[what just happened?]

No wonder I love macro photography! Even icky, yucky, scary spiders look oh so cute when seen in macro. 

Check out more amazing macro photos here:

Jimmy Kong/Flickr

[book & movie review]

An enjoyable story of Italian immigrants making a new life in USA. Loved it.

So cool that after so many years of not speaking Italian (I used to know all the basics), I could still understand the Italian words in the book.

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Ok enough story to keep you reading but I wanted more out of it. I won't put it in my pile of "will read again one day" books.

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Won't go in my "will read again one day" book pile. Enjoyed the last part of the book the best. The topic of the book was a bit too dark and depressing (ghosts, demons) for me. But good enough for three stars, I guess.

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Salve for my romantic soul. More clean, romantic books please! I liked Edenbrooke better. Blackmoore has a dark streak to it.

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What can I say about this book? It was good, not great. It talked too much about food but if you enjoy talking/hearing about food, then this book is for you. It's supposed to build up into a great spiritual discovery, but to me, it fell short and there wasn't enough to add any great insight into my life. Maybe if I didn't already have such a strong spiritual foundation, I would have received some new thoughts on the subject. You can pretty much divide this book into thirds: one third is about food and what to eat while driving through the States, one third is about eastern spiritual thoughts and one third is about describing scenery during the road trip. I almost gave this book two stars but decided on three because at least it is a clean book and that's half the battle nowadays. Not a bad book but don't expect anything amazing.

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R rated. :( 

I was so disappointed in this book as I enjoyed the author's The Hypnotist's Love Story. Boo for swearing and filth!

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Two women begin correspondence with each other during WWII. Loved reading about their lives. Beautifully written.

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This movie would be perfect for today's Martin Luther King day. It is mind-boggling to me when people think they are better than someone else, just based on their race. This movie hit home too because it is only so recently that the black people have had their rights in the USA. We take it for granted but we should remember what was still happening in the world not that long ago. And if we think racism is gone for good, well, that's just not true. It still exists in many forms around the world. So sad!

There was one part in the movie that I did not agree with and that was when they compared what happened to the black people to what the Jews went through in WWII. Even though the crimes against black people were beyond horrible, what happened to them should not be compared to the Jewish Holocaust. They weren't systematically slaughtered by the millions.

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Such a good movie! Loved it!

[Why wasn't my school this cool?]

[thinking about... my style.]

I admit it - I'm a weird woman - I don't like shopping that much. Clothing or shoe shopping especially. If I had to choose between going to a clothing store or a book store, I'd always choose the book store! There are odd moments when I do feel like shopping but usually it's painful for me to try to find things that I like to wear. Possibly because I can be very picky about what I wear. If it's not comfortable - sorry, I won't wear it, no matter how cute it is otherwise. 

I often dream of having a personal shopper who knows my style, my size and could just bring me stuff to wear. No such luck so I'm known to buy multiple long sleeved basic black t-shirts for the winter so that I don't have to think about what to wear in the morning. At times I'll buy something a bit more colorful to have some variety.

I pretty much have two or three pairs of jeans I wear in the winter, plus Lululemon black pants that I like as well. In the summer I love to wear maxi dresses, long skirts and capri pants. If black didn't make you too hot in the summer, I'd probably buy multiple short sleeved black shirts to wear in the summer too. :) My husband sometimes complains about my mainly black/gray wardrobe so when I do find something more colorful to wear, I have to show it to him right away and say "See, I wear other colors too!". :)

If I had a personal shopper, I'd be more adventurous with clothing, for sure. I'm not that weird that I wouldn't appreciate nice clothes and some more variety too.

I love long skirts! I don't know why but I feel beautiful when I wear them. Feminine. I'm not into showing my body too much. I think being mysterious and leaving things for imagination is more sexy and fun. You won't ever see my boobs hanging out for everyone to see. ;)

So here are some things that I'd consider "my style". 

Minus the earrings. I haven't worn earrings for many, many years. I wish I had never pierced my ears.

I hardly ever wear necklaces either but I do have some that I like for special occasions.

Big silver rings and bracelets are my favorites.

Pointy shoes are yucky. Why on earth would someone want to squish their toes like that? My shoes always have to be comfy and easy to walk with. No stiletto heels for me, please.

I love maxi dresses! They are so comfortable and easy to wear. The only complaint I have that they are hard to find, often a bit too short (I like them almost all the way to the ground) and the fabrics are often too psychedelic for my taste.

My dream is to wear maxi dresses every day while working in my loft art studio. :)

Love these arm warmers!

I also love wearing high heeled boots (a bit chunky heels, no stiletto heels, as I said earlier) and this lace idea is so cute. I probably wouldn't add the bow in mine, as I like everything minimal and bows just aren't my thing. I'd also like mine in black. :)

Didn't I just say that bows aren't my thing? Yet for some weird reason, I love these sandals. Go figure. :)

I hardly ever wear nail polish (except on my toes in the summer, that's a must!) but if I did, I'd like them neutral, either matte or metallic. This is the nail length I like. Anything longer - not my thing!

And yes, I'd love the ring too. The perfect size for me. :)

So there you have it. Aren't you ecstatic that you now know what I like? Haha. :)

Happy Friday everyone! :)

Pinterest/My Style

[cool!]

Christoffer Relander

[noooooooo!!!!!!!]

There should NOT be such things as BIRD eating spiders! Can you believe this scary dude? He's someone I found during a school field trip to a museum.
Leg span of 30cm!!!!

Remind me to never EVER go to a Brazilian rain forest!!!

Yikes!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[found via Pinterest]

[found via Pinterest]

[What are you afraid of?]

[image found via Pinterest]

I've been thinking about something lately. About how we limit our lives at times because we're afraid of failure or because we're afraid to try something new.

My husband gave me a gift certificate for Moksha Yoga a year ago for Christmas. Guess who hasn't used it?

I have never been athletic. I occasionally enjoy biking, hiking and nature walks but by no means am I athletic. Even way back in school I always had a hard time with phys ed classes. I often skipped them so I wouldn't have to exercise in front of others (oli paljon mukavampaa käydä Stockalla hattuja kokeilemassa tai isolla jädeannoksella Hakaniemen Torin kahvilassa). Skating was pretty much the only thing I felt comfortable doing in front of others. Isn't that crazy? I don't know where my shyness about exercising in front of others comes from. And don't even mention about being shy to dance in front of others. We won't go there!

So I have this dilemma - I want to try Moksha Yoga. But I'm scared I'll make a total idiot of myself. I'm not flexible (an understatement if there ever was one!). I'm not in great shape (another understatement!). I feel that even the beginner class won't be "beginner enough" for me. I wonder if there is a "can't bend in any which way" class available? 

So how do you overcome your fears? I honestly don't know. I'm still working on it. I'll let you know if I'll figure it out. I do believe that I will have to start small. Maybe start by imagining myself in a yoga class. Once I start to feel comfortable with just the idea of doing yoga, then maybe I will want to go do it more than I am afraid of it.

[my favorite]

[source]

I. Love. Cats.

meow!

[yo!]

Have you heard of yonanas yet? I purchased one for our family for Christmas. All you need is frozen bananas, frozen fruit and/or berries and a bit of sugar, and you have a healthy dessert to enjoy. The sugar is optional, but even if you add some, it's still healthier than store bought ice-cream. 

Our family gives yonanas two thumbs up.

ps. You eat yonanas with a spoon. Too thick to drink. I just felt like using our Marimekko cups.

[gotta love a new daytimer]

Don't faint! Two blog posts in a row. Wowsa!

Just thought I'd share my 2014 daytimer with you. 

My husband is trying to help me see the light and to get me to use my new tablet for everything. But there's something about an actual daytimer that I just love. So for now, I'm doing double duty and keeping this calendar plus an online one which my husband and I use together to keep track of each other's life.

I loved my last year's modern daytimer but I couldn't find a similar one so this is what I ended up with. I've been buying Listography books for my friends as gifts and finally figured I might as well have my own, even if it's just a daytimer version. I write down what I do each day so it ends up being a bit of a journal for me too. Trust me, otherwise I'd forget what I did the day before. The weekly lists are an added bonus and will bring some fun into my every day life this year.