I wanna blog like bloggers do

I always have the best intentions, and every time I sign in I think I'll blog like a real blogger blogs, with wit, and usually about nothing. But never fail, it's been 14 months since my last blog and I feel I need to update everyone on all the mundane details of my life, every last change needs to be accounted for, and the weather must be addressed. Why can't I blog like bloggers do? Where are the witticisms that will get my blog circulated among friends? Where is the insightful social or political commentary? Maybe it will follow whenever I develop some insight. Will reading more blogs help me to blog better blogs? I'll go out and find all the blogs I can, and then inevitably forget about them when the next more important thing comes along, like living life outside the blogosphere. I wanna be popular on the blog, I want people to read the blog to see what I'll say next, like some fantastic novel that they can't stop turning the pages of, like the old novels and novellas released in weekly installments for the enjoyment of the masses. But the masses are busier now, more blogs to blog on than just this blog that represents the extent of my blogness. Why, with only this one blog to my name, can I not blog with the best? I only wanna blog like bloggers do.

Cinema Paradiso

Hi guys,

I was just talking to Constance because I'm going to NYC tomorrow and I figured I'd check this blog (which I haven't done for months) and what do you know... a new blog from Tim.

Like, I guess you all, I've wanting write something on here but haven't found the time. I don't have any to spare now since it is 1 in the morning and I have a long day tomorrow, but what the heck.

What has happened in my life since last blog. I guess I was working in Denmark the last time I checked in... well I quit that job and came back to Iceland. In January I started working for a movie distribution company called Samfilm. I wasn't to excited when I started but I'm doing fun and interesting things to do and I have a fantastic boss. The plan is to get a masters degree someday but I'm liking life as it is.

I got extremely lucky the other day. About 5 years back I bought stock in a small bank for rather small amount. I didn't pay much attention to it, just let it roll and when I need it I can sell it. Well I got offered 10 times the original investment so I decided to buy myself an apartment. I've now been living in this cellar in central Reykjavík for 2 months and I love it. Svana came to the housewarming party, got the mojito mix I made along with the punch I mixed (color: green).

Along with working for SAM I work in a bar. I got pretty good at it rather fast so they've started to pay extremely well so every other weekend I stand a shift. It's also great because I get in front of the cue when I'm out and I get incredible sum of free drinks. For the last month I've been taking it rather slow because I started dating. So now Saturday nights are spent watching whatever that's on TV. It was weird to begin with (I had been either working or drinking almost straight for 8 months(around 40 weekends!!!)). Of course as with everything in Iceland... The girl is friends with Svana.

Anyways. It's now almost 4 years since I started this blog. That is a long time!

I also can recommend the 'book. I met one of my best friends from when I was 11 whom I haven't seen for more than a decade. It's lovely!

Take care,
Úlli

I was all by myself....no one was looking....

Just sitting in on this Friday night, recovering from dental surgery today. Kasia is out with friends, and even her mom went out to the club (and no, we don't still live with her mom, but we stopped by tonight). Life is much the same in Chicago. The weather's been glorious this fall (yes, Adam, I know you prefer "autumn"), so we've had a long time to let go of summer. Still doing the accounting gig for work, and volunteering for various organizations in my little spare time. I've also fallen into the trap that so many unwary husbands fall into-----home improvements!!!! I guess a little kitchen remodeling never killed anyone (until now!). Glad to see that everyone is falling into line and joining facebook, and maybe that's why the blog has been piss poor of late. Or it could be that we're all busy and don't have oodles of idle time on our hands anymore. Either way, I hope somebody still reads this, because blogging to etherspace with no one to read it is just plain sad.
Did a lightning tour of Tampa, Florida last weekend. Flew in at 10pm Friday night, went out with friends till the wee hours, up for a wedding on Saturday, then reception, then out karaoking with some East London types and some plain ol' Florida white trash, then to the airport after an hour of sleep (very reminiscent of our trip to Paris with Conor, Magnus, and company). Spent all week detoxing, but you can't pass on those opportunities to see childhood friends. No matter where you go in life, it's always nice to know you'll always have those childhood friends.
So, if you're not on facebook yet, get it done, and let's start dropping notes on people's Walls. Adam and I had talked about how it's hard to make the time to write a long blog or send a long e-mail to someone, but the quick notes on facebook can be a nice shout-out.

Take care all,
Tim

Cry, Cry, Cry

Iceland is a funny nation. We are few, we aren't successful in many sports, but in the once we are we get very proud. One of the few is handball.

Most of you may now know that the Handball World Cup is going on right now in Germany. To prove my point of the English speaking world doesn't know about this, I can tell you that there is only one nation there who speak English as their native language... It's Australia and their participation is basically a joke. Their first Handball tournament was the 2000 Olympics in Sidney where prior to the games they advertised in local newspapers for players. The sport was a big hit over there because many people only got tickets to that event and once they got there they began to like it.

Iceland has had a very good tournament despite a rather slow start. We won Australia in the first match, then lost surprisingly to Ukraine so we had to win the World Champions France in the last match of our group. I've never seen the Icelandic team play as well as that game and we won quite easily. We got through to the second group and after that we went to play Denmark in quarter finals.

The game was even most of it and for 55 out 60 minutes the difference wasn't more than 1 goal. Eventually we drew dramatically and the game went into over time. With 20 seconds and all even we got a chance to score and our player hit the pole. Our old reigning country got forward and scored.

You couldn't be mad, it was basically luck that one this match. But you should see this country now everybody is talking about the same thing. Handball has incredible influence on the mood over here. For example the night life is incredibly more fun if we win than if we loose. People just don't go then.

At least we will be above the Norwegians!

Last I want to recommend a band called Peter, Bjorn & John. They are great.

Hasta la proxima,
Úlli

Cry, Cry, Cry

Iceland is a funny nation. We are few, we aren't successful in many sports, but in the once we are we get very proud. One of the few is handball.

Most of you may now know that the Handball World Cup is going on right now in Germany. To prove my point of the English speaking world doesn't know about this, I can tell you that there is only one nation there who speak English as their native language... It's Australia and their participation is basically a joke. Their first Handball tournament was the 2000 Olympics in Sidney where prior to the games they advertised in local newspapers for players. The sport was a big hit over there because many people only got tickets to that event and once they got there they began to like it.

Iceland has had a very good tournament despite a rather slow start. We won Australia in the first match, then lost surprisingly to Ukraine so we had to win the World Champions France in the last match of our group. I've never seen the Icelandic team play as well as that game and we won quite easily. We got through to the second group and after that we went to play Denmark in quarter finals.

The game was even most of it and for 55 out 60 minutes the difference wasn't more than 1 goal. Eventually we drew dramatically and the game went into over time. With 20 seconds and all even we got a chance to score and our player hit the pole. Our old reigning country got forward and scored.

You couldn't be mad, it was basically luck that one this match. But you should see this country now everybody is talking about the same thing. Handball has incredible influence on the mood over here. For example the night life is incredibly more fun if we win than if we loose. People just don't go then.

At least we will be above the Norwegians!

Last I want to recommend a band called Peter, Bjorn & John. They are great.

Hasta la proxima,
Úlli

3 years and counting

So this blog has survived three years now. I stopped reading it for a month or so and when I looked at it again there were three posts. It's always a pleasure seeing something new over here.

I'm very happy to be in Iceland this new years since my last new years eve wasn't very eventful. I woke up hung over beyond believe in Nanking decided not to eat dinner at McDonalds but in a small steakhouse I had come across. That was a decision I came to regret. I walked rather broke to the foreigners bar where I had a beer. I wasn't really in the party mood so I went back to the hotel and watched a movie. The day after I took a taxi to the train station and bought a ticket back home. 17 hours on a train isn't a lot of fun (in a seat) but I managed to read an entire book from start to finish.

This wasn't my first time being abroad on the new years eve because I was in Guatemala on the turn of the millennium. The most memorable thing was the fire cracker war the boys of the family did. We made two teams and then we started. Nobody seemed to mind, not even the car owners.

About my life today... I quit my job. The boss and I had a bit different ideas about this thing and I'm happy that I'm back in the land of the midnight sun. It's fairly easy to get a job around here now and I've started working in a bar since I don't now any better way to stop going out and getting a little pocket money. The bar is the most fancy around which is good since I'll never go there when I go out.

Finally I want to wish you, your families and friends a happy new year.

Work....so taxing

Sorry for the terrible pun in the title, me being a tax accountant and all, but I just couldn't resist. It's been a while since I've blogged, and I totally agree with Ulli that it's a lot like running....getting your shoes laced up and hitting the pavement is the hardest part. Speaking of Ulli, as he said he made it out to Chicago for the wedding. It was good to see at least one of the old Barcelona faces there---hopefully more can make it over for the housewarming. That's my latest news--Kathy/Kasia and I bought a condo on Chicago's northwest side. It's a nice little 2 bedroom, older building but newly renovated. We'll be in a building totally inhabited by Polacks, but I suppose that's only fitting given what I married into. Nice working class neighborhood, full of cops, firefighters, and construction workers, far away from the yuppies from Kansas City or Cincinnati that inhabit/infest some regions of our fair city. Securing financing and preparing for the move at the mo, and other than that, married life is bliss.

Glad to see that the blog lives on, though it becomes harder to post with each passing year. I think we all find our time occupied with work, relationships, parties, etc. And, sadly enough, I think our Barcelona crew can sometimes seem very distant. But then I have those moments, maybe reading the blog, or looking through old pictures, and it all comes back, all the fun, the meandering streets of Barri Gotic, the flaming shots at Chupitos (and Vegard's soldier's helmet), the Queen karaoke session at that creepy-ass joint by Bar Paris. And at those times, it doesn't seem so distant, while seeming eons ago at the same time.

Recently read the Alchemist. I'm convinced I'm the last person on Earth to do so, so I won't even bother recommending it to everyone on the assumption that you've already read it. But if you haven't, take the 2 days and read it. It reminds me a lot of Le Petit Prince. Currently working on a few books about local history, and preparing to venture into the Muslim psyche with "No god but God." I'll let you know how it goes.

I hope all were pleased with the results of the mid-term elections in the US. We in Illinois did our part and sent the Democrats to Washington (was there ever any doubt in this state?). Hopefully we'll see some foreign policy changes, and we'll certainly see some tax changes, which should keep me employed for years to come.

Hope to hear from Adam soon, and updates on the travels of Ulli and Vegard--the Scandinavian sidekicks--are always welcome. Take care, one and all.

The life is saltfish

Not that blog hasn't passed it's best but haven't really got a place to post this little information I just recieved just now.

I just got a job. I'll be selling fish products mainly from Iceland to South-Europe mainly Spain, Italy, Greece and Portugal. I will start on the first of October and go to a small town around here where I'll learn the ropes. In about a month I'll move to Denmark where I'll live!

I will be living in a small town on Jytland 2 hours from both Copenhagen and the German border. There is an airport few minutes away from where I can fly all over (not maybe ALL over but they have a few locations).

Hej,
Úlli

As I predicted "I do" and "I do"

Well guys. There hasn't been much going on around here so I see myself forced to put in an entry. Not that I don't like this once I get started. It's like going out running... the hardest thing is to but the proper clothes on.

Well I came home from America almost a month ago where I met Seema, Nolo, Walker, Tim, Ms. Tim (remember her name), friends and a girlfriend of people previously mentioned.It was lovely. I don't know why I'm not that interested in going into great detail on it.

I guess some of you know that FC Barcelona bought an Icelandic player Eiður Guðjohnsen. I'm so happy for that, not so much since he's playing there since I'm pretty certain he has a seat on the substitute bench with his name on it. The reason is that they will propably have cheap weekend trips to BCN with one game on Camp Nou. My friend made a deal that we will travel to Barcelona if it's cheap and if not then it's London.

I got a summer job sell advertisements for a radio station that also throws big events. It's ok and I think I'll learn something but I'm not really cut for it. The deal I made with the manager that I would continue looking and could quit when I found something better. That'a actually the only deal I've made in last ten days

That guy is a piece of work. He made this global shoe empire that was selling in hundreds and thousands of stores all over the world, but it went bankrupt. So he made another with same results and now he does this. But he's a great great salesman. I never can make things sound as he does.

For all of you who were wondering... Katja said yes to Tim eventually. So for all the girl readers of this side you have to cross him of your list.

Bienvenido a Miami

I'm in Miami. Just started my tour around America on Wednesday with a flight to NYC. After a taxi driver saved my life I had a short and rather sad experience of this city that I think must be great. I'd loved to stay there for a while.

Yesterday I came here to Miami where Manolo is showing me around. It's been great to see him and we did a great catch up. Tonight we're going out and he and his girlfriend and I guess I'm going to get a taste of South Beach nightlife. Tomorrow it's Guatemala which I'm looking forward to and a bit frightend of too.

Manolo read the blog and he's gonna write a post.

I have to write this story because if I do Svana is gonna write a post in two weeks tops. The thing is I wrote Adam a email the other day and for some reason he was out. Well the funny thing that this 23 or 24 year old boy has two assistant!!! The reply email had contact information about two of his assistants to contact in case of an emergence. Anyway not that funny like Ken, Chick Ken joke. But Svana your up!

Hasta la proxima.
Ulli