Greetings friends, family, strangers, or the curious. I haven’t done a year in review since 2013 and I figured maybe it’s a good idea for anyone who has no idea what I’ve been up to.

January

  • Travelled back from Canada to Sweden following a Canadian Christmas 2016
  • Travelled to Norwich, England to perform with my choir, Västeråsdomkyrkas motettkör alongside Norwhich Cathedral Chamber Choir
  • Discovered the new Norwegian series Skam and was obsessed
  • A new toilet was installed into my apartment

February

  • Won a game of bowling with a score of 252, beating the competitive Wes’ 214
  • Bought two cookbooks which I would use on a biweekly basis to cook for my friend Justin
  • Bought some bookshelves to help organize my tiny apartments stuff
  • Saw the film Arrival, which greatly interested my ethnolinguistic mind
  • Obtained century old book collection of Swedish folk music, in 4 volumes
  • Humans discovered a planetary system orbiting a single start that resemble Earth and our Solar System
  • Celebrated Torshälla’s 700 years  with Tiina and Anna and some pyrotechnics

March

  • Witnessed the first real snowfall of 2017 in Eskilstuna
  • Watched and voted live for the first time in Melodifestivalen
  • Read an amazing article from the Huffington post entitled “Why didn’t gay rights cure gay loneliness?“, a total must read
  • Took a Swedish Language Test and enrolled in language courses
  • Visited and fika’ed at Taxinge Slott (castle) which resembles more like a manor
  • Said goodbye to some colleagues that moved to Thailand, and I subsequently did not move apartments
  • Began and continued an International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme Music course, that thing was intense!

April

  • Travelled on a road trip to Val Thoréns with my longtime German friend Jochen to do some alpine skiing; I was better than he expected
  • Suffered the loss of my mother to genetically linked ALS (Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis)
  • Discovered that my political and moral values lean of Social Liberalism: more towards equality than wealth (egalitarian), more peaceful than might (pacifist), marginally more liberty than authority (moderate), and more towards progress than tradition (very progressive)
  • Celebrated being internet friends with Matko for nearly 9 years
  • Celebrated Valborg with Tiina and Anna by almost getting lit on fire by a bonfire

May

  • Voted in Eurovision Song Contest for the first time in 10 years, none of my chosen songs were successful
  • Witnessed a theft in the local ICA supermarket and chalked it up to alcholoic poverty
  • Travelled to Mariehamn with colleagues on Viking Line cruise and was followed around by a random guy named Tyler “Sweater Guy” whom I thought was interested, no such luck
  • Was chased by a Yememi refugee named Hamada who I never met and who eventually got deported
  • Attended 30+ night at Vita Huset, and quickly went upstairs to other disco where schlager was unexpectedly playing, subsequently danced the night away
  • Went to Vilsta park a lot to spend time with colleagues and friends
  • Hung out at Stadsparken where some random drunk lady assaulted my friend and ran amok
  • Attended Eskilstuna Pride which was the most heterosexual event ever, but in the process got to see Da Buzz live (one of my alltime favourite bands)
  • Prepared and presented student compositions in the Aesthetics Showcase at our school
  • Bought an Evapolar mini-climate control system and love it

June

  • Celebrated flag day in Djurgårdsparket with colleagues and friends, and became multiple championed kubb player
  • Ventured out into the Eskilstuna environs by visiting Mary’s Café
  • Let my hair down and partied a bit with my colleauges and friends
  • Visited Gustav Vasa history in Mariefred’s Gripsholm Slott (a real castle) with my friend Theo
  • Continued to pine over my future husband who doesn’t know it yet, Bruno Rezende
  • Celebrated midsommar by watching the 2015 MLIS-Zhenjiang production of Lion King for which I was musical director and backing singer
  • Attended our end of year ceremony with great fanfare and adorned myself with a midsomar inspired flower crown
  • Attended the end of year for teachers at Eskilstuna Elite Stadshotell and witnessed the “death bouquets” for the departing staff for the first time
  • Discovered an unsurprising fact that I am an INFJ-T “The Advocate” personality trait

July

  • Travelled home to my deceased mother’s home in Newmarket
  • Rented an apartment on the Danforth in Toronto to allow me to escape
  • Played more regularly with a the Sandsharks Beach Volleyball League
  • Celebrated my birthday with my sister Alison by partying in The Village for the first time
  • Hosted family and friends from all over at the house for my mother’s celebration of life
  • Emptied 30 years of contents from a house by selling, donating, and using two 14ft recycling dumpsters
  • Inventoried my entire life and put all three pieces of furniture and all of my family’s belongings into storage
  • Had a reunion with my friend and former colleauge in China, Petrece in Toronto while she was preparing for her move to Dubai
  • Opened a safety deposit box to safeguard my family treasures

August

  • Listed my family home for sale, the weirdest feeling and surreal experience
  • Travelled back to Sweden to begin a new school year
  • Met my new colleague with whom I would try to mentor in the music department
  • Bought a vacuum cleaner and room humidifier, thus becoming more domestic
  • Considered buying a house in Ärla that was an old school house, but didn’t do it because it was too big and the kitchen floor was hideous
  • Continued my second year singing with Västerås Domkyrkas motettkör
  • Celebrated the 2017 Kickoff for the school year at Eskilstuna Elite Stadshotell
  • My mothers home in Newmarket sold

September

  • Toured and fika’ed in Näshult, at Magdakullan and learned about cows and farming
  • Finished the “Requiem for the Diminished Notes” Hall of Fame for the music department, celebrating all the teachers that passed through the doors
  • Got harassed at a local pizzaria for having pens in my hair, to the unexpected rescue the owner
  • Suffered the loss of what feels like my only friend in Eskilstuna, Theodor who moved back to Malmö
  • Started a course to become the Skyddsombud for Lärares Riksförbundet and met many disgruntled gymnasium teachers from the region

October

  • Travelled to Mariehamn again with colleagues and friends, this time to get to meet Oscar Zia, who according to others was eyeing me up all night (yeah right)
  • Attended the Gala Consert for Världens Barn hosted by the music school at Stålforsskolan, featuring Boris René
  • Organised and hosted the music teachers from the region at our school where I lead discussions, and some Boomwhacker jamming sessions
  • Reconnected with an old flame from 2007 who I literally bumped into in Uppsala while preparing for a joint concert between Uppsala Akademiska Kammarkör and Västerås Domkyrkas Motettkör
  • Played some volleyball and crushed Djurgårdsskolan teachers
  • Attended the Swedish version of the musical Footloose which featured my colleague and friend Felicia

November

  • Welcomely received a surprise gift from my former colleagues in China, Andrea and Jack
  • Appeared on SVT2 performing a première of B. Tommy Andersson’s Luther variations with my choir
  • Performed Mozart’s Requiem for the 5th time, this time in Sweden
  • Participated in a virtual “cheers” to my late grandmother Doris where all the children, grandchildren, great grand children appeared in a photo collage
  • The family home in Newmarket officially closed after some drama with the lawyer and local public notary

December

  • Bought and put up a Christmas tree for the first time in 2 years, trying to get into the holiday spirit
  • Marked and set grades for all students in Grade 6, 7, 8 and 9 despite only teaching Grades 8 and 9
  • Pimped out my door with a light adorned wreath made by Tiina, confusing my neighbours and possibly even pissing them off with my extreme spirit
  • Attended our End of Term dinner at Sundbyholms Slott (castle) another manor with the most amazing mirrors and wardrobe I’d ever seen
  • Bought a double bass and started learning it
  • Performed double bass in the End of Term Ceremony for the students while singing “Everyday is Christmas” by Sia
  • Spent Christmas at a hotel in Västerås so that I could help out by singing in all the Cathedral masses
  • Had a reunion with my former music colleague Triona who moved on to another school
  • Celebrated a Emirati New Years with Petrece while chatting on Skype

And that’s a wrap 2017…