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The Last Day of Summer

Our seasons move faster than yours and they are quick to succumb to Winter’s moods. I could do with less loyalty but who am I to argue. Winter is the master of the house; Spring, Summer and Autumn just shy visitors.

I’m so behind on my thoughts that I don’t even know what photos to post. Should I show you the magical rhododendron forest we stumbled upon when May turned to June?

Should I tell you about the visits in July to two other cities, new territory for me, and if so, should I pretend it was all glossy and glorious?

Turku, Finland, 2019

Should I share the joy of having my boys experience their first swim at an outdoors pool, their first barber’s haircuts and their first fresh green peas?

Should I mention that my ears are ringing from all the screaming in our household, and confirm that the terrible twos are not a myth? Real life isn’t all insta-perfect. It can get hectic and food-all-over-the-walls-messy.

I feel the need to rant about how people don’t mind letting their kids swim in water dirty with toxic algae, despite the big red warning signs, and how they boast of the excellent swimming in this country of pure happiness, but I would be repeating myself. I’ve already written about that. And it’s none of my business.

Tomorrow I’m returning to work after four weeks of holiday, feeling as tired as I was, already looking forward to my lunch break when I can finally take a few breaths. While watching the time, so as not to exceed the allotted 30 minutes, I’ll retreat somewhere by myself and just catch up on my calendar. Clean calendar, clear mind.

Summer continues, but it’s due to cool down. The strawberries aren’t as good anymore. The day trips are all done. It feels to me much like the very last day of summer. The ideas we didn’t have time to realize will have to wait yet another year.

Until we meet again, rosy cheeks and sun-bleached strands, your long-stretching rays of life are always appreciated.

39 replies on “The Last Day of Summer”

I can hear the fatigue and lament in your post, Snow. Work is a pain but it does give you a few moments of respite for your head at lunch. The toxic blue algae sounds dreadful for one’s health. What are the health effects?
My ears are ringing too, but from different reasons. I can empathize!

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Hahah! Well, I like to be a bit dramatic when I write. It’s my writing style, I guess 😁 How’s your house-building progressing, apart from being noisy? As for the algae, it can give you skin/eye irritation, vomiting/diarrhea, and even liver damage if swallowed! I admit that most people are probably fine after swimming in it. But why would you want to? It looks and smells disgusting.

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Why would you want to indeed, Snow! I certainly wouldn’t get into algae infested water, unless it was to paddle across the shallows to get somewhere, and then wash and sanitize afterwards. As for putting children in that – it would be a definite no!
I do like your writing style, by the way! Keep it up.

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I actually would like you to tell us more about your visit to Turku. The picture is promissing. You sound a bit, well, tired. I hope you find the return to the daily routine enjoyable or at least not to stressful. Did you have the kind of extreme summer this year we are/were having in (the rest of) Europe as well, or totally not? Over here it’s still hot, even now, almost midnight. I love it but lot’s of complaining around as well. They wouldn’t if they knew summer in Finland is about over. Cheerful greetings from the Netherlands!

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Thanks Peter! 😊 Turku will be up high on my blogging list, then. Mind you, only the river area was pretty and it felt too depressing taking photos elsewhere so I didn’t. Why do I feel like a traitor saying that out loud? 😊 Anyway, no we didn’t have the heatwave you had over there in Europe. (You know, Finns call Central and Southern Europe ”Europe”, as if we weren’t part of it.) We had a normal summer: mostly cold, with a handful of warm days and 2 whole days around 30C.

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Oh dear! I couldn’t imagine what it’s like to live in a place that has short summers. Our winter is showing signs of coming to an end. Thank goodness. I love to head north during the winter, but this year we haven’t been able to get away, and after two months of rain and cold I’m well and truly over it. No, I couldn’t imagine living with long winters.

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Thanks Chris for reading! 😊 The summer holiday season is still going strong, so summer’s officially not over yet. But from my point of view, it feels like that, since I have a busy office job: whether it’s sunny or rainy outside, I wouldn’t know. Also, it was 32C yesterday and today 17C, quite a change! My feet are freezing since I optimistically left the house in summer clothes 🤣

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Yes to all your ‘should I mention’ stories. They will be far more interesting and entertaining than the overwhelming barrage of social media posts about air-brushed, plasticized, alternate-universe lives that are wafer thin and as fake as our great president! Good luck with your return to work and may the sun keep shining in your part of the world for just a little longer.

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Thanks Graham! You motivate me to go ahead and write those posts, and so I will 😊 You know, at work today I was catching up on what I’d missed. I read a report of some influencers the company had bought posts from. They presented everything like it was their idea and like they had researched the product thoroughly. The images used were generic ones of them posing like they were living their supermodel dream. I wish I didn’t have to see it. It made me think, am I jealous that someone wants to pay these people? They aren’t talented writers, the photos aren’t their own. Whether it’s jealousy or not, I still wouldn’t rent out my blog as advertising space, that’s for sure. It made me ponder how these paid influencers end up influencing the air-brushed social media postsyou mentioned, because they probably aspire towards something similar. Two very different genres of blogging.

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I don’t feel like influencers are bad or anything. Indeed, I have a certain admiration for their ability to promote themselves, something I’m hopeless at. I have more of an issue with those who are influenced by these people. I mean, really, this is as good as it gets? And these are people who vote, which explains a few things around here!

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Yes, I do get the influencers’ point of view and I write copy myself at work, nothing against sales per se. But like you said, who reads their posts?! They are ads. I don’t get it. There are also lots of beauty/fashion bloggers over here who become ”famous” and it’s an incomprehensible genre to me: they pose in different outfits and share their makeup tips full of confidence that they are doing it better than everyone else…

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Well, we live in an ad-driven, celebrity-oriented world these days. Luckily, I’m able to mostly avoid or ignore the worst of it so it’s one of those things I just roll my eyes at and, instead, peer into hedges to look for bugs, which is clearly a very worthwhile activity!

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I noticed that the summers are coming to an end when I realized that it’s almost dark past 9 PM now, whereas it was light up to 10 PM.. and the supermarkets here have already started their ‘back to school’ displays. I have something to look forward to though, I am traveling to Nepal for a second round of wedding this autumn and possibly Thailand on a family holiday. All the good things to look forward to 🙂 2019 has been too hectic for me. I just need to clock up a few more dives in the lakes here before summer is gone.
Work is boring but I find myself even more bored during weekends when I haven’t much planned.. maybe work gives me a sense of routine and I like that? Happy news is that you have the colorful autumn to look forward to before winter, Snow! 🙂 And there’s hopefully a few more warm weeks left over there before autumn 🙂

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Nepal and Thailand sound lovely, I do hope to see pics of your wedding on your blog but I realise that might not happen since you’ll have other things to think about that day 🤣 And I remember your older post about Nepalese wedding, which was beautiful. ❤️ Are you two planning on a honeymoon?
Yep, autumn is something I enjoy too, lets hope for a colorful one on both sides of the Baltic pond!

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Oh, poor Snow! You really sound tired! I’ve always though that mums don’t have holidays, they only change the scenary, but the work is always there (doesn’t matter if you’re a stay-at-home mum or a working mum…)
Is summer really over in Finland? I though that the heat waves reached even the nordic countries! I’ve seen some photos from Rovaniemi with 27ºC… (that’s scary!!)… Well, I’ll have to wait a few more weeks for my summer in Spain… We always go at the end, when it’s not as hot and we don’t suffer that much… After many years living above the Pyreness, anything above 30º leaves me lethargic and with bad mood, hehehe.
I hope being back at work is not being too hard!!

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Lovely post with thought-provoking reflections! Beautiful image with mirror-like lake! Is summer already gone in Finland? Pretty hot in Norway still.

I resonate very much with your thoughts on life. Take care. 😊🌸

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Thanks, Isabelle! Yesterday was the warmest day all summer, an exceptional 32C in Helsinki and probably even more in places that don’t have our sea breeze. We had pleasant, warm weather for about a week. Today it’s back to 17C. Mind you, ”pleasant” is just my personal opinion. Most Finns are happy with a temperature around 17-20C and they would think this is ideal. 😊

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Although we’re currently in Thassos, Greece, I’ve heard of the heatwaves that hit Norway (and other European countries). According to the weather forecast, the temperature will drop dramatically in Oslo tomorrow, landing at about 17 degrees. Not sure if it will rise again but personally, I hope the summer will last long 😊🌞☘️

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The magical rhododendron forest sounds beautiful, but I remember the days of the food on the walls messy two-year olds. Write whatever keeps you sane at this pivotal time in their lives because you have a wonderful way with words whatever the subject! Hvala from an American living in Croatia 🇭🇷!

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Thanks Cindi and it’s been a pleasure to ”meet” you here ☺️ Keeping sane is surprisingly difficult but writing does help actually, as well as knowing the messiness and screaming are natural phases of development and we’ve all been like that 😅

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Maybe you’ll get a nice weather surprise this year, and summer will sneak back for a little longer! Or the boys will settle down. Or your work will seem fulfilling and interesting after the break … Oh, I’m always such an (unrealistic?) optimist, but I still wish all of these things for you!

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It sounds as though it’s been quite the full summer!! While the warm season is still in full effect here, it does feel like it’s winding down since my daughter goes back to school in two weeks.

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Summer just seems to be getting a full head of steam for me. Still at least a couple of more months of too miserable to be outside. But, I live in central Texas where summer rules all, like winter does for you I guess. I can sense my air conditioner straining right now.

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Too much of anything extreme is rarely pleasant 😊 I feel like the Mediterranean climate’s the ideal: hot summers but still four seasons, not too rainy during winter. Over here, it’s back to barely over 10C and you can kiss your summer clothes goodbye, back to jackets and scarves.

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My reference is night time temperatures. I don’t see night time lows dip below 20C much after mid May and until October. I think last night’s low was 23C. No break for the air conditioner. I just want to be able to go outside in the evenings without sweating profusely. But, I knew all that when I moved here.

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