Monday, August 17

WARNING - ACHTUNG - VARNING


As from today, I am legally allowed to drive a EU-moped!!!!!


passed both my theory test and my driving test. got the top score on my theory
test and to balance it out I was the worst driver...by far! hahaha. I've only ever driven a moped once before...and that was between 16-18 years ago and I drove it for less than five (5) minutes. I didn't fall over, but I can't say it went well by any means. but then again, I'll be driving a three-wheel-monster-moped at work, so I guess it doesn't matter that much. the differences between the two are enormous, and I've been practising on a Posten moped and that went pretty well.

I've also got a very special little friend staying with me this week...namely katt-fjunet zlatan, my sister's cat!

(pic borrowed from TheMillaN)

katt-fjunet is a bit of a j cash fan...

Sunday, August 16

chocs!!!


have recovered slightly from the whole alfakassan fiasco. slightly, NOT completely! let me put it this way, I have recovered enough to be able to articulate my anger and dissapointment in an appeal to them!

now on to something much yummier...chocolate balls!

they're so easy to make and so yummy to eat...I've just made a batch. the mixture is currently resting in the fridge before it gets balled up, so I thought I'd share the recipe with you peeps in the meantime. how geneorus of the pinche-fjun...!

chocolate balls
  • 100 g butter
  • 1 dl sugar
  • 1 tbs vanilla sugar
  • 3 tbs cacao
  • 3 dl oats
  • 3 tbs strong cold coffee
  • (coconut flakes)
melt the butter. mix all the ingredients together and let the mixture rest in the fridge for an hour. make little (or large) balls (really, it's up to you) and roll them in the coconut flakes (or whatever you want to cover them in). that's it...now yum away on the little beauties!

Wednesday, August 12

work :) / alfakassan :(


Seems Posten is going to need me until (at least) the end of the month...signed my third contract with them yesterday, for 11-31 aug. that's the good news...! :)

the bad news is that alfakassan (a type of jobbseekers allowance) has rejected my claim. a claim that I did at the beginning of MARCH this year!!! almost six months ago!!! exactly 23 weeks ago!!!
reason for rejection: I hadn't worked a minimum of one day in sweden between arriving back in sweden and registering myself as unemployed at arbetsförmedlingen (AF).
just for the record, I arrived in sweden at approx 1am tue 3rd march and registered myself as unemployed at arbetsförmedlingen wed 4th march. in order to qualify for alfakassan (to my and AFs knowledge) I had to register at AF as soon as I became unemployed. which I did. I guess you can already see where this is going...!

five+ months, countless forms filled in, certificates/p45s/contracts/leaver letters etc provided and several phonecalls later...this is the result: rejection! they tell me one thing (you QUALIFY for alfakassan as you've worked/paid taxes in another EU country) but the reality is, that is not the case, because none of my work in the UK counts as I hadn't worked a single day in sweden before registering myself as unemployed at AF. and this, they completely and utterly fail to tell me everytime I speak to them on the phone AND it's not in a single letter I've had from them either OR on their website (my aunt has been reading through their website info meticulously and found nothing to support this claim)!!! in fact, one girl I spoke to at alfakassan in mid june told me that as long as I could get someone to employ me for just one day, ANY DAY (yup, that's easy...), everything would be ok and I would qualify. turns out, she was so so SO wrong and I've waisted five+ months where I haven't been able to seek out alternative solutions, study etc.

confused...so am I and I'm so angry I'm not able to articulate myself properly.

here's a breakdown of the past few months:
  • tue 3rd march 1am: I arrive in sweden.
  • wed 4th march: I register at AF and receive alfakassan forms to fill in. AF tells me I should qualify for alfakassan as I've worked in another EU country.
  • week 11 / march: I receive a letter from alfakassan and they ask me to phone them so that they can tell me exactly what other documentation they need from me - I phone them up but there is NO MENTION of this minimum-of-one-day's-employment-in-sweden-since-I-arrived-back-rule.
  • 16th march: I send off copies of EVERYTHING they've asked for to alfakassan.
  • late april: I ring them up since I there has been no correpsondence since mid march and I'm worried they've lost my papers etc. I find out they've only just sent me a letter and it arrives the same day in the post. it states that they're processing my claim and will be requesting a certificate from HMS customs in the UK.
  • mid may: I receive another form to fill in, I do this and send it back to them immediately.
  • mid june: I receive yet another form to fill in. it's a work certificate in swedish so I ring them up explaining that my former ENGLISH boss might find this a tad bit difficult to fill in. they tell me it's not for him, it's for my supposed swedish employer... I explain to them that I have been unemployed since arriving back and that my last job was in the UK. the girl then tells me "can't you just get someone to employ you for just one day, any day...that's all you need to do". the deadline for the work certificate is 10th july.
  • early july: I find out I might be able to get some work at Posten over the summer and I ring up alfakassan to tell them that I will be able to provide a work certificate from a swedish employer but that I won't be able to make the deadline. they move the deadline back to 20th july and I am able to get the certificate in on time.
  • monday 10th aug: I get a letter from alfakassan. they've rejected my claim. reason: see above!
it's all just such nonsense...and I'm going to appeal!!! they are NOT going to get off that easy!!!

Sunday, August 9

big day tomorrow in pinche-fjunland


I'm getting a driving licence...but not just any driving licence...a EU moped driving licence!!!

reason? so that I can drive one of these, hehehe >>>


I'm doing a theory lesson/test tomorrow and then a driving lesson/test the following monday. that's it then...as long as I pass of course.

really looking forward to driving one of these three-wheel-thingys...it beats a push bike full of post and junk mail any day!

Thursday, August 6

good news everyone...


disaster has been averted - fry (billy west), leela (katey sagal), bender (john dimaggio) and co will return for the new futurama episodes that are currently being filmmm... drawn!!!

a nasty rumour (well a bit more than just a rumour I guess) was circulating a couple of weeks ago that fry and co would be voiced by other actors as the production company and the actors were in disagreement over pay (money...it always comes down to money).

I've been like, totally like heart-broken by the bad news that, like the original cast would be replaced by some weird fry/leela/bender etc fakeos yea! ya get me?! so the news that the old actors have come back delights me no end...! :)

I first heard about the bad news from the robster and then read about the good news in a swedish tabloid a few days ago. checked it out on the can't get enough futurama website and they're also claiming that the entire cast are indeed back! I just hope and pray (ok, maybe lose the praying bit as I'm not exactly religious...but had I been, sweet baby jesus...) that the good news is indeed true!!!

Monday, August 3

postman pinche-fjun pt 3 - the return of pinche-fjun


finished my stint as postlady pinche-fjun on friday...but my unemployment was not to last for more than 48 or so hours as they called me from posten this morning wondering if I'd be able to work today through monday next week! :)

suits me just fine as I have my eyes on some billy bookcases at ikea and I'm in desperate need of some funds to cover the cost for a more permanent home for my beloved books (they live in book "skyscrapers"on my bedroom floor at the moment).

Saturday, August 1

be gone yucky yellow and rusty red...


me, my mum and my dad have been painting the living room today...in an antique-white-sort-of-colour. it looks really nice and fresh! a vast improvment from the horrible pastel yellow and deep terracotta red!!!

we're going to paint the kitchen next, then the bedroom and finally the hallway. all in the same white colour.

I'm off to bed now to read the cox/forshaw book!


laters...