sunday after the cruise

we arrived back in helsinki a little after 9am. since i hadn't been able to get myself up early enough on a sun. to go to the finnish service @ temppeliaukion kirkko yet, i decided to go there now. i was a little late, but so where a few other people & there weren't very many people in the congregation anyways (& no one in the balcony where i went), so no one noticed. i missed some of the music, but i was able to record most of the service. the most interesting thing i found was the entire service was administered by women (except for the organist). the choir was an all women's choir & the pastor & pastor's assistant were both women. the pastor had a very calm, soothing voice & i'm sure if i knew what she was saying, i would feel very comforted. on my way out, i got a concert schedule from the assistant. hopefully, i'll be able to make at least one before i leave.

i then went home, checked my email, & made breakfast. eno, out of nowhere, went off on me keeping my room clean: "i hope you're cleaning your room. i worry, no i worry about these (i had tried to speak)...'cause you know, i'm always doing this & this (miming wiping surfaces w/ a sponge)...." he went back into his room & then said: "& you know what?" "hmm?" "you know what?" "what?" he came back out: "after you clean, (sigh), oh you feel so good..." ...first of all, what, are you my mother? second, no, i don't feel good after i clean; i feel dirty & exhausted. third, what does it matter what state my room is in while i'm living in it as long as you get it back clean, which you will....for all of you who are agreeing w/ eno right now, my room is not dirty. cluttered, yes; dusty w/ my hair all over the place, yes; out right dirty, no. and it isn't like he's the cleanest person either; he isn't filthy, but he's no jason. plus, he leaves food out on the counter for days in the pot he made it in. last week he made a soup of some sort & i came into the kitchen the following morning & the pot, full of soup, was on the floor!...he has also taken to walking around the apt. in just his underwear (sometimes w/ t-shirt), which i could really do without.

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a little side note on eno. his "condition" is getting worse. last week he stopped me as i was going back into the kitchen to attend to my food that i was cooking & began complaining. he hates finland & finnish. he went off again how his daughter's health is in jeapardy w/ her mom (she apparently loses 1 kg every time she's w/ her mom - not sure how he weighs here since i have not seen a scale in this apt. - & she stays out until 5am partying when she has custody). and there was some "mishap" (or something) at elli's daycare (i think it was daycare, i couldn't understand him) where her feet were white & ice cold (apparently they also hurt, but elli was too scared to say anything about it). he took pictures & video, told his ex (but she told him he had no place to complain, the situation is fine @ this place), he's given these videos & pictures he's taken of elli's condition (not just her feet) to the authorities, but they won't do anything 'cause he's not finnish. they're criminals protecting criminals, he's going to rescind his visa, leave this place & tell the world how finland treats its babies.....something else is going on though. i don't know what, but he used to have elli 3-4 days/wk, but recently he's had her for @ most 1...so, he's spending more time being depressed.

i asked a friend of mine who works in this area what the finnish system is like. i was wondering if there was any truth to what he was saying 'cause i didn't want to just disbelieve him 'cause i don't particularly like him. she said there aren't any rules in place about taking a mother's word or disregarding a foreigner's claim, it depends on the case....true, there aren't any rules in place like that in the states, but it didn't stop them from believing shanna when she claimed greg beat her when she was pregnant & that greg & jason raped her even though there wasn't any evidence to back it up....i wasn't going to get a clear answer & she told me not to get involved, so i dropped it...i wasn't willing "involved", i just wanted to know if i should believe him, give him the benefit of the doubt, but not get involved....believing someone & getting involved are two completely separate things....i honestly think he's overreacting (based on how he's been w/ me) & elli doesn't look like she's underweight to me.

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anywho...i was invited to dinner @ riina's mother's place, so i headed there shortly after i ate & got settled back in. dinner wasn't quite ready yet when i arrived & riina's friend laura hadn't arrived yet either. so, i visited w/ them in the kitchen. menu: some sort of fish cooked in some sort of way (partially skinned); salad w/ melon, feta, & bacon bits (they had to be brushed to the side - i didn't see them at first); bread; boiled potatoes; herbed carrots (i tasted the parsley); vegetable patties (which were absolutely delicious - i was tempted to take 2nds); & a mushroom sauce made from mushrooms out of riina's mom's "garden" at her cottage. for dessert: berry sauce w/ cream (kay, make the sound homer simpson makes when he's thinking about donuts - i did have 2nds on this) & chocolate cake (not the kind you're thinking of; think little debbie snack cakes in approx. size & shape w/ the quality from a high end bakery). they tried to make as traditional of a meal as they could for a vegetarian....a little note on my "taste-relationship" w/ mushrooms. no, i'm not a fan. but they're fine & even sometimes good if i don't have to chew them. i will eat them. for instance, i ordered a portabello burger @ chico's 'cause there was no other vegetarian option; i'm sure anyone who likes mushrooms would say it was good 'cause everything other than the mushroom was good. the mushroom was gross because it was....a mushroom. the mushroom sauce riina's mom made was very good, except for the few times i had to actually chew on a mushroom - that was still gross....riina, laura, & i chatted for a while after dinner. to top it off, i was given some of the berry sauce to take home. :D

it was a very pleasant evening.