Reminder

I returned home from Ivalo yesterday. It must have been my shortest stay over there in history, for I only spent there one night. After hearing the news from home few weeks ago, sadness, indecisiveness and weariness took over my mind. Now, after seeing my cousins and my family, after escorting together our uncle, father and brother to his last journey and returning home, I think I can slowly start getting back to my normal life. I wasn't very close with my uncle, but I still feel bad for my father and my cousins. Losing someone is such a gruesome reminder of lifes' frailty that it's almost too hard to bear. And still we just have to suck it up and keep on living. Eventually.

Love

-Tiina

 

Mourning

Due to recent events I haven't been able to write for a while. And neither am I now, either. I just wish us all strenght to face our losses and difficulties.

Until next time.

Love
-Tiina

Good day at the gates of bureauracy

I had to visit KELA today , and I felt miserable already last night because of that. Last April I went there to apply for some benefit, and the clerk told me I wasn't entitled for it cause I'm already receiving some other. Summer went by and couple of weeks ago I met my social worker. She asked about the benefit and got bristled after hearing what had happened with the application. She was sure I should have gotten the benefit even without any applications. So we filled in a new one, I dug that old and torn application from my waste paper bin and took them both to KELA this morning. I was lucky, for the clerk I met this morning happened to be the head of the local office. After hearing my story she really took all the effort to solve my problem. She took in my applications and confirmed what my social worker had told me about the benefit. She said the clerk back in April had made a mistake and that she was going to have a chat with her. And since the mistake was KELA's I might receive my lost benefits retroactively and in full. It's not much, but I was really taken by the helpfullness and good service I received this time.

The lesson here: When dealing with KELA, be persistent and never throw anything away.

Love,

Tiina

Happiness is huge mess on the floor

I'm getting ready for a productive week. My floor is already covered in videotape boxes, yarns, paints, paper and sketchbooks. Next week is autumn holiday and I decided to stay in Kuopio and work on  with my projects. I've got so many things I want to do and am excited about that I just couldn't bare the thought of leaving Kuopio and Turo -our schoolbuilding and my other home,  for an entire week. So next week I'm going to spend binding sketchbooks, trying out some techniques I want to use in my thesis, disassembling some 50 vhs-cassettes, organizing my DIY-cupboard, sketching, painting and learning to drive... So forgive me my friends, relatives and loved one, I'll try to answer the phone if you call, but my hands might be covered in paste and my mind so deep in a DIY-haze that I wont hear... Yesterday I  asked my therapist whether I'm turning manic, but she assured me I'm only being my old self again. It's just been so long since I last felt like this. It's like Christmas came early =)

Love.

Tiina

PS: If anyone has surplus of plastic videocassette boxes somewhere gathering dust, I'll be more than happy to give them a new home.

Creative Chaos

I've been very busy for the past few weeks. And productive too, which is very gratifying. 

Last weekend we finished that ANTI-wedding project with my classmates. The whole project ended in a great spectacle of ecosexual wedding at the lake Kallavesi. It was good fun and a rollicking party. After the brides had jumped in the lake, the "altar" looked like a battlefield with their clothes, bouquets, rings and fishcrackers thrown all over and stamped in the rug. I'm very pleased I took part in the project, it was bit trying, but satisfying and fun too. By the way, I spent a day on a seminar held at ANTI-contemporary art festival, where Pier Luigi Sacco, professor of Cultural Economics at IULM University, Milano stated that taking part in cultural activities improves the health of people. So take that, politicians! More money to culture equals less doctors needed.

The brides Annie and Beth with me and Johanna.

Lately I've been working on on my thesis too, for a hurricane of thoughts and dreams gave me some new ideas and  tossed my old plans out the window. I was so anxious to be able to work on our dreamed textile art exhibition with my friend, that we finally asked our tutor-teacher if we could change our plans and hold that art exhibition as our shared thesis. And Yay! we could! Our teacher thought that "life should be fun". What a wise person she is! I can't wait to get my hands deep in artsy tinkering with yarns, looms, watercolors and embroidery...

Yesterday I had a long chat with my friend Minna over cups of tea and sushi. She thought that after all the horrids of past year, I'm novadays even more positive than before I got ill and depressed. And I feel like that too. I must try and describe it better to you someday, for it is quite marvellous...

Oh, yes I forgot, the reason this post is titled Creative Chaos..

 

My DIY-project cupboard erupted again. My room's in an end-of-the-school-projects state.. I love it that way.

Love

Tiina

Good mood

Today is a good day. I could feel it when I pulled my bike out and up from the bikehold and cycled to driving school. Do you know the feeling, when you're in such a good mood your steps are lighter and it feels like you're floating? Ya. I felt like that and I whistled on my way. 

Last night I gave up something, that took too much of my time, ate my energy and mostly made me dull. Today I feel like a new person.

So here's my challenge: Do you recognize something that wears you down? Can you try and give it up?

Love
-Tiina