Hi there,
Welcome to my little corner of the Internet, I’m thrilled to have you here!
This space chronicles my attempt to teach myself how to build a website. I originally set it up when I left Sweden to spend a year on exchange in California, in an attempt to keep friends and family updated on what I was doing. Now, it’s more of a home base for information about me and a place for me to share some of my photos and thoughts on life. See you around!
Here are 7 facts about me for the uninitiated:
1. My full name is Kerstin Astrid Bergentz.
My friends and family sometimes call me “Kärran” (literally means “the wagon” in Swedish), I’m not really sure where that came from actually. Kerstin was popular in Sweden in the 40’s and 50’s, I have met very few my age with the same name. It’s me and all the ladies in their eighties. I like my name though, despite its quite inaccurate meaning. As a version of “Kristina” it translates to “the christian”, which is funny as I’m not at all religious, and my parents baptized me themselves in saltwater and champagne. Yup, ocean with a touch of glamour, that’s me.
2. I’m an early 90’s kid who grew up in the south of Sweden, pretty idyllic with a big house, garden, and summers spent by the coast, yes, I’m very aware of how privileged my childhood was.
3. I’m the oldest of three siblings, and yes, I’m very much the older sister. I’ll say no more.
4. I’ve been vegetarian since I was 16, and mostly vegan since I turned 19 and I ain’t looking back.
There are so many reasons for my diet choices and why I wish more people would eat more plant-based. That’s a whole different topic however, but having had so many people having opinions on, and prejudices about, my diet, one of them being that “vegans are all pushy and militant preachers for a starvation diet of only lettuce”, I’ll say this: fruits and vegetables are delicious, that’s why I eat them. And in my opinion, everyone is allowed to eat whatever they want, as long as they have seriously reflected and educated themselves on what they put in their mouth, and the consequences for themselves and the world around them (which I strongly believe is in your self-interest).
5. I have serious trouble sitting still sometimes, and I cannot nap.
I’ve tried, seriously, but nope. I also have to have something to do with my hands when I watch a movie or sit in a less-than-exciting lecture, hence I knit a fair bit (living up to my grandmother-like name). I’ve always created, I’ve been making bracelets, sewing dresses for prom and my mother, painting, etc. I guess this website is my attempt at developing my creative expression through writing and taking more pictures.
6. I’ve never been able to pick one thing, in school and life alike.
I have studied Physics, Product Development, and Physical Geography and have now moved on to Oceanography. When I was doing track and field I ended up in heptathlon, and I spend my free time doing everything from playing guitar and reading to longboarding and slack-lining. I thought of my indecisiveness as a character fault until I came across the word “multipotentialite” (google it!) and I have now decided that’s what I am.
7. When I was a kid I wanted to be an astronaut. – Original, huh?
I had a serious passion for science as a kid, a lot thanks to my parents who made sure there was a steady supply of books and magazines on a wide range of topics available, and more than once I was accused of being “nerdy”. I still love science, and so many other things, and today I’m proud to be a nerd (because I guess you qualify for that if your party tricks include rattling 100+ decimals of pi and giving the entire Hamlet’s soliloquy? Yes?). I still wouldn’t mind being an astronaut (hello NASA, you know where to find me…), but there are also so many other cool things I want to do.
See you around!