Monday, April 15

 

 

I woke up at 4:00 and dozed on and off until the alarm went. Irma did the same.

I started the W.K. Kellogg breakfast cereal that we bought in Dubai and, yes, they look, felt and tasted exactly like Mini Shredded Wheat. I didn’t mind this because I have always liked Shredded Wheat.

I spent the morning having a final wrestling match with the application for my doctorate at Helsinki University. By the time I submitted it at 11:45 I felt that I could not make it any better. It had got much better since I received the critique of the original draft and added the empirical research to the mix. It also better reflected what I would actually like to do.

If they don’t like it and don’t want me, then I will accept this happily. On the other hand, if they embrace me then I shall react with gusto. On balance I would prefer the latter reaction.

Lunch consisted of vegetable lasagne downstairs. I felt very hungry and this filled me up nicely. I have slid into vegetarianism and may well find myself descending into veganism any day now. Certainly, I have stopped eating meat, except on the odd occasions when I find myself offered it.

Recording videos with Mirko took up most of the afternoon. I redid all the videos for the online course, and this time I did them with no scripts. I stood in the studio, looked at the camera, and spoke for about ninety minutes with no retakes. I did have two or three false starts though.

On the way home I realised that I felt tired and wanted to walk for a little bit. I also realised that I had the time to do this, having left Arcada twenty minutes earlier than I had planned and caught a bus and a metro with no waiting.

I got on the 95 at Itäkeskus and took it a few extra stops. I got off at the Kiviportintie end of Puolimatkanpolku and walked down to the small remaining piece of open land, where I turned right towards the children’s playground.

I walk through the remnants of the woods, where the new houses stand, and turn left just before the playground. Here I see the channels either side of the path. In the bright sunlight I can see trees reflected in the water.

I will arrived home to receive the latest news from the whirligig of family madness. Seemingly, this currently revolves around who might and who might not benefit from fictitious and misunderstood inheritances. I wil remind Irma that none of this concerns us, unless we want it to. She will remind me that we don’t.

I will help Irma while she goes through a slide show for a presentation that she will make tomorrow. After this we will prepare our tax rebates and other official matters.

Shower? Yes. Early to bed? Definitely.