Self-StuDYING!!

So for quite some time now I have been self-studying Japanese. It has been an interesting journey with a lot of bumps along the way … Since this is something that I am doing out of my own free will, it is sometimes difficult to motivate myself to actually sit down and study. (Which is my biggest problem when it comes to self-studying ...)

Another struggle I have encountered while learning Japanese is speaking the language. Anyone who has ever studied a language before will know my struggle when I say that speaking a foreign language is SUPER difficult. You have to think in the language you are trying to speak, because translating from your native language into your target language in your head does not work when you are speaking to someone. You don’t have time to think before you have to construct a sentence, in contrast to when you are writing for example. So speaking Japanese is definitely not my strong side.

What I am good at on the other hand is reading Japanese, thanks to my love of books and my very patient doggie that always listens when I read children’s books for him.

So in conclusion; I have gotten to the point where my Japanese knowledge seems impressive to non-speakers of the language, but for those who speak it fluently, I look utterly pathetic …  (The more reason to keep studying it, right??)

Love, Amelié

Life through a dog’s eyes

Wrapps has a very interesting perception of how the world works ... Like how my father’s flowerbed is his toilet, and the trashcan is a Michelin star restaurant, or how it is completely OK to lick his own jewels in public.

Other things seen from Wrapps' point of view:

       - Cars – magic teleportation devices. Can transport you to a completely new place while you
         are sleeping in your cage!

       - Windows – canvas to express my creativity through nose-art and slobber. 

       - Mats – giant tissues. The only place I will rub off my food beard or any filth in my fur.

       - Mirrors - scary cloning devices. Barks back at you.

       - Vacuum cleaner - will inhale anything it comes over. Still traumatized after it ate a part of
         my toy ... Avoid in the future.

       - Balloons - bipolar bouncy balls. Super fun to play with, until it all of a sudden blows up
         in your face ...

       - Staircases - pathways into the void. Must be avoided at all costs.

       - Bathroom - water torture chamber! No one will hear you scream ...

Seasons in Northern Norway

SPRING

Unpredictable weather ... Just as the snow is starting to melt and you are finally considering changing to summer tires on your car, the weather gods decide to dump a year’s worth of snow over your hometown. 

We’ve had snowfall in June for Christ’s sake, and even though it is May we still have heaps of snow in our backyard!

 SUMMER

Cold and rainy weather … You may get 3-4 days where it is hot enough to sunbathe, but don’t get your hopes up!

FALL

Expect a lot of windy weather! This is extremely important to keep in mind when you walk your beloved poop-machine, cuz’ you will get pissed on if you forget which direction the wind is blowing!

WINTER

Freezing temperatures and eternal darkness ... Good luck dealing with depression and vitamin D deficiency!

Love, Amelié

Oh the joy of living in the countryside …

So, I live in the countryside, and although it has certain benefits like fresh air and no noise pollution, there are drawbacks as well.

Birds are one of those drawbacks, and especially during springtime. They become quite aggressive in order to protect their eggs, and terns are by far the worst. You literally need to wear your bicycle helmet if you plan on going outside, or else you will be pecked to death by one of them! 

I have had so many terns swoop down and peck my helmet whenever I bike along the seaside, but hey, what better motivation to pedal faster than a swarm of angry terns flying after you (and remembering that your helmet has holes in it)?!?!

Aside from annoying birds we have quite a lot of annoying reindeer that likes to eat all my father’s plants, and tends poop all over our backyard.

We once had a very “lazy” reindeer that had taken a liking to the flowerbed right beneath my bedroom window, and refused to move, so it stayed there.

I had my bed right under the window and could hear it move during the night. Then it finally got quiet and I was like “Oh, it finally went away!” But nope, that was not quite the case, as I quickly realized when I opened the window the next morning …

So to all you “city-people”; life in the countryside is not as quiet and peaceful as you may think!

Love, Amelié

What spring is like for dog-owners …

When you own a dog the first signs of spring are never cute little flowers in your backyard … What is popping up from the snow as a reminder that spring is on it’s way, are all the poopies that you have forgotten to pick up after your four legged poop-machine during the winter.

Another sign that spring is right around the corner when you are a dog-owner is all the shedding. Then the sunlight will highlight every single stand of dog hair on your floor, and even though the house gets vacuumed almost every day, the piles of hair are back before you can even think of unplugging the vacuum cleaner.

Spring also means mud, and mud means having to bathe your dog after every walk he’s been on. He sheds so badly at the moment that his fur ends up clogging the drain in the shower, so I need to let him go for a split second to remove the fur (or else we would have a very lively reenactment of the great flood in our house), and he never lets that chance slip! He’ll kick the wall with his hind legs, shoot himself out of the shower, and then start running around in the bathroom like crazy. He HATES to bathe, so I cannot wait until summer comes and he doesn’t need a shower every day ~

Love, Amelié