Happy New Year!
2026 hey? Yesterday it was 2020 and yet somehow we’re here!
Back To The Grind
I am ‘back at work’ today, whatever that means in my circumstances.
I’ve had a frustrating beginning to be honest. If you read my final newsletter of the year, I talked about how I’m now waiting on a UK VAT decision to move on with the business and I heard over the Christmas break that there’s been a problem with it. I’m not entirely sure what that problem is, but it might include proving my address which is difficult here because everything is done online or in apps, so they don’t need to send letters with addresses on.
Have you heard of BankID? It’s a Swedish digital identification service which is used basically everywhere - the doctors, the bank, credit checks - dead easy and something which I really appreciate. But it’s probably that which is making the blending of Swedish and British systems difficult. I’ll tell you more about it later in the year, I think it’s fascinating.
That is my absolute focus currently until I get it sorted. And there must be a way to get it sorted. It’s taking priority over everything because I just have to get the business going and I feel like I spent the whole of last year trying to be chill about stuff, relax like all the Swedes tell me to, but it doesn’t get stuff done.
I Don’t Do New Years Resolutions…
…but if I did it might be something like ‘remember you are an uptight, stressy bitch who goes at stuff until it’s done - lean into that and be grateful for it’.
Ending The Christmas Break Well
Talking of uptight and stressy, I purposefully spend the last morning of my Christmas break at the spa.
I fell in love with the Centralbadet* before I even moved here and I still get a thrill every time I enter the gates. It’s the most gorgeous Art Nouveau spa, opened in 1904, right off the busiest shopping street in Stockholm. You get just past the Caffe Nero, turn to your right, through the gates and you are in an oasis.
The Centralbadet, Stockholm
My photo doesn’t do it justice. It’s absolutely magical.
Inside the spa is a Roman bath, a cold water plunge pool, jacuzzi, a load of different saunas - some steamy, some salty, some herby - and a big gorgeous swimming pool lit with actual candles. There’s a cafe (cakes aren’t much cop - they go in for the health food thing…), there’s a hammock, a gym, a sun deck. It’s quiet although its always busy.
The Yarn Harlot used to talk about cleaning and sorting before New Years Eve so that you’re set up well for the new year (might also be connected to the no washing on New Years Day or you’ll wash somebody out of your life?). I love the idea of an intentional and sweet ending, setting you up right for what’s coming so, I spent yesterday enjoying some absolute bliss at the spa and I really feel like it’s set me up proper for today.
*The ‘et’ at the end of ‘Centralbadet’ is actually a ‘the’. To say ‘a bath’ is ‘ett bad’ and to say ‘the bath’ the ‘ett’ gets put at the end so ‘badet’. Does that make sense? So what I’ve said there is actually ‘the central bath the’ but not putting ‘the’ before ‘Centralbadet’ just sounds weird in English.
The Holidays
I had a wonderful holiday. It feels like an age since I did anything remotely challenging or difficult. My mum and her partner came for ten days - we walked and went to museums, drank a lot of gin and ate really well. We also did a lot of bird watching and feeding, which was a joy.
The cold that I was suffering from at the end of the year was probably flu and I’m only just over it. In fact I have a lingering cough but I’ve felt well enough to get back to the gym and go out on some wonderfully snowy walks. We had just a dusting of snow for Christmas but we’ve had a lot over the last week or so and I love every single minute of it - even trudging back with my shopping through the sludge.
I will never be tired of snow.
Goals and Resolutions
This would be the time that any normal financial coach would be talking about goals and resolutions for the new year - actually, probably some time before this - but I’m not normal. You might have guessed.
I have some thoughts, lots of them in fact, some ideas, tips and suggestions. I also have some thoughts about gifts which I want to tell you about before the gift giving season is totally forgotten again but today was just about checking in. A nice gentle reintroduction to ‘doing things’ and I think I’ve accomplished that.
Thanks for being here for the beginning of what this is becoming. I’m so excited for the new year and to getting back some of my stressy-bitch-get-stuff-done attitude.
Love Eleanor. xxx
