Best gifts of Christmas

Engaged.
And pregnant.

Unfortunate

Unfortunately I had to stop the shampoo bar test I wrote about in my previous post. After three washing my hair was so sticky I couldn't get my hair brush through. So I can't really recommend the shampoo for anyone with long hair. It might work with short hair, maybe, I don't know.

So.. you'll have to try it yourself if you're interested.

Testing testing

I bought myself new shampoo this week when I was looking for some Christmas gifts. I've tried this scrub from Flow cosmetics earlier myself and last year I bought the Vanilla & Orange scrub as a Christmas gift and it was very much liked by the receiver. But as said I bought shampoo this time. The idea was to try if it would help or at least ease the problems I have with my scalp.

I had my first wash yesterday and as the package "warns", the shampoo left a bit sticky feeling to my hair. The sticky feel should however disappear within 1-10 washes so no panic yet, I'll try it again this week. Anyway, I already found some positive things to say about this shampoo. It didn't leave my hair extra-glossy-glossy but more with a natural looking shine. I also like the fact that it is organic and made in Finland. Even though the product is said to be hemp-peat I found it's smell reminding me of tar. Since I like tar shampoos I don't mind the scent.

I'll update you about this testing. Soon. Because I was sort of thinking this might be a nice Christmas gift as well.. if it shows to be good. And since there is plenty of different kind of shampoos one can buy a soap for each and every friend. ;)

Busy bee

So... I've been unemployed for almost two months now. And as always, that's usually when I get busy. That goes this time as well. Not that I have that much scheduled appointments or anything but.. You know, Christmas is coming, filling all those papers about being unemployed, looking for a new job.. I've done a lot of planning for the future, some necessary interior designing, sewing and knitting, coloring Christmas cards, etc.. And of course,  I had that Mötley Crüe's Final tour concert in Helsinki. This Friday I've been asked to show up on a gig to take some live photos that might be used for promotional purposes.. So, no problems with spending my time.

So there you have it: the reason why the blog has been so quiet. I'll try to catch up now on December but I won't give any promises. Now I'll go back to the world of filling unemployment papers and going through photos so I can publish them.

Testailun tuloksia

Tompan #deluxeprimacat #fiksuvaihto lähestyy loppuaan. Suurin osa muonasta on kelvannut erinomaisesti, kuten alla olevassa kuvassa on nähtävissä.

Kuvassa Tomppa syö pateeta, jotka maistuivatkin hyvin, lukuunottamatta Bold Beef -makua. Kuivamuonien suhteen Tomppa ei ole koskaan nirsoillut ja ne maistuivat nytkin. Jopa siinä määrin, että hotkimisen jälkeen tuli oksennus. Liika on liikaa, mutta iltapalalla olikin sitten kamala nälkä. :)

Annospussien osalta olin hieman epäileväinen, kun luin niiden sisältävän riisiä. Riisipitoinen ruoka ei ole ennen oikein tahtunut Tompalle upota, vaan nyt maistui. Varsinkin jos oli tonnikalaa. Kana vaihtoehtona sen sijaan toi saman tuloksen kuin ennenkin: revittynä, suikalemaisena ei kelpaa, pateena kyllä sitten senkin edestä. Annospusseista löytyi myös toinen aines, jota Tomppa vierasti, eli surimi. Ruoka jäi kuppiin javatsa täytettiin kuivamuonalla.

Kaiken kaikkiaan Tompalle jäi kuitenkin hyvä maku Deluxe Prima Cat'in tuotteista ja jos tulee kauppareissulla noita vastaan, niin varmasti ostetaan Tompalle vaihtelua normaaliin ruokavalioon.

Quick, short translation: Our testing/tasting is nearing the end. Most of the foods went down very well and some new favorites were found as well.

Fake it 'til you make it

I recently bought two books written by Austin Kleon, Steal Like an Artist & Show Your Work.
I finished reading the first one last week and felt pretty inspired by it.
The book was easy to read, I read most of it in bus on my way home from work.
And I found some of my biggest sins written on the pages. I am a perfectionist. In my case this means that I don't like to show off unfinished work. I get stuck with details more than I should. I don't want to start something if I feel the time and place aren't right, if I don't feel ready.
But. After reading this book I decided to start doing something every day. Do things with passion. I want to be a photographer and artist, so I'm faking to be one 'til the day I actually become one.
(No funny hats will be harmed in the process.) I'll TAKE more pictures, share my pictures and other projects, even if they're not ready. I'll learn and copy from my idols 'til I find myself, my own voice, my own style. And maybe one day I can jump off this treadmill called (day)job and do the things I love for my living instead.

P.s. You might have noticed I've updated the right sidebar..
If you didn't, take a look.
I updated first the sites that I follow.
And there will be more updates..

Lihanrakastaja

Poikkeuksellisesti postaus suomeksi. Ilmoitin tässä taannoin Tompan #deluxeprimacat 'in #fiksuvaihto 'on ehdokkaaksi. Saatiinkin viesti, että Tomppa on valittu mukaan 300 kissan joukkoon. Eilen hain tuon paketin, jota Tomppakin kuvassa kiinnostuneena tutkii. Eli testingiä ja tastingiä tiedossa. Laitoin heti paketin avattuani Tompalle kuivamuonaa vanhojen joukkoon. Tomppa ei ole kuivamuonan suhteen niin ronkeli, käytännössä kaikki kelpaa. Ja niin kelpasi myös tuo Tasty turkey light. Valitsin sen heti alkuun, kun Tompalla on aavistuksen verran ylimääräistä painoa omalle rodulleen. Ei mitenkään mahdottoman paljoa, mutta vähän kuitenkin.

Märkäruoan suhteen Tomppa on valikoivampi. Paloja meillä ei kelpuuteta lainkaan, pitää olla moussea tai pateeta. Latzia ostetaan perusruoaksi omien ruokien ohessa ja toisinaan haetaan Mustista ja mirristä Tompan ehdotonta herkkua Brit caren Seabream'iä (merilahna). Eilen iltapalalla tarjosin Tompalle vanhan ruoan kylkiäisenä tuota Prima Catin Tasty tuna with classy chicken'iä. Ja hyvin maistui. Tonnikala tekee toki aina kauppansa muutenkin, joten sillä oli turvallista aloittaa. Katsotaan myöhemmin kelpaako myös kana tästä sarjasta, kun sitä Tomppa syö tavallisesti hiukan pitkin hampain.

Short translation.. I announced our cat to #deluxeprimacat testing/tasting group and Major Tom was selected. I picked up the package yesterday from postal office and naturally we tested some of the food right away. No problems so far.

Summertime

So, the first leg of my summer vacation is behind and I'm back at work. Waking up early in the mornings seems awfully difficult. The weather and the vacation was partly a disappointment. I guess I had a bit too high expectations.. Since me and my spouse had vacation the same time, I was expecting our relationship to be somewhat a priority to my spouse as well during the vacation. But he was more in the sleeping/going out -mode. We sorted things out though and the end part of vacation was very relaxing. I did take a day-trip to the island of Vepsä. I also went to a couple of gigs, took photos and relaxed in the chair of my hair stylist. (I'm back to being a redhead again.) I also sewed quite a lot and read two books, ate breakfast on the balcony and so on. But I still sort of hope we would've done more out of the usual things together or taken (half) a day to go someplace not-so-obvious.

Next week I'll take one day off of work again and take off to Sweden. My sister's son is being named and I'm going there with my father to celebrate the little fellow. In the end of August I'll have the second part of my vacation. In a way I sort of would've wanted to take the vacation all at once but then again I think it's a good idea to break the autumn a bit, to shorter work periods. Maybe that way the work doesn't get that overpowering. Hopefully that way I can avoid burnout.. Because that was what I noticed during my vacation: I have been (and still am a bit) tired both physically and emotionally. And it was also a part of the disappointment.. I guess I felt a bit left alone by my spouse and especially just when I needed a hug and him telling me that he'll be there for me, he'll take care of everything so that I can take a break and just breathe. Even now I feel a bit teary-eyed because of the tiredness. And why I'm so tired? Well, let's just put it this way: if I would get a significant amount of money right now, I would quit in a heartbeat, buy myself a hiding place and stay there for a long time, just taking photos, painting and drawing, sitting on the porch drinking my morning coffee, reading and writing, taking long, slow walks through the forest or by the sea.. anything but work.

Luckily, there still is plenty of vacation AND summer left, so I can do at least some of those things.

Places

"..It's not about races
Just places
Faces.." (Michael Jackson: Black or White)

I believe we all have those special places where we feel right at home, where we find our own inner peace and inspiration. I have several places like that. Market hall in Turku has one of those places. Sininen Juna (=blue train) is a cafe inside the market hall. It has seats and plenty of the other furniture and decoration taken from old trains. It is a perfect place to sit and write or just observe people walking by while having a piece of cake and a cup of coffee. 

A couple of parks in the city are that kind of places to me as well. The park around Turku Castle is that kind of place. The trees are old and remind me of the Ents in The Lord of the Rings. Those big trees always wake the inner child in me, I can picture myself climbing those branches and maybe stay up there taking a nap.. 

I also found one place in London that felt immediately like home. Close to the Old Truman Brewery, on Brick Lane. I could have sat there with a coffee in my hand and just watch people passing by. Or maybe with a sketch book. From close by I found also Absolute Vintage, a dream place to find vintage clothes and shoes. There's shelves and shelves and still some more shelves of shoes. I'm not that much of a shoe fanatic myself but I do know a few. ;)

I have to mention also that even though my co-worker said that Hyde Park is nothing special, that it's just a huge plain green area in the city, I kinda liked it. I can easily see myself there wandering around with my camera, sketch book or just sitting on the grass having a picnic. (Unfortunately my visit to London was way too short to enjoy of just spending my time like that.)

I have also a few dream places, places I dream about that I hope I someday can visit or have as my own. Places that feel like home even before you've been there. I dream about a summer cottage. I hope to visit London again, so much was left unseen. Anywhere with beach, sand and sea also seem very inspiring to me. Especially sea breeze has sort of cleansing effect on me. Near the sea I find it easier to breathe and calm down. And even though I love nature in its every form forest for example won't have that exactly same effect on me as sea has.

But that about me. What or where is your inspirational place, where do you feel at peace, at home?

VIP

I got myself a VIP -ticket to Mötley Crüe concert in November 18th in Helsinki.
I'm excited. I can barely breathe.
And I can't stop smiling.

Tori

Went to a concert yesterday with my better half.
That black metal maniac is surprisingly a huge fan of Tori Amos.
So I got him tickets as a birthday present.
The concert was yesterday at Finlandia Hall in Helsinki.
The warm-up act was pretty interesting, Petteri Sariola.
Even I stayed awake during his show.
It reminded me of the street guitarist I saw in London, Warren Cahill.
Then Tori came on stage.
I stopped existing and my spouse started drooling. :D
He was really digging it, he didn't see, hear or feel anything but the artist on stage.
I was more like looking my watch every other minute hoping it would end soon.
The two hour concert felt endless.
But what wouldn't you do for the one you love..
He was happy, so I'm happy.

My inspiration

These days sharing inspirational pictures and quotes in Facebook is almost a must, you can't really hide from it. And since all of us need some inspiration I thought I'll share some of my favorites.

My absolute favorite quote is also tattooed on my arm and it is a line from Alter Bridge song Ties That Bind. It is simply: " The risk is worth the gain." I believe I have shared this one before but to open this shortly it means to me over-coming a fear whether it has something to do with people, things or with doing something. It means to me also that risk of getting to know me is worth the gain, I am worth the gain.

One quote I also like very much and find true in my life is quite famous sentence by equally famous photographer Henri Cartier-Bresson. "Camera is my memory" -quote pretty much says it all about my love for photography. I can go back to a certain memory or a feeling just by looking the photos I've taken. And it's not a memory to just me, they are memories to my friends as well.

Inspirational pictures are harder to define. I'm a very visual person and I love pictures, I love observing my surroundings, people around me, I love colors, I love black, I love white. One of my favorite pieces is street art by Eddie Colla (not Banksy as often thought) which combines text with picture.

I also admire pretty much all b&w photos taken by Ross Halfin. Chase Jarvis has absolutely awesome photos as well. And Matthias Hombauer. But if I absolutely MUST pick one picture, at this moment I'd take one of my own photos, it's one I took in London. You can check it here.

Music is of course always inspirational. I have some songs that inspire me every time I hear them. Since there are more than one I'll give you my top 5 list:

Tommy Lee - Good Times
Danko Jones - Code of the Road
Alter Bridge - All Ends Well
Preacher Stone -  Come On In (Absolutely love the bass line in this one!!)
Sandi Thom - I Wish I Was A Punk Rocker

Pictures - new address

I changed the address to my pictures site: lindahellbom.pictures.fi

(Previously lindiz.pictures.fi)

Less is more.. or is it? (London, Part 2)

On Sunday I visited the Buckingham Palace, Millennium Bridge and St Paul' Cathedral. Buckingham Palace seemed nice since it is located next to a couple of parks but oh-the-amount-of-tourists around the palace.. I moved on quite quickly. A quick look on the Houses of Parliament and THE clock. From there I headed to St Paul's Cathedral. It would have been nice to attend to a mass but it was over an hour to the next one so I just drank some coffee in Cafe in the Crypt below the cathedral. There I met an older lady who was talking to her lady friend that she's going to celebrate her daughter's birthday on the following day. I mentioned I have also birthday the same day and ended up hearing a whole history about her children. Since Millennium Bridge was close to the cathedral I took a look at it and few photos as well.

My main goal on Sunday was to see the lego exhibition The Art of the Brick at Old Truman Brewery. So I took a bus to Liverpool Street and walked from there. Luckily so because I found the most interesting area around Old Spitalfield Market and Brick Lane. The area seemed to be filled with my kind of people and things to my liking. Hand-made, unique and vintage clothes and shoes everywhere. And live music to my liking. I stumbled along the Brick Lane and saw this musician named Warren Cahill play his guitar on the street. Go check his Youtube videos and Facebook page.
I also saw the exhibition and I'd like to send  thank yous to the young man at the entry checking those tickets. After the exhibition I walked on and ended up to Absolute Vintage and bought myself a pair of shoes.

Monday was my birthday and my feet were killing me. If I had walked in three days over 30 kilometers Monday was the day when I didn't move far from the hotel. I visited The Brunswick and bought some clothes and accessories to myself. I sat in the park and headed back to hotel to read the book I bought from Skoob Books, Ten stories about smoking. Packed my bags and sorted out how and when I need to get to the airport next morning. In the early evening I went around the corner, ate some Spanish meat board at The Queens Head and then back to hotel.

If you wish to see all of the pictures from my trip you will find them from my site here.

Less is more.. or is it? (London, Part 1)

Sooo... My visit to London is already behind. And I think I'm definitely going to visit there again. Vacation away from home was relaxing in every possible way since I didn't have any other schedules during the trip than my tattoo appointment and getting in time to the airport when heading home.
I wandered around in the city basically just looking what's behind the next corner and where to can I point my camera lens next. The weather was perfect. On Friday and Saturday it looked a bit gloomy and there was a hint of rain but rest of the time it was sunny.

The hotel was great. Not sure it was worth the three stars but it was clean and practical. The Tune Hotel in King's Cross was just what I needed, a place to sleep and store my stuff while hanging around the city. There is no real hotel breakfast or anything like that but it didn't matter since there's a Costa coffee across the road and plenty of stores nearby. The location was great, almost all buses (and underground) went by King's Cross and St Pancras station. The price was a bit more than I hoped but then again I had a twin bed in the room and the hotel was quiet and peaceful. I arrived on Thursday evening and just bought some snacks and spent the rest of the evening in the room, planning the next day.

On Friday it was tattoo time. The Family Business Tattoo was just around the corner, 15 minute walk from the hotel. I was early since the tattoo shop opened at 12 o'clock so I walked around the neighborhood and had a coffee or two. The shop was very busy from the moment I arrived but they were polite and the atmosphere was relaxed. My artist Francisco took his time but did the tattoo faster than expected. And I absolutely love it! The price again was a bit more than I hoped but being such a famous and popular place I suppose they've earned every penny. At least Francisco did.

Rest of the day after tattooing I spent walking around and visiting British Museum. Unfortunately I had really bad shoes on me, so the rest of the trip was a bit unpleasant with my feet hurting so bad. British Museum was enormous. I think I spent 1,5 hours there and could've easily spent more.

On Saturday I headed to Hyde Park, Portobello Road market and London Zoo. Of these I enjoyed the most of Hyde Park and London Zoo. Portobello Road market wasn't really my cup of tea. All I bought from there was an umbrella which I then didn't even need and something to bring to a friend of mine. From London Zoo I bought postcards which haven't arrived yet although I sent them about week and a half ago.. :( In London Zoo I took quite a lot pictures. Especially penguins were adorable. Lions were unfortunately on holiday since their area was under construction. London Zoo looked otherwise very nice and well kept but I did feel a bit compassion to the gorillas. I just don't get it that if there are signs all over the place and a zoo keeper there to tell to people to be quiet why on earth can't people keep their mouths shut. The female gorilla was third month pregnant and the male gorilla seemed to be protecting her (or just simply annoyed by the noise of those stupid people) and ran several times to the glass wall. Later on the male went out and seemed a bit calmer but then again there wasn't such noise as inside.
 
Since this text is getting extremely long I'll finish here and tell you about the rest of the trip on part 2.

A funny story

My writing about my trip to London is late.

But in the meanwhile I'll tell you about a flashback I got today on my way to work.

It seems the captain had a great sense of humor.

We travelers we're sitting in the plane.

The stewardess was just about to start giving the safety instructions.

And then.. everything goes dark.

The lights came back right away and the captain asks via the speakers:

"Does anyone have 50 p's for the electricity?"

The hand I have to hold as I grow old

Three years ago today I met a special person and I've been together with that person ever since. And we've lived under the same roof almost two years now.

"Love you today. More than yesterday. Less than tomorrow."

Collage inspiration

Travel fever is rising it's head as the London trip is closing in. I've been reading travel blogs and searched pictures and hints and tips. My goal is to avoid most of the tourist spots and here is a little collage of the places and things I've found. Since the collage quite small in size I'm opening some of the pictures to you in a form of text.

On the right hand side in the middle is The Family Business Tattoo. I've booked a tattooing time in London. Can't wait for it.

Next to it is Crobar. A bar I think I should and might visit at some point. Seems to be my kind of place.

Hyde Park and British Museum. Of course. British Museum is just about 20 minute walk from my hotel so I guess I'll pass by it even if I don't try to.

Up on the right hand side are pictures of Southbank skatepark and menu of Mad Hatters afternoon tea at Sanderson hotel. Photos and food, what's not to like about those.

Baker Street. Sherlock Holmes and The Beatles shop. Add Abbey Road and you've  reached Beatlemania?

Portobello Road. Hoping to visit the street market.

Cafe In The Crypt. The name says it all.

London Zoo.

Perhaps I'll also go to see Wellcome Collection (the mummy down in the center).

I haven't decided any destination for sure (except the tattoo shop), planning to go with the flow most of the time. But it's always good to know what the city has to offer. Some gig at a bar/pub would also be nice. I know Lordi is having a show in London during my visit but... If I'd really want to see them I could go to their show in Finland as well.

Tattoo time

Planning my trip to London.
Got myself a tattoo time in London as well, at The Family Business Tattoo.
My tattoo artist will be Francisco Rocha and the picture I'm taking is 'Suicide Note by Derek Hess. I'm getting excited already!
Four weeks and.. "..I'm leaving on a jet plane.."

Music memories

Since I am a music maniac who's listening music all the time and all the places you can imagine that I also link many memories to many songs and vice versa. Sometimes the memory is just a feeling, sometimes an entire event. And sometimes it is the music that matters, other times it's the lyrics. I thought I'd write a little (part of the) list of songs that matter to me and why.

Sir Elwood - Älä mee
This is the song my spouse sang to me after the first night together. We had met the evening before at a bar and we had talked about everything possible: photographs, music, having kids, relationships... you name it. I had promised to meet my nephew and his family at movie theater the following day, we went to see the animated movie 'The Lorax'. As I was leaving the place that now is my home he sang to me "älä mee.." (don't go). I went anyway. But if I remember correct I was back the same evening and we've been together ever since. I consider this being our song.

Staind - Tangled up in you
The lyrics, the lyrics, the lyrics. There is no other song that can say better what love is all about. This song tells how I want to be loved and how I love those dearest and nearest. (Plus, I can't prevent the smile that comes with Wilson on the lyrics video.)

Alter Bridge - Watch over you
This song has many memories linked to it. It manages to be happy and sad at the same time. It reminds me of many great gigs where my friend was singing and playing guitar. He is the person who introduced me with Alter Bridge's music. This also reminds me of one fun night after a gig in Naantali. I continued partying with a friend of mine with people we met that night. This girl invited us to their apartment and we went and waked up her spouse. My friend was divorced recently and as we we're choosing songs from Youtube to listen I played this song to him. He was touched and sent the song to his ex-wife immediately. He's almost as big of a fan of Alter Bridge and Myles Kennedy as am I. This is one of those songs that always gives me chills.. and inspiration.

Alter Bridge - Ties that bind
This song I connect with a dear friend of mine. In some other life we might have been a perfect match but situations in this life were never on our side. At the same time I link this song to myself this being one of "my" songs. The most important line in the chorus I have tattooed on my arm: "The risk is worth the gain". By that I want to remind me that over-coming fear often ends up to good results. Life is about having fun and about doing things that might sound silly or stupid to others but if it matters to me, then I should have the guts to reach for it. And at the same time it reminds me that I'm worth taking the risk; you can take the risk of getting to know me and it will be worth the gain even though it might be a bit challenging at times.

Buckcherry - Crazy Bitch
My ultimate kicking-ass theme song. Always gets me on a good mood and pumped with adrenaline. Also reminds me of a dear friend whose nickname is Chaosmaster; he is truly, deeply, the only original crazy bitch.

Mötley Crüe - Home Sweet Home
My list would not be a proper one without Mötley. This must have been the first song I ever heard from them. Connected to so many memories.

Tommy Lee - Good Times
Tommy Lee, good times, always. Can't stop banging my head to the music and singing along.

Methods of Mayhem - Time Bomb
Check the previous description. :)

The Bangles - Eternal flame
This has been a theme song in several of my previous relationships. Thank goodness it is not in my current one, can't stand the song anymore. Therefor I won't link it.

Not your every day Nokia

In Finland we believe that the best rubber boots are made by Nokian Jalkine.

They are in fact great quality boots.

But a bit boring.

Found these lovelies on Sunday from SpiritStore.

They are not from Nokian Jalkine.

But my street credibility just rose to a new height. ;)

London bridge is falling down?

Finally, after many, many years one of my dreams is coming true.
I'm going to visit London in April.
One thing off of my bucketlist. :)

Dream date

I realized a while ago that I've been only twice on a date.
They were both blind dates, one arranged by my sister and the other by my friend.
Those weren't bad experiences, I'm still friends with one of the dates.
But that led me to think what would my dream date be like.
But I found out that it´s pretty hard to decide what I would like to do on a dream date.
If I would be single a movie would be nice. Or a dinner date.
Or simply having a coffee some place nice.
Maybe even some public event, maybe a small gig in some pub.
Or at some interesting exhibition, photography for example. Or at an art museum.

But since I am no more single (and since I know my spouse pretty well) my dream dates are becoming way more simple (read: boring).
A home made meal waiting me when I come home from work (not likely since he haven't been cooking since I moved in.. :-6 ).
Going for a walk hand in hand (that way he would have to slow down his pace to match mine).
Him taking me out somewhere else than a gig (of his own) and/or a bar/club.

Those might be simple enough hopes if he can take a hint.
Those would be a good start..

Hero

Had an accident during the weekend. I was watching a gig on Saturday evening minding my own business. There was also a mosh pit circling in front of the stage. A couple of idiots were starting a fight in the mosh pit and those idiots fell down on the floor. My knee happened to end up on their way before they hit the floor. The knee felt fine most of the evening but the walk home was pretty painful. Thanks for the concerned fellow citizen who stopped by and asked if I was alright. Luckily I had only one block left to walk and my spouse was coming right after me. But now I walk like elderly people, I can't even cross a four-lane driveway during one light change.

My original idea was to write about which superpower I would like to have.. I thought that would be quite a challenging question to ask.. but at the moment, because of my knee, there's really just two options. I would either like to have healing abilities or I would like to fly. The first thing I would fix with the healing power would be of course my own knee. And if I could fly I would fly from place to place.

Would you like to have some superpower? What would it be?

Like a child

I was surfing through internet trying to come up with topics to write about. And I found several potential topics which I added as drafts to my list of posts. I've only recently started to use the draft option. And scheduling my texts. The drafts help me when having a writers block. I can then just pick one of the drafts and start with a ready idea. And scheduling helps me of course publishing texts even when I'm living the REAL life. ;) So, there you have a few of my blogging secrets. But now I'd like to get back to the topic the title hints you of..

What brought me immense joy when I was a child? What brings me such joy today? Those are good questions. I've been thinking those questions every now and then ever since I read Erlend Loe's novel "Naïve. Super." In that book the main character gets a list from a friend of things that made her happy as a child and of things that make her happy now. The main character is a bit afraid to do the latter list since he is afraid it ends up short. I guess I've had a bit of the same fear with my own list. Or that it might be superficial. But since I seem to "bump" to this subject on a regular basis I thought I might as well give it a try. New year and everything.. Thins on my list aren't in any specific order and at this point I'm not thinking to give any explanations to the things, why they are on my list (maybe later if there is any interest towards that kind of post). So, here we go.

Things that made me happy when I was a child:
Legos. Drawing. Running. Riding my bicycle. Music. Summer. Sun. Letters. Writing. Ice-skating. Reading. Forest. Family holidays. Candy. Beach. Sea. Snow. Postcards. Strawberries. Ice-cream. Ball games, especially volleyball, tennis and basketball. Friends. Stickers. Dreaming. Presents.

Things that make me happy today:
Taking a great photo. Hearing the words "I love you". My nephew. My niece. Messages from my sister and from my brothers. Music. Summer. Sun. Postcards. Letters. Legos. Reading. Writing. Drawing. Friends. Family. Strawberries. Knitting. Sewing. Giving/charity. Good food. Flowers. Sauna. Rain. Lightning. Hot chocolate. Making dreams and ideas come true. Hugs. Kisses.

Here's for starters. How about you, what made you happy as a  child? And what makes you happy now?

Life won't wait

New year. 2015. It's here.

Just a quick look for the passed year, 2014. Plenty has happened, some good, some not so good.
Here some highlights:

45 music events;

• 1 summer festival (Sweden Rock, Sölvesborg)
• 4 concerts by Turku Philharmonic Orchestra
• 2 concert in Helsinki (Slash & Aerosmith w/ Rival Sons)
• 38 club/pub gigs.

1 cat moving in with us.

1 flower bouquet, tulips (which the cat then ate).

2 theater visits (Jekyll & Hyde, Vadelmavenepakolainen).

Several postcards via Postcrossing, sent and received.

1 bucketlist.

1 visit to Moomin world.

Started yoga.

2 free courses online (Open2Study: The Art of Photography & Online Advertising).

1 activity tracker.

1 old pen pal contacting me in Facebook.

1 house warming party.

Lots of knitting and sewing.

2 anniversaries (1 year of moving in with THE Mr. and 2 years of being together with him).

2 movies in movie theater (Hobbit 2 & 3).

Many lovely visits from our friends, some staying over night and some just quickly stopping by.

1 visit from my nephew.

Huge amount of photographs.

I suppose these sums the year pretty well. Of course there's been laughter (many of them because of the cat), tears (happy and sad), hugs and kisses, family meetings, road trips, beer, sex and candy and all sort of other things. All in all, though, a good year.