Daily Loaf

The zen of driving in summer traffic.

Campers, trailers, Russian trucks and lorries, Sunday drivers, and above all, road (re)construction. That pretty much sums up Finnish roads during the three summer months. I headed southwards after a grueling day at work - I skipped lunch simply because I hadn't the time - accompanied by a combination headache that can only be caused by too little blood sugar, too much heat and sun, and too little sleep (the nights have been ridiculously warm and humid up there).

30 minutes of a quiet country road and some acupressure later, I was ready to face the weekend traffic on Highway 4. It was a breeze, listening and singing to Danny's Kesäkatu - a Finnish cover version of Lovin' Spoonfuls Summer in the City - three times, on different channels, over the course of an hour. The roadside from Jyväskylä onwards was like a porno flick that goes on way too long. Only those who have seen Emilie Deleuze's New Dawn will understand the sexual imagery of heavy construction machines. Jaakko has a review of not just this but all films we saw in Sodankylä. I take it we are all still waiting for Juhana's reviews!

My final stage of relaxation was reached when I arrived at my destination - which at that point had become a non-goal - and I took a walk around the lovely neighbourhood my parents live in. I walked up to the monument that's been placed at the last point of Red resistance in Tampere during the civil war. The view was stunning and someone was playing the violin in a house next door. Blissful.

More on reds and white, if you will, next week. I'm too relaxed to go into politics now.