The Pics Are Over There.

Becky posted some pictures of our trip to Turku last weekend. Click here to be automagically transported to her blog.

Update-o-rama.

I haven't blogged about what I've been doing in a while so here it is in a nutshell.

Earlier this year, Heikki and Eija (Heikki's wife and one of my collaborators) bought a lot on a small island near Oulu. They plan on building a summer cottage there and recently came across a newspaper ad for a disassembled log cabin. Two Saturdays ago, I went with Heikki, Eija, Heikki's son Ollie, and Ollie's friend to a cottage on a lake south of Oulu to examine, stack, and prepare the logs for shipping to the island. It was a two hour drive with five of us crammed into a small Audi (about the size of a Ford Focus). We got there and proceeded to stack and tie down immensely heavy logs for at least 5 hours while fighting off extremely persistent mosquitoes and biting flies. Ideally these logs would have already been stacked correctly by the owner who was selling them. Instead they were essentially thrown into a pile with some rocks underneath to keep them off the ground. Some of the logs were also missing the all important letter-number identifications needed to be able to put the cabin back together correctly. These things could be overlooked though since the logs we saw were still in fairly good condition (i.e. they weren't wet and rotting) and the price was low (it's my understanding that purchasing logs for a cabin is very expensive).

When we finally finished with the last of the logs, I found out that another set at a different location needed to be stacked and bound as well. Needless to say, I wasn't too thrilled about that. When we arrived at the second location we found that the final logs consisted of the critical, and ridiculously large and heavy, floor beams and attic support beams. These logs were in terrible condition. They were completely wet and rotting from not being elevated off the ground and from a shoddy tarp covering them. After seeing the condition of these logs, the deal was called off and all that labor was for naught. From what Heikki told me, the logs could only be used as firewood now, since the key logs are very expensive to replace.

Overall, it wasn't a bad experience though. I got to see a part of Finland that a lot of people don't get a chance to see. I got to hang out with Heikki, Eija, Ollie, and Ollie's friend, who are all very nice people, while taking in some beautiful scenery. I met and had a good conversation with a really nice German guy who was visiting his friends for the summer. I even learned something about log cabins. Not too bad.

Moving on, last Friday Becky and I went to Q-Stock in Oulu. She beat me to the punch and already wrote something about it on her blog here. It was a lot of fun and there were some good bands that I haven't heard of before. We managed to hear the end of Blue Frequency's set and they sounded pretty good. We also saw Entwine and they were a really rockin' band.

Here I am enjoying the weather and a beer at Never Grow Old in downtown Oulu before heading to the concert.



Today, Becky and I left work early to go see The Dark Knight. I have been waiting on the edge of my seat for this movie to be released since the day I saw Batman Begins in the theater. Thankfully, I wasn't disappointed. It was a great film and Heath Ledger's Joker was outstanding. He was truly frightening and every bit as intelligent and psychotic as in the comic books. For me at least, Heath Ledger's Joker stole the show.

The First Weekend in Oulu.

We made it to Oulu! Our bags arrived the next morning though.

Our first few days here have been great. A friend of Raine's is letting us borrow a bunch of furniture and dishes, so our apartment (which is pretty big, by the way) is much more comfortable now.

On Friday we went to the Rotuaari Piknik, where they block off the walking street downtown and set up a stage to have some bands play. I was an idiot and decided that I would be fine in just jeans and a t-shirt. Well, it got cold pretty quick and I ended up going to the nearby department store and buying a jacket. I actually got a really nice fleece Columbia jacket for 40% off and I'm wearing it all the time now! After that we headed to my favorite bar in Oulu, 45 Special. It's a bar that plays nothing but rock music. The "basement" plays some older music like The Cure, Nirvana, Van Halen, etc. The middle floor, where you enter, is just a sitting area with a bar. The top floor has either a live band or plays more modern rock like Papa Roach, Limp Bizkit, Fall Out Boy, etc.

Last night, we tried out the sauna. It was really nice and relaxing. I'm really glad that we have one in our apartment.

As for work, Heikki doesn't officially return from vacation until next week, but I plan on going in to so some stuff before then. I have to revise my final dissertation paper so that I can resubmit it and I'm hoping I can finish that before I start something new.

Time to go.

The day is here! Today we fly to Oulu, Finland. Our bags are packed and I think we are ready to go. Our flight is scheduled to depart at 10:20pm and we arrive at 7:50pm local time tomorrow.

Stay tuned for blogs from Oulu.

Soon.

Our flight from Detroit leaves at 10:20pm tomorrow and we arrive at about 8pm on July 3 (local Oulu time). I'm both nervous and excited about the trip. I also feel like there just isn't enough time to properly hang out with everyone before I leave.

Camping in Kentucky.

Here are some pictures of Cumberland Falls, Kentucky.

Videos of Vappu.

Pictures of Oulu, Finland.

Here are some pictures I took of Oulu, Finland.

This is a lake near my friend's (Raine's) apartment, where I stayed.












Here's Raine hard at work in the living room.


These are pictures of a concert we went to at the best bar in Oulu, 45 Special. The band is called Viikate (Scythe, in English).

















May 1st is Vappu, a national holiday in Finland. The college students have a hazing ritual for the first year students that culminates on the day before Vappu with a "baptism" in one of the rivers in downtown Oulu. After having lunch downtown, we went to the park to check out the festivities.

Here's my friend A.J. trying to look suave.


Here's Raine giving the horns of satan.


Here's Pertti doing the same.


The divers didn't show up yet, so the "baptisms" took place in a pool filled with river water instead of the river itself. The scaffolding had a collapsible platform for the students to sit on. It was then released, sending the person into the pool of frigid water.













The divers finally show up and they are now setting up the slide for the real "baptisms."















I was told this says, "the police are your friends!"


After the festivities, we met up with some of Raine and Pertti's friends and went to a bar and played cards.

From left to right are Pia, Kari's girlfriend (I forgot her name, sorry), and Kimmo.


From left to right are Kari, Raine, Pertti, and A.J.


Here's my friend Eero.







This is Raine's good friend, Jyrki (I think that's how you spell it).