Looks like all the comments have gone to hell again, or where ever comments go when they're not attached to a blog post. There weren't that many to begin with, and they're probably better off where they are now. Floating about from server to server without any responsibilities to stay by their post. Free agents in a vast space of information, disinformation, fraud and flamboyance. I'm happy for them.

I see now that I have a new one. I will nurture it best I can, then release it to the world as a free comment.

The Onion wrote an article in 2004 about gillettes' then top of the line three blade Mach 3, and the absurdity of possibly going to five. Now, just shy of three years later, the world appears to be ready. Gillette Fusion is here with the mind-boggling five blade razor... Five. Is it feasible to go even higher in the future, or will they introduce a retro model in another three years? Time will tell, I can't make any predictions, but I'm absolutely impressed by Gillettes determination in flogging new models to all men. They haven't even got any serious competition, which means their only threat is the previous model.

I bow to greatness.

I went to Paris to attend my aunts birthday. I spent a few great autumn days there with my family and girlfriend. We had dinner at Gare d'Lyon wich sports a fabulous "belle epoque" restaurant, "Le train bleu", with a breathtaking ballroom like dining room. If you're around, go there.

A crop of an illustration for Forma, Hus&Hem. Above: Me (bad hairdo) and my cousin at "Le train bleu".



We stayed at "Belle vue" on rue de Turbigo, also in belle epoque style. The hotel is a bit rough, but mostly in a good way. That's where I found the wallpaper for the illustration. I'm collecting things like that.

I found this personal world map at "From now on ...", a friends blog. It shows you with a graphic representation which countries you have visited, and a percentage of the world. I got 9%. Out of those 9% I have seen very little. I have never been to the far north of Sweden for instance, which is downright embarrassing considering I have lived here all my life.


Countries Staffan Millqvist has officially visited

Check it out for yourselves here.

I went to Berlin, to visit my friend Pål. He works there as a scientist, and I met some of his new found friends. A pretty mixed bag of Europeans, and an Argentinean. As it were there were one Hungarian, one Romanian (Transylvania), three Italians, four Polacks, one argentinean, one Spanish, two Germans and two Swedes... unless I missed someone. I biked around on a borrowed bike, and went to a couple of muséeums. Berlin is a slow city, and I was slow too.

Berlin is a very special city for Europe. It's one of the last places in western Europe where a big city actually hosts a lot of semi-poor people, without huge mortgages. As I was told, about 90% of the flats are rented, and there's no problem getting one. This has lead to a city where shop owners, and bar owners doesn't have to make a ridiculous amount of money. Which in turn leads to less commercial establishments. Dr Pong is just such a place. I couldn't think of a less hip place, and yet it's amazing. You pay a fee for a ping pong racket (that you get back when you return it), and buy a beer. Then you play against the people who happen to hang around. I got hit pretty hard by a swedes serve, but we only lost by two points in the end in a double we were playing.

We also went to a weinery where you pay one euro, and eat and drink all you want, then pay what you think it was worth when you leave. Or not, if you so choose. I can't see that place working out in many other cities in the west.

Pål outside the exhibition "Berlin Tokyo Tokyo Berlin"

I've heard, but never put much credit to the fact or rumor, that every person has seven look-alikes. I have seen, on several occasions, people that remind a lot of other people I know, but never anyone who I think looks like myself. Until now, that is. I only saw him briefly, passing by me in the street, and he turned around to look at me. We sized each other for a short while with our stares, and then proceeded to rush off in different directions.

I was on my way to get a burger, and wasn't dressed nearly as sharp as him, something I regret deeply. Of two doppelgängers, I want me to be the handsome one.

Anyway, I still don't believe in the seven look-alikes, but I know there's at least one now. I wonder if we think alike too, if we do the same things...

UPDATE Look what it says on wikipedia: "... Alternatively, the word is used to describe a phenomenon where you catch your own image out of the corner of your eye. In some mythologies, seeing one's own doppelgänger is an omen of death. A doppelgänger seen by friends or relatives of a person may sometimes bring bad luck, or indicate an approaching illness or health problem."

That doesn't sound good at all.

In this picture, taken at some sort of art gallery party in a San Francisco basement, I'm trying hard to look like I'm not enjoying myself... or, more likely from what I've heard, I'm getting near my Totem.

Sometimes when some people stick together for some period of time, they start making up little stories only they know about. There were several of these small make-believe fables on our road trip this summer. It's a sort of bonding, I suppose. We know, and you don't.

Indians, as most of us probably know from our enlightening cinemas, find their Totem in various stages of "exhaustion". Well, we were at the brink of finding our true Totems somewhere not far from central Monterey. The problem is to bring the Totem together with your conscious self, otherwise you could only hear from others what your true Totem is. We called this, in a metaphor; "the Falcon and the Pig". I never met my Totem, but was told later it's the Llama; basically cool and calm, but arrogant and could spit you in the face.

I suppose it could be worse. At least they look distinguished, even if they're anything but. Read More ...

I've been on a trip to Los Angeles and San Francisco. More will follow soon.

I think I have become addicted to Vietnamese coffe with condensed milk...



Read More ...

I was tipped off about this page, where my illustration is shown. Erasmo Spicker also keeps a "best of" of blog posts by artist Nick Currie, previously mentioned here.

Larger version of the
illustration can be found here.

Read More ...

Yesterday I got a call from a very friendly police officer, who wanted to talk to me about my experience of being attacked in my own home. He informed me about my right to talk to a counselor and possibly get a monetary compensation for my sufferings as a crime victim. I assured him that I was fine, and really didn't need neither counseling nor money. Our chat lasted about twenty minutes just the same, ranging from rookie police officers to a relative of his who had been burgled some nine years ago. It seems where I was very impressed with our forces handling of the case, he wasn't. They're constantly battling working conditions older cops can't handle, and the rookies aren't experienced enough to investigate a crime scene in the best way possible. In the end I believe my case got a more than fair treatment. I'm certain however I have talked to the nicest cops in Vasastan. Real chatterboxes.

Vietnam is a country of contradictions. You can start a business whenever you feel like it. You don't pay taxes. You do pay for schools, your children are your pension and medical care isn't free. Yet, Vietnam is a communist peoples republic. In the words of our tour guide Phuong Thao:

"Although we are Communists,
we have to pay for everything".

I never really got what the communist part was.

See a gallery with more pictures here

Perhaps it would be more clear if I had went to Hanoi, where all government official buildings are. Presumably there's a lot more police officers and, well, communism in general. In Saigon it's all business and no government. Police are scarse and people doesn't seem at all afraid of speaking their mind, like they definitely are in China.

Vietnam is now open to the world, and has grown economically since the reform, Doi moi (Renovation), in 1986. Before that, after the Vietnam war, the borders were closed. Vietnam still remains a very poor country though, especially in the country where farmers and fishermen live off the land. If you want to make a better life for yourself, you have to move to the fast growing cities.

The population in Vietnam is 82 million, and Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) is home to eight million of them. HCMC is a blend of french, chinese, indian and perhaps a touch of russian influences (they are thought russian in school). Naturally it's a lot of western influences nowadays too. They have incorporated the cultures of their invaders without second thought, and seems to forgive and forget in a rather healthy manner. There is concern about the past, but no hate. This may not have been the case just after the war, and Thao told us her father, who fought for the losing power (USA), was discriminated up until the late 70's. As his daughter she wouldn't have been able to go to the university at that time, but later things changed and she has. Meeting her, it's obvious she skipped her mathematics for something else though.

Phuong Thao, tour guide

Our tour guide had a theory why Vietnam didn't quite follow the success of Korea and Japan; They aren't as clever. The Cambodians are even more stupid, however. She also thought vietnamese people lazy by nature, who won't do anything at all if their lives don't depend on it. She told a few stories about it, but I'm afraid I can't remember them truthfully. If your get a chance to go to HCMC, send me an e-mail and I'll forward her contact address to you so that you can hear her stories first hand.

Although people outside the cities are poor, they are very friendly and seem happy. I know very well that westerners tend to glorify the poor and picturesque, but I don't think you can fake happiness.

Another article on vietnamese coffe can be found here

When I went to Vietnam two weeks ago, I was really delighted to find they had a flourishing coffee culture. Vietnam is now one of the major growers of coffee in the world, and their highland Rubusta is excellent. Everyone drinks coffee, and there's a coffe shop around every corner.

They grind the coffee quite coarse, not like espresso coffee, and often spice it a bit with vanilla or cocoa or something similar. Combined with the unique method for brewing, it gives you a very tasty cup of heavenly coffee.

Coffee School


This is a typical coffee brewing
filter. From left you see a filter/
water container, an additional
filter/base, a lid and a pressure
device.


Take your highland coffee and put
it into the filter.


Add hot water, and press it with
the appropriate device.


Put the lid on and wait. This takes
a while, since there's two filters
and the coffee is coarse.


When the lid is removed, it doubles
as a coaster. Enjoy!

You can also put condensed milk into the cup first, for a sweet coffe drink. Since it's rarely below 30° in Vietnam they mostly drink iced coffe, which simply involves pouring your finished coffee into a tall glass filled with crushed ice.



I was so excited about their coffee, that I'm actually thinking about opening a coffe shop with Vietnamese coffee in Stockholm. Viet Cong Café sounds catchy, doesn't it?

More about Vietnam here

Two extremely nice women police officers came by my apartment today, dusting for prints and chit chatting about interior design as everyone seems to do at the moment. While not nearly as sophisticated as seen on TV, they did have the usual gadgets. Black powder, some micro-fast-drying-plastic-padding-thingy and a magnifying glass. I tried not to make any remarks about it though, as they probably hear that to no end all day as it is.

They took my prints, which they promised would be destroyed, to rule out my handling of the computer. They also made tool mark casts with the magic plastic padding from the hinges of the front door. Thorough and impressive I think. They were also quite concerned about the well being of my precious Powerbook as well as my own, something I appreciated. All in all a pleasant experience. Hopefully it can help them put a stop to the the almost epidemic-like burglar rampage in my neighborhood.

Yesterday when I was in the bathroom after taking a shower, I heard a noise that sounded like it came from within the apartment. I looked out and saw a little fair haired man passing the bathroom door, making his way to the living room. A bearded character stood in the doorway looking at me. I followed the little man into the living room, where he had picked up my Powerbook and came rushing towards me. He knocked me over, and I took the Powerbook from his hands while he dashed off to the hallway.

Bloody Monday. Who said you need to go out the door to find excitement?

Why is it that some corporations do ugly designs, and others do beautiful? There are countless examples, but I'm going to home in on a couple.

Not long ago Panasonic revealed a new camera based on the 4/3 format. Basically a fairly unexciting camera with an impressive Leica lens. What is exciting is the way it looks. Under the skin, it's just about the same camera as the recently released Olympus e330, but who in their right mind would choose the olympus over the Panasonic L1?

Often cheaper looking designs are cheaper, but I fail to understand who would like cheaper looking objects around them rather than beautiful ones. Good design isn't much more expensive than bad when it comes to mass produced things like cameras and computers. The Olympus is over-designed if anything.

Same story with Apple vs Dell. It's basically the same computer except the Dell is ugly. There's nothing stopping Dell from making computers like Apple's. There's nothing to Apple's design at all, just remove everything that isn't necessary and you're there. I think Apple is a bit boring at the moment, they lack a final touch. But compared to Dell, and all other computer makers, they're design gods. Minimalist, expensive as hell, design gods.

Jonathan Ive, chief designer at Apple, has gone from playful to strict since his first appearance at Apple in the -90s. No other technology company, except maybe B&O, even have a clear design profile. And certainly no other company have an evolutionary design process. Everything from the inside out is well thought out. Even the power cords are a little different, a little better looking. I don't think we would have a better world if everything was designed by mr Ive, but if everything was designed the world would certainly look better.

I hope China will pick up it's past of minute attention to detail, when their economy allows for it. Then we could have dirt cheap home appliances, looking as good as Apple or B&O. After all, if there ever were minimalists, it's the Chinese.

A former Apple engineer, Mike Evangelist, urges people to boycott Hd-dvd and Blueray because they infringe on your rights. Here's a talk in more length, that when digested say's that everyone lose on invasive copyright. The only ones who don't are the ones they are meant to affect, the pirates.

I'm perplexed over the fact that electronics companies seems to do everything the media giants tell them, when it's clearly bad for their own business. Of course, Sony and Apple do rely on media content, but I don't think Panasonic and the other real giants do. I just don't get it.

Nick Currie as Tintin, a picture I made a while ago.

Nick Currie aka Momus, one of hopefully many artists yet to come, has realized that the current business model is flawed. By having a very close contact with readers and listeners on his blog, he gets money from Pay-pal, giving performances and writing articles. He's obviously not the ordinary pop-record-company-golden-boy, but there is a movement among artists to go indie.

Follow-up on iMomus

All countries have their own way of satisfying their need for caffein. There are trends in the coffe culture, and what you eat with your coffe varies according to these trends.



I used to like to like going to cafés, drinking coffe and reading a book. In Stockholm you almost always need to go to the counter and get your own coffe and carry your purchase yourself to the table, ie there is no waiting. This used to be a nice way to keep the prices down and avoid tipping, something swedes have a hard time getting a grip on.

I think tipping is a very strange habit, that simply must have it's roots in slavery. If you feel for the poor slaves that bring you food, you throw them a penny. People should get paid for their efforts in a normal way, regardless of what they do. I have never tipped a police officer, a nurse, a store clerk or a bus driver. The only profession I would feel really comfortable tipping would be a lap dancer, but I've never done that either. (I do tip waiters. I just feel it's wrong, and haven't got the guts to live up to my preaching)

Cafés in Stockholm have in later years successfully blended the worst parts of several different coffe cultures. We have the spartan italian sandwich menu, the poor american coffe quality, the norwegian prices and the swedish service. Going to a café in Stockholm is a very Soviet inspired experience. You go to the counter and point at the sandwich you like. If the one you like isn't there, you can't get it. You take your tray to a table, that hasn't seen a cleaning in weeks, and pick up the remains of the last guests café visit. I could stand this if the price was very low. But it isn't. In fact, I think the cafés in Stockholm have prices to match the most expensive ones world wide.

The final step in this swedish coffe culture morph is that we have to tip the non-waiting waiter, I'm sure.

Why doesn't everyone get flu shots?

I've been sick for almost a week in some kind of flu. Every year over ten percent of us get it, and unlike me, most of us get paid when we are sick. One would think that would be a strong argument for giving free flu shots, as our national economics are affected. It doesn't make anyone happy, and it costs money. Yet almost everyone goes without vaccine, and few seem to care.

I've stopped filling in forms to get money when I'm sick. Last time I did, they calculated I had a right to get 0 SEK for a two week sick leave. That's not worth the hassle, not for me and not for the one who has to make the tough decision not to give me any money. "–Let's see. This guy payed an obscene percentage of his earnings last year in taxes. How much shall he get? Let's give him nil, like we usually do."

I think they probably deny everyone money, and then you have to appeal before a judge to get what's rightfully yours. Don't get me wrong; I think our government is very wise not to overspend, but somehow I get the feeling I'm cheated on only because I don't have a "real job". The workers aren't the ones in trouble in Sweden. It's people like me who are... non-workers.

I'm currently treating myself with red wine and a vampire book, to make up for the lack of a flu shot and health care money.



Anyway, I'm starting to feel a little better, and will pick up a few "jobs" tomorrow that's been left unattended. I'm working part time with Forma and also with Buffé. Some illustrations are on the way too. I'll put those up here shortly.