lunta – MAIINLY VISUAL

If you’ve been wondering what has kept me away from the blog /I’m sure you were worried sick/ it was a mild yet annoying enough case of bronchitis. Or to be more precise, head pounding from sinus headaches. Things seem to be somehow better now, so I took a chance and stepped out of my den yesterday.

And my roads led to… the supermarket. I took the sightseeing tour though and got to enjoy the snow for the first time since it arrived. Oh and it was wonderful. Together with my (almost complete) recovery other things happened in my semi-personal life which enhanced my general well-being, the walk in the sun somewhere in Oittaa put me back on the right track and helped bat all the worries and ugly away. Life is fine again.

First, I found myself at the end of the world.

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Turned myself around and saw the silent faces under the snow blanket…

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And now, check out the snow: how does it even stay on those almost vertical branches? What a marvelous result of the wind force combined with the gravity and the way snowflakes hit the branches!

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At the risk of being Captain Obvious, snow equals winter for me. And melting snow and icicles equals spring. This, however, is not the case any more in central Europe or the UK, so hey yet another reason to be glad about living up North! To be honest with you, they promised rain and above-zero temperatures again next week, so soon we will say goodbye to this shiny sign of Yuletid, illuminating the otherwise rather dark land- and cityscapes. The snow, too, shall pass. And come again when it really is the time.

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What else – I’m currently working on a several art projects which are kind of secret (Christmas, baby) and pretty messy, but hopefully worth it. They include (in no particular order) metal, lino, a pack of styluses, paint and woolen thread.

And hoping I get my other camera working for a good cause – hope someone will get to use it soon and will share the results with us. *drinking a glöggi toast to that as I “speak”*

I’m back in Helsinki after a wonderful trip to Lapland, and the homesickness stroke again just a day after we came back to the capital. Lapland will always remain the place where my body, mind and heart are completely free; a place on Earth like no other.

And for the tourist in us, whom I believe all of us cherish: yes, there were reindeers. Of course I saw zero reindeer in the wilderness, however, I fed, stroked and cuddled a few of them, now how great is that.

I learned that the best things in life are for free – or they cost 3 €. While on painkiller and muscle relaxant high (migraine), a few weeks back I bought this jumper at the local second-hand store: grey, oversized (or maybe it was just placed on a wrong rack, it was a regular men-sized winter garment) knitted jumper with reindeer pattern and a wind-proof insert. Woolmark. A Finnish product of the 90s I believe for mere 3€ – and my absolute favourite piece of clothing in Lapland! I felt warm and cosy wearing it as a top layer and – most importantly – it made me stood out from the crowds of tourists. I felt so local…

… another one of my 3 € swags was a bag of lichen I bought at the Sámiland museum in Levi, aka Lappish Disneyland and a destination for party skiers, aka a place to avoid – or at least close your eyes while passing downtown Levi on the way to the slopes or treks. Sámiland is a sub-par museum about Sámi culture, and it is located in the basement of a hotel situated right on one of Levi’s slopes. You got the idea. So we got the tickets (or Museokortit) and a bag of lichen, please, because there were reindeers in the outside part of the museum! And they were so much fun to hassle with. When I grow up I will get myself a reindeer, or rather, I’d be taking care of one as reindeers don’t belong to anyone but the nature.

Now, what next is there? Some creative work, some academic work, and getting used to above zero temperatures. And I promise that this year I won’t miss the moment of Finnish spring.