moon and star earrings | cross earrings | moon necklace | moon earrings

Ordered myself a little present a while ago from fashionology.nl, and sweet Rachel sent a couple of extra gifts along as well. I like the rough quality of them, and they will definitely make a fine addition to my ever-growing collection of accessories.

Today will be all about Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Nights Dream. While I feel like I have most of the curriculum under control I am not entirely certain that my theoretical skills are fully up to speed, I’m having trouble remembering all the different names for the different poetic rhythms, and things like that. Chances are I will fill my time with random oddities on the internet instead, like THIS. It really have made my day already. I mean, seriously, who makes a Team Jacob-dress?

Well, time to break the fast. Toodles.

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After my site got hacked twice last night and my inbox got spammed with emails about how much of a racist I am, I think I’ll lay of the politics for a little while. Obviously touched a soft spot (I am not entirely sure which but)- Now I’m off to follow my cousin to school and then I’ll be spending the day at the study hall, reading for my exams. Two days left till my first exam. :/

(This has been re-written, as the first draft failed to get my message across correctly)

After Pia told me earlier today that Muslims in the UK demand that the Holocaust should be removed from the History curriculum because they believe it never happened, I did not believe her. Trusting google to answer all my questions I googled it and found – among many others – this article written by Ayaan Hirsi Ali, a Somali immigrant who has worked and studied in the Netherlands. While some parts of the article is a bit too speculative for my taste, it does paint a very serious picture of a world that has far greater anti-Semitic values than I would have thought possible after World War II and the Holocaust. But as she (edit) says in the article:

“Western leaders today who say they are shocked by Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad’s conference this week denying the Holocaust need to wake up to that reality. For the majority of Muslims in the world, the Holocaust is not a major historical event that they deny. We simply do not know it ever happened because we were never informed of it. ” – LA Times

To many this is old news, I myself am quite embarrassed by the fact that I did not know about this (and had to be told by a 16 year old none the less), but it is still of vital importance concerning the situation as it stands today. Not necessarily because of this case alone, but because it is underlines the failing communication between the Western and the Arabic worlds, and also the ongoing shift in balance between what should be important to communicate across cultures and what is irrelevant.

The integration of Muslims and Islam in our society is a testy subject, with strong voices on both sides. A growing European front against Islamic extremism is breaking havoc in England and the movement is spreading to other European countries as well, the French are banning full-cover veils like the burqa, and while I do not in any way support these movements I understand why they are gathering so much momentum and support.

If you move to another country you are by all standards expected to learn their language and at least to some extent adapt the culture and norms of the land you are moving to. But what we are seeing more and more is that our society is adapting to the extreme parts of the Muslim world instead. From small things like removing the picture of a pig from the door in the children’s ward at the hospital in Kristiansand because it was offensive in accordance with the Muslim tradition (and the Koran), to the growing violence in Oslo (especially Grønland) against homosexuals.

While I have nothing whatsoever against Islam or Muslims, I am worried about the friction between extremist Muslims and anti-Islamic movements. And while it is not something I want to say out loud, because it makes me sound prejudicial and too much like the extreme right-wing, I am worried that we might lose some of our society’s more vital values if we let our own humbleness towards other religions and cultures stand in the way of rational thinking.

And what I don’t like about all of this is that there is only a small fraction of the millions billions of Muslims that are fighting for this cause, a cause that many other Muslims do not believe in. To give in to those few, and to allow them rights that we ourselves would never get if we moved to a Muslim country and rights that go against our culture is wrong, as far as I see it.

I am not saying I want to ban the burqa or the teaching of Islamic history, but I do feel that we need to be a bit more concerned about protecting our own culture in all of this, and realize that while we do preach tolerance, tolerance does not give way to ignorance and ethnocentrism for others.

Watched Harry Potter for the second time last night with the teenage prodigy I am watching and a friend of hers, and I still can’t understand why the hag at db.no hated it. It’s magical, dark and I actually think the actors manage to carry the complexity of their characters quite well.

Harry Potter aside, I just woke up with the extreme urge to make pancakes, so that is the immediate plan of the day. I feel like I am enjoying a vacation at the moment, especially after my phone died of the cold yesterday. That thing is suicidal for real, after surviving Roskilde, “russetiden”, multiple other festivals and life in general with me for nearly 4 years, it has given up any hope for a continued and fruitful relationship and although it might have more lives than any cat I know, the end is growing nearer for every suicide attempt. I’m wondering if electroshock therapy will do the trick, or if I need to acquire a new phone.

Well, pancake time.

photo_julia

While I have already showed my dream wish list, it’s time for the more practical and achievable one. All I really want for Christmas is snow and Christmas food and gingerbread cookies and all the Christmas TV programs and loads of free time to do nothing, but I do have a few material wishes for Christmas as well. I am a material girl after all.

Tickets to Lykke Li’s concert at Rockefeller in Oslo on April 30. I’ve seen this lady thrice before, two times in Oslo and one time at Roskilde, and she is just an amazing performer and musician. Her album Youth Novels has stayed on repeat since I bought it.

Moon boots like the ones Signe has. Comfortable, warm, “fugly”, and the perfect retro version of the UGGs I am never going to buy (out of honor and principle more than anything else). Moods of Norway are making their own version for the World Cup in February which I found quite cute. Want to wear their Winter Wonderland collection during the World Cup, counting the days till February 23. While I am not usually the biggest Moods of Norway fan, I think the “representing Norway during the World Cup”-theme suits them perfectly.

Brown Ray Ban Clubmasters. Let’s go retro like everyone else. I have been wanting these for about 3 years, and should probably have bought them myself by now, but I never really get around to doing it, so they are on my wish list this year as well.

i-D covers 1980-2010 from Taschen. i-Ds covers are quite iconic, so iconic in fact that Taschen has made a book gathering all the covers from 1980-2010. A book of smiley-face-posing people on my coffee table or on display in my bookshelf wouldn’t be too much to ask for would it?

I want a camera tripod. All those outfitpictures and other pictures of me using a timer while balancing the camera in bookshelves, on tables, hanging from a nail on the wall, well you get the idea. I could use a tripod. And for that matter a camera. Preferably Canon 550d.

Since I am currently planning a Christmas filled with TV, snowboarding, the occasional ski trip and loads of free time, I need something to do with all the free time. So I wish for books, loads and loads of books.

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Visited Blender Agency the other day with Eva to get a preview of next seasons clothes and accessories from brands like Alexander Wang, Marc by Marc Jacobs, Iro and Rag & Bone. Alexander Wang has me about as infatuated as the rest of the fashion world, and these three were definitely my favorites of the accessories there. The shoes are very me, and would fit perfectly into my wardrobe, the sandals are a cool alternative to the ordinary gladiators next summer. The chunky heels are perfect for Norway and the rough pavements we’ve got here, in addition to the fact that I prefer chunky heels over those stilettos any day.

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Committing the original sin: taking pictures of myself in the mirror.

Just got back from the OsloNights vorspiel. For once I was driving, which meant no alcohol on me. Got home to another batch of hot cinnamon buns, and right now I am definitely loving my life. The thought of roaming the streets of Oslo, fighting the cold wind and possible ice bears does not sound tempting, and for once I am not at all feeling any envy for the ones that are spending the night enjoying alcohol and mingling at various clubs, bars and parties. For about five glorious seconds I considered a full time abstinence from anything alcohol related, and then I remembered how much I enjoy both wine and beer, and returned to sanity.

Song of the day: Love The Way You Lie (part II) – Rihanna ft. Eminem

Pia made some delicious cinnamon buns.

The view from the living room. Oslo by night.

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COAT+BELT+BAG vintage JEANS bikbok BOOTS nelly

I have delivered my exam and now I am seated in the couch watching some bad Hillary Duff movie while eating cinnamon buns and drinking coffee. Hillary’s love interest just started singing a song with the lyrics “You and me, can’t you see, we’re meant to be”, this calls for an OMG. Seriously. Later tonight I am going to party with the OsloNights-gang, wearing my new pants from Jenny Skavlan’s BikBok collaboration amongst other things. The store at Grensen was packed with people, and I think I might have developed slightly claustrophobic tendencies after fighting my way through the crowds. But at least that means good sales, so congratulations, Jenny!

One of the youtube videos I have discovered today (via Peter) is this video of an absolutely amazing gymnast. I can barely do two push-ups, so I am in absolute awe at the wonders of the human body.

NOW, I need to get ready for Jenny’s Bik Bok launch, and then I am packing my bags and moving up to the cold and snowy Holmenkollen for a few days.

Filled in as a styling-model at a hair show for Wella the other day. Almost all of the curls collapsed before I got home (my hair is just too thick, long and heavy), so it ended up looking like something elf-inspired. Not a bad thing at all. Hair shows always mean a lot of waiting, so I divided my time between school and kicking ass in mahjong. I am totally bad ass at the game. Another thing you probably did not know about me.

Right now I am working on my essay and counting hours till deadline. And taking appropriate breaks every third minutes to google cool youtube-videos, read through multiple news sites, read extensive wikipedia-entries on people that are briefly mentioned in my paper and listen to Rihanna’s new album. Bought Fyodor Dostoevsky’s The Idiot yesterday, so now I know what I am going to read the next few days (or perhaps when I have finished the exams, we’ll see). Can’t wait to start reading non-curriculum literature again.

15 days till my Christmas vacation starts.

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Some other films I can’t wait to see next year. For those of you who don’t know, I am a big fan of comic books, graphic novels and anything fantasy/sci-fi related, so the fact that all of these classic Marvel and DC superheroes are brought to the movie screen again and again suits me quite well.

Thor

- w/Natalie Portman, Chris Hemsworth and Stellan Skarsgard. Finally someone is making a movie about the “dashing” gods of Norse mythology. Based on the Marvel Comic, it looks like your typical action-filled comic hero movie, but then I saw that Kenneth Branagh is directing it, and it all became much more interesting. Branagh is most famous for directing some of the most brilliant and faithful movie adaptions of Shakespeare (my personal favorite is his take on Hamlet, where he plays role of Hamlet as well as directing the movie), as well as his role as Gilderoy Lockhart in Harry Potter. Looks promising, and I can’t wait. Premiere: May 6th.

Green Lantern

- with Ryan Renolds and Marks Strong. I love Superhero movies, I love DC Comics. I love anything that involves Mark Strong. Premiere: June17th. (BTW, the X-Man: First Class movie with Xavier and Magneto as teenagers looks promising as well).

Jane Eyre

- w/Mia Wasikowska, Michael Fassbender and Jamie Bell. Mia (whom you should remember from Alice in Wonderland) as Jane Eyre seems very weird in my head, but I am still looking forward to this new adaption featuring Billy Elliot star Jamie Bell as St John and Michael Fassbender (from Inglorious Basterds) as Mr Rochester. Fassbender will also star as Magneto in the before-mentioned X-Men: First Class movie). Jane Eyre is a classic, but I have yet to see a movie version of it that I like, not even the version with Orson Welles and Joan Fontaine managed to impress me (granted I have not seen the 1996-version with Charlotte Gainsbourg yet).

11 11 11

- “On 11:11 on the 11th day of the 11th month, the 11th gate of Heaven will open up and something from another world will enter the earthly realm for 49 minutes.” Need I say more. Haha.

JEANS SHIRT zara SKIRT diane von furstenberg BOW TIE lanvin for h&m

In one week, 7 days, 168 hours, 10 080 minutes I am starting exam season (if you avoid thinking about the essay I have to deliver on Friday, like I do), and I am still not stressed out of my wits. I am starting to get stressed out by the fact that I am NOT stressing. Is that normal?

New belt from UFF.

Had a quick trip by UFF the other day with Maria and Alex to treasure hunt in their big store at Østbanetorget. Found this old belt from the Danish Scout Association, and loved the quirky belt and tassel. Perfect for festivals? In other news the photo shoot with [mag] went great, you can see the result in the January edition of the magazine. My apartment was turned into a photo studio for a couple of hours, and once again I was reminded why I crave a personal make up artist and hair dresser. It feels so good to wake up, make myself a large cup of coffee and get pampered with. I vote yes to more treatment of that kind.

Looking for new songs to add to my December list, both Christmas songs and others, can you recommend any?

Just got out of bed and am currently trying to make myself look like a human being. A team from [mag] will be here in half an hour to take some pictures, and me and my apartment should look presentable by then. Right now we’re not looking all that well, but a lot can be done in 30 minutes. I just need coffee first, a big cup of coffee.

The pictures above was taken after my photo shoot with Vixen, love my hair all curly like that, unfortunately I don’t have the patience (nor skill) to do it myself. Also liked the blue eyes shadow Sara applied, haven’t used blue eyeshadow since I was 10 or something, but it might be time to give that one a little renaissance.

Morning song: Coldplay – Amsterdam

My future travel plans divided into 3 categories: Travels that are plotted into the calendar and will happen, travels that will happen in a not-so-distant-but-still-unknown future and travels I want to make real soon-soon-soon.

TRAVELS THAT ARE PLOTTED INTO THE CALENDAR:

LONDON – 10-13 December I am going to London on a Christmas shopping trip with the family. Plans so far involve watching We Will Rock You (that will be the third time I am watching it in London, in addition to the fact that my dance class and the music class made a more music-focused version of it in our final year at high school. Fan girl? perhaps) and enjoy London covered in Christmas decorations. Good way to celebrate the beginning of the Christmas Holidays? I think so.

STOCKHOLM – January 31 – February 2 it’s time for Fashion Week again, and although I loved Copenhagen this August, I think I will want to go to Stockholm this February. Had a great time last February, and Stockholm is such a lovely town, even in the winter months.

PARIS – If economy and tests and everything work out to my advantage I would like to repeat the success from last year and visit Paris sometime in April (as a birthday present for me, myself and I). Check out some new art galleries, spend a couple of hours at some cafe in Le Marais and eat a bunch of macaroons. And try to learn some more phrases of French.

BUDAPEST – June 29 – July 9 I am going to Hungary to keep my orienteering skills intact, as well as cheer on my mum and dad who are competing in the World Masters Orienteering Championships. While orienteering is fun and all that, I am mostly looking forward to exploring the city of Budapest. It is such an old city filled with cultural wonders and history.

TRAVELS THAT WILL HAPPEN IN A NOT-SO-DISTANT-BUT-STILL-UNKNOWN FUTURE:

ETHIOPIA – Sometime in a not-so-distant future, one of my friends is getting married. But she is not just having a traditional Norwegian wedding, she will also be having a big wedding in Ethiopia (her boyfriend is originally Ethiopian), and a few of us are travelling down there to participate in the celebrations. I have never attended an Ethiopian wedding myself, but I have been told that they are quite “over the top”  compared to the traditional minimalistic Norwegian weddings. Personally I can’t wait for her to set a date, and to pick out whatever dress I am going to wear.

NORTH SOUTH CAROLINA – I want to visit my aunt who lives there at the moment. And soon please.

TRAVELS I WANT TO MAKE REAL SOON-SOON-SOON:

BEIRUT – After visiting Jerusalem last year and then writing an essay on the political system in Lebanon in one of my political science classes, I have wanted to visit the city that was known as “Paris of the West”. It’s cultural and political history, compared with what is said to be a unique mix of old and new architecture is more than enough to get a spot on my “must-visit-soon”-list.

TOKYO – Shopping, style, culture and food. Tokyo is really one of those cities that you have to visit before you die. At least in my opinion. After having read multiple novels by the very talented Haruki Murakami, I want to experience his version of Japan, and even though that might prove to be impossible, I can try, can’t I?

MOSKVA – Another city I am fascinated by, both the cultural and historical aspects. Saint Petersburg is a preferable alternative as well. Again the literary world is what draws me to Russia, especially after heaving read Dostoyevsky’s Crime And Punishment and The Brothers Karamazov.

BUENOS AIRES – Argentina. Most of all because I want to visit South America, and Argentina has this sensual sound to it that makes the other countries sound stressful or boring. Just try saying “Argentina” or “Buenos Aires” with a south-american accent. It sounds good. But of course also because both my aunt (and Ingeborg I think) has spoken warmly of the country. Again the aspect of a new culture and language has a ring to it that I can’t quite escape, and as long as they have Starbucks there (which they do, btw) I will survive anything.

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Where do you want travel and why?