Category Archives: Everyday Life

Days 42 & 43: Proekt 365 (No complaints here)

by in #365grateful, Attitude, Everyday Life, Expat life, Food, Gratitude, Helsinki and tagged , , , | Leave a comment
Day 42: Proekt 365 Good thing the deadline was yesterday....I have no complaints!

Day 42: Proekt 365
Good thing the deadline was yesterday….I have no complaints!

I spied this sign yesterday at my new favourite lunch spot–Roslund. I can’t imagine that they’d have any complaints at all because the food is fabulous.

But, this sign also resonated with me for other unrelated reasons. I’ve found that by holding off on immediately reacting to situations, things seem less dramatic, less pressing and dare I say less annoying. Even if something is troubling or a bit of a concern, mulling it over or letting it lie helps. At least that seems to be the trend as of late.

Plus, given that I had several large and looming deadlines this past Monday, I loved the whole ‘deadline’ synergy.

Day 43: Proekt 365 A bit of pastrami and an (unreal) taste of home

Day 43: Proekt 365
A bit of pastrami and an (unreal) taste of home

Today brought another little bit of simple pleasure to my world.

A friend of mine who lives in Pennsylvania has been torturing me the last several months with pictures of mouth-watering mounds of pastrami. Not intentionally torturing me, but… each photo reminded me of just how much I love pastrami. Pastrami. I miss pastrami. Desperately.

Yesterday, I finally found proper pastrami at a butcher shop. (Insert the ‘I scored’ dance here!) It wasn’t cheap, but it also wasn’t prohibitively expensive and I didn’t have to figure out how to make it myself. (One day, I will. But, not now.) An added bonus—the butcher sliced it incredibly thin, so it’s perfect for sandwiches. (Seriously, if you can’t find me elsewhere, chances are I am camped out at Roslund’s.)

For lunch today, I made myself a sandwich. Just a simple little sandwich. And, I swear, I nearly cried it made me so happy. There is nothing quite like a big deli sandwich in my book. Today’s may not have been quite the same height as a pastrami on rye from one of my favourite haunts in New England, complete with fresh rye bread, fresh and not swimming-in-sauce cole slaw, crispy fries and deli pickles. But, oh… pastrami. How I love thee.

Nope. Not a complaint in sight. Regardless of the deadline for their submission, I have no complaints at all.

Day 41: Proekt 365 (The joy of cooking)

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Day 41: Proekt 365 The joy of cooking

Day 41: Proekt 365
The joy of cooking

My current copy of The Joy of Cooking is tattered and looking a little less than pristine. But, those are only marks of love and affection. Last night, the break from a frenetic work pace allowed me to think a little about what I wanted to cook and afforded me the time to actually put something together without worrying about time or time schedules. What a treat.

What did I make? Roasted butternut squash risotto with a kick and sauteed tiger prawns.

The prawns were easy; but, the risotto takes time and patience, neither of which I’ve had much of lately. Perhaps that’s why yesterday evening’s  preparatory process was so therapeutic.

Peel, de-seed and cube the butternut squash; mix the cubes with a little ancho chili powder and olive oil; roast until tender; and, then, purée most of the roasted butternut squash reserving a few of the roasted cubes.

It’s the process of making risotto, though, that I love. Prepare the stock (in this case vegetable). Sauté a little garlic (and whatever else you want—I added a bit of crushed red pepper for a little extra kick), brown the risotto just a touch and then ladle in the stock, stir, simmer down and repeat until you have a luxurious, shiny bit of cooked risotto. Add in your flavours and cheese of choice (in this case, ~1 c of butternut squash purée and two heaping tablespoons of soft chevre) and mix completely. Then, fold in the reserved cubes of squash, serve and enjoy.

There is always a moment during the process of cooking risotto when I panic that there either isn’t quite enough stock or that I’ve added too much liquid at one point. It invariably turns our alright, and just requires a little more patience and resolving not to panic. But, panic, I do. Every single time. Yesterday, patience won out (once the panic subsided). And, dinner was lovely.

After not really having the time or energy to spend that extra time cooking lately, yesterday’s meal was a treat, both as a way to spend an evening away from my desk and in terms of a tasty bit of sustenance.

The joy of cooking, indeed.

Day 40: Proekt 365 (Anything and then some…)

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Day 40: Proekt 365 I'd do anything, and then some...

Day 40: Proekt 365
I’d do anything, and then some…

The life of an expat is filled with bittersweet moments, just like life lived anywhere. It is a great life for the most part, although not quite the ‘adventure’ that most envision. It’s certainly not a life I ever thought I’d find myself living.

Unlike life in my home country, my circles of friends tend to shift each year if not every few months. (I intentionally say ‘circles’ since at this point there are circles of friends in Moscow, Amsterdam and Helsinki as well as all those in the US and those who live all over the place and don’t necessarily fit neatly into any of the other geographic circles.) The shift, however, is not a result of any sort of fickleness within me or amongst my friends. It’s just the nature of the ‘community’.

Rather than finding a job, buying a house and settling for several decades in a particular neighbourhood, life abroad is a very large game of musical chairs of sorts. Individuals and families drift in and out on a fairly regular basis. Contracts and assignments are temporary and tend to last several years at most. Unless one has strong family ties to a particular country (such as when someone’s spouse happens to be from that particular country), the community is in a constant state of flux as people come and go and move from one place to another.

It must have been a year or so ago that I read a fantastic blog about the intensity of expat friendships in particular. (I wish I could find it, because it struck a cord with me in so many ways.) It’s difficult to describe just how intense those bonds can be between expats. They form incredibly quickly and with an urgency and intensity that are rare in one’s home country. Perhaps it’s because we all know the temporariness to the time we’ll physically spend in that shared place and space. For whatever reason, they are immensely meaningful and powerful. It is also incredibly difficult and painful when friends move on to the ‘next’ place, and it happens far, far too often.

I do not like that ‘moving on part’ of the expat life, whether it is our own or watching a good friend leave. But, I’d not give those relationships up for anything in the world, despite how gut-wrenching it can be when it is time to say farewell to a fellow traveler.

Today’s image was from a send off for one such friend. Part truth (in that I’d do just about anything for these particular friends in whose company a lovely afternoon was spent) and part humourous (in that it’s not clear if the ‘deer’ was meant in an ironic way or simply an instance of ‘funny English’), it provided a nice backdrop over lunch on an otherwise bittersweet occasion.

And, to the girlfriend leaving, this is not farewell, but until we meet again, my deer (I mean, dear).

Day 35: Proekt 365 (A family snowman affair)

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Day 35: Proekt 365 Neighbourhood snowman & the family who made him

Day 35: Proekt 365
Neighbourhood snowman & the family who made him

This was perhaps my favourite moment of the year so far. Or at least one which became even lovelier as I was taking my daily photo.

Today, as The Cuban and I took a quick break and brisk walk through the neighbourhood, we stumbled upon this jolly frozen fellow, complete with a carrot nose. I whipped out my trusty Galaxy S III to take a picture for my daily blog of all things lovely and who should pop up in the window behind him but the little girl, her mother and brother, whom I’m assuming made him. They waved and smiled and waved and smiled the entire time I fumbled and waved and tried to take my photo. (If you look carefully in the upper left-hand section of the photo, you can see their shapes just barely.) It’s a good thing I got the photo the first time—this was the only one I managed to snap in the few minutes were stood there!

I don’t honestly know who was more delighted: us or them? The snowman was more than sufficient to make my day brighter. But, the sight of that lovely family — mother, dauther and son — waving just as idiotically back at us as we were at them was truly wonderful and heart-warming, particularly in a country were emotional displays such as this are rare.

It’s true: if you smile at someone, they will most likely return that smile.

Days 33 & 34: Proekt 365 (For friends and friendly praise)

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Day 33: Proekt 365 A friendly snow angel for a friend

Day 33: Proekt 365
A friendly snow angel for a friendly friend

In a chat with a close friend months ago, he’d asked and I’d promised to do a snow angel when there was finally enough snow on the ground in Helsinki to allow for such a creation. Yesterday afternoon, I finally had the opportunity to lie down and fan my arms and legs like a child in my attempt to create a snow angel of the finest order. I can’t say that my angels were particularly lovely, but what fun it was to revisit a childhood thrill.

A little later in the evening, after I’d already sent version 1.0, we finally looked out our kitchen window to see version 2.0, which looked heaps better from our third-floor vantage point. I neglected to make my post yesterday. But, it was a high point of the day. A day late it may be, but it is still just as friendly today as it was last night. And, oddly, it still remains undisturbed.

I’ve yet to take a photo for today. But, honestly, I don’t know how’d I’d capture a particularly lovely moment from the day. Before I get ahead of myself, a little background history is in order.

The life of a freelancer is often characterised by periods of feast (more work than you know what to do with) or famine (being bored out of your mind). The last few months now have been downright gluttonous, which is great but also at times hugely challenging. This past week, I was a bit behind on work and was suffering from the worst sort of writer’s block at the most inopportune of times. There’s never a good time for it when 90% of my work relies on putting fingers to the keyboard and creating something logical and meaningful. But, this was particularly worrisome given the already tight deadlines my client and I were facing. I managed to fight my way through a very rough draft and sent it on thinking that it was utter shit. And, then, promptly turned my attention to other items on my to-do list along with a bit of R&R and socialising to recharge.

With that as the backdrop, today’s high point came when discussing my work with my client. Without recounting the entire conversation here (which would just be weird on all sorts of levels), it was probably one of the nicest bits of praise I’ve ever received from a client. First, I’d managed to capture the essence of what they wanted (which is always the main objective), and second, it made them excited about the idea for this particular body of work. (Whilst I recognise this is incredibly vague, it has to be given the nature of the work and the proprietary information included in that particular task.)

This really made my day. Not just because it’s nice to know that I’ve managed to do my job relatively well, but because I have a tremendous amount of respect for the organisation with which I’m working on this particular project and specifically for the individual managing my work . As he recognised, I am my own worst critic and tend to be entirely overly self-deprecating. To say I’m happy and relieved with his assessment of my work is an enormous understatement. There must have been a moment during our call when he heard my very audible ‘phew’.

There’s no way to capture on film that particular moment which took place entirely in a virtual space. But, it is captured in my memory. And, that’s not a bad way at all to call it a day on this particular Monday.

Day 32: Proekt 365 (Underground)

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Day 32: Proekt 365 Walking underground in winter

Day 32: Proekt 365
Walking underground in winter

Helsinki and Finland impress us again and again.

Life is made simpler and more convenient by little touches that make combatting the seasonal elements, particularly those in winter, a little easier to endure. It was several years before we discovered the network of underground tunnels that connect key points in Helsinki’s city centre. These tunnels provide a particularly warm alternate route for pedestrians when the wind and cold outside are biting and zipping up your coat and donning hat, mittens and scarf for the hundredth time that day is just too much to face.

The tunnels connect several major shopping areas and run similar routes to the metro stations between Central Station and Kamppi. But, some of the tunnels branch off and will lead you to other places of interest in the downtown area. Various shops, a gym and a host of other amenities can be found along the tunnels. If you worked downtown, it’d be possible to go from your office to various locations to grab a bite, run a few errands and just get out of the office all without your coat and the other five layers of clothing it’s necessary to wear in winter. Not bad at all.

I love these tunnels. And, I love that someone thought of building them. The elements often make me wonder how people long forgotten from centuries past decided to settle in such an incredibly inhospitable place. Without the modern marvels of electricity and in particular light—lots and lots of lights—winter can be cruel and brutal. I cannot imagine deciding that this was the place to stay permanently. Summer is another world and I can totally relate to finding it and planting oneself firmly with no intention of ever leaving at that time of year. But, come the winter wind and dark, cold rains of autumn, I’d have high-tailed it to more southern climes. Immediately.

But, stay they did, and now we live in a world with modern conveniences designed to make life more easily livable even for those of us who live in places like the far North. Things like these underground walkways, which are warm and well it and resemble pedestrian roller coasters, make me think, ‘they nailed it’.

Day 30: Proekt 365 (A little streaming sunshine)

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Day 30: Proekt 365 Lovely streaming sunshine to brighten my day

Day 30: Proekt 365
Lovely streaming sunshine to brighten my day

My close personal relationship with my desk, keyboard and computer screens continued today, finding me pretty much locked in my desk chair and focused on the tasks at hand. So, I was thoroughly delighted to be able to turn off the desk lamp for even a brief bit of time today as the sunshine streamed through the windows and brightened the room around me with dazzling winter sunlight.

Glorious, lovely, bright sunshine. If you look closely at the photo, you can see my transition lenses darkened a bit. Yes, it was just that bright.

We may have only had a brief window during which there was no need for any additional light. But, I’ll gladly take it. A month ago, it was ‘dark’ (think very, very grey) all day and completely dark by about 3.00-3.30 in the afternoon. Here we are heading into February and the days are longer and, more importantly, brighter. I swear, that plant in the corner along with all the other plants in our flat perked up as soon as the first traces of sunshine hit. That same plant looks rather sad just now, sitting in the darkness.

We may be expecting a bit of snow over the weekend, which will be very much welcomed by this household. But, it is such a relief to see the days lengthen and the sun rise that much higher in the sky each day. Winter may be here, but summer is coming.

Day 29: Proekt 365 (Che Fufu loves her birdie)

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Day 29: Proekt 365 Che Fufu loves her birdie

Day 29: Proekt 365
Che Fufu loves her birdie

Precious few hours this week have been spent anywhere other than sat right in front of my computer screens. Most likely, that trend will continue. My desk is a mess of papers and pens and paperclips and tea and coffee stains. I’d say I’m sick of it, but … I’m not.

One daily respite is when The Cuban and Che Fufu put in a little kitty cardio and she chases her little birdie from one end of the flat to the other. She leaps. She slides. She shakes her butt and looks vicious. She attacks. (And, if we’re very lucky, she launches herself towards one piece of furniture or another only to miss it completely.) Lovely moments. And, extremely entertaining that kitty cardio.

Today’s image doesn’t capture Che Fufu in all her playful glory. Rather, it shows the aftermath. Sweetly curled up sleeping soundly with her beloved birdie. How she can go from chewing and clawing the little thing as if it was a real bird she wished to rip the head from to then curling up with it as if it was her security blanket, I’ll never understand. But, then, I do not think ‘cat’. I especially do not think ‘Che Fufu’.

Sleep well, darling beastie. For tomorrow you shall hunt. Same time. Same place. Same precious birdie.

Day 28: Proekt 365 (A note of adoration)

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Day 28: Proekt 365 Silly notes in random places from my adoring husband

Day 28: Proekt 365
Silly notes in random places make me smile

We are fond of silliness in this home. Very fond.

One habit we formed very early in our relationship was the random placement of notes to one another in places we’d least expect to find them. These are not the ‘I’ve gone to the supermarket / work / gym / ice fishing’ type notes. They may or may not have something to do with a household chore, but normally they are just little message that we’ll ‘get’, but others would find puzzling or just plain weird. I love them. I love that he normally illustrates his notes to me.

This afternoon, as I was rooting around for some afternoon grub, I found the above note on top of the leftovers from my dinner last night. Not being a huge fan of chicken, my husband wasn’t shy at all about letting his feelings be known about this particular dinner item. Evidently when he put the container in the refrigerator last night, he was inspired to share his thoughts. Through a note.

It took me completely by surprise when I found it today. It made me giggle. And, that’s the point. A little random bit of silliness to make us smile and hopefully giggle.

(And, to remind me in case I’d forgotten that he is not a fan of chicken!)

Day 26: Proekt 365 (She hoo shall be named ‘Cheek’)

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Day 26: Proekt 365 Owl? Or Queen of Cheek?

Day 26: Proekt 365
Owl? Or Queen of Cheek?

Today, I was quite fortunate to have been graced by the Queen of Cheek honouring me by settling on my lap for all of 15 minutes. Does she do so looking sweet and thoroughly cat-like? Does she curl up in a little ball and wrap her tail around her head? Nope. She comes wearing her owl face.

Oh, Che Fufu. I keep expecting you to hoot.

The affections of my cat come when she wants to give them. Yes, I know. If I wanted unconditional and constant affection, I should’ve gotten a dog. But, you see…Che Fufu is my cat, but my husband’s dog.

When I call her, she looks at me as if I were an annoying mosquito or puppy that jumps and keeps inviting her to play, with an expression that says, ‘You must be kidding, human’. Yet, my husband calls her, and she runs and leaps over furniture to get to him as fast as her little legs will carry her and flies through the air with much grace and ease.

I’ll take what I can get and enjoy her attention when she gives it. The remainder of the time we have an understanding: I, human with opposable thumbs, will feed her, clean her littler box, clean up her hair, hairballs and stray bits of litter that are constantly tracked through the house and play and pet her when she wishes; she, cat with a mind utterly her own, will grace me with affection at her own pace, when she wishes and will also leave signs of her love in the form of hairballs and bits of stray litter everywhere.

But, isn’t she lovely?