Generic update

I had written a long post about the attacks in Norway but I've decided that the best way to honor the memory of those we have lost is to keep living and be thankful for what we have.

I walked downtown to Clas Ohlson to buy a rolling pin.  I've been improvising with a can of copped tomatoes and an old .5L Solo bottle.  It's quite the workout, ladies.  GOODNESS.

Oslo is covered in flowers.  It's already quite a green city but now it is like walking through a rose garden with little shopped hidden among the petals.  Absolutely lovely.

I think it's now time for another Finishing School!

B is for Bras - Did this one a bit ago.  I love the bras at Lane Bryant (for rounder ladies only) but I've also had really good luck at Target and H&M.

C is for Clothes - Also did that one just before I moved here.  I donated quite a lot of stuff to the best thrift store in North County San Diego and I'm pretty happy with my wardrobe.  It's more "vintage inspired" than reproduction or actual vintage but that is was little to no clothing budget for many years will get you.  I hope my residence permit is processed soon so I can start buying vintage/reproduction dresses!

D is for Dream - My biggest dream right now is to go back to school.  I have a BA from Michigan State University in social science so it's not very useful in Europe.  I'm extremely interested in University of Oslo's program in Cultural Heritage Preservation.  It's a wonderful blend of social science, art history, museum management, and chemistry.  I'll have to be absolutely fluent in Norwegian before I can start but I'm sure I'll manage!
One of my other dreams is to visit all 50 US States.  I'm at 39 - 11 more to go!  This might be pretty hard to accomplish, since my husband has absolutely no interest in visiting remote states but I'm still going to try.  I also want to cross the equator and circumnavigate the globe, which should be completed in a few years when we go to Japan.

Time to start making a bacon and zucchini pizza!  OH YES

How do you find friends?

I've usually met people through work/school or from other friends. But now that I'm in a country where I don't speak the language well and have no legal clearance to work yet, I'm pretty stumped.

I joined a stitch and bitch group started by a group of Americans on Facebook.  It's nice but I don't want to hang out with Americans all the time!  There is one Norwegian lady in the group, though but I don't really enjoy her company.  When I told her I moved here because I got married to a Norwegian she said, "ugh, of course" and then told us how she hated living in a building from the 1930s because it wasn't modern enough (and she wasn't talking about the plumbing.)

Oslo doesn't seem to have a large vintage community and the vintage clothing stores focus on the 1960s and later.  And while I've gotten used to the weird looks, it would be so much easier to handle if I had some likeminded friends here.

So, how have you found friends?

A is for... and a hardo!

Lottie Loves' Finishing School

A is for: A Little I Like About me!

• I like my confidence with cooking.  I'm not afraid to try a new recipe and I always know it's going to be completely delicious.  I've mastered pizza, katsudon, maki sushi, all kinds of pasta and sauces, as well as baking!  I'm still working on a good and hearty bread recipe, though.
• I think I'm pretty good at arranging furniture.  In every apartment I've had, I've been very careful about where to put things to maximize space.  I also love to buy house plans books and draw in the furniture.  I used to make Lego houses when I was little, just so I could rearrange the furniture.
• I'm very proud of my crafting skills!  I've been knitting for about a year and crocheting for about three months and I think I'm doing very well!  I was never very confident in art class and blamed my small hands.  But I've come to find my hands to be adorable, if slightly odd, because of their newfound skill.  I think red nail polish helps, too and not painting the half moon makes my fingers look longer!
• I like being adventurous.  In addition to moving to Norway, I also up and moved to New York City right after finishing university with no jobs, apartment, or friends there.  I knew I could make it there and I did!  It was very tough but I learned some very good lessons, mostly about budgeting and time management.  Those have been pretty helpful now, living on one slightly modest paycheck and living with someone who has been used to enjoying the finer things.  
• I enjoy my independence!  One of the hardest things about moving to Norway is having to depend on my husband for some things, mostly situations where speaking in Norwegian is needed.  Since I don't qualify for free Norwegian classes until my residence permit is approved, I've only learned a few phrases but I'm completely fine with finding my own way to places and going shopping.  I enjoy hanging out with my husband, I did decide to marry him after all, but I like going off on my own sometimes and I'm sure he feels the same way!

Also!  It's pretty warm today so I wanted to pull my hair up.  I managed to get one victory roll up but everything else fell flat.  So I braided my hair in two braids, knotted them, and tucked the ends in.  Then I lightly teased my "bangs" (they're very long) and sprayed them into a light wave.

Front

Back

I hope this holds up outside!

I'm alive!

My dear blog, I have neglected you!  The last six weeks have been absolutely non-stop!

To begin, the husband and I finally have gotten rid of roommates and have a place of our own!  We are renting an adorable apartment in downtown Oslo, a few blocks from the Karl Johans gate (one of the main shopping areas.)  We have some pretty noisy neighbors, one who insists on blasting Ne-yo's "Tonight" for about 30 minutes straight every night.  I've taken to blasting Big Star Radio during the day as revenge!

An old tram running on line #19 down Bogstadveien in Majorstua, Oslo, near where we used to live.  They run old trams every once in a while but no riding allowed :(

But it wasn't easy to get here.  We attended ever so many apartment showings until we got one.  I think my mostly-legal status and unemployment here have been hindrances but that will change soon, fingers crossed. We had to move TWICE, too.  We stayed at my mother in law's house for a week because of a tiny bit of difficulty about when we could move in.  It was pretty fun though, she lives in the suburbs of Oslo so there were lots of trees (and bugs!) but it was rather relaxing.

I managed to finish my gloves!  They are just warm enough to keep my hands from freezing on rainy days and covering my chipping nail polish :/

While staying in the suburbs, we went on a trip to the western-most city in Norway, Florø, where my husband's father is from.  It was a gorgeous 10 hour car ride each way but I got to see some amazing things, like glaciers, old road markers, and goats on the road!  All of the photos are, of course, on my husband's phone :(

I've also become obsessed with wearing my hair just like this:

Mine doesn't get as angular but it's becoming my go-to style for some easy everyday glamour.  

This post is getting so long!  I'm "enrolling" in Lottie Loves' Finishing School so expect to see some self esteem boosting posts soon!