I know we started the last article with some funny anecdotes about Marcus' navigational skills, but since he was home with fever I actually thought that things would be different this year. I know for a fact that he was planning to go by train this year, but to be frank that didn't really calm me down that much. It wouldn't surprise me if he all a sudden called me saying he had accidentally ended up in Malmö instead of Stockholm, but that's also one of the reasons we love him.

My journey didn't exactly go as planned either. I was just suppose to take the train from Kalmar to Alvesta and then switch to another train that would bring me to Linköping where I would meet Robert and from there on we would travel together to Intel and Kista, Stockholm. We had been chatting with Sampsa on the night before and we were planning to pick up him and Pekka at Arlanda right before we went to Intel.

I got on the right train and everything was going smoothly. I sat down and kept hearing a voice in my head singing: ”I'm going to Intel, I'm going to Intel, I'm going to Intel...” I put on my headset and started listening to Toy Dolls' album 'Covered in Toys' when all of a sudden the left channel dies. I started investigating the cord and I noticed that there is small cut and that the copper inside had been exposed and damaged. I sighed loudly ... not a good start.

SMS 1 to Robert: I'm sitting on the train, but my headset is broken. :-( Only got music in one ear, considering just going home. ... Bad omen you know (;-)) //Andreas

There was quite a lot of adrenaline moving through my body at this time. My legs were shaking and the gentleman sitting face to face with me on the train was starting to wonder why I was looking so nervous, and I told him that I was just hoping that nothing would go wrong.

I reached the first station and things were going just fine, however we got stranded there for 7-8 minutes because a train traveling in the opposite direction was late. [”Crap, crap, CRAP!” echoes in my head] I only had 10 minutes to switch trains in Alvesta and now I'm down to 2-3 minutes. That's going be tough if the trains are a long way apart (Alvesta is a rather big train station where a lot of trains meet, switch lanes and continue to almost every other part of the country). I calm myself down by thinking that I'm quite fit and fast, so it shouldn't be a problem even if there are several tracks and platforms between the trains.

The train left the station in a hurry and was moving a bit faster than usual to try and catch up with the schedule, but right before we're about to enter the next station in Växjö the train stops a few kilometers outside of town. [”No way ... this isn't happening?!”] I got up and try to walk off my anxiety and stop my heart from beating so damn fast. I eventually returned to my seat and I saw that my co-passenger was looking a bit worried. I decided to explain to him that I was traveling to Stockholm and that I was going to visit Intel, in a ”once in a lifetime” event. Although in my case it's actually twice in a lifetime (hoping to make it thrice. Please, pretty please?), but realizing I've already been there once didn't exactly reduce my heart rate.

SMS 2 to Robert: First I have to wait for 7-8 minutes in Nybro, which leaves me with 2 minutes margin when switching trains in Alvesta, but then it turns out that a train has an engine failure at Växjö station! Argh!