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I have been very busy this week so I haven’t had time to write. The days passes so rapidly and suddenly it is Friday. My life consists very much of work and exercise. But sometimes also of enjoying eg art and photography. I was very lucky that a photo exhibition by Axel Ahlsén was very close to where I live. I have followed his work during many years and it was fun to see that he continues to do such nice work. Photograpy is difficult. Since I am very bad at painting, I like photography. That is my way of expressing myself.

Yesterday, I had a few colleagues from pharmacy at home. It actually is good to meet at another place than at work. I will now be off for a few days, so it was a good start of my vacation. I will dedicate these days to sport which is my favourite hobby. Will write more about that later. Sharing beautiful flowers from my colleagues. A taste of brighter seasons.

I try to follow the news, but I must admit that the meeting Trump and Kim had in Hanoi, Vietnam, passed by rather quickly. It was a historic meeting since only a few years ago the tensions between east and west were rather tense. Actually, affecting the whole world. So it was very good that they met and had denuclearisation talks. For world peace. I don’t remember that much about general Asian history, but I thought of a famous leader Mao Zedong. He ruled China from the 1950s to his death in 1976, and was the communist party leader of China spreading his ideas through Maoism, including military and political ideas.

I am interested in history and politics and try to follow some, but my main focus is pharmacology. And MAO is for me something completely different. MAO is an enzyme regulating monoamines. An enzyme enhances various chemical reactions in the body and is related to energy. A chemical reaction always demands energy. Monoamines have been studied during decades and have important functions in the body such as mobility, and also various moods. If we feel happy, angry, sad etc. Interestingly, this enzyme, MAO, has also been located in blood platelets and not only in the central nervous system. There are different MAO enzymes and it has been shown that the MAO-B enzyme is in a way associated to various personality traits such as impulsivity. MAO-B serves as a behavioural biomarker and has been associated to sensation seeking and also drug dependence. This interesting area has been well studied by Oreland and Hallman in Uppsala, Sweden. They have presented several systematic reviews.

Neuropharmacology has always been a very interesting area, and I have a particular interest in Alzheimer´s disease since my mother is affected by memory loss. It is a disease affecting the whole family and I try to follow, and also support, latest science. To make science a little easier, I found this presentation from The Jackson Laboratories website. Here, a more clinical view of Alzheimer´s disease is presented.

Vasaloppet is currently taking place in Sweden, and it seems to be very popular every year. I like to go skiing but this year I have been lazy. I do my ordinary work out instead. In a way, I am boring since I like to go to the same exercise when I go training. I like to be trained by the same persons. Don’t know why. Yesterday, I did two hours training and I had a little muscle pain today. It started to snow in the afternoon so it was very tempting to stay in the sofa reading. But no. I went for exercise again. Someone has said that when you have muscle pain from training it is good to do exercise again. And it worked out well.

It is still a little chilly, but soon I will go for running again. I am curious to see if I can go jogging for 10 km at a time of 1 hour. The evenings are getting brighter, and I am looking forward to spring. Today it was difficult to imaging, but soon the light will return and birds will sing again.

Monday, and a it is the beginning of a new week. I am still collecting inspiration to continue to write my next book. Therefore, I do a lot of work out right now. I love exercise, and I cannot live without training. However, this evening I am just at home, writing here instead.

About a month ago I met Carola Blank from a local newspaper, Sala Allehanda, where I grew up. Carola works as a journalist and she made an interview with me. It is a little fun since we went to the same high school. She is interested in literature and I had the possibility to present my writing. And she is right, it took a lot of time to find my own way of writing since I have been writing scientifically for many years. To write a novel is different from science. Definitely. In addition, I must say that I have had support from my colleagues who have been very interested to follow my writing. I cannot share Carola´s article due to copywright. However, I can share this photo taken by her. It doesn’t happen very often, but this time I know who the photographer is.

When I have traveled, I have often been on my own. But, of course, this does not mean that I haven’t met people. On the contrary. I have had help with photography, what I call “dogma photography”. Unknown photographers. But this nice photo above is from Sala where I went to school. Where my interest in reading and writing started. And the photographer is Carola Blank.

I have been working this weekend, but I missed my sweetie so I had to go and see her. She is on a diet, but my father spoils her by giving her hamburgers. Not so good. That means that she gains weight, and 1 or 2 extra kilos is quite a lot for a little dog.

I am focusing on exercise right now, so this evening I have been on work out. I also need to get rid of my extra kilos. To stay in shape. I have always liked to do different kind of sports. Spinning tomorrow.

A historical date is approaching. The 29th of March 2019 (11 pm UK time), the UK is leaving the European Union. It is a political and historical step leading to change. Since I have a biological education, I have a different perspective of analysing this change. The EU developed after the second world war when a coal and steel union was needed. Various countries needed to collaborate and trade was the basis. Trade is the basis for peace in the world. No doubt. Today a lot of European countries are members in the EU, and there are strict guidelines to be included. Turkey is working on a membership, but they need to develop human rights more accurately. At least they are a member of NATO.

There have been conflicts in Europe after the second world war where eg former Yugoslavia has suffered a lot. The Srebrenica massacre is rather similar to what happened during the second world war. The UN failed to protect Bosnia´s territory and thousands of men were murdered. Deep emotional scars on survivors were created, and there is stilla lot of challenges for a political reconciliation among ethnic groups. This takes generations to heel, and the scars are emotionally inherited and I feel sorry for that. Peace is the main basis for the EU, but I am sure peace will prevail even though the UK go for Brexit. They are still a member of NATO.

What is more interesting is how the UK can find various agreements for trade since they cannot be insulated. I remember when Sweden joined the EU. At that time politicians talked about the size of cucumber and that it should be EU standardised. Snuff was also a very hot topic. Personally, it is easier to relate to the price of the Brittish Stilton cheese, than to think of complicated agreements between countries. Maybe there will be a so called “Brexit index” of Stilton, before and after Brexit. The market forces, regulating demand and supply, should not be politically regulated.