The debate I am going through now in my head is if I use some of my stuff from my 1st gig and work in the new stuff...hmmmmm. discuss...

WOOOHOOO

The feedback I got was very encouraging.  I am actually stoked because the chic that runs the comedy club watched my set and pulled me aside afterwards to tell me that I was fuckin hilarious and that I am welcome to come do a set any time at the club :)  So that is a plus :)

Friday night we decided to stay in.  Met da Finn (tm) at the open air market (go local whenever possible people) only to find that they were all closed up at 4pm? What on (insert your favorite deity here)'s green earth were they thinking?  Working professionals like us can't just leave our office at 12pm on a Friday (oh how I wish) just to get to them before they close.  It was kinda sad actually.  We have been making a concerted effort to buy from local farmers at the farmer's market so that we 1) reduce our carbon foot print  2.) Support local growers and 3) get happy fresh food to cook at home rather than the crap with preservatives in it.   We were mighty disappointed let me tell you.  We walked to the large supermarket across the way and picked up some stuff for dinner.  Luckily we were able to get most things from the organic isle and avoided the products that didn't say grown/produced in Finland.  There were exceptions however, but for the most part we tried to keep it local.  The problem is that the big supermarket chains have most likely paid a ridiculously low amount for the stuff they mark-up to sell to their consumers.  Frustrating.    We cooked at home and then da Finn(tm) and I went through my stand-up set.  I did some tweeking - with some great suggestions by da Finn - and I think I have a pretty good flow at this point.  Now the key is to memorize it and be able to spit it out without sounding like I memorized it. 
Saturday:

We went to Suomenlinna for a lovely birthday picnic with our friends Jaana and Päivi - it was Jaana's birthday.  That place always makes me want to put on period costuming and start speaking in old Finnish. - Not that I have the ability to speak in Old Finnish...but I would give it my best shot whilst running around shouting about the Swedes or the Russians coming :)   It was a great day.  Sunny, not too windy, not too hot not too cold.  If I had blonde hair it would have been like Goldie Locks...only different.  We had champagne, fresh strawberries with home made whipped cream (da Finn really is talented), cheeses, prosciutto, pasta salad, dark bread, wine, more wine...and more wine.  Lo and behold, when we stepped foot back on the ferry to head back to the mainland...I was a wee bit tipsy.  I proceeded to then introduce myself to these lovely grad students from Oshkosh Wisconsin and we discussed - if my hazy memory serves - Scandinavian history and the history of Finland in regards to Russia...  Brain ..over....load.  Then in my infinite wisdom I bought them all a shot of the local specialty - yes the ferry has a fully functional bar -  called Salimiakkikossu

I officially still have a job.  Which is a plus.  Unfortunately my step-monster step-mother had a greater effect on my psychological make-up than I really wanted to admit.  I have been a veritable bundle of stress and anxiety with this latest round of lay-offs.  Seriously.  I haven't slept well, have had horrible dreams revolving around money, have had difficulty concentrating, etc.  All the classic symptoms of stress and anxiety.   However, now I know I have a job and coupled with the way the unionized system works here, I am secure for at least another year.  Hopefully this dreadful world economy begins to show signs of life and my firm doesn't need to tighten the belt much further.

Tonight I am going to see the Eagles here at the Hartwall Arena in Helsinki. YAY!  I was present at Great Woods (when it was still called that..I refuse to call it anything else) in '94 for the Hell Freezes Over tour.  HOLY CRAP 15 years ago!!  Where has the time gone and why do I have all this white hair now?  I remember paying 85 frickin bucks to stand on the lawn mud pit to hear them.  Come to think of it, that "lawn" still owes me a shoe!  I was so deep in mud that it would not relinquish my footwear. On ONE foot.  A very nice penny loafer (oh the '90s) from 9 West thank you very much.  Maybe I should send a bill to the venue for it.  I wonder what the odds are that they would pay...yeah not so much.

Additionally...

kajivar

jetshade

spnickles

• I exhibit no outward symptoms of illness
• My faculties are intact - well as intact as they ever were
• My overall general health is quite good (aside from the already known issues -cholesterol, blood sugar, allergies to certain foods that would kill me D-E-D).  
• My blood pressure is a fabulous 108/62
• My resting heart rate is 69 - booyah! Take THAT hereditary Heart Disease!
• I can work that elliptical machine like a mad woman and my heart rate goes to about 168 - very healthy according to her
• My respiratory system is clean(chest x-rays)
• My mammogram showed just what we all knew - big boobies -hehe I typed boobies...TWICE
• My ultrasounds on my internal organs don't show anything suspicious,
• My bone marrow shows nothing very significant -  FYI getting a bone marrow test via your sternum is disturbing and painful - Think Pulp Fiction
• I don't have any cancer markers - thank you universe!

Like I said.. I AM HUMAN 2.0 - Zombies' Bane!

I don't want this to sound like I will be reading War and Peace in Finnish - oh HAY-ELL no.  The library in my neighborhood is perported to have one of the largest and best selections of English Language books in Helsinki.  So today my friend Hale is going to meet me there and hold my hand (help with the red tape stuff) while I get a shiny Library Card.  In addition to English language books, I look at this as a great way to explore my literacy in Finnish by checking out some of their better known authors and slogging through.  This is not to imply that Finnish authors are the dregs of the literary world, just that I have this belief that the nuance and beauty may be lost on me in certain passages...but I refuse to miss out and deprive myself of the possibility of exposure to something wonderful.  Life is too short and it should be celebrated.

I am practically salivating with anticipation.  I lurve lurve lurve books - the smell of them, the feel of them, the way they sound when you crack the spine open.  A whole wonderful world waiting for discovery.  I am so looking forward to finding something good to read for the train ride to Russia tomorrow...7 hours on the train....need book...or will explode...

In other random news/updates
- I was lucky enough to be able to see a dear friend for coffee on Wednesday.  It was so wonderful to see her.  Hopefully she will be in-country for the summer before her studies begin in Scotland and we will spend many more late afternoons discussing philosophy and enlightenment.   Little happy things sent to me from the Universe always make me smile.  Maybe I can even convince her to teach me yoga..since she is a yoga instructor and all...

- Da Finn(TM) and I spent Helatorstai ( Ascension Thursday for the rest of the Christian world) at our friends enjoying grilled goodness and the sauna.  Much mirth and laughter was had...  We even visited their local pub (they just moved so it is new to them) and discovered that Hells Angels can be very very nice teddy bears...

- Heading to Russia for Saturday and Sunday. YAY!!!  Our friends are getting married and we were invited.  Always makes me feel warm fuzzies to be invited to such a special day in someone's life.

- I have a doctor's appointment on Tuesday to get the results of my blood tests - more to follow on the Human 2.0 experiment later...

Oh..and I will be sure to give the dilly-yo on the local Library after I do my recon :)



 

Star Trek
Angels and Demons
State of Play
Wolverine

...I just need to figure out if  13bucks (10 euro) a pop per head is worth it....that is like 104 bucks of movies....
 

New Hampshire Senate passes gay-marriage bill

The bill, which passed in a 13-11 vote, needs to be signed by Governor John Lynch to make New Hampshire the fifth U.S. state where gay marriage is legal. The Democrat has not indicated whether he will sign or veto the bill, but has expressed opposition to the measure.

The bill passed the state's House of Representatives on March 26 but looked set for near certain defeat in the Senate before the amendment, which appeared to mollify some critics in the Democratic-controlled chamber.

The last-minute changes to the legislation would allow clergy to decline to marry homosexual couples and give couples the freedom to either keep the words "bride" and "groom" on marriage licenses, or use the word "spouse" instead.

Because the Senate and House passed separate versions, they must resolve their differences before the bill can go to the governor, who in 2007 signed a law recognizing same-sex civil unions, making New Hampshire the fourth state to do so.

Lynch has said the word marriage should be reserved for a traditional heterosexual relationship.

The bill, which would take effect on January 1, also recognizes out-of-state gay marriages and civil unions. Couples who now have civil unions would automatically become married by January 1, 2011. The extra year allows time for a formal ceremony.

Gay marriage made big inroads this month when, in a single week, Iowa and Vermont joined Massachusetts and Connecticut in allowing gay couples to legally wed. On Tuesday, a joint judiciary committee in neighboring Maine's legislature approved a bill to allow same-sex marriage. Maine's House and Senate could vote on the measure as early as next week.

In California, gay marriage advocates are hoping to overturn Proposition 8, the 2008 constitutional amendment that banned gay marriage there, in the state's highest court.

CULTURAL SHIFT

New Hampshire in 1987 outlawed same-sex marriages. In 2004, after Massachusetts' top court allowed gay couples to marry, New Hampshire passed a law that would not recognize gay marriages from out of state.

But elections in 2006 signaled big political and cultural changes, giving Democrats majorities in both chambers of the legislature for the first time since 1874 in a state that was long a stronghold of moderate Republicans.

New Hampshire state Senator Lou D'Allesandro was the only Democrat to side with 10 Republicans against the legislation, which would redefine marriage to include same-sex couples. He cited his "traditional family values."

Democratic state Senator Deborah Reynolds, who opposed the bill at committee level, changed her vote after the amendment.

"This is a compromise that is respectful to both sides of this debate and meets our shared goal of equality under state law for all the people of New Hampshire," Reynolds said.

Senate Republicans said discrimination remains in the bill, which Democrats said would ensure gay couples no longer received a "separate but equal" civil union distinction.

"Marriage for centuries has the traditional meaning of one man and one woman, and we believe that term should not be co-opted to be used for other purposes," said Republican Peter Bragdon, the Senate minority leader.

(Editing by Jason Szep and Mohammad Zargham)