Financial crisis?

Post exam destressing

I am finally finished with the LAST exam before I have a master degree! It is a truly amazing feeling :)

I am now also finally getting something back for working hard from the beginning of the term, because while other people in my class is completly stressed out about their spesialization projects that is due on friday, I am quite relaxed, because I am almost finished, without any stress :D Since I have didnt have much left on my project I actually took a weekend this weekend, and went on the SINTEF christmas party on friday and skiing both on sunday and today! It is such an awsome feeling to have a life outside my office again!

Going up to Ytre Sula

Anders on the way down(with awsome style!), Ytre Sula. (Some of these pictures are his btw, more on his blog)

On the top of Ytre Sula, sunday. Benni, Gaute, Fabienne and me. I think the exchange students Benni and Fabienne where quite happy with norwegian mountains, and they even got to see a moose on the trip!

Me skiing down from Ytre Sula on sunday. (I know my telemark style is not very good, but it was steep and hard snow!) The view and light was however beutifull!

Hedvig and Gaute was with me on Ruten today.

Gaute has a revrend on his skies and Hedvig has a french prostitute, the perfect couple! :)

Funny stories from Brøsetveien 155

Funny story one: Me and Kristin planed to go cross country skiing today. But my skies was at my mums place, so I had to drive down and get them. And as everybody knows me and my sister have a car, which is working, more or less... Right now the driver door look doesnt work, which meant I had to go in the passenger door. And since its like -7 degrees I had to skrape the snow of the windows. And since I thougth I'd be smart I start the car so it would warm up the car while doing it, I started the motor, went out of the car and closed the door.... So far so good. Except that I had closed central locking, and the passenger side door dont have the thingy to prevent stuff like that....

So the car is running, and its looked, with my keys inside... I need Sigrid to get her keys and look it up. So I walk over to Sigrid, noone there. I walk home to get my phone and try to call, but ofcourse my house keys is on my car keys.. And no Kristin home. Luckly Astrid (my almost flatmate) is home, and lend me her phone. No Sigrid answering. And I try Hedvig and Anette (Sigrids flatmates), noone answering... So I try walking back to Sigrids place, luckely this time Hedvig is home, but we cant find the keys, and she can tell me that Sigrid descided to go for a long run, just before I came! So when I finally get the car up it has been running for over one and half hour!

So if the temprature rise noticibly after this and the ice caps melts even more, I am really truly sorry! Didnt mean it, just being me :)

Funny story two: This is actually not me, but Astrid! :) Yesteday morning, Astrid comes over and says the lights went out, and ask me if I know how to fix it. I say, sure, we just go in the fuse box (sikringsskap) and turn over the thingy. But its looked! And we cant find any keys.. And SiT janitor is closed in weekends. So we give up, and I go to school. Today Astrid told me she had manage to fix it. (she had to, she really wanted to see Jul i Blåfjell :) She had called Securitas!! The securitas guard actually comes, and picked the lock to the fuse box for her, so she could fix the light. And then she manage to get out from it without paying anything, because the securitas guard felt sorry for her :)

You know...

... that you have been studying too many years, too long and too hard when the following expressions are normal:

• Calculate in pseudo time
• On a material with no surface
• You have to whach out for the ghost atoms
• Not forget the virtual forces and fictitious stress
• And also remember that matter is disributed troughout the space it occupies

Mid-norwegian championship in climbing

On saturdag it was mid norwegian championship in climbing. My first proper rope climging competition! It was really fun, and I got a 4th place I am quite proud of :D (Results) Well, some of Bernards pictures:

Mari on the first qualification

Kari and me trying to read one of the climbs

Crazy swiss people, here represented by Fabienne

Me in the girls final - spotlight, onsighting and a lot of people whaching! I was so incredible nervous!

Yes I am studying...

From http://thisisindexed.com/

SNOW!!

The world is white and beutifull!!

Geekyity

I forgot my fracture mechanics projects, so now I am stuck the whole weekend working.. And to get in the right mood, its important to embrace you inner geek with some appropiate music: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UTby_e4-Rhg

And comics: http://www.phdcomics.com/comics.php

The text of the song is so awsomly geeky I put it here :)

Finite Simple Group (of Order Two)
The Klein Four Group

The path of love is never smooth
But mine's continuous for you
You're the upper bound in the chains of my heart
You're my Axiom of Choice, you know it's true
But lately our relation's not so well-defined
And I just can't function without you
I'll prove my proposition and I'm sure you'll find
We're a finite simple group of order two

I'm losing my identityI'm getting tensor every day
And without loss of generality
I will assume that you feel the same way
Since every time I see you, you just quotient out
The faithful image that I map into
But when we're one-to-one you'll see what I'm about

'Cause we're a finite simple group of order two

Our equivalence was stable,
A principal love bundle sitting deep inside
But then you drove a wedge between our two-forms
Now everything is so complexified
When we first met, we simply connected
My heart was open but too dense
Our system was already directed
To have a finite limit, in some sense

I'm living in the kernel of a rank-one map
From my domain, its image looks so blue,
'Cause all I see are zeroes, it's a cruel trap
But we're a finite simple group of order two

I'm not the smoothest operator in my class,
But we're a mirror pair, me and you,
So let's apply forgetful functors to the past
And be a finite simple group, a finite simple group,
Let's be a finite simple group of order two
(Oughter: "Why not three?")

I've proved my proposition now, as you can see,
So let's both be associative and free
And by corollary, this shows you and I to be
Purely inseparable. Q. E. D

Boston in pictures

I am now well back in norway and my phone is still dead. I did however have a really great week, learned a lot, meet a lot of fun people, got to go to lecture both at Harvard and at MiT, and even got to climb a couple of times. Here is some pictures:

This is where MiT students voted :)

Stella!

Harvard is pretty even on a rainy autum day

Mr Harvard himself!

When I was at lecture at Harvard thursday we got these for free outside the lecture....

My supervicor Christian and his old phd student Andreas from Statoil who was visiting from Huston

The coop is the bookstore of MiT and Harvard, the one at Harvard square is HUGE!!

New England coffe - Primary source of energy for MiT students :)

Joe and Ned, two british Cambrigde students doing exange at MiT took me iceskating and climbing

The Metro rock Boston climbing gym! Wish we had one like this in Trondheim! One of the people you dont really see is Halvard, a Harvard phd student and kiwi (!) and climber who went climbing with me.


They even had a climbing treadmill....

MiT is a complete mix of all kinds of styles, completly random and very relaxed. Once someone put a fire truck (full size) on the top of the dome.

And some other students hacked the light system of this building and used it to play tetris.

The Strata center MiT - some arcitect gone mad? It cool!

On Logan international airport at gate B13 there is a rocking chair!

And Sindre turned 21 today! I at those pics to while I'm at it :) Me, Matias, Gaute and Øyvind bought him new climbing shoes since he had the most trashed shoes ever! I think he was happier than he looks here :) But Matias got the wierdes gift, since he turned 22 the day after the election I had to get him a republican party card deck with among other McCain in superhero suit... :) Amazing that it even exist!

Sigrid made him cake! And so did Matias, and also Gaute... I'm full! Sindre, Øyvind, Gaute, Hedvig, Rolf and Matias at Sigrid & co's flat Apollo 21.

Boston Part 2

Obama won!

And I was in the united states of america on election day! I did however not try to vote as Christer and Greg encouraged me to, neiter did I party or follow the election from a cool place, I didn't even climb as I planed to (because I got lost finding the subway where I was supposed to meet some other climbers). What I did do however on this historical day was to get completly hit by jetlag and fall asleep way early after studying....

Fun t-shirt at MiT shoop: HARVARD, because everyone doesnt get into MiT

Boston Part 1

Yesteday I arrived in Boston. That turned out as a funny experience!

My luggage got lost as usual and I took a cab to the adress Stella (who I am staying with, she is a civil engineering bachelor student who work with my supervicor at MiT) gave me. When I got there and was trying to find 428 Meomorial Drive, I could only find 410 and 450... The cab leaves and I try to call the number Stella gave me. Its about midnight and some really tired voice answers the phone. No Stella... wrong number.... So there I am, in the middle of the night, lost in a strange city, almost out of batteri on my cell and without luggage... I just couldn't help laughing of myself :)

After checking the number I called I luckely realized that I had dialed a 9 instead of 6, so tried the number I wrote down instead, this time it's luckily Stella answering! And I have just enough batteri to say where I am. Stella was also nice enough to borrow me what I didn't have due to my lost luggage.

Today I have gotten my luggage and the grand tour of MiT from Stella. Its a quite nice university i'll say, but not revolusonary different from NTNU or Auckland Uni for that matter. Well, it have better food than Auckland and more diverse food than NTNU. But just as many bikes as NTNU, which suprices me, I always thougt american just drive and eat crap, and then both in Portland, Corvallis and here it is plenty of nice organic food and everybody bike it looks like. The fun thing is that they have a LOT more MiT souvernirs than NTNU and AU had. I defintly have to buy a t shirt or something :)

And if anyone is wondering what I'm doing in Boston, I'm here to visit my supervicor and work with my spesialization project, It's unfortunatly not hollyday (It's actually buissniss according to my visa, buisniss seems to be if you are here not n hollyday and someone else is paying). Pictures from this trip will come when I get back to Norway, but I might write some more before that. How much I write will most likely just depend on how bored I am sitting here in the really beutiful engineering libary of MiT working :)

Mandarins

There is just something about mandarins. You only get them in November and December, which also is the time of year I have had exams and term test since I was about 12. This in addition to the characteristic taste and smell of mandarins has resulted in that I might have a bit special relationship with mandarins I realized today. I was eating my first really good mandarin of the year while I was at uni working on my project and listening to music (as I usual). While eating the mandarin I got the typical exam time feeling, and I realized I started working harder and more concentrated! It really gets me in exam mode. When thinking about it it's no wonder since I only eat mandarins while studying for exams. And then I also remembered, the exam time before Christmas this year is probably my last... And that’s actually kind of sad... Mandarins will never be the same!

Birkebeineren

Textmessage from Mette: " Inga, come join biking Birkebeineren next year"
Answer from me: "Sure, why not?"

And suddenly I am registrated for my first mountain bikning competition ever and the biggest in Norway, and should probably start serious training some mountain biking...

3B

• My fingers are bleeding
• I can't close my fist
• My arms hurts
• Most of the rest of me kind of hurts too
• I'm starving because I forgot to eat
• I'm kind of dehydrated because I forgot to drink
• My troat and nose is dense with some wierd white powder
• All of me is kind of white actually...
• I figured out I suck in bench press and biceps curls

I LOVE bouldering comps!

3B - Bench, Biceps, Bouldering :)

What happens when you are to indecisive and honest...

...except that you say things straith out and not think about them and always end up saying something stupid and inapropiate ofcourse...


Well, the thing is, the dollar was really really low when we where in the states, so we bought a LOT of stuff there. And I descided, why not buy a new bike? And after a lot of looking in bike shops and learning about what makes a good bike, I found the perfect bike in a little kona shop in Bend, OR. So, since I totally fell for the bike, I bought it. And i got it for less then half the price of the same bike in Norway. So far, no problems. Then the trouble starts, I need to get it back to norway. Well, I think, just pack it and bring it on the plane, should work. And first it seems like it does, the nice lady at portland airport tells me to pay 20$ and I will get it in Trondheim. But when we get home, no luggage and no bike.... 2 days later, our backpacks shows up, but no bike.... I call and call... nothing... But suddenly, three weeks later, the phone rings "We have a bike for you


"Jippi!!! i think, and gets really exited! But now the sad part starts... when I get the bike it has quite a lot of damage on it... After enought trips to the bike shop next door, that they know me by name, i get a paper saying the bike is damaged for 6000 NOK (which is quit a lot more than I gave for it) and I get the bike fixed up enought that I can use it which is around 1200 NOK. But the frame is still damage. And I try to get everything back on my insurance, I send in the paper that tells how much it cost to fix all the damage, and the other stuff they need (after a looooot of emails ofcourse. I think there is an upper IQ level to get employed in the insurance customer handeling departments :)


Then one day the insurance guy finally calls, saying they have looked at my case, and are gonna pay me. "Have you fixed the damage yet?" he ask. I answer honestly, only parts of it, since the rest is not so bad that you have to fix it strait away. This is where I whish I was capable of lying at least just a little bit... (but I like to think that its better to be honest than rich anyway :)

A happy Inga on a happy bike, at the Grasslands in Smith, before trouble

I would rather be less indecisive though (and less forgettful for that matter!), because that would have helped just as much. You see, when I was in the states I never managed to descide whether or not to buy trad gear. When I got home I really regreted. And then I see that there are sale on a web shop on trad gear, and Matias saies he can bring for me. But guess who is to slow to order before the sale is over?? By then I want the trad gear so much I descide to buy anyway, but when Matias is at the shop they dont have... So I order through internet. And lucky me, it arrives 2 houres after Matias leaves... So I end up buying gear when the dollar is 5.6 (it was 5 when I was there) for full price and had to get it sent to norway. But at least it seams like ill get gear! (its still not here... Still I only have the one gold cam (and my first ever) I got from Sigrid (with the note: Now you can climb Gold rush:) the rest is however reported to be on the way)


When I am in the writing mood, over to something else: The other day I bought Klatring (Norwegian climbing magazine) and what do I see? Its a big article about Smith Rock!! Awsome! They write about how cool Monkey face (which we climbed!) is, and several other climbs. (I knew that!) and they write about how you should take a rest day in Bend (According to Lonely planet, everyone wants to live in Bend! :) and that there are several cool bike shops with "cool, radical and liberal dudes and chicks" (I bought my bike there!). And they also write about how the micro brewery in Bend is something you got to go to (which we never got time to...) It so much fun to read about places you actually know! :)

I never understood why people call the free camping in Smith, the grasslands, when the real name is SO much cooler! "Where are you staying tonight?" "Skull hollow ofcourse" :)

Fale

This weekend I turned 24 and got my first cam (which is an important step in a girls life). Me and Ingrid also organized Ski and Mountainclub trip to Fale in Sunndalen, which turned out as a great sucsess! We had a really great weekend, with awsome weather at least on sunday (night to saturday the left overs of Ike hit Trøndelag, and made it a bit wet and snowy, but not complaining) and we had an awsome group with us! (I just have to say that I think it is awsome to go to a university where a hiking/trecking/mountaineering club like the Ski and mountain club can organize 3 hard trips on the same weekend, and they are all full!) Some pictures:

Ingrid and Kristin didnt really manage to finish their birthday preset to me :) But pink leggings was a awsome gift!

They did however bring a cake!! :D (its mountains, and me in skirt (no idea why :))

Reinrose (reindeer rose) One of my favourite flowers, and on my blog to annoy Kristin :PBurritos to 13 people is quite a lot of food...

Dinner time!

Kristin and Mari like to be creative with daypacks :) And I have always missed the red Ts that markes the tracks in the mountain in norway when I have been abroad. The mountain far in the background is btw very climbable and I want to climb it!
Lars and Mari on top of Tåga

We traverst and scrambled the rigde back down from Tåga

Kristin found a really nice way to be really sure not to fall down from the rigde on Storsalen :) That rigde looked way scarier from Tåga than when we walked it the day before.


I am really wondering how they made this brigde?


Kristin falling down from the snow! :)

Fabienne (our swiss excange student:) and Mari looking for Kristin..

Me and Innerdalen

A list of useless information

• The European Group for Fracture had to change name to European society for structural integrety because it is political incorrect to use fracture and european together.
• My workmate Kristoffer at the libary: "Raincoates are just like democracy" (?)
• I think the elevator for employees at the libary is made with inspiration from Hitch hikers guide to the galaksy, because it is extremly annoying voice saying "The doors are closing", "This elevator goes up", "You are now in third floor" etc. when you take it. And it is now option but using it when closing up the libary!
• I have been to my first "bedpres"! (companys presenting themself and adverticing for the students and trying to get them to apply for work there. They are totally desperat for engineering students...) I'm proud of myself manageing through four years without going before :)
• Its getting cold in Trondheim!
• The province of Finnmark has 15% of the area in norway, but only 1.6% of the population.
• I won a pair of REALLY bright red old fashion orienteering tights in the mid norwegian orienteering championship.... Its the uglyest prize I have ever won! (actually I think I won pot holders, but it seems like it was a little switch when Isa Mari collectet her first prize with my third prize :) Picture will come!

More basejumping

I just have to put up more about Hans, that guy managed to get on NBC today and got a trip to New York! Here is the interview: http://today.msnbc.msn.com/id/26184891/vp/26656327#26656327

And Hans managed to say holy shit on amerian direct tv :) awsome! (or the funnies is actually that its a bad thing to say in the us!)
http://today.msnbc.msn.com/id/26655760

And the funny thing is that norwegian newspapers dont care about the story that american tv gets him all the way to New York for, but to say Holy shit on direct american tv is worth writing about! http://www.kjendis.no/2008/09/11/546561.html And Hans that told me he was more scared of being interviewed than of jumping of a cliff :)

And the other funny thing is that Hans barely got to go on that interview, because he did not have electronic passport, so they wouldnt let him into the states before he managed to get a new one! :)

Hans

This guy has the office next to me and Anita:
http://www1.nrk.no/nett-tv/nyheter/spill/verdi/70639

Telemark

Deal with Anita: If I telemarkski in skirt and old fashion clothes and with one pole as old times she will join me backcountry telemark skiing. :)

We'll see...

(http://www.inga-laami.no/eng/page.php?id=8)