Simple joys

Tomorrow is public holiday, internationally it is called Labor's Day, in Finland, we called Vappu, and usually, people wish each other 'Happy May Day' (hups, like wishing people to have 'big trouble' on that day, ha ha). Anyway, the weather is forecasted to be Spring-like tomorrow, warm and sunny. Kids and I went to the shop today, and bought a simple device - bubby gun, so that tomorrow they can play outdoor all day making bubbles. It is simple stuff, but kids are really delighted and joyful... :)

You don't need expensive toys or gifts to make a kid happy, but when they are used to such luxury, you create expectation on yourself, and anything lesser will make them unhappy. So, think twice before you splurge on expensive gift, because it may bring temporary joys, and more sorrows in the future. 

  

爱你一辈子。。 感人故事

老教授帶病妻上課，他在台上講，她就坐在下面，一臉幸福的聆聽。愛，是經得起平淡的流年，是矢志不渝的相守。一輩子的愛情…

Source》
http://www.ettoday.net/news/20120427/42206.htm
http://www.sinchew.com.my/node/245398?tid=2

Spring Fun at Home!

Kids are having fun, whilst mummy sufers the aftermath!

  

Finnish hare

A Finnish hare behind the bush... lovely creature! More info: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mountain_hare

Yellow Day

These T's are just regular collections from Disney Paris as gifts to my kids, but I was told, they would be disaster colour if put on today in Malaysia due to the 'Bersih Campaign'... :(  Anyway, kids love their new Ts, and we love our country.... we hope the Bersih walk will take place peacefully.

A milestone accomplished

My first ever academic article was produced today. This is a baby step forward. Earlier, when writing course assignments, I never need to think so hard, the writing came naturally in free style, just a self-expression of some kind. However, this round, the 'writing' seemed so challenging. A lot of thoughts needed for the style rather than the contents, and most importantly, I could not grasp the expectation of the target audiences, unlike writing papers for 'practical readers'. Anyway, I know the paper has significant gaps since I hardly read many scholarly papers in my life... but it is a small step to my monograph writing in 2 years time, and I guess, more practise will gradually improve my skills in producing academic papers in future, hence, I am all in for the 'learning'... it is part of the personal development I am look for.

Roti Chanai and Tandoori

When getting busy and stressful, food is my best friend. Today, I pampered myself with something I cannot get in Kajaani - roti chanai and tandoori chicken. Heavenly treat! Who says we need to be in fine dining to have great food, this little homely treat is what money nor fine dining cannot offer. My taste, my liking!

May Day May Day!

I just received an email today with 3 inches thick of reading materials! How on earth am I going to read all these in a week, and to produce simultaneously a 'scholarly' article for publication. It is MISSION IMPOSSIBLE! A little 'demotivated' at the moment, plus lack of any inspiration to pen any lines. Still struggling to recover from Spring flu, work spilt over after the travel, so these 'homework' only adds salt to wounds :( 

Guess I will go to bed now, take good rest and start fresh tomorrow... what else can I do?

May Day Delight

I have never made Finnish doughnuts before, and today, my very first attempt with kids... and surprisingly, it turned out reaaaaaaaaally WELL! Thanks to an excellent recipe from the website.

http://www.valio.fi/reseptit/munkit/

  

 

Writing an Article

I never realized, writing an article could be so challenging! I should produce an article for one of the seminar course, and after struggling the whole day, my mind is still pretty much clueless and idealess what to write! I have some vague ideas, but the problem is... I do not have time nor the resources to find 'scholarly articles' from the library, and other sources. It is frustrating! Anyway, I have a long day tomorrow, so I guess I must prepare school work first, then think for inspiration again tomorrow. Submission deadline approaching, so getting desperate!

Intermat Highlights

The main reason to visit Paris was to attend a big fair called Intermat where we were supposed to meet our business partners from UK, and also their authorized agents from other parts of Europe. It was nice to catch up with them, and to enhance the network...

http://youtu.be/DhY1YEGmO6w  

Living hell!

After 4 days of hectic and 'romantic' trip.... now I am in living hell! I have three seminar courses coming round the corner, and I just received all the pre-course assignments upon return... they are PLENTY of materials to read and write, and I am having difficulties to figure out how to cope with all these with the kind of hectic schedules I have now!

God, help me please!

Romantic Paris

I was recently in Paris with hubby. We could not really figure out how Paris could be one of the most romantic city in the world... ha ha. There were so many people and cars, so crowded, rubbing shoulders with others all the time, rainy, windy, wet, etc... then we found some 'explanations' finally for Paris to live up to its name....

1. Always rainy - so, couples must always share an umbrella, which makes it 'romantic'

2. Always windy and cold - so, couples must always hold each other to keep warm, so, another reason for romantic

3. Large city to walk, lady gets tired easily walking with their high street fashion wear, so, must always hold the man for support, and move gracefully, slowly in their 6 inches tall heels, that's our last explanation for romantic.

Anyway, jokes aside, we did have a romantic trip there by our personal standard, and we truly enjoyed each other's companion despite it was a short, hectic trip!

Some pics to capture our wonderful moments in Paris!
http://youtu.be/ddXqbyVjhY8

Little pianist

Music helps to relax me when I am tense.... although I am not a talented musician, but when using music as relaxation, the talent part is not the most important. Anyway, nowadays, kids are also learning piano... however, I do not want to pressure them to become a musician. The very reason they are learning was to have this as an option to destress in the future, just like I do nowadays...

Boy seems to enjoy the piano more than the girl... and here is a funny video of him 'practising piano'.

http://youtu.be/WDK_tFcAjg4

A small accident!

I had a shock and heart attack this evening when B ran in to tell about a big cut by a working spade. The sister accidentally hit him when she was digging, not a lot of blood, but a 1 inch wound just couple of mm above his right eye! I almost fainted. Hubby has to take him to hospital, and they cleaned up and placed some 'magic' tape called SkinLink.. Never heard, but I hope it will do some good. God, please bless him with speedy recovery, and no infection.

Kids play

When I am down, when I am busy... watching the kids, brighten my day. Here is a video, that made me laugh, and all my tiredness will vanish away....

http://youtu.be/HDxFUrMCpNI

Busy bee....

Boy is busy digging snow around the home... making tunnel, snow man, castle, etc. It is just so funny to see how 'busy' he is with the spade and spending hours outside digging :D

Rare visitor, again!

 Leaving in the country side is like having a life safari... usually, we see lots of birds - both locals and seasonals, but occasionally, we also have rare visitors like deers, hares, fox. This family of deers, were here last evening, and this morning. Usually they are in the fields, but some times, they do come really close to our home, at the courtyard and backyard.

  

Home saloon

This is my 'new project' over the weekend... cut boy's hair, and curled girls hair. Not bad, ha ha!

  

On top of the world

Kids new playground... and also 'TV' spot - from on top of our home's stone stove. It is warm and cosy up there!

A visitor :D

We have a visitor, he is a super lively and active boy. Anyway, the kids are making so much noise that it is not possible to concentrate nor read... guess I have to find something else to do, like Spring cleaning away clothes from closet.... something I should do, but did not get around due to the assignments.

Newborn BB Boy

My niece gave birth this afternoon to a healthy baby boy weight 3,7 kg. He was supposed to be borned on 18 April, but he could not wait further and today, they did the C-section to bring him to the world. Can't wait to see this little dragon boy :D May both mother and son be safe, praise the Lord!

CD Ripper

I have a collection of great 80s and 90s CDs, but they are so cumbersome to play nowadays with a CD player. Surfed around to find a CD ripper so that I can ripped these files to MP3 format for personal use. I can put them to my MP3 player, listen to them when I am walking, travelling, going to work etc... Found this product from internet, cool, fast and easy. Really worth trying if you are looking for a basic CD ripper. Highly recommended!

http://www.nch.com.au/rip/index.html

American Idols

I think it is great to have such kind of competition to find new talents, and there are many fantastic, gifted talents found through this channel. However, the selection of winner in my mind is not very fair. Voters choose not by their ears, nor their heart, but by their deceptive eyes, putting more emphasis on looks, beauty, gender etc. Many voters are young girls, and they idolize young, handsome boys regardless if they sing or not. However, that's what music and entertainment business is all about today. Ability to sing, dance or act is not the key success factors becacuse young fans just go gaga blindly on other material criteria! I hope this new season will do the best contestants some good.... and I hope the Americans will vote wisely, and not let talents gone to waste.

Birthday

I made a birthday card today with our ski photo... actually, it turned out quite nice... and more importantly, something easy, unique and special :D

Kids' new playground!

Kids have a new 'playground' on top of our stone heater! (Uuni)... They enjoyed climbing up and down, and did some picnics up there with the cat :P How imaginative...

Nokia share

Anticipated bad near term performance has sent Nokia share price to a nose dip. I am not a big fan of investment, and have some small amount of Nokia shares. With the dip, it means, the value I hold is lesser, but this is also a good opportunity to buy a little more to hold as long term investment. I still have strong believe that this company is currently under valued, and in the longer term, it will rebounce. The holding period may be long to see the gain, i.e. a 3-5 years time frame, but for one with some idol money, and not keen for speculative investment, then a blue chip share with good foundation can be a consideration.

Anorexia

The price of becoming skinny and slim... is this really worthwhile? I stumbled across this blog today, it was a sad story... but I think it is a story that all young girls in this modern world go through, including myself. I went to departmental store to look for clothes, the sales girls will give me a dirty look, and say they have no size for me, not even XL! So, I must have tailor-made clothes for my first job. Although I did not go through the path of anorexia, but I could feel the pressure then that to be 'normal' I must be 'slim' and skinny. However, my 'tam-jia' behaviour, stopped me from going further... today, I am not slim nor skinny, but at least I am healthy and happy. Beauty is in the eyes of beholder, not how the world judge you based on your size or weight. Stay healthy, and that's the greatest beauty on earth!


http://ashleysblogbctc.blogspot.com/2010/03/story-of-isabelle-caro_3269.html

Last busy day!

I am so looking forward for today, the last busy teaching Wednesday... next week onwards, my courses will subside, and the load will gradually reduce. However, lots of uncertainty ahead... I won't be teaching in Autumn, and thereafter, I am not sure what will I be teaching.... we will see, and time will tell. I think it is good to break away from this routine task, take a breather and re-think, and ponder, how to make this task more exciting and beneficial for my students.

Earthquake off Acheh

A big earthquake took place some 600km from west coast at magnitude of 8,7 followed by an aftershock at magnitude 8,1. Even west coast of Malaysia can feel the quake for almost 1minute, so did the East Cost of India.... however, this round, people are more prepared for the occasion, tsunami warnings ware issued to 28 countries, and so far, praise the lord, no major catastrophy yet. Hopefully, we all learn from past experiences so that we are all wiser to deal with such natural disaster. Prayers are with those who are affected.

Elk and Lamb

My invention - Instead of lamb, I used elk fillet topped with mint sauce as seasoning, then rolled it into a loaf, then baked till 80C.... it turned out really yummy!

Cross coutry ski challenge

Today might be the very last day where we can ski with great weather and good tracks. More wet snow expecting the next few days, and weather is warming up rapidly.

We drove to Kajaani and started our journey from there. Kids did great. They accomplished 17km in one breath! Well done! The weather was divine, the track was good, and we have nice views along the way... wonderful time together! This is the best holiday, better than travelling anywhere!

A small video clip to capture great moments!

http://youtu.be/Ccc9obFyf8Q

Easter break

Last day of my Easter break. My plan is to complete my Marketing Theory assignment by today, still IS! I now have the skeleton, but the difficult part is, to connect all these base information into one smooth, flowing essay. I took lots of notes when I was reading, and suprisingly, these efforts do help. However, having four sets of materials and trying to organize them into a concerted essay is proven a painful exercise... and this assignment really gave me a preview of the challenges ahead when I try to write my monograph. By then, I will have not just four sets of materials, but thousands of pages of materials from different sources.... should start thinking, and planning now... and I hope I can accomplish this super mission within 2,5 to max 3 years! God help me please!

Slope ski

Kids found a new 'playground' behind our old barn! This is now their new 'slop ski' venue. Very fun for them, but very scary for me :P

http://youtu.be/zXI3hOqEJpY

清明节

小时候，同学们都说跟爸妈去扫墓。我爸的家乡在遥远的关丹，所以在记忆里，我只去过一次。3年前外婆去世，清明节的意义加深。虽然现在只身远在他乡而不能去外婆墓地拜拜，但他老人家总在我心里。安息吧，外婆。我们现在过得很好。您心头大石可以放下。孩子们都聪明伶俐，活泼可爱，身体健康。您在天之灵保佑他们快高长大，一切顺利。情爱的外婆。。。 好怀念您。。。

月圆时分

A nice view from kitchen.... so serene and peaceful.







J's New Hairstyle

I tried the curling technique taught by my hairdresser... and it works. Easy, hazard free and real fast... have the iron till about 180C, grab a small strand of the hair and roll in from the tip of the hair. Hold it for about 30secs, and unroll the iron. It gives nice volume curls. Put some hairspray to keep the curls.

A rare 'guest' - Sinitähtianen

Sinitähtianen... beautiful bird.

Boy 'shot'

Usually, my boy dislikes to be photographed... but today, he took a pic of himself, ha ha.

Simple, delicious meal

When time is limited, and I still wish to offer a delicious, nutritional meal to my loved one... here is the solution.... mashed potatoes, pan fried salmon steak and fresh salads. Yummy!!

Easter without Eggs!

Egg is an important symbol for Easter. However, this year, there is insufficient supply of eggs in the market. All the eggs are sold out, and the shelf is left empty. I bought some extra during last shopping, so now, I must use these 'precious' eggs sparingly :P  Hopefully, the supply will be back soon because I cannot live without eggs!

Happiest Nation in the World

Scandic countries top the survey - Denmark, Finland and Norway conquered the top 3 spots in the most recent UN survey of the happiest place on earth....

Survey results showed, developed country is happier than less developed and developing country, but within the developed country, money, GDP are not directly correlated to happiness. Country with lower GDP have more happy people, or happier people than those with high GDP.

I am happy where I am, so are our family. We have all we need, and blessing from God... so, what else can be happier than this?

Read more: http://www.sinchew.com.my/node/242692?tid=2

Hailing!

OMG! It is HAILING now!

Easter is coming!

My lovely Easter daffodil that cheers me up.... Happy Easter to ALL!!

An Icy Treat

Neighborhood Icecream Factory - Children's friend's parents started an ice-cream factory some weeks ago. We meant to visit the factory shop when it opened, but did not have the time nor chance. Yesterday, when I was in the grocery store, I saw the product on the shelf. So, I decided to buy a container to try. It is very expensive (EUR7 for 500ml), but obviously fresh and hence very yummy. The ice-cream is made from their own dairy products, so 100% fresh, good trustwothy ingredients.

 

Too Good To Be True!

My current tenant will be moving away. So, I have to put the apartment to rent. At the beginning, I was a little worried about getting a new tenant soon because I am not very sure how is the real estate market is looking at the moment. However, my very resourceful agent is amazing. She got a tenant fairly quickly to take over from the current one, and with a price 20% higher than the current rate. I could not be more grateful for the pleasant surprise (these are great pocket money for my studies and also holidays and other pampers :D)... though I am not sure how good the current tenant will be because the last one was a very nice, responsible couple. We will see, and I hope this will be a problem free gentleman.

A nice start

Working from home today, and my target is to complete the Marketing Theory assignment during this long weekend (Easter). So, should start working on it!

Games addiction、 祸从'机'来

現代人“機”不離手，隨著智慧型手機風行，觸控螢幕造成的另類創傷也越來越多。台灣一名男子就因極度沉溺手機遊戲，每天玩手機6小時，導致“骨殘”。這名手機男長期太過用力點擊螢幕，導致右手食指第二節間的軟骨嚴重磨損，令食指無法彎曲，經5個月物理治療仍無起色。

Source: http://www.sinchew.com.my/node/242371?tid=2

Hazardous vs. Heavenly weather

I am so glad that I am living in the North. Around south-west (Tampere and around), was snowing heavily yesterday (about 10cm of snow). Road conditions were so poor there that, on Monday, there were over 50 accidents involving over 200 cars snailing and halting traffics on the motorway.
Up in the north, although we have chilly nights (last night -20C), but day time is approx. -3C, sunshine, blue sky, clean white environment... what else can be more perfect than this :D

I LOVE IT!

Taken now from my study -

Mämmi

1 of 3 Finns hate Mämmi according to some polls done on Finnish people. Personally, to many Finns surprise, I like it! Also, the kids love it! So, in our family.... 3 foreigners love this 'strange looking' but great tasting food more than the Finns themselves :P  We usually topped the Mämmi with some vanilla source or milk, and sprinkle a teaspoon of sugar to go with. It is really NAMMY! Well, if you are courageous, I dare you to try.

Source: http://www.yle.fi/uutiset/news/

Last Chinese Lesson

Today is my last Chinese lesson in the cultural centre. Time flies, I have been teahing this course for four years now... and proably this is the last lesson, and also the very last course after four years. It has been really fun to teach all these adult students who are genuinely interested in Chinese culture and language. They are not in hurry to learn, but they are very enthusiastic and eager to try, and very contended even if they can move one baby step forward. I am going to miss all of them after this final session.

Video lecture

Today, I was filmed first time while giving lecture. It felt a little unnatural but I guess I became 'used to' the camera soon :D Anyway, I guess in future, I will be using technology to give web-lectures, and to deliver video course. So, this is a 'good practise' as a start. Ha ha.

April Fool's Day

I kept forgetting today is already 1st of April! Since morning, my kids have been trying all kinds of tricks to 'get us' to be April's fool. Some simple 'lies', but when we did not remember it is 1st of April, we got con still :P  Anyway, it is over now, but I must have been 'fooled' at least three timse, ha ha.

Temperature fluctuation

Coming from a hot, equatorial country could not have imagined how temperature could change 30C each day! However, now that I am living in Finland, such swing is nothing uncommon :D 

Last two nights we have -20C, and day time we have -5 to +3C... and last couple of Spring, we have eperienced a fluctuation of up to 30C in the same day... like -25 in the night, and +5 to +10 during the day!

So, if you are packing for a trip to Finland in Spring...  BEWARE!

Marketing Theory - The journey continues

However dreadful I am for this subject, life continues. Today, I started my baby step to pen some thoughts for this essay. Going through four books, extracting information that will help me flow my train of thoughts, to write something about the schools of marketing thoughts... whew... what a lot of thoughts!

Anyway, baby step moving, and hopefully I can accomplish this task by Easter, then I can start working on other subjects soonest possible.

Fingest crossed and praying hard!

Palm Sunday

We were expecting some 'witches' to come to knock on our door but none came. Probably they came when we were out skiing... I have some Easter eggs waiting, but now, I guess we will eat those 'chocolate eggs' by ourselves, ha ha.

Here is a little article written by YLE Finland re this cultural practise in Finland. Enjoy!
http://www.yle.fi/uutiset/news/2012/03/palm_sunday_brings_witches_to_the_door_3375989.html

Last few ski days

Ski season is coming to an end soon. Today, we skied to the little 'Ant Island' again for picnic whilst hubby went to Vuokatti - 20km return trip. I was feeling a little tired and lack of energy today. Although it was only 10km ski journey, my knee was not providing the required support as usual. So, many stops in between which slowed down the journey abit. Anyway, not complaining because the weather was divine, one of the best with nice sunshine, clear blue sky, near 0 degrees, frozen but soft enough surface on the lake, and no wind... what else can be more perfect than this for a great skate ski day! WONDERFUL!