DEC 27 Spleen
"Mjältsjuka eller spleen (från en. spleen, mjälte) är ett folkligt namn på en svår depression eller melankoli (jämför musikstilen och sinnesstämningen blues och vemod). Namnet har sitt ursprung i (humoralpatologins) uppfattning om mjälten som säte för den "svarta gallan". Mjältsjuka brukade framför allt drabba personer av bättre börd, och ansågs under en period "fint" att ha. Med nutida språkbruk kan det motsvara psykos eller bipolärt syndrom".
Han lekte fram en månadssång på Garage Band. En grund att gråta gråstarr till, som en stare i april. Spirituellt med mjälte, då vemodet bedarrat. Jo han kom sig ut på löptur och hälsade på sin gamla mor. Det var den dagen det. Behövs väl inget mer, egentligen. Tiden läker?
Dear Friends,
Every year my dear friend Inga send her regards from Odense Denmark telling us what has been going on and what is to come in the life of herself and her family. Picking up that tradition since a couple of years back I also would like to tell You all a bit about what's up here in the Northern suburbs of Mariehamn, Åland, Finland.
The year is drawing to a close and we have been spending Christmas with Anni, Riitta, Riitta's daughter Mira and her 5 month old babyboy Tim together here at Riåkersgränd 11, where we still are living, not having found anything more suitable even if we really tried to get nearer to downtown Mariehamn. The brown labrador Ånni is still around.
It's been quite a flexible year with travels near and far, as usual. In February we spent 2 weeks in The Gambia holidaying with Riitta and Anni. We really enjoyed it and I cried having to leave it. We will be back for sure even if there are so many different places to visit in this wondrous world of ours. In July my son John and I met up in Roskilde for that tragic event (the music was great, though) spending nights with Peter and Galal in Copenhagen. The holiday continued in Falun, Sweden for the Folk Festival. It has been quite some year for festivals. April Jazz in Espoo and Pori Jazz in July were other events experienced this last year. A great year for festivals!
Having turned Director of Culture, thus having more time away from buraeucratic library work, I also tried to initiate some events myself here in Mariehamn. In February there was the 1st Mariehamn Winter Jazz & Blues, a thing to be renewed on a larger scale in 2001. Please check www.mhbibl.aland.fi/mwjazz2001 in order to see what the plans are for February next year. At the beginning of September Världsfest II www.mhbibl.aland.fi/world was on in town and by popular demand it is being put up again in October next fall. Hopefully we will be co-operating with Uddevalla in Sweden and Karjaa in mainland Finland!
I also made my first public appearance playing the saxophone at an Old Folks Home nearby on the national day of Åland, June 9! I missed most of the notes, but we (Kjell, Leif & Steven) are struggling on trying to cope with classics like Moanin' and Bei Mir Bist Du Schön! Great fun. And Ånni is howling the blues as I practice.
My career as a member of the Executive Committee of IBBY ended in Carthagena Colombia. My full four years were up and I was quite happy to quit. Riitta and I had a nice time holidaying by the beach in Bocagrande a week after the Cartagena congress. No more travels to India, Japan, Italy or Colombia being an ambassador for children's literature, I suppose. Fun while it lasted.
This fall I had to read a lot in order to nominate 6 newly published Finnish novels from 80 works for the Finlandia-prize, the highest ranking prize for fiction in Finland. I do not know who suggested me for the jury but I tried to do a good job and one of my three favorites, Johanna Sinisalo, finally got awarded in the beginning of December. This jury work gave me four opportunities to visit Helsinki keeping up some of my contacts to that old hometown.
I am getting more into libraries, literature and music internationally and hope to find ways to travel in the future as well. I left the panel for WMCE (www.wmce.de) by the beginning of the year due to too much work, but my music programs Varma Vindar for Ålands Radio are still on monthly. I also hope to get more into filming.
Anni turned 9 in September and is the apple of my eye. She is growing fast and seem to enjoy life. Her temper can be hard to cope with sometimes. She is carefree and could better her way with keeping her room in order and not leave her clothes all over the appartement. But I do adore her, proud a father as I am. Bought her a giftcard for a CD for Christmas and today at lunchtime we went to purchase Absolute Music Vol. 35. We can discuss music and Red Hot Chilli Peppers have been a favorite since her brother John was here in the summer. She is also playing the piano and does classic ballet once a week.
John is turning 19 in February and still has 1 1/2 year to go before his studies at the Helsinki Waldorf/Steiner School are finished. He does not have a lot of time for anything else but his filming project. The shootings finally ought to be finished this winter. Then there is more mixing and fixing to do in the summer. Hope he has the strenght to pull it through. We had a great time at Roskilde festival this year, and why not next year as well.
Riitta has been working on different projects. After finishing her studies in Swedish she took part in preparing a thing called Åland in Helsinki. This fall has been quite heavy for her being on the dole with nothing in sight until she finally found work as a native teacher of Finnish at the local polytechnic. She will start this work in a week's time.
Next year will be exciting as well. After Mariehamn Winter Jazz & Blues we will be off to Cuba for a couple of weeks. Back home again for the Vera Film Festival and Mariehamn Literature Days will occupy most of March… and then spring is is on its way with more plans and sunny times … in the exotic islands of Åland. Please come and see us.
WE WISH YOU A HAPPY NEW YEAR 2001 AND HOPE WE CAN MEET UP AGAIN SOON, SOMEWHERE.
Tom, Riitta & Anni
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