More than a month till Midsummer?

(Cross-posted on the Chaff Blog.)

The sun shone brightly today. As I stepped out into the garden, Annikki's flowers on those old steps were truly magnificent.



As I drove through the city, a pony and buggy parked, with children buzzing around, certainly told me that there was a feeling of summer here.

Anyone for a Buggy ride?

And as I went further, the Doggy offering sweets and a balloon to an old lady outside of the Fleamarket run by the Red Cross set the atmosphere for a great day.


Doggy with sweets and balloons

I picked up Dr. Sebastian and Tingting from the University. Tingting cooked us a great Chinese meal at the Pailin Restaurant as she continues to teach Pailin how to make good Chinese grub. Tingting had to rush off as she was flying to China in the afternoon, but not before she picked my brains clean to sort out the next stage of her fast upwardly mobile career!

I took Dr. Sebastian around the City Centre which was alive with activities. It was the day of the Oulu Marathon which was run around the City starting and ending near the Market Place at the City Library. Thousands of watchers lined the route. The car parks were all full, and I was very lucky to get a parking place right in the city centre.


Oulu Marathon in progress.
Running past the Oulu City Library.

There was an event organised in the Youth House in Oulu called NUKU. It was called "Marketing of Possibilities" and several Non-Governmental Agencies (NGOs) had small stands to explain what there goals were to the public.


Amnesty International stand manned by friends.
Fumi is the tall Japanese lady on the left of the picture.

The Amnesty International table was well manned and of great interest to many. I met several friends around the table including Ville and Fumi. Dr. Sebastian was taken aback to know that he was well known as so many people who met him knew him as he had been featutred on this blog.

As we walked around we met several friends, but sadly, with each of the NGOs cramped together in such a small space, it was certainly not very possible for them to be demonstrative of their work and their achievements. I was happy to note that the Women's Empowerment group had a large and well organised and captivating show and I had the chance to meet Mervi Heikkinen, something which should have happened many many months ago!


Dr. Sebastian plastered against a World Comics poster.

World Comics of India is having an exhibition at the NUKU, but with all the NGOs stands plastered against the walls, it was not possible to have a view of what was on display, although we did see some Hindi comics splattered around. I managed to paste Dr. Sebastian against a poster of the Indian Express newspaper!

There was so much going on. It seemed totally confused with all the hubbub. I hope that future events will have more order so that visitors, like me, can get more out of the event.

From there we went to the CHAFF meeting at Pailin Restaurant and met with Kerstin.

Soda was there and he had just learnt a very serious lesson to listen to what his parents tell him. His cycle had been robbed - because, despite their several warnings, he had not bothered to lock it. His mother was very distraught. I reassured her that Soda would have learnt a lesson through this incident. I told Soda that now he had no cycle, he would now have no option but to jog to his training sessions and around the town.

Soda is certainly going to miss his cycle, but then, as they say you live and, hopefully, you learn!


Dr. Sebastian and me enjoying the sunshine at the Pailin Restaurant

Soda managed to catch this picture of Dr. Sebastian and me relaxing in the great sunshine which crowned most of this day. Although, the minute the sun went behind the clouds, we were all rudely reminded that summer was not quite here, as all had to rush to don their coats to keep warm!

As I drove Dr. Sebastian back to the University, after Pailin had armed him with a special Thai Sweet Chilli Wrap for his dinner, coming out of the Oulu Cathedral were finely togged people. They had just finished taking part in the convocation for Doctorates. They were certainly dressed in a lot of finery!


End of the Convocation for Doctorates in Oulu

And so ended another great pre-summer day!

Asia Seminar

Yesterday I thought I would get educated and went to a seminar organised by The Finnish Foreign Ministry about South East Asia. There was an excellent talk by Dr. Gladys Savolainen, a lady from the Phillipines who is married to a Finn, who spoke about the work being done by a Finnish Agency in the Quant-Tri region. Quang-Tri was a major region of the war waged by America against the Vietnamese and there is still much work in progress in clearing the area of mines and unexploded ammunition.

Dr. Savolainen talks watched by Mr. Matti Pullinen (Foreign Ministry) and Mirä Käkönen (Helsinki University)

The achievements of the project were quite impressive but I was not happy to hear one statement in the introduction that in the process of moving to a market economy, co-operatives were being dismantled.

After the talk, I expressed my opinion that there were all sorts of co-operatives and it was the Anand Co-opeative started by Ramon Magsaysay Awardee Dr. Verghese Kurian who revolutionised Milk Production in India, with Operation Flood and the White Revolution, which made India the largest milk producer in the world during the last 50 years.

These are some of the awards bestowed on Jollychayan. Awards for his contribution to the dairy industry through the co-operative system, are not only in India but also overseas:

1963 Ramon Magsaysay Award for Community Leadership
1965 Padma Shri
1966 Padma Bhushan (from President Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan)
1986 Krishi Ratna Award (by the President of India)
1986 Wateler Peace Prize Award (of Carnegie Foundation )
1989 World Food Prize Laureate
1993 International Person of the Year (by the World Dairy Expo, Madison, Wisconsin, USA)
1999 Padma Vibhushan

Dr. Verghese Kurian (Jollychayan) relaxing with his brother-in-law, former world YMCA President Mr. K. M. Philip (Peelukuttychayan, my late mother's elder brother, now 94) at my nieces's wedding in 1999)

The most ridiculous question of the event came from top Oulu politician (Social Democrat) who asked one of the speakers what Finland tax-payers got out of doing this work in the far east. Obviously Liisa Jaakonsaari, who is a former school classmate of Annikki, does not know the meaning of the word "AID" if she is looking for "returns" for Finland out of this work!

Annikki rolls up her sleeves

As soon as her mother was in the Old People's Home for her "interval care", Annikki has got down to work to get the Kampitie garden into shape.

Annikki at work

She transformed this old front steps of Kampitie



into this decor piece in a corner of the garden



All with a few hours of solid hard work.

The first summer flowers have now appeared in the garden.


First summer flowers in Kampitie

Looks like we are going to bathed in a glorious summer thanks to the effort of Annikki and her love for the garden.

Change of programme

Yesterday I had a phone call late evening, which meant my programme for today had to be re-tuned. The call was from an old friend, Päivi Kytömäki, who introduced Smitha, one of the group of people sponsored by Rotary India to visit the Rotary District of north Finland under a Rotary Fellowship.

Päivi Kytömäki


Smitha from Kottayam, Kerala

Smitha (Elizabeth Thomas), and a group of five others from India, had arrived in Finland more than 3 weeks ago. She had asked Tapon, the owner of the Indian Restaurant in Oulu, how she could contact Annikki and me. Tapon could not find my phone number in his mobile. She asked several Roatarians, but it seems none of them had heard of me, except one, Heino Holappa, who had taken a similar Finnish group to India.

(Smitha is married to the cousin of the wife (Vimla) of my second cousin, Satish Abraham, who lives in Kottayam. Smitha works in Kottayam in an IT company as a Content Organiser. Smitha is also the daughter of one of India's leading hematologists, now retired,who used to be associated with King's College Hospital in London.))

But Heino did not have my phone number.

Smitha arrived in Oulu back from a trip around the north of Finland on Saturday. Her stay in Oulu was being hosted by a Rotarian lady who is a member of one of the local Rotary Clubs.

When Smitha visited the office of her hostess, Päivi Kyötimäki, the head of the library at the University of Oulu, she saw the calendar of Annikki's cake designs on Päivi's table. Excited, she asked Päivi whether she knew us, and before you could say "buzz bumble bee", Päivi was on the line to me and I fixed to meet with Smitha today. (Päivi and I have been friends for over 16 years.)

Tapon had told Smitha that there were only about 5 or 6 Indians in Oulu. To disprove this, after showing her the excellent Zoology and Geology Museums in the University, I took her to meet the two Indian researchers in my old Microelectronics Laboratory. Luckily both Krishna (from Andhra Pradesh) and Dr. Sebastian (from Trivandrum) were in. (There are about 75 Indians in Oulu.)


Dr. Sebastian, Smitha and Krishna in the
Oulu University Microelectronics Laboratory

On our way out we met another Bangladeshi, Hallal, a researcher in Telecommunications, who was one of the first students who worked for me about 12 years ago.

We had a quiet buffet lunch at the Thai Pailin Restaurant. Then I dropped Smitha off at Kaleva, the local newspaper, where they had an official event. I picked her up after about two and half hours and then took her home. There Annikki and Smitha discussed many subjects and Smitha saw some of Annikki's art.

Then we went shopping to get some small stuff Smitha had seen in our garden.


Annikki and Smitha in the local greenhouse flower shop

We also took her to a Fleamarket to show her where Annikki gets some of the great things we have at home. After that we took her to the Nallikari Beach to show her yet another beauty spot of Oulu.




Smitha and Annikki at Nallikari Beach

After a hectic day we dropped Smitha off at her hosts. We found that it really is a small world as Päivi's daughter's boyfriend is a student associated with a Computer Gaming Project in Oulu University being headed by our son-in-law, Tony. He has just submitted his thesis for his master's degree. Also, Päivi had been talking to Tony in Newcastle just today about including one of his projects on Computer Gaming in the Book Fair which is being held in Oulu in a June.

Although Annikki had spoken to Päivi about 16 years ago, she had not met her till today. Päivi recalled the advice that Annikki gave her when she had talked to her about what to do when going to India - "Go there with an empty suitcase!" And it seems Päivi has been following this advice for the ten or more visits she has made to India since then.

We are glad that we could share some quality time with Smitha. Sadly, I could not use my Malayalam which has deteriorated from bad to virtually useless over the last 5 years!

I know it was Mother's Day

I know yesterday was Mother's Day, but I thought I would throw in this photograph taken of me by my protégé, Soda.

JM by Soda 14th May 2006

While I was talking to this young lad yesterday, I happened to discuss how decisions about him, when he grows up, would have to be made by his agent. His absolute honest and quick reply was "But, you are my agent!"

He is maturing so fast that I am finding it impossible to keep up with his talents and his poweress in so many spheres. The decision as to whether he is going to be a professional sportsperson or a professional muscian is excruciating. Either could be right or wrong. Both require dedication and immense hard work on his part, and last week I witnessed how dedicated he is to BOTH these fields. To choose one over the other is painful, not only for himself, but all of us who love this young man so much.

I only wish Soda was living in a country which helped people of such immense talent mature along the lines of their skills!

Coming back to Mother's Day, Annikki wanted me to get flowers for her mother. Her sister, Anneli, had also sent money from the southern town of Masala to get flowers on her behalf.

There was a special sale at a local garden shop, so I went and purchased, what I thought was nice selection on behalf of all our children for Annikki and for her mother. (This was in addition to the carefully marked list that she had made for me with pictures of the flowers!)

In addition, Annikki's other sister, Aino, sent a lovely bunch of flowers for her mother.

Usually, whatever I buy is not much appreciated as I have quite horrible choice. For years and years Annikki has styled my hair, bought my shirts and even my undergarments, as I can never be trusted to buy anything correctly.

I was rudely shocked as Annikki's appeciation when opened the front door and saw me carrying in this great bunch of colourful flowers.


Multi-great grandmother Iitu (now 15 cat years), great-grandmother Äiti, grandmother Annikki, share these flowers

Later, when I returned from the Chaff Meeting, I bore a turtle from Pailin, who has adopted Annikki as her mother. (It is amazing how many people seem to have adopted us - later that evening I had a Skype call from Rauma (in south west Finland) from where Kannan, who has also adopted Annikki as his mother, sent her heartfelt wishes to her for Mother's Day!) Annikki was so thrilled to receive this beautiful gift, she could hardly contain her joy.


Brick turtle shares the table with the squeaking one!

Annikki already has a place for it reserved in the Kampitie garden. It is going to have a entertaining life out there in the Finnish sunshine.

Nobel Peace Prize...

(Cross-posted on the Oulu Chaff Blog.)

Two weeks ago I was greeted by this gentleman as a long lost friend because he was reading this blog.

Arpad Hamos

I really enjoyed his company.

When I opened my email INBOX today morning, the first post I saw was with this


Nobel Peace Prize Certificate of Arpad Hamos

I am sure all of you will join me in sharing in the joy of our dear friend Ildikó, at this great honour bestowed on her father Arpad and his colleagues at the IAEA.

(Ildikó - Annikki and I hope that we do not have to wait 30 years till you get yours to keep that family tradition going!)

Yesterday afternoon Ilari, Antti, Ildikó and I went on a trip to Raahe, about 75 km from Oulu. Ilari and Antti are in the process of starting an Association of Finnish-Armenian interests. Antti had said that there was a great restaurant in Raahe which served Armenian food.

So off we went.


Ararat Restaurant in Raahe

When I saw this sign it revived memories of when Annikki and I were flying to India and suddenly both of us noticed the huge formation of an ark on top of a mountain, visble from a height of 10000 metres. That was the ark on top of Mount Ararat. It was an experience neither of us will ever forget, not from any Biblical sense, but the sheer enormity of the sight below us.

The Ararat Restaurant is owned by a delightful Armenian couple, Samvel and Gohar Zakarian.


Samvel and Gohar Zakrian

Ilari spoke a few magic words of the Armenian language that he knows. The floodgates of true friendship and hospitality opened from Gohar. We learnt the story of this family which runs this restaurant.


Gohar Zakrian

Samvel is a Highway Engineer but because of the wonderful work policies in Finland, he is now reduced to running this restaurant. His wife is a qualified nurse, but now she has to work as a waitress. Their eldest son, 22, is stuck in St. Petersburg as he cannot be reunited with his parents in Finland because of the stupid EU and Finnish rules on family reunification! A person above the age of 18 obviously does not need to be reunited with his family!

The saddness in the heart of this mother was so evident, even through her smiling face.

Their second son, aged 14, was with them in Raahe and was in school. I wondered what tremendous upheavals in his life he was facing in this hostile Finnish environment.

But despite all this saddness, they have truly worked hard to set up this small and beautiful business. Antti and Ildikó ordered the Armenian Shaslik which was based on the filet of chicken. Ilari ordered the Lula Kebab with fried potatoes, while I ordered a version of the Pitakebab which is called Shaverma based on grilled chicken with salad and the special pita bread.

The food was excellent. The service was great and anyone visiting this small town should make it a point to drop in and eat at this resataurant and share a few special moments with this special couple from Armenia. A joy worth keeping in one's memory bank.

Student Event on Snellman Day

12th May is the birthdate of Johan Vilhelm Snellman.

Born in 1806, he remains one of the most influential architects of Finnish society. Philosopher, scholar, journalist and politician, two centuries after his birth. Snellman studied in Oulu.

Snellman Day 2006: Rotuari crowd to watch students perform

It was fitting that school students of Oulu were given centre stage in the Walking Street (Rotuari) on his bicentennial birth celebration, where they performed in front of an appreciative audience on a beautiful pre-summer day which had a sprinkling of cooling showers.


Soda, pre-performance and during his group's performance on Rotuari

One of those who performed was Soda, who played with a group from his school, and then performed probably the only solo on the bass guitar. It was truly brilliant to hear him. I literally cried when I heard him play. I wish I had had facilities to record it.

When I spoke to him before he went on stage, he was nervous. But it did not show when he was performing. Later he told me that although his head was nodding exactly in time with the music, his knees were trembling at a furious rate!

This is the first public performance of Soda in Finland and I am sure that it will not be the last.

His teacher gave him the CD with the music and the instrument on a Friday evening. He was busy all weekend and did not get a chance to listen till late on the Sunday. He went in on Monday and performed his part without a flaw.

His ear for music is so outstanding that in my life I have met very few youngsters with this talent.

One more comment.

As I reached Rotuari, I realised that his parents were probably busy in the restaurant and would not hear their son on his first public performance. So I rang them on my mobile and asked them to call me so that they could listen to him in about 10 minutes, when he came on stage. Just as the performance was about to start, I had an excited mother standing by my side, even too excited to operate her camera. I managed to get it operating and got a non-professional, non-audio video using that camera. I hope that I can post a link to it on the blog.

Mother Pailin saw her son, while father Unnop listened in on the performance via my mobile.

Both of them are so proud of their son's performance, just as I am of this young teenager facing huge prblems fitting into a new culture in a strange land. But here, with his talents, he was totally at home with his friends. When I went to congratulate him after he came off the stage, he asked me whether I liked his solo. I told him that I loved it. A student friend standing next to him, a young Finnish girl, chimed in, "Soda, the solo was truly wonderful."

Do we want more proof of how we can achieve harmonious integration?

Soda plays about 7 traditional Thai musical instruments. He has learnt to read music at te age of 12 already in Thailand as part of his school's music education programme, and he can play many Western instruments. (The International School in Oulu did not think this talented youngster could fit into the "English-speaking" culture of that school! So much for "international" thinking of Finnish educationists. I am glad he was out of there.)

The question that one must ask is whether this young Thai boy, who will be 15 in a few weeks will be stifled by the Finnish inflexible education system as he is forced along a route of education which maintains that he must do things he is least interested in and cannot fulfil his ambitions based on his absolutely natural talent as an outstanding sportsperson and musician.

I nortmally do not wish anyone "Good luck" as I believe natural talent will get anyone to the top in his competence. But in Finland, unfortunately, "third culture kids" (Refer my earlier blog entry: "Tomorrow..") have to depend on "Luck".

(In the evning Soda dropped in at home. Annikki told him how much she enjoyed hearing about his success on stage.)

So Annikki (who is also thrilled to hear Soda's exploits) and I do add "Good Luck, Soda."

But like all good things, there was one unfortunate part of the Rotuari show.

A dancing drunk dominated the area in front of the stage. I noticed several students looking and laughing at him. Several thought that it was OK. One Finnish man pushing a cycle walked past him, pushed the drunk rudely and then exchanged words with him, telling him that it was no place to be.


Unbecoming behaviour being appreciated by his two drunken friends

Personally, although I like to permit people their personal freedoms, there are some things I do not appreciate. One is inappropriate behaviour. A drunk making a fool of himself in front of many hundreds of students is totally inappropriate. I hoped that someone would come and take this uncouth man away, a man who was making a total fool of himself on impressionable students.

But NO ONE CAME!

Tomorrow...

(Cross-posted in the Chaff Blog.)

Annikki and I were invited to attend a seminar organised by EFA (Expatriate Family Adjustment). It was called "Dialogue Today, Action Tomorrow - Visions on internationalisation".

Annikki was unable to attend. But I did, primarily to cover this for my blogs.

Having been actively involved with work related to foreigners in Finland from 1984, having served as the elected representative of the English Speaking Community on the Ethnic Minorities Advisory Board (ETNO) from 1999 to 2003, having organised the ETHICS (Effective Tools for Harmonious Integration using Cultural and Sporting Activities) Conference, having been the representative of the Pohjois-Pohjanmaa (Northern Finland) Region in the Finnish Sports Federation special action group on Tolerance (chaired by Finnish Olympian Gold medallist Tapio Korjus) from 1999 to 2003, having been an Advisor to the National Equal Opportunities Organisation from 1996 to 2003, having been the Vice Chairman of the Oulu Section of the Same Law For All from 1998 to 2002, and having with Annikki been vocally and physically active in fighting Finnish Bureaucracy and its racist and anti foreigner stand from 1984, I still do have some interest in this subject.

However, I am sceptical of any initiatives as they are really superficial and exist only on paper to promote the "image" of a tolerant Finnish Society. As Annikki and I have repeatedly said - Finland is like a polished apple - all shiny outside, but rotten to the core inside.

Deputy Mayor of Oulu addresses the audience

The Deputy Mayor of Oulu Päivi Laajala said all the nice things that have to be said in her presentation "New Challenges for a fast growing city". That is the official stand that Oulu intends to be an International and Culal City and it is working to a plan. But it was purely superficial!


The organiser, Ata Bos, from The Netherlands,
with a Oulu City Official. Sandra Grotsch from Germany, who acts
as a part time journalist for a web newspaper,
65degrees North, started by Ata Bos,
is on the far right

Ata Bos, who has been running this EFA project gave a well thought out presentation of what she has achieved during the two years she has been running this project. She did not address the very fundamental issue that her contract was for 2 years as she is a foreigner and the City of Oulu cannot employ a foreigner for more than a period of 2 years unless.....


Strategy Manager of the Oulu City, Juha Ojala

There was a presentation by a consultant,, Juha Ojala, Corporate Strategy Manager of the City of Oulu, on the subject of Oulu's Strategy 2015 - a lot of waffle and above all skirting the main issue - Oulu City employs 10,000 people and less than 20 (0.2%) are from the migrant communities. The "migrant community forms more than 2.5% of the local population. If the City cannot set an example in its employment policy, I wondered who is preaching to whom?


Lena Viskari, one of the entertaining and outspoken
panel memberS from Poland


Two more of the panel members,
a Researcher at Oulu University from Italy and
an Engineer working in a Finnish company, The Netherlands

There was a panel composed of a persons from Italy, Estonia, US, Poland and The Netherlands - and they did express some of the problems faced by them during their stays in Finland lasting from 9 years down.

I had been intending to sit quietly through the proceedings but certain matters in the Deputy Mayor's speech and the Strategy Manager's presentation really riled me.

I asked the audience to look at the Panel and the Panel to look at the audience and asked them whether they thought it in any way odd. No-one could see anything strange.

I pointed out that over 70% of the unemployed minorities in Oulu are from the African countries and there was not a single person present to share their views on this subject. Other than an Indian whom I met the day before at an Amnesty International meeting and whom I had dragged to this meeting, there was hardly anyone from Asia (India and China) and there apppeared to be no one from the Russian Community, the largest single group of migrants to Finland.

I then threw my second punch - I pointed to the title of the conference and then drew attention to another well known English idiom, "Tomorrow never comes". I said I had been waiting for 22 years for that "Tomorrow"!

I think I shattered the slight "feel good" factor by throwing in the Racism card into the proceedings.

The discussions after this were lively and many importnat questions were raised from the floor mainly related to the incomprehensible employment norms being followed by almost all Finnish employers.

I was permitted the final comment. I drew attention to subject of lack freedom of speech in Finland but above all the lack of any participation by the media in this event. Ata pointed out she had sent out 20 invitations to the media - and not one had responded!

Well at least, I did!


The guest speaker, Ruth von Renken, with Anne Rännäli of the Oulu City

The highlight of the afternoon was a presentation by the author of "Third Culture Kids" Ruth von Reken. As all my children are third and fourth culture kids, I found the presentation most interesting and bought her book, co-authored by David Pollack, for Annikki, as she has a special interest in this subject being a Montessori advocate. Ruth has a fascinating background having been brought up in Nigeria during the first 12 years of her life. Her roots have many branches and that was made her talk so interesting.

Ruth, being a little younger than me, was pointing the next generation in the audience as the ones who would shape the future for the Third Culture Kids. After the conference, I did go to her and point out the Maria Montessori philosophy that "the child is the father of man" would mean even the generation who she was pointing to did not have the wherewithal to solve the problems. I do hope Ruth will follow that idea further.

I have asked Annikki to give me a comment on Ruth's book, so I hope in a few weeks to have something on it on the blog.

This conference was a genuine attempt by Ata to focus on serious issue. It is a good starting place. Unfortunatesly, as Annikki and I see it, we have been on these starting blocks for the last 22 years and we hope that at least they get to put the bolts down in the coming 10 years so that we may get the race to commence sometime!

70 years ago

My late parents were joined in matrimony this day 70 years ago.



May they rest in peace.

The only survivor in the photograph presently is the beautiful little bridemaid on the right of the picture, my lovely cousin, Mrs. K. G. Kuruvilla (Accakuttykochamma).



A year ago today we lost a wonderful uncle, Dr. M. V. Kurian (Thambichayan). I have many pleasant memories of this great personality, a Ear, Nose, Throat specialist, who really knew how to bridge the generation gap.

Krishna and Sebastian

Vamsi Krishna from Andhra, who is doing his doctoral research in the Microelectronics Laboratory, rang to say that Dr. Mailadil T. Sebastian from Trivandrum (now known as Thiruvananthapuram), Kerala, was now in the Microelectronics Laboratory as well and that he would be here for about 2 months.

I got through to Dr. Sebastian and invited the two of them to dinner.

Dr. Sebastian is the Deputy Director in the Regional Research Laboratory (RRL) in Trivandrum. All the RRLs are part of the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research.

Dr. Sebastian is here on a Nokia Fellowship and is giving a lecture series on wireless antenna systems. He is a materials scientist working on electroceramics systems. He is helping to organise an International Conference which will be held in Oulu in June.

MICROWAVE MATERIALS AND THEIR APPLICATIONS 2006 is being organized by Microwave Electroceramics Group of the University of Oulu. The General Chair is Prof. Heli Jantunen (University of Oulu, Finland) The other Chairpersons are Neil Alford (London South Bank University, UK) and Dr. Sebastian.

Vamsi Krishna and Dr. Sebastian, 9th May 2006

After dinner, where for part of the time we enjoyed the spring sunshine, but moved in when the sun set, we went home to meet Annikki.

It was a pleasant evening and hope that we can meet up again some time. It was nice to use my rusty "mother tongue" Malayalam again. Found I cannot turn my tongue around the Malayalam words as well as I could!

My suspicions confirmed

Not very long ago I pointed out some very serious driving lapses that I have encountered in Oulu. I had wondered whether this was due the drivers or the driving schools.

Today, it became clear who is at fault.

I was driving through the centre of Oulu along a one way street. I came to cross roads with traffic lights. Traffic coming in from the left should turn into the left lane when they enter the one way street.

I noticed a motorcyclist who had come in from the street on the left and was waiting at the pedestrian crossing in the centre of the street. Behind him was a car which was following the motorcyclist into exactly the same wrong position.

As my traffic signals changed from red to green, I started my car to move on, along the left lane, as the right lane was reserved for buses and taxis. But, as the car from the left was already half across the street, I waited for him to go on.

He didn't, so I had to wave him on.

He followed the motorcyclist into the centre of the road, straddling the two lanes.

I noted that the car had a Driving School label with the Danger Signal and the URL of the company.

I commented to my passenger that the driver of the car was not a student but a bad driving school instructor talking to his student on the motorcycle through a mobile device.

As they were crawling, I pulled into the right lane, as there were no buses or taxis in the horizon, either behind or ahead of me.

As I overtook the two vehicles I noted that the driver of the car was talking, through a walkie talkie held in his hand, obviously to the motor cyclist, who was nodding his head.

Besides having broken all the rules about lanes, the more dangerous thing that that driving school instructor was doing was what is illegal in Finland.

He was talking into a mobile device while driving and by holding it in his hands.

If a driving school instructor cannot abide by the law and the rules of the road, what can the students learn?

I travel to Seinäjoki...

(Cross-posted on the Oulu Chaff Blog

Yesterday was a beautiful day. The sun shone right from 5 am and it was sweltering hot. And we are over a month and half before midsummer's day (21st June). Annikki decidd it was just right to put the goldfish back into the fish pomd. She put them a plastic bag and floated that in the main pond so that the water temeratures could equalise.

Goldfish ready to be let free in the fish pond


Goldfish swim freely in their pond

We had this week's Chaff meeting outdoors. Kannan, our Chaff visitor from Rauma, hosted the group.


Pentti with the CHAFF Host of the Week: Kannan Balaram

Kaija Valimaa brought a visitor from France, Vincent, the person who was the French mentor of our popular Chaff participant Anais.


Pailin, Kaija and Vincent

The Thai buffet was simply excellent as our Pailin hosts outshone themselves themselves.

As it is Pailin's birthday today, we all sang Happy Birthday for her. She produced a couple of cakes for us to celebrate her birthday. She truly is a wonderful person with so much love in her heart for all of our Chaff members.

Truly a great Chaff meeting.

But we had to call the meeting to a close rather early as Kannan had to get back to Rauma (555 km from Oulu). He was driving his new acquisition, the SAAB, there.

I agreed to drive with him till Seinäjoki, about 340 km from Oulu. From there he had only to drive a little less than 300 km, while I could take the train back to Oulu.

We took food for Annikki and Mika from Pailin, took Thai Sweet Chili Wrap for me and Kannan. As Ilari was on his way back from Helsinki by train, he and I agreed to meet on the Seinäjoki train. So we took a wrap for him. I loaded the car wih my usual drive boosters, some fizzy energy drink, lots of packets of crisps, some chocolates, some biscuts, some nuts and some bananas.

I drove up to Raahe (80 km from Oulu) to ensure we were ahead of the clock in case Kannan's driving was slower than expected. I handed him the wheel just after Raahe. After 15 minutes I was wondering why I had come as he handled his car superbly. He was pushing the limit as he drove the car at over 130 km per hour. But he was being careful, making sure that he was coming back down to the speed limit whenever he saw a speed checker, the video camera. Video cameras are liberally sprinkled all over Finland, but the law dictates that there must be a warning for drivers stating that a particular zone has been fitted with these devices.

Ilari sent me a text message saying that there was no water on the train and would I pick up some bottled water for him.

We reached Seinäjoki with more than an hour to spare. Just as I bought my ticket, there was a message from Ilari saying the train was running 50 minutes late. (It appears that the axle on one carriage was overheating so they replaced the carriage at Tampere, the major stop before Seinäjoki.)

After buying some Pepsi, I helped Kannan fill his petrol tank, found the way out of Seinäjoki and bid him on his way to Rauma. I sat and waited for the train, which arrived as 20:20 instead of 19:30.

As Ilari had given me his carrige and seat number, I had reserved my seat next to his.

Ilari was glad to get the water. We chatted all the way, pausing only to consume the delicious Thai Sweet Chili Wrap.

Ildi had said she was going to wait for Ilari, so he offered to give me a lift home. Unnop and Pailin had offered to pick me up and drop me home, but as the train was so late, I told them not to bother. But when we reached Oulu at a few minutes before midnight, we had a great reception committee, as if Ilari and I were returning from a trip from outer space. Besides Ildi, Pailin and Unnop were there to receive us!

The latter couple dropped me home. It was just after midnight, so I was able to correctly wish Pailin for her birthday.

I cleared my email and hit the sack falling asleep in just 2 minutes as usual. I just took time to share all the news with Annikki who was sitting with her mother. She was happy as the fish, all four of them had settled down properly in the outside pond.

Kannan visits Oulu

Yesterday morning I was happy to meet Kannan at the bus station. He has come down from Rauma in south-west Finland to collect his car, the SAAB.

Kannan's SAAB

He took the steering wheel and drove me and Unnop around town, very ably, considering this was the first time he was sitting and driving such a powerful monster.

He went to attend the local Adventist Church and shared in the lunch there.

While Kannan was at church I took the opportunity to go and see Soda play a football match.

With each match the Tervarit Musta team he plays for is getting stronger, even though their maturing players are being picked up by the next Tervarit side up the chain. Despite losing three of their best players, Soda's team cruised to a 3-0 victory against Kemppa, a side of players a year older than them.


Soda in action, May 2006

What was interesting about the Kemppa side was that it had two girls playing in the side!

Soda played in the second half. I must admit Soda played extra-ordinarily well and is getting more focused into active team play. His passing was immaculate as he put his team mates through more than a couple of times. Soda is a completely unselfish player, and that is what will make him a possible great.

Soda still has to improve on the way he tackles and defends, but that will come as he improves his physique, a programme he will start next week with the help of my former personal trainer, Päivi Hytinkoski.


Päivi represented Finland in the 1991 Miss International

Then I took Kannan shopping to Stockman - the Harrods of Oulu. He bought a few things for himself including HOT Mango Pickle, Lime Pickle and Madras Curry Powder.

Kannan was insisting that he buy Annikki and me dinner. As Annikki was stuck at home, we went to the Pailin Restaurant and ordered some good take-way.

Before the food was served up, Kannan went through a formality. As a way of saying thanks to his elders, he had brought us beautiful flowers and some exquisite gifts. For Annikki he brought an absolutely beautiful work of art, a silver lace jewelery piece. This was a cross on a beautiful silver lace chain. It is known as the "Face on the Cross". Rauma is very famous for this type of jewelery.


Exquisite gift from Kannan to Annikki

He brought me a Titan watch, a neat purse and a pen and letter opener, truly lovely set.

He asked for our blessings for his future. We are both so happy to share in his success, which is entirely of his own making, because he is such an honest personality. We are so happy to see all our wards, and we count Kannan as one of them, do well.

Kannan is such a lovely young man. He considers Annikki and me as his guardians in Finland. Here, far away from his family, we certainly consider him as one of our family and we are pleased that his work and studies are going so well.

Like Soda, Kannan's health and general being are of immediate interest for us. We hope that he will keep up the moral standards he has set for himself. That itself will ensure his good health.

Kannan is an exemplary person. In today's world it is difficult to find a person of such unique moral values. Whoever gets this young man as a husband will find him a person of great integrity and loyalty.

We enjoyed a great dinner and we chatted for a short while on matters of interest. He gave me a copy of his latest work in which he credits me for mentoring him.

Having hardly slept the previous night on the bus, he must have slept well last night.

We have a busy day ahead. After the CHAFF meeting which he is hosting, I will drive with him a little more than half way on his return to Rauma.

I will catch the train back from Seinäjoki later today and will probably meet up with Ilari who is returning from Helsinki on that train.

Annikki was supposed to put the fish in the pond yesterday, but she is so concerned about them, and as frost was forcast for the night, she did not put them out.

Today?

Or is she so attached to the goldfish she cannot bear to put them outside. Let us wait for the developments of today :-)!

Annikki, the creative gardner...

In the last couple of blog entries I have shown a few faces of Annikki - the humourist and the concerned fighter for freedom.

Many of you may not have read the book "...for the hour of his judgement is come:..." (The Holy Bible, Revelations, 14:7) by Annikki Matthan which was one of the very first books to be published in toto on the internet over 10 years ago!

Today, I present yet another face of her - the creative gardner.

She is working round the clock to get the Kampitie garden just right.

One of her first tasks has been to get the two ponds, the centrepiece bathtub and the Fish Pond just right.

Working long hours, she has yesterday completed her task.

The solar fountain which was sent to her by daughter, Susanna, is in the bathtub is working fine and the lotus plants she husbanded in the cellar all winter are now back as ting buds in this pond.

Lotus Pond


Solar Fountain in the Lotus Pond

The Fish Pond is nicely cleaned. Annikki will put the goldfish into it when the temperature is just right.


Kampitie Fish Pond

They are more than just goldfish to her as she talks to them every day when she feeds them!


Grandpa and Grandma

Today, however, is a depressing day for both Annikki and me as we are away from our grandchildren on what is Daniel’s 2nd birthday.

I am putting up pictures of us and the grandchildren as Daniel loves to look at this blog and remember his grandparents.





Happy birthday Daniel!

Yet another face of my woman...

(Cross-posted on the CHAFF Blog.)

Today would have been the 134th birthday of the late Mr. K. C. Mammen Mappillai (KCMM), the doyen of Kerala, my maternal grandfather.

Yesterday was "Freedom of Speech" day worldwide, a day which would have thrilled the heart of KCMM.

The leading local newspaper of Oulu, the Kaleva, had asked their readers to submit their opinions on this subject on this day.

Annikki is a powerful writer on issues she believes in.

She wrote a short and great piece, in Finnish, on the subject. I reproduce it here (in Finnish) for our Finnish audience, as I do not have a good English translation available at this moment.

Sananvapaus Suomessa Annikki Matthan KALEVA version / KALEVA Version Suomessa sananvapaus on vapaata. Se on rajattoman sallittua. Sananvapautta on monenlaista ja kaikilla. Joillakin on enemmän ja joillakin vähemmän. Keskiarvona laskettuna sitä on jokaiselle jakaa oma osansa. Se jaetaan tarkoin tasapuolisesti. Silloin sananvapaus on hiljaista. Se ei näy eikä kuulu vaan on näkymätöntä. Suursanatilallisilla on sanat hallussaan. Heillä on sananvapaus vallassaan. He kylvävät sanoja vapaasti sinne minne haluavat. Heidän palstoillaan ne kasvavat suuriksi. Ne peittävät maan ja taivaankin. He myyvät palstoja ja sanoja tiloillaan. He kasvattavat ja tuottavat sananvapautta hinnasta. Sanat ovat lukossa sanakirstuissa. Siellä ne ovat tallessa ja turvassa. Suursanatilojen rengeillä on niihin avaimet ja lupa avata kirstun kansi. Sanakirstun kanteen on kirjoitettu; salainen. Suomessa sananvapaus on salaista. Kun renki avaa kirstun kannen, sieltä tulee ulos sananvapaus metamorfoosa. Sen loistava säteily häikäisee ja sokaisee. Se näyttää hyvältä ja kauniilta katsella. Siinä on sateenkaaren kaikki värit. Se leijailee kohti korkeuksia vapaana. Sana on vapaa. Ihmiset tavoittelevat sitä haltuunsa. He ihailevat sen muotoa, värejä, keveyttä, ilmavuutta ja läpinäkyvyyttä. Kaikki, jotka näkevät sen, uskovat siihen. Se on kuitenkin hauras, eikä kestä kosketusta. Se on kosketusarka. Ne, jotka eivät sokaistu sen häikäisystä näkevät sen läpi, että se ei kestä käyttöä eikä kulutusta. Hämmästyneinä he tajuavat silloin. Mikä näyttää sananvapaudelta, onkin vain hajoava suuri imagokupla. Se särkyy käsiin tai hajoaa taivaan tuuliin. Yhä uudestaan se kuitenkin hämää ja ilmaantuu. Nyt he eivät enää vain usko siihen, vaan tietävät; sehän onkin täysin uskon asia. Suomessa sananvapaus on olemassa vain teoreettisena ajatusmallina uskon tasolla. Uskokoon ken tahtoo!

Sananvapaus Suomessa Annikki Matthan Jakobin Blogin Versio / Jacob's Blog's Version Suomessa sananvapaus on vapaata. Se on rajattoman sallittua. Sananvapautta on monenlaista ja kaikilla. Joillakin on enemmän ja joillakin vähemmän. Keskiarvona laskettuna sitä on jokaiselle jakaa oma osansa. Se jaetaan tarkoin tasapuolisesti. Silloin sananvapaus on hiljaista. Se ei näy eikä kuulu vaan on näkymätöntä. Suursanatilallisilla on sanat hallussaan. Heillä on sananvapaus vallassaan. He kylvävät sanoja vapaasti sinne minne haluavat. Heidän palstoillaan ne kasvavat suuriksi. Ne peittävät maan ja taivaankin. He myyvät palstoja ja sanoja tiloillaan. He kasvattavat ja tuottavat sananvapautta hinnasta. Sanat ovat lukossa sanakirstuissa. Siellä ne ovat tallessa ja turvassa. Suursanatilojen rengeillä on niihin avaimet ja lupa avata kirstun kansi. Sanakirstun kanteen on kirjoitettu; salainen. Suomessa sananvapaus on salaista. Kun renki avaa kirstun kannen, sieltä tulee ulos sananvapaus metamorfoosa. Sen loistava säteily häikäisee ja sokaisee. Se näyttää hyvältä ja kauniilta katsella. Siinä on sateenkaaren kaikki värit. Se leijailee kohti korkeuksia vapaana. Sana on vapaa. Ihmiset tavoittelevat sitä haltuunsa. He ihailevat sen muotoa, värejä, keveyttä, ilmavuutta ja läpinäkyvyyttä. Kaikki, jotka näkevät sen, uskovat siihen. Se on kuitenkin hauras, eikä kestä kosketusta. Se on kosketusarka. Ne, jotka eivät sokaistu sen häikäisystä näkevät sen läpi, että se ei kestä käyttöä eikä kulutusta. Hämmästyneinä he tajuavat silloin. Mikä näyttää sananvapaudelta, onkin vain hajoava suuri imagokupla. Se särkyy käsiin tai hajoaa taivaan tuuliin. Yhä uudestaan se kuitenkin hämää ja ilmaantuu. Nyt he eivät enää vain usko siihen, vaan tietävät; sehän onkin täysin uskon asia. Suomessa sananvapaus on olemassa vain teoreettisena ajatusmallina uskon tasolla. Uskokoon ken tahtoo!

What Annikki says here in a humourous and truly interesting fashion is that, rather than pointing the finger all over the world at where there is no freedom of speech, it is necessary to draw attention to the lack of freedom of speech for the common man and woman in Finland. (I will try to get her to do a translation when she has some time.)

The article was posted to the newspaper well before the due date and exactly complied to the norms specified by them.

Having read it, I assured Annikki that there was little hope of the newspaper even thinking about publishing it.

Like the recent hilarious sarcastic Stephen Colbert speech at the White House Correspondents Dinner (if anyone wants to see the video of this, please contact me), Annikki has drawn attention to the Oligarchic System that presently is in place in Finland!

Come yesterday, I got up at my usual time of 4 am and thumbed through the Kaleva newspaper. Although there was much about freedom of speech, there was no attention drawn to the lack of freedom of speech in Finland, and no article by Annikki in the columns. There was not a single reference to the lack of freedom of speech in Finland.

As soon as Annikki awoke, I drew her attention to the fact that her article had not been accepted. She thumbed through the paper, read all that was published, which was all about finger-pointing at everyone else in the world, with no mention to the lack of the freedom of speech in Finland itself.


Full page advertisement inserted by the Finnish Newspapers Union,
in all major newspapers in Finland, including the Helsingin Sanomat and Kaleva,
on Freedom of Speech Day

Then, she noted that on one full page, there was this huge advertisement put out by the Finnish Newspapers Union of a "typical page in a controlled newspaper", with all the words supposedly struck out in the sort of "barbed wire" fashion.

It implied how people around the world were caged in by the oppressive governments which denied them freedom of speech.

I explained my understanding of this advertisement to Annikki and said that this advertisement was being carried in almost every Finnish newspaper.

That really riled her.

She has produced this beautifully written piece (in English) in response to that full page advertisement, which represents HER understanding of that same page!

I hope you enjoy it as much as I did.

Freedom of Speech in Finland?

by

Annikki Matthan

An entire page of Kaleva, and almost every major newspaper in Finland, was devoted to a picture of the words in the columns of a newspaper blacked out by barbed wire. Even the darkened pictures were fashioned in a manner to depict how freedom of speech was being denied to masses around the world.

It was meant for the Finnish newspaper readers to understand what they had something which was not being enjoyed by millions of people around this planet.

This was the special contribution of the Newspaper Publishers Union on 3rd May 2006, Freedom of Speech Day.

The message was very clear.

The Members of the Finnish Newspapers Union control Freedom of Speech in Finland.

It must have cost the Union several millions of Euros to hammer this subliminal message across to all the Finns.

Whatever was meant to be the message for those who are behind the barbed wire fence was not clear. Obviously, it was meant that the Finns were those outside the borders of this fence, looking in on those behind it!

One thing the Union did not state was that the Finns could be added to the masses of people who are denied this freedom of speech.

Instead of allowing the people to have the extra space to express their opinions, the professional Union took the entire space for itself. Their message could be understood to be exactly what the official Finnsh line has always been:

"Look around everywhere else and consider yourselves especially fortunate, as you had better believe, understand and know what you have. You lack nothing. You are kept in a special protection zone of barbed wire which separates you from those oppressed rest"

It is worth remembering that a barbed wire fence looks the same from both inside and outside.

The power brokers are the watchdogs and the "professional guardians" of the freedom of speech in Finland.

They protect the Finnish establishment, the interests of the State, the Authorities, the Church, the Police and the entire Legal System structure, which are not free from outside controls.

I consider the projection and exhibition of the barbed wire lines to be a strong warning and a threat to the freedom of expression by individuals in Finland.

If I had the money and the power to decide to defend the freedom of the speech on the day of its commemoration, it would have been done in a different way. I would have bought that space to give the same space for the people to say something which was troubling their minds.

I would not have surrounded them with the barbed wire fence.

The full page advertisement seemed to be a dramatic attempt to say:

"Stop here and look. Go no further. This is a protected area!"

The page needs no words to explain the meaning. It was the signal and symbol of DANGER!

In an attempt to change the subject and focus, the message being conveyed was for Finns not to ask for more than what they have. They were already at the edge. What they had was enough for them - and they should not make any attempt to shake the POWER STRUCTURE.

It does not seem right to commemorate the Freedom of Speech Day by frightening the readers of all the major newspapers in Finland with symbols and pictures.

I hope you understand what I mean when I say that I am married to the most multi-talented and multi-faceted woman in this Universe!

Several faces of one woman

Most of you know Annikki as the creative designer that she is. Her cake calendar has circled the globe and drawn huge praise. Her recycled garden has been looked at in awe by Finns from all over the country as it was featured in the leading magazine in Finland.

But there are many other faces of this person that several of you do not know.
In this entry I show one of those faces.

Annikki is a person of great humour. Over the years I can recount many instances of her abounding humour. However, this one instance of just a couple of days ago shows how I can come to that conclusion.

Thee Lidl Department Store recently advertised some garden decorative items as a turtle, a rabbit and a frog. It was said that they had movement sensors, and if anyone passed by, they would make a sound.

Off I was sent on a mission to buy them for the Kampitie garden.

Lidl Oulu only had the turtle, which I faithfully brought home. I was expecting it to be in the garden the next day.

Wolf whistling turtle

I put the battery into the turtle and found that the noise it made was a wolf whistle, rather loud. So I shut off the sensor and left it for Annikki to set it up in the garden.

The next day, when I returned from my shopping trip, Annikki was in spliits of laughter, and her mother, Hilja, was equally in great spirits.

There it was, sitting on the kitchen table was the turtle, directly in front of Hilja. Every time Hilja moved, the turtle would let off a very loud wolf whistle.

What Hilja hears, we cannot tell, but it appeared to greatly amuse her as she talked to the turtle.

That, of course, had Annikki in splits of laughter to see her mother talking to the wolf whistling turtle. This, in turn, had an effect on her mother, who was greatly amused by seeing her daughter rolling all over the place laughing.

Every time Hilja was getting a little difficult with her food or health boosters, Annikki wouldswitch on the turtle and the wolf whistle would turn the whole antagonistic atmosphere to one of great mirth.

Laughter makes the world go round. Annikki is one who knows how to use this tool effectively.

No doubt, the turtle will be turning some heads in the garden before very long!