THE BEGINNING OF A NEW LIFE… (LOOKING BACK 2023)

The year 2023 was much better than its predecessors. Life began to settle in this new place, and the new home started to feel like the real home (not just a vacation spot, as it did in the beginning, heh). The home also looks and feels more like home now because we finally brought furnitures, paintings, and dishes from the storage, which belong to my childhood home. All of them hold so much sentimental value. The antique furniture we brought also fits well here. At the same time, I brought with me my grandparents’ inherited, beautiful coffee cups and it’s nice to enjoy morning coffee with them…

That’s my favorite. These were used a lot during my childhood and youth on special occasions and gatherings. Mainly that’s why they are dearest to me.

This one is a nice English cup.

This one is truly beautiful, but very small (probably an espresso cup).

I also got to know this dog companion of my spouses sister’s family. He has been in our care a few times. A cute dog, although a bit restless and in need of a lot of outdoor activities, as is typical for Jack Russell Terriers. Not exactly a couch potato.

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However, year 2023 wasn’t either entirely free from sad news. Just before Christmas, I heard that the mother of a dear friend passed away at the age of 82, so 2023 still included this sadder piece of news.

I vividly remember how my friend and I traveled by train to Hämeenlinna probably sometime around the year 2000 for a Bomfunk MC’s concert. We stayed at her mother’s place. It was a big deal back then! The journey was fantastic, and it left warm memories!

Well, back to 2023… also the decline in my mother’s health towards the end of the year brought sorrow and concern. Her doctor decided to discontinue her memory medication, according to him, it doesn’t bring any benefit anymore. In my opinion, she has deteriorated since then. We visited her on Christmas Eve, and she barely managed to hold on her eyes open. She also didn’t drink much coffee and didn’t eat barely at all the pie offered with it, which is a concerning sign. However, the timing of our visit was good because Santa Claus arrived to distribute gifts just then, and I was able to give my mother the shoulder shawl I made as a gift. Unfortunately, she didn’t pay much attention to it or anything else. She could hardly recognize me neither. I, too, struggled to recognize her as my mother. She felt so unfamiliar. Even though I knew this was coming, it’s still difficult to accept/believe. Well, none of us is getting any younger. My own May birthdays are also approaching again, after my mother’s 80th birthday in April.

For the upcoming year, I mainly wish for good health above all else. Nothing else matters as much. Of course, it would be nice to travel occasionally, but health is the number one priority in life for me these days. Now, having understood the fragility of life.

On the new year’s eve, we went to the local town center to watch the fireworks, and I wanted to include a video of those here. However, the video I shot didn’t turn out well, so I left it out. The footage was very short (a mistake, apparently it didn’t start recording right away as intended), and there’s not much to see in it. It was really nice fireworks!

Below are some of my best/the most significant posts in 2023.

In the first post you can read about events from two years ago in my life, a time when a lot happened, and these events have largely led to the present moment and my current self. I included this to provide some background on recent events in case you’re not aware of them yet.

ANNUAL REVIEW

”Lissu and I” …High school memories with my friend Lissu.

LISSU JA MÄ

Eurovision song contest- (ESC) was successful for Finland last year.

ESC 2023

On the following link more proper translation of my dance poem used in the Dwts 2018 Finland program advertisement.

TTK 2018 MAINOSRUNO

(Delicious) grandma’s coconut bars. I recommend you to try this recipe!

GRANDMA’S COCONUT BARS

Our trip to Keuruu, e.g. inspecting our cottage’s condition, was the best/most emotional event of the summer. It all started with the search for the cottage keys…

Hunting for the keys in Helsinki

TIME DOES ITS JOB

KEURUU/VIIKINHOVI

Naturephotos

LUONTOKUVIA

The beautiful message of this song about the fading of beauty brings to mind my mother.

ANASTASIA

Link to an old Father’s Day post, back when we still celebrated Father’s Day together as a nuclear family, with everyone alive and well.

ISÄNPÄIVÄ

Already 19 years together with my spouse…

J.Karjalainen – Sydänlupaus

Although personally I managed to avoid major sad news (except for the death of my friend’s mother that I mentioned), in 2023 there were still significant losses nationally, as dancer Aira Samulin and our former president Martti Ahtisaari passed away.

PRESIDENT MARTTI AHTISAARI 1937-2023

AIRA SAMULIN 1927-2023

Letter of grievence

ADVENT CALENDAR, DOOR 2. THE LETTER OF GRIEVENCE

Finnish Independence Day and my grandfather’s childhood home in Vyborg which was lost during the war (-old post link)

ADVENT CALENDAR, DOOR 6. Finnish Independence Day

In memory of my father (on his birthday).

ADVENT CALENDAR DOOR 12. (In memory of my father on his birthday)

*WELCOME 2024*

Well, I guess all that’s left is to WISH EVERYONE ALL THE BEST FOR 2024!