Thursday, February 21

This morning Naa went to Kamppi and Auo and I set off for the Opera House where I was due to meet Reidar. We were ten metres down the road when Reidar phoned to say he had got horrible flu and asked if we could meet on Skype. WE turned back and I spoke to him on Skype for almost an hour. WE got everything planned for the Media Masters module in two weeks time, and when we finished I was very happy.

I then checked my email and realised that I had a bone fide emergency. Deirdre needed a formed signed and returned before she could buy her plane tickets. Auo and I pulled our boots back on again and left the house.

Now we are on the tram. It is holiday week and the middle of the day, so public transport is almost empty. When we get to Arcada I will print out the form, sign it, take it to Christa for her signature and stamp, scan it, and email it back to Deirdre. WE will then go to lunch.

Auo loves Arcada lunches because, she claims, they are so much better than her school lunches. The lunch counter was empty and we both had salmon pasta. She took ten minutes to go through it and carefully select all the large chunks of salmon. By the time we paid Auo had a plate of salmon with a few strands of pasta.

After lunch we will leave for home. At Itäkeskus the only available transport will be the jouko. We will get that. By two hundred metres from the bus station we will be the only passengers. The jouko now has an extended route so we will sit on it while we are driven around the small rural roads at the edge of Mellunmäki. The Russian driver will appear to take care to avoid any inhabited streets or roads with traffic. We will feel as though we have been kidnapped.

When we get home I will vacuum clean, and then spend an hour or so getting the hardened snow from the paths. In the evening Irma and I will do tomorrow’s shopping early in an effort to get ahead of ourselves.

Prisma will be almost empty. We will succeed effortlessly.