F**K IT MILES, GIVE ME SOME PRIVACY

About a month ago I woke up to my snooze alarm clock. Usually I stay in bed for five minutes with my eyes closed after waking up, thinking about all the good things I expect from the day. That morning though I realized I had been snoozing too much and we were running late, so I jumped out of bed and started dressing up. Suddenly I felt my pulse rising. My heart seemed to be beating out of my chest. As usual, I was wearing my Fitbit, so it was easy to see what the current heart rate was. It was over 170 and I had just woken up. I called my husband, who was on his way to work. I told him something was up with my heart. He said he was coming back home. I asked my 10-year-old daughter to come to talk to me and I had to do something I wish I did not need to impose on her. I told her if I pass out, she should call an ambulance, because my heart was beating way too fast at that moment and I was feeling very vulnerable. She sat on the bed with me and told me to breathe slow. My baby, taking

The women that I know could simply do anything. Some find their voices young, discover what makes their hearts sing. They defend the minorities and support causes of human rights, understand how to pick their battles, choose their fights. They take care of children, the elderly, the ill, are realistic, hard-working and have above strong will. They are fearless when thinking what is best for their kids and their families. These women, they volunteer and guide the young, study hard, teach, have PhD's. They plant flowers and cut fences, build backyard docks with their crew, kick ass, crochet and work hard to make their dreams to come true. They ride bicycles, longboards, motorcycles and horses, find their guts to go back to school, step over to other paths and discover what their force is. They study philosophy and concentrate on making the world, oh, so much better. Some turn themselves around, save their own lives and the life of another. They speak

Hieman alle vuosi sitten muutimme viisihenkisen perheemme kanssa Suomeen. Ennen sitä hetkeä olin perheestämme ainoa, joka oli aiemmin asunut Suomessa. Mieheni on hollantilainen ja kolme lastamme ovat syntyneet ja kasvaneet Alankomaissa. Alankomaissa lapsemme olivat tottuneita koululaisia, sillä kaikki aloittavat koulunsa 4-vuotissyntymäpäivänään. Suomeen meidät toi monien asioiden summa, eikä suomalainen peruskoulu ollut niistä vähäisin. Koska ennen muuttoa olin kasvattanut lapsiani vain Suomen ulkopuolella, monet asiat olivat minulle uusia: ulkohousut, ekaluokkalaisen älypuhelin, lasten itsenäisyys pienestä pitäen. Ihailin sitä, kuinka Suomessa 6-vuotias saattoi hoitaa aamutoimet itsenäisesti ja kulkea koulumatkan yksin molempiin suuntiin. Kesällä löysimme sopivan kodin pääkaupunkiseudulta ja asetuimme taloksi. Lapset menivät väliaikaisen koulun jälkeen uuteen kouluun aivan kodin naapurissa. Koska lapsemme ovat joutuneet tottumaan muuttomme vuoksi isoihin muutoksiin, varsinkin keski

I was one of those 2,3 million people who watched the live broadcast of SpaceX's Falcon Heavy launch on Tuesday. I had been sharing information about the event in social media for a few days to make sure that those around me would at least be reminded to witness a moment in history that the humankind was going to be looking back as a turning-point leading to larger scale space exploration. We were witnessing history. All those times feeling jealous of my parents for having watched the moon landing didn't feel bad at all any longer: I was living in the time of history when even more amazing things were happening and we owe it to people like Elon Musk. The Falcon Heavy was a test that Musk personally gave a 50-50 chance of success. Mostly on test launches the rocket is loaded with steel blocks or concrete to simulate the mass, but Musk wanted to do something more interesting, so instead he decided to send a Tesla Roadster in space. A sexy cherry-red Roadster is a product of his

You're always the boss! Ever since I was born, ever since I was small, you have been the boss of me and dad and then of my little brothers! Why are you always the boss? Who made you the boss? What makes you think you can tell me what to do? Fine, my girl, I understand. I was once there, too. Screaming and crying, kicking against. It's okay. I don't need to be the boss. I'm happy to take down the mantle. Now there, I'm not the boss any longer, your dad is. Me? I'm now the boss? Does it mean I have to move my eyes up from the telephone in my hand? What does it mean? Honey, what do you expect me to do? I don't know. You're the boss now. The leader and the complaint department. I'll retire now, go to bed with my book, unless you need anything... but I guess you have it all covered. But mom, you can't just go like that?! I need to tell you that the dinner you prepared tonight did not make me happy. You said it was happiness rice and I didn'

Eräänä tuikitavallisena lokakuisena iltana lapsemme olivat menossa nukkumaan ja päivästä väsyneenä mieheni päätti myös painaa pään tyynyyn ajoissa. Avasin puhelimesta elokuvateatterin sovelluksen ja selailin illan tarjontaa. Suurimman osan olin jo nähnyt, mutta lähiteatterini esittäisi sinä iltana kortinhaltijoille erikoisnäytöksenä turkkilaisen dokumentin Kedi. Elokuva käsitteli kulkukissoja ja vaikka aihe ei suoranaisesti naulinnut kiinnostustani, päätin silti varata lipun. Voisinhan aina poistua teatterista jos dokumentti ei sattuisi kiinnostamaan. Hyppäsin pyörän selkään ja poljin kymmenen minuuttia elokuvateatterille, jossa käytin lippuna sovelluksen ID:tä. Istuin varatulle paikalleni ja katsoin koko dokumentin. Olisin voinut valita listasta minkä tahansa elokuvan ja näytöksen, jossa oli tilaa. Paikanvaraus kävi näppärästi sovelluksen kautta ja paikalla tuli olla viimeistään kymmentä minuuttia ennen elokuvan alkua tai lippu vapautettaisiin. Kertomani skenaario ei ollut poikkeu