Top posts 2019 - 2020

New year in Espoo 2019

Last year I skipped writing the top posts of the year so here I am listing the top posts from two previous years.

1. How to be miserable like a Finn

2. Historic football match that I witnessed in the stadium

3. My caffeine free life

4. Interesting book about parenting

5. Living costs in Spain

Top posts from previous years 2018, 2017, 2016, 2015, 2014, 2013, 2012, 2011 and 2010

5 unpleasent Incidents I suffered abroad

I have lived abroad in 6 different rental apartments and suffered some unfortunate incidents, though none of them felt so bad that I was hoping to be back in Finland.

Below I listed the incidents, I have faced

1. Water pipe broke and the apartment was flooding

2. Cockroaches disturbing the peace at home. Getting rid of them was challenging

3. Contsructtion workers in the neighbor made a hole to my living room wall

4. Electricity cuts few times but just for few hours

5. Mold getting formed to the walls

Here some common incidents what I have been able to avoid

1. Getting robbed

2. Getting scammed when renting a flat. I have always been able recover at least 50 % of  the debosit.

3. Bringing bed bugs home

4. Extremely high electricity bill. Many people who are not aware of the costs of heating/cooling in Spain get surprised for the cost.

5. Flatmates who are impossiple to live with

Golf

This summer I decided to complete the green card to start playing golf. I played just one round of 8-hole course with +16 and managed to complete two holes with par. One hole was not playable due the flooding. Before I have practiced swings in the range and putting in mini-golf courses.

Lessons from druglords

During the past year I have read three books of druglords (El Chapo & Pablo Escobar) and watched TV-series Narcos and El Chapo. I learned that despite being able to get a lot of money they have lost something while chasing for the millions.

The druglords can buy anything they want but they are not free. By getting rich they have lost one of the biggest factors of happiness which is freedom. In the same time they didn't lose just their own freedom but also their family members lost the freedom. They have to hide from the officials who want to capture them and have extreme security measures to keep them safe from the enemies who want to take them down.

Similar way also big celebrities have lost the freedom as they cannot blend in the crowds anonymously. They have to hide from the disturbing fans and have security guards around to be safe.

Because of the fame big celebreties and drug lords have more dificulties to reach the second level of Maslow's hierarchy of needs. They cannot enjoy a casual walk in a public place, a dinner in a nice restaurant without special arrangements or some other public activities. 

Reading list 2020

This year my reading list is shorter than last year. I am borrowing the books I read from the library and this year due the coronavirus there has been some limitations to borrow books.

Below the books listed in alphabetical order

Auvinen, Tero - Urheiluseurojen sisäpiirissä: tarinat tunteen takana
Garcia Marquez, Gabriel - Uutinen ihmisryöstöstä
Hogan, Andrew - Wanted El Chapo
Hulmi, Juha - Lihastohtori 2
King, Stephen - Kirjoittamisesta
Kuitunen, Mikko - Mahtava moka: uskalla, opi ja menesty
Manson, Mark - The subtle art of not giving a fuck
Saari, Oskari - Alkemisti: Petteri Nykyn tarina
Strauss, Neil - The Dirt: Törkytehdas
Vallejo, Virginia - Rakastin Pabloa, vihasin Escobaria
Wickström, Mika - Shefki Kuqi: Kosovon härkä

Benefits of caffeine free life

I saw few videos about quitting coffee for 30 days and benefits of caffeine free life which inspired me to write this post. I have never been consuming much caffeine. I don't start my morning with a cup of coffee or boost myself with energy drinks to feel energized. I have consumed just few cups of coffee and energy drinks in my life so I was never a caffiene addict. Especially in Finland I am a rare case because Finnish people are known to be consuming the most coffee per capita in the world. I found an extensive list of benefits with caffeine free life and I believe that the most obvious benefits in my life have been the quality of sleep which I have measured with Firstbeat analysis and not suffering from headaches. Also not having cavities in my teeth and not being anxious have been benefits for me for not drinking coffee. Aswell the famous money saving tip "don't buy the latte" has helped me to save some money.

Many people say that they need a cup of coffee to wake up. Waking up is not difficult for me and I don't press the snooze when the alarm rings. When I have slept well I feel energized the whole day but sometimes when I haven't slept well, I might feel suddenly extremely tired during the day and feel like that I need to take a nap. I believe that coffee drinkers take then a cup of coffee but I don't take that option. If taking a nap around lunch time is possible, I take one if not, I do some physical activity like take a walk, sometimes I just have to struggle through being tired sitting still and focus staying awake which can be very dificult in a tedious lecture.

I moved to the happiest town of the world

Kauniainen might be the happiest town of the world according to the NY Times and Kauniainen is my new home town. I moved to my apartment in Kauniainen from Espoo three kilometers away so lets see do I see improvement in the quality of life. At least my tax rate will be lowered by 1 %.

Later I will write an update about my experience in the happiest town of the world but first I will need to live here at least few months to know better. I can compare my living experience in Kauniainen to various previous locations where I have lived during the lifetime of this blog which are listed below.

2009 - 2010 Alcalá de Henares, Spain
2010 - 2011 Joensuu, Finland
2011  3 months in Madrid, Spain
2011 - 2012 Ankara, Turkey
2012 - 2013 Kuopio, Finland
2013 - 2015 Łódź, Poland
2015 3 months in Tbilisi, Georgia
2015 - 2016 Kuopio, Finland
2016 - 2018 Barcelona, Spain
2018 - 2019 Kuopio, Finland
2019 - 2020 Espoo, Finland
2020 - Kauniainen Finland

When choosing my living location I have prioritized a location where having a personal car is not needed. Now I am living 3 kilometers from work so I will be going to work by foot or by bicycle. Also train station is nearby so I can reach the center of Helsinki when needed.

Eating out

Due the Coronavirus restaurants have been closed in Finland but they will be reopened 1st of June. Closed restaurants have not been a problem for me as I eat out very rarely in Finland. I realized that I have been eating out much more when living abroad. Abroad I would eat out at least once a week but in Finland I might not eat out even every month.

Keeping up with Spanish

Due the Coronavirus libraries have been closed so instead of reading I have been watching more series. To keep up with Spanish, I decided to watch Spanish drama serie Tiempos de guerra without subtitles and Finnish crime serie Paratiisi where characters speak Finnish, Spanish and English. I also watched documentary The Truth About Franco - Spain's Forgotten Dictatorship which helped me to understand better the history of Spain. One interesting remark about Franco was that the beautiful women were not his weakness as they are often told to be a weakness of men in power.

Two Incentives to get the Corona virus

There could not be any other topic than the Corona virus for a blog post in March. Economy is taking a big hit due the preventive measures against Corona virus. Many people are being laid off. So far not that many news people being fired. In Finland social security compensates pretty well in case of losing your job but for example in southern Europe not that well. As offices are being closed you might have an option to work from home or use your holidays but many have to be afraid off losing their job permanently or temporarily. For people who are in big danger of losing their job have an incentive to get Corona virus because while being on sick leave you are legally much more safe from getting fired. Another incentive to get the Corona virus, is to get sick early before the health care system is overwhelmed. I bet it is easier to get treatment before the number of cases hits the peak.

6 steps to be miserable like a Finn

There is 6-step program to be happy like a Finn. Rachel Hosie followed the program and it made her feel calm, relaxed and happy. Here how the given 6 steps can make you feel uncomfortable and miserable.

1. Sweat in sauna
Sweating naked in a small room with other people. It feels hot and then they throw water on the rocks which adds humidity and makes it feel even hotter, it gets uncomfortable to breathe. Who finds this relaxing and comfortable?

2. Walk in the forest
In the summer you have mosquitos flying around and biting you everywhere. In the winter it is too cold and you cannot even walk in the forest because there is too much snow.

3. Swim in a hole in the ice
Do you enjoy taking cold shower? Why would you enjoy then swimming in ice cold water? Why would you risk on purpose catching a cold?

4. Pick berries
Ok, now I am in the forest but how could I know where is the spot to find the berries. I hope to not get lost when searching for the spot.

5. Enjoy the magical light
It does not get dark during the night in the summer time so it makes sleeping difficult. If you are lucky you can catch few hours of sleep when it is not as bright as in the midday. To see the northern lights in the winter you need to be lucky that the clouds will not block the view. Be ready to be dissapointed with  unfavorable weather.

6. Have space
Nothing around, how boring

Let me know if you found the melancholy and misery or the happiness with the 6-step program

My sports competitions and tournaments

Polish floorball league match ULKS Josefina - MUKS Zielonka

Since starting this blog I have participated various sports competitions/tournaments so I decided to make a list of them. League is played for months and includes many matches. Tournament takes just few days and includes few matches.

• 2009/2010 Spanish national floorball league
• 2009 Football seven league of The University of Alcalá
• 2010 beach volley tournament
• 2010 sports week tournament of various sports in University of Alcalá
• 2010 football tournament of sports day in University of Eastern Finland
• 2010/2011 floorball league of The University of Eastern Finland
• 2012 ice hockey tournament of the universities in Turkey
• 2013 Floorball league of  The University of Eastern Finland
• 2013 Polish first division floorball league
• 2014/2015 Ekstra liga Poland floorball league
• 2015 Floorball tournament in Lodz
• 2016/2017 Football seven Corporate league in Barcelona