Sunday meeting of fate

Every Sunday, Annikki and I go to Linnanmaa Prisma to do our weekly grocery shopping and also to spend a couple of hours with our son, Mika, who has his studio apartment just opposite the Prisma.

I order a taxi for 15:30 and we reach Prisma at 15:40 and we return home by 17:40.

Last Sunday the taxi was late. I called to remind them at 15:35 and again at 15:45. It only arrived at 15:50.

We usually walk down the small hill to wait for the taxi near the gate. If it is sunny we go a few minutes early. Annikki sits on my walker while I sit on the wooden railing. 

Last Sunday, as we were waiting for the taxi, an elderly lady pushing a walker came into the compound. She started asking us about our history.

She laughed as heartily as Annikk does and was fascinated by our love story!.

She then asked me where I had worked in Oulu. I told her that I had worked in Oulu University. 

She then said she used to run the small stationary shop in the centre of the main university building.

It all came back as a flash as I had spent countless hours in her shop to buy paper, files, urgent office supplies for the labortory and even use the copying machine she used to have just outside her shop. 

When I published Annikki’s book “Edible Art”, I had made the master copy using the colour photocopiershe had installed outside her shop. She had given me a huge discount to copy the hundred off pages of the book and slso for the high quality photo paper I had used.

It was a truly wonderful feeling to connect with this remarkable lady who had been so much a part of my life in the University.

When I mentioned the fascinating character of Oulu University, Arpo Heikkilä, we both were in raptures as he had shared many hours in her shop as he did in my Office Room. Arpo had graced the cover of my book about Oulu University which I had published in 1994 and the maximum number of copies I had sold was through her little shop.

I was hoping that the taxi would never come as we were  enjoying the company of her effervescent  character. 

We had both moved on 40 years but it was like just yesterday that we had been together in the University.

As she lives in the same compound,  I am sure that our paths will cross again and we will talk about our old times together. 

Although both of us have aged the delightful memories have lived on. 

Antiques and Migrating Birds

Posted on my Jacob's Blog and the Oulu Best Buy Blog.

Sunday before last I met Ilari's aunt, Lizzy, at the CHAFF meeting.

Victor and Lizzy

Lizzy told me that she and her Dutch / English husband, Victor Glazer, had moved from Pudasjarvi to a neighbouring county south of Oulu, Liminka, and they had opened an Antique Shop, Viliga Oy (Address: Kauppakatu 6, 91900 Limika; Mobile: 050 5566069; 040 7608503; Fax: 08 3113151).

Ilari Sohlo was Joanna's colleague when studying for their Masters in English Philology at Oulu University. Ilari then became a close friend of Jaakko, our elder son. Subsequently, Ilari and his now wife, Ildikó and Annikki and myself have become good friends, bridging the generations!

Annikki and I are looking for some old fashioned chairs for our old fashioned dining table. Our present set does not have all the characteristics we desire.

Last Sunday, after the CHAFF meeting, we headed out to Liminka, for a dual purpose. To see the new antique shop and then to visit the reputed Liminka Bird Park where migrating birds are said to stop over on their way south.

An interesting signboard

Room filled with antiques

Annikki browses for her interests

Dolls galore

More antiques

The antique shop rambles through three large rooms and some connecting spaces. You look and you may find what you want. There is no one pressuring you. There is no one making a hard sales pitch. If you want clarification, ask Victor, who will tell you what he knows.

As this building was also used to serve as a bank, it has an enormous safe vault. Victor is using it to store some antique deactivated guns.

The concept of Lizzy and Victor is not just to have the run of the mill antique shop. They intend to make it a cultural centre which will host the work of artists, have performances by musicians and make the experience of visiting their centre a real experience.

Lizzy and Victor are visionaries. Annikki was taken by this effervescent couple. They could bring much character to the County of Liminka.

If the County authorities can stretch out their hand to help them develop their unusual ideas, we can predict that this small venture could make history. For instance, the dairy opposite the shop is lying unused. They want to use this for their cultural centre.

Annikki suggested to Lizzy that it may be interesting to leave all the dairy machinery intact, putting the exhibits in that setting, making the atmosphere unique and unusual!

The shop was well filled with customers on this Sunday afternoon. What was surprising was that people were also ringing in to ask about various antiques they have.

The shop has its own web page. Victor told me that this is undergoing a major upheaval.

Beautiful metal candle holders find their place at Kampitie.

Annikki found these really beautiful metal candle holders and they were quickly in their right place at Kampitie when we returned home!

Well done Lizzy and Victor.

Annikki and I wish you very well and we give it high marks on our Oulu Best Buy Blog.

After the visit to the antique shop we set out to visit the Bird Park. We found a large signboard pointing to the Bird Park. I drove in that direction. About 5 minutes later, we turned up at the main road again, where there was a sign for the Bird Park pointing back along the road we had come.

We thought we must have missed the turning to the Bird Park.

On this road there were two side roads, but both turned up blank - no Bird Park to be found.

Finally, after about a half hour of driving around we came across a young lady out for a brisk afternoon walk. Annikki told her our dilemma that we were looking for 200 swans who were supposedly in the Bird Park and we could not find this Bird Park despite the signs.

I do not know whether this young lady thought we were drunk.

She said we were driving in the Bird Park which is a residential colony and some migratory birds do settle down somewhere in this area. However, she had never seen any swans around here!

We gave up our attempt to find the Bird Park and swans and laughed all the way back to Oulu thinking about what that lady would be thinking about us!