FLASHBACK #4: Should I Stay Or Should I Go?

Early December 2001 was spent agonising over whether or not I had done the right thing in moving to Finland - work was going okay, but my 'new life' seemed to consist of going to work, the gym and going for walks with my neighbour and her dog! The past had proven my tendency to be impatient, but my thoughts on the matter had progressed so much so that I actually thought of not returning to Finland after the Christmas break.

On the second weekend in December, I went to visit a friend in Helsinki. I had met him in a bar during that weekend I had spent in Helsinki, having just attended the interview for the job in Tampere. We got on really well and he said that if I ever wanted to come down to Helsinki then I was more than welcome to crash at his place. I drove to Helsinki after work one Friday for the first time and got lost! I spent an hour navigating the city's streets and, finally, pulled into my friend's courtyard. The weekend was spent checking out the town by day and partying by night.

Over a liquid dinner, I spoke to my friend about the situation back in Tampere. He said I needed to settle down, do the things I would do back home. He encouraged me to sort out a decent cable TV package, get a home internet connection, invite colleagues to my place for coffee. He was absolutely right; the thing was that I had got so despondent, having had no local guidance whatsoever that I was simply accepting a situation which I had the power to change.

When I returned to Tampere on the Sunday evening, I join my neighbour on one of her evening walks with the dog. I told her about the situation and she urged me again and again to wait until Spring before making a decision. 'You've come to Finland at the worst time of year,' she said, grimacing up at the dark sky '..stick around, you'll see what I mean!'