He had lunch with “Grandma”

He visited the “exotic Tennessee baths”

He made new friends

And he did the ONE thing he was NOT supposed to do!

Trust me..This is not her happy face. This is the “I’m gonna get you” face.

Nel corso di un incontro sull’Artico a Roma Tuomas Aslak Juuso, rappresentante dei giovani autoctoni del nord della Scandinavia ha ripercorso i progressi che stanno permettendo a tutte le popolazioni dell’area di confrontarsi con le istituzioni internazionali

Le zone più difficili del nord Europa sono quelle al confine con il Polo Nord, dove comunità antichissime continuano a combattere le rigidità della natura ed oggi anche i cambiamenti derivati dalla globalizzazione. L’Europa è un altro tema, a parte, perchè rappresenta un enorme motore di decisioni, da cui le popolazioni più esigue numericamente e con una minore tradizione statuale rischiano di essere totalmente escluse.

Tuomas Aslak Juuso, è il presidente della organizzazione dei giovani Sami e membro del Samediggi finlandese, uno degli organi che rappresenta questi cacciatori, allevatori di renne, 100.000 persone circa, sparse tra stati diversi come Norvegia, Svezia, Finlandia e Russia. Juuso simboleggia l’incrocio tra presente e passato, lavora con le renne e si confronta con la UE, viaggia e si è laureato ma può dare lezioni a chiunque soprattutto sulle diverse condizioni atmosferiche, cui la neve può condurre, situazioni che la sua lingua descrive in moltissimi quasi sinonimi con sfumature appena differenti.

L’emancipazione dei popoli indigeni, che rappresentano circa il 10% della popolazione dell’Artico, va avanti ed i Sami, parteciperanno al vertice di Copenaghen sul clima attraverso la delegazione governativa della Norvegia, di cui faranno parte. Sono in stato avanzato anche trattative con la Svezia e la Finlandia, entrambe all’avanguardia nel riconoscimento dei valori e dei diritti delle minoranze culturali.

Esiste ancora il problema della sottorappresentazione di queste comunità in seno all’Unione Europea e problemi come i cambiamenti climatici affliggono soprattutto genti come queste, abituate ad un contatto costante con la natura, proprio laddove questa è più fragile e dove i mutamenti possono risultare più pericolosi per l’uomo.

Inoltre, i popoli che vivono nell’estremo nord si trovano a fare i conti con altri fenomeni critici, come l’urbanizzazione di molti dei più giovani, che insieme a nuove opportunità di lavoro e di integrazione porta con sè il rischio della dispersione dei modi di vita e della cultura dei Sami.

La sfida, ha affermato Tuomas Aslak Juuso, che ha 24 anni e viene da un piccolo villaggio che si chiama Karesuvanto, nella parte più settentrionale della Finlandia ed ai confini della Svezia, consisterà nel fornire ai ragazzi della comunità tutti i mezzi per competere alla parti nel Grande Nord e nel mondo, strumenti come la cultura europea e le capacità scientifiche.

Sarà molto importante però che questi cambiamenti rappresentino lo sviluppo e non la sostituzione di ciò che i Sami sono e quindi resta ferma la richiesta di lavorare ad un modello di istruzione elaborato in lingua Sami e governato dalla minoranza stessa. Il sogno di coloro che lavorano per il futuro delle comunità, espressione degli stessi villaggi, è la creazione di una vera Università dei Sami a Kautokeino, Norvegia, dove esiste già una struttura che svolge alcune funzioni universitarie per i giovani di questo popolo. Si tratta di una proposta del Sami Parliamentary Council, SPR, un organismo attraverso il quale i vari parlamenti sami esistenti cooperano.

Aldo Ciummo

Hey ya peeps. So i’m back in tn. NYC was all kinds of fantabulousness, as you’ve probably gathered by now. I’ll post some pics here later maybe but we’ll see. Most of you saw them on Twitter but since I can’t convince all of my friends and family to get on the Twitter bandwagon I’ll probably be nice and put some over here. Because I am awesome like that.

And now, to catch you up on my life…

Sam is sick. Again. She has pink eye in BOTH eyes and a really bad cold. She coughed most of the night last night and is very snotty and her little eyes are red, puffy and ooky crusty. The Accountant took her to the pediatrician today and I met them there. We have a prescription for some kind of ointment stuff that somehow we have to manage to put in her eyes three times a day. Have you ever wrestled a cat? I think this is going to be much like that.

Thanksgiving…not really into it this year. I mean, I’m all about the being thankful part but we really haven’t talked much about our celebratory plans. (Is “celebratory” used correctly there? must I Google EVERYTHING??) I think there might be a brief appearance at a family gathering but who knows.

Let’s see…what else…OOOOOOOOOO, my girls and I scored John Mayer tickets for his February concert here!!!! WOOT!!!!!!!!! In case you didn’t know, I am somewhat halfway kindof sorta awholeheckofalot in LUUUUUURRRRVVVVEEEE with JM…so I am super thrilled!!!

Um, drawing a blank which usually doesn’t matter because I’d normally just tell you about the weird dream I had last night or what crazy thing popped into my head on my drive in this morning…but today, I think it means this post is ovah.

Ciao dearies!

Facebookilla on yli 300 miljoona rekisteröitynyttä ympäri maailmaa. MySpace saavutti sadan miljoonan käyttäjän rajapyykin jo noin kolme vuotta sitten. Twitterin käyttäjäkunta kasvaa eksponentiaalisesti ja tällä hetkellä nopeimmin koko maailmassa. Työverkostoihin perustuvalla LinkedIN-yhteisöpalvelulla on noin 50 miljoonaa käyttäjää. Muun muassa kaikki nämä neljä erittäin suosittua Internet-palvelua kasvavat edelleen eikä kukaan osaa ennustaa tarkkaa loppua nousulle. Kaikki nämä käyttäjät ovat rekisteröityneet 2000-luvun puolella yhdeksässä vuodessa. Järjetöntä!

Edellä mainittujen lukujen perusteella voitaneen helposti sanoa, että sosiaalisten medioiden käyttäjiä on reilusti yli puoli miljardia ympäri maailmaa. Kyseiset henkilöt käyttävät aikaa yhteisöllisiin palveluihin puolesta tunnista tunteihin päivässä. Jokainen heistä kommunikoi kymmenien, satojen ja jopa tuhansien ihmisten kanssa. He etsivät ja tutkivat tietoa kaikesta, mitä maapallolla on. Ostopäätökset tehdään myös enenevissä määrin omalta kotikoneelta. Mitäpä, jos 0,2 prosenttia kokonaiskäyttäjämäärästä, puolesta miljardista, päättäisi tilata ennakkoon jouluna ilmestyvän tuotteen vain sen perusteella, mitä ovat lukeneet yhteisöllisistä palveluista? Se tekisi tuotteelle noin miljoona asiakasta. Kuinka paljon on maksanut tuotteen markkinointi kyseisessä tapauksessa? Mitä luultavimmin lähempänä yhtä promillea kuin yhtä prosenttia kokonaistuotosta, mitä on saatu tuotteen myynnistä. Millä sanalla voisi kuvailla yritystä, jonka tuotteet ovat suunnattu kuluttajille eikä se osallistu millään tavalla sosiaalisiin medioihin? Pässi.

Klikkaa kuvaa suuremmaksi.

Lukemassani kirjassa ”Yhteisöllinen media ja muuttuva markkinointi” kirjoittaja Sami Salmenkivi kertoo nykyisen myynnin perustuvan enemmän kokemuksiin ja mielikuviin. Alhainen hinta, mainosten huutaminen ja asiakkaiden etsintä ovat vanhenevia tapoja myydä tuotetta joskin edelleen toimivia. Sosiaaliset mediat ovat tavoitettavuudellaan ja reaaliaikaisuudellaan aivan loistava alusta ihmisille kokemuksien ja mielikuvien jakamiseen. Kaikissa yhteisöllisissä palveluissa on kyse avoimuudesta, joka luonnollisesti edesauttaa informaation kiertoa ihmiseltä toiselle. Yritykset ovat kautta aikojen pyrkineet vaikuttamaan ihmisten väliseen viestintään ja nykypäivänä se on helpompaa kuin koskaan aikaisemmin. Yksi suosituimmista esimerkeistä on Blendtec-yhtiön perustama sivusto willitblend.com. Sivustolla on videoita siitä, kuinka yrityksen rakentamat tehosekoittimet murskaavat kaiken, mitä sille keksitään syöttää (esim. iPhone, laserpointteri ja golfpalloja). Pätkät ovat ihmisten mielestä erittäin hauskoja ja mielenkiintoisia ja he jakavat niitä eteenpäin mm. Facebookissa ystävilleen, tutuilleen ja sukulaisilleen. Näin yksinkertaisesti yritykselle ja tuotteille on luotu positiivinen mielikuva ja jokainen videon nähnyt kuluttaja tunnistaa brändin siitä lähtien. Ihmisten mielipiteisiin on siis hankalaa vaikuttaa kasvottomasti mutta ohjailu on mahdollista. Blendtecin tavoin, mikä muu tahansa yritys voi ryhtyä viestittämään positiivista imagoa avoimuudellaan ja aktiivisuudellaan. Tietysti ensiksi tarvitsee jonkin idean, joka kiinnostaa ihmisiä ja saa heidät jakamaan viestiä muillekin.

Vastikään Soprano Oyj:n toimesta tekemän tutkimuksen mukaan noin 13 prosenttia suomalaisista yrityksistä ei aio osallistua mitenkään sosiaalisiin medioihin. Minusta luku on suorastaan hämmentävä, sillä aikooko nämä 13 prosenttia todellakin jättää käyttämättä hyödyksi yhden historian suurimmista markkinapotentiaaleista. Skeptikkoja mahtuu planeetallemme paljonkin mutta onko heitä tosiaan näin suuri osa? Tiedän ihmisiä, jotka eivät usko ”verkkovallan” jatkuvuuteen ja niitä, jotka pelkäävät antaa kengännumeroansa Internetiin. Näitä näkökulmia edustaa enimmäkseen vanhemman sukupolven ihmiset. Uskon kuitenkin, että heidän asenteisiin on myös tapahtumassa murrosta ja verkkomaailma hyväksytään yhdeksi todelliseksi markkinointikanavaksi muiden rinnalle.

-Ilpo

Una immagine dell'Alaska. Apparentemente lontane, le zone artiche si trovano al centro degli interessi anche strategico economici di molti paesi, inclusi Italia e Francia che fanno parte, come osservatori, del Consiglio Artico

La Presidenza Svedese della Ue si caratterizza per il suo sforzo in direzione di politiche economiche ecosostenibili. Danimarca, Finlandia e Norvegia ne condividono la storia di valorizzazione ecocompatibile delle risorse naturali. L’ambasciatore canadese James Fox, nel corso di un incontro sull’Artico che ha avuto luogo a Roma il 19 novembre, ha espresso l’appoggio del Canada a strategie di lungo periodo a tutela del Polo Nord. Con questa breve cronaca dell’incontro introduciamo una serie di brevi articoli sulle questioni aperte e sul ruolo dei singoli paesi nordici, specialmente europei

 

Nella Unione Europea la Svezia, la Danimarca, la Finlandia e, nello spazio dell’European Free Trade Agreement, la Norvegia, promuovono politiche di sviluppo compatibile con le esigenze dell’ambiente nell’area dell’Artico. La regione del Polo Nord è al centro di un crescente interesse, non soltanto in Italia, a causa dei cambiamenti (peraltro molto problematici per più di un aspetto) indotti dalle trasformazioni del clima in questi ultimi decenni. Lo scioglimento dei ghiacci rappresenta una incognita per molti abitanti della zona (e del pianeta) ma anche una possibilità di accresciuti traffici e attività economiche, opportunità che come si intuisce facilmente hanno un rovescio molto difficile dal punto di vista della sostenibilità. Ed i paesi che si affacciano sulla regione ovviamente non sfuggono alla ricerca della valorizzazione economica delle risorse.

Nel corso di un incontro che si è svolto la scorsa settimana presso l’ambasciata del Canada a Roma, i rappresentanti di Svezia, Norvegia, Danimarca, Finlandia e del paese che ospitava l’iniziativa nella propria ambasciata (cioè il Canada) hanno voluto sottolineare il ruolo che la consapevolezza di sedere letteralmente sopra le risorse di cui si parla gioca per questi paesi. Molti mass media spesso mettono l’accento sulla corsa alle risorse, ma le nazioni nordiche sanno bene che la loro vita dipende dall’ambiente, molto ricco ma estremamente fragile, nel quale le loro culture si sono sviluppate.

L’ambasciatore del Canada, James Fox, ha ricordato che quest’anno la legge di bilancio del suo paese ha stanziato 350 milioni di euro per l’Artico, per promuovere la costruzione di infrastrutture, la ricerca scientifica, lo sviluppo delle fonti energetiche ed il commercio delle risorse ittiche. Altri fondi saranno destinati alla formazione, all’occupazione della popolazione locale, ai servizi sociali ed al sostegno ai popoli aborigeni, che nutrono una serie di preoccupazioni, fondate data l’esiguità numerica e la debolezza “politica” che ne deriva e di cui nei prossimi giorni si parlerà su queste pagine in un articolo specifico, così come verranno illustrati diversi aspetti (da quello ambientale a quello culturale) della questione dibattuta nell’incontro e approfondito l’impegno dei singoli paesi nella regione, in particolare di quelli europei.

Il dibattito della scorsa settimana a Villa Grazioli si è snodato in quattro tavoli dedicati ai seguenti argomenti: “La realtà artica – sviluppo economico e sociale delle comunità autoctone”, “Materie prime, sviluppo energetico e considerazioni geopolitiche”, “La realtà artica – Impatto e sfide del cambiamento climatico” , “Il Consiglio Artico – Un modello per la collaborazione internazionale nella Regione dell’Artico”.

Oltre agli ambasciatori delle nazioni interessate e ai rappresentanti delle popolazioni autoctone citati nell’articolo apparso il 20 novembre qui su Skapegoat, sono intervenuti molti esperti e specialisti come Dag Claes, Professore di Politiche Nazionali ed Economia presso l’Università di Oslo (Norvegia), Dante Casati (del dipartimento Affari Internazionali dell’ENI), Margaret Johansson (del Dipartimento di Fisica geografica ed analisi dell’ecosistema dell’Università di Lund, in Svezia), Giuseppe Cavarretta, Direttore del Dipartimento Terra ed Ambiente del Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche, il CNR italiano; Daniele Verga, inviato speciale per l’Artico del Ministero Affari Esteri e Francesco Eugenio Negro, il viaggiatore di lungo corso nell’area e medico.

Il dibattito ha toccato moltissimi argomenti e chiarito che in questa regione abbiamo molto di più del ghiaccio da proteggere, ragion per cui rimandiamo ad altre parti del servizio che appariranno su queste pagine ed in altri spazi web nelle prossime due settimane. Vi saranno proposti diversi spunti per inquadrare vari aspetti dell’ Artico, un articolo sui progetti ecocompatibili della Danimarca, uno sulle iniziative svedesi in favore dell’area, un pezzo sulle problematiche dei popoli autoctoni come i Sami e gli Gwich’in, opinioni e  politiche finlandesi per l’ambiente ed almeno due articoli sul ruolo della Norvegia nella regione. L’incombente vertice sul clima di Copenaghen rende il tema molto attuale.

Aldo Ciummo

While I think it is very cute you like to “help” with the laundry I don’t need you to taste test the laundry detergent. It is not necessary at all and I promise it does not taste good. So next time you bite me for not letting you drink the soap I am going to stink you IN the washer and shut the lid. Just so you know.

Love, Mommy (Not girlfriend)

Yes, we do have to take the parrot with us on vacation. We can’t find a bird sitter for him (we have sitters for the other birds) because apparently he misses his mommy (not girlfriend) so much he is obnoxious and surly (screaming and biting). He has gotten much better behavior wise since we inherited him. He doesn’t bite as hard or as  often and it HAS been awhile since he crapped in Emily’s hair (he use to love to do this, just for spite). But now he is much more vocal……He wants his opinion heard and he feels he should be the center of attention. It is also his opinion that no one should touch me except for him and if someone does touch me (such as my husband) then obviously they wanted to get attacked by my guard parrot. We are working on this particular personality defect trait.

I did have a nice long heart to heart with him as to why Grandma’s (Michael’s mom) bouffant hair do is OFF LIMITS….I know it looks cosy and curious but I think he understands that he is not to land in it and make it his nest. She would cook him up wrapped in bacon in a red hot minute should he pull that stunt.

Gli ambienti naturali del grande Nord, che affascinano tanti occidentali da sempre, sono in realtà una delle parti più fragili del pianeta di fronte alle trasformazioni indotte dalle attività umane

Presso l’ambasciata del Canada si sono incontrati anche i rappresentanti di Svezia, Danimarca, Finlandia e Norvegia: con la partecipazione anche degli USA e del Governo Italiano gli ambasciatori del Nord hanno tracciato una mappa delle sfide che attendono una delle aree più fragili e ricche di diversità ecologiche del pianeta, l’Artico.

 

Abbiamo all’estremo Nord del mondo cose preziose, che non vanno aggredite ma trattate con cura, dal momento che fanno parte dell’ecosistema e quindi anche degli equilibri sociali, dell’economia e della vita sul pianeta come la conosciamo. Riportiamo a questo proposito alcuni degli spunti emersi nella giornata di ieri presso la rappresentanza canadese che si trova ai Parioli a Roma, prima di affrontare l’argomento con altri servizi più dettagliati, dato che il tema è esteso e merita una riflessione anche in altri spazi e mirata anche ai singoli paesi europei interessati dai fenomeni artici.

Nella giornata di ieri sono stati in particolare gli ambasciatori di Svezia, Finlandia, Danimarca e Norvegia che hanno fornito al pubblico molte ragioni per difendere questa area e l’intero equilibrio ambientale, delle cui trasformazioni con il processo di scioglimento dei ghiacci non solo il nord del continente europeo risente, ma tutto il globo ed in maniera speciale quelle zone, ricche di storia e intensamente popolate come sono le coste italiane, che, se sommerse, da una parte creerebbero immensi problemi socioeconomici in uno spazio geograficamente ristretto come la nostra penisola, dall’altro ci metterebbero di fronte al trauma della perdita di tradizioni e abitudini di vita secolari nel Mediterraneo.

La Svezia, in quanto Presidente di turno dell’ Unione Europea, sta investendo molto politicamente perchè l’Europa si affermi come potenza ambientale, rispettando i patti e rilanciandoli, in vista di un cambio di registro nei modi di produzione che non è una polemica di nicchia, ma una esigenza da cui dipende la stessa praticabilità di una economia efficiente e capace di effetti positivi sulla qualità della vita nell’età attuale. La Finlandia ha nella propria cultura, anche popolare, un rapporto realistico con l’ambiente naturale, che si esprime anche nei recenti progetti di infrastrutture come il porto di Vuosaari, opere attentissime all’impatto futuro sulle specie animali presenti. La Danimarca continua a implementare progetti concreti in campo energetico sostenibile (come sta avvenendo a Copenaghen) e ne fa la migliore introduzione al vicinissimo vertice sul clima che avrà per teatro la capitale danese sebbene molte questioni siano aperte e l’accordo non sarà facile. 

Nel corso del dibattito, sono intervenuti l’ambasciatore di Finlandia Pauli Makela ed il suo collega svedese Anders Bjurner, l’ambasciatore di Danimarca Gunnar Ortmann e quello della Norvegia Einar Bull. Tra gli ospiti più importanti, i più interessanti per il piccolo pubblico dei partecipanti sono stati senz’altro i portavoce delle comunità che vivono nelle aree meno densamente popolate dei paesi più vicini all’Artico: persone come Tomas Aslak Juuso, che porta avanti le iniziative istituzionali dei giovani Saami finlandesi e Bridget Laroque che in modo simile rappresenta gli interessi del popolo che invece vive tra i ghiacci nell’estremo nordamerica, i Gwich’ in, hanno approfondito tematiche poco note anche agli addetti ai lavori, ad esempio i rapporti delle minoranze con i diversi stati in cui vivono.

L’ambasciatore Lars Moeller, danese che presiede il Consiglio Artico, il Sottosegretario agli Esteri del Governo Italiano Alfredo Mantica e Pernille Moller, caposezione del Ministrero Affari Esteri del Governo Groenlandese, da parte loro hanno messo l’accento sulla necessità di trattare l’Artico per quello che è, dedicando fondi, persone e ricerche alla valorizzazione economica di un’area che può creare sviluppo soltanto nel rispetto e nella conoscenza dell’ecosistema che la protegge e delle popolazioni, anche numericamente esigue e quindi politicamente poco influenti che la abitano.

L’ambasciatore del Canada, James Fox, naturalmente ha aperto i lavori, ospitati appunto dall’ambasciata di via Salaria, dato che la nazione nordamericana ha promosso l’iniziativa e che trova nelle terre del Nord una gran parte della propria identità culturale, etnica e geografica.  Ha parlato anche l’ambasciatore statunitense Liam Wasley, con l’Alaska infatti gli USA si affacciano alla zona naturale in questione e sono quindi pienamente parte in causa. Il pomeriggio si è svolta una serie di proiezioni ed iniziative culturali che hanno permesso alle persone presenti di approfondire le reciproche differenze nell’esperienza delle società nordiche, sviluppatesi in ambienti naturali anche molto diversi tra loro. E’ bene quindi non fermarsi agli aspetti istituzionali e rimandare ad una serie di articoli in questi giorni e nella prossima settimana per toccare diverse questioni (l’ambiente, i rapporti con il nostro continente, le iniziative dei vari paesi coinvolti), gli interventi di alcuni esperti ed esponenti che hanno partecipato all’incontro ed il lato umanistico delle aree artiche.

Aldo Ciummo

eggo waffle shortage…not good…sam eats a waffle every day for breakfast and freaks the heck out if she doesn’t get it…creature of habit?…perhaps…i have to have my lowfat cinnamon brown sugar poptart every morning, she has to have her eggo…this could be a crisis worse than h1n1 in our house…

headed to nyc on friday, yessirreebobupkins!…will probably get all kinds of lost and take all kinds of wrong trains to all kinds of wrong places but that’s part o’ the fun i say…there will be tweets…and pictures…and maybe postcards even though that is incredibly unkewl and touristy of me…

thanksgiving…eh…no plans that i know of…is that sad?…or freeing?…i say the later…maybe we’ll go to cracker barrel or something…

more to say but it’s time to go pick up the punkin from daycare and get home…i’m thinkin’ popcorn for supper…tootaloo…

As a Nordic Studies minor, I spend a great deal of time studying Scandinavian culture. Most recently I just completed the book, “Antiphony” by Norwegian author Laila Stein. It was a fast read, but incredible. The story is that of a young social scientist from Oslo who travels to the far north of her country to observe the Sami people. The Sami are the native people of the region and are apparently the most written about people in the world. They seem to really like this fact.

The narration is very jumbled and she never writes in full sentences. While this may seem ridiculous, it actually works quite well. The reader is forced to infer what is going on at any given time using the fragmented hints. Also, there are no names in the entire book-just pronouns. At times the plot gets muddled by this lack of fundamental literary devices, but it certainly kept me engaged for the full 144 pages (like I said, a quick read).

The way its written also affects what is being read. The whole story is the tale of her interaction with three generations of Sami women and their relationships. Underneath it all lies the struggle of an old people who are forced to face cultural changes and weather events out of their control. The Sami have been trampled upon since ancient Roman times and according to Stein, it seems no different today.

Overall it was very enjoyable read, and an insight into the harsh lives of a hardy people living in the deep north.

Angela took Sam’s pictures when she was just a few months old and they were beautiful. So I knew I wanted her to take more of Sam. And she did! And they are fabulous!!! Go check them out!!!!

Samantha’s Photos

Having to work on Wednesday completely threw off my schedule this week. I switched with my buddy David so I could be off on Saturday to go to the Black River Falls Ladies day. On occasion I have to play “preacher’s wife” and do things that I wouldn’t typically do.  Not that the ladies day won’t be lovely and edifying…. its just that getting up at 5am on a Saturday to drive 2 hours to sit and listen to speakers for 4 hours then drive home 2 hours is not how I would plan my Saturday. Maybe a Thursday….

Back to why I am discombobulated. I am always off on Wednesday so I use that day (usually) to do my housework. I need a set day or the manor revolts against me and takes over redecorating itself with clutter and birdseed. I am not a neat freak by any stretch but as we have a very “open door’ policy with friends and family and complete strangers we meet on the street and invite home with us, I need the mess to remain confined to areas not typically seen my the public. But now it is Thursday and I need to do my chores. I was secretly horrified that house elves didn’t come in and pick up the slack for me just this once….I am convinced that is what is living in the basement ceiling eating the mouse poison like crunch-n-munch and throwing parties.

I can’t just ignore it either since it will A.) Make me crazy and B.) We are leaving for Tennessee next week and need the house not to be disgusting.

Enough of my grumbling, let’s talk about something FUN!!!

I got a couple quilts back from the quilter and hope to get the binging on so I can show them to you later today. Michael’s scarf he is knitting is turning out beautifully.

I have also been very good about not buying fabric or yarn the last month or so. Practicing self-control is not fun but I would rather learn on my own then have to have God teach me through trials. He is very helpful like that…. one of the reasons I am a very patient person.

Sami the parrot now says “Stop it” (when you pull his tail which I think means he doesn’t like it) “Thank you” (took us awhile to catch this since we were sort of afraid he was saying something that started with F and ended with you) and “love you”

Yesterday if I had stretched right up, I could really have touched the sky with my fingers.

The music of Mari Boine and her band was very very moving. I was looking forward to seeing and hearing her, and I had to confess myself, I was much more happier and touched than two years ago when I attended a concert of Värttinä that I wanted to see since the first word I had ever learnt in Finnish some 7 years ago. The fact that I have been to Norway once, and I’m eager to get to know the country’s culture is a recent thing. I’m very sad that I had quit studying Finnish at high school, I hope to restart it sometime again.

Why did I mention studying Finnish?

Because the language that Mari Boine speaks, Sami is in the same language family as Hungarian and Finnish. These are so-called Uralic languages. All of them are in different groups in the language family. Hungarian is an Ugric language, Finnish is a Baltic-Finnic and Sami is a Finno-Lappic one. This means that we don’t understand each other. Finnish is closer to the Scandinavian Sami language than Hungarian but still Finns are struggling with understanding their Sami minority. Linguists put languages in groups and families also by comparing the basic vocabularies. Hungarian has a lot of basic words which are similar to Finnish ones because they derive from the same original word used by our ancestors.

At the Mari Boine concert it turned out by that the singer had her titles translated to Hungarian, that somewhere back in the Ural mountains we used a common word, probably for ‘bird’ in general, which remained almost the same in Sami and Hungarian and is used for the same bird which is called in Latin ‘Sterna Paradisea’. This is the title for Mari Boine’s new album, too.

My favorite song from the new album is “Soria Moria Palássa”. Mari Boine told us at the concert that this song tells about the fancy and flattering world that we build around ourselves. She said, the chorus is repeating that we all came naked to this world, and all pass away without the things we spent our lives on to store up.

I have a walking-giggly-climb-over-the-dog-drink-outta-da-sippy kind of girl….

I had a go at knife making, I promised a couple of knives as presents but, I still had to try if I could actually make one. Well this is prototype 1. The blade is a Sami type, the handle is oak leftover from making a table, antler from a caribou and some leather.

I made the handle puukko style, a  tool for cutting food, wood, leather, hunting and fishing.  The knife lacks the hand protection that you see on many other knives. That protection is ment to keep your hands from sliding down the edge and thus hurting yourself. However this is a working knife not a stabbing knife. The guard would be pointless. I even think that the guard is in the way when carving wood.

Grip on the handle is maintained by the oval shape of the handle. The thick part sits in the palm and the thin part is grabbed by your fingers.  You can also see that same shape on my woodcarving knife here. It works very well, you have more flexibility how to hold the knife and you can push the knife with your wrist.

As soon as we moved to Nashville, I had an urge to plant a garden. But seeing as we moved in the middle of winter, we had to settle for an indoor, winter box garden.

So, the kids and I headed over to Home Depot and I let them each pick out some seeds and the necessary planting gear. We promptly returned home and started assembly on our kitchen floor. The kids loved digging in the dirt and dropping seeds into the little soil nests we created for them. The thought of something so tiny becoming so full of life brought them to giggles!

Fast forward a few weeks. Of all the herbs, vegetables and flowers we planted, everything failed miserably…except one: our sunflower.

Soon our little sprout outgrew its Dixie cup. So at the first sign of spring, we transplanted it into our postage stamp of a backyard with room to spread its roots. It was amazing how quickly it grew! I kept taking pictures of the kids in front of it so we could chart its progress. Before we knew it, the stalks were growing as high as our fence and we needed to put skates in the ground to help support it!

However, as the leaves grew and multiplied, so did the amount of ants and bugs. One day, I was so fed up over the insects that were eating away at our pride and joy I decided to douse the plant with bug spray. The good news was that I succeeded in doing away with the bugs, at least temporarily.  The bad news was that my rash decision began a slow infection within our precious plant. Spots popped up. Green faded to brown. Bugs returned.

Some sunflowers did eventually emerge, but they were withered versions of what you typically see from this glorious plant.

Fast forward again about eight months.

This once fresh and life-giving little seed was now two, tall, rotting stalks infested with flying ants. In fact, it was almost impossible for me to remove from the ground because of the deep roots that had spread beneath the soil. Though what was visible looked rotten and fragile, what existed under the surface was actually strong and deep.

It still amazes me that one quick spray in a moment without thinking caused the life of this plant to change very drastically.

“I am allowed to do anything”—but not everything is good for you. And even though “I am allowed to do anything,” I must not become a slave to anything. (1 Corinthians 6:12)

Have you ever rationalized a move, a meal, an outing, a movie, or something of the like that might not necessarily be wrong or sinful, but it wasn’t the best for you? Because of that one decision, it becomes easier to rationalize similar decisions and slowly, your definition of acceptable begins to change. While you may think you can go back at any time you choose, you fail to realize that the series of choices you made changes you on the inside, affecting your entire being.

We live in a self-focused society today. No-one will fault you for doing something you think you deserve. As women, we have every right to rationalize a little “me” time. We wear many hats: daughter, friend, mother, wife, volunteer, ministry leader, worker, sister, neighbor…we all know I could go on for the rest of this page. But if we continue to focus on what we do instead of who we are doing it for, we become very self-centered and resentful very quickly.

If each of us got what we truly deserved, we’d all be in trouble. Instead, Christ rescued us from a fate worse than death so that we might not only live, but live life to its fullest! We need to stop trying so hard to keep up our outer appearance while we’re slowly rotting away inside. When your heart is focused on Christ and His best, you’ll soon find yourself willingly avoiding the easy road that leads down a dangerous path.

By the time I went to pull the sunflower from the ground, there was so much I had to unearth just to get to the roots. Likewise, a series of poor choices leads to a deep change within us; even once the external factors are removed, it may take longer to make an effective life change.

Consider the path before you. You are not alone in your journey. Just as God watches over you, there are many others around you praying that you will choose the right path; plant your seed close to those who bring you life and encourage you to strengthen your roots in the good soil. You’ll find once your garden begins to grow in the midst of other healthy plantings, your roots will grow even stronger and link up with theirs.

-Sami Cone

This is unbelievable footage. A BBC natural history film crew filmed an attack on a white reindeer calf by a golden eagle. The Sami — reindeer herders in Finland — had told researchers that this could happen but it has never been documented on film before. Although the golden eagle is not the largest eagle in the area — the white-tailed eagle is larger — the golden eagle is more agressive. The Samis say that it is usually immature goldens attacking the calves. And they usually attack the white calves rather than the tan or brown ones.

This is from BBC Earth News:

“One eagle was filmed swooping down and grabbing a calf, while another pulled out of an attack at the last minute.

A BBC natural history film crew gathered the extraordinary footage along a reindeer migration route in northern Finland.

It finally proves this eagle species does occasionally hunt reindeer, something suggested by forensic evidence and the local Sami people.

The crew filmed the behaviour while capturing footage of the reindeer migration for the BBC natural history series Life, though the images were shot at too far a distance to be included in the final cut of the high definition programme. . . (click here to read more and see the video).

You might find this interesting when you get older. Or just further testament to your mother’s weird quirkiness.

Anywho.

Your father has gotten into this incredibly adorable habit of calling you “Buttercup” or “Butternut”. Don’t ask me what the whole “butter” theme is all about but isn’t that the cutest thing?

Your mother (that’s me), on the other hand, tends to call you “Stinker Butt” or “Booger”. Equally as adorable as “Butternut”, in my opinion, and much more truthful.

You should know that this is in no way an indication of which parent loves you more.

Just thought I would share that lil’ tidbit for posterity.

And now, here are a few pictures from the great “Pumpkin Patch Painting Party” of ‘09 at day care. We trekked to the “pumpkin patch” and all the kiddos got to go pick their pumpkin. You, of course, picked the only one without a stem but that’s ok. It was still a beautiful gourd and you seemed quite proud of it.

And then, the chaos began. But it was fun chaos, and messy. Jars of paint were set out on a blanket and the madness commenced! You didn’t get what to do with the paintbrush at first so it promptly went into your mouth and your teeth became a lovely shade of bright blue. You screamed bloody murder and then decided to try and see if the green tasted better. It didn’t.

Once you got the hang of it and understood the whole “painting a pumpkin concept”, it was on. And you know what, your pumpkin turned out to be the ugliest pumpkin I’ve ever seen quite nice.

Of course, pumpkins being perishable, mommy will have to throw it out soon but wow, aren’t you glad I took these pictures to document the day and show all of the internets? You are gonna have some cool stuff to show any future boyfriends.

Love,
Mommy

Truth be told, most of us have a love/hate relationship with globalization. I mean liberal (US), leftie (Br.) types who think of themselves as internationalists,  demanding that we should respect other cultures,  so long as they accept certain non-negotiable values like sexual equality.  We try to buy locally produced food and at the same time fill our homes with “ethnic” trinkets from Africa and South America. We decry the incursion of McDonalds and Starbucks into Asia while seeking out the latest Asian Fusion restaurant in Shoreditch. This malaise was cruelly mocked once by a Conservative politician at his party conference, reading out a leaflet which read, ‘Join the international fight against globalization.”

This cognitive dissonance is nicely encapsulated in a new exhibition at Design Forum Finland with the title Sámi Knife II. The Sámi knife (Leuku in Finnish, Stuorniibi in the Sámi language) is a traditional tool of the Sámi, the indigenous people of Northern Norway, Sweden, and Finland. The exhibition organisers point out in their introduction that the skill of making the knife is disappearing under pressure from global production and the resultant price competition. The exhibition celebrates this very localised artefact by inviting 23 international designers to ‘fight against the disappearance of material culture’, drawing them from as far afield as France, Denmark, Sweden, Germany, the Netherlands and Japan. Oh, and, I almost forgot, Finland.

photo Anssi Hietaharju

Each designer was sent a traditional Sámi knife made in Lapland. There were some very pretty ‘updatings’ of the knife including one with the handle and a scabbard bound in red and white cord, another with a fish shaped blade and a sexy black leather holster, another with a designer signature inlaid into the handle.

But for me, the runaway winner was Louse Campbell who is based in Copenhagen. Resisting the pressure to be “innovative”, she simply took the original knife and  coated it with a white paint (except for the edge of the blade) which is meant to wear off in use. In her spiel she writes:

I do not see any reason to redesign the knife. It is perfect as it is. Big, sharp, durable and beautifully crafted from local materials, it serves its purpose immaculately.

Leuku II / Sámi Knife II. Design Forum Finland, Erottajankatu 7 Helsinki. Exhibition ends 29.11.2009

Sarek National Park: Sweden

Amazing backcountry experience in Europe’s last wilderness

View from Bastavagge

Looking for a high adventure backpacking experience in the Arctic Wilderness? Check out Sarek National Park in Northern Sweden with its rugged mountains, glacial carved valleys and wild, icy rivers. Sarek is known as Europe’s last wilderness and it does not disappoint. Sarek offers backpackers a remote, pristine Arctic wilderness full of 2000 meter peaks, glaciers, alpine lakes and wide river valleys. There are no trails or shelters so adequate planning and backcountry skills  are essential.

Planning and Preparation

Claes Grundsten has been trekking Sarek and the surrounding areas for more than 35 years. He’s published a fantastic book of his photos called, “Sarek and Kebnekaise: where the light is ever-changing”. Claes has some amazing photos and reading his accompanying essay will help you to get familiar with the region. Claes also has written the only detailed guidebook of the area entitled “Sarek”. Unfortunately, it’s only available in Swedish but offers a wealth of information on the various valleys and mountain regions within Sarek and gives critical ratings of time, distance and difficulty for most of the main backpacking routes. The other essential resource is the BD10 Map for Sarek which is available from Maps Worldwide. Don’t leave home without it!

The photography possibilities are unlimited. You can definitely count on changing weather and dramatic light. Views from the mountain peaks and ridges offer great aerial perspective of the glacial rivers below. And the summer days are amazingly long so you can shoot for hours and hours…Just pack enough flash cards and batteries…

How to get there

View at Kvikkjokk

There are a number of ways to get to Sarek and you can choose among a variety of starting and ending points for an end-to-end hike. One way to get to Sarek is to take the train from Stockholm which is definitely the slow but scenic route. The train stops in Gällivare and from there you can take a  bus to Kvikkjokk. Kvikkjokk is a great launching pad to the mountains in Sarek or Padjelanta National Park and has a wonderful mountain station where you can sleep, eat and get basic supplies for your Arctic adventure. One route into Sarek from Kvikkjokk is to hike Northeast along the Kungsleden to Aktse and enter through the famous Rapadalen. Rapadalen is known for it’s thick brush, wide river and population of massive moose.  Another route to Sarek from Kvikkjokk is to hike Northwest along the Padjelantaleden toward the cabins at Tarraluoppal which takes about 3 days. But the quickest (and most exciting) way to Sarek from Kvikkjokk is to take the helicopter with Lapplandsflyg to the edge of Sarek just outside of Tarraluoppal. This would be the beginning point of our two week hike through one of the best backpacking regions in the world.

Sarek: Rugged mountains and wild rivers

Scene looking East through Alggavagge

Once you leave the cabins at Tarraluoppal behind your only provisions are what you have in your pack. Hiking North from Tarraluoppal along the river Vassjajåhkå you are literally in another world. We managed numerous stream crossings and experienced cloudy and cool weather as we passed by mountains carved out by glaciers and hillsides covered in brilliant yellow globeflowers this time of year. Given the heavy packs needed for a two week trip without resupply we planned to hike shorter distances the first couple of days and that’s exactly what we did. After a couple of days hiking North we crossed our first big river, the Alep Sarvesjåhkå, on the way to the massive alpine lake Alggajavre. River crossings along with the intense and unpredictable weather are the two biggest dangers of the region. Arctic rivers are best crossed in the morning and at their widest areas. We would use the valley called Alggavagge to hike East toward the Sarek massif. Camping at Alggajavre is a must with the lake view just to the West and the dark, rugged peaks of central Sarek to the East. Alggavagge is a spectacular u-shaped river valley, a classic scene of the Arctic wilderness. The Alggavagge is very wide and contains some amazing scenery with mountain peaks and glaciers on either side as you make your way deeper into the heart of Sarek.

Scene from Sarek Massif Mahtuoalgge

After a couple of river crossings and some serious bushwhacking through heavy brush we finally arrived at the central Sarek massif. The jagged mountain peaks here have been heavily carved by glaciers and this particular location is known as “smälaträffen” or the meeting place.  It’s an incredible intersection of 5 river valleys converging together and most hikes through Sarek pass through here because of the lone bridge which allows passage from one side of the park to the next.  Dayhiking possibilities  are endless and there’s a perfect spot to pitch a tent near the bridge over the raging river below. You’ll want a minimum of  2-3 days to explore the area. Other worldly scenery surrounds you on all sides.  Definitely worth the hike to get there.

Rugged Basstavagge

Our plan was to hike out Southeast through the valley called Basstavagge. Some of the few other backpackers that we saw told us that the snow bridge was still in tact over one of the major river crossings so we hiked at a little faster pace and arrived to find  the snow bridge still holding up which saved a pretty lengthy river crossing. Views looking back from Basstavage toward central Sarek are amazing. Basstavagge is much more narrow has more river crossings than Alggavagge. Here you really feel isolated from the rest of the world. Almost like an Arctic canyon. The East side of Basstavagge drops you off in an open area with a short hike to the border of Sarek National Park at a Sami village on the edge of the lake called Sitojaure. Here you can catch a boat ride to opposite end of the lake and then have a nice one or two day hike  on the Kungsleden to the luxurious mountain station at Saltoluokta. Saltoluokta is the perfect place to rest up from your hike and enjoy some high quality food in the restaurant before heading back to civilization.

Sarek National Park rewards the well prepared backpacker with an unforgettable experience in the true Arctic wilderness. No trails, no shelters, just pure untouched beauty and a lot of adventure.

So the night before the harvest festival I decided the twins needed pumpkin dresses to wear the next day… well after finishing them at 1am & trying them on in the morning I decided they would make cuter tops, & they did!  Anyways the girls LOVED them.  They ran around all day saying ‘I mamas little punkin!’.

And I actually managed to get both of them in the same frame!!!!  This doesn’t happen often.

Baylie Ann

Carlie Paige

After a grumpy start to the day time to kiss & make up! For once Baylie was the one doing the kissing, and Carlie wasn’t really in the mood. (normally it’s the other way around!)

Baylie & Zander giving gross ‘Bubble Kisses’. It’s gross cause they make spit bubbles & then give each other a kiss, but I had to get a pic.

This is what happens when you try to get 5 kids 4 & under… with 3 being 2, to try & take a picture! From left to right: Baylie, Zander, Carlie, Cousin Sami & Cousin Chloe.

Are we done yet? They did get bored as you can tell by looking at Carlie! The twins hijacked Sami & Chloes stroller… the one their dad bought & never used so he sold it to their aunt for their cousins… I wonder if he ever TRIED using it? They love it.

My silly goose Zander!

Fine, you want a picture mom, I’ll pose for you… CHEESEEEEE! My little Baylie!

Watching the wind carry away some bubbles…

Patiently waiting for more bubbles!

What 2 year olds don’t love bubbles on a sunny day?

Time to play some baseball with B’s mom. We need to get a 3rd bat for their house, 2 bats & 3 kids just doesn’t work!