Independence Day - Finland 95 years

Happy Independence Day, Finland! In 5 years it's gonna be a big party ;)

Sorry about not posting for a while. I just haven't felt like writing. I've also been a bit busy. Last week I had three shifts at work which is more than usually as I have normally worked one or two shifts per week during these months. I've also been busy with final reports as all the projects are coming to their end these weeks. I've already had two presentations - one to go (next Tuesday). One report was returned last week, two to go (I'm going to return one today as soon as I've checked it through - 40/58 pages checked now edit woooo it's ready!! finally!!). And also one portfolio which can't be finished just yet as I have to include our event in it and the date for the event is Friday December 14th. So no, I can't rest quite yet.

And by the way. Winter has come to Finland. Totally. Yesterday it was -18 degrees at lowest and I only see snow when I look outside. Last Friday we had a terrible snow storm, the traffic was stuck and nothing worked. Yay winter. Not.

Today I'm going to get my aunt's dog to my place as she's going to London for a few days. I'm a bit scared as I've never taken care of a dog... :D I'm not such a dog person, and if she pees on my floor.................. f*ck. I'm going to return her back home on Sat before work. Tomorrow we are having a pre-Christmas party with my school friends, the plans include going to bowling and then to one's place. But unluckily I can't stay for long as I have the dog and I'm going to work on Sat.

By the way, I've been thinking about starting to write in Finnish. I guess I would have more to give and I don't even believe that so many of my exchange friends read this blog so it would be easier for me. I have to think about it.

Maybe I still continue the challenge I started. Maybe it's only fair to put two days in a row as I haven't updated in such a long time. So next..

Day 08 – What’s inside of your bag?

I’m not gonna take a picture of it right now but I can tell, because it’s almost always the same things in there. At school, I have a bigger bag, where I have my mini laptop and its charger, a notebook, a pencil case (usually) or just some pens, my calendar, a mobile charger, a lip balm, my mobile phone, my wallet, keys, a travel card, a bag of chewing gum and nowadays a hand cream. I’m a special woman because I don’t usually drag any make up with me (and sometimes I regret that..).

When I’m not at school but somewhere else, I usually have a smaller bag, where I have my mobile, keys, my wallet, a travel card, my calendar and a bag of chewing gum and.. that’s about it. Usually there’s also a package of salt liquorice, just in case >:)

When I go out, I have a tiny little bag where I have only the essentials; my mobile, some money / Visa Electron, a travel card, only the two keys I need to get home and some make up stuff. I always have a problem with those tiny bags because my stuff never fit into them properly. I’m always afraid that something will fall off.

Day 09 – Where would you like to travel?

God this is a hard one; I have too many destinations I would like to go. Well. At least I want to go to London and Paris, well because they’re classic. Everyone should visit those places at some point of their life. Then I want to go to Ireland. I don’t know what’s so interesting and tempting about that country, but I’ve done some presentations about Ireland and I’ve been wanting to go there for a long time now. Then, I would like to go to New York. Classic. But the flight frightens me. Also California has been on my list after I got addicted to the TV-series O.C.

Talking about some European cities, I would like to go to Nice (France) and Prague (Czech Republic) and Warsaw (Poland, to see several exhange friends :-)). Then, I have one obsession I have to experience - Madrid. I went around Spain during last spring but I never went to the capital?! So I have to get there. Aaaaaaaa how did I almost forget my probably number one destination – Rome!! That is the place I’ve been wanting to visit for longer than any other of the places. Considering Italy, Milan could also be nice.

Well well. I’ve never been so interested in going to Asian countries or African countries. Australia or New Zealand could be cool but I think I’m never gonna get there because of the flight that is longer than eternity. But I should never say never.

prepared to go out to freeze!

PS. My internship starts on January 14th  :-) Happy me!

upcoming happenings

28.11. Wed - Our school's "naughty pre-Christmas party"; I just wish my friends would come with me because I would like to go!

30.11. Fri - One big project presentation - I'm ALMOST free after that! the most relieving project to get rid of..

1.12. Sat - The first day of December - I get to open the first lid of the Christmas calendarS ;) I already have a lottery calendar but I also want to have an edible (:D) calendar, I just haven't made up my mind yet whether I prefer a salt liquorice calendar or Kinder calendar..

2.12. Sun - The final of Big Brother Finland:(

3.12. Mon - Another important presentation

6.12. Thu - Independence Day, traditionally baking ginger breads at home? mmm

7.12. Fri - Our group's pre-Christmas party including bowling etc!

11.12. Tue - My last project presentation!

14.12. Fre - The event we are organizing, hope everything goes well..!

17.12. Mon - The last day of school. All of my compulsory courses are done??

19.12. Wed - 21.12. Fre - Tallinn, Estonia with J!

Christmas timeeee!

30.12. Sun - 2.1.2013 Wed - New Year's in Oulu with J (by train........).

7.1. My internship starts?? (hopefully hopefullyyyy!)

So, there's a little update :-)

one year

Yesterday was our 1-year anniversary with J. No gifts, it was decided, but I got a flower! It was the first time during this relationship... :D (a bit more often would be nice, just a hint...haha)

It's not often that we go to eat in a restaurant, so that's how we decided to celebrate the anniversary. There were many options but after all we turned to the Chinese restaurant which is always a good choice. The food was good and we rolled away from the restaurant as we were so full.

The last time I updated was almost a week ago, when we had the season's first snow. It didn't last long but the temperatures have stayed quite low so I guess we'll have more of it soon. On Friday we had a halloween party with some friends (and some people I didn't know before). I dressed up as a witch and my dark make up was made by a friend. First we were in one's place but then we went on to the Club Aussie Bar (in Kaisaniemi, Helsinki) where they had a good halloween party already going on. People mainly had some halloween costumes but there were also some boring ones, haha.

On Sunday I was at work and we had a rush the whole day long. I was quite exhausted when I got home. On Monday I had a long day doing school stuff, as we first had an interview with one company's sales manager, then I met a group from another course, and then I still had a lecture that lasted 'til 6pm. On Tuesday I was at school & at work, and yesterday I already told about. Today I first met one group in order to make a safety plan (of 22 pages..) for the event we are organizing. Then we had a guided tour in Paasitorni & hotel Scandic Paasi (in Hakaniemi, Helsinki), it was quite interesting and I got a business card from the marketing manager - in order to ask for possible internship possibilities. It would be so interesting to get a chance for the internship as a marketing assistant in a big company like that (consisting of hotel, restaurant, congress and event business)!

So no, I still can't say my life would be too boring, so much stuff to do. And it doesn't seem to calm down. I'm stressing about a few projects 'cause I want to get them well done, as well as about the internship thing. I have counted on the fact that I would get an internship from January onwards, but what if I don't?? I have asked from 5 places now, three of them are still open so I haven't heard from them yet, but two already answered that it's not possible. I'm still going to contact the Paasitorni's marketing manager and I'm also waiting for our school to start looking for marketing interns for the spring. I need to get an internship for the spring... But it's not easy as I know what I want and I'm quite demanding (I don't want to go to a hotel or a restaurant as many of the students from my degree; and I want to be paid for the internship - many of them are not paid). Well, let's see, I just wish I would get a positive answer soon, or at least a possibility to be interviewed!

Now I'm gonna finish with one portfolio. Wish me luck with the internship places! Bye :-)

this is waiting for me for the event we are organizing ;)

the beginning of a new, rainy week

No school today and I still had to wake up at 7 o'clock... because of the dentist. I went there, I had a check up and I was out. useless.... but maybe the first time I got to leave without any further actions. She just said that I should book an appointment at the beginning of 2014. Fine by me! Btw, the weather is soooo depressing. When I left at 8am, it was so dark and rainy and cold and... ugly :(

So I came back home after 9 o'clock and now I'm thinking whether to go back to bed or not... maybe for a little while. or maybe I'll take a nap a bit later. I have an evening shift at work so.. Tomorrow I'll have a lecture in the morning and also an evening shift, on Wed - school, on Thu - school, on Fri - school, on Sat - work. Sunday = free!

Last week I was at school every day and at work on Saturday. After work, we went to the movies with J, after a long time! We went to see Savages (Raakalaiset) which was about drug dealing business and stuff. Not an easy movie but it was quite ok!

By the way, now that I bought the mini laptop, I guess it's finally time to give my MacBook to J's friend for reparation.. I know I'm gonna feel empty without my Mac! I got it over 3 years ago so it's not easy to give it away, even for a while. I hope the reparation is not gonna take many days. And I hope it's in a better condition when I get it back. Lately it has been very slow and overheated easily so it needs some fixing. I actually moved all my files to an external hard drive and then I deleted everything from the mac (more than 15 000 files.. I seriously hope that the external hard drive won't get broken!), so now it's ready for reparation.

And PS. even though I promised I wouldn't buy anything after the mini laptop, I still NEEDED to go to Hullut Päivät on Sunday (the last day of sales) and I bought a scarf, mittens, facial wash and candies... whoops. But from this day forward, I'm not allowed to buy anything unnecessary!

Ok, now I start doing school stuff (again..). Have a great week!

blah studying blaaaahh

a summary of two books (about CRM, 4 pages) - returned
an assignment about functional foodstuff (6 pages) - returned
an article about fast food trend in English (4 pages) - returned
an essay about organizing festivals (9 pages) - returned
a project plan for the neuromarketing project & powerpoint presentation - returned

oh god im getting crazy with all the school stuff..! but it feels so good when you get something returned... for example; we have been aware of the essay assignment since the beginning of September (but of course i couldn't get it done before). it has been in my mind since then but i haven't had time to do it as i've had so many other things to do. today was the deadline day. i've been working a lot on that essay since Monday and today I finally got it returned - an hour before it was too late. i feel so relieved!

Yesterday it was time for this fall's Hullut Päivät, 5 days of sales in Stockmann (every spring and fall). I came home from HP with three bags even though I wasn't supposed to buy anything special.... it's always the same! Today I went there again but I only bought headphones that I have been meaning to buy for many months. I still have a few things I have to go and buy...... bye bye salary..!

For the weekend I have two assignments to do. This week I go to work only on Saturday, next week I have three days of work again.. well well. luckily two of my courses finish at the beginning of November, so then I'll probably have at least some free time? what does it mean? free time?!

okay. big brother time and then a bit of school stuff and then to bed. see you!

[pictures from weheartit.com]

maple leaves :-)

Even though I love summer&sun and hate coldness, I've found the beauty of the fall again. But I know it doesn't last long, it's not more than a few weeks when the colors are numerous and the fall is at its best. Rain is not always so bad either (except for yesterday, or if it lasts many days in a row..). After those weeks the weather just gets too cold, trees loose their leaves and it's not beautiful anymore.

Maple leaves - one of my favorite things during the fall!

My life is filled with school work and work right now. I've also had a few health problems to worry about - teeth and skin - but I hope it's gonna be okay as I got my teeth fixed (at least for now..) and I got antibiotics for my skin.

And of course I have to mention one big thing - I'm getting older in a few days! My birthday is on Sunday, and I'm turning 21 then. 21 long years since I was born! I'm probably gonna celebrate a bit tomorrow with friends, and on Sunday with my relatives. By chance I got a free weekend from work (well, "free" or "a day-off" doesn't mean anything nowadays as all the extra time has to be spent for school reports and projects etc..) so I have time to enjoy my birthday at least a bit. AND I already got a present from J - here you can see it:

So, as you can see, I finally got my One Piece! I'm completely in love with it, it's so comfortable. Happy me!

Next week is going to be busy busy busy! A lot of stuff to do and stress to deal with, but first I'm going to enjoy this weekend and my birthday. Have a nice weekend! :-)

Why is it never this beautiful later in the fall??

PS! On Tuesday E took me to the stable with her! She has found a gorgeous, big horse called Faros, to lease. They were a very nice couple and worked well together :)

All the pictures (except for One Piece and the horse) are from weheartit.com!

fed up!

http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_hpuftT_iJAQ/S8VBhAOedOI/AAAAAAAACEU/jKYfnVCrCWU/s1600/192_motivation.gif

I'm so fed up with school already! Only two weeks behind, too many ahead... too many tasks and assignments and group projects to do, this fall doesn't look promising at all.

..and sometimes the positive attitude is hard to find when it looks like this!

Well, at least there's something to look forward to; J had his birthday yesterday and as a present from me, now there's a hotel waiting for us in Tallinn in December! When the fall semester is over, right before Christmas :-) I wish we could be there already... I've been there just once, and then it was only a day-cruise.

"Each year, one of the most popular Christmas fairs takes place in the heart of Tallinn medieval Old Town’s Town hall  square. Crafts people and stall holders offer handicraft, wool and cotton, leather and wood, jewellery and toys, hot drinks and warm snacks, Christmas decorations and handmade scented candles, which make this an ideal place for the Christmas shopping. Naturally, the true Santa Clause will be there and various concerts and shows take place, entertaining the whole family. No wonder the queen of Belgium likes to do her Christmas shopping here!"
(from visitestonia.com)

http://centraleasteurope.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/Christmas-Market5-Tallinn-Estonia.jpg

70th birthday (surprise) celebration

Hello again! Were is my motivation? I've lost it, once again.. Well. Let's see.

After the crab party I was at work on Monday&Tuesday. On Wednesday I felt a bit sick again... In the evening we had a movie night at my friend's house (i'm so jealous about the apartment....) with two other friends of mine. It was nice to hang out with those people after a long time. We watched American Pie: Reunion hahah. My friend had her super camera with her so there are quite a many (doubtful) pictures from that night.

i tried to be artistic.... fail

On Friday my aunt came to pick me up and then we headed towards Mustio again. The reason for this weekend trip was my grandma's 70th birthday. On Friday evening we went to Mustio manor to decorate the place that was booked for us for Saturday. The theme was Britain (as you can see from the following pictures). So, Saturday was the main day, and it was a surprise party for my grandma (who loves England end everything that's British). We were all well dressed up and we started with a afternoon tea (including some British teacakes or scones or whatever :D) at Mustio manor's facilities. After the afternoon tea we moved over the manor and we had a guided tour through the exhibition (about Hjalmar Linder) there. I actually liked it, or should I say I think it was interesting, which is rare because usually I don't like museums or exhibitions. And, btw, my voice was gone. Flu, again......

 After the guided tour we went back to the place that was reserved for us. They had already changed the afternoon tea setting to a dinner setting. But first it was time for toasts and a few short speeches. For dinner we had roasted beef, roasted potatoes, peas, Yorkshire pudding.... and wines of course :-) it was all very good!

 After the dinner we went back to our own place for dessert and coffee. We didn't have a cake because it was my grandma's wish to have a "krokaani" (I didn't find the word in English, but I mean one of these) because they had one at their wedding for 42 years ago. So my aunt decided to fulfill the wish and the krokaani came into the house :-D I hadn't tasted it before and first I thought it was weird but after all I liked it. we also had macarons and Fazer chocolates, not bad!

I came back home on Sunday. On Monday I went to the dentist and spent a fortune there. On Tuesday I was at work, and on Wednesday&Thursday I've been at school. We also had a "Back 2 school party" yesterday, I had fun! I slept maybe 6 hours last night so now I'm quite exhausted. Bed ->