Friday 5 for January 6: In with the old
Posted on
Jan 7, 2023

Friday 5 for January 6: In with the old

Answers to today’s questions over at f.riday.com 🙂 

1. How did you celebrate your most recent birthday?

By having my Mom and her SO over for a visit on that day. And then I baked a chocolate cake later that week even if it was techinically after my birthday, because I was feeling good enough to do it then. I considered it my birthday present for myself.

2. What was the subject of a list you recently composed?

Uh, I can’t remember… most likely a grocery shopping list, or a shopping list for the pharmacy. Or a list of things I want to mention or talk about with my best friend and/or Mom the next time we talk on the phone. I can’t remember which of these is the most recent because I do them all the time because my memory isn’t what it used to be!

3. What did you most recently use vinegar in?

I’ve never used vinegar in anything. I did ask my Mom to give me about 4 table spoons from her bottle a few years ago, because I wanted to bake a chocoloty… something (can’t remember what! Other than it was chocolate). But I never did because by the time I saw my Mom, I was feeling worse again and didn’t feel like trying any new baking. I asked Mom because it’s sold in 0,5 litre or 1 litre bottles only and I’ve never needed it before in 20 years so no point in buying a big bottle when I’d only need like 2 table spoons of the stuff at once.

4. What can sometimes get you out of a bad mood?

My favorite music. Or a favorite comedy such The Golden Girls, The Fawlty Towers or ‘Allo ‘Allo!

5. How do you feel about shrimp?

As long as its far away from me in the sea, it’s all cool.

As a potential food, it’s suspect and I won’t put it in my mouth.

Jo’s Daily Questions – January 1-16, 2023
Posted on
Jan 1, 2023

Jo’s Daily Questions – January 1-16, 2023

Jo over at Dreamwidth put together a list of daily questions for 2023 again :mrgreen: Here’s my answers to January 1 – 16 guestions.

 

1 – Global Family Day: How do you define family?

By how close we are. Only my Mom is my family. My Mom’s SO who she lives with, is a relative of mine in my mind.

2 – World Introvert Day: Do you consider yourself an introvert, an extrovert, or something in between?

I’m in between, but lean very much towards introvert. I need my alone time, and always have.

3 – Women Rock! Day: From the Supremes to Janis Joplin to Tori Amos to Billie Eilish, women have made their mark in the world of music. If you were putting together an all-female play list, list five performers who would absolutely have to be on it.

Sade, Ofra Haza, Sarah Brightman, Caro Emerald and Sarah McLachlan.

4 – World Hypnotism Day: Have you ever been hypnotised? If so, how was the experience?

Nope.

5 – Whipped Cream Day: Do you like whipped cream? Have you ever made whipped cream from scratch?

Oh yes! I love whipped cream! I always make it from scratch – ready whipped cream isn’t much of a thing here. There’s only 1 or two Brand’s ready whipped cream sold here, and not in all groceries. You can’t use it for decorating cakes or anything because it melts in about 5 minutes. Occasionally I buy one bottle to use with “köyhät ritarit” (poor knights/French toast, I think?) along with strawberry or apple jam. But whipped cream layer cake is my favorite. Continue reading Jo’s Daily Questions – January 1-16, 2023

The Friday Five for Dec 30, 2022
Posted on
Dec 31, 2022

The Friday Five for Dec 30, 2022

The last thefridayfive questions of 2022!

1. What was the best thing that happened to you this year

I survived it?

2. What are you looking forward to next year?

To get the bloody biological father inheritance thing solved, over and done with!

3. Will you be doing anything special to ring in the New Year?

Nope. I haven’t slept well the past week, and last night only got three hours of sort-of sleep, so I’ll be just waiting that the fireworks are over hopefully no later than 1-2am so I can go to bed. I’ll be watching some old tv shows: The Golden Girls and Wire on the Blood to pass the time, and re-uploading my 4K Game of Thrones screencaps.

4. What would you like to see more of next year?

I don’t know… I wish I’ll have more energy to do ordinary things like take walks and make home cooked meals. And that I’ll sleep well. I always wish for these things because they’re not happenign much.

5. What was your best New Year’s Eve ever?

I’m not one for New Year’s Eve festivities because of the loud fireworks and the crowds easily lead to migraine for me. So there’s no “best ever”. But there are two fond memories:

When I was a little kid, we’d light spark sticks and seek omens by melting down tin and dropping it in cold water and that was fun! Because that was something we did as a family at midnight when the year changed – I don’t remember us having parties with guests or anything like that at New Year, just Mom and Dad and me doing those two things and eating Christmas candies and chocolate and I’m pretty sure also some nice baked goods with the evening coffee (around 8pm) even though I don’t remember that clearly.

Then as an adult in my 20s, when my Mom had a dog, a Beagle, I did have Caro the Beagle over at my place a couple of times for the New Year evening and night so my Mom and her SO could go (ballroom) dancing if a dance was arranged. Caro the Beagle was scared of the fireworks, so she couldn’t be left alone this particular night even though usually it was no problem. I always loved having Caro over, but New Year was always not great for her so I was glad to be there for her and my Mom and her SO. Caro always sought out one of my closets during the fireworks night so I’d make her a nice, safe nest there and make sure my TV was on quite loudly, or play music on my stereo, and have all the curtains closed to help to drown out the worst of the fireworks. Caro was okay in the closet (but not her happy self) when the door was closed so the nights always went okay like that.

Jo’s Daily Questions – December 17-31, 2022
Posted on
Dec 23, 2022

Jo’s Daily Questions – December 17-31, 2022

The second half of half of Jo’s daily December questions!

 

17. What do you like most about your family?

That my Mom gets me the way no one else does. When I forget words she always knows what I mean, and vice versa. She knows me like no one else.

18. December 18 is “Bake Cookies Day”. Do you have a favourite cookie recipe? Care to share?

I rarely bake cookies. The only cookies I make with some sort of regularity, as in a couple of times in a couple of years (LOL) are kaurapitsit. This is one recipe https://www.kotikokki.net/reseptit/nayta/482068/Kaurapitsit/ that I’ve used but I really have no favorite. The fewer the ingredients the better the kaurapitsit. We had a recipe I loved when I was a kid, but it doesn’t make them anymore like it used to – either the products have changed, or I’ve forgotten how. Either is possible! But really, I think the kaurahiutale (oat something) has change since the 1980s and as the result kaurapitsit don’t come out anymore like when I was a kid. They need to come out very thin, much thinner and more like lace than in the picture above to be how I like them. Continue reading Jo’s Daily Questions – December 17-31, 2022

Friday 5 for December 23: On the dotted line
Posted on
Dec 23, 2022

Friday 5 for December 23: On the dotted line

Answers to today’s questions over at f.riday.com

1. What did you last put your signature on?

My hand-written, manual signature? Uh, probably my new KELA card 4 or 5 months ago? Very few things need to be manually signed anymore. Technically I sign packages a lot (every month) but that’s done by the clerk scanning the bar code of my government issue ID card ever since start of COVID-19. Probably would happen even without COVID-19 now because Finland & technology, but I noticed that clear change in process from hand-written signatures to scanning the ID in the post office soon after start of COVID-19 pandemic.

2. How legible is your signature?

Very.

3. How has your signature changed over time?

It hasn’t! It’s still exactly the same as when I was a kid. It looks like a kid’s too IMHO and I’m SO embarrassed about it! You’d think it’d have become more adult-like in 40 years!

4. When did you last initial something?

Probably never? A really long time ago, if ever. If something requires it, it requires a full signature.

5. Is there a story behind your given name, or is it just a name?

There’s no story behind my given name, but there’s a story of what kept happening because of it during my school years and even now sometimes. I’ve told it here: https://www.so-obsessed.com/2022/09/30/jos-weekly-questions-september-2022/ #1 at that link.