Thursday, December 20, 2007
Pillar(s) of love?
Pillar 1. Understanding
Pillar 2. Compatibility? - Acceptance? Both?
Or is there only one thing? The quest for understanding and knowledge, which is parallel and necessary for the quest for love?
Raj - we had a discussion about this! Need your input!!
P'Or, Shu Qing, Bettan, Rong Yao, Mimo, Simon and Sachin (TZ), Ilie, Fazal, and Emma - Thanks for the belated birthday wishes! Ooops... and to Marjo and Miika who wished me on the 19th, but to my klubitus account which I almost never check!
fon @ 3:06 PM link to post * *
Wednesday, December 19, 2007
Thanks!
A big thanks to (in temporal order!) all the NOHA crew (I LOOOOVE you all!), Corey, Janina, Richard, Ronnie, Joe, Alex (Puppy), Aggie and Mikko (Elvis!), ... who all wished me before my birthday!
And now Henry, "Bodo", Michael, Cherrine, PK (aka, daughter), Krish (di baba), Mikko (Elvis, again!), Addy, Nic, Sunny, Sid (my Daeshious!!), Ness, Adrian, เเม่, Isak, P'Kunyen, Aseem, Tomo, Sarinda (Dood!), Vivi, Olguita, Sachin, Isä, Sneha, Ei Phyu, Ginny, Philip, Hanni, Katie, Clive, Smedley/Tavis, Julian O, Pras, Chyngyz, Pancake, David S., Luca B. (the eternal child!), Lucy, AK, Xavi, Narot, Richard (again!!), Kaveen, P'Sally, Eki, Marco, Nora, Fernando E., P'Ed, Raj, Anish, Marta P., Riikka, Kirsti, Eirik, Mimi, The Nykters (Oona, her dad and two brothers), The Sorsas (Mikko and Liisa), Julian, Kari and wife, Aleksi, Anni, Pauliina, Heini, Nick, Gaia, and Thyvane for wishing me a happy birthday on my day!
I hope I haven't forgotten anyone...
So... completion of the second cycle (yes, I've completed 24 years of life!)... born in Water element, lived through wood and am coming to the end of the year of the Fire pig... Next year the Earth cycle begins!
So what does that mean? What has the 'fire' year meant for me? It's been a year of incredible upheaval! I don't know if that's what the horoscope says, but well...
It's seen me graduate from my undergraduate in Linguistics and Philosophy a postgrad cert in Asian Studies... it's meant acceptance into a UNESCO internship, into the NOHA master of humanitarian action... The end of a 2.5 year relationship, the renewal of family ties, remembering the girls, saying goodbye to them again, constant moving from country to country and meeting someone a little more special, who seems to have cured me of my cynicism...
But on a more mundane level... thanks Raj for taking Mikko, Oona and myself out the the Irish karaoke joint.... next time I'll save my best singing for last!! I had a blast... I think Mikko and Oona did too! So awesome to be reunited with old childhood friends!!!
fon @ 8:01 PM link to post * *
Hash in Dar Es Salaam
To all you potheads out there.... I DO NOT mean the smokable stuff! Haha! But it definitely gets you on a kind of high!
I haven't been to a hash since Zambia... and my, it was fun to go yesterday! So what is Hash? Apparently it's a drinking club with a running problem... yes. That's right. So primarily, it's an excuse to socialise and drink.... but it also involves something like a 5 kilometre run, more or less, all whilst shouting obscenities and searching for the 'correct' way to the end. With a couple (alcoholic) drink stops on the way.
And more beer/wine/spirits at the end.
Well, I guess you don't want to accidentally actually get in shape! That would be terrible!
Last night was the Christmas Hash... which meant obscene Christmas songs at the end.
Here's one:
To the melody of "Winter Wonderland"
Walkin' 'round in Womens' Underwear
Lacy things, the wife is missin',
Didn't ask for her permission,
I'm wearin' her clothes, silk panty hose,
Walkin' 'round in womens' underwear
In the store, there's a teddy
Little straps, like spaghetti
It holds me so tight, like handcuffs at night
Walkin' 'round in womens' underwear
Later on, if you wanna,
We can dress like Madonna,
Put on some eye shade and join the parade
Walkin' 'round in womens' underwear
Lacy things the wife is missin'
Didn't ask for her permission,
I'm wearin' her clothes, silk panty hose
Walkin' 'round in womens' underwear
Walkin' 'round in womens' underwear
Walkin' 'round in womens' underwear
Hash House Harriers - Highly recommended! Just watch out you don't end up sick at night!
fon @ 3:58 AM link to post * *
Sunday, December 16, 2007
Stardust
I feel like the worst fan in the world. I watched all of stardust on thie airplane, thoroughly enjoying the movie, and wondering what was so familiar about it… and at the end: Neil Gaiman. Doh! Just my favourite writer and one of my favourite books by him!
Once again, a journey would not be a journey if it wasn’t for misadventures on my part. Right, so all my flights were between the hours of 10 p.m. and 5.50 a.m. What does this mean? No shops, no banks open, no duty free shopping. Also, my card from Australia suddenly stopped functioning – I figure my bank in Australia thinks that my card has been stolen due to the sudden peak in internet transactions involved in planning my post Tanzania trip. So whilst there is money on my account, I am unable to withdraw it.
So I got to Madrid airport and managed to withdraw from my almost empty Finnish account an amount of 20 Euros after walking around for an hour looking for an ATM to add to the 23 something I had in my wallet (40 was overdrawing it!). The visa in Tanzania costs US$50 on arrival. So my next mission was to find an exchange and hope that 43 Euros was enough for US$50! But when? Madrid in the middle of the night was impossible. And the check-in lady said I had 25 minutes to make a transition to my next plane.
I spent a few hours in the plane to Amsterdam honestly wondering how I would get it communicated to my father that I was stranded in Dar Es Salaam airport without money to get out…. I had considered already writing him an e-mail from Madrid, but you need to pay for internet view credit card… so that wouldn’t have worked either, my credit/debit not functioning… I thought if I waited long enough, my dad would surely find some way of finding my whereabouts (Daddy can do anything!!)
For once, I am grateful for Dutch efficiency. I think the lady was trying to freak me out, because the truth was I had a little over an hours to make it to my gate… so having reached the general vicinity, I managed to find an exchange and still have time to practically fall asleep at the gate waiting for boarding to start!
How much did it cost me to get US$50? 40.17 Euros. I can’t believe how lucky I am. After watching Stardust, I am convinced that I’m also protected by some magical charm…. One that allows me to sort things out almost by accident when I screw things up (screwing things up is a daily activity for me). Emma has been known to call it serendipity on many occasions.
Anyhow, don’t want to say I’m at my parents’ place until I actually am, even though I’ve gotten as far as flying over Sudanese territory. If this is published, it means that I’ve survived my insane journey.
*** Yes, I've survived!***
And it's a good thing I exchanged the Euros for Dollars.... cos the rule here is 50 dollars or 50 euros... Doh!
fon @ 5:19 AM link to post * *
Tuesday, December 11, 2007
Dad's humour...
Nobody understands us, and why it's funny, nor why we are smiling, but at least me and my dad understand our special brand of exceedingly dry humour!
Dad (in a reply to an e-mail informing him that M. Sorsa will also be in Tanzania the same time as me): "Yes, thank-you, my daughter has already informed me, and her birthday party preparations are underway. The location is still uncertain, and it is also unknown whether the children will drink red wine, or soft drinks like the last time."
Hahahaha.... if nobody else gets it, I don't care, cos I do!!!
By the way, I haven't seen Mikko and Oona since Zambia - 15 or so years (except maybe I saw Mikko once briefly in Finland 8 years ago)...!
fon @ 2:46 PM link to post * *
Sunday, December 09, 2007
A good trajectory ...
They say bad things happen in threes, and last week I was dreading they third bad thing that was surely to occur. First of all, the Friday before last my phone went missing, then I had a huge inflammation of my wisdom tooth which caused an indescribable amount of pain... and then.... well, I was dreading #3.
But incredibly, it didn't happen. Instead, I had an amazing time with Helsinki. I saw my aunt, and for the first time in a long while, I really felt like family with her again! I surprised Emma (and was worried, for a moment, that I'd give her a heart attack!). The next day, I felt incredibly loved at Nolla, and Sunday was a day for bitter-sweet goodbyes... but nothing BAD happened at all!
And this weekend? The good vibe simply continues! All week, I've been smiling, in my own little world... And I seem to have incurred the same reputation here as I had in Australia: CONFUSED. Ooops. 5 minutes into Real Madrid vs Athletic Bilbao game last night: "Ah, han cambiado lados" (They switched sides!). Hehe. Stijn and Edmer couldn't stop laughing.
After that, I got happy birthday sung to me (that hasn't happened in years, because my birthday is so close to Christmas that nobody is ever around to celebrate it - perhaps this year I'll make my mom and dad sing in Tanzania... and perhaps I'll have to invite the Sorsas and the Nykters over for my birthday, so I'll get a rendition in Finnish!)... that was at a December birthdays party though ... so HAPPY BIRTHDAY to FERNANDO AND LUCY (with me in two photos below), and to EDMER (above, the chilled out looking Peruvian at the football match). Love you all!
... and after that, we went out to Salsa... and my handbag was stolen within a few minutes, literally from right in front of my friends!
But then I hear this "Valisa" announced over the P.A. system...??! And an awesome undercover policewoman had caught the thief and recovered the bag (the thief got away again though)... and NOTHING was missing! So Adri, Jose and I took a lot of photos at the police station, even though I'm not entirely sure that's allowed. So, match, birthday and police station, all within the space of about 4.5 hours!
A couple only in Spain-isms this past couple of weeks:
1. I paid an extra 20 Euros to have my box of books arrive by Friday, and instead, the normal parcel arrived first. The books better arrive on Monday, or I'm a bit screwed for my presentation!
2. I try to pay for a ticket in Tanzania, and the flight I booked just didn't exist. Meaning, of course, that prices meanwhile went up by 100!
3. I went to the hospital to see a doctor about my tooth, and the receptionist gave me a long scolding about my missing health insurance card, but still waves me through.
4. The doctor at the aforementioned hospital first showed me photos for half an hour before giving me a prescription, after I told him I felt nauseous from pain and that I had a presentation to prepare for the next day.
5. My copy of the economist went to 11, 2C instead of 9, 2C, and the neighbour brought it over (this is a great feature of Spain!)... and happened to be the ex-director of the Human Rights Institute at Deusto! What coincidence!
There were more... but I've just woken up, (to a very sweet text message, which I only thought I dreamed I replied to - but I actually did in reality, too)... so perhaps I should go back to sleep in order to remember the Spainisms - after all, it's only 11 something, on a Sunday... mmmm :) Or perhaps I should drink that coffee and see what happens next...
fon @ 4:17 PM link to post * *
Saturday, December 08, 2007
A lack of organ trust
Note for vegans who try to maintain a little bit of flexibility while out of home:
Your stomach will rebel if you eat nachos with cheese. Flexibility, good, sharing a plate of nachos with cheese = foreign objects stomach does not appreciate. This will result in stomach losing its trust in you and expelling everything, even water, that you may want to give to it.
I must make peace with the stomach today. It is not good to argue with those that you can't live without, or that you don't want to live without.
This applies to people, too. My girls - Emma, Mimo, Kirsti: we've definitely had some really cranky days towards each other, but at the end, we've made it up, and I guess even though we're going to be far apart in the future, we'll still have our involuntary (but beautiful) connection!!
I think Aggie and Kelv kinda got that point really well, too... last time I asked if they ever argued, they'd been together for over a year... and the answer was no. Best couple ever, no? I guess one just has to realise that one has the will to keep things going... and not jump overboard (or make the other walk the plank)... not the way I've done things... Got a lot to learn about relationships!
And relatives, most importantly... I really wish I could be more considerate to relatives. They are relatives no matter what, so I guess one kinda takes them for granted a little easier... but as a main principle of being a human being, shouldn't I reciprocate all the love that I get? I've been working on saying 'sorry'... I did that a few days this summer. Why? I think it's just as important to work on family relationships as it is on friend relationships! Sorry shouldn't be a hard word to say!
Ok... how did this turn all sentimental after I was technically discussing a stomach mutiny? Oh, well, LOVE YA ALL! Stomach included!
Going to see Real Madrid vs. Bilbao Atletic tonight! Are you jealous Sid, Tenzing... all the other soccer fanatics I know? Jimena sent around an e-mail asking who was in... in the end I think it's just me, Stijn and Edmer... hehe... then I ask "Erm... quien estan jugando?" (who's playing?) and Stijn burst out laughing. What the hell? I'm really just going to see what all the fuss is about!
fon @ 7:24 PM link to post * *
Thursday, December 06, 2007
Altruism
A few years ago, I attended a particular lecture, with a particular monk... The monk was talking about finding our path, helping ourselves to find balance within the world. About setting our own lives straight (this does not mean in terms of material gain - but rather, in terms of finding 'peace') At the time, I recall being worried about a friend who I felt was 'straying' from his path, and perhaps suffering as a result. At the end of the talk, I asked the monk what I should do about this friend I was worried about. Whether I should help him first. The response?
"Be absolutely sure your own house is clean before you clean his house."
What does that mean in practice? Especially in terms of a humanitarian worker?
On of the biggest criticisms that we'll face in this field is this: What makes us think that we are actually helping? Even as it is, we are acting under the impression that we are 'doing something'. But what is this 'something' that we are doing?
Leaving behind the mess of our own lives in order to put the lives of others in order?
Spreading an ideology?
It seems like what we are doing really isn't so far removed from that which the missionaries once did in the times of colonialism. We have a certain vision of what is right and wrong - which is internally debated - but on the front of the 'suffering' masses of the world, we are united in a desire to 'do something'. Does this sound like 18th century missionaries to you? It does to me.
So now, instead of imposing a western god in order to 'civilise' the masses, we are are imposing another form of pure ideology that seems to come, after all, from a disorganised house. But when we are out there 'helping others', we pretend that everything is ok back home. After all, we can't have them losing confidence in our vision.
If I'd understood his answer better, perhaps I would have asked of the monk - 'so - can we ever be sure that our own house is in order?'
I imagine his answer would have been 'no'. We can't even be sure.
But does that mean we should never try to help?
I think that's not the conclusion that we should come to - but rather, that we shouldn't be forcing any ideologies on anyone.
After all - monks do community work, too, but don't function the same way as workers of western NGOs. The assumption to make should be that those who need help are the the experts, not us.
And doesn't that apply to the friend in need? All you can really do is offer my hand, I can be there, I can wait and see if they ask for help... but how can I assume that he wants/needs that help?
So, altruism. If I am at my friend's house, assuming that he needs help, I'm there wanting him to accept what I have to give, so maybe I will feel useful.
But altruism is the unselfish concern for others. So it seems that many people don't have their own house in order, and 'need' to help others. So although there is no material gain, there is still gain to be had from thinking that one has helped...
Hmmm... I kinda have a western audience in mind in writing this, although I don't know if I have the words to explain it ... *sigh* One word: DHARMA.
But Dharma is not the same as DUTY which is how it is translated directly into English. I leave this entry at that.
- Charles Maurice Talleyrand
She is such a good friend that she would throw all her acquaintances into the water for the pleasure of fishing them out again.
fon @ 8:14 AM link to post * *
Wednesday, December 05, 2007
Happy Birthday to His Royal Majesty on the Occasion of his 8oth Birthday!
(This will not be visible through facebook - must be viewed directly on my blog)
fon @ 5:29 PM link to post * *
Tuesday, December 04, 2007
Shoot Anton.
There was a pistol on the wall.
Mus thought about his journey through Greece, 25 years ago, and stopped mid-sentence as he stared down at his coffee. He had just finished telling her about the rocks in his head. Those rocks of Arabic, Greek, English, Finnish that grinded through his mind painfully.
But yes, Greece – when he had arrived as a refugee from Syria so long ago, speaking a kind of pidgin English, with no choice but to communicate. He had learned to listen, and that’s when those rocks started entering his head. Greek, English, and whenever he could Arabic. Cutting through his brain and reopening the wounds just as they were healing, slow rounds of sharp rocks, grinding, grinding.
Greece, finally getting those words out. Finally able to say a few lines, to express some of what he felt, to write down a few rhymes, and most importantly, finally allowing those rocks to become pebbles, only kneading and prodding, but never cutting. But unable to stay there for long. And at the end of the rocky, paper littered tunnel, Finland. And how the rocks there cut, and were covered with ice.
She looked at him sympathetically as he told her about the rocks. Yes, it seemed that she could imagine the rocks in his head as he counted them on to the table – 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 … mixed with the tears. Why could he so easily cry in front of this young girl who said nothing to him, but simply listened patiently to his broken Finnish?
There was still a pistol on the wall.
The rocks. The rocks were worth it. They were worth the pain, and they were worth the tooth-gnashing grinding as the synapses in his brain were formed and broken and healed over again. Each day Mus let them surface for a few minutes, and make a few cuts, but today…
- Are you sure you don’t want to use a tissue?
She held out a yellow napkin to him. The rocks were worth it. At the end, he felt how great it was to be able to say, with sincerity, a simple ‘hello’. And to know that at the end, he could still look with dignity at this girl across the table and say:
- Chekhov is wrong. I don’t have to use the pistol.
fon @ 7:06 AM link to post * *
Saturday, December 01, 2007
BAD Bunny
fon @ 3:40 AM link to post * *