Saturday Feeling Good

The other day I met some people of the fascinating kind. We learnt about books and we had some great Middle Eastern lunches and South American dinners here in Stockholm. It was fun but at the end of the day the fancy life is only the surface, The most fascinating part was the aha-experience that one can get when truly listening to someone. So people, listen!

I will show you a formula:

 a + -> = b

a = the plan
b = the result
-> = the process

The simple aha that this one fascinating person provided me with the other day was this: the process needs passion. Simple, isn't? And obvious. What a pity that we do not always get the simple and the obvious until someone tells us about it. How to remain passionate while life happens? I know a lot of people have conquered this skill. I have not - at least not to the extent that I would be completely focused on only doing what I love.

Next topic... I finally have the photos from Macedonia on my laptop and I will write some posts soon. In the meantime, I'd like to share one of my favourite photos from the trip. There were books everywhere in Skopje. Lovely, lovely books.

Food...

Food is among my favourite things on the planet. There is quite a collection of books on my shelves, so inspiration is never far away. Food is, in general, a fascinating topic. Issues relating to ethics, nutrition, the social are as widespread as they are important. In 2015, I want to pay a lot of attention to food. 

My apologies for the poor quality, I quite haven't lerant to manage this tool yet. 

Healthy stuff on a Sunday: spinach soup with boiled eggs. The cheese sandwich made it somewhat more bearable. 

[Book] Colorless Tsukuru Tazaki and His Years of Pilgrimage

I am a fan of Murakami's fiction, often feeling that it takes me to places unknown. Unlike his other books, this one lacks the supernatural component, which is positive.
The reason I liked this book is strictly personal: I did not spend much time musing over the language used or literary finesses, I was attracted by the theme - loneliness, or maybe even colorlessness. Someone who has experienced this lack of color, often incorrectly, can relate with the story.  

[500 Days][Joy] Word Of the Day: Decadence

So, I'm visiting my parents and drinking Baileys from a wine glass. Only silence and the scent from candles surround me. Haruki Murakami's newest book awaits me and life feels generally very good.
To be honest, my life is far from decadent - BUT I do like the word. As it turns out, though, it is a very boring word to translate.

On the ferry today - while taking too much an interest in the people around me - I did even scribble down a few words on decadence.

And today's language lesson:

Swedish: dekadans
Russian: декаданс
Polish: dekadencja
Slovak: dekadencia
Hungarian: dekadencia
Spanish: decadencia

What a boring word... Finnish, we trust in you to spice things up a little bit...
Finnish: rappio THERE WE HAVE IT :)

Second-hand Time (Время секонд хенд)

There are all sorts of books in this world. The best ones are those that teach us something, or leave a trace in our heart. They shock us, shake us, but do not leave us feeling indifferent. 

I have read quite a bit about Russia and the Soviet Union in my time. I have spoken to people, who have given me their first- or second hand accounts about their lives during the Soviet times. Svetlana Alexievich's collection of stories - those stories lived by former Soviet citizens - does shake me. It raises questions about the good, the bad, and the fact that it is sometimes very different to draw a line between those two. The same goes for love and hatred, empathy and indifference. These narratives paint the picture of a very complex society, where little was as it seemed. A society, whose fall was harsh indeed. 

The narratives, and the way they are told, are humane, cruel, beautiful, all at once. They are the stories about a society that was built - and destroyed - at a great cost. 

[500 Days] Last Day of November

Owls, trips to Ikea, books, smoothies, sleepiness. Stress, more books, meetings and encounters, chai latte, coffee ban, no gym, taiji. Darkness, sore throats and self leadership. Longs baths, silent moments in the metro. Moving flats. Candles. And shall I say it again? Gorgeous books. 

I am so ready for December. 

Good Books

What makes a good book? Yesterday I finished reading a wonderful book. It was disturbing, controversial, confusing, but very well written. That's what makes a good book: that need it creates to be introspective, to question oneself, to think. 

I must admit that despite having lived in Spain, my knowledge of Spanish literature is poor. So, I made a good choice when I bought this particular book in Slovakia (for 3€)(of all places). What attracted me? The cover and the title - la muchacha de las bragas de oro (the Girl With Golden Panties). Who would not want to read a book about golden panties? For this curiosity I was awarded a tremendous book and an introduction to one of Spain's most famous contemporary writers. Who would have thought.

Reading this book I realized that I am a prude. What a nice observation about oneself :)

The second book in this picture is also an interesting one, Its English title is Mindful Eating and it was written by Jan Chozen Bays. Again I was intrigued by the cover as I love chickpeas (and thus probably proving every publisher in the world right about the importance of a good cover). I think this book has a lot of useful things to say about food and about eating. 

Book: The Girl Who Saved the King of Sweden

Even though I love books, I must admit that I'm not an avid reader of Scandinavian (including Finnish) literature. And it is a shame.

This weekend I have dedicated a great deal of time to a book whose English title reads The Girl Who Saved the King of Sweden. The author, Jonas Jonasson, gained a lot of popularity across Europe with his first novel The Hundred-Year-Old Man Who Climbed Out the Window and Disappeared. 

This second novel was a good read. In all its simplicity (as in simple and straightforward language) and fantasy (the plot), it manages to entwine local problems, global issues, history and politics into laugh-out-loud food for thought. What amazes me the most about this writer is his vast knowledge in global affairs and foreign lands. The weakness of the book? Perhaps the somewhat simple language, at times.

Interested in what the book is about? Here is what the publisher Harper Collins has to say:

On June 14th, 2007, the King and Prime Minister of Sweden went missing from a gala banquet at the Royal Castle. Later it was said that both had fallen ill: the truth is different. The real story starts much earlier, in 1961, with the birth of Nombeko Mayeki in a shack in Soweto. Nombeko was fated to grow up fast and die early in her poverty-stricken township. But Nombeko takes a different path. She finds work as a housecleaner and eventually makes her way up to the position of chief advisor, at the helm of one of the world's most secret projects. 

Here is where the story merges with, then diverges from reality. South Africa developed six nuclear missiles in the 1980s, then voluntarily dismantled them in 1994. This is a story about the seventh missile . . . the one that was never supposed to have existed. Nombeko Mayeki knows too much about it, and now she's on the run from both the South African justice and the most terrifying secret service in the world. She ends up in Sweden, which has transformed into a nuclear nation, and the fate of the world now lies in Nombeko's hands. 

All Russians Love Birch Trees

You know how you sometimes find a book title that is absolutely compelling, calling your name?  All Russians Love Birch Trees is one such title. I saw the book (Ryssar är såna som gillar björkar in Swedish) and had to read it. My opinions about the book are somewhat mixed. It was a pleasant read, it touched upon topics very dear to me (like languages - I feel like I want to learn Arabic now), but at the same time I did not get the point of the rather confusing story and the ending was too abrupt for my taste.

This debut novel by Olga Grjasnowa deals with not fitting in and seeking escape in languages as a mode of detachment from reality. Masha is an interpreter residing in Frankfurt and seeking refuge in languages. Something from her childhood in Azerbaijan haunts her, she does not want to speak about it. When her boyfriend Elias dies, she escapes to Israel where she has a mental breakdown of sorts.

Elu on väärt elamist [notes on Estonian]

Elu on väärt elamist - Life is Worth Living

How much time have you spent thinking about Estonian? 

Let me tell you, Estonian is quite an amazing language. Funny and beautiful at the same time. My boyfriend thinks it's like a more cheerful version of Finnish :)

Finnish and Estonia belong to the same Finno-Ugric language group, but they are not mutually intelligible. As a Finnish-speaker I can understand some things, but most of the time I'm out in the blue, all puzzled about what is going on around me.

Take for instance the following sentences:

• How are you? Estonian: kuidas sinul läheb? Finnish: Mitä sinulle kuuluu? 

• I don't understand. Estonian: ma ei saa aru. Finnish: minä en ymmärrä. 

• Thank you very much. Estonian: tänan väga. Finnish: kiitos paljon. 

• Life is worth living. Estonian: elu on väärt elamist. Finnish: elämä on elämisen arvoinen. 

In general, I must admit that I know shamelessly little about both the Estonian language and culture. For a country that is so close, its history, culture, language and literature are surprisingly far away. I will definitely try to improve my knowledge in the area.

A tip for you who are unfamiliar with Finnish and Estonian literature: the Finnish writer Sofi Oksanen (her mother is Estonian) has written a couple of internationally acknowledged novels, which pay attention to issues relating to Estonia. 

Inspiration: Albert Camus

čítaj to! [Read It!]

The ideas of Daniel Kahneman and Amos Tversky were first introduced to me a couple of years back when I was studying psychology. Back then we were discussing biases and how they affect our behaviour and decisions. I was immediately amazed – the emphasis on decisions was interesting and the complexity that lies behind decision-making is truly fascinating.

So, I was very happy when I found Kahneman’s book Thinking, Fast and Slow. It deals with some of the very basics of human functioning; our thinking patterns and modes of decision-making.

“We are prone to overestimate how much we understand about the world and to underestimate the role of chance in events.”
― Daniel Kahneman, Thinking, Fast and Slow

“Nothing in life is as important as you think it is when you are thinking of it.”
― Daniel Kahneman, Thinking, Fast and Slow

Things I’ve Been Liking A Lot Lately [or my week in pictures]

Homemade raspberry ice tea with lemon, lime and mint.

Raspberries are always delicious, as was The Luminous Life of Lilly Aphrodite

Kraków did not disappoint.

I was very, very happy when I found my one and only make-up essential in Poland. Hey, that’s closer than Finland.

Finding this fig made my day on Monday.

Finding these socks made my day on Tuesday.

And this Greek inspired Tzatziki Pasta Salad might well make my Wednesday. Ingredients: tagliatelle, ruccola, tomato, feta cheese and homemade tzatziki.

Grey.

 

Lately it feels like I have a lot to say about grey.

Firstly, it occurred to me to discuss it as it is such a lovely colour, I find. It’s so easy to combine with almost any other colour and it’s so comforting somehow. There is nothing hostile about grey; it’s cosy and homey and good. You can hide behind it or you can sparkle with it, depending on the day.

Now, the opposite of all the positive feelings associated with the colour grey can be said about Fifty Shades of Grey. It might possibly be the most horrendous book I’ve ever read. The expectations weren’t high to begin with. The book failed to meet the lowest of expectations.

I can see why one would want to read a book like this. It’s an entertaining topic, maybe a bit off limits, quite brave and out of the ordinary. Perhaps there is some escapism involved as well.  Now, in my humble opinion, this is a story that would be much better on screen. In written form it’s a waste of paper.

Sorry ladies and gentlemen and anyone who enjoyed this piece of art, I cannot take a book seriously if it’s as badly written, as repetitive and with such a lack of (witty) imagination as this particular masterpiece. Someone please tell me what the following sentence actually means: "I must be the color of the communist manifesto."

So, no. I would not recommend this book to anyone. If you want entertainment, look for Boris Akunin. If you want something spicy and beautifully erotic, you could start with Pablo Neruda:

Danilo Kiš

 

“Što je bilo, bilo je. Prošlost živi u nama i ne možemo je izbrisati. Pošto su snovi slika onoga sveta, i dokaz njegovog postojanja, susrećemo se u snovima; kleči kraj furune u koju trpa vlažna drva; ili me doziva promuklim glasom. Tada se budim i palim svetlo. Kajanje i bol se polako pretvaraju u sumornu radost sećanja. Naš dugi, strasni i strašni roman ispunio je moj život, osmislio ga je, i ja ne tražim nikakve nadoknade.”*

This quote is not from the book I’m currently reading, it is from Encyclopedia of the Dead, also by Danilo Kis.

The book I am reading is A Tomb for Boris Davidovich. It is a horrible, absurd and truly wonderful book dealing with the fate of revolutionaries. Kiš and his work might be my new obsession!

 

* "What's done is done. The past lives in us and we can not delete it. Since dreams are picture of the world, and the proof of its existence, we meet in dreams; kneeling furnace into which puts damp wood, or calling me hoarsely. Then I wake up and turn the lights on. Remorse and pain slowly turned into a grim memories of joy. Our long, passionate and scary novel filled my life, it was invented, and I'm not looking for any compensation.”

A Declaration of Love

Whenever I come to my parents’ house, they welcome me. The piles of dictionaries and grammar books have shown me the wonders of language. They will always remind me of my first unsure steps with Russian and Hungarian. The collections of Dostoevsky, Kundera and Murakami greet me like an old friend. The chic lit books made me laugh once upon a time, whereas all those books on politics, psychology, international relations, political philosophy, decision-making, corruption and social trust inspired a thought or two. The stories told by Kertész, Márai, Kis, Capek and Milosz take me to the world that always intrigued me -  Central and Eastern Europe. Pushkin and Bulgakov, Turgenev and Chekhov stand next to Sokholov, Solzhenitsyn, Lukyanenko, Marinina and Mayakovsky. Some of them are translated, some of them are not. They all speak to one of my deepest loves – the one for Russian language and literature.

Greek food, pasta, salads, food from the Balkans. Slow food and enjoying life through the taste buds. Training bibles and positive thinking. Guide books. It is all there. All those books, all that knowledge. I love it.

A Lil’ Something

The sun is shining, the city is covered in snow. The coffee mug is starting to run empty. One last day before the Easter holidays, and you know what that means… Belgrade. Yesterday we went to get some reading for the trip.

Veggie Goulash And Some Books

Appetizing pictures again – let them not scare you, this is tasty.

Veggies:½ large onion, 2 potatoes, 1 carrot, mushrooms, a few cherry tomatoes. 1 garlic clove. Mix with some olive oil and a lot of spicy paprika.

Add water.

Leave to boil for a while.

Add tomato purée.

Add soy protein.

Let simmer for about 15 minutes.

Add dried basil.

 

And the book collection is growing.

Mostanában olvastam ...

Book Challenge: Day 24 (pt. 2)

I said I'd think about it. It took me almost 3 months but I finally do have an answer to the following:

Day 24 – A book that you wish more people would’ve read

A good book is one that teaches the reader something important, while taking the teacher on a journey to another time and another place. Furthermore, the good book gives rise to thoughts and questions.
I read one of these books the other day. It's touching and beautiful and it makes you angry at the world for all the injustice and stupidity. And it makes you think about moral issues and life in general. Unfortunately it seems to be only available in Finnish and Swedish - therefore I can wish that more people would have access to this little book (it's so tiny it's almost a booklet) giving insight to one very little piece of human history.

In English the title of this book would be something like And I Wasn't A Prisoner. The author, Hella Wuolijoki, was a Finnish-Estonian writer, who had been sentenced to life imprisonment during the Continuation War for being a spy for the Soviet Union. During the imprisonment, she wrote a journal in which she made observations about her fellow inmates and life in prison, while commenting the war and the social situation in Finland.

Her good, friendly shadow walked upright before me, she gestured silently to me with a worker's hand: "Don't be afraid... there is no death... for those, who die for life..."     She was a Finnish working woman and she loved her country and her people, she gave her life for its liberty... carrying the name of a traitor. She walked into death singing. Her name was Martta Koskinen*.

_________________________________________________________________________

Day 25 – A character who you can relate to the most
Day 26 – A book that changed your opinion about something
Day 27 – The most surprising plot twist or ending
Day 28 – Favourite title
Day 29 – A book everyone hated but you liked
Day 30 – Your favourite book of all time

*Martta Koskinen was the last woman to be executed in Finland.
** The translation is mine, so you know whom to blame for all the mistakes.