Train-Train-bus-boat-SummerSchool..

How can it take so long for a train to make a short distance... It seems forever.. I have taken the Pendolino Train here in Finland many times.. once it broke both on the way out and on the way in.. Now it has not broken and is running just fine.. But I can't help but wonder how slow these trains are.. They were introduced some years ago to Finland as "fast" going at speeds slightly over 200km/h.. that is about 120 mph.. At the current stretch of track however these trains are no faster than the old fashioned trains.. I think these trains have only been able to travel at high speed at the southern most part of the train track network..
The introduction of wireless internet is very nice, but hardly compensates for the fact that one has to sit for 7 hours for a trip made by a plane for less than an hour.. Why am I on it then.. well student discount on trains is 50%, so the whole travel costs very little compared to air travel, unfortunately..
USA was struck by a earth quake, Gaddafi's terrorist rule over libya is over and tropical storm is gathering force before coming over the east coast.. Meanwhile in Finland a thrombi destroyed some persons lawn furniture... Things happen so far from here..
At the Summer school I met a man who had gone to the same high school and been thought by some of the same teachers.. it was really strange.. I think we would have found some other people we knew in common if we had talked for a longer time.. I met many lovely people there, but as my camera is still charging on the living room floor waiting for me to take it with I got no photos from this lovely trip..
The island used to be a mental hospital and a leper colony.. the lepers were allowed to distill alcohol for their pain.. but it got to be too much in the end and they were denied such privileges.. the only reminder of their merriment is that when one is drunk he can be said to be in Seili (Seilissa), which is the name of the island where to summer school took place.
Now I am mostly tired and wanting to get back to my lovely wife and little boy, who are at home, hopefully sleeping peacefully!

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Baby this baby that

Amazing, all through the night even in our sleep we tend to think of our little boy... he wakes us up to remind us in the middle of the night.. Then the day breaks and it is our turn.. here are some of my inventions.. no child or animals were harmed during the making of these photos..

I call this the Ghetto Geddes.. We had a paper waste basket empty just sitting there.. And I thought, perhaps little Peregrine could fit in it.. and look at the result he can fit into almost everywhere with that flexibility..

I have heard that in some countries when you play dominoes and you happen to lose, you have to put a clothes pin in your beard.. well this is called, "the attack of the loser dominoes"
The kid was playing on the floor and always wanting what I had in my hand.. I had many clothes pins in my hand at the time and decided to give them to him.. first just to see if he would pick them off, but then for sheer joy of having him look at the ones hanging too near his face to focus his eyes on.. Was hilarious and the Daddy did take them off before he got too frustrated and started to complain..
The last one is not so much a setup photo, but still pretty cute..

It's called fresh as a rubber duckie.. and few minutes later it was night time again.. and his turn to remind us that we love him and that he is just so very cute!!

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The day of the dishwasher

Oh my, now we can sleep and the dishwasher will do one of the most avoided jobs in our household.. long gone are the time when I struggled to eat breakfast from the pot lid while buttering my bread with spatula.. Now all the dishes are dirty and in the dishwasher.. Hmm.. perhaps there will be new challenges.
So today our home became a home to a dishwasher and a vacuum cleaner.. the vacuum got much less attention upon arrival and perhaps in proportion usage time.. Need to brush up on vacuum cleaner use.
It is the last week of holiday and I have signed up for some work almost every day of the week, only from 8am to noon, but still I think it is a fair indication that the summer has gone for long enough and it is time for school to start.

Here is a picture of our new dishwasher.. The vacuum is just a  vacuum.. note the buttons on top... hopefully keeps it from being Peregrines favorite toy for a while.
Anyway few more days of holiday left this summer and then we are back to "normal"

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Aeroplane etiquette and reality

Well, we did take our share of flights during this Summer holiday.. all in all 6 separate times the jet engines pushed us forward almost faster than time.. let me explain..

This is us after 12 hour jet propelled trip towards Finland.
The time had not yet come with us to Finland and we were soooooooo tired had to take a nap.. but before getting to the end of the journey..
at the gate we all have been waiting for the plane, listening for the announcement of our flight and then it comes.. "we welcome everybody to our flight service XX XXX to Frankfurt.." in peoples head it turns into "Rush the Gate, everybody Rush the GATE!!" and so we all conform to the Italian national sport (disorderly cuing.. ) once on board and everybody has found their seats, even though for a moment at the gate it seemed like the places were limited and people were playing musical chairs in a tin can shaped theme park.. You relax and wait for the plane to do it's thing.. Then the announcement that tries to in least panic inducing manner tell you that there is a piece missing from the landing gear and it needs to be found before we take off or we will all die.. what you actually hear is "this is your captain speaking, there is just one minor check before we are all clear to leave."
In the trans-atlantic flight the 1st class is in it's own compartment separated by a wall, in smaller planes there is just a curtain, which states "this curtain must be fully opened and secured in its place during takeoff and landing" one airliner thought this meant that the curtain is drawn to it's full length... I have seen it also pulled to the side..
If you are lucky enough to fly from a exotic location like Finland, you will hear announcements in various non english languages, and you can amuse yourself by trying to figure out what is going on.. It is fun, because once you hear the English version you know they have left out the majority of the information as the announcement is less than quarter the length of the piglatin one they just gave..

Then there is the getting off the plane jungle.. People jump up from their seats like they are on fire when the plane touches the ground.. They rummage through the overhead lockers as if their stuff had moved during 7 hour non eventful flight.. and everybody tries to stand on the isle.. some can't quite fit and they hunch over reserving the right to leave the plane as the 187th passenger.. I have adopted the style of waiting it out.. I am not in a hurry to get out and stand around the plane, because the great leveler of the air travel is ahead of us all, no matter the class you fly in or seat in the cattle wagon.. we all end up standing around the carousel of other-peoples bags.
There they go and come again.. and always there is that one unlucky one, like the ugly duckling that nobody wanted and it is left there to circle around until security throws it into a "dangerous-unattended-unclaimed" pit and it can never to be recovered again..
Thanks to so many people we have had people waiting for us at the airport at many destinations as it is so very nice.. but if you don't have anybody.. why not play some games with people with signs.. spot the most desperate and head for them like you have found the end of the rainbow and see how their hopes come up... just to be crushed at the last minute before the awkward are you? question..
Thank God our flight arrived safely and everything went really well this Summer holiday.. See you next time at the flying tin-can..

H&P

Family reunion

I have had the privilege to take part in Marshall family reunion kind of a visiting member as my family-in-law is related to the re-unioning family through grandfather being a brother to the pop pop. Anyhow I am so very grateful for the chance to take part. The fellowship and activities are so amazing fun that the week just flies by and then it is all over and I am left thinking when can I feel this companionship again..
I also keep thinking that my family should have this kind of gathering, perhaps it is possible. Anyhow, the past week we decorated a teepee, swung into a spring fed pond with a rope swing, played softball, kick ball, volley ball and many other fun activities.

Here is  a perfectly executed swing-catch-a-football dive into the lake. The days were sunny, except for one day rainstorm, which gave us and the plants around us a welcome sprinkling of water. This year was a record for babies below 1 year old, including our little almost a crawler. Some people had grown so much that they were literally difficult to recognize.. Aaron, don't grow any taller or we will have to move you into a volleyball league of your own..

Here is our 8 monther at a dinner table, Halle holding one of the little guys. The communal feeling of caring and love is so great, expressed in so many kind and caring acts, like holding our baby at the breakfast table at 8am while I get my hands on the coffee and doughnuts..Thank you Nate.. :)

The special event this year was the 60th year of marriage of the head of the family.. I keep thinking about it and looking back and forward in my own life.. married now for 4 years.. only 56 years to go to reach this amazing diamond wedding day. It is so much everyday days and few high points and many hard times but as we were all there celebrating and enjoying the wholeness of the family, I have a feeling that they were little proud of their heritage, even though as always when I congratulated them they answered "It is all from God".

thank God for all his goodness and for all these wonderful people I got to meet and play with, hopefully I am able to better contribute to the organization of the event in the future. (This is partly for selfish reason for I wish and pray that my little boy gets to experience the warmth and fellowship as I have, and by helping with organization I may be able to make it more likely to continue..)

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