everything's alright, everything's fine! (a rainy day)

rainy days are my favorite kind of days.

now the low lakes have frozen, away from home i'll go.

it's that time of the year when it feels like every night is a little darker than the one before. the time of the year i just want to get cozy under a blanket, drink burning hot tea, read books and listen to good, calm music. here is some music that i think goes perfectly with the end of the autumn/beginning of the winter days.

1. In This Town by Marcus Foster | Spotify | Youtube

2. I Followed Fires by Matthew and The Atlas | Spotify | Youtube

3. Steal His Heart by Emily and The Woods | Spotify | Youtube

4. Smother by Daughter | Spotify | Youtube

5. Wisely and Slow by The Staves | Spotify | Youtube

6. O My Sould by Daniel Martin Moore | Spotify | Youtube

7. Man on Fire by Edward Sharpe & The Magnetic Zeros | Spotify | Youtube

8. Carnival by Shovels & Rope | Spotify | Youtube

9. King and Lionheart by Of Monsters and Men | Spotify | Youtube

10. Weights & Measures by Dry The River | Spotify | Youtube

11. Hear The Noise That Moves So Soft and Low by James Vincent McMorrow | Spotify | Youtube

12. Let Her Go by Passenger | Spotify | Youtube

13. Punch in The Heart by Josh Pyke feat. Katy Steele | Spotify | Youtube

what kind of music you like to listen to this time of year?
if you like these songs check out my Music for Cold&Dark Nights playlist on Spotify  that contains all these songs and more!

so we set the world on fire.

2011 Recap part 02.

In July i went on a roadtrip with my best friends to see The Ark on few music festivals. it was hot and i was super sick, on the second gig it was pouring and i thought i might just die. it was all worth it, it was in fact, quite awesome. despite the fact that we also fought a lot. i guess saying goodbye to your favorite band was hard on everyone.

Important things that happened
• On July 22nd 76 people are killed in terrorist attacks in Norway after a bombing in government center in Oslo and a shooting at political youth camp in the island of  Utøya.
• On July 23rd British singer Amy Winehouse dies of alcohol poisoning just at age 27.

In August i was mostly excited about Doctor Who starting again after summer hiatus. i saw Super 8 in the theaters and loved it. i was happy when the weather cooled down. i spent time with The Kids and was so ready to say my goodbyes to the summer.

Important things that happened

• On August 5th NASA announces it has captured photographic evidence of possible liquid water on Mars during warm seasons.
• On August 20th - 28th Libyan rebels took control the nation's capital effectively overthrowing the government of Muammar Gaddafi.

September was full of lasts. the last day of me being blond, i did a bit of a makeover and became brunette after 5 years of torturing my hair with bleaching chemicals. then there was The Big Last One, the very last The Ark gig at Gröna Lund, Sweden. it was one of the best trips of my life, and i was both happy and sad and mostly just Grateful of the it all. having a Favorite band that was so cool, having to have almost 10 years with them, having to seen them over 20 times with some epic stories and parties and most of all, i was Grateful of my Friends. people i met because of the band but who just turned out to be so much more than just other fans. (and i also baked a lot of pies.)

Important things that happened

• On September 17th Occupy Wall Street protests begin in the United States and spreads to 82 countries by October.

In October my niece turned 5 and i turned 24. i started working in a Library and was sad about Doctor Who ending, again. at the enf of the month i flew to Reykjavik, Iceland to visit a dear friend.

Important things that happened

• On October 20th  Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi is killed in Sirte, with National Transitional Council forces taking control of the city, and ending the war.
• On October 20th Basque separatist militant organisation ETA declares an end to its 43-year campaign of political violence, which has killed over 800 people since 1968.

November started at one of the most beautiful places on earth, Iceland. it was magical and i will never forget all the wonders i got to see and people i was lucky enough to meet. it was easily one of the highlights of my year and i was a bit sad to come back home so soon. i got really excited about new Childish Gambino album and the fact that i bought tickets to see Michael Buble in the spring of 2012. i did a little trip to helsinki to see friends and i dreamed of white christmas when the weather was unseasonly warm.

Important things that happened

• On November 26th The Mars Science Laboratory rover Curiosity, the most elaborate Martian exploration vehicle to date, is launched from the Kennedy Space Center. It is slated to land on Mars on August 5, 2012.

In December i spent christmas with my family and on boxing day we had a blackout that lasted for 36 hours. i read the first novel of Stieg Larsson's Millenium Trilogy. i had a friend visiting me and as the year chaged from 2011 to 2012 i was woth my sister and her family, trying to figure out how a Rubiks Cube has only 26 small cubes and not 27. i'm not proud to say this, but it took us way longer to figure this out than it should have.

Important things that happened

• On December 15th The United States formally declares an end to the Iraq War.• On December 17th the supreme leader of North Korea Kim Jong-il dies.

All in all 2011 was an amazing year of big endings, but as things ended, it also marked new beginnings. i'm looking forward to things this new year brings me. i'm hoping for a place to study, wheter it be abroad or in Finland. there are also already some gigs i'm really looking forward to (Cat Power and mr. Bublé!). one of the biggest new beginnings is fastly approaching when i'll become an aunt for the third time since The Kids are expecting to get a new baby brother/sister later this spring! here's for happy 2012 to everyone!

all the trouble went away and it wasn't just a dream.

what's on your list of things to do this Autumn?

and the worst part is, before it gets any better, we're headed for a cliff.

in a song called Strange Things Will Happen by The Radio Dept. they sing Autumn comes with these slight surprises where your life might twist and turn. and i think that describes perfectly my love for it, how it always feels like a new start, how it feels like amazing things, strange things, could happen. autumn feels rather different this year. maybe cause i'm not living in Helsinki anymore, or maybe cause i'm not a student, and i'm sort of in between things, between two different chapters of my life. this year i'm focusing on mostly, just enjoying life, finding what next year will be, where it will be. this year is gonna be a full of days that seem pointless, but in those days i might find something new. this autumn especially, is time of new beginnings and experiences. i recently bought plane tickets to Reykjavik, where i'll be heading on October the 28th. to visit a very dear friend of mine. that will be the furthest i've ever travelled so far. in this month, i'm getting ready to say Good Bye to the one thing that has shaped my life more than anything, my favorite band The Ark. on 14th me & a group of friends are gonna sail to Stockholm and have a little adventure there, as well as see the band for the very last time (until a comeback maybe, please!). so, with all these things coming, what's a little more change. i've been dying my hair blond, god knows for how long, i think since 2006, at least, but now i decided to go a 'little' darker and shorter. and i'm really happy with my new hair, tho the bangs could be a little longer, but in my experience, they tend to grow maybe even a bit too fast.

as a person who loves making lists, i just had to make one about autumn, all the things that Love about it. maybe there's something you enjoy too, especially you people, who find it hard to let go of summer. also, i'd love to hear the things you love about this Season of colors and cold and rain! Enjoy your September.

your string of lights is still bright to me, oh.

October night at Helsinki.

"autumn comes with these slight surprises where your life might twist and turn."

time turns flames to embers, you'll have new septembers.

like i said, i might try to be a better blogger, or not, and i'm still not promising anything, but this is me trying. and like i said, i'm visiting my parents, enjoying my little vacation i have until i (voluntarily) go back to school in October. so, here are some little random moments from my visit.

this is my Home Sweet Home. was build in 1946 by my late grandfather and grandmother. and i can say it's still not exactly finished. but it's Home.

and at home there's always some company! even if mom&dad are working and my little brother is in a middle of a serious Halo marathin or something. this is our newest familymemeber, Kissa. yep, our cat's name is cat in finnish. i'd like to say it's cause Holly Golightly never named her cat in Breakfast at Tiffany's but it's just cause we never really gave him a name, and now it's too late, it's been 4 years.

paws are cute.

this is Nöpö (oh that name is lame.. maybe we ought not to name our pets, ever). he looks like a little sweetheart in this picture but he is quite stubborn and a wayward creature.

Lara is a Grand Old Lady, almost 11 years but she can still kick both Nöpö's and Kissa's asses.

sometimes i swear i live in the same house Augusten Burroughs grew up in.. we still had christmas lights on the window. and they're like the ugliest ones you can possibly find. this house is slightly crazy. in a less disturbing way tho than the housewhere you could run with scissors.

this is why i love autumn. apples. apple pie. pie! colors and the smell.

and di i mention, apples!

and the colors.

and mushrooms! well actually i don't like mushrooms. my sisters kids have recently learned that you can actually eat stuff you find from the forest, so now they're convinced we should make mushroom soup, from these. good thing is they realize, that some things are poisonous...

random. but reflections are pretty

okay this as exiting as life gets in a little town. but it's a nice change for the city. when you don't have to stay too long.