Despite the mostly horrible weather, my summer holiday has been very nice thus far. After the two super-cold weeks we got a nice heatwave: two weeks of around +30 celsius. It was lovely. ♥ When June changed to July, the warmest month in Finland, mother nature started PMSing - it's been rainy and cold, yippee. Weather always has a huge impact on me, since I love beuty, especially in the summer. Finland's countryside would be ravishing in the summer - fresh green forests, bright yellow turnip rape fields surrounded by violet, purple and white flowers, little red cottages, glimmering lakes and a blue sky -, but one can hardly enjoy travelling when it's dark, rainy and cold.

Anyway, the days I spent on summer cottages (both ours and Mikko's) were warm and wonderful.

Today's my birthday, I've entered the dull age of 19. 17 and 19 are weird, in-between ages: when I was 17, I always thought about myself as a 16-year-old, and if someone asked about Mikko's age when he was 19, I automatically answered that he was 20.
My birthday mood and festive spirits aren't exactly rising due to this depressing weather and the fact that I'm sitting alone in our apartment which is surrounded by ugly blocks of flats.
But, never fear! I've decided to cheer myself up by going to the nearby grocery shop, buying a big, chocolate coated ice cream and watching at least two episodes of Avonlea in a row. Perhaps after that life isn't that bad after all.

...talking about life being bad, I'm horribly nervous about the university entrance exam results.
By attending the entrance exam of journalism and mass media, I applied to both Tampere and Jyväskylä university to study that subject, and the Jyväskylä results already came. I've been accepted to Jyväskylä alright, which is a smaller town and where it's considerably easier to get in, and my points are still only 2,5 points higher than the lowest accepted point sum.
So if I barely got accepted to Jyväskylä, I doubt I'd get in to Tampere. AND I DON'T WANT TO GO TO JYVÄSKYLÄ FOR GODSSAKE ARRRGH.

On a more important note, omg Avonlea is coming to its end, the last season is about to begin. I shed a few tears in the episode where Sara left Avonlea and feel melancholy every time I see Felix: the small, plump kid has become a tall, grown man. ;__; Felicity is such a beautiful young woman that I gasp every time I see her in the season six opening. Oh, kids grow up too fast, especially on TV.

Blade of the Immortal volume 21 is out in a week! :D I'm very excited, MOAR MANJI/RIN NAO PLZ. ♥♥♥

Quick update! Just to let you know that I'm trying very hard to stay away from the computer since the entrance exam is next monday. I've studied very, very much, but I still have the feeling that it's not enough. Goddammit.

To make matters worse, over 1000 people applied to study mass communication and journalism, and only 40 get in. AHAHA HA HA...HA. -_-

AND I really, really want to get in, especially now: a few days back I got a letter from Jyväskylä university informing that I got accepted to study history (since my history matriculation exam points were so good.). Yippee? No. I really dont' want to move to Jyväskylä for one year (since I'd change university as soon as I could). And if I don't get in to Tampere uni and want to turn down the opportunity to study SOMEWHERE, my family will have me hung, drawn and quartered.

It's raining and the temperature is SIX CELSIUS DEGREES. Can you believe that? In June! Four days ago it was 29 C and sunny! Mother Nature must be on crack.

The fourth season of Road to Avonlea will end soon. This is a big tragedy, because in season five Gus will appear in only a few episodes, while during the fourth season he's been in almost every episode. ;__; I'll miss my Goose. Gus/Felicity is so much love, jealous!Gus beating Arthur up was awesome. :,D *squees*

Alma (that's me), 18, just curled her hair succesfully for the first time in her life! :D

*bliss*

...WHAT? It's a big occasion!

Lämpörullat (ionic rollers), ILU. <3 If anyone struggles with curling their hair for the graduation party, I recommend this method. Easier, faster and safer than curling tongs. -__-

My life's so boring nowadays. D:

I spend 5-6 days a week studying for the uni entrance exams (or trying very hard to do that), I hate both books, especially the one about visual literacy. >_< The topic would be interesting, but WHY does it have to be written in such a difficult way?
Representaatio lähtee ajatuksesta, että merkki ja todellinen vastaavat toisiaan (jopa silloin kun tämä vastaavuus on utooppista, se on perustava aksiooma). Käänteisesti: simulaatio lähtee liikkeelle tämän vastaavuuden periaatteen utooppisuudesta, merkin arvon radikaalista kieltämisestä, merkistä jokaisen referenssin kääntymänä ja kuolemantuomiona.
ASDF QWERTY! I'm an immature high scool graduate, have mercy!
T____T

After studying I'm so tired I rarely have the strenght to even cheer myself up with some Wolverine/Rogue fics, and that's a serious symptom in my case!

But this busy spring has totally distracted me about Blade of the Immortal volume 21. Time's passed so quickly that it's only a little more than 2 months until it's released! :D *waits for Manji/Rin -goodness* ♥

Dad's testing our new fancy home theatre devices, so I couldn't watch another episode of Avonlea, though I really would've wanted to. :,/ So I cheered myself up with some spoiling of future events and looking up some Gus/Felicity material. ♥




*___* <3
Gus is just about the cutest thing I've seen in quite a while. As a fan said in a blog I stumbled upon: "-- Gus Pike, whom I have to say is probably the best romantic male character in all of history (he even rivals Austen's Mr. Darcy).

I've found yet another place I want to visit in my life! It's Prince Edward Island. ♥ The island where Lucy Maud Montgomery was born and where many of her books take place. Avonlea and Green Gables can be found there! *sigh* After I finish the book I'm currently reading, I'll reread Anne of Green Gables and go to the library and try to find other Montgomery's books. Shame on me, I haven't even read Emily of New Moon!
Anyway, I'm determined to visit Prince Edward Island at least once in my life! I already found a lovely Victorian hotel where I want to stay. Could be a perfect destination for a honeymoon, no? :)

I've started watching Road to Avonlea, which may have SOMETHING to do with me looking up Prince Edward Island. I hope I'll find a DVD box of the series since I can't always catch all the episodes (they're aired 9.30 am on weekdays. ><). As somebody commented on youtube, I wish life would still be like that. *sigh* What a blessing it would be to live in such a beautiful, idyllic place.
And Gus, Gus Pike! ♥ So adorable, so sincere, so heartbreaking is he in the series. (played by a 3/4 Finnish actor, haha. XD)

*romantic sighs*

I found the opening of Sense and Sensibility (2008 version)! I love the music, and since I can't find it as a mp3 anywhere, I just loop the opening. Anyone who loves beautiful scores, just listen to it! Here, from 0:50 on!
*loves it* *__* <3
I'm totally getting this on DVD. And Pride and Prejudice (BBC) too! And Road to Avonlea, so I can watch all the episodes!

Yes, I'm a romantic. A big, big romantic. *sighs* Everything 19th and early 20th century + beautiful landscapes turns me on.

...anything excluding Keira Knightley. I just watched a scene of the new Pride and Prejudice movie (Keira Knightley -version). The "If your feelings are the same as in April then please tell me etc" scene. Oh...lord. Keira Knightley is SO NOT LIZZY. Srsly. AND WHAT'S WITH THAT MISTER DARCY? I see no chemistry. I don't. None at all.
and...and...ARGH. that kiss. argh. *eyes burn*

Forgot the happy things -meme! XD

Things that made me happy #8
+ It's been a sunny day, the snow (what's left of it) is melting. Spring! :)
+ Thinking back to Hungary. ♥ *sigh* Sitting in the garden in summer clothes, reading and listening to the cocks' crow...
+ noticing that there're still a FEW layers in my hair. The hairdresser couldn't blow it COMPLETELY.
+ Speaking to my friend Suvi on the phone and waiting to meet celen :) Friends. ♥

On another note, my weight's risen in a few days though I haven't been eating more than usual plus I've started jogging too. O__o;

I'M ALIVE!

Ahaha ha ha ha...ha.

Matriculation exams done, upper secondary school done.

:D :D :D

The last exam was almost a month ago, but I've been so goddamn tired that somehow even updating my LJ felt too demanding. The matriculation exams went well though, it's possible I'll get the best grade from four subjects (out of five). (The grades being A, B, C, M, E, L, from worst to best. Yes, in Finland if you get an A from your finals, it means you almost failed. 8D) But I DID study like mad: I got up at 8 in the morning and studied from 9 am to 9-10 pm every day for almost six weeks. :,B Paaaiiinn. Thinking back, I can't imagine where that motivation came from.

So after this horrible studying I spend my days...studying. I applied to the local university to study media/journalism, and the entrance exam is on the first week of June. And you know what's the best part? I don't get ANY points from my good matriculation exam grades, since in media/journalism only the entrance exam matters. YIPPEEE~. 8D
The books I'll have to study for the exam are boring and difficult to understand. But I'll do my best! v_v/ And this time I only study about 7 hours per day, and even see Mikko during the weekends.

Oh right, I went to see Waltz with Bashir, finally. That's one movie that would've made me feel guilty if I hadn't watched it. It was really, really powerful. I think everyone ought to go see it, the situation in Gaza being what it is. If somebody isn't familiar with the movie, it's an animated documentary film about the massacre at the Sabra and Shatila refugee camps during the Lebanon war in 1982. The opening scene of the movie really sent chills down my spine, and I knew at that moment that this was going to be a deeply impressing film.

My trip to Hungary was lovely and relaxing. I loved that it was just me and my mom, things are so much easier when the men of our family (dad and brother) aren't with us. And if I couldn't have left Finland for a little while after the exams, I don't know if I had managed to start studying again at all.
But spending a week in the countryside of Hunagry, in a small, silent village, waking up in a sunlit room, with animals greeting you every morning... it was wonderful. And I don't think it's ever been this hard to come back to Finland. Hungary and especially Kenderes (the village where my grandma lives) mean ultimate relaxation to me, and I was just getting settled down when we already had to travel back to cold, rainy, stressing Finland.
And -after I get used to it- speaking Hungarian feels much more pleasant than speaking Finnish. So much...softer.

I also realized that the absence of computer has a really relaxing effect on me. I also loved leaving my mobile phone in my backpack for the whole week. Isolating yourself from the busy world is really good therapy.

Then, more resent news. I went to the hairdresser's and she skillfully destroyed my previous hairdo, even though I told her only to trim the ends a little. T__T In December a girl at our school cut me a layered, airy cut, which made my hair look thick and got the natural waves of my hair show themselves. The only downside was that she left the ends of my hair a little messy, that's why I now turned to a professional hairdresser. Like, if a self-taught high schooler can do it, then a real hairdresser should do it even better, right?
Well, uh, no. ( Cut for demonstrating comic (beware of 1337 ArT SkillZ) )
Wow, I didn't think it was even possible to flatten the look that much. Oh well. I'll just have to grow my hair out again and find a better hairdresser. >_>

Lol, long entry is loooong. :D I'll make a photoentry of Hungary, if I'm not as lazy as usual.
And soon I'll see celen, finally! :,DD It's been, like...six months?

I'm going to Hungary on March 29th! ♥

I've never been there at this time of the year!

I'll see my grandmother twice this year! (because I'm going there also in August)

I'm very, very happy!

Actually, decided to write an entry about Sense and Sensibility while I'm at it.

So, I just finished watching the first part. I've seen the Emma Thompson/Kate Winslet movie version, so comparison is unevitable.

Oh right, if somebody who doesn't know the story stumbles across this, THIS POST CONTAINS SPOILERSS. Naughty little hobbitsesss.
( Let's make a cut, just in case )

Okay, I'm eagerly waiting for the next episode.

Okay, I have many topics I want to make an entry about, and as the English matriculation exam (A-levels, finals, blabla) is soon anyway, I guess it's good practice for it. It's just too bad that every time I manage to log in LJ, I'm way too tired to write long entries.
But I'll definitely write an entry about these things, I promise:
+ Blade of the Immortal vol. 20 - I'm late again, damn it.
+ Planescape: Torment. ♥ *drools* ♥ *loves* ♥ *worships* ♥ *misses it*
...actually, those are the most urgent ones. Other topics would be the three-part BBC series of Sense and Sensibility, Wolverine and the X-men and Wolverine/Rogue.

...speaking of Torment, it must have the one of the prettiest soundtracks in game history. ;___; Winamp just shuffles Annah Theme, and oh, how I'm loving it.

( Boring stuff about school and maths. D: )

Things that made me happy, entry 6
+ WOLVERINE AND THE X-MEN EPISODE 13. ♥ This is CANON Wolvie/Rogue, I'm telling you!
+ I watched the first part of the Sense and Sensibility series. More about that later.
+ I'm home - alone! Yayness, don't have to use headphones while listening to music/watching TV/etc
+ My summer job hunting is going well. :)
+ I found lovely Logan/Marie fics again. ;_; Must have...the next...chapters...

Sigh. I just heard a neighbour of my grandma's passed away. What's more sad about this is that this old woman raised and took care of her two grandchildren, and nobody knows what will happen to them now. Their mother's a prostitute, who hasn't visited her children in about ten years. Their father's an alcoholic. (who just moved in with the children, well yippee.) Their grandfather is an alcoholic and a gambler. The older child is only about 14 years old, the younger one's 10.
It's ironic how all the bad things seem to happen to the same people again and again. I really hope there's some nice relative who could take care of the children, losing their 'mom' (again) is bad enough, let alone if they have to live with two alcoholic, unpredictable men.

Right. Guess what's next? The "Things that made me happy"-meme. How conventional.
Entry 3
- ...mom made lasagna. Mmmm, lasagna. ♥
- I'll meet a friend of mine tomorrow, we'll probably go to some cafeteria. :)
- I finally studied for the matriculation exams today! Yay me.
- Umm. I watched videos of puli dogs on youtube! That'd make anyone happy.

(Shhhh I'm not lame.)

For some reason, I have a feeling that I'll screw up my English matriculation exam. We'll have the listening part of the exam in...two weeks? Gah. Being too ambitious sucks. 8)

Oh right, Neil Gaiman's Anansi Boys is going to be translated into Finnish. FINALLY. I'M SO GLAD IT TOOK ONLY FOUR YEARS, GODDAMNIT. Luckily I had the chance to read it in English anyway.
And.. the Finnish name is "The Spider-God". How lame is that? All the other translations at least include Anansi in the name. -__- Now it sounds like a second-class children's fantasy book. *facepalm*

So, things that made me happy today:

+ the weather was beautiful: snow, a clear sky, a crisp -10 C temperature
+ I had a nice time with Claudia, an Italian exchange student. She's leaving in a week! :,,C But I'm happy I've made friends with her.
+ ...and she promised to send me a package of Italian chocolate when se gets home! >8D I'll have to come up with something nice to send her, as well.
+ The schoolweek's almost over. Tomorrow's friday and then it's weekend. ♥

....that's it thus far. 8D I'll edit this post later today if something else should make me happy. :)

(Now, a few negative things today: I feel extremely lazy though I have many things I should do, and my winter boots are still at the shoemaker and I'll have to use my old, ugly ones. >__< Oh angst.)

Whoo-hey. School's starting tomorrow and for once the holiday felt long enough. I have piles of things I'd like to write, but I guess I'll do a separate entry for each fandom thing. :) The point is, I feel really relaxed and have had a wonderful holiday. The main YAYs being:

- WE HAD A WHITE CHRISTMAS! We got lots of snow on the 22th of december, it lasted for a week, now we got some more of it, plus we've got decent subzero temperatures, -10 or so. ♥ I can finally wear my winter clothes without sweating.
- I watched the "Pride and Prejudice" (the BBC miniseries from 1996), squee. ♥ Jennifer Ehle makes such a lovely Lizzy, and oh, Mister Darcy! Colin Firth is the cutest thing as Darcy, and now, as I watched the series for the second time, I was able to spot all the tiny smiles and glances she threw at Elizabeth.
- Finished playing Planescape Torment. I'LL BE MAKING AN ENTRY OF THIS ONE. I'm tempted to call it the best game I've ever played.
- started playing Arcanum (don't own it though, been playing it at Mikko's place), RPG's are so good for your soul.
- been watching "The Cracker" with Mikko, bwahaha! Robbie Coltrane is wonderful, and all the lovely British accent makes me so happy! *__*
- finished reading the "WATCHMEN". An AWESOME graphic novel, though I have really controversial expectations about the upcoming movie.

( A list of the presents I got for Christmas )

Okay, one...no wait, two more things! Meme time!

The rules are that for 8 days
you have to post something
that made you happy that day.

Tag 8 people to do the same.

I probably won't have time to write an entry every day, but I'll list the happy things for the next 8 entries, right? I'm tagging everyone who wants to do this.
Today's happy things:
+ I was accepted to a 'hygiene pass'-course, even though I thought I signed up too late. (the 'hygiene pass' is a ceritificate which is useful if you want a job in a restaurant, cafeteria etc)
+ A childhood friend of mine is maybe on that same course! We used to write e-mails to each other, but now it's been a year since the latest message and almost 6 years since I've seen her. It'd be great if she was on that course! :D
+ It's snowing. ♥
+ I had a lovely day, woke up early and had time to enjoy the day.

( I've wanted to do this meme for a long time. )

Christmas entry and Boti vol 20 entry coming soon, I promise, just...

oh my god oh my god oh my god.

♥

Downloaded the first episode of the new X-men series "Wolverine and the X-men". The first four minutes pass, I love the animation, squee at Logan, giggle at his playboy voice, sigh at the thought of how lovely Logan/Rogue would be....and. AND. The next thing I see:

Wolverine: "Have you seen Rogue?"
Hank: "For reasons beyond my comprehension, Rogue just doesn't enjoy the thought of you leaving."
-- *cuteness between Rogue and Logan*--
Rogue: "Maybe I'll just take off too."
Wolvie: "Why would you do that? This is your home."
R: No. It's not home. Not when you're gone. Which is...most of the time."
W: *grabs her hand* "People here care for you."
R: "It's not the same! You're more... ahh, forget it!"
W: *dumbstruck face* More what?
R: Like...family, Logan! And you don't even know that! C..Can't you see I'm just like you? *runs away*
W: *sad face* :,C

OMG IT'S SOOOO CANON! OH MY GOD I'M PREPARED TO LOVE. THIS. SERIES. TO. BITS! ♥

*goes off spazzing and is the happiest fangirl ever*

GUESS WHOSE BLADE OF THE IMMORTAL VOLUME 20 HAS ARRIVED?

*maniac fangirl laughter*

Meeerry Christmas to me~. 8D

Oh my, so many thoughts and feelings are running through my mind. The cause of this? The awesomeness and talent of some people.

(I'll place this under a cut because I don't want to spam your f-pages with long rants)
( There's a full-grown comic artist in our school, ASDF! )
...*faints*

We got some snow, finally! ♥♥♥ It's still snowing outside, I hope it'll continue through the night. *jumps around eagerly*

Though I don't have any winter boots. :D; I should go buy new ones, my old boots literally make my feet bleed.

The fact that a Finn like me is this excited about snow is kind of amusing, but nowadays snow is a rarity here, too. -__- Yeah, it's really sad.

I hope, oh I hope we'll have a white Christmas! ;;;___;;; *knocks wood and keeps her finger crossed*

Awww, everything is so white and wintery and pretty. What a pity it's so late, otherwise I'd go straight out and enjoy the snowfall. :) Well, I'll do that tomorrow. Now off to study for the English test.

Argh I should be studying history, damn damn damn. >_>

...recently almost all my entries are about BotI. :D;;; But try to grin and bear it, eheh.

So, I borrowed Blade of the Immortal volumes 6 and 7 from mah bf, it's been about four years since I read them. My re-reading experience in a nutshell:
1. OMG, SHIRA YOU CRAZY BASTARD. I HATE YOU SO MUCH THAT I LOVE YOU. 8D He must be one of the greatest characters ever created, asdfg you hate his guts, but he makes every volume he's in damn interesting.
2. Wahh, poor O-Ren. D,:
3. a certain pairing is so much love. ♥

I found a page that has AMAZING Blade of the Immortal fanart! Click on the tiny squares on the top of the page! (it took me ages to figure that out..>_> ) It has the most adorable Manji/Rin, Magatsu/O-Ren and Doa/Isaku pictures, plus beautiful pictures of Anotsu, Makie and so on.

One thing that's been confusing me is that the first 7 episodes of the BotI anime got subbed really fast, but now it's been a month and episode 8 is still unsubbed. O_o I just noticed that even the raw of episode 10 is out. D: Oh well, it probably spares me from uncomfortable facepalming moments, but it's just a funny fact.

On a more positive note, my Swedish matriculation exam went real well. :) Whee! (...now I can angst when I'll get a lower grade from English than from Swedish, even though I can't SPEAK Swedish at all! X,DD)

I love acrylic painting so much. So very much. ♥

It's hands down my favourite technique; I'm way too lazy for dry media, lineart or such, water colours are not my thing, oil painting is fun but not nearly as fun as acrylic painting. Colouring with computer is okay, but I'm way too lazy for that too. :B

*goes back to painting a birthday card*

Sorry to spam your friends page with such useless entries. >_>;

Hey, if there's anyone else who's into drawing/painting/creating etc, tell me, which technique do you enjoy the most? :3

You know you're way too tired when you find yourself laughing hysterically at the BARACK ROLL and can't stop watching it.

If there's somebody who hasn't seen this masterpiece, go watch it nao. For great justice. :B

I'M NOT SPAMMING OR ANYTHING.

....argh, somebody tell Obama to stop dancing so adorably. XD I never thought I'd call the president of the US (or any other country) adorable, but there, now I've done it. This is the first sign of a change. ;D