Running after a long break

For some reason I haven't been running for a few years. Now I went for a run yesterday and I'm very happy about that! 

Running has many benefits, just to mention a few:

• It strengthens muscle and lungs
• Helps with weight control
• Strengthens the immune system
• Reduces risk of heart disease
• Improves blood pressure
• Improves brain function

And the good thing is, you can continue it after a break.

Now the evenings are light, and it's Spring. 

And I'm only competing with myself.

Life is a marathon, not a sprint.

Bletchley Park

We usually visit at least one museum while traveling with kids. In March we found this interesting place in Buckinghamshire, England.

Bletchley Park witnessed the employment of the world's first large-scale electronic digital computer. And grew into a major provider of intelligence which contributed significantly to Allied successes.

Over nine thousand people worked at Bletchley Park and it's associated outstations. It was a place that have helped shape the world we live in today, and the epicentre of World War Two codebreaking.

The reason that Bletchley Park surroundings looked very familiar to me is the film Enigma. Visiting Bletchley Park felt like travelling back in time and imagining the codebreakers sitting in the park having a break from their work.

The kids liked the place too, there were many places to explore.

Spring in London

We visited London a few weeks ago. The feeling of travelling again after a long time! To be among people and in a big city was great.

London is a familiar place where we have been so many times. 

Here in Finland we it is snowing right now. The winter came back.

November mood

I have tried to find something to write.

November is not exactly my favorite month of the year.

In the morning it's very dark, until it isn't. 

At three pm it starts feeling like it's nine in the evening.

I should really do some exercise or take a walk. I should.

Instead it's fun to eat chocolate.

I know this too shall pass. Now I'm focusing on doing the things I have to.

Like warming the house.

The island of Seili in October

We visited the Island of Seili in October. It looked so pretty that I had to take a few pictures. There is also a church on the island, now it was closed, so we didn't have a chance to see it. The café was open. 

The island has an interesting or actually terrifying history. There has been a leper hospital, that the Swedish King Gustaf Adolf II gave a order to build in 1619. The remote location of the island was the reason why it was built there. The leprosy began to disappear and in the 1700s a mental asylum was built on the main island. Mentally ill persons where treated there until 1962. The University of Turku has taken over the buildings after that.

There has been humans living on the island for a long time. Seili has most likely been almost treeless in 1600-1900s. Now you will find forest on the island.

The island has opened for tourists in 2017.

If not thinking about the history, the island is a very beautiful place.

More about the island:

Visit Seili

Working with widescreen monitor

I have been working for a while now with a widescreen monitor and can say, that it has increased my productivity. At the beginning I was a bit suspicious of how it would boost working. Now I can say that I wouldn´t change it for anything.

Reading and writing at the same time is possible, everything is easily within view.

My list of advantages

• More done in a shorter time!
• More text to be displayed
• Multitasking is easier
• The possibility to work with up to apps or websites side by side.
• Good for writing, perfect for working with pictures. 

The disadvantage is that it needs space. 

And of course it is a bit more expensive than smaller monitor.

What is resilience?

 We all are facing large and small everyday challenges. 

This Summer has not been so relaxing for me because we have a house renovation project going on and a lot of firewood to make. When the renovation project ready, we will have a new room and more space in the hallway. It has been a lot of work and aching muscles.

And it's not ready yet.

Even though I can imagine the result, it takes resilience to get there.

I have been thinking about resilience. Is it something you have, or is it possible to learn?

Some have more resilience than others, but it is something that can be learnt.

A resilient person stays calm under stress.

Resilience is much about self-awareness, empathy, self control and optimism. It´s capacity to recover from difficult life events.

To be able to stay calm and not be bothered by the incompleteness of life.

When everything is a bit messy.

Why is resilience important?

It helps to overcome hardship.

A resilient person overcomes challenges better and work through problems.

What makes people resilient is the ability to find humor and irony in situations that would otherwise overpower you. -Amy Tan

Resilience is the maintenance of high levels of positive affect and well-being in the face of adversity. It is not that resilient individuals never experience negative affect, but rather that the negative affect does not persist. -Richard Davidson