The BIG city

Last Wednesday all the last year students crowl out of their caves at absurd hours (7.00 p.m.). We were going to the big city: to Helsinki.

Parliament, museum, education chocolate and some TV

When we had drove five hours, we came to Helsinki. Because this was a school trip, our teacher had planned everything educating to us. First we went to explore the Parliament. We had to went through a strike safety control: no own food or drinks, aerosol bottles, knives nor explosives. Then we were herd throught the building and afterwards they bribe us by pens and candy.
   Of course we also had to visit in a local museum, so we quickly dropped in National Museum.
   On Thursday we did it, what for we had became there: we went to explore Studia-fair. It's the biggest education fair in the country. It was, well, quiteordinary fair: lots of leaflets, candy and people.
   After that was the most expected event of our trip: Fazer's chocolate factory. They showed us some slidesshow and then we got to eat as much chocolate as we could. But thy have been smart and they have banded all drinks, so soon everybody were dying to thirst.
  And last but not least, YLE's tv studio. We saw some amazing clothes and props.

Hakuna matata!

Because the drive was long and we are serious and almost adult people, we needed some entertainment to the bus: Disney movies! Lion King, Beauty and the Beast and Lion King 3. That lighten the atmosphere where everyone are really tired.

Ururumba!

If you and your friends are bored, there is a funny thing you could try. We did this in Finnish class: take as many computers as there is participants (paper and a pen go also). Then the leader of the game tells a word. It doesn't have to mean anything, our word was ururumba. Then everyone get some time to start a text: it can be anything, an article, a novel, a propaganda speech. Then everyone pick another computer and start to continue the text in that computer. And this recurs untill everyone are back at the same computer they started. And so they can end the text they have started.
   If you want some challenge, you can make up other things that you should also foist into the text (like own experience, something for a film or a book, idiom or figure of speech).
   Our text became hilarious: there were everything from pirate stories to articles and everything between them. Only limite was our imaginations.

Free food

This weekend has been luxury to the last grade students: there have been plenty of free food to abiturs. First, last Friday my senior high's parents' committee offered some free pizza to all students and after that we went to youth center to hang out and play things like billiard and Guitar Hero.
   Saturday we had extra school day (which included free lunch and coffee). We started in various workshops, I was in a dance workshop. In afternoon we had soiree, where parents were invited. There were some bit questionable numbers, like music workshop's song 'Sienimetsän soturit' (direct translation would be 'Warriors of spongeforest'), my workshop's dance performance, where everybody forgot movements and teacher's improvisation exercise 'hitchiker'. But I think they liked them, because everyone of them get loud applauses.
  Today local church offered a free lunch to all it's members, who turned 18 in this year. This is truly luxury to us penniless students.

Manic-depressive 'kakkiainen'

The little creatures in a forest are the salt of our play, Ronia, the Robber's Daughter. Unfortunately I can't find anywhere why are they call of. So I have to use their Finnish names.
   I have a double role as männiäinen and maahinen. Männiäinen is a little creepy creature, which is dangerous if you scare it. Maahinen (means usually a goblin) is a creature, which lives under ground and lure people.
   And of course there is other creatures too: ajatar (consist of words aika = time and -tar = ending, which express womanhood) is a bird with woman head, quite like a harpy. Kakkiainen is a simple little creature, which ask constantly 'why?' or 'what for' and repeat sayings of his fellow creatures. And I think they're manic-depressive. In a scene, which last a few minutes, kakkiainen can feel four emotions: curiousness, happy, sad and hate. Or maybe it's dissociative identity disorder. Who knows.

R.I.P. saltine box

A pudding

Like I told in my previous update, I'm started to practise to drive a car with my dad. And this evening I had three teaching assistant, who help to perfect my parking skills. May I introduce them:


First, there was Jacky Makupala -box. Jacky is a trade mark that contain several flavours of pudding.

A porridge

Second assistant was Elovena Hetki Pikapuuro -box (free translation would be Elovena Moment pikaporridge). Elovena makes also many other grain products.

Saltines

Third assistant was a box of Valitut (Chosens) -saltines. The saltine box was maybe the bravest of assistants: it stayed still even when it did little bit too close acquaintance with the left front wheel. Rest in peace.

Some driving

It's same time exciting and horrific to drive a car first time in your life. Yesterday evening I and my dad went to empty parking lot behind a local bar and started to exercise to my driving license. Dad has get a teaching license, so he can teach me by hiself. Be alert, pedestrians!

Maybe the most annoying and aborable games in the world

I SHOULD have done some school work last weekend. I SHOULD have studied something to my driving license. I SHOULD have slept well. But guess what? I didn't do any of those: instead of that I played Hamtaro game on Game Boy! It took five hours (in the middle of the night), but now I have ALL Ham-Hams in the Clubhouse! It was totally worth it!

The pervert side of Ronia The Robber's Daughter

Have you notice how stories from your childhood have became little pervert? And this is not only my imagination: others have noticed it too.
   This year my school's theater group has decided to make Astrid Lindgred's Ronia the Robber's Daughter. Lindgred was really productive Swedish writer, who wrote mostly for children. Ronia is one of her most famous novels.
   So we started to explore the manuscript and also watched part of the film. In the text there was everything from leather leash to suspicious dialog. And of course a scene where a mod of naked robber's will be drive off to snow blanket.

   And someones are worried about how witchcraft of Harry Potter -books affect to children.

Mysterious camera group

Last Wednesday and Friday a mysterious camera group wandered around the school. First they appeared to our articulacy class. We were doing walking exersice: all participants walk in a small limited area. Then a teacher orders as to do things like defy to guy next to you or verge as many people as possible. Then we did some hitchiker exersice: four seat are put like it would be a car. Four volunteers sit down. A hitchiker comes and they pick him up (all change their seats and driver go away). The hitchiker bring a style or a mood with him, and all the other start to do same. And then comes a new hitchiker. When I became a driver, a boy came and started to sing this song. The camera group stared a while and then quietly walked away.
   It was revealed that they were filming the school's introduction video.


It's now winding like crazy and I don't know if I dare to go home (I'm writing this in a school's computer). When I came here, it was also raining, so had to take a umbrella. It was close that I didn't became Mary Poppins.

Scouting

I spend last Friday and Saturday in scout. Grilling sausages, making food with cooker and sleeplessness.
Now I can again appreacite my own bed.

Happy birthday to me!

I'm officially an adult: today is my 18th birthday. Now I could buy alcohol, cigarets, get driving license and I'm totally responsible about myself and my doings.

Operation Hunger Day

I was suprise, but pleased, when I went to cafeteria: there weren't milk, bread, butter or appendages. Our cafeteria staff had decided to give the money from that to Finnish Red Cross' Operation Huger Day (you can read more about it here).
   This was a really great gesture, but I think that most of the students didn't appreacite that where much, because we have just water and pea soup for lunch.

Last tension

Hoah.
   I have been the most exhausting week. On Monday I had a history matriculation examination, Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday went when I did my swedish and chemistry exercises and english essay about enviromental disasters.
   I'll have to do my study about sensorship of Väinö Linna's The Unknown Soldier and social studies independent curse. And in next Monday starts exam week.
   I can't wait to autumn holiday.

You have to be careful what you promise

I  went to promise to my Finnish teacher that I'll do my study of finnish literature about censorship of Väinö Linna's 'The Unknow Soldier'. But now I'm realising that there aren't any kind of sources about it. And I don't have time to go throught all those not-so-accurate pages from internet.
   Ah, this is awesome.

My premature dead

I had planned to die just in next period under my huge workload (10 courses and 3 of them independently), but I think that Grim Reaper can come before that. Now I have 6 regular and 1 and half independent courses, my history matriculation examination, soon I have to start to guide local scout and my theater rehearsals start. And when dad past his tests he starts to teach me to drive a car.
(Strong exhalation)

Never too old for napping

I LOVE naps. They're awesome. It's lovely to take a nap in a middle of the school day. But some times you just don't have time to do that. So, I suggest that we should have a public naptime in middle of  day. Now I just need a politicans to drive my suggesting. Who would be volunteer?

Language learning trip or Oxford and back again

Yes, I was three weeks in Oxford with some awesome guys. I'll tell more about it when I have more time. Maybe I'll but some photos too.

Strike of air traffic control

I can almost sigh for relief: Helsinki-Vantaa's airport's air-traffic controllers are defer their strike. Now it should starts 2.8.
   First they planned to start the strike 19.7 at 6 am and my flight to Oxford (language learning trip) will rise at 7 am. Thank God it changed.
   Now I have to scare if the strike is still going when I will come back 8.8.

Poop and a babysitter

I spent some wonderful time looking after a few kids and hunting poop on beach. Kids was happily playing in water in their home shore, but then poop drift to the beach. So I had to be brave and moved it to somewhere else. But there was only a few reeds, an inflatable crocodile and a bucket and I had to poke it to the bucket. The poop did its best to roll away. The situation was as weird as it sounds...
   And after this poop episode, when I was cycle to home, I met couple foreigner (they're very rare here) and they asked, of course, could I tell them, where is the nearest beach. Sometimes destiny is mocking you.

World fastest violinist

I was surfing in Internet when I find this guy:

 

He is David Garrett, German/American violinist, who is officially world fastest violinist.

He has recorded Vivaldi as well as Metallica and Pirates of the Caribbean theme.

He has adapted many popular songs to violin.

He's good.

Mosquito's last strugle

Imagine - you lay in your bed in your gloomy room. You are just falling a sleep, when you hear it, every sleeper's nightmare, buzzing sound. One tiny mosquito has slipped into your room and this bloodthirsty beast flies around your head. You switch lights one, but you can't see it. You start to forage your boxes and seek your Ultimate Electrical Mosquito Repelling Machine. You mash it into plug socket and it starts to spread repellent. Now you are satisfied and can in peace climb back to your bed.
   But soon you start to hear strange noise - it sounds like mosquito, but like it would be drunk; it's must more noisy and moves randomly around the room. This is a sound of dying mosquito. It starts again go around my head. And with its last strenght it buzz to you: "I'm ever letting you to sleep..."

Yippee!

At last Finnish Broadcasting Company YLE shows BBC's wonderful series Sherlock! Only poor thing in that is translations/subtitles. They don't make justice for the dialoc. It's sad.

The Great Growing Race

 Here's some pictures about our Growing Race against neighbour municipality's school.

Here are boats. The right one is ours.

Our team speed up...

... and go under bridge and win The Race!

At last others reach the finish.

And losers want to cool their feelings.

Last week in school

Now is only 4 days to summer holiday. And exam week is over. Tomorrow is only some physical education and The Great Rowing Race, my school against neighbour school. Our team is polish its skills rowing with church boat whole weekend. Now we can't lose them...

Welcome to Syvämiete's cooking class!

Now I'm here again. I've done so many things: I've clean our garden, eat chocolate eggs, wandered here and there, read many bedtime storys to my sister and younger brother and done awfully homeworks. Of course I spent some holiday too. And I made some salad. It became quit pretty.
   I really didn't plan to made salad, so there is almost everything that I found from kitchen:

Syvämiete's Spring Salad

1 apple

1 pepper

somecherrytomatos

some cucumber

some salad

some basil

Chop just like you want and mix. Enjoy!

Let the wandering begin

Here is a good tip if you are bored: take a local map. Choose place, which affects nice or have fun name. Ride a bike or walk there. Don't hurry, enjoy the view. When you don't try too hard, you will notice that wandering is quit fun.

Easter is coming

Traditional finnish rye pudding

Now it's official: Easter is coming. You can't deny it. Soon there will be little witches, who fling their colored sticks and rye pudding and chocolate eggs as much as you can eat.
   Yesterday my younger brother started to plan his costume: he want to dress into Killer Rabbit, just like I did couple of years ago. Killer Rabbit is one my ex-art teacher's legendary drawnings. It looks quit evil and it have huge teeth.
   Second sign of Easter is those tiny plastic toys, which you get with your chocolate eggs. You should be an engineer so that you can combine them. And now they have occupied our school. Corridors are full them. And in breaks everybody our playing with them.
   Soon I have to unearth my binoculars and start to stalk Easter Buny.

I will do it, will you?

In next Saturday I'm going to take part to Earth Hour. It's annual happening where everybody involve turn off their lights. In this way they want to stant against climate change. In next Saturday 8.30 they will do it again and live one hour without electric light.
   I challenge everbody who might read it to take part to it. I will do it, will you?

Videos from Finland

There is lots of false beliefs about Finland, like that polar bears live in here, we Finnish are really quiet and shy and Santa lives in North Pole. That's false! We truely like peace and maybe we don't speak as much as others, but we are not shy, like The Duudsons. Polar bears live only in North Pole and ONLY true Santa lives in Korvatunturi, which is in Finland. But here is thing that is truly finnish:

Local enterprise make Sally saddle chairs. They tried to sell them in America and their video was little bit weird. It reached even to Tonight Show with Conan O'Brien, because... well you should watch it by yourself and see it You can watch the video here.

And this is truly made in Finland.

Videos from Finland

There is lots of false beliefs about Finland, like that polar bears live in here, we Finnish are really quiet and shy and Santa lives in North Pole. That's false! We truely like peace and maybe we don't speak as much as others, but we are not shy, like The Duudsons. Polar bears live only in North Pole and ONLY true Santa lives in Korvatunturi, which is in Finland. But here is thing that is truly finnish:

31.1.2011 couple of activists kidnapped Ronald McDonald from Ruoholahti's McDonalds. They insist some answers or they will execute Ronald. Here is their video of their demands: They have kidnapped Ronald!
   Because McDonalds didn't respond, they did what they was threatened; 11th february they executed Ronald.
This video shocked especially in America.

And this is truly made in Finland.

Winter vacation

Now it's official: winter vacation is strated. And on Sunday is Shrove Sunday. At last it's enough time to sleep. Aaahh...

In biology lesson

Teacher have sometimes quit desperate when they try to get pupils attention. In litterature you can show Metallicas music video to them and say it's exemple of text. In history you can watch Mel Brook's History, of the World, Part 1 with you pupils our can do like my biology teacher did when we start to study humans autonomic nervous system: show this reseach: Stare boobs for longer life
   They are really desperate.

Cheat!

Yesterday I realised something: I was eating my dinner when I figured out that we have been
cheated! Look at for exemple this picture:

 

Can you see the error?

Tarzan lives in rainforest, doesn't he?

Lions live in savannah.

That was I thinking too.

Dance

So called 'vanhojen tanssit' (free translation: old's dance) are old tradition in finnish senior highs. There second year students are practised several dances, like tango and cicapo, and they show them to other students and their relatives and friends. At first students dress old clothes, but nowadays boys have a suit and girls have beautiful long dressies.
   Now is my turn to dance: we have a week and a half time to practise are own dance (we have choose some music, like Alejandro, Y.M.C.A. and Raining men, and couple of us have done choreography). My aunt is promise that she could do my dress, but I don't know is she finnished it. And I should go to hairdresser at previous evening, because she can't do my hairstyle at mornign. I have to sleep at the table so that I don't destroy it. My neck will be painfull....

Houh...

I have been very busy month: first there was our musical. Then, at the same time I has to write two essay and do a independent chapter to my swedish teacher. Now I have to make a poemfile and assay to a novella. All so our exam week starts today. Soon I have to go to social studies exam. Luckily all this rush end when my period end.

Only 3 show left

Now we have only 3 show left. All advancetickets are sold to all shows we have left, so grannys have to again wait outside so that they surely get tickets. All of our shows are almost sold out and people come there over huor earlier than  the show starts. So far everything is went quit well, but saturdays show our 'Laura' some how threw her hobby horse across the stage. It's really weird: you should try ride a hobby horse and suddenly throw it at least six meter. And she doesn't know how she did it.

My cat

My cat is over twenty year old (we don't no sure how old). She's little senile and deaf and doesn't smell anything. When she is sleeping bathrooms floor, she doesn't heard when you slam saunas door. She pee every where and throw up on carpet, every time. Food have to be fresh or she doesn't smell and eat it. Some times she just stares nowhere. She's either suicidal or very thirsty: she almost fall when she try to drink from watering can and even from bucket where is dirty water. So she's world best cat ever!

It went quit well

Our first show went quit well: everybody are present, first time. Noboby forgot prop, like garbage bag.

Now I'm fighting with printer. I should print some poems so that I can do my homework. I'm
tired and homework are busy.Why everything like this happen to me?

Two hour to the first show

OK, now I'm litlle nervous. We have lunch and after that actors should go to the library (our stage is downstares). And 12.50 everything should start. There is enough time to make up, dress och panic.

Dress rehealsal

Now is time to dress rehearsal. Tomorrow is one show to our senior high students, friday a show to students in middle school and in friday evening we have the premier! But hopefully people stay healt, even now one dancer-soloist and 'teacher are sick....

Disclosure

Four day to the premiere and still there is disclosures in plot:
   Director: "And when the Grandma gets heartattact and Elvis restores her to life..."
   All the actors: "What????"

It's fun when everybody knows what we are doing.

One week to premiere

Our musical's premiere is next friday, and before that we have two show to students. Some of the props aren't ready, we have only couple of customes, lights and sounds need perfect and in every rehearsal someboby in our cast is missing. Now is a good time to panic.

Too much snow!

There is snowing, again. Tuesday evening rained lots of snow and it has rained hole day. Temperature is just below zero, so the snow is really heavy and it sticks your clothes. There is snow almost everywhere!

Get sick

We  have a very peaceful Christmas. My elder brother had have pharyntigis hole holiday and I get it too. Younger brother had have high fever, dad got fever too and mom had have cold.
   Tomorrow is Epiphany and holiday, but still we have to go to practise are musical. Municipality is now 450 year old and so there is lots of diffirent happenings. My school and music group of ninth grade of comprehensive school make a musical. It tells about Laura, who is a student in are upper secondary school. It's summer and Laura have to write 15 pages about her life. Her grandma give her a book, which contains things about her ancestors lifes in here. And  so the viewer can watch some incident that happens to Laura, her ancestors, family and friends.
   There is some songs and ninth grade music group is the band. There is also few dances. Actors are from our school. Everything started so well, but then instrucor of music group got inflammation to optic nerve and she have to eat pills so that her sight remain. Music group hadn't practised properly almost a month. She should be in sick leave still a month, and we have two weeks to premiere.
   I'm one of them, who do almost everything in our musical: I'm singing (not very well, but I'm in choir, so nobody can hear me) and dancing and I have few lines (I'm Lauras great-great-great-grandmother). There is also couple of cavemen and witch-hunters, Timppa, who loves only computers, Elvis etc. It's quite weard musical, but it's really fun to do!