Candy apples & razor blades

Little dead are soon in graves... it´s Halloween again at LIFE IN HEL!

Today I´m half the man I used to be.

Guess I pretty much summed up my thoughts and attitude towards it already in last year´s post. Things haven´t changed all that much since then. This time around though, partly caused by the Night Visions Festival, my excitement has grown compared to the last couple of years. That old scar seems to be itching again!

TWID on Friday was great and if you are into H.P. Lovecraft but haven´t seen the movie yet, you gotta change that asap! I am not going to give away the ending, suffice it to say it differs completely from the original story.
Third act, anyone? Usually I´m quite a purist when it comes to screen adaptions of my favourite books. It´s different with this one: although Lovecraft´s short story works perfectly in its actual medium, the alterations done by the HPLHS step it up a notch in order to make the tale more suitable for being a feature movie. In my opinion the film makers enhanced the original material without doing it any harm. Rather on the contrary, you can watch a story now that you already know without knowing how it ends -  and the end is pretty cool!
After the movie (dead silence in a sold out cinema room - the way it should be!) viewers were given the chance to have a nice Q & A with director / producer / actor Sean Branney, an overall friendly and sympathic guy who answered the many questions patiently.

Only thing I regret is that I didn´t get to see more than just one movie, the festival program was really spiced with many whacky ones, that´s for sure. I´m also sure that when Night Visions returns next spring, I will be ready for a movie marathon!

Tonight is going to be zombie night at LIFE IN HEL (severed) headquarters.
What´s it gonna be? Gates of Hell? Dawn of the Dead? La Regina dei Cannibali?
Haven´t decided yet, but for now:

Happy Halloween!

SONG FOR TODAY:

Bloodjunkies - All Hallow´s Eve

Psst!

Let´s all go to the lobby and give ourselves a treat!
Then being supplied with candy, coke and popcorn I will treat myself today with this weird little tale on celluloid. My language course is now over and I´m gonna celebrate it Lovecraftian-style. So far I´ve only heard that "The Whisperer in Darkness" rules, soon I will know for sure. At least it´s made by people who should know exactly what their doing: The H.P. Lovecraft Historical Society! Sounds like a winner...

And we shall not forget:

Ph’nglui mglw’nafh Cthulhu R’lyeh wgah’nagl fhtagn.

Wow, I never noticed the striking resemblance with the Finnish language. Did H.P. have ancestors here?

Little shop of horrors

If you are in Helsinki and into weird movies you can´t afford to miss out on paying a visit to Pieni Leffakauppa! The name says it all (= small movie store) and yet hides its light under a bushel. Not bigger than a two-room apartment the place is crammed up to the ceiling with tons of DVDs, Blu-Rays and VHS cassettes, both new and used. They also sell some merchandise, like film shirts and posters.

Deep in the bowels of Pieni Leffakauppa

The focus is definitely on everything NOT mainstream. German silent movies, American horror classics, Japanese weirdness, Mexican wrestler flicks, Italian gore/splatter, 70ties sleaze, film noir, cartoon series and every genre that could possibly end on -exploitation, as long as it is legal, odds are high that you will find whatever you´re looking for right there. The variety of their supply is really amazing and I could easily spend a fortune in that place if I only had one.

A couple of years back I was very much into movies, preferably those of the obscure and/or gruesome kind. Then I somehow lost my interest a bit along the way (in fact, for no particular reason) until I heard about an upcoming movie festival called Night Visions - Maximum Halloween 3011.

The news gave me a long-lost but familiar thrill and I searched the interwebs for more info. I found out that the festival is the oldest and biggest in Finland focusing on horror, fantasy, sci-fi, action and cult cinema. It takes place even twice a year with the Spring edition being in April and the Autumn edition being in the end of October, ergo nicely and fittingly close to Halloween. Night Visions is held over five continuous days and - take notice, all you geeks and freaks! - runs from this week´s Wednesday (26.10) until Sunday (30.10).

Scene of the crime will be the cinema MAXIM (with very few exceptions) in the city center and you will get your movie tickets directly there or in...yes, Pieni Leffakauppa.

With my renewed interest in film I was of course pleased as punch that I could
tappaa kaksi kärpästä yhdellä iskulla. Not only would I get my ticket, I would also get to check out that little movie store. And checking out is what I did now already twice, as mentioned above the place really is incredible and if you are a true movie nerd you have to see it for yourself - seeing is believing!
Didn´t get the ticket though. An institution devoted to the cause like them sells of course, almost needless to say, only the yölippu (= night ticket). Between Saturday and Sunday a helluva lot of movies will be shown, the first starting at 3.30pm, the last starting(!) at 9am(!!) the next morning (!!!). So if you have both the guts and the Geld, you are in for a real trick and treat. I must say that 45 Euro are fair but a bit steep for me at the moment, so my only flick of choice is "The Whisperer in Darkness", the screen adaption of a H.P. Lovecraft short story which I coincidently read again just recently. Bought my ticket at Maxim a couple of days ago and on Friday evening they will have "The Whisperer" on their silver screen. Can´t wait to see it! 


Make sure to check out:


Pieni Leffakauppa
Night Visions Festival
Cinema Maxim (all pages also in English)

SONGS FOR TODAY:

William Shatner - Lucy in the sky with diamonds


Leonard Nimoy - Highly illogical

B 1.1

Now it´s official: I am rated B 1.1 by language school Edupoli!

A short explanation for the ones of you who have never learned another language in (or in order to move to) another counry: The Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR) is a guideline that describes achievements of learners of foreign languages across Europe and other countries. Main idea is to provide a method of learning, teaching and accessing that applies to all languages in Europe. The CEFR devides learners into three broad divisions which can again be devided into six levels. From level A (absolute beginner) you have to walk that rocky road all down to level C 2 if you want to transform into someone who is mistaken for a native speaker.

Not too long ago, this was a typical situation in class and all I understood was:



My personal pilgrimage brought me now to level B1.1, let´s have a look on what Wikipedia has to say about my current language skills:

"Can understand the main points of clear standard input on familiar matters regularly encountered in work, school, leisure, etc. Can deal with most situations likely to arise whilst travelling in an area where the language is spoken. Can produce simple connected text on topics which are familiar or of personal interest. Can describe experiences and events, dreams, hopes & ambitions and briefly give reasons and explanations for opinions and plans."

I´m quite happy and also a little bit proud that I made it to this level in not much more than a year. My language courses gave me foundation but it was my job practice that boosted my courage to speak Finnish in a trial of fire. I have finally conquered my shyness! When it comes to my understanding I also feel like I´ve taken a leak leap, so depending on the speaker I nowadays might understand something like this:



Way to go, man! I start to wonder if it could be really possible to unlock the secret of the Finnish language one day.

SPRAY PAINT THE WALLS!

I discovered this little gem just around the corner from my language school and it put a huge smile on my face. Black Flag had many faces in both metaphorical and literal sense. Just because this piece of urban art gives me reason I wanna add this:

Click to enlarge, then pick your fave member from your fave era.

SONG FOR TODAY:

Black Flag - Spray Paint


P.S.: I recently checked my blog using another computer and realized that my new system for the SONGS FOR TODAY didn´t work. Seems that nobody cares about them because nobody told me. Doesn´t stop me from including them to the posts, I like ´em, so it´s back to the old system with crappy videos on YouTube. I also changed the links that didn´t work in the past few posts.

ADDENDUM 25.10: Finally figured it out, damn it! From now on everything happens only on the blog! Will work on the past posts little by little.

Carnival in Helsinki

Only a few blocks from where I live we have Linnanmäki, a nice amusement park that opened its gates for the first time on May, 27th in 1950. Linnanmäki means Castle Hill and doesn´t have a castle but is very well situated on a hill, so you can see it already from a distance. Especially one of Linnanmäki´s oldest rides, the wooden rollercoaster Vuoristorata (build in ´51) can be spotted from as far as the city center.

The park has currently 40 rides and of course you gotta pay to use them. Admission though is free, so you can go there to just check out the place or have some cotton candy and feel like a kid. Lintsi, as the locals call it, is open from April to October. Since I moved to Helsinki I never made it there but last weeks Valokarnevaali (= carnival of lights) finally lured me in. The carnival is always the last attraction announcing the park´s closure until next April and is highlighted by fireworks on Sunday. No question I teamed up last Friday with my girl and two friends to give Lintsi a go. Here are some pictures from this beautiful autumn evening:

Obviously one of the roller coasters, this is Tulireki.

I´m convinced they formerly used this hell of a ride to train Russian cosmonauts!  

This isn´t an UFO but a granny magnet called Panorama Tower. Nice views!

On Sunday I went to Töölönlahti with my girlfriend to see the fireworks. A good choice, as it was the perfect spot to enjoy the short but beautiful spectacular. Taking pictures wasn´t easy but I´ll include one here anyway. I like the reflections on the bay and the way the explosions look just like a firey grimace.

And to give you the feeling you would have been there yourself, here comes a little clip from last night´s fireworks that I found on YouTube:


Thanks to pir3 for uploading this!

Make sure to check out:

linnanmäki.fi (Choose English if needed)

Getting it done...

..takes a little while but we´re still on it! So far we recorded all drum and half of the guitar tracks. The typical problems like finding the time to meet up, then finding the right sounds and fighting the techno-fuck have delayed our recordings. The usual madness of making a demo. What we came up with until now sounds promising and I hope that we get it done soon. Stay tuned, blogheads!

SONG FOR TODAY:

7 Seconds - Still on it

End of the tunnel?

I walked through that passage every day.

Unfortunately not. It´s the end of my työharjoittelu, the six weeks of my job training are over tomorrow. Almost scary how fast time went by. It was an overall great experience as I was given the opportunity to carry on my profession in Finland - and in Finnish!

Didn´t speak English one single day which wasn´t easy but eventually very beneficial. I liked my job, got along with everyone and was told on several occasions that my work was very appreciated.

So I had high hopes that the whole endeavor would result in a steady job but things didn´t pan out that way. To hear that the current situation is difficult and an employment not possible at the moment is pretty tiring. I have been through that already in Germany but why should it be any different here than in the rest of Europe? Here they call it lama, there they call it Rezession, I call it a pain in the ass!

Good thing is that the company offered the possibility to continue my training and I will take the offer if the red tape okays it. Please understand that the company´s name and details regarding my job remain unmentioned. Although I enjoyed my time there very much and I want to stay put, I´m still a firm believer in keeping work and spare time seperated. Just saying.

SONGS FOR TODAY:

The Rolling Stones - You can´t always get what you want

Therapy? - 30 Seconds

Finns get seksi

Johanna Tukiainen. Singer, model, host and poetry in motion.

Oh là là, and they get seksi all the time. They get seksi because of translatiivi! What? Sexy transsexuals?! In Finland?!? Well, might as well be, I wouldn´t know. Being rather unkinky by nature the translative however is a grammatical form used quite often in Finnish. It indicates a change and refers to something or someone transforming into a different state.

The ending of the translatiivi is always -ksi and is added to the stem of a word.

For example: if you want to say that you´re planning to become an engineer (= insinööri), it will translate to "minä aion insinööriksi."

Another one: if you´re thirsty but penniless in a bar and the local drunk has again passed out over his beer, you can give him a tender punch in the liver and ask him: "Juotko lasin vielä tyhjäksi?" - "Will you still empty your glass?"

Good example, bad advice. If you pull that one off, you´re on your own! But I guess you got it now anyway and "tämä riittää perusteluksi" - this suffices as an explanation.

But why do the Finns get seksi now? Well, when the translative is used for adjectives, especially when they describe a feeling, this rather dry subject becomes quite juicy and funny. Many adjectives have the suffix -nen, e.g. iloinen (cheerful), onnellinen (happy), surullinen (sad) or vihainen (angry). The stem form of these words ends on -se- and is always used when the basic form is altered. So the genitive of vihainen would be vihaisen. When we let the translative kick in now it finally happens: you take the stem vihaise-, drop the n and add the suffix -ksi. Now you can say: "Tyttöystäväni tuli vihaiseksi" but it doesn´t mean that your girlfriend looked pretty hot when she got angry. Your gal just got mad, plain and simple, pleasant side effects not included.

So Finns get iloiseksi, onnelliseksi and surulliseksi etc. day in, day out and it seems only foreigners like me find it so goddamn funny. The best of all is that "seksi" used as a noun means nothing but "sex". Still nobody here turns punaiseksi (red) when saying these kind of things - absolutely elusive!


Maybe just goes to show that I have a dirty mind but there´s another funny thing.
It is a.) the favorite joke of many a tourist who went to a Finnish supermarket and b.) apparently invisible for the Finns, they don´t seem to see the obvious. Here´s what I´m talking about: like many other nations the Finns like their sweets and potato chips, preferably in biiig bags. What is bag in Finnish? PUSSI! Ahem...and how are biiig bags advertised in Finland? Right:

Also minipussis are available, if that´s more to your taste.

As opposed to many other languages Finnish only knows one sound for the letter S. It´s always a feast for me to see trailers for foreign movies/series on the tube and hear them announce for instance an Arnold Schwarzenegger flick in thickest "finniss prronanssiessen". If you pronounce the letter S Finnish style it will sound just like "ass". One big supermarket chain over here is called S-Market, so you can actually go to the (as)S-Market to buy some megapussis and no one gives a damn. Isn´t that beautiful?

SONGS FOR TODAY:

Rod Steward -  Da ya think I´m seksi?


The Cramps - Can your pussi do the dog?

New bloghouse

These are busy days, my dear blogheads, days that are slowly but constantly getting colder. Can´t do much about the tight schedule of late but I pretty damn well can give you shelter from the chill of the oncoming autumn. So please feel welcome here at the new LIFE IN HEL bloghouse while you´re waiting for something sensible to be posted!

Got a little bored on the old layout (yes, yes, black always looks kewl, dude - I know) and since I don´t have to prove my punkrock / street credibility to anyone, I got rid of the urban black and white, gothic font meets graffiti tag style to settle for something more homey, light and colorful. That by the way is something you learn to appreciate in the dark half of the year.

But what is it? A mökki? A sauna? Well, it could be a smelly outhouse but I guess it should be whatever you want it to be. So if the new design makes you wanna drink beer/Kossu/coffee/Coke - be my guest.
If you feel like heating up the oven and taking off your clothes - that´s fine, too. But please don´t do a number two in front of your screen while reading this - it would somehow spoil the atmo no end...

SONG FOR TODAY:

Statler Brothers - This Old House