Apologies (redux)

Michael Fish, via

Firstly, apparently I left everyone (well my mum at least) with a bit of a cliffhanger last week because I didn't reveal the outcome of the dread suomenkielin testi.  Well I was pretty surprised to find I actually got a better mark in this one - viisi (5) - which is the top mark in the Finnish university grading system (0=fail, 1=50%, etc).  Although I did still make a couple of stupid mistakes and struggled with partitiivi/akkusitiivi objekttilause (malli: minä kirjoittan bloggin sitten katson televisiota) I pretty much cracked omaslause (to have...) malli: minulla on iso pää; nessesiivi lause (must/to have to) malli: sinun täytyy lukeä tämä bloggi joka päivä; 

I suppose I should also say anteeksi for reinforcing the stereotype lots of people have that Finland is cold all year. Before I came across that old chestnut from the days of nil point, I was originally going to write a serious post about the weather and daylight, particularly as Daylight Saving Time just ended. And if you question the advantage of BST in UK (particularly if you are in Scotland) - ask yourself what the hell is the point in Finland, except to synchronise with the rest of Europe? As this article points out (despite getting confused about GMT and UK time) Finland has plenty of light in the summer, and being in the east west half of the GMT+2 timezone (as shown on this map) is naturally half an hour into 'summer time' anyway. That is also (I guess) why the work day here is pushed to the morning - start work by 8am, lunch at 11:30, go home at 4pm.  Anyway, for anyone wanting to know about Finland's climate they can always look here and remember Helsinki (on Finland's southern coast) is at the same latitude as Lerwick whilst it's Lapland border with Norway is over 1000km further north.  For the record though: 

In Helsinki the average July high temperature is actually 22°C (which is only 1º lower than London).

The highest temperature ever recorded in Helsinki is 31.6°C. The highest temperature ever recorded [in Finland] is from July 9, 1914, when 35°C was exceeded in several places (the maximum being 35.9°C in Turku).

The lowest temperature recorded in Helsinki is -34.3°C (1987). The lowest temperature recorded at any weather station in Finland this century is -51.5°C (1999).

Now compare that to UK recorded extremes (via Met Office):

Highest: 38.5 °C 
Brogdale near Faversham (Kent), 10 August 2003.

Lowest: -27.2 °C
Braemar, Aberdeenshire, 10 January 1982 and 11 February 1895.
Altnaharra, Highland, 30 December 1995.

But enough from Michael Fish for now.

[edited 28.10.08 23:05]

Sääpäiväkirja

Keskiviikona, 22. lokakuuta: Tänään on vahan pilvista ja vahan aurinkoista. Myös tuulee. Ulkona on 10 astetta laminta. Helsingissä aurinko nousee kello 8.56 ja laskee 16.56.

Nimipäivät: Anita, Anitta, Anja, Anniina

Pilvista päivää. From Around Helsinki.

One of the things we have been doing on the suomen kielen korssi the last few weeks is to keep a weather diary (sääpäiväkirja) for each day. Since this entails looking out of the window (which I am well practiced at as my school teachers would probably remember) and looking at the outdoor thermometer (which almost every Finnish home has) this is not exactly hard work. For those of you unfamiliar with the Finnish climate, here's some background:

Finnish weather explained

+15°C / 59°F
This is as warm as it gets in Finland, so we'll start here.
People in Spain wears winter-coats and gloves.
The Finns are out in the sun, getting a tan.

+10°C / 50°F
The French are trying in vain to start their central heating.
The Finns plant flowers in their gardens.

+5°C / 41°F
Italian cars won't start.
The Finns are cruising in cabriolets.

0°C / 32°F
Distilled water freezes.
The water in the Vanda river gets a little thicker.

-5°C / 23°F
People in California almost freeze to death.
The Finns have their final barbecue before winter.

-10°C / 14°F
The Brits start the heat in their houses.
The Finns start using long sleeves.

-20°C / -4°F
The Aussies flee from Mallorca.
The Finns end their Midsummer celebrations. Autumn is here.

-30°C / -22°F
People in Greece die from the cold and disappear from the face of the earth.
The Finns start drying their laundry indoors.

-40°C / -40°F
Paris start cracking in the cold.
The Finns stand in line at the "grilli-kioski".

-50°C / -58°F
Polar bears start evacuating the North Pole.
The Finnish army postpones their winter survival training awaiting real winter weather.

-60°C / -76°F
Korvatunturi (the home for Santa Claus) freezes.
The Finns rent a movie and stay indoors.

-70°C / -94°F
The false Santa moves south.
The Finns get frustrated since they can't store their Kossu (Koskenkorva vodka) outdoors.
The Finnish army goes out on winter survival training.

-183°C / -297.4°F
Microbes in food don't survive.
The Finnish cows complain that the farmers' hands are cold.

-273°C / -459.4°F
All atom-based movent halts.
The Finns start saying "Perkele, it's cold outside today."

-300°C / -508°F
Hell freezes over.
Finland wins the Eurovision Song Contest.

...hang on a minute - didn't that happen already!?

Toinen Koe

via kaupunkiliikenne.net: No, not a tram where you take exams (although the red pub tram does sell beer!)

If you have wondering why there has been a bit less hölynpöly recently then you probably need to get a life and get out more often... however one of us has been revising for his level two FFF (Finnish for foreigners) koe (test) which took place this afternoon. I get the results tomorrow, but I have a feeling it will not be as good as the last one. Just hoping to pass. Ho-hum.

Minun täytyy oppiskella joka päivä oppia lisää suomea, mutta minun ei tarvitse tehdä kotitehtevät tänä viikonloppuna.

Anyway level three starts next Monday, so back to reverse consonant gradation, and who knows what else then. 

But this week I also have to deal with a bit of Finnish bureaucracy and officially register my presence since it has been three months now; so through a great piece of 'Finnish logic' as an EU citizen I don't need permission, but I am supposed to register, with supporting documentation and details to show why I am here, which sounds suspiciously similar to the list of things required for non-EU citizens to get permission ... and being Finland this is done at the police station. Lovely. Now I understand those 'police state' jokes...

Huovutus III

Inspired by autumn colours

Inspired by emmdee's autumn image last month I created a scarf.. This time the happy owner lives in Sweden, so I'm now internationally well known for my skill in turning wool into felt... Yes, right... The washing machine played a large role in this experiment.

Architecture Corner

Following on from our 'And the winner will be...' and 'Stirling Stirling' posts recently I can now announce that 100% of you who took part in the Hölynpöly poll were wrong. As anyone who didn't glaze over when the A-work appeared in the title probably knows already, Accordia won - so well done Architects: Feilden Clegg Bradley Studios/Alison Brooks Architects/Macreanor Lavington and client Countryside Properties.  Undoubtedly a cut above your typical UK residential development.

silikkamarkkinat: sea and land 'marketecture'

Yesterday, on another grey and drizzly day, and on our way to Silikkamarkkinat (that's the annual baltic herring market at Kaupatori), we went and had a look at the exhibition of 104 competition entries for the Finnish pavilion at the Shanghai Expo 2010.  This was won by JKMM's 'Kirnu' entry.  Lewism has already made a good point regarding the question of how relevant these Expo's really are to international architectural thinking these days.  What interests me is how JKMM (who amazingly also got 3rd prize for another entry - actually I maybe preferred that entry) seem to have cracked the competition 'code' in Finland, with an amazing hit rate of wins, runner-ups and mentions.  Don't get me wrong, I think with the quality of their built work (e.g. Vikki church) and their design proposals, show obvious talent and hard work, so their projects deserve the success they are getting - but their envious competitors must be wondering how to compete... so it would also be interesting to see them up against big international names: Foster, Hadid, H&M (that's the architects not the clothes store...), OMA, etc.  

Having been involved in an open RIBA competition winning scheme in the past (in the end unbuilt despite getting planning permission and 95% of funding), I also can't help being equally envious at how many of these competition wins translate into built buildings that seem to meet the aspirations of the competition entry. Maybe one day I'll get my chance.

Sweatpod 2000

Via YLE

Okay I made up the name, but this 'sauna capsule' is the real winning entry in the Invention Week competition. Presumably for those with small flats; and to sell to the Japanese to plug into their capsule hotels... It's already portable, but I think the next version should have bigger wheels and an engine so you can have a sauna on the move, I mean it's aerodynamic already. Just think of the time saving and stress relieving potential when stuck in traffic!

But is it just me or do you keep expecting Ripley to wake up and climb out of it?

Stirling Stirling...

2003 Stirling Prize and I in the lobby of Laban Centre, London

Laban Centre with reflections & internal bright colours

I have not made my mind up as yet who to vote for on this page... Have you?

Can it be this diffucult? Yes when measured against one of my favourites that I only visited first time in the spring 2008 - The 2003 RIBA Stirling Prize winner Laban Centre (School of Contemporary Dance) in South-East London would win my vote if the competition was only between this year's contestant Westminster Academy & Laban Centre... but it's not... Still I would encourage you to vote on this page and think if you actually like Laban Centre more...

Word clouds

Since I'm in the business of nicking ideas from other people's blogs at the moment (see the 'Yearbook' photos below) I thought I'd do this one now.  You may have seen these around in various forms: 'word clouds' in which the bigger the word the higher frequency it's use in the text. So just a kind of graph really. Wow, I managed to make them sound really boring, and they are actually kind of fascinating.

Anyway, these are made using Wordle and represent the blog to date... 

 

above, left to right: July & August.

top: the whole darn thing (well July to September anyway)

Time circuits on. Flux Capacitor... fluxxing. Engine running. All right!

 

"Your older brother's disappearing from that photograph. Your sister will follow, and unless you repair the damage, you'll be next." 

Just got back from the 1950's, bit complicated to explain... but anyway managed to bring some yearbook photos prove it. Such a nightmare getting spares for the deLorean these days, so lucky Rune was around to help.