Trip to Sweden! / Ruotsin reissu! huhtikuu 29, 2007

Helsinki +1 degrees Celsius, Sunny.
Sunrise 5:24 am, sunset 9:13 pm.

Today we are going to Sweden!!! It’s so great! We are going there today (Sunday) and coming back on Thursday. So it’s going to take little bit longer than an ordinary Stockholm cruise. For my travelling company I have two hansom, irritating and great guys Tuomo and Markus. I think that it’s little bit sad that this is going to be THE trip to abroad on this year (at least it looks like it right now. But then again, I get to go somewhere!!! Our original reason for the trip was Bloc Party’s gig on Tuesday. We bought the tickets already on January, so I’m really waiting for the experience. I’m also excited to meet our Swedish friend Mattias, who promised to accommodate us. The boat trips to Stockholm and back we paid with my moms Silja–club card’s client points. Thanks mom! So this is a true student trip… I’ll try to take a camera with me, so maybe I could so you some photos from the trip.

Tänään lähdetään Ruotsiin!!! Jee!! Lähdemme tänään sunnuntaina ja tulemme takaisin torstaina, joten tämä on vähän pidempi matka kuin tavallinen Ruotsin risteily. Eli ihan kiva pikku loma on tulossa. Mukaan lähtee tietenkin Tuomo ja Markus. Surullista asiassa on, että tämä on vuoden ainoa ulkomaanmatka (ainakin näillä näkymin), mutta toisaalta pääseepäs edes johonkin. Matkan alkuperäinen syy on tiisainen Bloc Partyn keikka, johon ostimme liput jo alku talvesta. Odotan keikkaa innolla, kuten myös sitä, että näen Mattiaksen, ruotsalaisen ystävämme, joka ystävällisesti on luvannut majoittaa meidät. Laivamtkat maksoimme äidin Silja-clubkortin pisteistä. Kiitos äiti! Toisin sanoen, tämä jos mikä on sitä opiskelijamatkailua… Yritän muistaa ottaa kameran mukaan, niin jos vaikka muutaman kuvan onnistuisin ottamaan.

Good News! huhtikuu 27, 2007

Helsinki +13 degrees Celsius, Clear.
Sunrise 5:27 am, sunset 9:10 pm.

Today was a happy day! Now I can unveil my practical training place, because today I got it! I had a practical training interview at Design Forum Finland. The interview lasted a bit over hour and I was SO nervous that my stomach was making it own turns. The ladies who were interviewing me were really nice and after an hour excruciating talking they were ready to make their decision and take me on board! I was so happy that I was almost literally gliding home…

Our practical training is usually unpaid, but in this case we are able to get study grants from the government. Now, on top of all, they (DFF) offered me to pay me lunch money and a travelling card! That isn’t too bad, don’t you think!

I’m so excited about the work I’m going to do this summer. DFF is launching a new exhibition in June, which is called “New Arrivals – Starring Finnish Fashion”. Exhibition is introducing new great Finnish designers like Aki Choklat, Minna Parikka, Saint Vacant Footwear, Tiia Vanhatapio, Rinne Niinikoski and so on… I’m going to take a part of building and working with the exhibition. It’s really great opportunity to be part of something like this, especially when I’m really interested of promoting Finnish design and fashion. Happy, happy, happy. That’s how I feel today.

Ajattelin välillä laitta jotain juttua oikein suomeksikin… Ihan niitä ystäväisiä varten, jotka eivät jaksaisi lueskella englanninkielistä huttua.

Tänään oli ihana päivä! Olin työharjoittelu haastattelussa Erottajankadulla, Design Forum Finlandilla. Jännitin niin kovasti, että vatsaa väänti oikein kovasti. Vaikka etukäteen haastattelijat (kaksi naista, näyttelytuottaja ja talouspäällikkö) olivatkin vaikuttaneet positiivisilta, he (kuin varmuuden vuoksi) tenttasivat minua kokonaisen tunnin ajan. Yritin siinä sitten vastailla mahdollisimman hyvin kaikkiin kysymyksiin. Pelottavaa oli. Lopulta haastattelijat katsoivat toisiaan ja toinen kysyi, josko heidän pitäisi keskustella asiasta kahdestaa. Toinen vastasi tähän, että ei kai tässä mitään keskustelemista ole, otetaan tyttö töihin… Oi, että olin iloinen siinä vaiheessa! Iloisuus vaihtui iloiseksi epäuskoksi, kun talouspäällikkö puheli, että kai meidän pitää jotain sinulle maksaakin. Siis mitä! Työharjoittelusta maksaa! Käsittämätöntä! Minä kun olin aivan ajatellut, että en saisi työharjoittelun ajalta muuta kuin opintotuen. Niinpä sovimme, että he maksavat minulle lounasrahan ja matkakortin! Mieletöntä! Kun lähdin haastattelusta, suorastaan leijuin Helsingin katuja pitkin. Niin hyvä mieli minulle tuli.

Työ mitä tulen tekemään kesällä on aivan uudenlaista minulle. DFF:n näyttelytiloihin pistetään pystyyn näyttely nimeltä New arrivals -pääosissa muoti. Tätä näyttelyä pääsen siis rakentamaan ja muutenkin olemaan näyttelyn pyörteissä mukana. Siitä tulee todella mahtavaa. Näyttely esittelee lupaavia suomalaisia suunnittelijoita, kuten: Aki Choklat, Minna Parikka, Saint Vacant Footwear, Tiia Vanhatapio, Rinne Niinikoski ja niin edelleen. Tämä on kuin onnenpotku, noin ammatillisen osaamisen kehittämisen, kannalta. Olen siis tosi iloinen…

Time is flying huhtikuu 21, 2007

Helsinki +2 degrees Celsius, rain.
Sunrise 5:47 am, sunset 8:53 pm.

I have a feeling that time is going too fast. It’s almost the end of April and I feel that the month has just begun. I have so many school works to finish by the end of May and I also should start packing my things. I mean my all things. I have given notice of my cell apartment in Jyväskylä and I’m going to move to Helsinki to Tuomo’s place for the summer. Problem is that I haven’t any place for my furniture and all the “stuff” I have, yet. And of course I don’t have a summer job either. Though on next week, I’m going to get answer from one place if I’m able to go for a practical training for them during the summer. I don’t want to tell about it too much before hand. I just hope I’m going to get it! It would be so great, because then I would get study grants form the government for the summer time and I wouldn’t have to worry about money.

We have a plan for my furniture and that’s really good. If Elina and Joel (they are moving to Helsinki for the summer too) are able to get a lodger for their Jyväskylä’s apartment, I can move all my stuff there. Sounds a bit weird, but is definitely possible. They have very loose furnishings at the moment, so couple of extra furniture won’t matter. Now I just have to keep my fingers crossed that everything will just clear up…

I wish that it would already be summer, I would have all my schoolwork in order, I would have the practical training place and I would have place for my things… Little do I ask…

Yesterday couple of my school mates started their journey to Norway. They are going to travel almost 1300 km the Ice Sea! Next 10 weeks they are going to work there in the fish factory, making bates for the fishermen. It sounds so surreal that I can only smile. Well, if you are reading this, Good luck Henna, Petri and Inka!

Our boys (Wiidakko) were performing on Thursday and Friday evening here in Helsinki. On Friday they performed in Kuudes linja, which is just opposite from where we live with Tuomo, and yesterday they were performing in Oranssi-klubi. They have had four months gap between their last appearances, so I would say that it most definitely were showing in their performance on Thursday. Yesterdays gig was superb! I liked it a lot! So I guess they haven’t entirely lost their touch.

Now I start to listening boys snoring… Tuomo and Markus are still sleeping, like they usually are at this time of morning. Have a lovely day where ever you are! Here the winter is trying to find its way back. It won’t succeed, but this means we will have couple of really cold and rainy days. Oh, I almost forgot to tell you! We have the first beautiful, tiny leafs on the trees already! I can’t wait to have real spring everywhere. It’s so wonderful and fresh looking!

Readymade project huhtikuu 11, 2007

Jyväskylä +2 degrees Celsius, mostly clear.
Sunrise 6:04 am, sunset 8:34 pm.

I finally finished it! The baby blanket is READY! It actually was completed surprisingly fast, considering that I haven’t had too much time to knit it. I have had so much school work, that I’ve been able to knit only occasionally. Now the blanket has already ended to its owner, whose Sanna’s and Jussi’s little girl. Sanna went to labour at 27th of May and gave birth to beautiful little girl (weight 3605g, height 50cm).

Here are some pictures of my creation. Unfortunately I don’t have any pictures of Sanna’s and Jussi’s creation…

So much to tell, so little time… huhtikuu 11, 2007

Jyväskylä +2 degrees Celsius, mostly clear.
Sunrise 6:04 am, sunset 8:34 pm.

Last Thursday I had my 26th birthday and I had a blast! On Wednesday I had some problems at school, such as: I lost my notebook that consisted information from all the courses I’m having right now. Somehow, on Thursday morning I woke up at 4:30, and I couldn’t get any sleep after that! I was so puzzled about all the schoolwork. I was really surprised when my cell was ringing at six a clock! When I saw that it was Linda, I wasn’t so amazed anymore. Linda wakes up very early every morning and she knows that I’m usually awake at six a clock as well. “Happy birthday!”, she said to me. Then she asked what I was doing. I told her I was eating morning porridge like every morning. “Okay”, she said. “Could you come and open the door for us?” I was so amazed! There they were behind the door with Hannu, at six a clock in the morning! Crazy, but lovely people! They brought me just baked French breads, ice cream cake and some beautiful yellow tulips. What a wonderful way to start a birthday morning.

The whole day was just wonderful. Only downside (and that was just a little, little part of the day) was that Tuomo didn’t remember my birthday! He felt really bad for it, but it’s true that all of us make some mistakes at some times. Or forget some things. That’s natural and only life.