He came to me fully grown as a seven-year-old boy about to turn eight, so that’s how I always saw him, as the boy who lived below us in my building and was a year and a month younger than me. There were three of us on our side of the building, so that there…
Category: Social Issues
A Midsummer Night’s Dream: A Drug Deal Goes Down in the Neighborhood
Behind the house where the German pickup artist lives with his teenage daughter, wife and dog is a small path that gives you access to several buildings, including mine. It is a path gladly taken in the summer, for it is easier to handle the wildlife than it is to tackle the elements, especially the…
The Po’Boy Chef Attempts a Burger
Well, not entirely, but the branding – quite literally – is on point. I’m not even sure how to begin this. When I first moved to Helsinki there was a particular place I really liked and would go to a lot. I became a fixture there. It was a great place to hang out with…
Mrs. 52 Hours of Freedom Presents Her MA Thesis
She told us on the way down to Silesia that she was paying someone to write her Master’s thesis for her. Said it very nonchalantly but at the same time in a way I termed Slavic-it-is-what-it-is-style. Those who know me well, also know that I abhor that expression. Which is why I will always use…
The Author Contemplates a Childhood Friendship Lost
Meeting Ethnic Kin M. would kill me if she found out I was writing this. I can say this for sure because when I wrote a fun piece about our friendship and tracked her down to ok it, she took months to reply and then told me that the reason she did was she was…
The People Watcher Observes Another Couple
Poczatek means beginning, and we ended up there because our original choice of cafe was so full, we backed out quicker than we came in. Definitely noted for another day and time, because it looks like a bomb place in a bomb location. For those who don’t know, when I say that I love the…
10 Things No One Tells You About Poland
Poland can be many things to many people, depending on whom you ask. To the person seeking (more) info on their ancestors, it’s a treasure trove of information, facts and discoveries that lead to new explorations and also clarifications. To the Erasmus student it is a funfair that lasts as long as the exchange, with…
Finland’s Incessant Need for the Volunteer (always of foreign origin, never a Finn)
“We don’t really do volunteer work in Finland as such, because we get paid for charity work,” is what I heard many times when I inquired about volunteer work in Finland. And yet I really did keep hearing of people volunteering their time and expertise to a variety of causes. There were the retired folks…
The Cynical Non-Pole-With-Polish-Roots Observes Preparations for the Next Polish Event and Provides Her Opinion
It’s that time of the year again, where spring cleaning coincides with First Communion prep, embedded into attendance at church, last minute shopping and that final, mad desperate rush for presents. It’s not just about the family being together, it’s also about being seen – at church, in the neighborhood and perhaps most importantly at…
I Made a Salesman Cry Today at the Cattle Market ahem Job Fair – for real this time
cntd from previous post But the best part was the Robotics Club Extra as I’ll call it. Think of your own religion or one adjacent to you. Now think of the holy centers where they study that scripture that defines their religion. Think of the men (it’s always the men) who study there, their smooth…
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