Christmas is just around the corner. Colorful blinking lights, jolly Christmas songs and cardemom scent in the cafes. Do not also forget the busy shopping streets and alleys downtown and at the mall, which all tell us that it is that time of the year already. I have also started decorating our home for Christmas. So that I’ll get the Christmas feels already. Because to be honest, I still cannot feel the Christmas season. Maybe this is just the effect of the gloomy days that we have here in Norway.
I was also thinking that maybe the decors are not enough that’s why I’m lacking the Christmas essence.
This is one of my favorites. A dachshund with a crown.
Sometimes, I wonder where on earth do the food balls go that fast because this weekend I placed 6 pieces of bird food balls and then by Monday, it’s totally gone! So, yesterday I bought a pack of balls again and put it on the feeder. I know and I’ve seen before that small birds eat those kind of food but not in that rate. Imagine, only 2 days and it’s gone!
Then yesterday also, my hubby suggested that I take pictures of birds from the window. So, that’s what I did earlier today. At the same time, I wanted to find out how many birds come and eat on the feeder.
Behold, the Eurasian Jay birds! They are bigger than the Eurasian Blue tit (blรฅmais) birds that I usually see here. No wonder the food is not enough but I’m glad that our humble backyard is attracting beautiful birds though.
The purpose of trying out the EM1X is to see what it is capable of because I’m considering an upgrade. As I mentioned on the previous post, this is a campaign of Olympus. You get to borrow a camera for a week or two, then you get 3000 kroner off on the EM1X or you can also do a swap then just pay the remaining amount depending on the value of your camera. This is actually a good deal. What I really like is that I learned a lot from the consultants not only about the settings but also what to do or not to do with some of the buttons and techniques we can do on the camera plus they explained it in a simple way. It was a very informative course.
The first time to hold an EM1X
I had the camera for two weeks. Since I live in the countryside, my shots are mostly of nature and landscapes.
Used standard 200mm zoom lens here. Fixed the lighting on Lightroom.Zorro looking fierce
So what do I like about the EM1X?
Well! It is surprisingly easy to use! It only looked intimidating at first sight because of the size and the unfamiliar buttons (because I’m a Sony user). Then, I love that I could take this camera out on rainy days because it is weather sealed. At the same time it is very robust and solid so it can take a beating or two.
Since it is a mirrorless type of camera, I could take a shot of my baby sleeping without waking her up and also I find this very useful when shooting birds. Thanks also to the extra quick shutter speed!
Flirting with each other. Too bad, I was too far from them.
I also find the EM1X good in shooting in low light conditions. I was also surprised that my portraits turned well with only natural light on a gloomy day.
Due to the baby’s privacy, I’m only showing half of the portrait shot.
Did I purchase this camera?
Unfortunately I can’t afford this one. Only the camera house itself cost 33000 NOK ( 3,599.97 USD)!!! Even if I use the discount coupon, it is still too expensive for me.
However, I did enjoy having this camera with me. It’s not hard to be creative with this one. So, I encourage everyone to try the EM1X. ๐
Last Sunday, there was a flea market at Hundvin’s “ungdomshuset” (youth house). The proceeds from this event will go to the school’s music program. Lots of people went to the event which was great not only for the cause but also for the environment. Because, you know less trash is good for the environment. Besides, a flea market is a good place to find anything vintage, nostalgic and unique for a good price. You can also see and meet people with the same interests as you too!
If you’re a follower of my blog, then you know that I love drinking tea and I collect teawares. So yes, I bought a teaware set at the flea market. I fell in love with this dark coated Japanese tea set but I was not sure at first if it was worth to buy because the cups aren’t ceramic. Only the plates, teapot, milk saucer and sugar cup are ceramic. The cups are made of tin. The set originally costs 350 kroner but I got it for 250 kroner. I’m not bad in haggling after all. ๐
The tea set consists of 6 plates, 5 cups, 1 teapot, 1 milk saucer and 1 sugar cup. Took only pics of one plate and one cup.
Black and gold details.
Can you see the geisha?
Side handle teapot
The plate for me looks like a tile stone. It’s quite big for a cup saucer plate but this one has space for both the tea cup and a slice of cake.
Then of course I didn’t forget to get my little one something too. I bought her children’s books! ๐ New books cost much, like for instance, Disney books can cost at least 150 kroner or more. But at the flea market, I got the Cinderella book for only 10 kroner!!! The rest costs 10 kroner each as well.
I only paid 40 kroner for all of these books!
In total, I used 290 kroner in this event. Cheaper than getting a haircut! At the same time these babies found a new home. I hope that everyone do the same for the sake of the environment.
One of the perks of working as a home nurse assistant aside from meeting new people is the opportunity to see new places. That’s why I’m grateful for this job of mine even though it’s exhausting and the salary is not on top.
A month ago, I applied for extra jobs near my new place. Out of 10 applications that I sent, I got 50 percent feedback from the companies. Not bad but it would be nice if they let me know the reason why they won’t consider hiring me or bother reading my application letter. They just told me that they appreciate me considering them as my employer/workplace and blah blahs. However there was this one company who sent me an email after 4 weeks asking me if I’m still interested in the position as a home nurse assistant in their county. I replied right away and got scheduled for an interview just a couple of days after.
To make the story short, I got the job! I’m so happy. ๐ Now I have 2 jobs in 2 different places which is the city and the countryside.
Today’s my first day on the neighboring county and I had a blast! Imagine being paid for these car trips. I feel like an influencer! Haha! Don’t get me wrong though. The job can be tough both physically and mentally. So, this is not a flawless job.
Disclaimer: I’m not a professional photographernor paid to write for Olympus.
Olympus is one of the big camera brands in the market today that has been in the market since 1936 ( that is the year Olympus’ first camera was introduced according to Wikipedia).
Last month, I was fortunate enough to have been given the opportunity to test their mirrorless camera. I saw the Olympus ad on Facebook about their mirrorless cameras ( which are the EM1X and the E-M1 Mk2 ) that they are borrowing out to people who are interested in trying out Olympus cameras. So, I immediately filled up the form and since it’s Olympus, I didn’t have a huge expectation because for sure there are hundreds or thousands of people who would like to put Olympus cameras to the test. To my surprise one of their consultants emailed me and asked some information about me and what I usually take pictures of. He informed me that I could borrow a camera of my choice but the waiting time is long because there are lots of people who showed interest in the ad. I was also informed that this is also a project that he is working on (will do a seperate post about this).
I chose the EM1X and I asked for a telephoto lens. Unfortunately, I got late and I got the telezoom and a standard lens instead. I’m not complaining though.
Here are a couple of shots that I took using EM1X. Fixed the lighting on LR.
Introducing Fรธllet Bolle. Fรธllet is Norwegian for foal.
The Tall Ships Races is one of the biggest events in Europe every summer. The idea is to build good relationships between the different countries and cultures through sail training “tall” ships or sail boats. The participants should be at least 50 percent young people.
This year, we are fortunate enough to have witnessed this event because Bergen is one of the hosts. Even though Bergen is just 45 minutes away drive from where we live, we booked a room for 3 nights because we really wanted to see the festivities and to make most out of our city trip. The first days were rainy but it did not stop the people in checking out the sail boats.
It’s raining here but still beautiful. This was taken late in the evening, from the hotel room.
The weather has finally cleared up the following day and up to the day the ships had to sail to their next destination which is Aarhus Denmark.
The dream summer weather. Sunny and just with few clouds.
The last night of Tall Ships Races in Bergen was ended with the amazing firework show.
Sail day. Au revoir! Vi ses igjen!
I hope you enjoyed the photos. ๐ Have a nice day!
It is just spring and yet it has been very hot these days. I am not complaining about the sun but the extreme lack of moisture/water/rain bothers me. It bothers me because we are prone to grass and forest fires. Yesterday, there was a fire near our place, while my little one and I were taking a nap. Scary!!! Fortunately, the firemen came right away or else it would be harder to put the fire out. We do not know what caused the grass fire. The police is still investigating it. My theory is that someone used a disposable grill and just tossed it away without making sure that it is already dead. I really hope that people will be more responsible in throwing stuff that may cause fire.
Flora Teas (short term for Flowering teas) is a brand of tea from London UK. Before I opened the box, I thought Flora Teas is just loose tea with flowers. I was wrong, but I got excited when I found out that Flora Tea actually is a blooming tea because brewing it is a feast for the eyes. It is not your typical type of tea as the tea leaves tied into a ball and inside it is a flower full of aroma.
I got this as a Christmas gift two years ago. But because of my hectic schedule and the growing number of teas that I have at home, I did not open it and I just saved it for later. It has also expired a couple of months ago but it did not stop me from brewing one.
To enjoy Flora Teas, I used a transparent teapot. A clear glass is alright as well as long as it is heat resistant. Place the tea ball in the teapot, then pour very hot or boiling water into the teapot and watch as the tea begins to bloom.
This is not my first time to brew and drink a blooming tea. However, I still get fascinated every time. Who wouldn’t be?
When it comes to taste, it does not taste like green tea. No hint of green tea taste at all. For me, it has a dried banana (lol. I know. I think my tastebuds were not working that time or it was because it had already expired.) leaf taste, plus the nutty aroma which is a common denominator in all the blooming teas that I’ve tried. The one that I brewed is called Flying Snow which consist of green tea, marigold and coconut fruit fibers.
I can say that Flora Tea has one of the best blooming teas in the market because it is good quality and most of all the tea ball does not turn upside down while brewing it. I find it annoying when the blooming tea turns upside down when it starts blooming. I want it perfect! ๐
Flora Tea is not just for tea enthusiasts like me but for everyone who would like to impress their lovers, friends, acquiantances or to just make tea time extraordinary.
The Box.Sealed for freshness.There are six tea balls in the box. Flying Snow is one of the flavours.The second packaging. It is also vacuum packed in plastic. Ready to brew!Voila! It’s a marigold flower!
