Saturday, February 28, 2015

Playlist: Eurovision

Eurovision is probably my all-time favorite event of the year. Seriously. You can listen to songs from various contest years below.





Playlist: Dutch Songs

Ik Vind Je Lekker



Nu iets voor later



Het Meneer Konijn Lied


Treatsie Box

I recently received a Treatsie box full of yummies like Valentine's Day Toffee, Sea Salt Almond Dark Chocolate, various caramels, Red Velvet Chocolate, Mimosa Chocolate, Fleur de Sel chocolate, a variety mix of sucking candies, and a Peanut Butter Pretzel Chocolate Bar.

You can subscribe and get double the treats through this link. Just use the code FRBUCO01 at checkout. :-)

Pertti Kurikan Nimipäivät won UMK!

Pertti Kurikan Nimipäivät won UMK and I am so, so, so proud of them!

UMK 2015

I'm currently listening to UMK 2015. I really hope Solju wins, but I'm there are so many diverse songs that I'll be pleased if almost any of them wins. #umk2015

I am a little bummed about missing the fourth semi-final of #mello, though.

Playlist: Notre Dame de Paris

My favorite musical is Notre Dame de Paris - the original 1998 live in Paris version with Bruno Pelletier, Garou, and Helene Segara. Here is a selection of my favorite songs from the musical.


Belle



Lune



Les Oiseaux Qu'on Met En Cage



Florence



Le Temps de Catedrali



Dechire





Playlist: Kaija's Favorite Singers

Royal Wood (Canada)


Mads Langer (Denmark)


Rasmus Walter (Denmark)



Say Lou Lou (Sweden/Australia)

                                         

Alexander Rybak (Norway)


Mikko Pohjola (Finland)


Rasmus Seebach (Denmark)


TAL (France)


Hurts (UK)


Lifehouse (America)

                                         

Song of the Day: Hold Your Colours

The final of UMK is today, and I'm firmly #TeamSolju. May the best song win. (Hopefully it'll be this one.)


Kaija's Wishlist: These Shoes

I wanna jump around like a kangaroo!


Today's Scent: Love, Love, Love

C'est vrai, I love, love, love this Bath and Body Works scent.


Friday, February 27, 2015

Today's Scent: Starlit Wish

"A dazzling holiday fantasy of rich vanilla and velvet plum," this discontinued Victoria's Secret hand and body cream is my favorite scent to wear.


Song of the Day: Šuvvi Ljat

In celebration of Sami culture and in preparation for UMK tomorrow, I bring you this beautiful yoik.


Kaija's Oldies But Goldies Playlist

Here are three of my favorite songs from decades past.



And my all-time timeless favorite:


Kaija's Favorite Things: Barter by Sara Teasdale

Life has loveliness to sell,
      All beautiful and splendid things,
Blue waves whitened on a cliff,
      Soaring fire that sways and sings,
And children's faces looking up
Holding wonder like a cup.


Life has loveliness to sell,
      Music like a curve of gold,
Scent of pine trees in the rain,
      Eyes that love you, arms that hold,
And for your spirit's still delight,
Holy thoughts that star the night.


Spend all you have for loveliness,
      Buy it and never count the cost;
For one white singing hour of peace
      Count many a year of strife well lost,
And for a breath of ecstasy
Give all you have been, or could be.

Kaija's Favorite Things: Full Metal Jacket Jeep

This is the hottest, hardest, most handsome car I've ever had the pleasure of seeing. I'd take this over a Bugatti any day.


Kaija's Favorite Things: This Video of Jeremy Clarkson Pretending to be a Dog

It never fails to make me laugh.


Kaija's Wishlist: This Bunny Coat!!



Kaija's Wishlist: This Pastel Galaxy Sweater




Kaija's Wishlist: This Panda Jacket



Thursday, February 26, 2015

Kaija's Favorite Things: Part 2

Favorite animal: Pandas and reindeer.

Favorite drink: Pink lemonade.

Favorite fruit: Passion fruit.

Favorite item of clothing: Sweater vests and ties.

Favorite person/people: My mum and my grandma.

Favorite scent: When the world is in bloom in May and the air is full of promise.

Favorite candy: Salt water taffy and salmiakki.

Favorite country: Finland.

Favorite fashion style: Seapunk and/or Apocalypse style.

Favorite TV shows: Doctor Who, Supernatural, Star Trek: Voyager, Star Trek: TNG, Mythbusters, Dirty Jobs, Top Gear

Favorite cars: Jeeps

Favorite hair color: Rainbow!

Favorite hobbies: Stargazing and writing.

Favorite foods: Gyros, Subway, Taco Bell, herring, caviar, sushi, cupcakes, Swedish meatballs, lingonberries, and strawberries and cream.

Kaija's 51 Favorite Things

1. Favorite pet I ever had - Molly/The Supreme Pie Lord/Wobbles, a beagle that is currently sitting in my cat's bed. 
2. Favorite car I've owned - I've never owned a car, but my favorite car in the world is the Full Metal Jacket Jeep. 
3. Favorite meal out, ever - This one time at iHop when the waiter brought me a free refill of strawberry lemonade. 
4. Favorite food I've cooked - A veal cutlet sandwich with brie and honey. 
5. Favorite food from childhood - Hmmm... Baby food. Seriously. I love that stuff. 
6. Favorite drink on a hot summer day (include event) - Pink lemonade by the pool. 
7. Favorite drink on a cold winter night (include event) - Hot cider on Christmas Eve. 
8. Favorite conversation I've ever had with a person - Pfft. People don't talk to me in real life. 
9. Favorite total meal that I cook (list all items) - Nope. Cooking is for microwaves. 
10. Favorite movie of all time - Battlefield Earth.
11. Favorite book of all time - Paradise Lost
12. Teacher who changed my life, and why - My third/fifth grade teacher because every other teacher I ever had was pants.
13. Professional mentor who changed my life, and why - Nope. Not going there. 
14. Favorite item category to go shopping for with a girlfriend - Bath and Body Works stuff! (Seriously. My mum actually banned me from shopping there, but that hasn't exactly stopped me, lol.)
15. Perfect day out - what, where, with whom - A picnic in the courtyard with my dogs. 
16. Favorite color - Lavender 
17. Favorite artist - Thomas Cole
18. Favorite song - Je L'aime a Mourir 
19. The best paid entertainment I've ever seen - Pfft. Paying for entertainment is for people who aren't me.
20. Favorite hobby activity that makes me get lost for hours - Writing. 
21. Most rewarding time I've ever spent volunteering - Whenever I get food out of the deal, I'm happy. 
22. The most exciting secret I've ever been told - Well, if I told you, it wouldn't be a secret, now would it? 
23. My greatest skill (past or current) - Skills? What skills?
24. The best advice I've ever been given - Enjoy your life. Which has worked so well for me so far. 
25. The best advice I've ever given - I'm pants at giving advice. Someone once came to me for relationship advice to save their relationship and ended up breaking up with their boyfriend because of it. 
26. The year of the best birthday I ever had... and why - My 12th birthday, because 12 is a good number. 
27. The coolest natural wonder I've ever seen - Waterfalls
28. The most fun road trip I ever took... where and with whom - Not going there either. 
29. The nearest close call I've ever had - Nope. 
30. My favorite flower - purchased - Lilies. 
31. My favorite flower or plant - personally grown - Lavender. 
32. My best hair day ever? - This one time I gelled my hair and looked very German. 
33. The most favorite gift I've ever gotten - what and from whom? - Steb! My panda bear/best friend, from my mum. 
34. My most suspenseful moment - Dun dun dun dun! 
35. My most unexpected achievement? - Living until this moment. Didn't see that one coming. 
36. The most rewarding volunteer experience I've had - Didn't you already ask me this? 
37. My favorite paid employment, ever - Snow shoveling. 
38. The favorite dessert I've ever eaten - A cookie dough, chocolate fudge brownie, cake batter sundae with caramel, hot fudge, and marshmallow toppings. Yummy!
39. The prettiest natural landscape I've ever seen - A forest filled with waterfalls. It was magical. 
40. The most scared I've been by a bug or critter - I once saw a centipede crawling up my wall in the middle of the night. I called my mum in to come kill it for me. 
41. My favorite household chore - Vacuuming. Seriously, I love it. 
42. The favorite piece of jewelry I've ever bought for myself - A ring with lots of shiny stuff on it. 
43. The best cup of coffee I've ever had - Indian Monsooned Voyage 
44. The hardest question a child has ever asked me - 'Why is this important?' about something or other they had to learn, because the only thing I could think was s*** it isn't, is it? 
45. The most important time I've had to "be there" for a friend - I don't have friends. 
46. The most unusual pet I've ever had - A very strange dog who acts like a cat. Also a dog who used to steal my socks. Evil critter. 
47. The prettiest shiny object I've ever owned - A huge (fake) pink diamond. 
48. The most treasured book in my library - Paradise Lost
49. The most important tool in my craft/ hobby stuff - My pastels
50. The coolest handmade gift I ever gave anyone - I once made a homemade blanket for a shelter dog. 
51. Favorite perfume - Omnia Crystalline. 

Nibblr Box

Today I got my very first Nibblr Box.


I got four little trays of snacks, from Cajun Crunch to Punchy Fruit to Bananas Foster to Sassy Chicks. I think my favorite was the Bananas Foster, followed closely by the spicy lime chick peas. So yummy!

Today's Scent: Wild Honeysuckle

Today I am wearing Bath and Body Work's Wild Honeysuckle lotion. :)


Song of the Day: Read My Mind

The good old days, the honest man, the restless heart, the Promised Land... 


Wednesday, February 25, 2015

Candy!

Today, I got a huge box of candy delivered right to my castle bridge!


I only paid 16 dollars because I found a cool coupon code, and it was sooo worth it. I got a tin of sour jelly bears, a tin of shiny gummy bears, a third tin of sour strips, several handfuls of salt water taffy, and a little packet of peach bud candies. My favorites so far are the salt water taffy and the sour strips, because I love, love, love salt water taffy and I've always been a fan of sour candy. I'm not sure how I'm going to finish all this candy by myself, but I'm sure my mum will be more than willing to lend a helping hand. :0


Today's Scent: Vanilla Bean Noel

Today, I am wearing Vanilla Bean Noel by Bath and Body Works. It's like Christmas all over again!


Song of the Day: Fact-Fiction

Today's song is elegant and bittersweet, with undertones of romance and sweetness.


Introduction to Kaija's Awesome New Blog

Hello, world. Welcome to Kaija's personal blog. Most of the time I live in a floating Tudor castle mindscape with a respectable courtyard, an herb garden, a multitude of fountains, and a forest just outside the gates.

This is me, outside the suburban house in which I otherwise reside. My favorite season is Spring and my favorite color is lavender. My favorite food is gyros and my favorite books are the Moomins series by Tove Jansson. I love old maps, reindeer, and fuzzy blankies. I also like Eurovision, Lordi, Rasmus Seebach, Mads Langer, Royal Wood, Rammstein, Eric Saade, TAL, the musical Notre Dame de Paris (the original live version in Paris in 1998). My favorite candies are salmiakki and salt water taffy.



I also have a blog about my dogs which you can check out over here. I started it because my pets and my stuffed animals are my best friends and I love them very much.

You can probably expect to see a lot of posts about my daily adventures (real and otherwise), my favorite things, Melfest, UMK, Eurovision, music I love, products I love, good meals I've had, and the like. If you are going to leave a comment, please be kind!

Love,

Kaija