This year, I did it my way

Another year is drawing to a close. I just read through my Word-diary and made a little thinking as to sum up this year. My plan exactly a year ago was to stay in one place for a year and study hard: a plan that came true. Now my thoughts are circling around the future and, of course, traveling. I´m leaving again for sure, but don´t know where yet. I feel like I´ve seen all Vaasa has to give to me and it´s time to move on. The world is bustling all around.

 

This year I´ve had a lot of time to think what I want. My mind is constantly mulling over two opposites: peaceful and easy life against exciting adventures in the world. I´m seeing more and more people who don´t recognize the existence of the latter. It´s overwhelming how many people are depending on material or ego, how nobody questions anything nor listen to him/herself. And I never cease to wonder how much those people who don´t travel miss out. How people just worry about money, looks, work or health. How we look for answers from outside while all the answers are within ourselves. Can we not see good in what we have? Can we not be content with just our existence without analyzing and calculating all the time and discovering ourselves unhappy over and over again?

And moreover, I´m amazed how people want to "get there". For many people I suppose that means permanent job and permanent spouse. They are surely great things to have, but why are there still so many unhappy people, even married? Nothing is permanent. Even a relationship is an "external factor" that doesn´t solve anything as it is. Why are we so scared to be alone with ourselves? Why do we need a profession or a spouse to define ourselves? Meet the person inside you, that you are. What if you were alone and homeless? Would you be less worthy as a person or would you have smaller ability to see beauty around or be happy about little things? Would you have less curiosity and will to learn and develop yourself? Would you love yourself less?

Next year I want to get closer to the person inside of me. That person may be angry or even ridiculous. She is hopefully less egocentric and more tolerable to all kinds of people. Less jealous and judging. That person would be more like an observer of the world and not always running after achievements. She would have the right to change her opinion. She would be brave.

This year I´ve noticed better than ever how good nutrition is a key to a good life. Quality thinking has changed my life for good. Sometimes I feel really alone with my opinions but I can only keep setting example. I know there are more and more people who are aware of holistic health and real well-being.

Many foods I ate ten years ago with good appetite would disgust me these days. And how much better I feel now! Many years I used pain killers on weekly basis because I though it was normal to have headaches. I was tired in the afternoons and depressed by dark winters. Now I enjoy whatever the year brings. Quality in nutrition made such a big change in my life that I improved the quality in other fields, too. I feel like a whole person, both physically and mentally. I feel I can do anything.

Have the best new year ever !!

Gingerbread !

On Independance Day I decided to make some sweet treats for me and my dinner guest. I´ve been wanting to make gingerbread from the scratch, and now that I found a nice recipe online I could realize my plan. The original recipe belongs to Olga and it doesn´t contain the two baddies, white sugar or white flour. This gingerbread is really delicious and the texture is great if you bake them just for as little time as possible. Here´s the recipe translated and modified by me:

Anne´s Gingerbread

1,5dl agave syrup/maple syrup/honey
4tsp gingerbread seasoning (cardamon, clove, cinnamon, ginger)
100g butter
1 egg
1dl cane sugar
4,5dl spelt flour
1tsp baking soda

1. Heat up the syrup with the spices, don´t boil.

2. Chop the butter into dices and stir into the hot syrup. Cool down.

3. Beat the egg and the sugar until foamy.

4. Mix the egg foam with the syrup.

5. Add in the flour mixed with soda.

6. The dough will be quite runny but it´ll firm up in the fridge overnight. After that you still have to work some more flour into it while rolling it.

7. Bake in 175 degrees for about 9 minutes or until light brown.

Way better than ready gingerbread doughs!

Crafts and winter spirits

Winter came with a bang! Alteration in the temperature within last week was something like 20 degrees. This week Vaasa got cold greetings from Siberia and I had to go to uni in -15. In spite of that, I get by well wearing my sheep skin overcoat. It´s a lifesaver! Even in this weather I love strolling by the sea...

Cinnamon and icing sugar?

Sea freezing in

Delayed winter fur

Last week I received the most lovely parcel. A handmade notebook from Russia! Behind this is Elena whom I met a couple of summers ago in Greece. We had the best time under the sun of Kefalonia! Elena makes the most beautiful notebooks ever, check out her fb-page: http://www.facebook.com/lisalena.books
Whats makes this book ever more special is that the stone holding the ribbon is from where else than Kefalonia...

 Moving on. I love making things too, not as advanced though as Elena... I´ve been making a lot of Christmas cards, decorations and random paper crafts. I want to show my favourite Christmas decorations: the Swedish paperheart and the Finnish himmeli. Explanation for my Germanic friends:

Himmeli ist eine aufwendige Bastelei aus Stroh, die in Finnland und Schweden eine beliebte Weihnachtsdekoration darstellt.

Julhjärta

At Eija Koski´s himmeli exhibition

 And finally, a greeting for all the Finns or like-minded...

Journey

Lingering and aimless roaming is underrated.

Today´s world is all about competition, success and winning. One has to be useful, preferably make a lot of money. You have to know yourself and your wants and needs. What will you do when you grow up, people ask playfully while being serious.

Too many plans kill creativity and leave no room for surprises. When you don´t make plans, anything can happen. It´s up to you whether this phrase is negative or positive.

Isn´t it more exciting when you don´t know exactly what your destination is?

Season greetings

It´s here. That season. Season of consumerism. I know, I know; I not going to preach about materialism right now. I know you all know it´s bad and terrible. I want to focus on the positive side even though I´m not so into Christmas myself. I don´t know why, maybe because there´s so much hustle and buzzle and so many norms and expectations.

I don´t like Christmas traditions so much. For many years I felt uncomfortable about going to the Christmas service. Thank god (pun intended) I´m not obliged to do that anymore as I´m not even a member of the parish.

However, I´ve had quite a christmasy feeling lately. I like the atmosphere around this time: days are getting shorter and shorter and we´re expecting the winter to begin for real. Today the temperature plunged down to -6 and there was slight snow fall. There was thin ice on the bay. Also, it feels more and more cosy to stay at home and do some handicrafts, maybe light candles. There are Christmas lights here and there. Even my good old sour neighbour lit a fir tree at the foot of the porch! How sweet.

 

Today I was at a café and thought how lucky I am, being able to have a coffee in peace, watching the daylight drawing in. First snow is another moment I really enjoy. There´s something grand about it. More good moments, less rush and materialism.

P.S. Tomorrow is the Finnish "Buy Nothing Day"!   

Stress and all of his friends

A couple of weeks back I was sitting on my sofa and thought about all the things I should get done. My hands were shaking. At night it was hard to fall asleep. I was undergoing stress.

Me - stressed out? But I´m the most chilled person I know!

It turns out that I was also a "victim" of the performance oriented society that we live in. I was worried about not keeping up the pace and falling behind. What was I worried about in fact? Would something bad happen if I didn´t leave a paper in time, if I didn´t go to the gym or if I didn´t prepare so well for a presentation? Even if something negative would result, is it worth getting worried sick?

Stress is indeed a sickness. Nonetheless, it´s not uncommon to hear stories about stress from friends and acquaintances. About personal experiences. Headaches and insomnia. Hair loss and appetite loss. I think stress is very very harmful if it continues for longer time. I experienced stress only for three days. After getting better I wondered why I was ever so stressed out. It´s just not worth it. If there are too many things to do you can always ignore the less important ones.

Once again, I realize the importance of slowing down life in general and taking time for listening to yourself and just being. Meditation is great but unfortunately I don´t do it very often. Instead, yoga or stretching can be as good. Anything that makes you relax and appreciate the present. As that feeling you get while e.g. meditating remains. It brings peace of mind. 

Stress and its physical symptoms illustrate well the connection between body and mind. Optimal health means both physical and mental well-being. Even more important is the mental one because everything we do happens first in our mind. That´s where everything sprouts from. The mind can make us exceed our physical abilities (not other way around) and that alone is pretty amazing.

I´m expanding on the topic so I leave it here...

Peace.  

Green is the new black

http://positivenews.org.uk/2011/wellbeing/lifestyle/4244/ten-reasons-green-people-are-happier/

I hung this article up on the toilet wall in my parents´ house when I last came back from England. I guess it´s something I hope everyone would take the time to read. The argument goes like this: green people are happier than those who don´t care about the environment. The article is written from a British point of view but all the points are universal and relevant in many cultures so I want to sum it up here for those who are too lazy to open the link. Shame on you. 
 

 1. Living a more local life

Yes, happiness can be grown beneath your very feet. By spending less time on commuting/other travel we have.. more time for our free time and socializing. Supporting local producers help to create a thriving community which brings us to...

2. More vibrant healthy communities

Collaboration is one important aspect of eco living. Having a safe community where you can feel togetherness increases happiness for sure.

3. Human powered transport

I don´t have to justify the health benefits of any sport, let alone the mental benefits.

4. Connection to the natural world

If there really is someone who doesn´t like nature can sign up in the comment box. Growing stuff makes you happy and appreciating nature makes you realize how wonderful things you are surrounded by. 

5. Choice pruning

This is a very interesting point: having too much choice makes you frustrated. When you´re leading an ecological life, it´s a lot more simple.

6. Less materialistic

It´s evident that material things don´t make you happy in a long run. “The richer the society and its individuals become, the less purchasable are the goals that bring them happiness” - so true!

7. Enjoyable pursuits

Abandoning materialistic values releases your energy and time to other things like number eight. Doing things the we truly enjoy, rather than chasing external rewards, brings us real happiness.

8. Personal development

When humans meet their basic needs they can pursue "higher ones". Personal growth increases the quality of life and makes you generally appreciate life more. By taking actions for others out of intrinsic motivation can make your life a lot more fulfilled.

9. Social actualisation

Seeking individual well-being and valuing human relationships. Need I say more?

10. Transcendence

Realizing that all existence forms an unity, we can feel belonging to the universe rather than alienation and anguish. Learning to love and nourish our environment can be a great source of joy. "The future is ours to co-create."

For suga monsters alike

A couple of week ago I sat in the basement of the local eco shop listening to a bright-eyed man in his sixties talking about sugar. But not the sugar most people know, the white unhealthy stuff. The man was Matti Kuosmanen who imports whole cane sugar to Finland. He´s done research in Bolivia and knows a whole lot about the history of sugar and its health effects.

Whole cane sugar has been used in many ancient cultures as a remedy. It has many healing effects and it e.g prevents caries (!). I already mentioned the people of Okinawa in my previous post about longevity. Well, the same long-living people use cane sugar. It´s also an Ayurvedic remedy.

What I learned from Matti Kuosmanen was astonishing. I knew about cane sugar before but didn´t know it has such amazing super powers. It, for example...

- relieves stress

- energizes

- balances hydration and blood sugar

- is a source of iron and raises hemoglobin

- provides nutrition for cells (especially in spinal discs)

- provides minerals* (white sugar contains zero minerals)

- balances pH (cane sugar is a base so it´s perfect for coffee and meat consumers)

Word of warning: not all brown sugar is whole cane sugar! Matti Kuosmanen claimed that many brown sugars in the market are fake and they can actually be bleached and coloured with molasses. Real cane sugar is sand-like powder with a light brown tone. Sure thing it´s more expensive because the production is very very slow and is done manually. But I reckon the perks are worth it... 

I dumped white sugar a good while ago and these days I immediately notice the peak in my blood sugar after some sweet treat. There are so many healthy sweeteners available now so I don´t know why anyone would use white sugar any more...?

*Mineral deficiency is said to cause numerous health problems so it´s worth looking into as well.

A great drink for afternoon fatigue

glass of water (hot or cold)
big pinch of Himalayan salt (or other unrefined food quality salt)
2 tbsp (or more) cane sugar

Stir and enjoy the rest of the autumn with full energy! 

Killing time for longevity

I don´t understand the concept of hobbies. Why do we have to have hobbies? Do we have to fill our free time with activities that pursue self-improvement? Isn´t free time supposed to be what it´s called: free time. Hobby sounds like something you have to do regularly, like defrosting the freezer. 

I don´t think I have to justify the fact that relaxing and not doing anything is good for you. We live in such a competitive and busy world that occasional sitting down and watching the grass grow is more than welcome. I was so happy when a friend returning from holiday answered my question "what did you do" with a mere "nothing". That´s right and worthy!

I don´t get it why we always have to do something useful or developing. Take sports for example. I think it has stolen a way too big limelight in people´s lifestyle. A simple-minded might think that exercise equals health. No way is it so easy. I´ve met too many people whose health has been ruined because of doing too much sports over too many years. Humans are not meant to do heavy sports regularly. Why is there a saying "an athlete doesn´t see a healthy day"? I hereby condemn competitive sports.

Is cooking my hobby if I enjoy it but it also keeps me alive?

Actually I´m more for just being active in a way that our ancestors were. I assume the early humans moved around a lot gathering food, lifting and carrying things, hunting a little bit (not chasing animals though) and maybe building something. I don´t think anyone was obliged to run very long distances.

I´m also inspired by the longevity of people in Okinawa, a Japanese island where lives the most long-living people in the world. People there live in a very simple and traditional way, fishing and small-scale farming. They don´t go to the gym. They get their exercise from daily life, or maybe some folk dance...

Another secret to Okinawan longevity is said to be socializing. I´ve sometimes heard Finnish people judging the custom in southern cultures of sitting around and "slacking". Yes, you mostly see youngsters and immigrants hanging out in my town, while the majority of the population is rushing about and running errands. It´s so sad all this "hanging around" is seen as a negative thing. I would rather see more of it - socializing with no specific aim. It promotes good health and is the most natural, and the oldest, way of passing time.

The end.

Can we chill out more?

Amazing

Human is a weird animal. It´s amazing...

...how much food men can stuff themselves with. (Witnessed a guy shoveling at least one kilo of mashed potatoes on his plate at the uni canteen.)

...how some people go jogging even if there´s a storm of some kind and everyone else would rather lock themselves in the house. (This manifests possibly the Norwegian outdoor attitude: there´s no bad weather, only bad clothes.)

...how some girls think they´re fat even though they´re lean as a moose meat. ("My belly wrinkles when I sit!")

...how many spelling mistakes a grown-up person can make. (Was he working at the field while others went to school?)

...how some people think they have to remain the same throughout their whole life. (Hipsters are probably mainstream one day...)

Arabic nights

Women outside the mosque

You might end up in the most unexpectable places and meet people you´d never meet otherwise if you every now and then let someone else decide. To be honest, I wasn´t so enthusiastic about travelling to Egypt but since my sisters wanted to go there I went along. We ended up having great time in a culture that is very very different and therefore so utterly fascinating. The mix of arabic and western lifestyle is controversial but egyptians don´t seem to mind. I´ve been interested in arabic and eastern cultures for quite a while and this was a perfect field trip as the country is not too shocking for a European.

The arrival alone was pretty breath-taking. Landing to Cairo in the middle of the night and immediately going sailing on the Nile in the moonlight... wow! We can thank our friend in Cairo for a lot of amazing things we experienced, this was only one of them. We continued to the South, Sharm el-Sheikh, where we spent the three first days. Riding a bus through the Sinai peninsula was the first time I ever saw a real desert. Just some checkpoints and gunmen here and there, lot of rubbish and half-finished houses. On the bus there were mostly men, just a few had their wives with them.

The area where we stayed in Sharm el-Sheikh is an artifical tourist village filled with British and Russian tourists. I can´t recommend going to Naama Bay but the presence of Red Sea was enough to keep me happy. We went snorkeling and watching corals which was probably the highlight.

A constant nuisance were countless salesmen and restaurant staff who were after our money. I developed a way to ignore their blabbering even though it was hard. It´s even harder for girls and that´s why I always wore long skirts and scarves as not to awake so much attention.

The polluted Cairo

Back in Cairo we had the sweetest host, an American expat. She was a proof that a western girl can live independently amid a culture ruled by men. We also made other new friends and found that egyptians are very hospitable and friendly towards tourists. I made an effort and tried to speak Arabic which everyone always found hilarious, including me.

Kheops

We did the usual things, you know, saw the pyramids, rode camels, smoked a lot of shisha, drank tea, went to a museum, visited mosques, bargained at the bazaar, belly danced... Pyramids look like just heaps of ancients rocks but when you think about their age and the history it´s pretty impressive. We also went inside the biggest pyramid, Kheops. There was nothing in the chamber, surprisingly or not.

Visiting mosques was more special for me. It´s so fascinating to visit such a holy place, a place where people actually go and pray. The mosque of Mohammad Ali was the most impressive one. Somehow being there was such a beautiful moment. Taking our shoes off, just watching in awe all the lights in the ceiling, speaking sounds echo back from the dome muffled and then suddenly the prayer call comes, loud and clear.

In Egypt it seems that islam is present in peoples everyday life which makes it a "proper" religion in my eyes, compared to the way people practice religion in Finland for example. Also, meeting muslims that are also really great people could be an eye-opener to any westerner who bases his opinion on the mainstream media... 

Inside a mosque

For me it was awesome that people could spend time late in the night without drinking alcohol. We would sit outside in a café smoking shisha and drinking tea and it was completely normal. I would love to do such things in Finland.

After the mosque of Mohammad Ali, my favourite place was the big bazaar Khan el-Khalili. It´s a labyrinth of little shops selling jewelry, shisha, copper, leather, farbric, souvenirs, spices, silver, gold and a lot more. There I practiced my bargaining skills big time with more and less success. It´s another world.  After that I was happy that here in Finland prices are pretty much fixed.

At the bazaar

Egypt is so much more than a beach holiday. Everything´s upside down, the traffic is crazy as if people didn´t know about accidents. It´s ridiculously hot all the time. Cairo is dirty, chaotic, vibrant, noisy, colourful and always open. Men have beautiful brown eyes and long lashes. Go to Egypt and prepare for adventure. 

Run like you mean it

My philosophy is to do everything and try everything. There´s nothing that can stop me and when I look back I see that I have indeed done quite a lot of stuff. My trip to Greece was even a subject of an article in a paper because the editor thought “I do such interesting things”. Yes, and why wouldn´t everyone else!

Work is often an obstacle for people not doing things they really want. Work is just a means to make money so you could have a roof over your head, food and then: do things you like. It´s dead simple. No one has to work all the time for all their life. Really. Unfortunately not everyone thinks I´m supposed to have life outside work. I´d rather be a little lazy and selfish than try to collect cool work certificates. Because when you work, you sell your time and freedom for a certain amount of money. On one hand there´s money and on the other there´s time. Which one is more important?

Time is my friend, that I know for sure, and it´s precious. I feel sorry for people who don´t know how to occupy themselves on their free-time. It´s extremely important to have things you can be passionate and excited about.

One of my top joys in life is physical activity. It´s pretty awesome being able to run fast, climb, swim and so on and so forth. I don´t know why anyone wouldn´t take advantage of all that. That adrenaline kick I get from sports is so invigorating. Best way to feel alive again after a long day at uni. And I´m not talking about aimless jogging on a treadmill while watching Friends - I´m more for going out and doing real things like running in a forest, climbing and working out with my hands or feet on the ground.

Adrenaline is sweet. I wonder why they don´t sell it in cans.

It´s pretty useful to do things that stir you or frighten you. It´s another thing I learned from the inspirational Viidakkomies. Everyone knows how good it feels after a presentation in front of a class or stuff like that. I´m unable to explain it further but it´s just good to do daring stuff. What is daring is also travelling, leaving your comfort zone literally. I´ve deliberately made myself enough time and money to go Egypt in about five days so more daring is to come... I want to try diving so bad even though I find it scary. I will do it though and post an entry about it. So stay tuned and live courageously. 

Peace !

Turning an autumn leaf

Shades of pink and lavender. Sunsets are always the most beautiful when the light hits some clouds...

Autumn is here with a bang and along it came a massive flue. I´ve been suffering from a runny nose for like two weeks but now the damn illness is loosening its grip. Finally. The worst part is that it kept me from doing sports which I absolutely love. Now I´m starting again but carefully. Today I made a leisurely walk for like one and half hours. Walking is sometimes really nice because you have time to think about things without really having have to focus on the exercise.

Having a stroll in a cool autumn evening is quite nice. Another thing marking the end of summer is that we opened our art exhibition with my sister. I´ve been preparing for it all summer and thanks to my self-discipline I managed to get all painting done in time. Feels like I really achieved something. At the opening I had a really weird feeling because suddenly all my work, the insides of my head, was out there on display for everyone to see. I felt kind of bare. Like some artist sometime said: artists always paint themselves in a way. And it´s true.

Our CVs and some props like pictures of our grandparents

That´s why job of an artist is so risky and delicate. You expose yourself to the whole world, what you think is good, and hope that the public will agree. What would be worse than being a failed artist? Maybe that´s the reason I didn´t start studying arts because I can´t bare the idea of failing.

Now I´m getting back to my studies which feels nice, too. I like hanging out at the uni with all the hipsters and future business men and whatever. What a divided lot. And everyone thinks very highly of themselves because they go to university which is like.. the highest education you can get. It´s maybe highest but not the most useful or important. But that´s maybe a topic for another post...

Good night !!

Having a cake and eating it

A whole month without blogging! Oh, I feel so guilty. I don´t. I haven´t posted anything because it felt unpleasant and I didn´t have any great thoughts to share...

Summer´s over. Yes, I don´t mind saying it out loud. We all know the Finnish summer lasts for two months, strictly. We don´t like the heat anyway, do we?

I always (really?) praise autumn and it´s gloominess, heavy rain and wind, darkness, thick jumpers and yellow leaves. It´s dramatic, I love it. Alteration of seasons has already disappeared in some parts of the world due to the climate change so why not enjoy it while we can.

My world today:

Blueberry season. Fitness. Investing in a good jacket. Reading novels. Painting nails. Getting ready for the art exhibition.

I´m also trying not to be so nice. Girls are often raised to be nice and obedient but I want to rebel. Being nice can also mean neglecting your own needs and wants. Or being someone else than yourself. I´ve been practicing at work where I meet a lot of people who expect stuff from me. I try not to be that nice girl who always listens and smiles. I´ve started kind of ignoring people who I don´t want to talk to. I´m polite enough but I don´t have to make customers adore me. How liberating is that!

Trying to please people is my eternal problem, a pain in the arse. Some day I´ll stop for good. Like being afraid of making mistakes and of their results. What I really really really want to do now is to

• buy a bike
• have sushi
• grow muscles
• own more dresses and high heels

And yes, I don´t mind having a drink before I go to work. It´s not illegal, is it?

Summer treats

Summer is the time of sugar and spice and everything nice. I like to treat myself or family and friends with sweet creations, preferably served on beautiful plates like these old Arabia saucers. On midsummer Sunday me and my "long-lost relative" Anna went fishing and afterwards, not catching any fish, made special pancake from Åland. (Åland is an island that belongs to Finland and is very Swedish.) Anna shared the pancake recipe she learned while working there and I´m sure she won´t mind me sharing it here aswell...  

Tea time with Åland´s pancake, whipped cream, black currants and my very own rhubarb-apple jam

Tarja´s Pancake from Åland

1 l milk
1,5 dl semolina (mannasuurimo)
1 tsp salt

Make a porridge out of this by cooking semolina in milk for about 10 minutes. Add salt. When it´s ready mix with...

half a tbsp salt
1 tbsp ground cardamon
1 egg
50 g butter

Bake in 175 degrees for about an hour. Afterwards let it cool for 10 minutes.

Pretty pink

This is what was left of the Beetroot cake I made while visiting my folks. For the lack of muscovado sugar my cake looks quite pale. This was a big success though so I truly recommend! Pumpkin seeds turned out to work really nice and fresh lemon in the icing just dots the i... I´ve been wanting to make a cake out of beetroot for long time because the one I had at Earth Café was just great. This would surely be awesome with cream cheese topping, too.

I´ve already done quite many summery things apart from summery baking. I´ve done horse riding, cayaking, fishing, music festival, hitchhiking, flower picking, swimming in the sea, outdoor bouldering (climbing) and so on and so forth. I still want to sleep outside in a tent.

Make the most of the summer! Peace and love. xx

Night on the rocks

By working nights I´ve lost my sense of time. There are no weekdays, no weekends, no bedtimes, no nothing. It´s as if I was living in some kind of a time vacuum. There´s no end to a day. I can stay up untill three in the morning and see the break of dawn - and then climb up to my bed with a book.

I´m one of those people who you might see when you go to the toilet in the middle of the night and take a look outside and you see someone walking in the deserted street. What´s best, I get to see the best time of the day: the moment just before people start getting up and going to work. When the sun is already making its way up, seagulls are screaming, air is fresh after a chilly night and it´s silent like just before a storm. It´s feels unreal but at the same time really comforting in a way; there´s an order in the world.

Warm-up sketch. It´s always warm-up when I do something crappy.

Last night I kept myself up because I´ll work nights again in the weekend. I guess I´ve always been really settled in the way everyone spends their day but now I´ve been obliged to change my routines time-wise. I wanted to go out and paint landscapes. It was 11 in the night. So I went as it doesn´t get dark here in the North anyway.

I managed to paint a couple of impressions on the sunset before I got too cold. But it was indeed marvellous to sit there on a rock as if having the beach all to myself. I felt a bit like a criminal, stealing that moment and painting it without anyone knowing. I should do that more often...

Don´t mind the blurry windmill...

What I drew today

Study on perspective. This building is said to be the most beautiful in Vaasa. My sketch doesn´t really make justice to it but I had fun drawing it.

The Unbearable Lightness of Summer

I´m not a big fan of summer. That´s what I always say but as soon as I get my hands on treats like fresh cherries or rhubarb I change my mind... I love making pies out of fresh berries or rhubarb. The world is so much better place after making a pie.

Why wouldn´t I like summer? Because it´s so short and everyone´s so aware of it all the time. People here in the North take summer very seriously. As soon as the sun comes out and the temperature goes up to +15 Finns put on their shorts and tees. Whereas I´m shivering in my scarf. In summer you must eat as much ice cream as you can, stay at a cottage somewhere by a lake, swim in the lake, grill sausages and mushrooms wrapped in bacon, lie on the lawn with a magazine, get a tan, wear sunglasses everywhere, attend music festivals and a half marathon... There´s so much you got to do in 2-3 months. So many expectations. My reaction is to make rhubarb pies and wander in the forests.

Peacock butterfly

Even thought summer is short you can store it in so many ways for the winter. I do it by photographing and collecting whatever wild food I can freeze of dry for later use.

Another thing I always say is that Finland is the bect place where to spend summer. In central Europe it´s too hot and crowded, in Asia it´s probably monsoon or something. In Finland there are enough forests to roam for everyone and it´s never too hot! (Pun attended.) I hereby advice everyone to enjoy the Finnish nature. Probably the most magical place I know is any forest near water in a light summer night.

Officers club in Hamina

More amazing things you can take advantage of in summer: wearing anklets and flowing dresses, painting outdoors, walking barefoot, picking flowers, keeping windows open, having pie (!) for lunch on a terrace or balcony, putting flowers in a vase, birds singing, smell of hot asphalt, hot asphalt workers, flowers, birds, flowers and birds, water, sea shores and sand under your feet, sailing, gardening, vegetable market and the big big blue sky... Did I mention birds?

With love and strawberry pies.

Day 4

 Seuraa blogiani Bloglovinin avulla

Breakfast: banana, mixed berries, flaxseed and oat milk
Lunch: salad at uni: lettuce, cucumber, tomato, pickled onion, jalapeño, raisins, dried onion and peanuts
**Had to pass beetroot because it was obviously boiled.
Afternoon coffee: chocolate-banana-vanilla-oatmilkshake
Dinner: salad; cabbage in vinegar, romaine, tomato, olives, yellow peas, sunflower seeds, garlic and pea shoots in olive oil; pineapple
**Peas were boiled because they didn´t really sprout and tasted bad. I´ve noticed that pineapple is quite filling -  I recommend!

Lately I´ve been walking outside a lot checking out the flora and looking for wild food to eat. Not much luck by far, excpet for the nettle. But aimless walking is always relaxing. One of my favourite sites in Vaasa is this sea shore near the hospital. It´s perfect for admiring sunsets and why not for meeting late night dog walkers.

Summer is here and even if it´s just something like +18 I see people wearing shorts and t-shirts. I´m still sticking to my scarf... Summer is the smell of freshly cut grass, crowded baseball games, chairs outside cafés, people riding bikes everywhere, flowers in bloom, boats being scrubbed and repainted, music from an open garage...

Food-wise today went well but I´m not liking this thing anymore. It´s already proved that it´s possible to live on raw food but who knows about the long-term consequences? Raw food keeps you energetic and you can keep going all day without napping. But there are just too many cravings..! Today I´m craving for crisp bread and herring among other things. I think I´m going for a burger tomorrow...

Day 3

This was not a good day. I was on a bad mood so I had some comfort food. Now I have a headache and it´s cold outside.

Breakfast: smoothie out of mixed berries, apple, fresh ginger, maca, lemon and chaga tea.
Lunch: Greek salad; slice of fudge cake
**The salad was raw expect for the feta cheese. The cake, well, it was so worth it!! http://www.sweetvaasa.fi/
Afternoon coffee: rest of the smoothie; chocolate
Dinner: yesterday´s courgette and tomato sauce; tomato and olives; pineapple

Anything good about today? Errr, if I think very hard then I´d say the cake and the Canson drawing block I bought. It was very warm in the daytime and I found some nettle and I took some of it. I hung it to dry. I also cleaned up my appartment and changed the places of the rugs. That made me surprisingly content.

I´m craving for bread and cheese, chocolate cookies, salmon pasta, pancakes with jam and cream... Oh god, I don´t now why anyone would go raw for good! I think I want to end this on Friday. I´m leaving the town in the weekend anyway and visiting some people so it would be inconvenient to get weird about food.

Day 2

My shift ended at 7am and I headed home in a beautiful morning sunlight. I´ve felt good today, not hungry nor tired. I managed the night shift really well too, eating just one banana during those 8 hours. Here´s the dose of the day:

Night snack: tomato, cashews

**Tomatoes actually contain a lot of carbohydrates...

Breakfast: tea; smoothie with strawberries, cranberries, chaga tea, apple, sitruunamelissa, maca and lemon

Lunch: courgette “spaghetti” and tomato sauce, mushroom salad; fresh pineapple; chocolate

**”Spaghetti” is marinated in olive oil, salt, pepper and sesame seeds: my favourite thing at the moment! Tomato sauce is basically chopped tomatoes warmed in a pan with onion, garlic, chilli, thyme and other spices. Good stuff.

Afternoon coffee: cup of coffee with oat milk and chocolate

Dinner: cabbage, romaine, broccoli, tomato, onion, sunflower seeds, spirulina, chilli and olives dressed in olive oil; liquorice; banana mash and mixed berries

**Yes, I´ve been eating liquorice all day. For some reason I had a small bag at home and I felt like eating it today.

Oh, the summer started today! The semester is over for me and I went to the garden shop to get some more greens – some of them inedible this time. I bought two dahlias (yellow and pink), thyme and probably my favourite plant in the world – lavender! The scent is so invigorating I can´t get enough of it. Hope it survives in my care.

Today I was also thinking about how the way we eat is so important. There was some kind of expert in Jamie Oliver´s show who said that as soon as your jaws have chewed enough food they send a message to the brain that you are full. Meaning that the amount or quality of food doesn´t really matter. It´s kind of hard to believe when it´s also been said that it takes 20 minutes for the food to arrive in your stomach and for you to feel full. I do think chewing is important and it comes naturally when you eat in a calm place and enjoy the food. According to another "expert" it´s crucial to have different kind of textures and flavours in the food: crunchy, soft, sweet, salty, sour... That´s exactly how I like my salads because that way they are fun to eat.

Today I also updated my blog some more and now it looks more like a real website. I´m going to bring my artsy stuff here instead of a separate page. Hope you like the layout! Not completely happy myself but that´ll do.

Day 1

Morning brakes at 10am. It´s the day for my last exam of the semester and I´m prepared to sweat out all my knowledge on French syntax.

Breakfast: tea; banana mash, strawberries, cranberries and flax seeds
**This is yummy! Like having dessert for breakfast!
Lunch: lettuce, tomato, pepper, mushroom, cucumber, sunflower seeds and dried onion dressed with olive oil, balsamic vinegar and tabasco; tea
**I was tempted to have feta cheese but I was stronger than that

I went to the supermarket and picked some more greens for my evening supper while gazing longingly at the cheese section. Came home and had "afternoon coffee": birch sap and raw chocolate. This left-over cashew chocolate was particularly nice. Birch sap is supposed to be good for stomach and it goes well with food too as it tastes like spring water with a sweet tone.

Afternoon snack: two juiced carrots, cup of coffee, half a cinnamon bun
**Aarrghh, I ate cinnamon bun at the work meeting !!

Dinner: cabbage, romaine, tomato, onion, marinated mushrooms, algae, sunflower seeds dressed with olive oil; chocolate.

Now I´m off to a surprise night shift and I´ll take a banana and some cashews with me. So, the first day went pretty well after all!

Ready, set, go raw!

It´s half past midnight and Monday. I´ve just started the week of raw food that I promised to do. I have approximately two reasons why I want to do this:

1) I want to know what the fuss is about. Will I feel better and more energetic?
2) I like challenging myself and trying new things.

... and a third reason...

3) I like setting an example and showing that there are indeed options for the way we fat westerners eat. And live.

Hempseeds, I´m lovin´ it!

To kickstart the week I´ve put some beans and peas into water overnight and marinated mushrooms. Knowing myself and my sweet tooth I also prepared some delicious date munchies and mint chocolates to die for. Whenever I feel desperate during next week I can just seek consolation from the "sweet shelf" of my fridge...

I guess it would be appropriate to explain more about the idea behind all this obscure talk about raw food. I´ve written about raw food before, atleast chocolate, and I´ve read a lot about it on the net. Raw food or living food is just another trend in nutrition and the idea is to preserve all nutrients and vitamins food contains by not cooking it. (People on raw diet call it "killing the food".) Obviously this is not for hardcore carnivores even though also meat can be eaten raw... Think about sushi, for instance.

Raw foodist consumes heaps of fresh vegetables, fruits, berries, nuts, seeds, sprouts, even cereals (?), beans and peas... I want to underline that fresh veggies are always better than canned stuff. The diet is not as harsh as it sounds like and I will be sharing some recipes along the week.

 

One thing about pulses. As far as I know, nearly every bean, pea or lentil can be soaked, sprouted and eaten raw. Some of them don´t sprout but atleast mung beans are good. I have some of them going in a bowl. Tomorrow morning I´ll try and start sprouting them (never done it before). Back in times at Earth Café I tried marinated raw chickpeas and they are really lovely and fresh.

As treats are so important, I share my sweet recipes first!

Date munchies

8-10 dates
1tbsp sunflower seeds
1tbsp almond flower
1tsp cacao powder
1tsp maca powder (optional)
1tsp grated fresh ginger
1tbsp cashew nuts
pinch of good salt
pinch of cayenne pepper

>>Mix everything in a food processor, form small balls and coat them with coconut or why not sesame seeds. Ready to eat as it is!

Mint chocolate

1dl coconut oil and/or cacao butter
2tbsp raw cacao powder
1-2tsp honey or other natural sweetener
2tsp lucuma powder
a couple of drops of natural mint extract

>>Melt the oil in a bain marie and add everything else. Mix well and pour into an icecube form or onto a plate. Freeze for half an hour or cool in the fridge for an hour. Phenomenal, I say!