50 Shades of Shit (A Parody)

***** pardon the language/wrote this just for fun ******

Shit happens, they say.
Damn right, I say.

Sometimes you can feel that shit is going to happen,
You fidget, you can't sleep, you worry,
Hoping for the best, preparing for the worst,
And all you can say when it does happen is, "SHIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIITTTTT!"

Sometimes shit happens when you least expect it,
Out of nowhere, out of the blue,
Knocking you unconscious, dazed and bruised.
And yet again you yell, "SHIIIIIIIIITTTTTTTTTTTTT!"

Every now and then the injustice of life befalls you
When you have to clean up someone else's shit
Yet you have no other choice but to grind your teeth
And grumble inside, "I'm so fed up with this shit!"



glitter-graphics.com
Sometimes you're in deep shit and in a raging moment
You raise your fist to the sky and exclaim,
"Come on! Is this all the shit you're going to give me?
Bring it onnnnnnn! I can take more shit!"

Sometimes, though, when you're in deep shit,
In a desperate voice you moan, "Why me?!?!?!?!
What did I do to deserve all this shit?!?!?!?!?!?!
Somebody, help me!!!!! I can't take this shit anymore!"

Every once in a while when you're in deep shit,
You meet a kindred spirit in a similar deep shit
That makes you feel less alone and shitty
And it makes all the difference.

And then there are times when everything is fine,
Nothing is out of order and all problems are solved,
Yet out of the back of your masochistic brain
A voice wonders, "Will it be pouring shit soon?"

Last but not least, though, there are special moments -
Magical moments that you want to freeze and bottle up
Those moments when you stand in awe and say,
"Though life is full of shit, it's still worth living."


glitter-graphics.com
P.S. Yeah, I know it's nowhere near 50, but if I continue until 50, you'll all stop reading way before it ends LOL!!!

3BT: Random Days

1. Playing "Poker Face" game with hubby while playing cards with MIL (it wasn't planned, just made up right then and there). The point of the game is to keep a poker face while the other party makes faces to make you smile or laugh. Dang it was SO hard to keep a poker face that we ended up laughing like crazy over and over again. SO MUCH FUN!!! :-D

2. A grandma gave me a bar of chocolate at work. BLESS HER! And it wasn't even the first time for her to do that. :-) I shared the chocolate with hubby at home he he he...


3. We've booked the tickets to go to Indo via Singapore on our summer holiday, so we're spending some days in Singapore as well in between flying to my hometown and flying back to Finland. And we've also booked the hotels in Singapore YAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAYYYY!!! :-D

4. I've contacted a few friends who live in Singapore and they've told me that they want to meet up, so I hope there's no hindrance for us to meet. EXCITING!!!!!!!! :-D

5. More feeling of freedom as I get less afraid of disappointing people when I feel that they have high expectations of me or when I feel that they expect something from me that I just can't give (something I just realized lately).


glitter-graphics.com
6. The sidewalk is now clear of sand and gravel. That means I can ride my bike at full speed again WOOOOHOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!

7. Having lovely and fun coworkers who treat me (the only expat in the group) like one of them. I hope we can work together for a LOOOONNNGGG time. :-D

8. Listening to this soothing and comforting song. Death is not the end. We will meet again in heaven...


9. Laughing so much at these photos ha ha ha ha...I'm trying to imagine the amount of time and effort it took to match the characters with the cats ha ha ha...As a cat lover and a fan of Game of Thrones, I think whoever it is has done a great job at it. :-D

 Game of Thrones: Cat Edition

3BT: Random Days

1. Hubby upgraded my computer and had to change my mouse into a bigger one (the old one had to be taken away 'coz the port behind the CPU had changed, so it didn't fit anymore). I then complained that it was a bit too big for me (I have small hands), so immediately he went online to order a smaller one. BLESS HIM!!!!

2. Hubby's been having some holiday (due to accumulated overtime) and it's been LOVELY to be welcomed back home from work with tight hugs. :-D

3. Got two nice surprises (I'm afraid I can't tell you what they are 'coz it's private, but I just want to cherish them) he he he he he...

4. Peeling onions wearing swimming goggles WORKED!!! I didn't even shed a tear during the whole peeling and chopping process! YAAAAAAAAAAAAYYY!!!!

glitter-graphics.com
5. A customer came by and told me that she had read my blogs and enjoyed them. THANK YOU!!! Your words of encouragement are well appreciated! :-D What a nice surprise!

6. Muscles that are a bit sore after an exercise and a shower. Endorphin rush is awesome! :-D

7. Accidentally finding old songs in youtube that you had forgotten and then being able to enjoy them once more.

8. Watching this fun video clip: 

Puzzle Project: Done!

Yep...the puzzle was done already on 7th, but I just haven't been in the mood to blog about it. Asked MIL where she bought the puzzle glue and found out that it's WAY more expensive than the puzzle itself. I bought the puzzle for 6-7 Euros only and you wanna know how much the glue cost? €12.90!!! I know it can be used for 4 puzzles as big as 1,000 pieces each, but then that's quite a lot of money for glue, don't ya think?

Oh well...let me just share some pics then...

First pic: the puzzle, photo taken using flash.


2nd pic: photo taken without flash.


3rd pic: My SUPER HAPPY face, taken after we had just finished the puzzle together hi hi...


I'm telling ya that it's fun for me to make a puzzle together 'coz it means spending quality time with hubby (you see, quality time is my primary love language). I think if I find nice puzzles like this again in the future, I'm gonna buy more (didn't know R2 was into puzzle until I bought this one) HA HA HA HA HA...In the meantime, I have another puzzle in stock already, but maybe we should do it later after our Indo trip hi hi...

Anyway, the below pic was taken 2 weeks ago. HUGE blackcurrants picked from my MIL's garden. I picked about 5 litres of 'em and many of them are MUCH bigger than the ones last year and there were still SO MANY of them left, but I didn't have time to pick more that day.

Side note: I know, I know, my hand is SMALL but still those blackcurrants are HUGE, trust me! :-D


I've been busy browsing for things to do and places to visit in Bangkok and reading about tips on Bangkok. One thing we'd really love to do is go to a spa ha ha ha...Other than that, we don't know yet what we're going to do. R2 says that we don't have to plan everything in advance. So I guess we'll just see what we can do. I just hope our luggage stays intact and they don't come late 'coz I've got already 18 kgs of things and goodies for my family!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

And yeah, I haven't even packed any clothes yet, but at least going to a tropical country (or two tropical countries) means that we won't be packing heavy jackets or boots. Besides, we can always buy shorts and T-shirts later on he he...Good thing R2 comes with me this time. Otherwise I wouldn't be able to bring anything much at all ha ha ha...Can't wait!!! Just two more weeks of work and then our holiday starts!!!!!!!! :-D :-D :-D

After The Fun

Yep, back to routine life again after a week of fun with my friends. The last time I met them was around 5 years ago (back in 2006). I must say that they came at the right time. A week before they came, the weather was horrible. It rained almost every day and the sun only came out on Thursday. Last week the sun was out EVERY DAY and it got even as hot as 30'C. Yep, they were laughing and saying that they could get some tan in Lapland, of all the places in the world! He he he he he he he...We went to the river bank and my two friends went for a dip in the river.

On Friday we had a BBQ party in my place and we had a blast. I invited my BIL, SIL, MIL, R2's cousin (close friend) and also two friends (but only one of them could come). We had too much food and drinks, but at least we had more than enough for everybody ha ha ha...

Here are some pics of the BBQ party...


We bought the wrong kind of BBQ grill 'coz it was so small, but then again we had prepared so much food that it was OK to wait for a long time to grill the satay and sausages HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA...R2 was the grill master and I helped out in between chatting with the guests.



My friend made this delicious German cheesecake he he he...


The rest of the guests...


Yesterday we drove to Rovaniemi and stopped by at Santa Claus Village. We met Santa there and took a pic he he...It was free to come inside to meet him, but we couldn't take pictures inside, so we had to buy some ourselves.


Here's a pic of us in Santa Claus Village area. R2 wanted to be the female elf HA HA HA HA HA HA...it wasn't I who told him to do that! :-D


OK, now it's time for me to blog-hop a little. I feel that I'm starting to have a cold or something 'coz my throat feels a bit weird and I slept so long yet I still feel so tired. I've been coughing during my sleep, but I've taken some cough medicine now. I'm just going to take it easy before I have to go to work later on. Good thing I have some days off now to recuperate.

3BT: Random Days

1. Making a decision after thinking about it for a few days and knowing deep in my heart that it's the right call.

2. R2 is unwell now, which is "good" in a way 'coz then when my friends come here for a visit, he is well enough to drive to Rovaniemi to pick them up. Now I only need to hope that I won't catch the viruses 'coz it's been spreading around the village (one coworker is sick and another one started coughing yesterday).

glitter-graphics.com

3. FIL has stopped asking MIL, "When's your holiday ending? When are you taking me back home?" and thus MIL can now stop feeling guilty. In fact, when she took her back home for a few hours, he said that he wanted to go back home (to the nursing house).

4. I bought a tiger roll that I had never tried before the other day and it smells and tastes SO good!!!

5. Excitement 'coz my friends are coming for a visit soon (in 10 days). Can't wait to meet them!!! Haven't seen them in about 4 years. ;-D

6. Rubbing R2's cold hands to make them warm and seeing gratitude in his sweet smile. He's such a babe!!! :-D

7. Some of my fave TV series are coming back soon (Good Wife, Criminal Minds). YIIIIHHHHAAAAA!!!!

8. Buying some gifts for my loved ones and also souvenirs for my friends (grateful that I have the money to buy them). :-D

9. The weather's stopped being too hot (the other week it was 31'C three days in a row - which was unusual 'coz usually it only lasted for a day - and we don't have any fan or aircon, so it was really stuffy inside and it was hard to sleep well at nights).

glitter-graphics.com

10. Finding a funny manga about a teacher and being able to laugh out loud.

11. Recreating the kind of food that my Mom used to make us. Brings me straight back to the kitchen when she prepared the food for us. :-D

First Snow 10.10.10

Yep, the first snow this year came on such an easy date to remember: 10.10.10. However, it melted right away 'coz the temperature down here has been above 0'C. At least the weather report says it's going to snow again tomorrow and the local newspaper has been asking people to guess when the permanent snow starts and they promise to give a reward for that ha ha ha...I guess it IS in a way fun to think about when permanent snow actually begins this year. We shall see...

I've been busy at work and I've visited my MIL twice this week, so I haven't really had much time to blog nor blog-hop.

glitter-graphics.com

Now let me share some funny things that've happened at work:

1. A man came in one evening and gave me his debit card to pay, but when I was about to take it, he suddenly remembered that the debit card machine was right in front of him, so he could just insert it by himself.

Upon remembering that fact, he joked, "Oh, I just wanted to stay here a little bit longer, you see? That was why I gave you the card instead of inserting it on my own."

I laughed and after the transaction was finished, he said, "Now I have to go, but next time I may stay a little bit longer" HA HA HA HA HA HA...

2. I met one of the daycare Moms the other night and after she paid, I said to her to send my regards to her daughter. She smiled and said, "Yeah, she HAS been talking about you many times."

I was nicely surprised and asked, "Oh, she still remembers me?" (and my name, too?)

She said, "Oh yeah, she does remember."

I was slightly surprised 'coz the daughter had a holiday earlier, so she wasn't there the last day I was working at the daycare, though I remember her giving me a huge hug the last day she was there. :-D

3. One younger male customer (he must be in his early 20s) has been REALLY naughty (he has naughty written all over his face). First of all, once he pretended that he didn't bring any money, so when it was time for him to pay, he asked me, "Can I just bring all these stuff outside?" with a cheeky grin. Doohhhhh...

Another time it was his buddy who was buying things and when it was time for me to give his buddy some change, he reached out to my money box to get it himself. I slapped his hand a little and he just laughed. Dohhhh!!!!!! Bad boy!!!

4. One time a woman thought I was an adopted child HA HA HA HA HA HA...My MIL said that it was probably 'coz there's been lots of adopted children from China hi hi hi hi...

OK, time to blog-hop now. Hope you've had a BLESSED weekend, people!!!

Fun Moments at Work #2

Just finished talking to Mom via Skype. Talked to Dad also for a little while, mostly just reminding him to take good care of himself ha ha ha ha...Had fun talking to Mom as usual. She sounds well and not stressed out, so it's good.

glitter-graphics.com

Anyway, as promised, here's a list of some fun/touching moments at work. These days I TRULY appreciate the elderly even more 'coz more often than not (or actually always) they're the ones who take time to talk to me at work. I TRULY appreciate their effort/interest in talking to me.

1. An old lady asked me how I felt about living in a foreign country. I answered, "Because I've lived here for about 3 years now, I feel at home here now."

Upon hearing that, she said, "Well, I just want you to pull through." ---> it's hard to translate it from Finnish, but it's just TOUCHING for me to know that she wants to make sure that I not only "survive" here in this foreign country, but am also able to manage living here and or working here well.

Due to my PMS and the thoughtfulness of this lady, I had wet eyes after she went away...he he he he...

2. An old guy said to me with a smile right after paying, "Arigato. Is that the right way to say it?"

I said, "It's Japanese!"

He, who probably realized that I wasn't Japanese that very moment, asked, "Where do you come from?"

I replied, "Indonesia."

LOL LOL!!! I guess he just assumed I was Japanese based on my looks ha ha ha...

3. One old lady who's ever met me a few times at the store said this while gathering her stuff, "Did you ever work here prior to now?"

I replied, "No."

She said, "Really? You work so fast that I thought you're experienced already."

I smiled and said, "Well, thank you for your compliment." :-D

See? See??? The elderly are REALLY nice people he he he...

glitter-graphics.com

4. While I was scanning some stuff for a couple of elderly, the guy said, "Hey, can I ask what your name is?"

I then pointed to my name tag and said my name, but he said, "Oh, but I can't read it." Obviously the name tag is too small for his eyes to read, so I said my name again.

Then he said, "Nice to meet you! My name is ...." ---> This was the FIRST time a customer had EVER told me his/her name he he he...

I smiled and replied, "Nice to meet you too." We didn't shake hands, though, 'coz I was busy scanning stuff for them.

Then he started babbling about what he did for a living and I listened and replied appropriately he he he he...

Then the also very friendly wife smiled and said, "You're so small. Look at your fingers! Your fingers are even smaller than mine!" (at that point she reached out her hand and hold it next to mine)

I laughed and said, "Yes, that's true."

Then they asked me where I came from and after the wife finished paying and all the goods were packed, the guy kept on standing in front of me and talking about this and that until the wife laughed and grabbed his arm and said, "Come on, let's go. Those are not our stuff. There's already a line of people behind the cashier now. Time for us to go."

The guy seemed a bit surprised and said, "Oh, really? These aren't our stuff?" and he was still talking while his wife dragged him away, laughing at her talkative hubby hi hi hi hi hi hi...

5. Yesterday a couple came by and then the guy said to the wife, "This woman (meaning me) is our neighbour."

I was surprised, so I stated my street name and he told me their house number on that street. Funnily enough, that was the first time a customer had ever said "woman" to me - other times they always refer to me as "girl" and many times I hear them ask me whether I'm studying here he he he...Do I look like a student? HA HA...

6. A UK tourist said to me after he paid, "Thanks so much, darling. Jesus loves you." That was the FIRST time someone has EVER said those words "Jesus loves you" to me after I moved to Finland, and it was quite a touching moment for me and I also had wet eyes after hearing those words. :-D

glitter-graphics.com

Fun Moments at Work

Today is such a WINDY, COLD day (even though it's sunny). My poor mustasilmä susanna (Thunbergia alata) obviously didn't like the cold wind. I left it out last night, but they were fine. However, only an hour or so of cold wind and the leaves were dying already. Good thing I checked every now and then, so I rushed them inside and now they seem to have grown back to life. PHEW!!! My poor, poor babiesss...

Anyway, wanna share some fun moments at work he he he...

1. A pair of old guys came in while I was sitting at the cashier.

Guy #1: "Hey, from your facial features it seems that you're an Asian."
Me : "I am an Asian."
Guy #1: "Do you speak Finnish?"
Guy #2: "OF COURSE she speaks Finnish, silly!"

LOL LOL LOL...

2. A pair of old ladies came in...

Lady #1: "Hey, you're working here." (Side note: it's more like that she was surprised to see me working there)
Me : "Yes."
Lady #1: "Where do you come from?"
Me : "Indonesia."
Lady #1: "Oh, such a distant country. Why did you move here?"
Me : "My husband is Finnish."
Lady #1: "OH! Well, you speak Finnish well."
Me : "Thank you." (smiling)

3. A guy came in and then I told him how much he had to pay, and he said, "Well-counted!"

Oh, THANK YOU for the compliment he he he he he he...

glitter-graphics.com

4. A pair of older guys came in...

Guy #1: "Look, there's a Japanese girl working here."
Guy #2: "Yes, it's nice to see a different face here."
Me : "Oh, but I'm not Japanese. I come from Indonesia."
Guy #2: "Sorry?"
Me : "I come from Indonesia."
Guy #2: "Ohhhh...such a long way from here. Well, it's nice to see you here anyway."
Me : "Thank you."

5. I think it's really beneficial that I look Asian 'coz if someone wants to ask me something, then they would definitely speak slow enough for me to understand and they would use gestures to describe what they want to ask HE HE HE HE HE HE...

6. I'm surprised at how many people are surprised to know that I speak Finnish. Maybe they think that foreigners who live here can't speak Finnish well enough 'coz of the lack of full-time Finnish courses in this area. But anyway, it's really good for my self-esteem to hear many people say "You speak Finnish well". And last but not least, I TRULY appreciate some people who have expressed how nice it is to see a foreign face in that place THANK YOU, people!!!

glitter-graphics.com

P.S. Mind you that I don't always understand everything yet and sometimes a customer asks me something I'm not sure about, so I always turn to my coworkers to ask about that, but at least most of the time I survive ha ha....

Interesting First Day

It was only -15'C in the morning, so I biked to the daycare (it took only 15 minutes by bike but if I walked, it'd take 30 minutes - I'll be able to bike faster in summer when there's no snow left, but the snow makes the trip slower). Arrived there and had a bit trouble finding the classroom ha ha ha...'coz there were at least 4 classrooms there. Anyway, there were already about 8 kids there (2 of them arrived later) and I got introduced to their names, though I still can't remember all their names (even though I remember their faces).

It was really an interesting, fun day though it had its moments when some of the kids quarrelled, but it was still very much under control. It's very interesting to see those kids with different personalities. The kids in my classroom are 4-5 years old (two of them will have their 4th birthdays soon, but let's just say they're 4 years old). There used to be 3 years old, too, but not anymore.

I'm rather fond of this one little boy who's really sweet. I knew he was sweet the first time I stepped inside the room 'coz right after the teacher greeted me, he did the same (he heard her say my name, so he said my name too). And during the time the kids were allowed to play outside (skiing, skating, etc.), he played with me for a bit. At first he was tempting me, "You can't catch me" while I helped clean up the snow from the skating rink, so then I caught him and walked away...but he chased me and grabbed me (hugged me), and said, "Got ya!" and we kept playing this game for a while he he...

Some awkward situations happened, too...before lunch, one of them started telling me something and another one wanted to do the same and I was confused which to listen to ha ha ha ha...but I've learned to tell the second one to wait for a while until the first one's finished doing it. It's enough practise to listen to ONE kid telling me things, but having to hear TWO kids telling me stories in Finnish is just too much ha ha ha ha...

After they took a nap, they could do role play by wearing different costumes...the sweet boy ran around and hugged me a few times and said, "Got ya!" Ahhh...he really made my day he he he he he...(and yes, you bet I remember his name HA HA HA HA HA...)

So as you can probably guess, I'm THOROUGHLY enjoying this training despite some tough moments, e.g. when one kid wanted to use another kid's costume and the kid didn't want to give it and I had to try my best to reach win-win situation without causing anyone to cry ha ha ha...Oh well...here are some questions I got today:

1. Why are you here? (They wanted to know why I came to the daycare)
2. Why is your hair black?
3. How old are you?
4. Where do you come from?
5. Are you coming again tomorrow? ----> *BIG GRIN* THANK YOU, kids!!!

Can't wait to meet them again tomorrow and learn more about them he he...


glitter-graphics.com

Spring Chicken!

Yes, I was Spring Chicken today, can you believe it? I flapped my arms as though they were wings and tried to reach my destination hi hi hi hi...

You must be wondering what the hell I'm talking about, eh? Well, I played Wii Fit Plus again today and one of the games was a game about Spring Chicken. So I'm a chicken who's supposed to fly from one point to another and in between I have to collect points (that transform into additional time for me to finish the task and reach my destination) by landing on the spots where the points are. I'm telling ya, it's NOT easy to do it  (and it's pretty tiring after you try it several times) he he he...

There are also other games I like, such as Juggling (Balls), Snowball Fight, and many more. One stupid thing I managed to do was to GET LOST while I played Bicycle Game ha ha ha ha ha...I was supposed to collect flags and then go back to the starting line. The first stage, the beginner's, I managed to do it very easily. However, once I unlocked the advanced level, I GOT LOST, can you believe it? I was circling around trying to find the last flag until my legs were SO tired he he he he...

It was a good exercise, though (I had to "walk fast" on the Wii Balance Board to pedal my bike) he he he he he he...Haven't been doing anything much today (except cooking burger buns), esp. 'coz I woke up late HA HA HA HA HA...ahem...I'll blog-hop tomorrow.

Brain Overload

It's not that I don't have things to write, but I think I've been having some brain overload that I don't even know anymore what to write here he he...I've been trying to read a lot of info on opening your own business here in Finland and there were times I felt scared that I thought it'd be best to just give up on the idea. There were other times that I felt, "Okay, this is it. This is your best shot of doing something worthwhile for yourself instead of trying to find a job out there, 'coz you know how hard it's going to be for you to get the kind of job you can enjoy."

Anyway...change of topic then...the other day we saw Talent Suomi show on TV and I was SO impressed with this group. Too bad I couldn't put the video here, but here's the link if you want to watch it:

Will Funk For Food

I'm looking forward to their other performances! Definitely! And they looked like they were having SO MUCH FUN during their performance.

Anyway, I forgot to tell you a funny incident that happened quite some time ago at the hotel. Once when I was working alone, I went to the lift with my cleaning carriage (containing plenty of things) and the rubber end of my floor mop got STUCK in between the lift door (we use the kind of mop that has a long steel handle with a rubber end like the kind of mop you use to clean windows - but to clean the floor, we add a regular floor mop on top of the rubber part).

Panicked, I pushed the "stop" button and tried to yank it, but I couldn't do it. I went up to the other floor, but couldn't do anything about it. So I went down again and this time I really yanked it HAAAARRRRDDD. Finally it worked!!!

Phew!!! I was sweaty at that time already 'coz of the stress ha ha ha ha ha...such a crazy experience, and it happened again the second time - but this time I knew already what to do and how hard I should yank it hi hi hi hi...

I told this story to R2 and he shook his head in disbelief he he he...Anyway, I only have 4 days of work left (until Monday) and then I can start packing and buying the last few items I need before I fly to Indo. Bad thing is that I'm going to miss our wedding anniversary, but I'll be back here for my birthday. Oh well...I guess we can celebrate our anniversary on my birthday too he he he...

glitter-graphics.com

P.S. The other day we watched Ice Age 3 and it was GREAT!!! Ice Age is DEFINITELY my number one fave cartoon of all time he he he...all three of them are HILARIOUS! :-D

Trip to Rovaniemi + My Personal Project

Went to Rovaniemi on a whim yesterday since we both had a day off. It wasn't really planned, though, so that means I'm becoming more and more spontaneous HA HA HA HA HA...Anyway, we didn't plan on buying anything EXCEPT I TRULY WANTED to buy Chinese food. *BIG GRIN* After all, the closest Chinese resto from here is one hour away from this village (Rovaniemi is about 1,5 hours away by car from here), but we've never tried eating there yet.

We went to a downtown mall and I found a Wii game that seemed nice (Rayman Raving Rabbids TV Party), so I bought it. I looked around in the women's section, too, but didn't find anything too interesting or cheap ha ha...so we were just browsing around and relaxing. Then we moved to a different mall and browsed around some more, but didn't find anything. Soon we were hungry, so we went to a recommended Chinese resto called "Hai Long" in downtown Rovaniemi.

We ordered buffet lunch since it included everything. It was €8.90 per person (plus tax) and we could eat as much as we could and drink anything we wanted to (there were two types of rice, at least 8 types of dishes, CHILI SAUCE!!!, one type of soup, bread, milk, soft drinks, tea, water, and coffee). The resto were full all the time - people kept on coming and going. VERY good business!!! (side note: Well, the food is pretty good, though it's nothing compared to the food in a Chinese resto in Indo, but still it made me HAPPY!!!)

After that we went to a small hypermarket where R2 bought miniskis (because the old ones broke) and found a big lasagna dish. After that we went to a big hypermarket to buy our weekly needs (and R2 bought a cheap Wii game there). Then we got back home and played Wii for HOURS HA HA HA HA HA...We tried the new games right away and couldn't stop. FUN FUN FUN!!! :-D

So that was yesterday. Anyway, remember that I once wrote about my "project"? I decided to submit an article to a local newspaper just because I wanted to practise writing in Finnish and because I wanted to share my thoughts. At first I wanted to write about Indonesia, but the boss said that since it was only a local newspaper, I could only submit an article if it had something to do with my moving to Finland and how I "survive" here and things like that. So I did it and then their photographer came to the library to take my picture. On Thursday my MIL sent me an email, saying that she enjoyed reading my article he he he...I've only seen it today at her place since we don't subscribe to that newspaper he he he he...

Even though you probably don't understand what I'm writing, I'm sure you want to know what it's like, eh? So here goes...you can click on it to see a bigger version of it.



P.S. I don't know why I look SO white in the picture...uuhhhh he he he...And no, I'm not paid to write this, but the experience of writing it is PRICELESS, don't you think? There were SO many things I wanted to say, but I knew I couldn't write too long, so I had to edit it a few times until I felt pretty satisfied with it ha ha ha...

P.P.S. I'm curious what the ladies in the library would say about this article. I hope it's interesting enough to read my POV and my experience as an Asian moving to Sodankylä. :-D

Sliding Down the Hill

Saturday I was finally able to coak R2 into doing downhill skiing - he was using miniskis, whereas I used my Big Slider. Remember my Big Slider? If not, here's the pic:



So the bottom line is that I sat down on the "butt" section and held on to the rounded part while sliding down the hill. The problem was that it was TOUGH for me to get up the hill without skis under my shoes. I kept on falling deeper and deeper into snow so that R2 had to go back down and make "snow steps" to help me up. When it was getting steeper and steeper, I almost had to crawl so that I wouldn't slide down ha ha ha ha ha...

The first time I slid downhill, it wasn't smooth since the snow was too thick. The second time I did it, it was FANTASTIC!!! But I made a mistake...R2 told me that I should've kept my legs up so that my legs wouldn't hinder my slideeeeee...so I did as told the next time and WOOSSSSHHHHH...It was SO MUCH FUN!!! I could do it MUCH MUCH better than when I tried miniskiing ---> it was more scary standing up while sliding down and not knowing HOW TO STOP!!!

With my Big Slider, since I was sitting down safely, I could really let myself go...so I kept on going back up the hill and down...WOOOHOOOOO!!!! Unfortunately there're no pics since R2 advised me not to take it up. I'm GLAD I took his advice, remembering how hard it was to get up there without skis. However, I promise that next time I'll take some pics or short video clips, OK?

I'm ordering myself some snow shoes that R2 said would help me go up the hill easily. This is the pic of the snow shoes I ordered (the cheapest pair we've found online HO HO...):



Can't wait to go to the hill again HE HE HE HE HE HE HE...

A New Training Will Begin

OK, time to tell you the reason why I had to make my first Finnish phone call yesterday. Yesterday I got a letter from the unemployment office regarding an opening for a trainee in the local tourist office. Since it's a tourist office, the ability to speak English is absolutely necessary. So I called the woman in charge of it and asked if the opening was still there. She told me to come and meet her this morning.

I had prepared myself well last night with hubby's help. I went through all the usual questions that a future employer might ask. I was surprised that the woman in charge didn't ask too many questions and then we signed a training contract right away he he he...

Above all, the experience will be PRICELESS!!! Plus getting some extra money won't hurt, right? HA HA HA HA HA HA HA...

So I'll start the training on 21st July (after our car trip) and it ends at the end of August, since by then there would be less and less tourists coming. I guess in winter there will be many more tourists coming in. We'll see how it goes.

Tomorrow as usual we're going to my MIL's place and then on Sunday we must rest for the long journey ahead. Hubby has bought a GPS tracking device since we're going to visit new cities. After all, sometimes his job requires him to go to other places, so the device will be useful for him in the long run, not just for this upcoming car trip.

glitter-graphics.com

I'll bring my bikinis with me since there's a swimming pool in the hotel in Oulu. I bought the bikinis on a discount last year after summer was almost over, so I have never had a chance to wear them yet HE HE HE HE HE HE HE...

It's gonna be SO MUCH FUUUUUUUUUUUUUUNNNNNNNNNN!!!!! ;-D This is our first official holiday together after I moved to Finland (that is, after our honeymoon in November 2006!!!!), so I'll make sure to take PLENTY of pictures, okay?

Movie Review: Mindhunters

Yesterday we watched Mindhunters (2005). Granted that it's not a new movie, but if you've never seen it, it's WELL-WORTH seeing!!!

The story started with a group of people being tested by their superior to learn to be profilers. Then they were sent to an island to be trained to do a simulation. However, they didn't know that there was a real killer there. Who's the killer and why is the killer doing all those horrible things to test them?

It was really full-chock of thrilling moments and almost the entire time I sat on the edge of my seat he he he he...Hubby and I discussed who we suspected to be the real killer, so it was FUN, too!!! In the middle of the movie I told him that I hoped the ending was as good he he he...It was a good ending, too, even though it was nothing shocking he he he...

Football Forum

Anybody here a football fan? I myself am not a huge fan of any type of sports, but I know that many people are huge fans of a certain sports group or individual. If you can't live without football and you want to hang around with other football fans, then you can click here to view expert nfl picks, baseball stats, football boards, sports humor, and many more!

Isn't it fun to be able to find "birds of the same feathers"? ;-D Then what else are you waiting for? Go visit the site and join in the fun!

Stealing Kisses on My 2nd Day at the Course

Well, this morning Sleepyhead me had a HAAAARRRDDDDD time waking up. Last night Arttu asked me what time I wanted to get up and I said 7 am. He woke up at around 6.45 am and then my alarm rang twice, at 7 am and 7.10 am, but I fell right back to sleep and managed to dream about something as well!!! I only woke up when Arttu came into the room with a smile on his face HA HA HA HA HA...

THANK YOU SO MUCH, Darling, for waking me up with a smile and not a frown!!! It certainly made my day MUCH sweeter!!!

After I got myself ready and prepared lunch and everything, I realized that Arttu had left his three mobile phones at home. Two of them are his and one of them is from his office. I was wondering whether I should have brought them with me since after all, my classroom is right next to his office. However, I wasn't sure that he would be there (he goes out a lot to fix computers and ATMs in banks or schools, so he doesn't stay in the office all the time). So I just walked to the course. It was -16'C, but funnily enough, I found that it wasn't as freezing as before. Interesting!!! Especially after walking fast for 5 minutes HA HA HA HA HA...

Today's lesson was fun in parts, since there are several funny people in our classroom. We had a few laughs and I'm looking forward to that again. We also conversed during lunch break, so it was good to get to know one another even more, even though I haven't really spoken to some of them yet ha ha ha ha...

And I got to steal a few kisses from Arttu. *HUGE GRIN* -----> This is probably the BEST part of the day HUA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA...

You see, he called me during my lunch break to ask if I wanted to come home with him. I said no since I had packed my lunch already, so he went home by himself to have lunch and when he got back to the office, I was just about to enter my classroom, so we stole a few kisses outside my classroom. And then I went to the toilet and we ran into each other again and I stole a few more kisses OOOOO YEEEEAAAAHHHH!!!! It felt good to feel "naughty" when nobody was looking HA HA HA HA HA HA HA...

Ahem...OK, well, I learnt many more things today, even though I knew most of them already, but I got to learn some more new words and I got to practise speaking to my mate. I sit next to the Turkish guy and he speaks good English, so we always pair up. His wife is Finnish and he's only been here for two weeks. He lives in Ivalo, farther up north in Lapland, but he actually says that Sodankylä is much colder than Ivalo. Interesting!!!

The Thai girl also doesn't live here, so she and the Turkish guy rent an apartment here (different ones, of course). I think the Turkish guy will learn Finnish quickly since he's pretty determined. Plus he obviously has a knack in learning languages, since he is good at English and he also speaks a little bit of different languages. He used to work in a travel agency, so he picked up street languages. He also lived in Germany and Italy once, so he picked up both languages. For someone who hasn't learnt Finnish at all, he's learning very fast. ;-D I think the Thai girl's the only one who's going to be in BIG trouble, since her English isn't good, so it's gonna be SO difficult for her. Poor girl!!!

My Brit friend MC isn't going to my course full-time anymore since she has to take care of her own business, but she's going to come every morning until lunchtime, then she'll go home. Her husband is going to the course full-time, though.

Oh well...I can still follow the lessons pretty well so far, but I need to learn more on my own as well so that I won't be "lost in translation" HA HA HA HA HA HA HA...

Okie dokie, time to blog hop and right after that I'll study and do my homework. It's not a difficult homework yet. I just need to prepare a few questions to ask my desk mate he he he he...

I'm sorry if I can't visit all your blogs every day since I really have less time to blog, but I'm going to try to visit you whenever I have time, OK???

P.S. Today two other books I won in eBay arrived. They're both in PERFECT shape, so I'm REALLY happy. Even though they're used books, they really look like new. Well, one of them is actually new, so it's really a SUPER GOOD bargain he he he he he...

All in all, all's well that ends well. That's my conclusion for today HE HE HE HE...I certainly hope your day's been as fun as mine.

glitter-graphics.com

3BT: December 19, 2007

1. Buying Skype credits to call my parents using my own money (which I got from blogging for money) via Paypal. YIPPPPPPPPIIIIIIIIIIIIIIEEEEEEEE!!!!

2. Feeding hubby some chocolate while he was gaming he he he he he he...

3. Getting an email from my Mom: she said that the other day she went to a resto with Dad, elder sister, elder brother and wife, and Dad's youngest brother. It's always SO nice to hear that they're getting along very well and they're having SO MUCH FUN. It's good to have people to talk to and to have fun with during their old age. Ahhhhh...I can imagine already how wonderful it must've been for them, laughing and talking so much.

4. My sister-in-law also wrote me a short email which made me smile and laugh HE HE HE HE HE HE...

5. Coffee-cream pudding (bought from the supermarket) MMMMMMMMMMMMM...Yum, yum!!!!

Fun Fun Fun

Okay, I know I've only been living together with my hubby for 5 months, but I have to admit it never crossed my mind that marriage life would be or could be SO MUCH FUN, IN and OUT of bed, that is. *wink*

He just brings out the playfulness side of me that only a select few manage to bring out and he told me that I also brought out that side in him. We totally laugh a lot and he's managed to make me laugh SO hard a few times already (it doesn't happen often with other people). I just hope that our marriage will stay this fun together. WHOOOPPPPEEEEEEEEEE!!!!

I have to admit that prior to moving here, I was slightly apprehensive. Once in a while a little voice inside me said, "I wonder when we'd have our first quarrel or fight." The voice stayed there for the first 2 or 3 months, but then after a while I thought to myself that it was so silly to think of bad things. I surely didn't want to "jinx" our relationship by "expecting trouble". And gladly we haven't had any quarrels or fights until now. Disagreements? Sure, but we managed to discuss our differing points of views and wishes. Well, one thing for sure, IF we ever have our first fight or quarrel, I bet you'll be the first ones to know in the blogosphere he he he...Meanwhile I'll just hope for the best and pray that God'll lead me into becoming the best kind of wife I can be.

Btw, the other day my hubby and I watched "Premonition" (starring Sandra Bullock). It wasn't too special, but the movie made me realize that I should really cherish every single moment I have with my hubby since nobody knows when God's going to take him away for good. May I remember this always. *nodding*

Anyway, enough babbling. Just wanna share this song that I thought as one of the "perfect" songs to depict our relationship...I Knew I Loved You (Before I Met You) by Savage Garden. Enjoy it and ENJOY your day!!!

SAVAGE GARDEN lyrics