Confuseder Than Confucius

Armed with Strepsils for 50p from the pharmacy's clearance rack, I've decided that I'm not ill anymore! I'll start to live life normally like a non-ill person (after almost a month, one starts to get alienated), hoping my body starts to believe I'm okay too. I think fresh air can be good. I feel quite alright, but the thermometer claims I've still this minifever going on (on/off, mind you). Wish me luck!

Talking about pharmacies, they are terribly different here in England from what I'm used to back in Finland. In Finland pharmacies sell medicines, some cosmetics and hygiene products, and some special sweets. You can access all medicines you don't need a prescription for in the racks, and prescription medicines from a special counter.

Well, here in England a pharmacy i a place where you get food, cosmetics, bath-products, hygiene stuff, toys, clothes. . . basically it's almost like a supermarket with a medicine section (ironically, many big supermarkets have built-in pharmacy-sections, so the difference is ever so slight. I think you can't get fresh eggs at a British pharmacy. Yet). 15% medicine, 85% stuff. I don't know, but I think it's rather strange to sell regular fatty, salty, sugary snacks at a pharmacy, but I guess it's just me being old-fashioned. Don't get me wrong, I like chocolate and chips/crisps, I just don't go to a pharmacy to buy them, my mind doesn't work like that. It hasn't adapted to the new world order.

Another funny thing is that only a selected amount of the prescription-free medicines are on display in the racks, the rest is hidden behind a counter. And there is a different counter for prescriptions. Then on the other hand you can get many regular medicines in supermarkets, even in those without a pharmacy section. This I find quite practical, in order to even get ibuprofen in Finland you need to seek out a pharmacy. Then again on the other hand it makes things clearer:

Supermarket = No medicines, Pharmacy = Mostly medicines and related stuff.

The world is truly a magical place.

(oh yeah, and the Finnish presidential elections went to a second round, yeah!)

(oh yeah furthermore, I'm against SOPA and PIPA, although I'm not from the US. But in the 0,0000012 chance an US senator reads this, please take my opinion in account. I also know that SOPA already got shelved, but y'know, in case of a time paradox or the future or something like that.)

Finnish Treats

Ah, Saturday. Time and energy to make a proper post. See, I'm more of a morning person, but on weekdays I need to go to uni, and then there's usually loads of more important things to do (such as cooking, eating, watching films and surfing on the internet) in the evening than updating, so it tends to be quite rushed. Not that it bothers me, I don't think that every post in a daily blog needs to be a masterpiece, the most important thing for me is to keep it going somehow, and really just putting up that sketch up there. Everything else is just bonus.

Today the bonus is HUGE.

I have pictures, text, an update to The Wishlist, everything you could ever dream of! Whoop-de-doo! Here it goes:



Last sunday Roomie tricked me out on a stroll in the sun. It was really nice, actually, I saw places I haven't seen yet (because most all of my strolls have been towards the city center, supermarkets, train stations or uni) and it was quite a pleasant experience altogether. Here are some pictures from that very stroll:

Ooh, what could there be on the other side?

Uh, hello there.
[To Roomie] Should we go another way?

Fields of Green

So fluffy! :>

Yesterday we made rice porridge for dinner, and if you're a proper Finn, you make enough rice porridge to be able to make some Karelian Pasties (haven't tried since home economics in Jr High). They turned out pretty well.

Now we just need to make some egg butter to go with them. Mmmm.

And last but not least, The Wishlist. Check out the new addition to the Essential section.

Essential, serious stuff:

Stick blender
Stavmixer
Sauvasekoitin

Won't need that many of them, I hope.




Crisp rye-bread
Surskorpor
Hapankorppuja

You simply can't find essentials like this in the UK




Money
Pengar
Rahaa

Quite essential.




Bicycle
Cykel
Polkupyörä

Might be best to give me money for this one. Quite difficult to ship.

Can opener
Konservöppnare
Purkinavaaja

The normal, sane, cheap version. I'm sorry Brits, but you've got this all wrong.
Or then I'm just too simple-minded for the fancier versions.





Pot (ha ha, very funny.)
Gryta
Pata

Might once again be better with money, quite heavy to take on the plane.

Cash
Fyrk
Mammonaa

I can't stress this enough.




Money for artist's materials (going to order markers online)
Pengar för konstnärsmaterial (tänker beställa tuscher på nätet)
Raha taiteilijantarvikkeita varten (tilaan netin kautta)

For messing around on paper.

Nice, sharp, big kitchen knife
Trevlig, vass stor kökskniv (eller förskärare)
Mukava, terävä, iso keittiöveitsi

Needn't be that fancy, but preferably one that actually functions properly.
The set of knives we bought isn't the best thing that has happened to us.
The knives are whetted so that the edge is askew, in a way we're not used to have knives,
so we find them really hard to use. What I'm trying to say is that in order to
cut something straight, you have to hold the knife at a strange angle.
We don't like that. The big knife from the set is impossible to cut harder things,
such as potatoes or carrots with.

Not so essential, but oh so nice stuff:




Bubble bath
Bubbelbad
Kylpykuplia

Because I'm worth it.

Books:

Watership Down
Richard Adams

Cute bunnies hopping around. Nothing more.




Abarat. Absolute Midnight
Clive Barker

Filled with nice illustrations.

The Witches
Roald Dahl

More lovely illustrations.

Fables vol 2. Animal Farm.
Bill Willingham & Mark Buckingham

Because I like Comics.

A Dance With Dragons
George R. R. Martin

I'd really prefer this cover, it would go together with
the rest of my collection. It's a paperback.




Nerdy section:

Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney

Intense game of investigating and winning legal cases.

The World Ends With You

Heard it's one of the best games for the DS.

Action-packed role playing game with a great story (i heard)

Professor Layton and The Curious Village

Intelligent and unique puzzle-solving game with an outstanding gameplay.

Bastion

Downloadable from Steam.
Beautiful, unique adventure game with flexible gameplay.

Terraria

Downloadable from Steam.
Do what you want; craft items, explore, build, and hunt.

And the most important section - Sweets:

Something I've been longing for, these won't need explanations.

Dumle

Fazerin Sinivalkoinen
Blåvit Fazer

After Eight

Tupla

Angel-chocolate
Änglachoclad
Enkelisuklaa

Mulled wine concentrate
Glöggconcentrat
Glögitiiviste

Would be nice to be able to drink some back in England even after christmas. . .



Last but not least:


Would be nice to get some visiting relatives and family members here
to fill the fridge with nice expensive stuff such as cheese, meat, cake,
chocolate pudding, cheese, meat and pastries.

No pressure.

(Of course it would be nice to show other parts of the house also.
If lucky, I might even show something else than the supermarkets over here!)

Borrowing

Currently writing on Roomie's computer, which she was kind enough to lend me. Thank you! :)


I left my own computer in my locker at uni, since we went grocery shopping straight from there, and I knew I would have to carry a heap of soda cans home, since they have a great offer (12 cans for £2 is not too bad at all).


I mean, if you make homemade hamburgers, you've got to have coke with them, right?