November 2001

November 30, 2001

The fatigue’s still there

I thought that once our project was over, I’d be able to catch up with my missed sleep and not feel so trapped and uninterested. But the project’s been “done” for almost two weeks now and I’m still tired and disinterested and a little depressed. I don’t like this.

Ilya

November 27, 2001

Real life isn’t always as obvious as movies

I woke up this morning wondering why the score isn’t swelling in the background. I’m worried that the orchestra’s been fired and the conductor has become a raging drunk.

Ilya

November 23, 2001

Keys to locked memories

Now I know why I like Yle’s radio news so much. It hit me while I was getting coffee today from the paper shop downstairs of the Media Lab. I remember the call tone from when I would play in my Finnish grandparents kitchen. They used to have a Yle station playing all the time in the kitchen. Wow.

Does everyone have memories of being safe and happy at their grandparents house? I wonder... Maybe grandparents, since they usually die while their granchildren are growing up, are a permanent key to childhood memories.

Ilya

November 9, 2001

After the snow

It snowed all last night and it keeps on coming. It’s beautiful. But it’s bad: it feels like Christmas and it’s not even the middle of November yet.

Ilya

November 7, 2001

No more Finnish

I killed the Finnish language side. Felt more like writing in English. Gonna do a redesign, too. Soon, I hope.

Took today off from day work, have to pull all the stuff together in my other work. But you know what? I’m tired and am having a hard time concentrating. Figures.

Ilya

November 6, 2001

Noomeejahoor

I’m definitely a noomeejahoor.

Ilya

Pangs of ludditism

Why are text messages so popular? Just now on the radio I heard that women over 30 send more messages than they talk on the phone. Text messages are considered the most important way to "manage their social lives".

And while I'm at it, I might as well ask: why do people desire to consume DVDs so passionately? I like movies just as—er, actually probably more—than the next guy, but the excitement around DVD buyers doesn't register with me.

Okay, enough of luddite stuff for this morning. My two copies of Learning Python finally arrived last Thursday (Thanks for the help, Grandma!). See, I'm such a nerd, I buy my O'Reilly books two at a time.

Mmm. Can hardly wait for blogBuddy 0.5 to be published.

Diana says she will finally know how much she makes and—understandably worse—spends. I know it still causes my mom pain when she calculates everyday expenses in dollars. Myself, I'm finding that many things actually cost pretty much the same in Finland as they did in the Bay Area.

Somethings—a certain smell, a particular song, a change in season—key intense reminescence. The, feelings, the recaptured emotions, it's all an incredibly strong sensation. Makes me shiver and tear up. And it always catches me by surprise.

Memories are a trip.

Ilya

November 2, 2001

Un-up to it

I woke up with a headache this morning. Timo called and said our client is down-sizing our project. A meeting is being held this afternoon on it. So my morning turned from bad to worse.

The showing I was at yesterday was at Caf� Camera on Museokatu, and it surprised me that the place was so small. Nice photos, though. Maybe I'll go again and look at the pictures with more time and space (the place was packed).

Elice's having a Halloween/house warming party in Lahti today and I'm getting lots of pressure to go. I don't really have time, especially with the ominous news on our project. But I'm not sure I want to go anyway. I'd like to hang out with everyone ("like the good times we had last summer," Elexa said) but I don't really feel up to it. I'm having a hard time sitting in one place lately. It must be the pressure of our ever-looming deadlines.

Whatever they tell you, don't start a company if you want to have a life.

Ilya

November 1, 2001

I miss Halloween

Reading about Meg's Halloween preparations makes me miss that Halloween isn't celebrated in Finland. I miss what it feels like when the whole country kicks into holiday mode. Even with the crass commercialism.

Taneli kicked me in the balls of complacency today. Not that I didn't feel indignant and pissed off, but whether or not for the reasons he meant, he was right. So to work I go! But first, our family friend Eddie's photography showing opening!

Ilya