Photo Competition 2012

Looking back at 2012, I realize how many wonderful trips I've been on in Sweden and abroad, most of them in coastal areas. Which one of these eleven pictures do you like the most? Participate in my photo competition and get a chance to win flowers! Open to friends and family until January 31 2013. Send me an email or place a comment!

1. In February, I went to Copenhagen to evaluate a unit at the university. Very cold but I found a quirky downtown café to invigorate me. More pictures...

2. Next stop was Oslo where we had a BlueBio project meeting in February with our Norwegian parters. They took us to the new Opera House in the harbour, which was quite stunning.

3. Late in March, I went to a Horizon 2020 conference in Brussels. I had hoped for a bit of Spring, but the air was was still cold although surprisingly crispy. More pictures...

4. The Blue Bio team also met at Tjärnö, a marine research station in northern Bohuslän where we spent some of the few sunny days in June. More pictures...

5. Before the summer holidays, my boss took the whole Innovationskontor Väst to Varberg for a "work camp". We did lots of planning for autumn activities and in the morning I went out for a long walk down the coast. More pictures...

6. In July, my parents took me on a cruise to some of the most beautiful fiords in Norway. The best part was standing in the bow and seeing the sunrise when we were heading towards Bergen. More pictures...

7. Every year, the exhibition in Pilane changes. The combination of the art and the landscape on the island Tjörn is both tranquil and provoking. More pictures...

8. I'm very fortunate in having friends with passion for and knowledge of canoeing. This time we returned to Ellös in August and worked our way around some of the islands close to Orust. More pictures...

9. Late August, I went to New England on a study tour with a colleague. We spent 24 hours in New York and I had a glimpse Central Park, where I saw these guys. More pictures...

10. In November, me and Mum went to Laem Mae Phim south of Bangkok. One of the first nights, there was a local outdoor concert with a band called Playboy Repent. I think. More pictures...

11. In December I went to Stockholm to do a presentation at a SNITTS Masterclass. I spent some hours wandering about Skansen and Gamla Stan in the snow before it melted away. More pictures...

A Happy Accident

In 1993, Tommy Emmanuel released his album "The Journey". I attended one of his concerts in Melbourne early spring 1994 and the title suited me perfectly since I was on my first travel outside Europe. I spent almost six months in Australia that "winter", writing my PhD-thesis while staying at research colleagues at QUT in Brisbane and RMIT in Melbourne. Many trips and albums later, "The Journey" is still my favourite and looking back at that time in my life only brings good memories.

Now, almost 20 years later I find myself at my second Tommy Emmanuel concert, this time in my hometown Göteborg. The setting is the same, with Tommy and all his Maton guitars on stage. The tunes are new and they all tell a story in different ways. Some of them you have to design yourself like the not yet released Blood Brothers. A Beatles medley brings memories. Others like Drivetime, Tommy explains himself. And I'm transferred back to the time when CD players started to become common in cars and to trendy St Kilda, outside Melbourne where I used to play beach volleyball with the local party kids.

Tommy also tells us the story of how he started to play the guitar. He got one for his fourth birthday, born into a very musical family who apparently did not believe much in formal training. Listening to records and the radio, Tommy didn't understand that the base was a separate instrument. Instead he taught himself to play both the melody and the base on the same guitar. He called it a Happy Accident. Throw in that he played the drums in the family band and you get a very special and wonderful way of creating music.

He also reveals a more recent fairy-tale, one that develops in front of our eyes and we become part of it. The Youtube video of local guitar star talent  Gabriella Quevedo had caught his attention and after some Facebook interaction, she was invited to play at his concert after almost no rehearsal time together at all. Oh, she was really good and although she was clearly inspired by Tommy's way of playing it became clear to all of us in the audience that she will develop her own way of playing in time.

Leaving the concert, I realise that in addition to listening to remarkable and beautiful music I have also been taught several important lessons. Like "don't listen to people who say that some things aren't possible, especially if you have already done them" and "always encourage young people and let them shine when you can" and "be true to yourself do what you really love, and don't set fame and money first" and "support local brands if they are really good". 

And, of course, "look for stories to tell in various ways"!