A Desert Christmas

« Yölyhdyt [Night Lanterns] by Liisa Kyrönseppä in the Forces of Light installation in Plague Park. »

Today at lunchtime I looked outside and gaped since it appeared like it was almost night before noon. I thought we had escaped November but, perhaps not. I noticed a light therapy lamp in the coffee lounge and had to resist the desire to go press my eyeballs directly onto the bulb. My backpack still contains my sunglasses as if I'll need them for another 5 months or so. Always prepared for solar radiation, every fleeting moment of it. :)

Since we had to cancel our Feb/March travel plans due to the puppy coming later than expected Jarkko, in a fit of desperation after finding all the tours booked between now and when the puppy arrives in January, found a trip at one of the last minute cancelation agencies in a warm, arid place during the holidays. It's funny how back in my 20s I travelled all over on a whim and didn't think anything of it and these days I am less enthusiastic about seeing the world. It bothers me that I have become so jaded in my advancing age. It is that age old equation of Money | Time | Energy/Enthusiasm - pick any two. I retain the curiosity but it is tempered by my cynicism. I had to check to see if I'd need a visa to enter the country and if anyone ever read the US State Department's consular information sheets on various countries, noone would ever leave US airspace. They do make for amusing reading for those of us who live outside the US. Treat yourself to reading the language of fear, e.g. Finland;

SAFETY AND SECURITY : Finland remains largely free of terrorist incidents....

Largely free? What is that supposed to mean? No bombs but the lihakukko is a very dangerous weapon in the Karelian terrorist regime? Watch out for the drunks and their puukkos at the tram stops? There is also a section about how few cops there are in relation to the overall population. I suppose that living in a police state would make you uncomfortable visiting a place that doesn't have guys in fatigues and AK-47's hanging out in airports and on street corners. We're going to a place where we are warned that there is a lot of 'soccer-inspired violence' and evangelical christians are given a quick ride to the airport. :)