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Random rants and occasional raves on life outside metropolitan Finland.

Saturday, July 05, 2003

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.

Thursday, July 03, 2003

The worst of all worlds


If I could have had it my way, Finland - or any other Nordic country - would never have joined the European Union, and we'd be living in a loving, caring and boring utopia that has free-trade ties with the EU, a scandinavian krona and a working supranational democratic government. Call it the Scandinavian Union.

Well, things never do work out the way I want. Take Haapajärvi, for instance. I was hoping to find corn-fed boys driving down Main Street in their tractors wearing bib overalls that nicely highlight their wide tan shoulders... Not quite so: this place is one big time warp.

Most guys my age, giver or take 5 years, seem to dress like I remember people did in the mid- to late 80's in the countryside; par example: white loose t-shirts, sleeves torn off , stone washed jeans with no patterns or sweatpants, leather boots or running shoes that should've been dumped 5000 kilometers ago, an earring (just a plain ring) in either ear - never both - and, get this, I've actually seen a mullet! They're driving the same cars they drove in the 80's, too, though tuned up with a high fidelity sound system worth twice the chassis it's been mounted on.

That's where Europe is right now. Instead of moving on from arduously defending the interests of national milk producers, to, say, defending democracy on a European level, we seem to be ever more stuck in turf wars - unstuck in the flow of time, repeating the 80's all over again. Driving around in an old car that's been beefed up with the Euro and rapid expansion plans.


The meat of the day has of course been the evolving crisis between, who? Italy and Germany? Berlusconi and Schulz? The South and the North?

Silvio Berlusconi's media barely mention the voices of opposition, and are quick to exalt the Cavalier (as he is known in the eternal city) by telling of Bush Jr's complimentary call to the Italian premier ("Bush [...] congratulated Berlusconi for his inaugural speech at the European Parliament"). Curious how no other sources appeared to be reporting that Martin Schulz has admitted he had intentionally provoked Berlusconi

Unfortunately, the left-oriented (yet the only serious newspapers in Italy) Corriere della Sera and La Repubblica sum it up nicely. The former declares on its editorial page that "[t]hat which was feared has punctually arrived. [...] [this] European semester could not have started worse." The latter, in a surprisingly Laconian manner simply states that "the Italian semester has sweapt away in a single day - its first - all the extraordinary opportunities Europe had offered, shipwrecking instantly in an international crisis [...]"

While I'm writing this, Mr. Berlusconi is expected to be on the phone with German chancellor. Personal relations can still be mended at this point. On a European level, we can only record the damage. Gentlemen, start your blogs.

If the thunderstorm outside abates, I'll head for the beach to cleanse my spirits.

Wednesday, July 02, 2003

On the relative cheapness of travelling.



A point was raised today on a mailing list I subscribe to but seldom comment on, the Academic Elitists, which piqued my interest - possibly because I was so busy with the daily humdrum of attending calls, dispatching mails, invoicing, helping some poor guy who was doing robot installations at our new factory get his car towed after it had broken down some miles away from 'downtown', that I needed something completely different.

Markus pointed out the attention Markus Drake's latest venture into freeriding had gotten in Helsingin Sanomat, and how he felt Drake's political integrity was waivering by not standing by his acts - essentially denying that he had anything to do with this peculiar act of economic subversion, a sophisticated, web-enabled form of thievery. I felt much the same; if you're going to endorse crime, then do it openly, like you've done it before!

The whole demand for free public transportation is absurd from a national perspective. Just how fair would it be towards those students living in, say, Haapajärvi, whose scant income in the form of study grants from the government does allow them to pay the lower rents, but leaves them wanting at the end of the month because they have to own a car to get anywhere in a town where 5 kilometers is practically next door?

I'm all for public transportation, but just like any other service or good, it does have a price and I don't see why it should be subsidised so heavily as to make its consumer price null. This would generate more demand, granted, but if the higher income classes are already driving their cars to work and elsewhere anyway, a lower price will increase demand very little. If we're going to prioritise spending in big cities like Helsinki, already struggling with budget deficits, let's keep the money in education and healthcare, both of which enable social mobility.

Just as a side remark, by my quick and dirty math we're only paying about half the real cost of transportation whenever we pay for our tickets or monthly passes - those of us that DO pay, that is - and that's without capital expenses, which are pretty steep in a rail-dependent city like Helsinki!

My father once did the math for car ownership, given a middle-size family saloon, purchased new and traded in after 5 years at 150 000 km. The result: back then, 50 000 FIM, running and capital costs included. And some people really have no alternative, if they choose to have a job. Suckle on that, Markus Drake.

Tuesday, July 01, 2003

First Mozambique, then, what? Israel?!


From our whatthefuckaretheythinking department. I'd like to see Andrew Sullivan give a good spin on this little piece of news. Apparently the Israeli government - which I generally back quite ardently - has gone the way of such evolved nations as Mugabe's Zimbabwe, by denying BBC reporters access to interviews with government officials and special briefings. And they played the Nazi card, by comparing the BBC's portrayal of Israel to "the worst of Nazi propaganda."

That's just plain outrageous! The BBC (World, which is what we get here) delivers, imo, some of the most well-balanced coverage of the Middle-Eastern web of conflicts, and comparing it to Nazi propaganda is like comparing Anneli Jäätteenmäki's government troubles to those of Silvio Berlusconi - president of the EU as of today.

Hopping over to the positive side of media life, I just finished reading last weeks Veja (a Brazilian 'Time' or 'Suomen Kuvalehti'). Corrupt politicians, celebrity gossip, the latest rage in plastic surgery, all the standard stuff was there. What really made my day was the cover page and a related article. On which European mainstream weekly would you see the following main headline: "Homosexuals - Life Outside The Closet" - on a rainbow coloured background? The article addressed mostly legal issues gays, lesbians and transvestites face in Brazil, and there were a few nasty basic flaws - like not differentiating between transvestites and transsexuals - but the overall spirit was one of urgent demand for change in Brazil. Yay!

Time to head up north again.

The flu, part two.



I always get one. The summer flu. Last year, though, I had it December, in Brazil. I came home one day early from Haapajärvi last week because I was feeling like shit. Friday was the worst, Saturday and Sunday I felt like it would pass, and then, boom, it hits me in the head with a blunt object. And then I wake up. So I didn't drive back to Haapajärvi today, and instead I spent the day sleeping.

When it comes to being ill, it's easy for me to follow the golden rule of sleeping and drinking a lot - after waking up briefly at 5.30 I went back to bed only to reaweken at 13.00. That 14 hours of sleep, straight. I had brunch and read some Clarke (The City and the Stars). Back to bed, for another 3 hours. TV, food, surfing, IRC, surfing, blogging. But enough about today.

Yesterday my youngest sister had her first communion. She was in it for the money, of course, but it still reminded me of why I haven't left the Lutheran church, at least not yet. I like the music and I think the ceremonies are beautiful, very solemn. We need more ceremonies. I partook of the communion, and to my surprise so did both my parents. We'd had a discussion revolving around spirituality, not organised religion per se, and it seems like we've all reconciled with the church in some way. I also liked the way people smiled when they were walking back from the altar. Part of it, I think, can be attributed to a Beavis-and-Buttheadesque "Cool, look at what I'm doing!" feeling, but it's not called a communion for nothing. Christian Spirituality is now way up on my upcoming trends list. You heard it here first!

The party afterwards was a drag, I had to run around too much to really be able to enjoy it. Also, pretending to be straight for your father's cousin, not a big hit with me anymore. Come to think of it, the nicer part was really the running around. I hate being dodgy, and boy was I on my toes the whole day. Had a good chat with José though about which Star Trek movie sucks the most. I think he's probably the oldest trek geek I know, which makes him an Authority.

The omens must've meant my mean flu.

Sunday, June 29, 2003

Drama, much?


Whew, some day. Woke up late, feeling much less ill, to find everyone else up and busy tidying up the house (my parents', that is) for my sister's confirmation and first communion festivities. I was once more reminded of the origin of my occasional bursts of maniacal cleaning. I did the basement and the room I sleep in. It's not really my room, since I feel like I haven't had a room since I moved away from Kangasala. Places to sack, yes, but not a proper boudoir.

I was supposed to head to Janne's for his warm-up party, but unfortunately he and A-P hadn't managed to get tickets for the G-A-Y Summer party we were all to attend, so they had to go downtown to actually cue outside. So I ended up going to Jarkko's instead, which was just as well since he had my ticket (one I would've been left without had not one of Meee's hags cancelled. Jaaku was there, too, (curiously enough I've yet to meet his Estonian boyfriend. Don't you hate it when people hide their partners?) and we had a swell time.

Here's where we get to the drama part. Laterna was nicely decorated and it seemed like half of Helsinki was there - nice to see people bothering to leave the confines of Ring III once a summer - along with all of the Tampere scene. I'd brought a nifty Sony Cybershot U to record the damage, and boy, did I ever! Couples broke up, made out, broke up again, and generally stormed every which way. As the night flew by to the rhythm of just about everything from a Paula Koivuniemi potpourri to hardfloor, via ESC hits, I felt simultaneous sadness and joy at the fact that I'm not seeing anyone.

It's hard seeing your friends get rejected, yet it's comforting to realise you're not the one at the receiving end of the stick. There was a strong detached voyeristic feeling to the whole evening. The greatest drama is that I kind of enjoyed it. Ersatz, much.

The sky was heavy with omens when we walked back to the car.

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