i declare summer over

we have a glass jar with a tiny notepad and a pen next to it, and we write nice things or events or memories on it and then fold the note in the jar and we will go through them at the end of the year.

we went to see Oppenheimer on a while back. it was good. not my fav ever but definitely entertaining. 

 

we've had mice in the flat. it pisses me off. i will get every last one of them though! honestly they are cute and i dont *want* to kill mice, but if thats the only way to make them disappear...   (peppermint spray and such deterrants are weak at best, apparrently). so, mouse traps it is. 

 

yesterday was probably the last proper warm day of the summer (27c), and we had the luck of enjoying it at a bbq at Avner & Elmor's place with our new palestinian "neighbours" (they live like 500m from us). had a really chill, good time. i contributed with some finnish candy & licorice as well as home made laku.
the bonfire late in the night was lovely.

Melisa visited in august. we had fun, active times going (gay-)clubbing and drag brunching and whatnot. it was nice to see her after a long break. 

 

this chewing gum with energy drink flavour was so hilarious imo i had to buy it. it genuinely does taste like red bull or some others.

article i liked:
I Was Wrong about Trigger Warnings (Atlantic)

im thinking of some volunteering work to get out of the house, to meet people, help someone (and get the good feeling that comes from that), "integrate".   

with Raissa and Aleks we are planning a winter trip to finland in Feb. exciting and weird to be planning a touristy trip to my home country.

DJ PEXI

suomen reissu tän kuun alussa oli taas aika normi, joskin oli niin paljon työjuttuja että jätin sosialisoinnin vähemmälle, eli kävin ulkona vaan muutamana iltana. sörkän ruusussa kyllä käytiin taas istuu miss R:n kanssa - sen jälkee ku oli käyty brunssilla Tannerissa - ja siellä täytettiin Haaviston kannattajakortit.
DJ Pexi! harmi et oli sunnuntai ja olin aika väsy, en jaksanu itekseni lähtee klubbaa ja tsekkaa.

kuuntelin äänikirjoja paljon iltaisin, kuuntelin mm. kokonaisuudessaan J & B Kohtauksia eräänlaisesta avioliitosta (Philip Teir). Donner ei ole mulle paljon otsikoita tutumpi hahmo joten kirja oli ehkä yllättävä valinta mutta se oli mielenkiintoinen ja sitä kuunteli mielellään. siitä sitten siirryinkin jotenkin luontevasti (?) lukemaan Donnerin pojan Otto Gabrielssonin kirjoittamaa Rikkaruoho nimistä kirjaa. se on jotenkin ihan luettuna kivempi, kappaleet ja jäsentely toimii kun se on päiväkirjamaista tai sellaista. tykkään siitäkin. sit olen kuunnellut jo hetken Kiina Xi Jinpingin aikakaudella (Pitkänen, Puranen, Taskinen, Vartiainen, hieno lista näitä suomalaisia -nan ja -nen päätteisiä sukunimia toim huom), jota arttu suositteli. tässäkään aihe eli kiina eli ole mulle mitenkään tyypillinen, oli tullut vaan puheeksi kuinka olen aika pihalla kiinasta tai sen nykytilanteesta ym, ja tämä kirja kyllä avaa asiaa tosi hyvin ja selkeästi, historiaa on, mutta ei sellaista tylsää saivartelua vaan "asiaa". sit olen aloittanut sellasia kirjoja kuin Lailasta Almaan (Käpylä & others) ja The 69 Eyes (Forss), mutta saa nähdä saanko niitä loppuun, ne ei silleen ihan heti ensi metreillä kaapanneet mukaansa. 

sää oli suomalaisittain viel tosi hyvä kun kävin, joku 20c joka päivä. ja firman syysjuhlissa käytiin metsäretkellä jossa sellasta mindflunessia ja venyttelyä ym. oli ihan kiva. ja ylipäätään kiva sosialisoida kollegojen kanssa kuten aina, melkeen tuntu et aika loppu kesken. 

rantasaunatkin löytyi sieltä.

Antti K:n kanssa kävimme istumassa iltaa ja syömässä

...hyvin suomalaista ruokaa. keskustelut oli henkeviä ja aika diippejä kuten usein. eli parasta sorttia.

tutut hämeentien maisemat. entinen lähikauppa (joka oli ennen siwa).

se mikä on kiva ni osa finnairin hki-lontoo konista on nykyään niitä laajarunkoisia jossa on oma telkka ja USB. kyl jos lennän finskillä ja sopii omiin aikatauluihin ni otan mieluummin sellaisen lennon ku se vanha normikone joka on aika ankee. toki lentokin lyhyt mut silti. wifinki hinta on noussu tasaisesti enkä viiti siitä maksaa enää, ni kiva jos saa katsoa elokuvia ja tai koneen kamerasta maisemia.

barbie girl

stuff i wonder about (and will probably google if i get around to it) 

why is japanese history so detailed from so long ago? or am i just imagining that it's very detailed? did they have paper or what? when was paper even invented?

do all headboards attach with the same system? 

do moth repellents actually work or are they a scam? 

 

i saw Barbie this week with Arttu. i dressed in pink with pink heels & make up to get into the mood. i am very happy this film was made, its attitude and that its so popular. at the risk of sounding obnoxious, some of the feminism was quite 101 and basic. as much as i liked Gloria's "monologue" it seemed forced. however again considering the large audience its intended for it makes sense and i think it can change the world a tiny bit. so, overall good. inserting the inventor also seemed forced tho, especially the talk at the end she gave to Barbie. so cringe. and the weird flashback type of sequence with a lot of motherhood... err. also Barbie's gyno visit made me wonder what it meant and if it was about becoming a mom. or just getting reconstructive surgery to have female bits. what i really also liked was ken's song "Just a Ken". very catchy. also appreciate Mattels' humour in how they presented themselves. yeah lots of fun, good stuff.

these photos of phone screens are i guess voyeurism, but oh so delicious https://www.newyorker.com/culture/photo-booth/the-photographer-peeking-at-your-phone?

on friday i went to this cocktail experience with Raissa & Aleks, with actors and a storyline and stuff, it was fun.

yesterday we met Can & Burcu in Crystal Palace for some walking, drinks & food. and altho sundays are my me days, we met with our new neighbours. they turned out to be a really nice couple. 

my husband: taco master

so i did this google search "Eckhart Tolle" and i browse the results and it's offering me these additional questions like "Does Elon Musk eat non veg?" like... what's the connection here? usually the questions offered are SOMEWHAT relevant. its 2023 and we have chatGPT and everything, but a lot of the internets its just still really dumb.
 

after watching Bachelor/ette for almost 2 decades, i have not been following the past 1-2 years, it just got too... influencer/young for me? okay so the show got younger and i got older. and now that i read that theyre coming out with the 'mature version' - basically 50 or 60+ i guess, im kind of excited. i would expect it to be maybe more up my alley. 

we travel pretty light, for our typical 2 week holiday we share one medium size suitcase, which is sort of enough. ive gotten greedy though and suggested getting another, slightly larger suitcase we could use. i didnt get the one i wanted, atypically doctor had strong opinions on the topic. we settled on the model but i didnt even get the colour i wanted (burgundy), and i hate blue, so it's going to be grey/silver which is like 80% of all suitcases... i will need to decorate it with stickers. 

today around 2pm i didnt close the curtains so the room was super bright (altho camera compensated and it looks dim), and i turned on both projectors - which is why they are awkwardly overlapping. but the difference in brightness is pretty clear, im happy, i can definitely now watch netflix (or sernior bachelor, lol) on a summer afternoon.

 

 

 Guardian on Finland's "happiness"

we had some friends for dinner on saturday. a couple that moved here in Clapham Common a few weeks ago, by chance, as we actually met them through Avner, who is friends with their friend in Israel. so this palestinian couple just moved to London and by chance to our neighborhood as well. we met before our trip to Crete and it's nice to have some friendly people live so nearby (around 200m). doctor made some amazingly tasty tacos for us that night and then sunday we had leftovers for brunch:

Crete

Crete was great! our first time on that island, ive been wanting to go for years. it was hard to pick the locations as theres so many good ones but i settled on Chania and Rethymno. and i say "i" as doctor was super flexible and trusted that i will take us to places we both like. so first a bit of city and then beach/pool. and i mean the pool, it was SOOOO warm, i loved it. the sea warmed up too during our stay, from around 25.5c in Chania to 26.9c on our last day in Rethymno, thats when i proper went in and enjoyed it. of course we also had good food, saw beautiful things and enjoyed the weather. and i managed to relax. i like to lay by the poolside or on the beach, under the shade, and read. some internets and reading. i guess most people read on holidays tho. thats my impression. from facebook updates and New York Times articles, maybe some Long Reads articles and then some Reddit. but obviously also books. i prefer paper books but traveling with them is less than ideal, i usually just have one paper book with me. the rest has to be ebooks. i dont necessarily finish them though.

what i was reading during this holiday:

Authority Gap by Mary Ann Sieghart (started ages ago, almost done now!!)

Friendaholic by Elizabeth Day

English-Speaking Justice by George Grant (honestly this is really heavy to read, bit too academic for me unfortunately)

The Secret Magistrate by Anonymous

 

we arrived home late last night thanks to a delayed flight. buuut it was sweet to fall into our own bed with the soft fluffy mattress topper. unfortunately the bed still transfers too much movement so we're looking into "zipped" mattresses which is basically 2 mattresses that you can join together but obvioulsy don't have to worry about feelng the other person move. the mattress topper on top will prevent any gap too. but lets see what we can find. we still have 1 week of holiday left so will go mattress shopping i guess. our bank balance will be zero by the time we go back to work, as we've done some other shopping too...

 

we have a new baby; Viewsonic LS751HD. our old projector has been sounding like its dying for the past years (loud fan etc), i feel like it couldve used maintenance or something, so its embarrassing to admit we have done none of that, ever. but its really on overtime, DLP lamps usually only last 2000-3000 hours, this model was "promised" 5000 but it's definitely lasted longer. we (=doctor) mistakenly reset the counter 2 years ago, but after that it's racked up 2495 hours - i just checked. and we got the projector in Oct 2014. so its served us well. trying to "learn" from our mistake of failing maintenance, i felt we should go for a laser - 20k hours and no maintenance! also the old one struggles a bit with ambient light and really dark stuff.. which is an issue in the summer as we might want to watch something in the afternoon/early evening without black out curtains etc... and recently watching The Whale was painful, its super dark. the old Acer is 3000 lumens so i played it safe and the Viewsonic is 5000 lumens.

 we just tested that it turns on etc, so this is not where and how the image will look like. will swap with the old one in the ceiling mount like this weekend. my phone didn't capture the beauty of the image fully, the frame rate... 

tuning the bed

doctor is doing nightshifts. its always a bit boring because it means i should try keep pretty quiet and out of the bedroom for the whole day. and just now this new mattress topper arrived and i can just appreciate on the living room sofa...   it does look promising but boy did i spend hours looking for one. as always. we had been thinking we might need a new topper/mattress. the current are 6+ years old and lately my sleep is pretty poor and i wake up easily. so everytime he moves i might wake up, the mattress is so... springy. and the topper is regular foam latex or something, so i think it doesnt help. and in thailand at this hotel there was an amazingly cloud-y mattress topper we both liked. i checked the manufacturer (Darling Mattres) and contacted them immediately. the mattress topper itself was affordable, like 70£ or something... but the shipping (from Bangkok)? 2100usd. lol. of course i searched far and wide for online shops but it doesnt seem they sell outside thailand and the thai ones didnt ship to UK. but 10cm microfibre topper are not super common and i couldnt find a lot of options outside Amazon locally here. the ones i found in or outside amazon were never fully convincing, theres a always a few reviews saying the topper is not really 10cm and flattens quickly. some more so than others. something about the thai topper was that it was over 6kg in weight and many of the ones i found in amazon for instance were 3.5kg. it just sounds like they must have a lot less filling? which would explain complaints, though most reviews are positive - typical amazon. then i thought we should go to some mattress stores to check them out. of course none near us have the kind of topper we want, im not sure how far we would need to go to find one. and then what, we still wouldnt know if it flattens in use? i got exhausted of searching (and poor sleep) and picked Lancashire Textiles, it was 6 kilos and made in UK. so now im just hoping for the best.

this week i tried watching A Girl and an Astronaut. kind of interesting premise but meh, too stiff and confusing and something. new season of Black Mirror also came in last week and i watched the first episode Joan is Awful and it was okay but not great. and some reviews say its the best of the series whch sounds concerning. but i will continue. 

some of the best home purchases ive/weve made:
-dimmable bathroom light (ikea trådfri)
-remote controlled blackout blinds for livingroom
-standing desk (not just for standing but getting the perfect heigh & being able to use different chairs/stools)
-under cabinet lightning in kitchen with motion sensors
-projector. tv's seem so ugly now. 

i got a letter from Amazon pushing Amazon Music. i think thats very unappealing. i'd be surprised if it becomes really mainstream. i woud assume they make it more like Prime Video where like half of the content is actually behind another sub or pay as you go. Prime Video has started to feel so stingy in this regard. i get that its included in Amazon Prime but maybe offer a 15£ more expensive yearly charge and make it all just free... i'm not gonna get several more subs or pay per episode...

i got this dark 80s pink lipstick on impulse. im hated this lipstick colour with a passion but i think im not over the 80s trauma and ready to flaunt it! it matches my current nailpolish too. (MAC Fired up)

and russia...  well that escalated quickly, is what i thought.

i got an iced coffee today (first time ever?)

recently eaten: 

i was out for dinner with Cem (and he took the pic)

recently read:
laser vs lamp projectors
BMJ: pharmaceutical studies & women

recently bought:

recently done:

 

 

 

i have such a bad habit of starting a series and then googling the rest of it. after which i dont want to see it anymore because my curiosity has been satisfied. a bit sad, but i sort of accept it. 

its full on summer and i embrace it.

fan's dilemma

 i was listening to Missing Richard podcast but it made me a bit uneasy. a lot of the entertainments these days is about making person centric stories and i think the aim of this one was to coax Richard Simmons our of his reclusife life OR uncover something dramatic. but it started coming off as a bit weird, like the world is entitled to get an explanation somehow. and that the people that Richard helped are "entitled" to a closure, and he owes them something. and then there were at the end some odd digs at how he should maybe not have been so eager to support people without any sort of mental health qualifications... i mean, at what point do u need qualifications? he didnt hold a therapist office? does Oprah have qualifications, does she need them? eh. overall interesting podcast, i just always focus on the problems.

and problems wise, does rammstein have some... so disappointing. also sad but unsurprising to see especially a lot of men make wise ass comments, the usual slut shaming and victim blaming. of course i dont have all the details and i assume we never will but just based on what is known about recruiting women for Till's entertainment sounds really uncomfortable. just because something is legal doesnt make it ok. and it does sound like something illegal has happened too. i really like rammstein's music so it bother's me extra. ive enjoyed the taboo breaking and boisterous art which has vulgar elements and it's teasing the norms, but the spell is broken when the vulgarity becomes real...  have i been naïve to think middle aged+ men singing about female body parts would actually behave like normal human beings outside the stage? i mean, i dont want to think so. the book that im reading; Monsters: A Fan's Dilemma is all the more current now.

 

the summer has truly arrived and i not only bought 2 summery dresses in the past week but also had 2 picnics. with Cem & Berkay on friday, and then yesterday me and doctor went to Beckenham park with Can & Burcu. i really like sitting down and just having a chat in a chill environment with no rush and no stress. under a sun. or maybe in shade if need be. ive perfected my picnic packing too, reusable utencils, plates, napkins, mini speaker, bottle opener, sun screen etc etc. i used to always forget SOMETHING, but with my checklist i do really well and im proud of myself. 

also thinking of new tattoos lately. ive been looking around to get inspiration and contacted a couple of tattoo studios well, so who knows maybe i get around to finally getting something done. 

working on my puzzle while listening to a book about the middle ages (and specifically the myths surrounding it, church crusading against science).

sundays & summer

instead of following the turkish election (2nd round) i decided to do something that wouldnt affect my mental health as negatively and worked on a puzzle while listening to an audiobook (Tommi Uschanov: Onko Brexit totuus Suomesta?). it is a sunday after all, usually dedicated to my wellbeing. i finished both the puzzle and the book and started new ones. i also drafted* an objection to the councul regarding a new alcohol license application in the neighborhood. sounds very middle aged and conservative... i knowingly wanted to live in a lively neighborhood but i guess i dont want it to get any rowdier, yet thats the risk living here carries. liveliness does also mean a (positively) busy park on a sunny day like this and we had a lunch picnic with a doctor enjoyed the sun and life around us.

*i actually didnt draft much, ChatGPT did.  when getting content from ChatGPT ive noticed that it's important to direct it to write for the british reader, otherwise the output is more american. and there are distinct differences so it really is necessary.  

yesterday Can & Burcu hosted a house party and we were there. it was refreshing to socialize like that, like a start to the summer. 

ive been thinking how constantly "everything is in crisis". NHS has been in crisis for all the tim ive lived here and when i did some googling of old news headlines, apparently even before. same with finnish healthcare. education too, constantly in the process of falling apart and scraping the bottom. other areas seem to be in an eternal decline too, elderly care for instance. i am not suggesting they arent strugglng, they really seem to be, but im wondering when was the "golden period" for these services or structures... was there ever such a time? im just thinking if somthing is in constant decline, what was the starting point and if every year we reach a new "bottom", how low will it go, and is it perceived or objectively overall worse? does it depend on how we measure, that changes over time too? i certainly dont have answers and i also witness some of these problems so im not suggesting they dont exist, but the bigger picture over time is elusive for me.

where am i? im in a museum

i watched the documentary on James Randi, the magician. it was thoroughly entertaining and interesting, as expected. tonight doctor suggested we do something different and check out some old, popular UK tv shows. so we decided to watch an episode of both Only Fools and Horses and Fawlty Towers. i hated every minute and ive since been thinking why. in the first one it was obvious that i just found the humour missing. ok in both of then. but in the first i think the humour is supposedly in throwing insults at each other (within family members and about other people), the more offensive and the more degrading, the better, i guess. in the last 30sec there was supposedly an expression of brotherly love but even that was 'put down' in some way. the negativity was just sad. and watching Fawlty Towers i found myself getting anxious. there was a lot of conflict and tension. like, a lot IMO. in the end i just walked out on it i was so uncomfortable. i havent seen anything that made me so anxious in a good while and it really made me think about the time and culture. im wondeting if finnish tv comedy was similar at the time. ironically, when i think of the 80s, i remember a certain non-finnish show; Bill Cosby Show. it was definitely more "chill" than these 2. but i think i need to google clips of the finnish shows i wouldve been exposed to and see if they are similar and if i feel the same way. IF somehow this tension and habitual slagging of was a particularly british form of enterteinment, it might raise even more questions. and bring answers too, to understanding the people im amongst. but i am sure there were elements of it elsewhere too. what does it tell us about that time? and what we found funny? and im really not even going nto the racism or sexism, we all know about that - im just particularly interested in the style of humour and how much tension was entertaining. or what type of tension. ive been "allergic" to conflict and tension for a long time and it does limit what i can watch unfortunately, but its also something i can be curious about.

yesterday we visited the small city wall museum in Aldgate and had a turkish dinner after. pretty midlife-y for a weekend haha. its been a chill weekend which was definitely needed, i need to wind down and have time for myself. ive even been looking into mindfulness etc lately - aaaand im liking it. 

at the museum

these suede shoes are cute.

cha cha cha

käärijä & cha cha cha did so well last night, and clearly entertained around the world.  its not my type of music, but gotta admit it was catchy and grew on me. i also love seeing finns unite behind an event and a 'cause' as happened here. what was also cool is Lord of the Lost's cover of cha cha cha, i like the metal vibe a lot.

i also loved watching The Piano on channel4. lovely feelgood stuff. and i need feelgood stuff lately, my left arm has been aching like a MF... diagnosed as pinned nerve in my neck, so i've been following physio instructions to try relieve it. and it has been slowly improving. im soon back to normal. although the new normal seems to be that things 'break' all the time. my pilates teacher has cramp on her back now (she is around my age) and when i was in finland last week miss R hurt her knee. like, no one is doing anything crazy, they're just lifting a cat or turning around and then suddenly something hurts. pretty crazy. and i am willing to attribute a lot of it to general poor fitness and stuff but my pilates teacher does not fit in that category... so this seems to affect everyone over 40... 

i got this really inventive gift from Jess for xmas, she subscribed me to Stack so i get one random indie magazine per month, its always a surprise and its really opened my eyes to the kind of stuff that there is out in the world. my jaw is just dropping every month as i might even struggle to understand what the magazine is about. one was something about rural lifestyles so pics and stories of people who lie in the middle of nowhere and grow their own veggies etc. Believer has their own wikipedia page; " American bimonthly magazine of interviews, essays, and reviews, founded by the writers Heidi Julavits, Vendela Vida, and Ed Park in 2003. The magazine is a five-time finalist for the National Magazine Award.". then there was a large newspapery one (below) with just great photography of urban life, buildings, etc. i still dont know what its about but its pleasing to the eye, so. and then the last issue was Coming Out of The Fog, which seems to be stories of adoptions, told by the adoptees and kind of about their identity and such. 

one of the stupidest things i know is those expensive men's wrist watches that are advertised on the back covers of some magazines... like obviously Rolex but TAG Heuer and whatever... one of the most annoying ads is by Patek Philippe. cos i think its been running for years and its says something like "PP is not a watch you own. it's something you look after for thr next generation". trying to make it a family jewel or something. i think im just so far removed from that life i dont understand it. but i guess it's just the "Gucci bag" for men? expensive accessory to signal... whatever you think its signaling. 

 on my way back from finland to london. could almost see my home here!

may 1st i wen to lammasssaari and enjoyed the good company of arttu & eufemia and their intelligent & interesting group of friends.

 

 

in finland we had company development days outside helsinki. this is my room there. work wise we talked a lot about AI - of course. and while its scary its also inspiring.

i went to see burlesque at Gin House with Raissa & Aleks. it was a lot of fun cos besides the performers, the atmosphere was perfect.

random breakfast doctor made. perfect for finnish taste.

my new ring. really fits the polish. and my pink frames (when i wear them outside) and pink scarf. im going through a pink period again.

today was turkish elections. im a pessimist as i dont want to be disappointed. i dont expect a fair election - nor a peaceful transfer of power in the case that erdo 'allowed' Kilicdaroglu to win. which according to polls he would. anyway we will watch the election results tonight. 

currently reading Monsters: a Fan's Dilemma by C Dederer. not the best book ever but pretty good and a very interesting subject so i do recommend it. guardian had a good exempt from it, which is how i found the book.

authority gap

the James Bond A to Z podcast is not only great cos its so detailed and generally easy to listen to (like, not getting into the podcasters personal lives, not going off topic and so forth) but also for: 

• surprisingly, addressing some of the creepiness in (especially) earlier Bonds. re: consent and general sexism. not sure why im surprised. maybe cos its a podcast by men? or cos i was born 1980 and so most of my life these things have not been acknowledged? i think i just expected "this type" of podcast to maybe critique a few plot holes or acting and gloss over the rest. ots been refreshing to hear it's much more. but this particular theme especially makes me happy to be included. 
• mirroring my thoughts on some aspects of No Time to Die. it was validating to hear someone(s) seeing what i saw and thinking what i thought. for example, i've only read a "few" reviews, some reddit and spoken to a couple people but not many have pointed out how Madeleine Swann's relationship with Bond just didn't seem believeable, especially in the shade of Vesper Lynd!  

 2 new books arrived today. somehow i think they go well together haha.
Salisbury: No Time to Die- The Making of The Film
Sieghart: The Authority Gap

when i met Siettie last week we went to a singaporean restaurant, i got to try something i havent had before.

this is just an ad at a tube station but made me smile, these kind of ads didnt exist when i was young.

last week Elina also visited London and e went to see Battersea Power Station, which is now a mall.

my new stool. it swings like a rocking chair. im liking it. 

rainy London

i think it takes 2 weeks for a tan to fade, at least i hope so

reporting:
our new boiler seems to be a bit more efficient as expected, our gas use is slightly lower than before. but weather is a factor too so i will have to follow longer. the screenshot is old now but we were away for 2 weeks in thailand so that factors in too...

now, right after our holiday, doctor is off to a meditation retreat, without a phone, so i am at home keeping myself entertained. and that is something im good at. im really into this james bond podcast (James Bond A-Z podcast) atm and it makes me go back and look at the scenes they talk about etc - really very good podcast.

doctor is now a british citizen and i had my life in the UK exam last month. his process somehow propelled me towards the application too. its a weird mental process, i wasnt sure if i would ever feel like i want to do this. to become british. to say i am british and feel genuine about it. but then life happens. i feel like there is space for another identity in me besides finnish. for the exam, i did in the end devote several hours to studying (memorizing, really). wanted to make sure i pass. next would be the english exam. i think i wont have to study for that lol.doctor is waiting for his first passport and one thing is certain; he wont need to be embarrassed over his passport pic. cos i took it.

this is a week of foreign visitors. siettie from singapore was here so i saw her quickly, its been many years since we lasy (and first) met so it was fun to catch up. also a finnish friend Elina is in town to see theatre & related stuff. ill prolly visit a museum with her and have a few drinks.

thailand was great, soooo warm. especially the water. i love floating. and swim up rooms are my new favorite thing. we were in the south this time, Krabi and Khao Lak. went to some islands, jungle, cooking class (it was my birthday gift!) and muay thai match. and the rest of the time mostly just chilling and eating good food.

7000sqm swimming pool!

beach of course!

island!

more beach!

muay thai!

beach dinners!

swim up gold!

we cooked ourselves!

amazing food!

kind of beach!

nigh chilling!

ok maybe i overdid it with the exclamation marks, but once i started i had to keep going. 

on the 13h flights there and back i watched/enjoyed some films on board:
Torn 9/10
Invictus 8/10
The Accountant 6/10
Zootropolis 9/10 (it was about a bunny who wanted to become a cop! ok heres the trailer)
Kong vs Godzilla 7/10
Pornhub (on netflix) 7/10

i also watched bits ofs ome films like Justice League. there was something really funny in it; when newly recruited Flash gets into Bruce Wayne's car and asks "so whats your superpower?" and he replies "i'm rich". i mean, at least he has self awareness lol.

now im re-energised and busy at work.i was talking with someone (random) in thailand who said how 'bleh' it is to return to work after a nice holiday. while i sort of understand the sentiment...after all it would be nice if the fun could go on forever, i dont necessarily feel exactly the same. like yes, its bleh to wake up early, and it's bleh to sometimes be frustrated about something work related and so forth... i tend to be quite cheery when i return to work. i take it as a good sign, i trust my gut.

really good article on SBF/Alameda/Effective Altruism movement in Time.