"If I fall asleep now, I'll get 7 hours of sleep..."

What do you think about when you go to sleep?

I rarely go to bed and not think of something in particular. I usually think of something nice; something that I have to look forward to, something that's already happened, something that I wish would happen but most likely it never will. Sometimes I play conversations in my head -imaginary and real- and sometimes I'm just so thrilled about some new thing that I've decided to do, that it's all I can fill my head with, and eventually I fall asleep and my thoughts turn into dreams. I kinda like it. In the morning it can be pretty exhausting though, because it feels like I haven't had any sleep at all; all I've done is thinking, when it's actually not true. But there are mornings, when my phone's alarm clock interrupts my awesome dreams. Then I just hit the snooze-button and continue dreaming from where I left off. I'm not kidding :) I can actually do that. 

There are many nights, when I'm just so tired that I pass out immediately after my head hits the pillow. They are few in between, though. I have way too much stuff going on in my head to fall asleep right away. One of my favorite things to do, is go through the story of Ava, all the twist and turns. Over and over again, until I have it all figured out. I haven't made it there yet. Almost :)

So there you go. Ava is the name of the main character in the story I've been working on. That is all I'm willing to let you know at this point. 

I can't wait for the moment I get to tell you I've started the writing process of my book! 

Love,

I

P.S. Don't forget to answer the poll! Your votes determine most of the future posts, remember that :)

a little repair and renovation

I stuck with the pretty basic layout for quite a while, and now I've changed the appearance of this blog again. I hope you like it :) Don't be surprised if it changes for another hundred times after this one. I love customizing all the layouts. 

I hope you all had a great weekend! <3

the world is my playground

Here I am, sitting on my couch, in my studio apartment, cleaning - watching a movie, chatting with a friend on Facebook.... and I look around me and think, am I ever going to get out of here?

It's hard to imagine that I will get out. I will. IwillIwillIwill!

I don't hate it here... Dislike is a better word. The circles here are too small and I feel I've seen everything this country has to offer. So, it's time for a change of scenery. I'll start with the 3 months in the States this fall. Then I'll come back... for a time that's necessary for me to gather up money for my next adventure.

Yes, I'm already planning my next adventure. 

I'll fill you in later :)

What do YOU want from this blog?

Time to bring back the poll!

I hope you'll all select one or more options from the poll on the right; it'll help me to improve this blog and make it more to your liking :)

I've been thinking about doing a video post (in English) at some point, so if you'd like to see me talk to you instead of writing, let me know. Also, if you want a video post, feel free to leave a comment and tell me what subjects you want me to talk about. 

I've been planning on interviewing a couple of people and posting their stories here. I promise, they'll be interesting to read! Also, I might be showing more of my art here if you want to see them. And if I get the chance to actually draw something... maybe next month I won't be so busy. And what else... well, this isn't a fashion blog, but I've done some fashion posts in the past, and wouldn't mind doing more, if you guys say so; I could introduce you to my wardrobe and you can judge my clothing :)

So don't forget to vote :) 

Thank you!

Did I miss my youth?

I've always been a good girl. You know, the kind that never ditches school, tries her best, obeys her parents, feels guilty for like a month after snapping at someone. I never went to bars or clubs under 18, though my friends from school tried to persuade me. "Your looks are going to waste!" they would say (I've always looked older than I truly am). But I never went. I liked being at home with my family, doing something low key, like reading and drawing. 

You know how some people don't take the best of their prime years... they sail through them and later on, way later, they suddenly get the urge to do the things they never did when they were sixteen. Lately I've been having the same feeling. Or I've been fearing of having that feeling. In a very short period of time I've become more sure of myself than I've ever been before, and thus gathered up more courage to be more me. I've also come to understand others better, and their way of expressing themselves. 

I'd like to dye my hair all pink, just because I love the color and because I feel more bohemian than ever. I think I've always been somewhat of a hippie. I won't dye my hair, though, so you can save yourself from the mini heart attack :)

I've been wanting to get a tattoo for a long time. I even know which one I'm going to get, if I'll ever have the money and the guts to ink my skin permanently. It's very small and I would get it in a place that's visible enough, but very easy to hide as well. 

I like to play with my thoughts. I like to think of myself actually doing this. But right now... I'm too much of a chicken. And broke. And I'm happy as a brunette. 

I don't know, if my prime years are behind me. Maybe I'm living them right now, or maybe they're still ahead of me. Either way, I don't think I missed them. I never did anything I wasn't comfortable with. I'm glad I was a good girl. Still am. My writing's still my main way of expressing myself, but who knows... maybe someday I'll choose more obvious ways to show my true colors. 

"This is the last call for the flight..."

I am ashamed to admit that it took me this long to watch the movie Up in the Air. Have you seen it? If not, watch it, it's great!! It's about a man (Clooney!!), who spends more time on an airplane than on the ground, and who has to face new challenges with his work, but to me the work stuff was secondary. I focused on the traveling part, as you may have already guessed :)

When I say that I travel a lot, I mean, like, once or twice a year. To me, it's a lot. But there are other people who travel once a month (like my mom has done this year), people who travel for work, people who travel just because they can. They have the resources. As for me, all my extra money is spent on traveling... something I learned from my parents from very early on. 

I can't even be compared to the people who practically live up in the air. It's their way of life. 

I don't want that. I would love to be able to travel whenever and wherever I wanted, but to do it all the time, switching destination every five minutes... No thank you.

 I love to fly, but it's not the time spent on an aircraft that I love. It's the feeling of going somewhere, of being able to go somewhere. I love circling around airports, I lovelovelove it when the airplane speeds up and takes off. I also love the landing. Sometimes. Not always, when I land to Helsinki-Vantaa International Airport. That's the one place I love it the most, when I take off. 

There are a lot of things you learn, when you travel much. You learn to pack only what's necessary. You learn to ask the right questions when checking in, you learn to have the necessary documents ready at hand, you learn to read people. The latter may not be the first thing that comes to mind, but it's true. Especially if you're traveling alone and end up sitting next to a stranger. After the first couple of minutes you pick up signs of whether or not they're talkative, social or if they want to enjoy their flight (or train-ride or whatever) uninterrupted. But mostly... you learn about yourself. Cliché, but very true. 

I only have a little over a month left until I get to enjoy all of this again. I'm flying with Delta Airlines and I joined their Skymiles -program. After doing so, I wondered why I hadn't joined into these things before... Well, I fly with a different airline almost every time I travel (I just pick the cheapest flights when I book them, without looking into what airline it is), so maybe that's the main factor. But maybe I should join. Can't do any harm, right?

And finally, I wanted to link this song for all of you to listen. One of my favorites, it's somehow very beautiful.

....yet another one ! :)

As if Facebook, Twitter and Blogger aren't enough... I've found a new love in my life. 

Instagram.

You can find me under the username iiris89. So far I've got 5 followers, feel free to join them! :)

Snapped this shot today:

With the rainy weather in Finland lately, rainbows are almost an everyday occurrence. Beautiful, don't you think? <3