Silence.

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.

Matkakuume [Fi: Travel Fever]

Spring Inspiration 2015

Inspiration from Google, H&M and last year. May this spring be as beautiful as the previous one!

Change pt. 2.

Change yourself,
change everything,
change life.

Develop. Become better.
Be better.

Go searching,
avidly, constantly.

If not good enough,
change yourself.
Find a better self.

Fake it.

Run.
Run as far as it takes you.

Smile to the world.
Turn your tears into laughter
and your fears into light.

Change, go on changing.
Find a new costume,
and new life.

Dress up,
play,
pretend.

Come on,
do it.

Only one life.
Too short to stand still.
Too short for traditions
and pretenses.

Enjoy the silence.
Go!

Enjoy the scenery,
enjoy the road.

Remember, too short.
But hold on the core,
to what is really you.

Life, an endless road that ends too soon

[Photo Diary] Colourful Inspiration Now

Colours of Autumn

Finnish Rye Bread: Also Available in Sweden 

New Life 

Always In the Baltic Countries: Looking for Russian Language Resources. And Cake. 

Travel & Coffee @ Vilnius Airport

Fitness At Home

Photo Diary: Caminando

This week I have spent a lot of time walking. Walking is more than simply great exercise, it is the time to gather one's thoughts, to enjoy all that is beautiful in the world. I have noticed that I feel much better after a walk during my lunch break or after work. 


Or as Friedrich Nietzsche put it:

All truly great thoughts are conceived by walking. 

Last Sunday before the elctions

Somewhere between Vagnhärad and Trosa

A runestone

Fog!

The Week That Was And What's Still Left of It

Saturday morning. It feels so good to stretch out in the morning, to have time to enjoy the morning coffee. This week has been tiring, but wonderful.

On Wednesday I went to my first class of taiji (T'ai chi ch'uan) and it was great. I have such lousy coordination and balance, so this will definitely do me some good. Like yoga, it's great for the mind, too.

One of the great things about the place where I work is that we get a lot of books. And not just any books - cook books are the ones I'm often going for. (I have also found a pile of books about politics, as well as some great novels, so I'm happy)

The book in the background has a lot of interesting recipes. As it's about the 5:2 diet, the dishes are very light. However, there is a lot of fish and veggies in there, so it's definitely a book for me. I could also not resist when I saw the leaflet about juices. One of the supermarkets had made and it was free. It looks interesting, so I could have paid something for it!

Tomorrow there are the elections coming up. I get to vote in the local elections, which will be fun. In general I think that voting is an obligation - it is one of the few ways in which we can make our voices heard. Anyhow, I will write one post later on about my views on this particular election.

jednoduchosť [SK: simplicity]

Jednoduchosť je najvyššia sofistikovanosť

Buďte šťastní! [SK: Be Happy!]

This photo, in all its simplicity, makes me happy, reminding me that despite all, things flourish and bloom. 

Summer Beginnings!

Good morning from a cloudy Sweden! 

Yesterday we celebrated Walpurgis Night here in the north - it's party-time, big time! both in Finland and Sweden with students celebrating, bonfires being lit and most people having a good time. J and I had a nice dinner at home. We both like cooking and exploring new recipes so it was the ideal evening for us. 

Today is also when the summer starts. At least in my world. I am very much of a project thinker and self-challenger. If I don't challenge myself, I don't get anything done. So, I have been thinking about ways to entertain myself and challenged to create. 

Here are some of the things I would like to focus on (so nothing new under the sun): 

• Fitness
• Food
• Flexibility
• Creativity

So, three F's and one C. 

Fitness to me is concept that includes a lot of things -  it means fitness in the traditional sense (to look fit) but it also includes feeling fit, eg energetic, well and healthy. Looking + feeling = being fit is key to being happy, I think. Mind you, it's not about satisfying and becoming a part of a norm (to look good), rather, physical activity breeds energy. An energy makes us happier. How to be fit, then, is the question? It is my belief that what works for me is to have a challenge and a plan. Surely there are some forms of exercise which should ALWAYS be present in any lifestyle (long walks, for instance),but my thought is that a mix of strength, cardio and stretching is the best. This opinion is not based on any scientific evidence - it is what feels good. So, the plan is to do strength training 2-3 times a week, running 3-4 a week and yoga as often as possible. The goal is to run 15K by the end of the summer (31 August) and run a half-marathon in the autumn. 

½ orange, 1/4 pineapple, 1 kiwi + some flavoured sour milk (not pictured)

Food is always important! Apart from the obvious reasons (we need to eat in order to live), it is also a lot of fun. I love looking for recipes and exploring in the kitchen, looking for ways to combine healthy and tasty. Now this isn't really a challenge, but I do want to learn as much as possible about nutrition and the world cuisine. I will however try to eat healthily :)

Delicious tropical smoothie

Flexibility. As with fitness, flexibility comes in two forms: physical flexibility and mental flexibility. The physical form of flexibility can be trained through various forms of exercise, for instance yoga. Mental flexibility is as important but more difficult to grasp. It is about avoiding being static and rigid; it's about curiosity, finding ways and paths; it is also about flow and trust; about letting go of perfectionism and the need to control life. I believe this mental flexibility may be achieved through meditation and being without trying to control, learning without ever being fully-taught and listening without intervening.

The last of the four points is creativity. Creativity comes in many forms, depending on how one defines it and what meaning it bears. In my life, creativity is language; creativity is colour, and it is also joy. So, for me to fulfill my yearning for creativity, it can be in the form of planning projects (like this one) or learning a language, or by the use of words. And this is what I shall do. I have no specific goal to achieve, other than the goal of spending at least 30 minutes a day in writing or translating.