HB COLD

Even though we've been living in Helsinki for more than a month, both Karoliina and I spent a few days in our old neck of the woods - that sentence really is correct when talking about East Finland. K's still there in Joensuu, reprising her old job for a week in January and then again in Feb. I was in Kuopio on a school trip regarding audience development. When we arrived it was -30 degrees, which is like (*9= -270/5= -54+32= -22 degrees F, which in previously stated opinion classifies as but-ass cold. Along for the ride were our exchange students from Barcelona who wore their scarves wrapped around their entire heads. The first night I had the honor of being the first American a local kid had ever seen or talked with. I guess I can assume that I have been the first American for a lot of folks, but this was the first time anyone had ever said so.

Fortunately for us the weather warmed up so we could walk around the town and out on the lake - which was an event for the Spanish. On the same day it went from minus 25 (*9=-225/5=-45+32=-13 F all the way up to -3 which is like 26F which was so warm that we stayed outside and had a snowball fight.