Tuesday, June 29, 2010

3BT: Random Days

1. Hubby for having changed many cables in the house and having rearranged many things neatly and added new light switches to make my life easier. LOVE to have a thoughtful hubby.

2. First day at work went TOO fast that it was blurry - I had no time to think nor be too anxious 'coz I spent half of my working hours there to be in the cashier. Made mistakes and made the line of people wait a couple of times when I had to call my senior to get help, but at least most of the customers were patient enough to bear with me, the newbie. A few were curious enough to find out where I came from and they were really nice to me: one of them even said, "Hey, it's nice to see a new cashier! 'Coz we live nearby, we're going to meet often as this is the closest store to our place". :-D

My MIL also dropped by as promise to find out how I was doing and I met another familiar face who always smiles at me whenever we meet. They brightened up my day! :-D

3. The fast-paced working environment meant that time flew and before I knew it, I had finished my shift HA HA HA HA...

4. Seeing lots more yellow wild flowers blooming in our own yard (they hadn't popped out before)...simply GORGEOUS!!!

5. The "exercise trick" on Sunday worked 'coz I could fall asleep earlier at night to make sure I had enough rest before starting my work shift at 7 am on Monday.

6. They've added another work shift this week, so I'm gonna work every day for a few hours (at first I didn't have any shift on Wed). This is good, esp. 'coz R2's leaving to Helsinki today to do some kind of computer training and he'll only be back on Sat afternoon. That means I will have plenty of things to do while he's away - plus the more hours I get, the more money I can get HE HE HE HE HE HE HE...

7. Eating this zesty, minty rice at my friend's place. Rich of flavour!


8. Making my own Wedang Ronde and they taste SO good!!!!


9. Being surrounded by dandelions in the HUGE field in my in-laws' place. On the second half of the video, you can see the strawberry field (covered with net) and the dandelions were still asleep 'coz it was rather cloudy. I took the video from the second floor in my in-laws' place 'coz that was where we spent the night.



10. Almost killed a pot of flowers given by an aunt when I moved them to a bigger pot and added fertilizer. However, noticed that they got dried and and the flowers started to die one by one, so I changed the soil again and this time I didn't add any fertilizer and now they start blooming again bit by bit. So they just didn't like fertilizer!!! ;-D

Sunday, June 27, 2010

Midsummer Night's Dream

We spent a night at my in-laws' place on Midsummer Eve. I hadn't even known we were spending a night there. At first I thought we were just going there 'coz BIL wanted to grill some sausages and hamburgers outside, but anyway...it was actually a PERFECT day to go there 'coz on Midsummer Day itself (yesterday), it was cloudy and then it rained cats and dogs at around 7 pm. On Midsummer Eve, the sun was sunny and it was 23'C.

Here are some pics I managed to take, among SO many I've taken...

I got SO lucky when I spotted these two lovey-dovey bugs. They didn't even budge when I came SOOOOOO close to them to get this pic (I, of course, took SO many pics 'coz I wanted to make sure I got at least ONE good pic - it was HARD to get a good pic of these two among the grass 'coz the focus kept on being off).


Isn't this pic lovely? Even the clouds look SO happy ha ha ha ha...


Another side of the field...mmmhhhh...I kept on running my eyes on the whole surrounding...it felt surreal...as though time had stopped and nothing else mattered...


OK, so I HAD to pose with the golden field of flowers, right? HA HA HA HA...


My in-laws enjoying the sun on their swing...


After sauna, we played some cards and then at midnight, I ran outside to take some pics...here are they:





This last pic was taken at around 2 am from inside the house (couldn't go out 'coz the door was locked already), so it wasn't too clear 'coz the window wasn't that clear (bugs had landed on them and stuff). But anyway, just wanna show that the sun started going up again...


OK, I'll blog-hop a little. I'm a bit excited and anxious about tomorrow he he he...It's always like that when you start working or doing any training in a new place where you've never had any experiences before. At least it won't be too bad 'coz I'll only work for 5 hours, though I've gotta get up early. Soon after blog-hopping I'm gonna exercise until I'm dead tired to make sure I can sleep early tonight after staying up for days ha ha ha ha...

Thursday, June 24, 2010

In The Garden

Yesterday had a FUN eve with some friends (I'll blog about it later). Hubby has done a WONDERFUL job changing the cables (old cables) and other stuff. He's really neat and I can tell that he knows what to do. He looks SO sexy in his handyman outfit he he he...too bad I can't help him too much 'coz I don't know what to do, so all I can do is prepare him food and just help him out in other ways that I can. :-D

Tomorrow we're going to my in-laws to grill in the yard. I bought some fish 'coz I'm craving for some grilled fish that I can eat with soy sauce and sliced chili (I bought some dry red chili from the online store in Germany). I also bought some cider, sausages, and hamburgers he he...Hoping for warm weather tomorrow! *crossing my fingers and toes*

Today I took some pictures while walking around in the garden (after watering the plants there) and I noticed that some wild flowers have grown...tiny white ones and lovely small purple ones...I also noticed "The Circle of Life" as some ants attacked a bee and the bee lost...here are the pictures (unfortunately I don't know the name of the flowers):


In the second pic, the bee was being dragged away by the ants...


Dunno the name of this bug, but it's really CUTE 'coz it doesn't suck my blood ha ha ha...it's about 5 cm long and wide.


A bud of a wild flower...


Spotted this small wild flower on one part of the garden...lovely lovely ones!!!


Sorry, a bit blurry. Just wanna show you how small it is. My index finger is about 1.5 cm wide.


Another pic of it...


See how many there are! :-D


In another part of the garden these white flowers lie hidden...they're SO tiny that I wouldn't have noticed unless I came closer he he...


Again for comparison sake...I held it between my middle and ring finger.


Last pic: I've shown you this flower, but now you can see how small it is...And yeah, the bug happened to jump onto the petals while I took the pic ha ha ha...


Tuesday, June 22, 2010

Today's Activity

Sleepyhead me had a HARD time waking up, even though hubby had been banging the walls downstairs 'coz he's been doing a major renovation work for the cables and stuff (so he had to turn off the electricity for a while), I still managed to fall back to sleep ha ha ha ha...so when I finally woke up, the sun was shining so beautifully. I knew it wouldn't last the whole day, so I took out some of my small (plant) babies to bask in the glory that would help 'em grow. Then after having a late breakfast and watering some plants, I took some pics and read a novel on the swing. Marvelous!!!

After that I decided to wash the car - the first time I've EVER washed a car in my entire life HA HA HA HA HA HA...then I went to the supermarket to buy some stuff by bike and when I got back it was already half cloudy and it got even cloudier and cloudier as time went by. So it was a SUPERB decision to enjoy the sun while it lasted ha ha ha ha...(Side note: Actually right now when I'm typing, the sun has decided to come out again ha ha...)

Here are some pics that I took:

The reason why I was sitting on the bottom part of the swing was that I wanted to enjoy the sun on my back he he he...And then the birds came to sing me some songs, as well...mmmm...


I REALLY love the shape of this flower...


Look what greeted me on the swing while I was reading there and enjoying the sun? ;-D


Saw a dozen of this type of flowers blooming near the side of our yard...lovely tiny purple flowers! :-D


Rising uppp...I ADORE these yellow ones for some reason...


This last pic was taken a few weeks ago at my MIL's place - I put it here just to show you the shape of the above yellow flowers he he he...


OK, now gonna relax some moreeeeee...I'll blog-hop later...

Monday, June 21, 2010

Comparisons: Garden Pics

Just wanna share some garden pictures. R2's having a week off so we're gonna spend much time together. Feels GREAT to be home together for a week. Too bad then he has to go on a training in Helsinki the week when I'm starting my part-time job - but hey, at least I'll have things to do and plenty to learn while he's away. It'll be boring if I'm home ALONE all the time that week he he he...

OK...here goes...

Three weeks ago:


Today:


Ten days ago (there was only ONE TINY bud inside the whole pot):



Today:


Three weeks ago (this plant was left here by the ex-home owners, so I just watered it and got rid of the dead leaves):


Today:


Zooming in on the pink flowers:


Saw this bug flying around, so had to take a pic of it he he...It's rather big, about 3-4 cm long and wide.


And look what we picked up this morning!!! A package from Toko Indonesia!!! YIIIHHAAAA!!! Today I had warm rice, salted fish, and sambel terasi (shrimp paste chili sauce). It was HEAVENLY to enjoy a taste of my home country food he he he...

Saturday, June 19, 2010

3 Years Ago vs Now

Went to a bar with hubby and brother and girlfriend and noticed something that didn't happen 3 years ago nor 2 years ago (last year we didn't go there 'coz we were in Rhodes at that time). Three and two years ago when we went to the bar(s), the only people I knew were hubby's cousin, brothers, and their partners. Yesterday I met so many familiar faces, the people I'd met through different training places and some of them had a chance to chit-chat with me. Mind you that I didn't chat with some of them 'coz the place was just so crowded.

One of the people I had a chit-chat with was the teacher at the daycare. I told her about my part-time job (which will happen soon) and she said she did two summer jobs in the same store. She also said they missed me at the daycare and that she hoped the work report she wrote for me was useful (every boss had to give me a kind of work report after I finished any type of training - stating the kind of tasks I did there, how long I was there, etc.) and that if anyone needed any job reference about me from them, they could call the daycare to get it. Then she stated again what she had written on the work report, about what she thought about how I did my job and I'm TRULY ABSOLUTELY thankful for it.


So far I've done some type of training in 5 different places and I've got personal work reports from 3 of the places and I'm FOREVER grateful for them who took the time to write the personal work reports. Even if those reports don't mean as much for my future employers, they DO mean A WHOLE LOT to me. Without the support of all those people - and some others I've met along the years (too many to count or name) who have helped boost my confidence in learning and speaking Finnish - I wouldn't be where I am today.

I'm also thankful for having WONDERFUL close friends who are GREAT listeners (who don't judge me and who want to support me the way I WANT to be supported), all my blogging friends who have always been there for me (sharing my ups and downs, supporting me, praying for me)...I wouldn't have made it without all of you...

I just want to send some gratitude to heaven...and may God pour blessings on those thoughtful people who've made a difference in my life...

Friday, June 18, 2010

A Hard Day's Night

Yep, we saw this karaoke movie called A Hard Day's Night early this morning at around 2 am. At first we weren't sure whether we could make it or not 'coz it was SO late, but anyway...WE MADE IT!!!

It was fun singing along with all the songs in the movie - though too bad I only knew the whole tunes of two songs. I'd heard almost all of the songs, but didn't remember the whole tune of most of them, but it was FUN anyway. The whole crowd sang along with every song - those who didn't know the lyrics could just read them right above the screen. We even clapped our hands in some points - with gusto! HE HE HE HE...Btw, if you wanna know, the ticket is €7. Had never seen the movie itself, but it was funny he he he...

Just like every year, The Midnight Sun Film Festival has arrived in Sodankylä and there are many people from different countries coming here. We went for some drinks outside a tent at around 6 pm and just talk about many things. Here's the tent near which we had our drinks - the white tent on the left side of the photo (this photo is taken from near the big tent):


While talking there, we saw a rainbow...not too vivid, but still it was nice to see:


Then we went our separate ways at around 9 pm 'coz my friends wanted to go back to their places to get their bikes, so we set up to meet at my place before the movie started. It started getting a bit cold at that time 'coz it was cloudy, so I thought it might be best to just continue talking at my place before we watched the movie. One friend brought some wine and we had fun talking for hours.

Then we biked to the big tent where we had to queue. The show started later than we thought, so we had to queue for at least 20 minutes, but that was fine 'coz I was with my friends and we could chit-chat about so many topics he he...

Anyway, here's the big tent where we saw the movie. It could hold up to a few hundred people - about 500 or something if I'm not mistaken. Or was it 800? Hmmm...


This below photo was taken at around 1.20 am - notice that there's now a long queue already to get inside the big tent (the big tent is on the left side - not captured in this photo). And yeah, that is the white tent outside which we had our drinks earlier that day. They sold pancakes, coffee, tea, sandwiches, sodas, etc.


Another picture I managed to take after going to the toilet inside this old school. There are some auditoriums in the school where they showed different movies. The clock says it's 01.25 am.


I took this pic when I biked home - it was around 3.40 am already hi hi hi...and the temperature went down to 9'C only. THANK GOD we all went back home to wear warmer clothes. ;-D We hope we can do this again next year, but we'll see he he he...


OHHHHHHH almost forgot...we saw a BABY squirrel on the way...look at how cute it is! It was running around in front of a supermarket's parking lot he he...




Wednesday, June 16, 2010

Part-Time Summer Job Coming!!!

Yeah...can you believe it? I got a part-time summer job today!!! HALLELUJAH!!! A few weeks ago saw the advertisement and decided to send an application without really thinking I'd even got an interview. Was I called to have an interview? No. That was what made today a CRAZY day ha ha ha...

Today I went to a store to buy some groceries and while browsing through the items, one guy approached me and asked, "Hi, are you the woman who sent the application to us?" I nodded and then he said his name and asked if he could interview me. He said he knew it was me who sent the application 'coz a worker there had recognized me - the worker is one of the mothers of the kids at the daycare where I had my last training.

I asked him when he wanted to interview me - thinking he'd say "Tomorrow?". But no, he actually said, "How about you finish your shopping first and then come inside to the office?"

GULP GULP GULP...A sudden JOB interview (in Finnish)?!?!?!?!?! And I was NOT even PREPARED for it?!?!?!?!



But I couldn't say no, could I? So I finished my shopping while trying to calm myself down and then I knocked on the office door.

Funny thing happened at that time 'coz the kids of one worker there (I knew them from the daycare) spotted me and I said hi to them and asked them how they were doing - and then the office door opened and the kids followed me inside!!! ('coz the mother was inside the office HA HA HA...)

The interviewer, who opened the door for the three of us, naturally asked, "Are these your kids?"

I laughed and said no he he he...

Then he asked me the usual questions (which I wasn't prepared for, so I could have given better answers had I had time to prepare myself - but anyway...) and after some time talking, he said, "Congrats! You've got the job!".

HUH?!?!?!?! HUUUUHHHHHHHHHHHHHH??!?!?!?!?!

That's it? I was thinking that he would think about it first 'coz I had a feeling that he was really unsure about my ability in speaking, understanding, and reading Finnish.

So I spent a long time there when he drew the job contract (for 3 months only until the end of September, but it may continue) and explained to me about some stuff there and he also told me about my first week's work schedule. I'll start on the 28th and 'coz it's a part-time job, I'll get a minimum of 10 hours per week, but during summer months I may get up to 20 hours per week.

I went out of the store not only bringing the items I bought there but also a job contract and a handful of other papers to read about the company, etc. I need to go back there tomorrow to submit some papers and I also need to report to the employment office about this. Phew...what a dayyyyyyyyyyy!!!!