Ved en korsvei

På fredag hadde jeg min siste arbeidsdag ved Arcada, noe jeg må innrømme var vemodig ettersom jeg trivdes godt der. Gjengen jeg jobbet sammen med var koselig, og selve arbeidet føltes også relevant, selv om det til tider var litt rutinepreget. På den annen side var det kanskje like greit ettersom det tross alt var første gang jeg stiftet bekjentskap med den type arbeid. Dessuten ble jeg også ansatt hovedsakelig for å hjelpe til med årets opptak, hvilket også er grunnen til at jeg primært sysselsatte meg med oppgaver relatert til det. Jeg gjorde også en hel del andre oppgaver, men mesteparten av arbeidstiden gikk til å hjelpe med opptaket. Det kommer til å føles merkelig å ikke  måtte våkne kl. syv i morgen for å ta t-banen og trikken til jobb, men livet må fortsette. Jeg tør å påstå at jobben min ved Arcada har vært den beste jeg har hatt hittil i mitt korte liv, og tolker det som positivt at jeg kommer til å savne det å sitte i mitt lille avlukke kommende mandag. Hvem vet – kanskje jeg kommer til å befinne meg ved Arcada høyskole en dag i fremtiden? Flere fra personalet uttrykte også et ønske om å se meg der om ikke så altfor lenge. Morsomt!

En av introduksjonsdagene for de nye studentene.

                                          

Etter å ha sagt "ha det" og drukket noen kopper avskjedskaffe med kollegaene mine, bar det omsider hjem, hvor Joel stod og ventet på meg. Han har ikke så mye til overs for Helsinki, så han var naturligvis gira på å sette seg bak rattet og kjøre nordover sporenstreks. Nå skal det også sies at han ikke hadde tidenes mest stimulerende sommerjobb heller, så sånn sett forstår jeg han. Jeg gikk med på det, forutsatt at vi fikk gjort noenlunde rent i den lille leiligheten vi hadde leid for sommeren. Som sagt, så gjort. Å kjøre til Vasa tar omtrent fem timer, så da var det kjekt at vi kunne bytte på å kjøre. Det føles ikke lengre så dumt å ha investert flere hundre euro i lappen. Dessuten er det jo morsomt å kjøre bil! Vi klarte til og med å komme oss til Vasa med livet i behold, og det er jo ikke dumt bare det! 

Her holdt jeg til i flere uker (vi flyttet dog til nye lokaler senere).

                                           

Nå sitter jeg altså i Vasa igjen, og som jeg skrev på FB for en stund siden befinner jeg må nå ved en av livets korsveier. Jeg burde få eksamensvitnemålet mitt neste måned, hvilket betyr at jeg endelig får min sårt etterlengtede bachelorgrad i pedagogikk. Jeg begynner smått om senn å skimte toppen av Maslows behovspyramide! Dette betyr dessverre også at jeg må nå en beslutning angående fremtiden. Skal jeg fortsette å studere og ta en mastergrad? Bare for å få det overstått, liksom. Eller burde jeg heller prøve å få meg en jobb, for så å vende tilbake til studiene senere? Begge alternativene har sine fordeler og ulemper, men i skrivende stund lener jeg mot å studere videre. Jeg er allerede student, og sånn sett er det lettere å bare peise på, selv om jeg skal erkjenne at tanken på å skrive en hovedoppgave til ikke frister i det hele tatt. Om jeg derimot går ut i arbeidslivet nå, kan det bli en utfordring i seg selv å finne motivasjon til å studere etterpå. Samtidig finnes det jo alltid en sjanse for at de som har mastergrader tar jobben fra søkere som "bare" har en bachelorgrad. På den annen side er det aldri dumt med arbeidserfaring, og jeg elsker å få betalt for det jeg gjør, og ha fri kvelder og helger. Ai, ai. Det er ikke lett, dette her. I tillegg har jeg en samboer jeg må tenke på! En samboer som også er usikker på hvordan høsten/vinteren kommer til å bli for hennes vedkommende. Ingenting er 100 % avgjort ennå, så vi går en spennende og nervepirrende høst i møte. 

An English update from Helsinki

It is probably a bit confusing when some of my posts are in Norwegian while others are in English, but I hope it is something you can live with. I am addressing you, non-existent readers! One of the reasons for this language mix is that I want to reach a larger number of people, but some of the gibberish you find here is occasionally easier to convey in only one of the previously mentioned languages. Finally, another big reason why most of my posts are in Norwegian is that I actually need the practice as I am no longer in contact with my lovely mother tongue the same way I was when I lived in troll-ridden fjords and forests. Yup, trolls exist and they are exclusive to Norway. God, how I miss those creatures. The conversations we had under the nordic lights, the LAN games we arranged...

Anyskank, I did not log on to Blogger to write about the mysteries of trolls. That will just have to wait until later. Today I am just here to give you another update on my exciting life here in Helsinki. I have been working at a polytech (or University of Applied Sciences as they like to call them) for over two months now and sadly my stay there is coming to an end soon. Unless someone high up suddenly realizes what an asset I am to the place! It could happen. I work as an intern in the administration, more specially at the student affairs office, which means I get to have a major influence on how the educational system in Finland will look like in the future. When I do not occupy myself with such fascinating tasks, one can usually find me playing with the database(s), deleting student records and changing certain students' grades. Nothing makes a student more shocked than not being able to log onto his/her student account or seeing his/her grade being changed from an A to a D. Come on, everyone needs to feel like a D-student every now and then. In case you did not realize it, I was just kidding. People much higher in the hierarchy have made sure I do not get such priviliges. Probably for the better. Actually, my work mainly consists of registering students, checking that they have given us the right information when applying (is Eric's grade point average from high school really 8 or is he just showing off?) and posting welcome letters to new students. This is what I have spent most time doing lately, but luckily I get to do other tasks now and then too. I have helped out supervising a couple of entrance exams, received students in the admissions office, answered e-mails and calls from students asking about all kinds of things. Student service all the way! Sometimes there are other tasks to do in the office too, but the majority of the time has been spent registering and helping new students. Not such a big surprise as I was mainly hired to help out with the application and registration procedures of new students as that takes a lot of time. In addition to this, I have also kept busy with a couple of other assignments (small research) I got from my boss. There has also been talk of me helping out with planning the introduction days for new students, so let us see what happens during the next couple of weeks.

All good things must come to an end and I am soon leaving the polytech as my contract is ending. I am sad about it as I have actually enjoyed spending my summer there. I guess there is just something very attractive about a steady income! It is true, though...getting paid for what you do feels good, especially when it is real money and not monopoly money. (Does ANYONE pay in monopoly money and is ANYONE stupid enough to accept that?) Being a student in Finland, I get paid for studying too, but the amount left after paying rent and bills is so low you never feel rich. That is precisely why a real salary feels so good, despite the fact that an intern's salary of course is lower than that of a "normal" employee. Another thing I really love about working is that I am free to do whatever the hell I want when I get off work! A student often has to spend his afternoons/evenings/weekends studying for exams or writing clever papers about whatever the teacher tells him to write about. Oh, the torture! I am not saying student life is horrible, but I definitely feel that working life has its advantages. Finally, I feel like I am contributing more to society when I work, which also gives me a higher self-confidence. Either it is because of that or because of the money. I am not actually sure. Maybe both? 

Anyskank...working has been good, especially now that I am actually doing a job that is relevant considering my education. I hope I do not have to go back to working as a cashier in a store again after this, but you never know. The uncertainty of life, eh? I hope the powers that be will deal me good cards and make sure things just get better from here on out. So far it feels like each summer has gotten progressively better, so let us hope it continues like that. But wait, what will Tommy do when the boss comes down, tells him to pack up and leave the building? I am not actually sure! Believe it or not. One option would be going back to university and continue studying for a master's degree right away, but I am not sure if I want to. A part of me would not mind it, but another part of me would like to work longer or possibly even go back to "the old country", work for a while and then return to study later. Having lived abroad for so long, I feel the Norwegian in me is dying a little bit every passing year. I need to be a real Norwegian, which entails eating "Kvikklunsj", reading "Se & Hør", watching "Senkveld" and just be able to see my family, friends and speak that lovely Norwegian language. My girlfriend is also unsure about what this autumn/winter will be like for her, which means we have an interesting time ahead of us. I just hope things go well and that all of this does not turn into a nerve-wrecking nightmare. So far things have worked out well despite certain freak-outs now and then. Maybe they will this time as well? 

That is all for now, folks. I am spending the weekend alone, so I will make sure I make the most out of it. At the moment, I am planning to go to the sauna and sweat for some time. Yep, some people find enjoyment in that. Have a great weekend! (Is there actually anyone out there reading this, except for Thomas?)