Dream" (still love it!), George Harrison's "Here Comes the Sun" (do-do-do-do) and a Josh Groban drum solo in my 4th. What's strange, however, is that I still haven't managed to find my song(s) for this semester. Wuzzupwiddat?

So far I've been going all Ralph Wiggum and John Lennon ("Ah-no-le-reeshee-gad-blee-bloochigoo", cf. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eONdc_qR3Mg; and the song in this clip didn't really appeal to me either). So yeah, I'm still searching for that one song. Or those songs.

Well, there's always Rob Thomas's "Little Wonders"... Or maybe not. But then there's Switchfoot's "Dare You to Move", which is also a very nice one... Maybe so. Josh Groban's "Caruso" or "Hymne a l'amour"? Europe's "The Final Countdown" (*whimper*)? Queen's "The Show Must Go On" (õ.O)? Kate Bush's "Wuthering Heights"? Kate Bush and Peter Gabriel's "Don't Give Up"? Yeah, I listened to that last one earlier today whilst doing yoga and I think that would be a potential candidate. Or maybe the Thrills' "Big Sur"? Potential choice as well. It'll come to me in due time, I reckon.

The Thrills' "Big Sur":


Kate Bush & Peter Gabriel's "Don't Give Up":


Not that this is the thing which should worry me the most. Of course.

Right. Off to Bedfordshire. Big day tomorrow.



Signing off,
Elise