Possibly becoming even more normal than it was before. Suddenly I'm living on my very own (for the first time) and working nine to five (or rather nine thirty to five, but still).
My job is great! I've worked a whole week (yay!) and , although it's very tiring, it's fun too. Thankfully I've gotten a soft start, as around half the kids were still away on holiday this past week. Next week, though, and the week after that, it'll be a lot more hectic and tiring. My (please choose the appropriate word to insert here: area, compartment, department, field, posse, range, sector, ward, zone) has 18 kids ranging from 3 to 5 years old (some turning 6 within the school year). I've mostly worked with the younger kids before, so it's a bit different and I have to get used to a different way of talking to them. These kids are more prone to try to trick me and they are a lot ruder than the small ones. Mainly because they actually can talk... =) But I'm getting used to it already, so I think I'll be fine. The adults I work with are all really nice people, so I think I'll enjoy my time.
As for my new flat, it's also great! (Everything is great at the moment, apparently.) Currently the owners' cat is here, visiting (= happy Maja). The flat has one bedroom/living room, a kitchen and a bathroom. It's not very big, but I don't need that much room. My things need a bit of space, though. I'm still sorting them out, so it's a bit of a mess here atm, but hopefully I'll get room for it all in the end. The people who own the house (I live in the basement) are really lovely. They keep asking if there's anything I need and they've sorted out lots of things for me. They're also just really nice to chat to. They have a son who's 16 and he's lovely too. One of those kind, quiet boys.
Oslo has gone back to normal, mostly. Which is good. My sister told me today that they're going to make compost out of all the roses people have put down around the city and that the compost is going to be used in a memorial somewhere. That makes me happy. It's such a good way of keeping all the memories intact. But there are still signs of what happened here and there. The bombed area is still blocked off, for one thing. all the people who worked there have had to try to get makeshift offices elsewhere. But there are a lot of them, so it's not been easy to find office space for all of them.
Last night I had to go upstairs and chat to the son of the house because he was home alone and started feeling ill because he was thinking about what happened at Utøya. His mother called me and asked if I could check in on him. So I stayed there for an hour, I think, just talking about all sorts of things, to try to make him feel safe. I felt so bad when I had to go downstairs again to sleep, because he was all shaky and upset, but hopefully it helped that I was there for a bit. I think that's going to be one of the biggest after effects of it all. That we see how the kids and young people react and it'll stay with them for a long time.
But yes, apart from all that, life is very good. I do get pangs of missing my England friends now and then, but most of the time I'm too busy to think about it. I do miss you all, though! Sunniva is coming to Oslo on Thursday, so I'll have a chance to see her again next weekend. =) I'm looking forward to that! =)
And the weekend after that I'm going larping, which will be awesome, as always! I'll be busy making costumes and things the coming two weeks (after the flat is tidied, of course).
I will update with photos of my new flat soon, when it all looks nice and tidy. =)
Love you all!
Love from Maja.
