This week’s questions over at thefridayfive 

It’s summer here, so I’m answering for summer!

1. How’s your summer (winter) going so far?

The con side – my sleep disappeared somewhere in mid-March when it got bright and sunny out. Have been sleeping poorly, or not at all, ever since despite having blackout curtains both in my bedroom and living room. Can’t wait for the dark fall so I can sleep again!

Otherwise summer’s been okay so far. We’ve only had one heat wave so far which lasted about 1,5 weeks. That time was hard but otherwise the weather’s been how I like it – not too hot in shade, a fresh breeze even if there’s no clouds and sun is shining but also often half-cloudy. Fingers crossed it’ll continue like this!

2. Have you made any special summer (winter) plans?

Nope. Other than enjoy as many and as much summer foods as I can.

Other thing I’d like to do is visit Mom a little more. I don’t do it as often as I used to because I don’t have a car anymore, and the bus trip and the time visiting easily amounts to so much that I often end up with a migraine attack once I’m back home. And I’m also tired a lot because of being in pain a lot. The summer before last was too hot to go anywhere (three months of unrelenting heatwave which is not normal for Finland). And Mom and her SO have been getting tired easier too the last few years (age and illnesses that required doctor’s appointments a lot last year) so that too. But now both of them are through their operations, have recupareted and feeling better. So maybe I could visit a few times over the summer this year. I WhatsApp and talk on the phone a lot with Mom, but it’d be great to see her in person too!

3. What are your traditional activities in summer (winter)?

Hiding from the sun and the heat.

4. Are there special summer (winter) foods or drinks you’re enjoying?

I eat obscene amounts of ice cream and ice lollies. Also lots of strawberries as-is with cream, or with ice cream, or with whipped cream and mud cake (the last one is a special treat). Also make some rhubarb pies and rhubarb soup to be had cold.

5. What is one thing you need to do this summer (winter)?

There’s nothing I “need” to do that I know of as I write this… but your never know with the bureacracy of being chronic illness patient on unemployment. KELA or TE-toimisto might want to decide to want something at any time!

Otherwise, I’d like to buy garden scissors with those long handles where you can cut crass and other growths with them while standing up. But they’re pretty expensive for my budget so I’m not sure if I can talk myself into using some of my tax return for that purpose. Either way, I should cut the growth. It’s not crass, other bigger stuff that I don’t know the name of, the sort of things you’d find in a meadow more like because it used to meadow where these houses were built. I just hate cutting with my current scissors, because I hate kneeling/crawling in the ground because I can’t get back up on my feet easily and so I don’t do it and so my tiny little backyard (about 1 meter + 2 meters) is overgrown. It’s just that this overgrowing has started to bother me the last couple of years, and now I think when the backyard is cut, it looks so neat and tidy. Before I didn’t care. Now I sort of do. But you have to cut it so often that I don’t do it because I have to get on my knees every time.