Things that have made me happy during these past 11 days:
- the endless understanding I get from my friends
- a new soap from Lush (it's yellow and it's called Happy)
(- the fact that they've opened a Lush store in Finland)
- start of the football season
- cats
- new pink placemats
- a good cup of tea
- the wind
- my new hair
And nothing sooths a broken heart as much as a nice run in the park. The first of this summer.
Wednesday, May 7, 2008
Sunday, April 13, 2008
Why I don't have children
After today, this would have been my answer:
I can sleep in, meet a friend, go to a museum and then have lunch at a Turkish restaurant, after which we can go to my friend's place for a cup of espresso, until it's time for my stretching class at the gym. And a day like this is not a rare treat for which I've had to armwrestle my husband for two weeks, any given Sunday can be like today. Heaven.
More reasons here: Benefits of Childfreedom
(Bare with her, she's obviously had to deal with the daily "surely you must want to have children, every woman does!" a lot as you do when you're a woman in your thirties. But although the list doesn't have to be taken literally, a lot of it means business.)
I can sleep in, meet a friend, go to a museum and then have lunch at a Turkish restaurant, after which we can go to my friend's place for a cup of espresso, until it's time for my stretching class at the gym. And a day like this is not a rare treat for which I've had to armwrestle my husband for two weeks, any given Sunday can be like today. Heaven.
More reasons here: Benefits of Childfreedom
(Bare with her, she's obviously had to deal with the daily "surely you must want to have children, every woman does!" a lot as you do when you're a woman in your thirties. But although the list doesn't have to be taken literally, a lot of it means business.)
Monday, April 7, 2008
Coming (home) at the same time
One of the reasons I'm so convinced that an apartment block is the best place for a human being to live is my neighbours. I've always had a good luck with neighbours, even in Spain, when we thought that the couple downstairs was always fighting - I later realized it was just normal conversation in Spanish.
I've lived in this house for 4 years and the first 3 went kind of unnoticed. Last spring I suddenly noticed a new phenomenon: all my neighbours started opening up to me on different subjects when we met in the stairwell or in the backyard. My friend Ilkka explained that I had spent the magical 3 years in a flat that it takes in Helsinki, where people move a lot, for the neighbours to start trusting the newcomer.
In our house there are people of all ages and all kinds of family situations. There's one lady who's lived here since the house was built - that's the year 1950. Her daughter, whom I imagine to be from around that same year, also lives in the building. There are a couple of young families (thank you for proving that it's possible to live in an apartment building with children!), one woman with mental health problems (sits in the backyard and talks to herself all summer), a Blazing Show Girls dancer with her two chihuahuas. Before I moved in, my flat was owned by a gay couple. When the opening up phase started, my neighbours were ever so eager to share about their tumultuous relationship and how they took turns in kicking each other out from the flat, naked, in the middle of the night. (Luckily for the community, they were replaced by another odd couple, a Finnish woman and a black man.)
I realize that in an apartment block, you will always hear noices. I can hear my upstairs neighbour snore, and when their grandchildren visit, it's very clear they haven't been raised in a flat. My downstairs neighbour bangs the door like a crazy person, and then there's the other kind of banging that I like to call "noices of life".
There are 3 doors in my floor. My next door neighbours are a young Finnish-American couple. In the flat opposite me lives a girl whom I recently found out to be one of the board members in Pro Fair Trade association. Interestingly enough she was also responsible for the football campaign that I'm running. I found this out because she was wearing the campaign t-shirt, not through work. :0
The Finnish guy with his American girlfriend moved in last autumn. My previous next door neighbours were the only ones that ever bothered me. A young Finnish couple with obvious problems in the bedroom department. Pardon me for being so cynical but I don't think it's possible for the woman to always, I mean every time, reach...krhm...climax just 10 seconds before the man? And it always sounded just the same. (Like killing a small dog.) In all friendship and as an older woman, I often felt like slipping a letter in from their mailbox to tell him that when a woman screams like that, she's faking it. But she moved out after 6 months just to prove my point about their problems (next door to a friend of mine!!!). Not that the new couple is completely silent... but that's what it's like in an apartment building.
Today all the 3 of us that live in the 2nd floor came together... home at the same time. And when in my previous posting I was so worried about being middle-aged, today's friendly chit-chat with my neighbours made me feel like I live in a hip, young, possibly a student house.
(And when I had my Easter garland in the door, someone had left a small chocolate egg in the nest there, along with the wooden ones.)
I've lived in this house for 4 years and the first 3 went kind of unnoticed. Last spring I suddenly noticed a new phenomenon: all my neighbours started opening up to me on different subjects when we met in the stairwell or in the backyard. My friend Ilkka explained that I had spent the magical 3 years in a flat that it takes in Helsinki, where people move a lot, for the neighbours to start trusting the newcomer.
In our house there are people of all ages and all kinds of family situations. There's one lady who's lived here since the house was built - that's the year 1950. Her daughter, whom I imagine to be from around that same year, also lives in the building. There are a couple of young families (thank you for proving that it's possible to live in an apartment building with children!), one woman with mental health problems (sits in the backyard and talks to herself all summer), a Blazing Show Girls dancer with her two chihuahuas. Before I moved in, my flat was owned by a gay couple. When the opening up phase started, my neighbours were ever so eager to share about their tumultuous relationship and how they took turns in kicking each other out from the flat, naked, in the middle of the night. (Luckily for the community, they were replaced by another odd couple, a Finnish woman and a black man.)
I realize that in an apartment block, you will always hear noices. I can hear my upstairs neighbour snore, and when their grandchildren visit, it's very clear they haven't been raised in a flat. My downstairs neighbour bangs the door like a crazy person, and then there's the other kind of banging that I like to call "noices of life".
There are 3 doors in my floor. My next door neighbours are a young Finnish-American couple. In the flat opposite me lives a girl whom I recently found out to be one of the board members in Pro Fair Trade association. Interestingly enough she was also responsible for the football campaign that I'm running. I found this out because she was wearing the campaign t-shirt, not through work. :0
The Finnish guy with his American girlfriend moved in last autumn. My previous next door neighbours were the only ones that ever bothered me. A young Finnish couple with obvious problems in the bedroom department. Pardon me for being so cynical but I don't think it's possible for the woman to always, I mean every time, reach...krhm...climax just 10 seconds before the man? And it always sounded just the same. (Like killing a small dog.) In all friendship and as an older woman, I often felt like slipping a letter in from their mailbox to tell him that when a woman screams like that, she's faking it. But she moved out after 6 months just to prove my point about their problems (next door to a friend of mine!!!). Not that the new couple is completely silent... but that's what it's like in an apartment building.
Today all the 3 of us that live in the 2nd floor came together... home at the same time. And when in my previous posting I was so worried about being middle-aged, today's friendly chit-chat with my neighbours made me feel like I live in a hip, young, possibly a student house.
(And when I had my Easter garland in the door, someone had left a small chocolate egg in the nest there, along with the wooden ones.)
Monday, March 3, 2008
How do you know you're middle-aged?
Your kid brother turns 28, but that's not how.
On a Friday, when your intern (hint number 1: you have an intern?! Seems like just months ago when you were one) is planning for a wild night out, you realize all you're hoping for is to get to Tiimari before it closes to buy Easter stuff. Then you spend your evening happily crafting an Easter garland of chicks and bunnies.
On a Saturday, you have a Bodypump class programmed, just as does every other middle-aged woman in your neigbourhood. Only you miss the class because you arrive late: it was much too interesting to chat with your neighbour about the prospects of a plumbing renovation.
On a Sunday, you're happy that your office is empty so you can spend some 5 hours doing work without being interrupted.
On a Monday, you notice you haven't posted anything in your blog for 2 months. This was supposed to be a blog about an interesting and eventful life! Well I'll go with my favourite explanation of not ever taking any photos: when you're really having fun, who has time to get the camera?
(And you're really not kidding anyone.)
Must plan a night with the girls in da club. (hint number 2: you use lame hip hop expressions like "in da club")
On a Friday, when your intern (hint number 1: you have an intern?! Seems like just months ago when you were one) is planning for a wild night out, you realize all you're hoping for is to get to Tiimari before it closes to buy Easter stuff. Then you spend your evening happily crafting an Easter garland of chicks and bunnies.
On a Saturday, you have a Bodypump class programmed, just as does every other middle-aged woman in your neigbourhood. Only you miss the class because you arrive late: it was much too interesting to chat with your neighbour about the prospects of a plumbing renovation.
On a Sunday, you're happy that your office is empty so you can spend some 5 hours doing work without being interrupted.
On a Monday, you notice you haven't posted anything in your blog for 2 months. This was supposed to be a blog about an interesting and eventful life! Well I'll go with my favourite explanation of not ever taking any photos: when you're really having fun, who has time to get the camera?
(And you're really not kidding anyone.)
Must plan a night with the girls in da club. (hint number 2: you use lame hip hop expressions like "in da club")
Monday, December 31, 2007
Happy 2008!
These quizzes are rampant in all the weblogs and they are not my idea of ambitious blogging. However, a stomach bug has changed my plans for tonight so I'll let this meme reflect the uttermost boredom of my New Year's Eve.
1. What did you do in 2007 that you had never done before?
I asked a man's opinion about a piece of furniture (the new sofa).
2. Did you keep your New Year's resolution, and will you make more for 2008?
My resolution was not to subscribe to women's magazines, and I kept it. Next year I'll try to save electricity and keep more in touch with my friends.
3. Did anyone close to you give birth?
Hello, I'm 33 years old?! Just ask me how many.
4. Did anyone close to you die?
Not really really close, but my father's godmother died. She didn't have children of her own and she was quite close to my family, especially when us "kids" were small.
5. Which countries did you visit?
Sweden, Spain (Tenerife), Indonesia, Singapore.
6. What would you like to have in 2008 that you didn't have in 2007?
I would like Mapenzi* to move in with me.
7. Are there any dates from the year 2007 that you will always remember and why?
At least a couple of wedding dates: 5.5. and 4.8. People very close to me got married and those dates meant a lot to me. The birthday of my godson, 31.10.
8. What was your greatest accomplishment this year?
I managed to pay off half of my extra taxes!
9. Your greatest failure?
I screwed up my tax planning... or is that year 2006? I failed to be there for a friend whose life changed radically. Our relationship will never be the same again.
10. Did you suffer from any illnesses or injuries?
Luckily, no.
11. What was the best thing you bought?
My dress for Sarah's wedding! By far!
12. Whose behaviour made you laugh?
Simba's and Nala's. Every day.
13. Whose behaviour depressed you?
Nobody depressed me, but there are a few people whose behaviour does my head in.
14. Where did the most of your money go?
To my flat. Too much money went into eating out, I've had to cut back since the extra taxes and I've realised how much I've spent there.
15. Were you really, really excited about something?
In the beginning of the year, I was really excited about my new job. That always fades away. :) I'm also always very excited to see Mapenzi. That doesn't seem to change.
16. What song will always remind you of the year 2007?
I can't believe this is the only song I can name but it has to be "Aamuaurinkoon" or something by Katri Ylander. I borrowed a car from Mom for the summer, and when you drive all over Finland, Radio Nova is the only one you can hear no matter where you are. They played that song at least once in an hour.
17. Compared to last year, are you
a) happier or more sad?
I don't know! I guess just as happy.
b) skinnier or fatter?
About the same (damn).
c)richer or poorer?
My income is about the same, but now it comes from a permanent job, with perks, so I'll have to say richer.
18. Is there something you wish you would have done more?
I should have spent more time with some important children in my life.
19. Is there something you wish you would have done less?
Bitched about coworkers behind their backs.
20. How did you celebrate Christmas?
Just me and Mapenzi on Christmas Eve, then on Christmas day I saw my sister and brother and their spouses. We also celebrated my sister's getting engaged.
21. Did you fall in love in 2007?
Over and over again, with the same guy.
22. How many one night stands?
Obviously none!
23. What was your favourite tv show?
Grey's Anatomy.
24. Do you now hate anybody you didn't hate last year?
I don't think I've actually ever hated anyone. Except Thomas when he kicked me out from his flat in Dresden in 1998, but that, too, passed.
25. What was the best book you read?
I didn't read that much this year... La sombra del viento by Carlos Ruiz Zafón was well written. I also liked What I loved by Siri Hustvedt, but it couldn't hold up to the promises it made in the beginning.
26. What was your biggest musical find?
I'm so out of this scene these days. I don't even think I bought one cd. I'll have to say my biggest musical find was to take my mp3 player with me when I go jogging, because I'd never jogged before!
27. What did you want and got?
I was hoping to get to rent a summer cottage sponsored by my trade union, and I did! (They do a draw.)
28. What did you want but didn't get?
Well, some advances in my relationship would have been welcomed...
29. What was your favourite movie this year?
I didn't see so many movies. The Simpson's movie comes to mind.
30. What did you do for your birthday and how old were you?
This is how you know you're old! I don't remember what I did! But I'm 33 years old.
31. Name a single thing that would have made your year significantly more satisfying?
A win in the lottery (should probably start playing). Money is the only thing we argue about with Mapenzi.
32. How would you describe your style in 2007?
Casual, but increasingly feminine, thanks to weight loss. :)
33. What kept you sane?
If I'm sane, it's thanks to my love, who's always down to earth and full of one-liners with great wisdom!
34. What political issue caught most of your attention?
Many! The parliamentary elections of course, then the nurses' fight for a better salary, to mention a few.
35. Whom did you miss?
A lot of friends who live abroad.
36. Who was the best new person you met?
"The best" is a weird characterisation, but I really enjoyed meeting some new people through my work. I'll have to say Sirpa Save from the Wood Workers' union!
*my love in Swahili
1. What did you do in 2007 that you had never done before?
I asked a man's opinion about a piece of furniture (the new sofa).
2. Did you keep your New Year's resolution, and will you make more for 2008?
My resolution was not to subscribe to women's magazines, and I kept it. Next year I'll try to save electricity and keep more in touch with my friends.
3. Did anyone close to you give birth?
Hello, I'm 33 years old?! Just ask me how many.
4. Did anyone close to you die?
Not really really close, but my father's godmother died. She didn't have children of her own and she was quite close to my family, especially when us "kids" were small.
5. Which countries did you visit?
Sweden, Spain (Tenerife), Indonesia, Singapore.
6. What would you like to have in 2008 that you didn't have in 2007?
I would like Mapenzi* to move in with me.
7. Are there any dates from the year 2007 that you will always remember and why?
At least a couple of wedding dates: 5.5. and 4.8. People very close to me got married and those dates meant a lot to me. The birthday of my godson, 31.10.
8. What was your greatest accomplishment this year?
I managed to pay off half of my extra taxes!
9. Your greatest failure?
I screwed up my tax planning... or is that year 2006? I failed to be there for a friend whose life changed radically. Our relationship will never be the same again.
10. Did you suffer from any illnesses or injuries?
Luckily, no.
11. What was the best thing you bought?
My dress for Sarah's wedding! By far!
12. Whose behaviour made you laugh?
Simba's and Nala's. Every day.
13. Whose behaviour depressed you?
Nobody depressed me, but there are a few people whose behaviour does my head in.
14. Where did the most of your money go?
To my flat. Too much money went into eating out, I've had to cut back since the extra taxes and I've realised how much I've spent there.
15. Were you really, really excited about something?
In the beginning of the year, I was really excited about my new job. That always fades away. :) I'm also always very excited to see Mapenzi. That doesn't seem to change.
16. What song will always remind you of the year 2007?
I can't believe this is the only song I can name but it has to be "Aamuaurinkoon" or something by Katri Ylander. I borrowed a car from Mom for the summer, and when you drive all over Finland, Radio Nova is the only one you can hear no matter where you are. They played that song at least once in an hour.
17. Compared to last year, are you
a) happier or more sad?
I don't know! I guess just as happy.
b) skinnier or fatter?
About the same (damn).
c)richer or poorer?
My income is about the same, but now it comes from a permanent job, with perks, so I'll have to say richer.
18. Is there something you wish you would have done more?
I should have spent more time with some important children in my life.
19. Is there something you wish you would have done less?
Bitched about coworkers behind their backs.
20. How did you celebrate Christmas?
Just me and Mapenzi on Christmas Eve, then on Christmas day I saw my sister and brother and their spouses. We also celebrated my sister's getting engaged.
21. Did you fall in love in 2007?
Over and over again, with the same guy.
22. How many one night stands?
Obviously none!
23. What was your favourite tv show?
Grey's Anatomy.
24. Do you now hate anybody you didn't hate last year?
I don't think I've actually ever hated anyone. Except Thomas when he kicked me out from his flat in Dresden in 1998, but that, too, passed.
25. What was the best book you read?
I didn't read that much this year... La sombra del viento by Carlos Ruiz Zafón was well written. I also liked What I loved by Siri Hustvedt, but it couldn't hold up to the promises it made in the beginning.
26. What was your biggest musical find?
I'm so out of this scene these days. I don't even think I bought one cd. I'll have to say my biggest musical find was to take my mp3 player with me when I go jogging, because I'd never jogged before!
27. What did you want and got?
I was hoping to get to rent a summer cottage sponsored by my trade union, and I did! (They do a draw.)
28. What did you want but didn't get?
Well, some advances in my relationship would have been welcomed...
29. What was your favourite movie this year?
I didn't see so many movies. The Simpson's movie comes to mind.
30. What did you do for your birthday and how old were you?
This is how you know you're old! I don't remember what I did! But I'm 33 years old.
31. Name a single thing that would have made your year significantly more satisfying?
A win in the lottery (should probably start playing). Money is the only thing we argue about with Mapenzi.
32. How would you describe your style in 2007?
Casual, but increasingly feminine, thanks to weight loss. :)
33. What kept you sane?
If I'm sane, it's thanks to my love, who's always down to earth and full of one-liners with great wisdom!
34. What political issue caught most of your attention?
Many! The parliamentary elections of course, then the nurses' fight for a better salary, to mention a few.
35. Whom did you miss?
A lot of friends who live abroad.
36. Who was the best new person you met?
"The best" is a weird characterisation, but I really enjoyed meeting some new people through my work. I'll have to say Sirpa Save from the Wood Workers' union!
*my love in Swahili
Friday, December 21, 2007
A Christmas Memory
Today I went to buy one of the (very) few Christmas presents on my shopping list, for my godson who's 4. I was going to drop it off at his dad's working place so it had to be wrapped right away.
The wrapping service was available from noon and it was 10 am, so I got to wrap the present myself. I always prefer to do it myself anyway. As I was adding a few finishing touches, an elderly woman came there to organise her shopping bags and said "what a lovely present you have wrapped". I thanked her and explained that when I was young, I worked in a department store, at the kitchen department, just before Christmas. "Oh, that's why. I can really see that you know how to do that", the lady said.
The chat, although brief, returned those two weeks in my mind instantly. Those days, 9th graders did two weeks of what was called "introduction to working life" in a working place of their choosing.
I don't know why I chose a department store. If anything terrifies me it's having to sell stuff to people. Probably I just went where all my friends went, plus that department store was very happening in the 80's, and I didn't have a clue of what I wanted to do after high school anyway so it didn't really matter (some kids were clever enough to choose a place close to their dream job, because they had one).
Back then there was a popular quiz show in the TV called "Ruutuysi". Before Christmas, the department store organized an event and they got the presenter from the show to host it. Every
hour, on the hour, he would visit one department with his microphone, make short interviews and promote whatever was sold at that department.
Mind you, I was 15, and in average, at that age you're way more embarrassed about things than you should be - and more so than other people around you. So I was mortified when the host approached my counter just as I was trying to wrap a huge, impossibly-shaped frying pan (now who buys frying pans for Christmas?!). I had a nametag on my chest (see how the elements of embarrassment keep piling up?) and it said "trainee Anna". The presenter (his name is Jorma Pulkkinen, some Finnish people might remember him) had chosen me as his victim and said to his microphone: "and trainee Anna is wrapping a lovely present here..." "I'm really not", I said, as the microphone was pushed in front of me.
Thank goodness I'm better with receiving compliments these days. And thanks to those two weeks, frying pans and other funnily-shaped objects, I'm now very good at wrapping. It sounds like a lesser skill, but it comes in very handy sometimes.
With this story I would like to wish everyone a very merry Christmas, with one more beautiful memory to think about afterwards!
The wrapping service was available from noon and it was 10 am, so I got to wrap the present myself. I always prefer to do it myself anyway. As I was adding a few finishing touches, an elderly woman came there to organise her shopping bags and said "what a lovely present you have wrapped". I thanked her and explained that when I was young, I worked in a department store, at the kitchen department, just before Christmas. "Oh, that's why. I can really see that you know how to do that", the lady said.
The chat, although brief, returned those two weeks in my mind instantly. Those days, 9th graders did two weeks of what was called "introduction to working life" in a working place of their choosing.
I don't know why I chose a department store. If anything terrifies me it's having to sell stuff to people. Probably I just went where all my friends went, plus that department store was very happening in the 80's, and I didn't have a clue of what I wanted to do after high school anyway so it didn't really matter (some kids were clever enough to choose a place close to their dream job, because they had one).
Back then there was a popular quiz show in the TV called "Ruutuysi". Before Christmas, the department store organized an event and they got the presenter from the show to host it. Every
hour, on the hour, he would visit one department with his microphone, make short interviews and promote whatever was sold at that department.
Mind you, I was 15, and in average, at that age you're way more embarrassed about things than you should be - and more so than other people around you. So I was mortified when the host approached my counter just as I was trying to wrap a huge, impossibly-shaped frying pan (now who buys frying pans for Christmas?!). I had a nametag on my chest (see how the elements of embarrassment keep piling up?) and it said "trainee Anna". The presenter (his name is Jorma Pulkkinen, some Finnish people might remember him) had chosen me as his victim and said to his microphone: "and trainee Anna is wrapping a lovely present here..." "I'm really not", I said, as the microphone was pushed in front of me.
Thank goodness I'm better with receiving compliments these days. And thanks to those two weeks, frying pans and other funnily-shaped objects, I'm now very good at wrapping. It sounds like a lesser skill, but it comes in very handy sometimes.
With this story I would like to wish everyone a very merry Christmas, with one more beautiful memory to think about afterwards!
Sunday, December 2, 2007
The Potential of Plastic
This week I had one of the most random conversations one can ever have in a textile shop. I had another very productive :) football meeting with Mira in Hakaniemi. Mira had some footballs at her office that I needed to send in the post but we didn't have a bag big enough to pick them up.
Not to worry, we'll go to the Swedish shop Hemtex and buy a big plastic bag! They sell everything from blankets and bedsheets to big pillows, so they'll have a bag that's big enough and it will cost like 15c. Perfect.
I thought my question was going to be weird - now who would purchase only a plastic bag - so I asked it kind of shyly. Turned out compared to the answer, my question made perfect sense. They couldn't sell me a plastic bag because of safety regulations.
I had to repeat myself a couple of times to make sure I'd heard right. "But if I would buy a really big pillow, then you would give me a big plastic bag?" "Yes, with the product of course, but if you're not buying anything, I can't give you one because of - " "SAFETY REGULATIONS, I get it".
The salespeople were two sweet young women who obviously just abided to company rules, so I didn't want to insist any more. We left wondering whether anyone had ever tried to kill themselves with a Hemtex plastic bag (maybe, someone with a really big head) or if it's these times we're living, the times of the war against terrorism. But if it's possible to prepare a plastic explosive using bags, surely every old lady buying Christmas curtains at Hemtex is a potential terrorist.
In Finland we always joke about how the Swedish society tries to protect its people from everything. They might want to rethink about their company strategies in Finland, where people prefer to kill themselves with firearms or by jumping under a train.
Not to worry, we'll go to the Swedish shop Hemtex and buy a big plastic bag! They sell everything from blankets and bedsheets to big pillows, so they'll have a bag that's big enough and it will cost like 15c. Perfect.
I thought my question was going to be weird - now who would purchase only a plastic bag - so I asked it kind of shyly. Turned out compared to the answer, my question made perfect sense. They couldn't sell me a plastic bag because of safety regulations.
I had to repeat myself a couple of times to make sure I'd heard right. "But if I would buy a really big pillow, then you would give me a big plastic bag?" "Yes, with the product of course, but if you're not buying anything, I can't give you one because of - " "SAFETY REGULATIONS, I get it".
The salespeople were two sweet young women who obviously just abided to company rules, so I didn't want to insist any more. We left wondering whether anyone had ever tried to kill themselves with a Hemtex plastic bag (maybe, someone with a really big head) or if it's these times we're living, the times of the war against terrorism. But if it's possible to prepare a plastic explosive using bags, surely every old lady buying Christmas curtains at Hemtex is a potential terrorist.
In Finland we always joke about how the Swedish society tries to protect its people from everything. They might want to rethink about their company strategies in Finland, where people prefer to kill themselves with firearms or by jumping under a train.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
