artpause

This blog will be put on ice until I feel like writing again.

The Online Magician

My friend Seth is the coolest. As far as I know, he is the world's first and only online magician.

That constant taste of mint

I already told Helene. And not too long ago, I believe I told you.

This time of year, when life is only a matter of surviving the winter cold and darkness, time flies. Faster than ever. As a matter of fact, I can no longer recall what I do; apart from waking up, brushing my teeth, then bushing my teeth again (before going to bed). It is as if I am conscious only twice per day; two seconds in the morning and two seconds in the evening. I look at myself in the mirror. I see a toothbrush in my mouth and that familiar white foam, and I think to myself that there must be more to life than this.

Then I slowly doze off again.

The Paulina Empire

Finally some recognition. Tom stumbled upon a Facebook group called "The Paulina Empire" and there I am: "Paulina Modlitba, blogger". Sic!

Pretty fugly

Image: Newbury Comics

Let me introduce Abima. He is an Uglydoll and is going to be part of my research.

Flawlessly fashionable

Tisdagstema: Omgjord

Today's Tuesday theme: Omgjord (changed, altered). A picture of me being augmented before my summer wedding last August.

I have a dream

I had a dream about this blog for the first time last night. I dreamt that my last post about Google Android made the number of visitors skyrocket.

Just so you know. The dream did not come true.

Conversations in a high-tech bed

Paulina and Tom have just woken up and linger in bed. Tom has a happy, dreamy look on his face.

P: What are you thinking of?
T: Google Android.

I just want to tell you this one thing...

Image: GOTYE - Like drawing blood

...even blood can be the most beautiful thing sometimes.

En andra familj

Foto: DN

Glöm det jag sa om Jonas och Mark. Gösta och Marie-Louise är ju mina riktiga favoriter. Adoptera mig, underbara människor!

Paulina konstlar sig inför Ericsson

Paulina (P) träffar de två Ericsson-representanterna (E2) i hallen utanför konferensrummet.

P: Hi, my name is Paulina. Pratar ni båda svenska?
E2: Ja, det gör vi.
P: OK, so I can do this demo in English or in Swedish. Which do you prefer?
E2: Eh. Ja, kanske på svenska då?
P: OK, 'cause I can do it in English too if you like.
E2: Jaha. Ja, nej, det går bra på svenska.
P: Jaha.

Separated at birth

Images: I Has a Bucket & DN

Oh look!

I think we woke him up!

This is what I see when I wake up

Kan någon vara snäll och förklara för mig...

Image: DN

...vad allt det där konstiga vita är?

Subway kind of love

Boy sees NY girl of his dreams on the subway. Girl disappears in the crowd. Boy creates a website and describes the girl. Boy finds girl. Boy and girl live happily ever after.

Adorable.

Beauty if you ask me

Finally, a book about fruit flies like me

Linda Leopold (married to Fredrik Strage) recently released a book about Faghags. According to the Swedish newspaper DN, Linda's definition of a faghag is as follows:

Först och främst älskar hon bögar på något sätt. Den kärleken kan ta sig uttryck på olika sätt, men vanligast är att man är kompis och har en nära relation med en bög eller flera. Sen finns det också faghags som inte känner några bögar men älskar bögkultur över allt annat. De kanske sitter hemma och skriver homoerotiska noveller och kollar på bögporr.

Free translation a 'la Paulina:

"First and foremost she [the faghag] loves gay men in some way. That love can be expressed in different ways, but the most common way is to be friends with or be close to at least on gay man. Then, there are faghags who don't know any gay men but value the gay culture above everything else. These faghags may write homoerotic novels at home and watch gay porn."

I am not going to reveal which group of faghags I belong to.

Wallflower

Sometimes, the most amazing things happen.

På svenska, tack!

Jag vet inte om jag kan få er att förstå hur mycket jag saknar mitt eget språk. Jag saknar att kunna variera mig, uttrycka precis det jag tänker och känner, vara snabb i käften och att kunna låta övertygande och kunnig. På engelska känns allt så hopplöst. Det går så fasligt långsamt att folk har hunnit tröttna på mig redan innan jag kommit till punkt. Till kritan.

Åh, vad jag hatar att prata bäbisspråk.

Jag avskyr att känna mig så här otillräcklig.

Flying: the confessions of a free woman - SATC IRL

Feel like seeing a slightly pretentious but ground-breaking and important documentary about the modern woman? See this one. You can read more about the documentary here.

Peter Saville

Image: Sister Honey from Dazed & Confused: Inside Out 2000 (Saville Associates)

Something made me think of graphic design the other day. Peter Saville (Saville Associates) is one of my current favorite graphic designers. Among other things, Peter designed album covers for Joy Division and New Order.

The image above is porn disguised as art. Eye candy, so to speak.

NYC musts: Flushing meadows

Image: Wikipedia

Anyone who visits NYC simply has to visit the Flushing meadows/Corona Park in Queens. The park is full of incredibly ugly, seemingly abandoned concrete buildings from the 1939/40 and 1964/65 World's fairs. It is a stunning place that many tourists (and New Yorkers) seem to be unaware of.

My personal favorite is the Queens Museum of Arts, situated right in the middle of the park, just next to the big world globe fountain. My friend Anders recently blogged about the museum's NYC panorama.

Tillbakablick

Foto: Balettakademien

Hörrni, var det ändå inte bättre förr?

Tisdagstema: En/ett

Today's Tuesday theme: En/ett (one). Especially for you, an umbrella.

21 elephants in NYC

Did you know that in 1884, P. T. Barnum helped to squelch doubts about the stability of the Brooklyn Bridge by leading a herd of 21 elephants over it?

Let's get some shoes

Just got back from NYC where I came across Miz Mozz shoes. Nothing too unique, but still adorable somehow.

Conversations at a high-tech dinner table

Dinner is ready. Tom sits down at the dinner table. Paulina gets her computer and sits down right next to him.

T: No, please. Not.
P: Not what?
T: No computers during dinner. Please.
P: Just five minutes? I have to check my emails. I'll die if I don't.
T: Well, OK. Five minutes then.
P: Thanks. You can even count the minutes. I don't need more than 5.
T: Alright.

While Paulina is trying to check her emails on a slow connection, Tom opens up his laptop and starts watching YouTube videos. Paulina looks at him with anger. Tom doesn't notice. After 5 minutes of desperately trying to access her email account Paulina slams her laptop shut and runs into her room, crying. Tom runs after.

T: Honey, what's the problem?
P: Pfff... *sob* *sob*
T: Come on, why are you angry? What did I do wrong? Tell me.
P: Can't you see what you did wrong? Are you blind?! *sob*
T: I have no idea! What is it? Tell me.
P: Pfff...Don't you understand? YOU STOLE MY BANDWIDTH!

****

If there is something - anything - that this example can teach us all. Please let me know.

Live free or die

Photo: armedamerica.org.

Let me tell you about this country that I live in. You've probably already heard people talk about it; USA is the country of fear. And it is. We are all afraid of being attacked, abused, hurt, injured, molested, raped, stabbed, shot, killed, hit, bitten, and battered. But most of all, we fear the thought of not having the possibility to chose. We hate the idea of having to obey somebody else's orders. We defy the concept that other people may have more knowledge about certain things than we do. We are all more or less like three-year-old toddlers, screaming "I can do it myself!". And although it is rather obvious to everyone, including ourselves, that we can't manage on our own, it is the notion that we are all free to do what we want that counts in the end.

"Live free or die" is what they say in New Hampshire. I think I know what they mean.

It's a new day today

Image: The Brooklyn Museum: Ron Mueck (Australian, b. 1958). Mask II, 2001–2002

Forget about all the things I said about pimples the other day. I just had a facial and look like an idiot. Thank God it's Halloween. I'd better just put on that mask of mine.

Funny in a YouTubish kind of way

Aparently, this video clip is one of the most popular YouTube video clips right now.

Do you agree?

Mia & Klara

Har du inte redan sett dem. Se dem.

2007

I must admit that I am obsessed with details. Colors, layout, words. I sometimes go through my blog posts some ten, twenty times. I make small changes to make the texts sound right.

I am obsessed with numbers too. They have to have the right feel to them, you see. I like the year I was born: 1980. Even and soft. Round.

For a while, I was really worried about getting married in 2007. Taste it...2007. Say it out loud. How does it feel? Like eating candy with the paper wrap still on? Like scratching a blackboard with your nails? I can't stop wondering whether 2007 will be gone and forgotten about even before it ends. Poor 2007 will just be one of very many odd years.

Still, I am starting to change my mind. Doris Lessing won the Nobel Prize and so did Al Gore. The Red Sox won the World Series (again). And although Ingmar Bergman died, and many monks in Burma did too, I now feel that it is fair to say that the few nice things that took place in 2007 are enough.

Indeed, 2007 was a very good year.

Pimple happiness

Today, I actually dare say that I am happy. Happy!

The sun is shining, I am going to NYC in three days, Tom is here with me, my friend Sorosh and his colleague Dante are visiting, I have new pants, and I am being creative. Yeah, I feel fine.

Today, not even the three huge, bright red pimples in my face matter.

Tisdagstema: Trasig

Today's Tuesday theme: Trasig (broken). For some reason, I find abandoned and broken dolls very fascinating. They almost look like real people. Corpses lying in the streets and people just walk by.

And what about the story? Who's doll is it? How did it get there?

Life is a mystery.

Hällouiin

The happy and the evil.

En glad liten lista igen

Minns ni den här listan? Sedan sist har jag varit i Kanada, gift mig och blivit sambo. Kom just på att det jag fortfarande har ogjort i denna lista kanske är det jag borde göra allra mest? Vad tror ni?

[x] rökt en cigarett.
[ ] rökt en cigarr.
[x] varit kär.
[x] blivit dumpad.
[x] fått sparken.
[ ] varit i knytnävsslagsmål.
[x] rymt hemifrån.
[x] haft känslor för någon som inte känt samma sak.
[ ] blivit arresterad.
[x] skolkat
[ ] sett någon död.
[x] flugit.
[x] varit i Kanada.
[ ] varit i Mexiko.
[x] varit i USA.
[ ] varit i Afrika.
[ ] spytt i en bar.
[x] ätit sushi.
[ ] åkt snowboard.
[ ] crowdsurfat under en konsert.
[x] tagit smärtstillande.
[x] saknat någon.
[x] gjort en snöängel.
[ ] haft ett te-party.
[x] byggt ett sandslott.
[x] hoppat i en vattenpöl.
[x] åkt släde.
[x] fuskat när jag spelat spel.
[x] varit ensam.
[ ] använt ett falskt id.
[x] tittat på en solnedgång.
[ ] varit med i en jordbävning.
[x] rört en orm.
[ ] blivit rånad.
[x] vunnit en tävling.
[x] gått mot rött.
[x] fått böter.
[x] varit vilse.
[x] varit på andra sidan landet.
[x] simmat i havet.
[x] sjungt karaoke.
[x] skrivit ett brev till tomten.
[x] åkt rullskridskor/inlines.
[x] varit sambo.
[x] gift mig.
[ ] skilt mig.
[x] sjungit i duschen.
[x] fastnat med tungan i metall.
[ ] varit en cheerleader.
[ ] pratat i telefon i mer än sex timmar.
[x] stannat uppe hela natten.
[ ] inte duschat på en vecka.
[x] varit rädd för att titta på skräckfilm ensam.
[x] trott på spöken.
[x] blivit puttad i en pool med kläderna på.
[x] skrattat så mycket att jag grät.
[x] snott den här listan från någon.
[x] snattat någonting.
[ ] spelat med i en teaterpjäs.
[ ] varit med i en tvreklam.
[ ] varit med i en film som gått på biografen.
[ ] stått på händerna och druckit ett glas vatten.
[x] varit ärlig när du fyllt i detta formuläret hittills.

ThisNext...MeNext

Again, most of you probably already know ThisNext, a very Web2.0-ish shopping recommendation website. Until about 10 minutes ago, I surely didn't know it existed. Boy, had I only known!

This Ninja doll is only the beginning.

Karin Eriksson

I am in a design, art, and shopping mood today. You probably can tell.

Karin Erikssons blog just makes me want to create and buy more...stuff.

More wallpaper

Interactive Wallpaper lets you design your own wall stickers and wallpapers in their lab. Now, isn't that just lovely.

Alternative

We all have our own ways of showing love and appreciation. This is Tom's approach.

Sideways

Tisdagstema: Saknad

Today's Tuesday theme is "Saknad" (regret/to miss somebody). Thus, a photo of Tom and I when we were still living apart and had to find alternative ways of expressing love.

Oälskad

Vi spelar rollspel i tunnelbanan. Vi känner inte varandra. Han uppvaktar mig. Blinkar lite med ena ögat och säger "Hej". Jag tittar på honom med avsky i blicken och svarar:

"Låt mig vara. Jag är upptagen."

Han ser min blick och avbryter plötsligt leken; tittar allvarligt på mig, som om han just vaknat upp ur en hemsk dröm, och säger sedan:

"Paulina. Jag vill aldrig vara oälskad av dig."

Och jag tänker att det här är nog det vackraste han någonsin sagt till mig.

Lots of jobs

I got an email from KTH today. The subject is "Massor av jobb" (Lots of jobs). It sound like one of those to-good-to-be-true-spam emails, but it is real. Guess I chose the right school, then. Not sure I'm the right person for those jobs, though.

Män kan inte våldtas

Jag försökte mig nyligen på ett nytt knep för att hetta upp vår äktenskapliga tillvaro. När jag mötte Tom på tågstationen häromdagen tittade jag på honom med sug i blicken och sa "Det är bäst att du förbereder dig för en sömnlös natt, för ikväll ska jag våldta dig." (Jag hoppas att ni alla kan se humorn i detta desperata uttalande.) Tom tittade förvånat på mig, men såg ändå glad ut. "Wow!", såg det ut som att han tänkte, "Paulina måste ha förändrats medan jag var borta. Det här ser jag verkligen fram emot."

Det visade sig dock att det var mest på ytan saker hade förändrats, för när Tom lite senare på kvällen smög in i sovrummet, mer förväntansfull än någonsin, låg jag sedan länge i sängen och sov; som vanligt med sovmasken för ögonen och rumpan i vädret.

(P.S. Rubriken refererar till en bok av Märta Tikkanen.)

Another man stuffed between my legs

This thing with Snuffe is getting completely ridiculous. I tell you, he is scary. Not a very nice stuffed pet. When Tom was in Canada, I left him on the bedside table instead of having him in bed. I had a really hard time sleeping because Snuffe was staring at me the whole night. He didn't close his eyes once. Not a single time.

Last night, when Tom was finally back and insisted on having Snuffe in bed again, I woke up in the middle of the night and found Snuffe between my legs! When I confronted Tom, he had the guts to blame me! Then he ask me if I was aware of the fact that Snuffe actually isn't a man, but a butch lesbian.

Tsk. There is something very fundamental that I don't get here. Is that actually supposed to make things better?

Planespotting

Tom knows a lot, but there is one thing he doesn't know: I usually watch him fly. Approximately five minutes after his flight is scheduled to take off, I go to a website called FlightAware and watch the plane move slowly across the computer screen. I refresh the page every five minutes or so to make sure that the plane hasn't crashed.

Do you think he can sense my presence?

Tjejer och killar, ni glömmer väl inte?

Mycket har jag pratat om i denna blogg, men politik har jag nog lyckats undvika helt och hållet. Tills nu. Jag tar det på svenska eftersom det jag nu ska säga är så viktigt och ligger mig så fasligt nära om hjärtat att jag inte kan göra något annat.

Det här blogginlägget ska inte handla om min besvikelse på all de som väljer att rösta på det parti som lovar att ge dem mest pengar i plånboken. Den ska inte heller handla om de som är obildade och trångsynta nog att skylla Sveriges problem på landets nya medborgare. Det här inlägget ska, hör och häpna, handla om den så känsliga kvinnosaksfrågan.

Det smärtar att se att vi idag lever i en värld där kvinnor skäms för att bli förknippade med just kvinno- och jämställdhetsfrågan - eller feminismen som vi ju också brukar kallar den.

A: "Jag, feminist? Usch, nej verkligen inte!"
B: "Men du är för jämlikhet mellan män och kvinnor?"
A: "Ja, det är jag absolut. Det är ju en helt annan sak. Men någon sådan där rabiat lesbisk rödstrumpa är jag definitivt inte. Det vill jag att du ska veta."

För mig går inte detta resonemang ihop. Antingen så är man för "kvinnans fulla ekonomiska, sociala och politiska jämställdhet med mannen", och ja, då är man ju feminist, eller så är man emot den. Kanske kan man också vara något däremellan, men det är inte det som det här inlägget handlar om. Det här inlägget handlar om att den morderna kvinnan verkar vara så upptagen med att njuta av sina (nyvunna) samhälleliga privilegier att hon helt har lyckats glömma bort hur hon en gång i tiden fick tillgång till dem.

Den moderna kvinnan verkar tro att kvinnor alltid har haft det lika bra som nu; kvinnor har alltid kunnat läsa på universitet, arbeta med management, fika med väninnorna på stan och gå en spontan barrunda efter jobbet. Alla de kvinnor som en gång offrade sitt anseende, och i vissa fall sina liv, för att få samma rättigheter som männen är sedan länge bortglömda. Lillian Lenton, Emily Davison, Alexandra Kollontay, Ada Nilsson, Elisabeth Tamm, Siri Derkert; betyder dessa namn någonting för dig? Om inte, så kan jag berätta att det är bland annat dem du har att tacka för att du som kvinna har rätt att rösta. Det är också bland annat tack vare dem som du som gift kvinna har rätt till din egna pengar och till att betala din egen skatt.

Kanhända finner jag samtidigt glädje i att allt det som tidigare kvinnogenerationer har gjort för oss är bortglömt. Ja, för kanske är det ett tecken på att vi idag lever i ett nästintill jämställt samhälle där jämställdhetsfrågor är redundanta? Kanske. Men ändå inte.

Det enda jag kan tänka på i denna stund är att om vi fortsätter så här kommer vi rätt som det är, utan att vi märker det, att vara tillbaka i allt elände igen.

Almost orgasmic purse

Thanks for satisfying my needs, Roost Living. This purse was designed by Nadia Minkoff.

I love you all, my dear international visitors

#1: WWTBAM: Self-confidence can make the geekiest geek bring sexy back

Canada ACTUALLY took Tom

Tom forgot to get a travel signature on his DS-2019 form, so now he is stuck in Canada. I am currently waiting for him to express deliver the form to me so that I can get a signature on it, before express delivering it back to him. Until then, he is basically Canadian.

Decoration frenzy

I don't know what it is, but there is something about wall stickers that makes me scream with pleasure. The French company Domestic has some really nice ones. And other cool stuff as well, of course.

#2: Kelly Dobson's theraputic machine

Kelly Dobson is a Media Lab alumna who is currently teaching at Cornell University.

Gay bashing

Apparently Fredrik Strage's latest YouTube video post also has a Gay Bashing theme. What a funny coincidence.

Designboom

I always find and think of things long after others, but I am still just as happy when I do. I just found this really nice design website called Designboom. Their shop is wonderland.

Canada took Tom

When I woke up this morning, Tom was gone. I turned around and saw Snuffe lying next to me. It turns out that Canada took Tom. As I am writing this, he is in a plane somewhere between Montreal and Quebec.

#3: Ted Haggard Bashing Gays

Before:



And later:



You can read more about Ted Haggard here.

Nobody puts baby in a corner

So, there is this class that I am taking, called Future craft. It is basically me and 20 really cool architects. When I signed up for the class, I had hope. I thought to myself that "I am creative. I can make it through a craft and design class full of architects, even though I'm an engineer, sort of." But I am not sure anymore. I try to conduct the weekly tasks, but fail miserably every time. Now, I mostly hide in corner and try to be invisible.

I never used to hide in corners. So why am I there now?

I scream, you scream, we all scream for blog streams

Item #1 on my Christmas 2007 wish list: The Weblog Handbook by Rebecca Blood.

By the way, have you seen anyone make use of the fact that "weblog" can be interpreted as "we blog" ("vi bloggar")? Sounds very Web2.0, if you ask me.

Tisdagstema: Hinder

Today's Tuesday Theme is hinder (Swedish for "obstacle"). The theme makes me think of "Snuffe", this obnoxious stuffed WebKinz pet that Tom just bought. He insist on having it in between us when we sleep. OK, I must admit I have one too (a koala, actually), but I have an excuse - I use it for my research.

Tom's relationship to his stuffed duck is something altogether different.

#4: Linus på linjen - Doesn't he sound just like Pingu?

The original:



And the parody:

Finally finally!

I honestly never thought this would happen. A sauna in the United States of Prudishness. Gay men, stay away! This is my sauna.

#5: LSD turns Mecki into a sausage

#6: Ika's skeleton dance

Click here to see the video.

Projects I love: Plane Tracker

I believe that I have mentioned this project before. The Plane Tracker projects was developed at the Goldsmiths College in London, as a part of their Curious Home project. One of the designers, Dr. Bill Gaver, is going to be one of my three Master of Science thesis readers.

Remote hunger

For your information. Tom and I have now reached the marital state of "I actually prefer talking to you via my laptop".

#7: Well, hello!

#8: Kartonghuset - If this didn't mess you up, then what did?

You can see more of Kartonghuset here.

Tisdagstema: vårdad

Completely forgot last Tuesday's photo theme: vårdad (cared for, well-kept). Here is a photo of one of the many times that Tom has cared for me while I am sound asleep.

Finally!

Image: Expressen/Scanpix

Maria Schottenius' comment is spot on:

Jag trodde inte att Svenska akademien klarade så mycket mensblod.

(Free translation: I never thought the Swedish Academy could handle that much menstrual blood)

#9: Jesus Camp Rachel

#10: Joelbitar

Fantastic e-fabric

If you want to make your own wearable e-textiles, like, say, a blinking dress, a good way to start is by using Leah Buechley's LilyPad set.

#80: Ulla-Bella Rap

Lisa, oh Lisa

I just can't stop myself from talking about my favorite designers and graphic designers. Lisa Bengtsson is the most recent of my pleasurable discoveries. Her family picture wallpaper project is fabulous.

Ten more, then no more

Ok, just so you know, I am getting really sick of this YouTube thing, and I assume it is mutual (YouTube is getting sick of me too). So, After I reach #80 tomorrow, I'll show you my ten favorite ones and then stop. And after that, I promise never to publish another YouTube clip again - ever.

I want my blog back.

#81: Pippi Pelikan intro

#82: Japanese English lesson for prostitutes - Toshi, come on!

#83: "Kära Örebroare" - The Swedish king is confused

#84: 1965 Anti-porn

Agent Provocateur

Transvestism is the new black.

Walk the Elephant Walk

Today's big event in Cambridge/Boston is the yearly (?) Circus Elephant Walk. 10 elephants on foot, 14 horses, 2 zeedonks, 2 alpacas & 2 goats plus their handlers walk through the streets of Cambridge and Boston to the TD Banknorth Garden.

Boy, this is fun!

Free Everyone

One blog post for Burma

#85: Uri Geller Busted

Better wife

I watched the first episode of the Swedish TV show Skild! (Divorced!) and panicked. Shit, I have to be a better wife. Funnier, more independent, and less depressed. Quickly, no time to lose.

What do I do?