3BT: July 31, 2007

1. Feeling invincible going out in the rain since I wore my waterproof shoes and pants and a hooded waterproof jacket. YYYEEEEEEEESSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS!!!!!!!!

2. Having both arms and hands intact, no wounds or whatsoever so they can do anything without any hindrance.

3. Having someone shared special moments in her life with ME. MMMMMMMM...

4. Watching my hubby while he's napping. YUMMY!!!

An Inspirational Video Clip

I'm feeling uninspired, so let me just share this video clip. Maybe some of you have read or seen it, but I think it's good to be reminded of good things every now and then 'coz humans tend to forget easily. :-D ENJOY it!!!

3BT: Weekend Wrap

1. Receiving unexpected compliments. Boy, they just made my day!!! ;-D

2. Being able to fart when you've got lots of gas inside your tummy. Don't you just HATE it when you can't fart?

3. Watching dragonflies and CUTE CUTE bees having fun in the sun and the breeze. YIIIIIIPPPPPPPPPIIIIIIIIIEEEEEEEEE!!!

4. Having pancakes as my dinner (hubby made them again for us HO HO HO). What a treat!!! ;-D

5. Having my hubby home MUCH early from work due to some computer system failure or something.

6. Dreaming about wedding gowns. I had to put on a wedding gown and there were lots of other girls around me wearing different kinds of wedding gowns. (I'm SO glad my mother talked me into wearing a formal wedding gown)

Dragonfly and Flowers

Just want to share some more pics I took last weekend. It was SO hard to take some of these pics as the wind was blowing HARD every now and then. I spotted two dragonflies near the lake. It was also SO DIFFICULT to take a pic of them as they were in constant motion so I was just clicking away, hoping I could catch them. I'd love to have a handycam someday so I can take better video clips, but never mind that...I'm just HAPPY to be able to see dragonflies here. ;-D









This one above is by far my MOST fave of all the pics I took last weekend. The wind was blowing SO hard when I took the pic, so I couldn't take the WHOLE flower. However, turned out it looked SO NICE anyway. ;-D

Amazing Grace (The Movie)

I've just finished watching Amazing Grace (the movie). I can sum it up in one word:

P A S S I O N

That word kept on crossing my mind as I continued the journey with William Wilberforce who persevered for 11 long years before he could abolish the slave trade in Britain. I recommend this movie to anyone. ;-D

Here's the official movie trailer in case you're interested.



Here are more links about William Wilberforce:

"You Have Not Labored in Vain"

William Wilberforce

Passion is universal humanity. Without it religion, history, romance and art would be useless.
- Honoré de Balzac

Our passions are the winds that propel our vessel. Our reason is the pilot that steers her. Without winds the vessel would not move and without a pilot she would be lost.
- Proverb

3BT: July 28, 2007

1. The most amazing hues of colours in the sky. I never thought that Finland sky could be such an amazing portrait of God's work of art. It's just breathtaking to see. Unfortunately you have to see it yourself to truly enjoy it. I keep on sighing and sighing here in wonder...ahhhhhh...

2. The patch of sunbeam on my balcony's wall, penetrating the kitchen window, making my living room aglow gorgeously.

3. Thoughtful friends out there who really make my day just by showing they care.

4. Passion. (I'll explain later in a different post)

5. The interchanging of sunshine and rain, reminding me that the world keeps on turning and that if you're feeling down, it won't last forever. There WILL be sunnier days. ;-D

Catch Yourself Before...

Today

Catch Yourself

Before You Start Complaining about Something

And

Focus on Finding All Good Things
Around and Within You

And

Remember This:

Tell Me Something

Is love enough even though you don't understand completely what the other person's going through? Is "just being there" for the other person enough even though you don't actually know what to say?

Even good intentions are sometimes not good enough, don't you think? Good intentions not carried out properly (at the right time, at the right place, with the right words or tone of voice) can be disastrous.

Sometimes when I see other people suffering, I want to reach out to them and say something positive, but it's SO hard to know what to say when you just don't get it. You're afraid you'd offend the other person and you're afraid you'd say the wrong thing. There are times I stay silent simply to avoid saying something "wrong", but there are times I speak out with the hope that the other person won't misunderstand my "intention".

In this "preferred isolation" state, it's easy to understand why I face this kind of frustration. Besides, I don't think everybody can understand completely the situations faced by everybody else, right? There are too many unknown factors in life that one can't possibly experience in one's lifetime.

However, I just wish that I know that what I have for now is enough. I don't want to be ignorant, yet at the same time it's not easy to delve into the unknown realms of other people's lives.

Bandung, My Hometown

Hey, I found this video clip at youtube about Bandung, my hometown.



This other video clip is taken from the parking lot above the most famous traditional market in Bandung. See how crowded the city is? And now I live in such a little village he he he...Anyway, the traditional market is where my Mom works to sell food. ;-D



This third one is view of Bandung taken from the tower of the most famous mosque there.

Party Time!!!

Feeling swamped by life? Or perhaps you're a little down? Let's join my parteeeeyyyyy and shake your bootylicious for approx. 4 minutes while listening to this song, one of my fave songs by Sugababes, "Round round." What RU waiting for??? C'mon and have some fuuunnnnn!!! ;-D

WHOOOOPPPPPPPPPPPPPEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!!

^_______________________________________________^



Not enough? OK, one more then. Mutya Buena with "Real Girl". Recognize her? Yep, she is one of the sexy girls in the first clip he he he...

Real Girl Lyrics

3BT: July 26, 2007

1. When my hubby came home bringing a package of toffee ice cream cones. Last night I casually mentioned that I would love to eat ice cream and today he brought me some (a new flavor that I hadn't tried yet). YEEEEEEEEESSSSSSSSSSSSSSS!!!!!!! Btw, it tasted as GOOD as SIN!!!!! LOL!!!

2. Hearing English spoken by a Polish couple I met at the post office. I can't tell you how GREAT it felt to hear ENGLISH in this Finnish world.

3. Smelling the new Axe effect "Bom Chicka Wah Wah" on my hubby's armpits. MMMMMHHH!!! ;-D

4. Ready-made food to eat when starving. YUM YUM...One of the BEST things in the world!!!

5. Listening to cool songs when I have a hard time to fall asleep (due to coffee) and letting the music fly me up to the sky...

Goya's Ghosts

Has anyone seen this movie, Goya's Ghosts? It's about the Spanish Inquisition and their method of "putting someone to the question".

The movie boiled my blood. I felt ANGER. I kept on shaking my head over and over again. I dislike the ending. It was too pitiful. However, I'd still recommend this movie. I don't know much about history (history's never been my fave lesson at school), but I wonder how much truth they portrayed in the movie.

Any other opinions?

Quotes for The Day

If you lose hope, somehow you lose the vitality that keeps life moving, you lose that courage to be, that quality that helps you go on in spite of it all. And so today I still have a dream.
--Martin Luther King Jr.

When you do things from your soul you feel a river moving in you, a joy. When action comes from another section, the feeling disappears.
--Jalaluddin Rumi

Joy is not in things; it is in us.
--Richard Wagner

Give to us clear vision that we may know where to stand and what to stand for -- because unless we stand for something, we shall fall for anything. --Peter Marshall

Peace is not the absence of conflict but the presence of creative alternatives for responding to conflict.
--Dorothy Thompson

Taken from Daily Good.

Blogging Tips Meme

This Meme comes from a really great Blogger, Tish over at The Cat House. Shinade tagged me to do this meme.

-Start Copy-

It’s very simple. When this is passed on to you, copy the whole thing, skim the list and put a * star beside those that you like. (Check out especially the * starred ones.)

Add the next number (1. 2. 3. 4. 5., etc.) and write your own blogging tip for other bloggers.

Try to make your tip general. After that, tag 10 other people. Link love some friends!

Just think– if 10 people start this, the 10 people pass it onto another 10 people, you have 100 links already!

1. Look, read, and learn.
http://www.neonscent.com***

2. Be, EXCELLENT to each other.
http://www.bushmackel.com****

3. Don’t let money change ya!
http://www.therandomforest.info****

4. Always reply to your comments
http://chattiekat.com**

5. Blog about what you know & love.
http://sugar-queens-dream.blogspot.com**

6. Don't use filthy language-buy a dictionary.
http://shinade.blogspot.com

7. Whenever possible, spread some positive thoughts and love. The world needs more of them.
http://ailema4ever.blogspot.com

--End Copy-

I'd love to tag Michelle, Max, Choc Mint Girl, Victorya, Katelyn, Shan, Karen, Epi, Shrink Wrapped Scream, and Fish Without Bicycle.

Sunrise at 3 AM

Saw a glorious image of sunrise at the wee hour of 3 AM when I went out of the bedroom to pee. The below pictures and video clip don't do justice to the wondrous of nature. I just wish you could see it for yourself. The whole ambiance was stunning!!! The sky was a glorious reddish-orangeyish colour and our living room had a kind of slight reddish glow.









And here's the pic of the "bluebells" that I mentioned in my last 3BT post.



Here are also some pics I took yesterday. Flowers around this small village. ;-D

A Loner's Notes

When my hubby went to the bars with me and his brothers last Friday, we met my hubby's boss' wife in one of them. She tried talking to me in broken English, which again I appreciated. ;-D

There was just one thing that bothered me a bit. She asked me if I had found friends here. I told her that I had found a British family nearby. I asked my hubby to explain to her where the British family lived (30 minutes away on foot). She then said, "Oh, but that's so far away. Do you have friends here in Sodankylä?" I said no. She said again, "You've been here months but you haven't had any friends yet?" I nodded.

I began to feel confused why she made it seem like it was such a big deal. Finally after a short break in the conversation, she said, "So you love being home, right?" I said yes again. She said again, "Because you just have to love being home." I nodded again.

Even back in Indo, when I was working from home as a translator (read: meaning I didn't get to see many people, not even my boss, who lives in Jakarta!), some relatives and neighbours would show their concern over my "preferred isolation."

Hey, I'm HAPPY with my life!!! What's a loner got to do with all those people out there? I don't need to crowd out my life with so many people that would obviously overwhelm me in the end.

I know that knowing LOTS of people has its own advantages. Just look at my Mom who knows SO many people and she can strike up a conversation ANYWHERE, ANYTIME of day. I'm not her. I'm not an outgoing person and I don't prefer to be one. I know all those people mean well. However, I just hope they know that there ARE people like me in this world. There are people like me who are content being alone every now and then (or most of the time) who prefer an indirect communication with the world. It's a bit frustrating sometimes, trying to make people understand that the mainstream is NOT the only "satisfactory option" in life.

And I don't know why I'm writing this down. I guess I just want to let out some steam he he he...

Here's something I wrote the other night (a sudden inspiration):

The lessons that you have to learn will come to you. They will knock at your door over and over again until you invite them in. If you are too stubborn to hear, though, they might just barrage in, stampede you, and knock you off senseless. Sometimes only then will you regain consciousness and understand what life is trying to teach you. Sometimes they may come again in various forms so you can obtain a deeper kind of understanding and a bigger perspective of things.

3BT: July 23, 2007

1. A small shower spray for "private parts" in the toilet. Gladly even in public places there are mostly those shower sprays. I just LOVE THEM!!!

2. Tears. I'm GLAD God gives us tears to express our emotions.

3. Bluebells. I don't know the name of the flower, but they're blue and they're like cute little bells. I should take my digicam out someday to take a pic of them. They're SO LOVELY!!!

4. Oven. I just realized that not everybody has an oven, so that's also a privilege as I can experiment on baking stuff.

Family Pics

Just want to share some pics with the family last weekend. Good thing I made the pudding since it turned out that my mother-in-law's elder sister came by with her brother-in-law and wife to celebrate my father-in-law's and brother-in-law's birthdays. There was a period of sunshine too, so I took some pics of the beautiful flowers around my in-laws' garden.

The picture entitled Tractor's Eggs...they DO call it that or even Elephant's Tampons. When I first saw them, I was confused he he he...Apparently the tractor cut off the grass that grew too high and then compiled the grass in those "eggs" he he he...CUTE!!! ;-D I've NEVER seen such a thing in my entire life (having been a city girl).

Interested? Click here: Family Pics.

Enjoy them!!! I personally like the one where I'm among 4 guys in my family (there I look SOOOOOO tiny) hi hi hi...My hubby, his two elder brothers, and my nephew who has the same first name as the famous F1 driver ha ha ha ha ha...Yeah, Finnish people always give Finnish names to their kids, so no "Hollywood" names. That creates confusion sometimes when your hubby knows so many same people with same first names. You have to ask him, "Which one is he/she? Is he/she the one who....?"

Now I have to rush to the supermarket and COOK!!! Ciao and have a NICE Monday!!!

3BT: July 21, 2007

Note: Once in a while when I feel SO inspired, I may write more than three beautiful things as I want to TRULY soak up all the good things in life. ;-D

1. Birthdays. Birthdays remind me of being given the breath of life one more year, being given the choice to be a better person.

2. Wide open space. After living here for years later on, I think I'm gonna feel overwhelmed when I visit my hometown again. LOL!!! I can't believe I love this place SO MUCH now.

3. Silence. This place is also filled with the most beautiful silence of all. The silence of contentment, of being connected with something bigger than me. (Btw, nobody here has to use their car horns as there's no traffic everywhere - such beautiful silence!!!!!!!!!!)

4. Choices. Wherever we are, whatever we face, we always have choices.

5. Written words. I'm grateful for being able to connect with others through written words.

6. Laughter. Thank GOD for people's sense of humour!!! ;-D

7. Thoughtfulness shown by my hubby's family.

Atzmi Personality Test Results

Ooohhhh...this is a new personality test result that I did at Atzmi. There are no multiple choice questions. I just had to pick the icons that I liked best, the ones I felt neutral about, and the ones I disliked most. If you're curious about it, go check it out then. The only "catch" is that you need to register at the end of the test he he he...

Here are my "interesting" results (I have mixed feelings about my results):

Emotions and Behaviour

By nature, you usually possess a good level of functional-behavioral self-confidence that enables you to face people or issues connected to your surroundings and adapt yourself to changing circumstances. You generally react relevantly and without hesitation to challenges and missions. You rarely experience uncertainty or hesitation in confronting or coping with the outside world.

For the most part, your natural pattern is to behave purposefully and decisively out of confidence in your abilities to endure or succeed in the mission, struggle, or confrontation. This confidence to go out and face the world is a natural trait rooted in the soul and is usually displayed by you to quite a strong degree, though occasionally there are times when it is somewhat lacking.

Abstract Meditation and Contemplation

You are average when it comes to the ability to contemplate and ponder deeply in the abstract/theoretical sphere. In other words, for the most part you are able to do so to a middling/intermediate degree, but there are times when you tend to be more patient and thorough, and other times when you are more impatient and hurried.

However, you are good at pondering deeply in the practical/applied sphere. You are usually able to do so with patience and thoroughness, but there are times when this is more difficult for you.

Inner Happiness

Your intrinstic, essential "happiness quotient" is almost always very high, whether or not there are specific external reasons for being happy. By nature, you live your life with an overall sensation of great cheerfulness and joie de vivre. You easily derive enjoyment, zest, and inspiration from your surroundings. It is very rare for you to feel sad, dejected, or depressed.

They said there'd be more results in the coming weeks, so I may add more later on about this post.

A KEWL VIDEO!!!

Found this accidentally. WOWIE!!! AWESOME!!!! ;-D

Milk

Creative Blogger Award

I'm VERY honoured to accept this award from Michelle from Crow's Feet. *bowing*


Since she chose me because of my 3BT posts, I want to give this award to the rightful owner of the original 3BT concept, Clare at Three Beautiful Things. Her original 3BT concept has made such a HUGE difference in my life. I find that it's easier to be thankful each day by spending a bit time to think of all the beautiful things in my life that day. I SALUTE Clare especially since she writes 3BT every single day and also since her 3BT concept has inspired SO MANY other bloggers out there.

The second person I want to give this award to is Dave Ettridge at Portraits and Landscapes. I've never been much of a painter, but I like his blog. I like the way he describes his paintings. He opens up the world of art in a fresh way for me.

The third person of my choice is Mauro C. at 1 Million Love Messages. I TRULY love his idea of gathering 1 million love messages at his website. SALUTE to you, Mauro!!!

The fourth person is Shinade at The Painted Veil. I ABSOLUTELY LOVE her AWESOME images plus poetry/quotes. Her quotes are thoughtful, refreshing, and reminding me to live simply.

The fifth person is The Crafty Girl for her beautiful photography, art, quotations.

***************************

Oh, I'm gonna cheat now and give one more award. LOL!!! I'm sure Christy'll want to give this award to her anyway.

This following award



goes to Victorya at Victorya Chase Goes to Therapy. I admire her courage. *bowing*

You can find the meaning of the awards here: Blogger Awards.

***************************

These are the rules:

1) If you have received an award simply choose either the dark or light background image and save it to your files, then post it proudly on your blog!

2) Pass the award on to five other people, you can choose any of the awards from the series, you do not have to pass out the exact award you received. Choose whichever of the awards that you'd like to give out. You can give out one of each or five of the same one, whatever you prefer.

3) You can change the size and color of awards to suit your blog, that's up to you, it's your blog, just leave the titles the same.

4) Please link back to this post so that people can read these rules and so that the meanings of the awards will not be lost.

5) If you feel that you or a friend are deserving of an award and no one has given one to you yet then email me at sayhitochristy(at)hotmail.com and tell me about your website.

To Ponder or Not to Ponder

1. Is it better not to know and keep your peace of mind or is it better to know yet be challenged with choices that might ransack your peace of mind?

Perhaps it's better to follow the steps in life without trying to jump over a lesson or two to make sure you're equipped enough to deal with the "tougher" lessons.

2. On The Future.

I used to be a hell of a planner. I planned every little thing. I LOVED it SO MUCH so that I became so inflexible (I think I'm still somewhat inflexible anyway). I HATE changes. Nevertheless, life's forced me to learn to enjoy the present and let go of my tight clutch on my future plans. I still have some plans for my future, but I learn that it's OK to enjoy the present without worrying about and focusing on my future too much. After all, I can die the next minute or the next hour.

Balancing everything in life is one of the hardest lessons on earth, but one can only try one's best.

So let me end this post with more quotes on the future, taken from Future Quotes:

"Finish each day and be done with it.
You have done what you could;
some blunders and absurdities have crept in;
forget them as soon as you can.
Tomorrow is a new day;
you shall begin it serenely and with too high a spirit
to be encumbered with your old nonsense.”
- Ralph Waldo Emerson

“One of the most tragic things I know about human nature is that all of us tend to put off living. We are all dreaming of some magical rose garden over the horizon - instead of enjoying the roses that are blooming outside our windows today.”
- Dale Carnegie

“Whatever your past has been, you have a spotless future.”
- Melanie Gustafson

“A cynic is not merely one who reads bitter lessons from the past; he is one who is prematurely disappointed in the future.”
- Sydney J. Harri

"I try to learn from the past, but I plan for the future by focusing exclusively on the present. That's where the fun is."
- Donald Trump

3BT: July 19, 2007

1. A MIRACLE! My brother told me that Dad cried this morning and said sorry and asked for his help to pray for him so that he could control his anger. What matters most is that he understands that he has anger management problem so now he can begin taking steps towards recovery. YEEEEEEEEEESSSSSS!!! GOD IS AMAZING!!!

2. The "soreness" (read: freshness) all over my body after I exercise (read: after I shake my bootylicious with Billy Blanks). YYEEEEEEEEEESSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS!!!

3. Hope.

As for me, I will always have hope;
I will praise You more and more.
- Psalm 71:14

Though you have made me see troubles, many and bitter,
you will restore my life again;
from the depths of the earth you will again bring me up.
- Psalm 71:20

I will praise you with the harp for your faithfulness, my God;
I will sing praise to you with the lyre, Holy One of Israel.
My lips will shout for joy when I sing praise to you—
I, whom you have redeemed.
- Psalm 71:22,23

But he said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness."
Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ's power may rest on me.
- 2 Corinthians 2:19

What Superheroine Are You?

You Are Trinity

"Touch me and that hand will never touch anything again."

What Superheroine Are You?

Nighttime Rendezvous

A man and a woman are about to sleep. They are in bed, lying down and facing each other.

Woman: "Are we going to the bars again this weekend?"

Man: "Yes."

Woman: "With whom?"

Man: "My brothers."

Woman: "Do you want ME to go with you?"

Man: (smiling) "Do YOU want to go?"

Woman: "But do YOU want me to go with you?"

Man: (shakes his head) "Here we go again!"

The woman laughs.

Man: "So, do YOU want to go?"

Woman: "Do YOU want me to go?" (laughs)

Woman: (quickly continues) "OK, OK, I'm just KIDDDIIINNNGGG! We'll see how it goes. If I'm feeling good and I've had enough sleep, then maybe I'll go with you."

Then they make sweet sweet sweaty love...afterwards, they kiss and talk some more.

Woman: (caressing the man's arm) "You know, I'm SO lucky to have you."

Man: (chuckles) "Do you still think that way?"

Woman: "OF COURSE. Why would I not think that way still?"

Man: "Because...I'm an asshole?" (chuckling)

Woman: "You WISH!" (giggling)

They kiss once more and say goodnight to each other.

------------------------- The End -------------------------

"Love Song" Mood

Phew!!! Tired! I just cooked cabbage casserole (whatever that means) and tried to make baguette. Now I just want to share two love songs I heard on YM while I was cooking. This song reminded me SO MUCH of the trip to Bali. I went to Bali the first time with my High School teachers. The seniors got to visit Bali. This song kept on being played over and over again (literally). Yikes!!! It was...what? Over 10 years ago!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I can't be THAT old hi hi hi hi...LOL!!! ;-D Anyway, so many memories...good ones, funny ones, weird ones he he he...

Enjoy this song, dedicated to all my senior High School friends at SMUK 1 BPK Penabur Bandung class '93 (graduated in '96)...Peter Cetera and Crystal Bernard serenading us with "(I Wanna Take) Forever Tonight"



This second song is dedicated to my Immortal Beloved, Arttu Korvanen. I LOVE him more and more each step of the way and he amazes me all the time. Enjoy this song, "Amazed" by Lonestar.

Right now my heart feels like bursting out...SO MUCH LOVE inside me!!!!! YOU ARE THE BEEEEEEEEESSSSSSSSSSTTTTTTTT, HONEEEEEEEEEYYY!!! And I'm missing you now...I'll be wagging my tail like a cute puppy and running around your ankles when you're back from work. LOL!!!




AMAZED
Lonestar

Every time our eyes meet
This feeling inside me
Is almost more than I can take
Baby when you touch me
I can feel how much you love me
And it just blows me away
I've never been this close to anyone or anything
I can hear your thoughts
I can see your dreams

Chorus:
I don't know how you do what you do
I'm so in love with you
It just keeps getting better
I wanna spend the rest of my life
With you by my side
Forever and ever
Every little thing that you do
Baby I'm amazed by you

The smell of your skin
The taste of your kiss
The way you whisper in the dark
Your hair all around me
Baby you surround me
You touch every place in my heart
Oh it feels like the first time every time
I wanna spend the whole night in your eyes

(Repeat Chorus x2)

Random Stories

1. Went to Lidl today to buy ruispalat for my hubby. He eats ruispalat whenever he has a heavy meal. When I was there, I browsed around as there were always discounted items. I found this discounted bottle of multivitamin. There were two types of them side by side. The left bottle was orange/white, whereas the right one was blue/white. The discounted tag was right above the orange/white bottle, but I was a bit confused as the discounted tag also said the same thing as the non-discounted tag above the blue/white bottle: Moni Multivit. Mineraali. The label on the orange/white bottle was Moni Multivitamiini Mineraali, whereas the label on the blue/white bottle was Moni Vitamiini & Mineraali. However, finally I decided to take the orange/white one as the discounted tag was directly above it. When I paid for the ruispalat and the multivitamin bottle, however, I found out that the multivitamin was at full price.

I pondered upon it a while, but then I came back inside to check on the tag again. I actually don't like claiming for stuff like that 'coz I don't like to be seen as a fussy woman, but I'm on a tight grocery budget and the multivitamin was on a 43% discount and it wasn't exactly cheap without the discount. So I went back to the cashier and she called her supervisor and the supervisor checked it out with me. She was at first also a bit confused, but then she realized that they had put the tag above the wrong bottle, so she gave me the discounted price anyway and gave me back the money. Phew!!!

2. Last weekend my brother-in-law spent a night at our place again. He talked to me about lots of things. It felt SO GOOD to be able to talk in English, even though I knew it was a bit hard for him to have to talk in English. My sister-in-law also took me shopping. Turned out she didn't like shopping that much, so we didn't spend that much time at the stores. However, it was nice to be able to talk to another woman in English. She's a bit taller than me, but still tiny. She said that in northern Finland, since the natives were small people, the stores here sold clothes with smaller sizes, whereas it was harder for her to find smaller sizes in southern Finland. (She lives in Pori, way south from here)

3. Arttu's eldest brother's coming to town with his eldest son this Thursday. Saturday is Arttu's eldest brother's and Dad's birthdays. Yep, they have the same birthdays. I think I'm going to make my famous chocolate pudding with vla (the vla is made of chocolate milk, rhum, 2 egg yolks, and maizena). Arttu LOVES the vla SO MUCH so that he says that he wants the vla WITHOUT the pudding!!! LOL!!!

4. The temperature here can be pretty weird. Yesterday morning when Arttu woke up at 6.45, it was as hot as 28'C. However, an hour later when he was ready to go to work, it dropped down to 20'C. This morning it happened again. It was 26.5'C outside when he woke up, yet when he went to work, it was only around 18'C. Strange but true.

5. Bought some discounted items yesterday at one of the stores here. They are having a big sale (50-70% discount). I found that I had to try on everything before I bought them as the sizes differed SO MUCH depending on the material used and the style. I ended up buying two T-shirts, one tank top, and one 3/4 pants (they all had DIFFERENT sizes). Guess how much I spent for those 4 items? Only €10.75!!!! YEEEEEEESSSSSSS!!!!!!!!! ;-D

6. Yesterday and today I got emails from different angels on earth. Words of encouragement. Words of comfort. Words of joy. Just after I got the news from my brother. Now I feel SO warm inside, knowing that God listens to my pleas and tears and He cares about me. Let me just bathe in His love...and truly enjoy the fact that God has sent His Angels to help me.

I'm in a "poetic" mood today, so let me just copy and paste this WONDERFUL poem from this site: Inspiration Peak.

These Are My Wishes For You
Sandra Sturtz Hauss

May you find serenity and tranquility
in a world you may not always understand.

May the pain you have known
and the conflict you have experienced
give you the strength to walk through life
facing each new situation with courage and optimism.

Always know that there are those
whose love and understanding will always be there,
even when you feel most alone.

May a kind word,
a reassuring touch,
and a warm smile
be yours every day of your life,
and may you give these gifts
as well as receive them.

May the teachings of those you admire
become part of you,
so that you may call upon them.

Remember, those whose lives you have touched
and who have touched yours
are always a part of you,
even if the encounters were less than you would have wished.
It is the content of the encounter
that is more important than its form.

May you not become too concerned with material matters,
but instead place immeasurable value
on the goodness in your heart.
Find time in each day to see beauty and love
in the world around you.

Realize that what you feel you lack in one regard
you may be more than compensated for in another.
What you feel you lack in the present
may become one of your strengths in the future.
May you see your future as one filled with promise and possibility.
Learn to view everything as a worthwhile experience.

May you find enough inner strength
to determine your own worth by yourself,
and not be dependent
on another's judgment of your accomplishments.

May you always feel loved.

I just HAVE to share this one as this is SO GOOD, so click here: Letting Go

Projecting Your Anger to Somebody Else

Earlier I received an email from my brother. He said he had asked permission to go home early from work today since Mom called him at work, crying and sobbing. Dad had yelled at her again and accusing her of not being supportive. My brother couldn't take it anymore. When he was home, he yelled back and asked Dad what he meant. He asked Dad if any of us (Mom, me, brother) had ever been disrespectful to him. He said no, but other people had been that way to him. Other people had disappointed him and made his heart hurt. If you're new here, I've written down a post earlier about my Dad. Here's the link: Dad.

The situation got heated up so my Dad asked my brother to call my Priest. So my priest came over and they got into a discussion. I don't know the details but my brother said that at least they could talk about everything they wanted to say to one another. I sure hope that my Dad'll be better later on for the sake of everybody, including himself. It seems that he's been so caught up with his own pains so that he doesn't even know he's hurting his loved ones. All he can see is his own wounds and pains.

My brother's email makes me think hard. How many times have I ever projected my anger to somebody else? How many times have I ever projected my feeling of embarrassment to somebody else? How many times have I projected any bad emotions to somebody else?

Let me end this post with some anger quotations taken from Wisdom Quotes:

Anybody can become angry, that is easy; but to be angry with the right person, and to the right degree, and at the right time, and for the right purpose, and in the right way, that is not within everybody's power, that is not easy.
- Aristotle

Of the Seven Deadly Sins, anger is possibly the most fun. To lick your wounds, to smack your lips over grievances long past, to roll over your tongue the prospect of bitter confrontations still to come, to savor to the last toothsome morsel both the pain you are given and the pain you are giving back -- in many ways it is a feast fit for a king. The chief drawback is that what you are wolfing down is yourself. The skeleton at the feast is you.
- Frederick Buechner

Let us not look back in anger or forward in fear, but around in awareness.
- James Thurber

3BT: July 16, 2007

1. Sale!!! 50-70% discounted items!!! LOVE IT!!!

2. Writing a letter to my Dad, telling him how much I appreciate him.

3. The feeling of comfort I've started to feel whenever I come back to our apartment. I LOVE this place!!!

4. Literally stopping while I was walking downtown to smell the flowers. The smell of wet grass and blooming flowers was like incense soothing my mind.

Tagged Once More! LOL!

Angela May tagged me to share 8 more things about myself, but I won't tag anyone else he he...

1. I HATE Tweety. I hope Sylvester eats him alive. Sylvester's SO CUTE!!! Well, I once saw an episode where Sylvester did eat Tweety, then there was another bird to subtitute Tweety, but I don't remember well anymore what happened next.

2. My Dad was introduced to my Mom via a friend. They dated for about 6 months and then decided to get married within another 6-month-period. Dad was 34 years old and Mom was 32 years old when they were married.

3. I was born exactly 10 months (to the date) after they got married, so I can remember their wedding day so easily. ;-D

4. When I was a kid, I was sort of my little brother's protector. Back then he was so small (boys grow up later than girls before teenage years) and he cried a lot, so I was his Xena. *tee-hee* OK OK, it's a hyperbole, but you know what I mean. ;-D

5. I once saw a halo in the sky when I was around 10-11 years old. Back then I didn't know what it was, but it just looked SO lovely. A HUGE ring in the sky at night. Ahhhhh...I still remember looking up for a LONG time that night and felt amazed.

6. Once I went to the next alley to do something (I'd always lived in an alley all my life before I moved here) during the night when I looked up and saw something that was as big as the moon and was as bright and round as the moon. However, I noticed something different. I stopped walking and the round object moved SO FAST in the sky!!! I ran home as I was SO scared (I think I was around 8 years old back then). I knew the moon couldn't have moved that fast!!! Until now, I don't know what it was. Will someone enlighten me, please? ;-D

7. One time I was so head over heels with someone. I called him almost every day just to talk about anything. I wanted to get to know him SO badly. I was obsessed!!! I kept talking about him to my female friends hi hi hi hi...Yep, girl talk!!!

8. My longest phone record was a 5,5 hour non-stop call. I remember when I made that call. I just came back from Finland in 2004 (my first trip alone to Europe), so I had to call somebody to tell her EVERYTHING about my trip. I ended up calling one of my closest friends and we talked THAT long (until almost dawn). *tee hee* Only after that did I unpack my bags and sleep. YEEEEEEESSSSSSSSS!!!! ;-D That's what friends are foorrrrr...LOL!!!

Sunday Quotations

Been busy with the brother-in-law and sister-in-law, so I'm behind in this blogging world. So let me just copy some quotations today written by Julie Ackerman Link. You can click on each quotation to view the original page.

Choosing to deaden bad feelings eventually deadens our ability to feel good.

When we have nothing left but God, we find that God is enough.

It's better to declare the truth and be rejected than to withhold it just to be accepted.

A happy marriage is a union of two good forgivers.

Difficulties tend to call out great qualities.

3BT: July 13, 2007

1. Shopping with my sister-in-law (my hubby's eldest brother's wife). Finally there's somebody else whom I can talk to in English!!! ;-D

2. Mint-chocolate ice cream on a hot sunny day. It's 24'C here and it's PERFECT weather for me!!!!

3. Met a guy who made such a huge effort in talking to me and welcoming me to Finland. It felt SO nice to be welcomed!!! ;-D And I TRULY appreciated his effort in trying to speak English (I could see how difficult it was for him to translate his thoughts into English).

Going to Different Directions

I have 6 closest friends whom I consider to be those people I "grew up with", since we went through teenage years together. Those years when we experimented and when we tried to find ourselves and our places in life. Those years when we rebelled and built our self-confidence. I've been friends with them for about 15 years (the oldest ones) up to around 10 years (the newest ones). One of their husbands said that he was amazed that we still kept in touch up to now as he hadn't kept in touch with any friends from Junior High School or High School. An Aussie friend of mine who once visited me in Bandung said that we were an interesting bunch as we were SO totally different with one another. Yep, interesting indeed!!!

Up to university, I think we could still understand one another pretty well. I mean, what else could there be to talk about in our lives back then? We were still university students. We only had to deal with exams, courses, exams, and nothing else (back then most of us had no boyfriends yet). We still headed towards a similar direction: graduation and then workplace. Once we started having full-time jobs and then we started having boyfriends and then husbands, everything shifted bit by bit. I began to feel that it got harder and harder to TRULY understand one another since we had less and less time to talk (some of them moved to different cities/countries).

One of them recently asked me why I seemed to be SO burdened to understand them fully. Well, I guess it's just who I am. I crave to understand people fully (sometimes I think I want to understand them better than they understand themselves - it makes me giddy with excitement - but maybe this is one of my craziest sides) and I crave to be understood. However, I've tried to lower my expectations ever since I realize that they're no longer able to spend that much time and energy to understand me fully. But I still have the silent wish to be able to understand them better and better. I think one reason is that I want to know what to say to them. I want to know how I can support them best. I want to know that when I respond to them, I'm not going to pick the wrong words. I know how futile my effort is, though. Saying or doing the wrong thing is inevitable. But one can hope, can't one? ;-D

Anyway, nowadays I feel that we're going to TOTALLY different directions. It makes me slightly more careful in responding to their emails. I have to think twice about what to say to them as I don't want them to think that I'm undermining their situation or patronizing them or being offensive or judgmental. Different priorities force me to stop to think and try to put myself in their shoes before blurting out something that might hurt or offend them. For example: if a friend of yours thinks that a "book" is SO important and then he/she tells you about it in detail and it seems the "book" dominates his/her world so much, but you think it's full of crap, you wouldn't say to to his/her face, would you? Naturally you would want to support your friend, even though it's not easy to find the balance between being true to yourself and being honest to other people versus being an understanding, loving, caring, supportive person.

I guess this is just what life is. It gets harder to understand and support other people when they're going to the opposite directions. It gets harder to support other people's choices when they're so opposite yours. It takes self-control to shut up when you know that what you think is best for them might not be viewed as such by them.

Again I hope God will grant me enough discernment to know when to speak and to be silent. I hope God will grant me enough wisdom to know the balance in life in everything I do, day by day, one step at a time.

Quiz: What Kind of Intelligence Do You Have?

Your Dominant Intelligence is Intrapersonal Intelligence

Reflective and thoughtful, you enjoy spending time alone. You are good at analyzing yourself - and knowing your true feelings. Totally self aware, you are in tune with your dreams and desires. A spiritual and philopsophical person, your inner calmness inspires and helps others. You would make a great philosopher, researcher, or theorist.

What Kind of Intelligence Do You Have?