stuff & such

It’s been a bit crazy lately, where Liz and I have tried to figure out what to do and how to face the pandemic in our everyday lives. We both work from home and have done it for two months soon. We have zero future travel plans ahead to the States or anywhere, which feels surreal since we always go to the States in summer. But unfortunately not this year, which hurts in our souls. I’ve had this “I’m stuck” kind of feeling (who doesn’t, though, right now?) and a huge need for a more “I’m free!” kind of feeling in the midst of everything going on right now in the world. Liz and I love to take road trips, explore unridden, to us, roads, and have just “play-it-by-ear” kinds of plans. To just pack a snack, get in a car and go, is something we’ve missed greatly the past five years in Sweden. BUT as of this week, that has changed, and it feels so good!

Two days ago, we picked up our car, a Toyota CH-R (for those interested), and our lives have truly changed. Not only in owning a car, but in my mind and soul – I nowadays have this kind of freedom-feeling inside of me. Crazy to have to buy a car right now in order to feel that, but..oh, well. Before Luna, which is the car’s name we decided on for her, we’ve been stuck at home since we don’t want to go by bus or train anywhere (and also, where to go right now anyway? Nowhere!). With a car we can now easily get out in nature – drive to the coast and be by the ocean, explore areas we’ve never explored before due to the inconvenience of not having a car and no other transportation possibilities to get to those areas. We’re talking nature spots now since we don’t want to be around any other people than our small click of family (my brother and his family and two friends we’ve been seeing all along during the pandemic.

Luna is freedom to us right now.

Once the pandemic has calmed down and is more under control in the world, we see ourselves going down to my parents and then to continue to the southern part of Sweden and visit my family there and then all of Europe is just a close drive to be under our wheels! Or to drive up to Northern part of Sweden and experience the Midnight sun, visit friends, and just be close to my roots up there (both my grandmas were from southern part of Sweden, my grandad on mom’s side was from up north, and my dad’d dad was from Stockholm – so I have wide range of roots from North to South) Gaaaah, what a dream, and one day, it will be possible, and a little sooner possible with Luna <3

Why Luna? Firstly, because it’s a badass name but too close to Lina so I don’t want to name a possible future baby that. Hehe. Second, it means the moon, which my love has a great special love for, and at the time we bought her, there was a new moon. Perfect, right?

Count on some updates from upcoming road trips. In the beginning just from closer areas here in Uppland (the area Uppsala is in), but once we can move around more, definitely some more longer adventures!

Hope y’all doing ok and stayin’ safe.

Love,
Lina

I’ve bought new sneakers with velcro and it’s like being five again <3 Stan Smith Adidas it is and I think we’re gonna create a lot of good memories together. Just wanted to share that with the world, and also wishing you a great week ahead of you! Ok, let’s take a look at my lovelies.

When you walk and suddenly it’s just there. A sweater, a dress, a notebook, or a bag. That happened to me the other day. I found an awesome bag, and just because I love it so much, I’ll show it to you here too. Sorry, but not sorry.

Coffee with Oatly’s “iKaffe”.

A new poster hanging on our wall in the living room.

A tote bag, supporting an organization working for a world without eating disorders.

When Liz brings home some fresh squeezed juice. Juice delivery deluxe.

Liz came home with a surprise package yesterday. What an amazing wife I have ♥ I wore the earrings directly when I went to a kick off party with my job last night, and gosh, I love them. The t-shirt will be ready to be worn on Monday, but more about that day then! *Cliffhanger*.

Hope you’re having a great weekend!

When I was in the States this summer, I did some shoe shopping since it’s way cheaper there than in Sweden. Today I decided to waterproof/impregnate the new ones along with some older shoes as well, and while I did it, I thought, why not take some pics, and show you some of my favorites here at home. So here we go.

I’ve been wearing Converse (tall and short ones) for more than half my life and have owned quite a many pair. Unfortunately, I’ve gave/sold many pairs, or a majority of, my Converse when we moved to the States…one of the things I actually regret that I did. Oh, well. I’m working on expanding my collection now, and I decided to go for some classic ones this time. Tall and black.

The Adidas Superstar has been pretty popular the past years, and I got really retro-looking ones when they came out, since they were really popular when I was around 14. Of course, I had to get a pair as the age of 32 as well. Yes, nostalgia. I bought the Nike ones this past spring, which you can see more of in this blog post.

Vans has also become a favorite brand, and I’ve been wearing these ones quite a bit, and they’re still going strong.

Ok, readers. Friends. Toms. Is. The. Most. Comfortable. Shoes. Liz and I have had several pairs for multiple years, and we both love them. This trip to the States, I came home with fresh new black ones.

New Balance. So comfortable and nice looking. Do I need to say more? Oh, this is model 420.

Dr. Martens. Shoes who look and fit better the more you wear them. Bought these several years ago. I believe I have an Instagram picture from when I got them.

The newest pair of shoes in my collection, and to me, also a new brand in my closet. Clarks. I think we’re gonna have a nice fall together.

Some favorite brands of mine when it comes to shoes
Dr. Martens
Vans
New Balance
Converse
Toms
Adidas
Nike
Clarks
Birkenstock
Vagabond

It was a pretty tough day yesterday, but I rewarded myself with some shopping afterwards and look what I found: a black cap. We’ll be besties in Paris and on the other trips I’m doing this summer!

To get inspired and feel inspiration grow from deep inside of me. People, places, nature, cities, happenings, series, music everything is inspiring me, and I love it!

To spend time with friends and family where playing old records is a no brainer. How much do you love this record player…gaaaaah.

To drink coffee out of our newly bought mugs from House Doctor. Could buy so much from there and other design brands such as Bloomingville, HAY, and Muuto.

YES! Today, I’m gonna longboard for the first time. Well, I’ve longboard a tiny bit before, but inside, so it doesn’t count. A friend of mine is coming over this afternoon and we’re gonna longboard together, which is gonna be fab! I’m stoked as you probably can tell, but it feels like I’ve been waiting on this moment forever. The sun is out, it’s gonna be pretty warm today, and the gravel is gone from the sidewalks and streets! Perfection.

Tip #1: If you would like to follow my little longboard story, check out the category; longboard

Tip #2: You can also check out my little video I made last fall. You find it here and also on my Vimeo account, here.

Hope you’re having a great week!

I did it. I bought new sneakers today and I’m in love. I know, I know. Pretty materialistic but I had done something really tough and challenging the day before (which I’ll probably will share with you in the next few days here!), so these shoes were a treat for myself.. Liz was busy at work when I texted her for advice/opinions/approval..so I contacted a couple of other good supporters (read: Liz’s cousin who’s a serious fashion girl and a good friend of mine with good style taste, I think). Thank you guys! FYI: Liz totally liked them once she saw my desperate texts. Although, I had already paid for them by then. Hehe. They are Nike, white tennis shoes/sneakers, called Wmns Son of Force and if interested, I bought mine at Stadium, but you can also find them at other places. Google them. Oh, well. Enough talk. Let’s check them out!

Bought these some days ago and I’m in love! Credit to lensway for fast delivery! (wish I was sponsored, but I’m not..). I think we’re gonna have great sunny days together ♥

Liz and I went downtown and checked out some stores Friday afternoon. It’s a challenge for me since I, sadly, get stressed out and anxious in situations like that nowadays. But I managed it and I also found few things I’ve been looking for lately. Let’s check them out.

I’ve been looking for this kind of scarf for about..hmm..like two years. And now it was just laying there on a table, right in front of me. It was a no brainer.

This gray woolen shorter coat just screamed Lina. Hehe. It has a classic, clean style, and is perfect for fall when it hasn’t gotten that chilly yet. I like how it feels on me and that it’s pretty fitted.

I (or actually Liz found it) have finally found a black knitted, oversized turtle neck sweater! I can live in this one this fall.

These shoes are my go-to fall shoes and I’ve used the same (same brand and bought at the same store chain) for years. When we left the States and I had to go through my shoes and decide which ones to keep or not, I threw away my pair of these shoes, with the deal to get new ones in Sweden. This weekend, it was time to head to the store and get a new pair. Love them so much.

Some skate and longboard inspiration just because it looks so damn fun and cool. Plus, the design of some boards are just great. You can see all the pictures and some more on my Pinterest, which you’ll find here.

sources: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10.

sources: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7.

About a week ago, I posted the picture above on Instagram and wrote:

Happy Saturday, folks! You might wonder what the heck you’re seeing in this picture. Hehe. This, my friends, is some weird/crazy prep for my new hobby to come! Woo hoo. I know, I know. This is a major teaser. Anyway, I’ll hopefully get back to ya ASAP and share my excitement fully with y’all. Just gotta figure some stuff out first. To be continued ? #teaser #newhobby #soon #waiting #preparing #mouhaha #excited #me

So what is it I’m going to do and what the heck is shown in the picture above?

Readers, it’s me measuring how long a longboard is in total, and how long it is where you’re standing. The arrows show the total length and the cylinder and the ball together show the center/standing part of the board! I wanted to get a better picture of how big/long it is. I haven’t really talked about this a whole lot before (except a picture or so on Instagram over a year ago → here), but it’s been on my mind for about 1.5 years now, and I even had a possible teacher in Asheville when we lived there. But somehow, it just ran out in the sand (as we say in Swedish), we moved to Sweden, and I was caught up in other things in life – like settling in in Sweden again, getting into my new job, and solving the living situation, etc.

But a few weeks ago, my longboard nerves started itching again. I talked about it when we had picnic in the park a couple of weeks ago here in Uppsala, and I found out that one of my co-workers wants to learn too! Perfect. I have a co-worker/friend here I can longboard with some! Then I found out that two more people at work are interested in skating/longboarding.

So I’m about to start a new hobby  – longboarding!

Right as this moment, I’ve just ordered one and I’m un-patiently waiting for its arrival, which will take a few weeks!! It’s an American Skate brand, called Arbor Collective which started 1995 in Venice California.

So the longboard I’ve ordered is an Axis Walnut by Arbor Collective in photography collaboration with the artist Matt Smith. It’s the kind you can cruise, (go from A to B), carve (ride an ‘S’ shaped path), freeride (a form of downhill skateboarding that is more trick oriented and technical), and do freestyle (boardwalking, dancing etc.) with, so it’s a pretty all-around board, but not too focused on tricks as you might think when thinking about a skateboard. Longboard is (obviously due to the word “long”) a long board which makes it a little bit more stable and hopefully easier to ride than a skateboard.

So this blog will probably be a tiny bit more focused on longboarding and I hope you would like to tag along in my learning process.

The one I’ve ordered looks like this ↓

Here comes some Longboard geek talk

• It’s a symmetrical, snowboard inspired shape.
• Offers a quick rail-to-rail performance, with drop-through mounting for a more ergonomic push and power through turns and slides.
• L: 40.00”  W: 9.00”  WB: 30.50”.
• Trucks: Reverse Kingpin with Caliber 50 Caliber 10.0.
• Wheels: Arbor Sucrose Initiative – Summit Series. Size 71.0mm.