NORMAL LIFE: A 70th, a 30th, a (mistaken) 40th And My Father!

June has been an expensive month. First, came Bree's mother's 70th. I paid a visit to the family summer cottage, laden with gifts for his graceful mother who, at 70, looks fantastic and is as energetic as ever. I met some of Bree's relatives and spent some time chatting the with his cousins who, at 40-odd, were of the generation in Finland who could converse in English.

Bree's cousins know the score regarding us but, ever-so-polite as ever, were happy to engage in small talk to pass the time. One of Bree's second cousins, aged 16, was about to embark on a three-week trip to Torquay, Devon, in England's West Country. I spent many summers there as a child and I was full of advice for the eager-to-listen, young lady!

A week later came the 30th birthday of Miss Knight, Finland's very own Kylie Minogue! I attended a small bash at her home in Munkkivuori - altogether, there were ten of us and I got talking to a very lively and chatty young lady from Imatra. I have actually had bad experience with people who come from Imatra which is in the East of Finland near Russia, but this young lady proved to be different. Later in the evening, we headed to Stockholm Disco in Helsinki's Yrjönkatu, one of the tasteful backstreets in the centre of the city; the atmosphere was very different to what I was used to. After all, this was a straight bar! A huge dancefloor packed with lot's of new faces and a refreshingly different style of music made for a great night of partying.

I left the party after 2am, heading to a nearby gay bar that Bree and I regularly frequented. When I arrived, there was a huge queue of some 50+ people. Through the dark tinted glass, however, I could see Bree sitting near the bar. I knocked on the window, got another patron's attention and gestured for him to tap Bree on the shoulder! With my perfect signing and gesturing, it worked; within seconds, Bree had asked the doorman if it was possible to let me in. When the doorman agreed, I felt so special - yet awkward - to pass the people in the queue to enter the club. Bree gave me a lingering, welcoming kiss. We didn't leave until 3.30am and, on the way home, we got some meat and potatoes which is something we rarely do. Stuffed, we rolled into bed after 5am. By now, dawn had broken and the sky was brightening once again.

On the third weekend of June, I paid a surprise visit to the UK. I boarded the relatively cheap Ryanair flight in Tampere, having had a meal with my old Neighbour and Blue. Onboard, I planned to have a drink, but when I was told that a Bacardi and Coke would cost £4.90 and that they wouldn't serve ice with it, I felt like telling the stewardess to @&%! off! As a low-cost airline, they have to make their money somehow so it made me laugh when I found this joke about Ryanair online:

I slept for most of the flight and, when I arrived at 23.45, Stansted was packed. To cut a long story short, I had flown into the UK to surprise my parents (it was the weekend when it was Father's Day) and to attend a friend's 40th birthday. When I turned up on my parent's doorstep with a newspaper for my Dad and a bouquet of flowers for my Mum the next morning, they were definitely surprised! At first, my Mum's jaw dropped open - her first thought was I had left Finland again! Hilarious!

We spent the day together, chatting away, drinking copious amounts of tea (as you do in England!). In the evening, my two sisters and my brother-in-law and my gorgeous little neice descended on the family home and we had a takeaway and some drinks in the lovely garden; the weather was fab, bordering on pleasantly warm with frequent bursts of humidity. I remember the hilarious point when my brother-in-law was spinning my neice by the arms and, upon her return to the ground, she would get dizzy, unable to maintain her balance. I know it sounds creul, but she loved it and we loved it even more for she was so funny!

The next morning, I popped into town with the younger of my two sisters to buy the last of the things I needed before boarding the 13:03 train to London. From there, I took the Underground to Victoria before boarding another train to West Norwood. A bit of a trek, but a worthwhile one for it would unite me with my friend Nick once again. From an earlier Flashback (click here), you'll remember Hill and, from this posting (click here), you'll remember the guy who moved to Australia. Well, through Hill, I met the guy who moved to Australia and, through the guy who moved to Australia, I met Nick.

What can I say about Nick? Slightly shorter than average, Nick is a guy with a heart of gold. He's constantly looking out for his friends and, as friends go, is incredibly discreet and reliable. To top it off, he's just downright funny. I had actually flown into the country to celebrate his 40th birthday, or so I thought. Laden with gifts and a 40th birthday card, I cracked up when he told me he was 39! He was 40 next year, he claimed! Embarrassed, I gave him a hug and apologised. What am I like, eh?! We laughed it off. As a result, the evening wasn't the wild affair normally associated with such a milestone birthday. However, we had a great afternoon attending a Gaydar street party in Clapham. We headed home about 11pm, opened a bottle of wine and played ABBA music and Kylie DVDs. How gay!

The next morning, I woke up at 9am and it was at this point that I was glad that we hadn't gone overboard the night before. I called Bree - I missed his voice and, when he picked up the phone, he was driving to the summer cottage. He would only be about 100 kilometres from Tampere (the airport I was flying back to) so he told me that he would collect me in the evening. Awww! When Nick woke up, we prepared an English breakfast with all the trimmings: eggs, bacon, sausages, beans, toast and tea! Yum!

I set off about 1pm, bound for Stansted airport. Taking a bus from West Norwood, I got on the Victoria Line at Brixton all the way to Tottenham Hale. From there, I took the Stansted Express, a quick, easy and relatively cheap ride to the airport. An old friend of mine who lived near the airport came by for a cup of tea and, before long, it was time to go through security and board my flight.

The flight went very quickly and, as we approached Tampere, I marvelled at the many lakes below specked with the warm glow that was the last of the day's sun, conscious of the fact that the following weekend would be MidSummer and that, thereafter, the darkness reminiscent of a Finnish winter would slowly return to the land. Despite this, as the craft continued its descent, I knew that in my heart I was home once again.