NORMAL LIFE: Finland re-elects current President

Last night saw the second round of elections for the Finnish Presidency. Voter turnout was 77.1% and resulted in the re-election of left-winger Tarja Haloneon for a second six year term. It's believe that Sauli Niinistö (Tarja's only opponent) support of NATO on the foreign policy front (Finland shares an 800-mile border with Russia) may have hampered his chances of election.

Having spoken to many friends over the last few weeks about the upcoming elections, many remained undecided on who to vote for so it's no suprise that the presidency was narrowly won with Halonen
receiving just 51.8% of the votes. My boyfriend is so pissed off by the outcome and after Tarja Halonen came on TV to thank international journalists for their coverage, I shared his view. What did she have to say to the international audience? As Finland's first woman president elected six years ago, she raised her index finger (indicating she was number one) and claimed that her re-election was a massive victory for women.

What possessed her to express her feminist attitude in front of a group of international journalists is beyond me. When I met Tarja Halonen outside the Stadium Swimming Pool last summer, she was very approachable and down to earth. What I saw on TV last night was a hard-faced feminist cow. Without a bit of luck, we'll get a much better looking President in six years time!

BBC Article: Finns Narrowly Relect Halonen - http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/4659628.stm

NORMAL LIFE: Who remembers Connect 4?

Do you remember that game with two players (using either red or yellow pieces) where you had to get four pieces in a row either vertically, horizontally or diagonally? I remember spending a good deal of my childhood playing that game; every household seemed to have one and it was something you played when you visited friends as it was quick and easy to assemble; these were the days just before the Amstrad and Commodore personal computers arrived!

Before returning to Finland, I was out with my eldest sister one afternoon and, in a store, I noticed that they STILL sell this game! For fun, she thought it would make an ideal Christmas present. Christmas day came and, at the age of 28, I became the owner of Connect 4!

It has surprised me how few people in Finland have even heard of this game while it was a runaway success in the UK. Connect 4 rocks! Or at least it did when I was eight years old! I played it a couple of days ago with a Finnish friend of mine and we had a right giggle - we got so competitive that we had to put it away!

NORMAL LIFE: Australia, my only regret

My friend will have been in Australia for a week by now. He moved there after being offered a four year contract by PriceWaterhouseCoopers. How I envy him, as I look out the window and all I can see are slushy puddles of melted snow. I checked online and Sydney is enjoying sunny temperatures of 30°C. Here, it is -5°C.


When I returned to the UK last Autumn, going to Australia for a year was one of my options. I even applied for a one year Working-Holiday Visa. The day I received confirmation of my visa being granted, however, I decided that I wanted to give things in Finland a go; I had a past there that I felt was worth preserving.

Leaving Finland last Autumn was a major regret of mine and I have put that right by moving back. The price for returning was not going to Australia whilst I had the opportunity. I have wanted to go to Australia since I was 19, but somehow I never plucked up the courage to travel that far alone.

I look forward to the day when I see my friend again. I'm sure he will have lots to tell me about Australia.

NORMAL LIFE: Some photos for a change

I don't want my posts to be all text so I've attached some photos that I took nearly one year ago in Kauppatori. These were all taken on the same misty morning, the sky turning blue as the mist blew out to sea.

NORMAL LIFE: There's something you should know

The purpose of this BLOG was to recall and document the wonderful experiences from my first four years in Finland. At some point, the mix of entries relating to the past and present will 'meet up' and this will then become a 'current day BLOG'.

Over the past few weeks, I have been scribbling down notes on what I would like to include in this BLOG. In order to share the finer details of the many experiences, I need to share somthing very personal with you. The thing that I wish to share with you affects my everyday life so it's difficult to share things 'in-context' without informing you, my reader, of something that has a fundamental affect on my life.

The fact is I am gay. For those of you who disapprove, yes, it is true: I am a shirt-lifter, a fairy, a poofter. Before you judge me, however, or make certain assumptions, I am not your typical gay - I don't sing YMCA as I walk down the street nor I wear tight clothes, sound feminine when I speak or cut hair for a living; there's plenty of those 'in-your-face' types, but I'm simply not one of them. I don't consider my sexuality to be a big thing, but it is part of who I am and it often affects where I go and what I do. Ultimately, honesty is the best policy, and I hope you continue to read this online account of the last four fantastic years.

Now that I can be honest with you, you'll notice some dramatic changes in the entries that follow, shortly leading to the Spring of 2002 when I met my boyfriend; we are still together today, facing life's daily challenges with eachothers support, love and attention.

NORMAL LIFE: Back in the classroom

I started studying Finnish again today - I thought I would do Level 2 again, just to go over some of the stuff I have already learnt. When I got to the course centre today, my old teacher greeted me back into the fold with hugs and kisses. She is lovely, she really is.

As the lesson unfolded, it materialised just how much I had forgotten over the last year. The teacher revealed what we would be learning: postpositiot, astevaihletu, objekti and partitiivi! Don't ask - I've had enough for one day.

Anyway, I will leave you with winter picture I took a couple of years ago by the sea, overlooking people walking on the ice at a place called Kaivopuisto!

NORMAL LIFE: Feeling old

Is it just a mometary feeling or am I suddenly getting old? A very dear friend of mine from Tampere called me this morning to tell me her news: she's pregnant with a second child and over the moon. I am overjoyed for her too.

Only last week, however, I called an old colleague who also lives in Tampere. I knew she had a baby girl just last Summer, but the two guys we worked with in Tampere have also got married and had kids too!

Where am I going with this? Well, at 28, I was the oldest in my department yet all the others have got educations, got married and have started families. Am I missing something, or is it cultural?!

NORMAL LIFE: Cold weather continues

Yesterday was a cool -12ºC, but today when I woke up, it had topped (or more like dropped to) -23ºC. While yesterday morning, I was calmly and patiently taking deeps breaths while waiting for the tram, this morning I was wondering where the fuck it was!

My day at work was rather uneventful - I have been there more than a week now and, sometimes, the lack of information just overwhelms me. However, I take the view that it's a two month contract and I must do the best I can in that time.

On my way home, as the train came to one of the stops, a guy stepped in and his glasss instantly steamed up. I just wish I got a picture of him as it looked quite funny! -23ºC, eh? Apparently, it's going to be -25ºC tomororow! Aaaggghhh!

NORMAL LIFE: Weekend in England

I arrived back in Helsinki at 1am this morning after a long weekend in London. I arrived there last Friday and went straight to a friends house in South London to drop off my luggage and shower before heading out to Soho for a wild night out. My friend had organised a farewell party - he will be moving to Australia for four years this Friday. The evening began at 6pm and ended at 4am. I was pissed out of my head at one point and had to go back to water. We spent most of the evening in one bar, followed by a dancing frenzy down Tottenham Court Road. Only three of us actually lasted until 4am!!

The next morning, I headed to the family home, just north of London. Waiting for me was my parents, both of my sisters, my brother-in-law and my gorgeous two year old niece. We had a great catching-up session, before I spent the night at my sister's place. We just relaxed, making ourselves a nice dinner while catching up with the celebs on TV. Later, I crammed even more of my possessions into the two suitcases I had bought from Finland. We watched this horror film called 'Dog Soldiers', a low-budget werewolf movie set in Scotland - it's a movie with a twist which kind of makes up for its low budget look.

Sunday was spent shopping with my sister, briefly visiting my parents (for yet more tea!) and then the cinema. We watched 'Cheaper By The Dozen 2' with Steve Martin. That guy cracks me up every time and his return to the role as a dedicated, but crazed father of twelve is perfect for him. Go and see it!

On Monday, I started to get myself organised, collecting everything I wanted to take back to Finland with me. Ironically, the lump in my throat that had been bothering me for two weeks had finally emerged as a full blown throat and ear infection of some kind. I started dosing myself up beechams powders and Gee's linctus, determined to get myself back home. As the pile of stuff I wanted to take back to Finland started to pile up, I started to get anxious so I asked my Dad if he would give me a lift to the airport. Fortunatetly, he said yes! I was saved!

To cut a long story short, I headed to the airport after lunchtime yesterday. My Dad and I were listening to CDs on the way to the airport and had a bit of a singalong. One thing I've notice about my Dad as he gets older is that, while he is mellowing in some ways, he's increasingly agitated and stressed about things that really aren't important. He's become almost paranoid about safety, but more about that later. When we got to the airport, it was more than four hours before my flight would depart. I checked in, but the girl said I wouldn't be able to check the bags in just yet. Apparently, I was 41 kilos overweight and I was to pay a 10 kilo excess baggage charge of £90! I pulled a fast one when, just after 4pm, I checked my bags in without paying the charge at the local Travelex office. They didn't pick up on it and I can't tell you how relieved I was when my luggage came through in Helsinki! Ha ha!

When I woke up this morning, the 18th January, it was -12 degrees, dark as usual with strong gusts of wind. While I was standing at the tram stop, I felt content. I was home once again!

NORMAL LIFE: First day in new job!

Started a short-term contract today, working for a pharmaceutical company in Helsinki. It went rather well - the job relies on knowledge I acquired 2-4 years so, throughout the day, I was constantly recalling things. Perhaps that's why my head hurts a bit right now!

The really refreshing thing, however, was to hear staff laughing joyfully in the corridors - in my last job, this was practically unheard of. So, nice people and feeling a bit useful. Not a bad start!

ANNOUNCEMENT: My good news!

I won't beat about the bush as I have good news. After just 19 days back in Finland, I received news today that I will start a two month contract with a pharmaceutical company in Helsinki next Monday. With nearly 10% of Finland's working population unemployed, the speed at which this assignment came to me was quite a surprise. A pleasant one, though!

As one of my best friends explained: "the social security system is too generous in Finland so why would someone take on just a two month assignmnet?" Apparently, according to the BBC, Matti Vanhanen - who became Finland's Prime Minister in June 2003 - has made 'tackling unemployment one of his priorities'. Doing a wonderful job, just like Tony Blair, I see! Anyway, I'll get off my political soapbox.

So, there's money coming in and, more importantly, I can concentrate on maintaining my skills. I will miss the daytime naps and the spare time for studying, but working is where the 'real world' is. Turning into a 32 year old Finnish 'student' just wouldn't be my style!