A Random Assortment

           


You Know You've Been In Finland Too Long, When...*

You meticulously manage your plastic grocery bag collection.

You don't think twice about putting wet dishes in the cupboard to dry.

Silence is fun. Okay, so not really fun. But acceptable.

Your juice consumption exceeds 3 cups a day.

You pass a grocery store (in the morning) and think: "Wow, it's open!"

Your English has seriously deteriorated. We just can't think of the words we want to hear in our mind. Err. Something.

You associate pea soup with pancakes, and pancakes with berry preserves.

After a presentation, you finally stop asking "Are there any questions?"

Hugging is reserved for family and drunks.

You no longer eat mashed potatoes - you eat smashed potatoes.

You understand why Finnish isn't spoken anywhere else in the world.

You know that "one beer" means "let's get shwasted."

When a stranger smiles at you, you assume he is drunk, insane, or American.

*Adapted from whatever website we ganked borrowed it from.

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Baby carriages in Finland are like souped-up versions of the ones in the US. They have huge wheels, and several dozen layers of fabric. We also suspect they might have portable heaters tucked somewhere inside. This one looked like it had shocks and hydraulics, because it bounced up and down. Several inches. Click the photo to zoom in on those off-road tires, and the ballin suspension.

And yes, Elizabeth did sneak this picture while the mother wasn't looking. It was only slightly creepy.