Walking in a forest does good for a troubled soul.
Or at least it would, if the forest wasn’t a territory of a mosquito army.
It’s
beautiful and partly collapsed. She decides to go in.
There’s a green rocking chair inside the barn. It looks old and self-made. It’s all covered with dust, the poor old forgotten thing.
Kaarna knows
the rules of entering abandoned buildings quite well: leave nothing but
footprints, take nothing but photos. But this time she thinks:
- I passed the entrepreneur course despite of my bad mouth and now I found this chair for Hector. Things might work out after all… Maybe my Macbook can be fixed also! Minor setbacks!
- I passed the entrepreneur course despite of my bad mouth and now I found this chair for Hector. Things might work out after all… Maybe my Macbook can be fixed also! Minor setbacks!
Hector is filing the chain of his chain saw when Kaarna knocks on the door.
- Really, Kaarna, you didn’t have to get me a another chair. It wasn’t a big deal. Looks like somebody’s grandpa has made this. It’s a great piece of furniture! Where did you even get this?
- Erm… second hand… practically free…
- It’s so sturdy and well made! Thank you so much.
- No problem…
- And so comfy, feels like it’s made for my heavy body! Sulo seems to like its scent too! By the way, tell Ken that I’m coming to cut that birch trunk later this week.
- Will do! Great. Got to go! Bye!
Kaarna dips herself in the lake. Carrying that chair all the way was exhausting and made her sweat. The water is still cold, just the way Kaarna likes it.
Camping will be so much easier from now on!
- This is so handy! The little fridge can now be on all the time! And Kaarna can charge her laptop and work even in the woods. I wonder if they have fixed it already.
Just a little afternoon trip to enjoy the new electric system!
- Ken, why do Herbert’s exhaust gases smell this bad and why does she sound so loud?
- The exhaust pipe is broken. Reiska will take a look at it tomorrow.
- Only one thanks. I’m not hungry.
- What’s wrong?
- Everything.
While they eat, Kaarna tells that she just received a call from Apple service:
- Repairing it costs over 800 euros. I cried on the phone. The young man sounded a bit confused. As if he didn’t understand that it’s a shitload of money! I told him to send the machine to electric waste.
- Oh no!!!! Call him back right now! I will pay for the repair with my credit card. We’ll earn that money back!
- Ken… that is stupid… I will never be able to pay you back.
- Be quiet now and make the call.
Ken decides to continue camping over night, but he has to take Kaarna home first. The night will be cold and Kaarna has no interest in freezing in Herbert.
Ken hikes a few kilometers through the forest to a place of a stone age settlement.
There’s a replica of an ancient accomodation too, and it’s kind of
confusing to think about the people who lived here 5000 years ago.
Ken enjoys a cup of hot cocoa and wonders:
- When did it all start to go wrong? What was the turning point that made the human species turn into such an error that we are now? Was it when we figured out how to cultivate land? Or even earlier? We should’ve stayed as one of the animals. But no, we evolved and destroyed the planet.
Ken never buys anything on credit. Being in debt would make him feel very uncomfortable. But now Kaarna’s future depends on this little piece of plastic.
- Here, take my credit card and Herbert. I can’t come with you to the city because Hector wants to help me chop the wood today. And leave Herbert to Reiska when you come back.
- Here, take my credit card and Herbert. I can’t come with you to the city because Hector wants to help me chop the wood today. And leave Herbert to Reiska when you come back.
Ken counts his savings in the box:
- Doesn’t look good at all. There’s hardly anything left, but at least this will cover Herbert’s new exhaust pipe.
The summer is gone an it's only the beginning of June. Ken is freezing when he watches Hector doing all the work.
A big old birch tree gives nice amount of firewood.
Hector helps Ken to make a frame for them and says:
- Remember to pile them up nicely. You don’t want the pile to collapse this time.
- Yes yes yes, always the same song!
- And still your piles always collapse.
- Remember to pile them up nicely. You don’t want the pile to collapse this time.
- Yes yes yes, always the same song!
- And still your piles always collapse.
Hector has to go, and Ken finishes the work by himself. He doesn’t have Hector’s patience and he decides to tie the other end of the rope to a living tree.
- I can imagine Hector’s face when this pile falls down in the winter.
Mari had planned to be on vacation all summer. But then she was asked to substitue an actor in the theater of Kotka. She needs to drive there to discuss about the role.
- Sorry Bianca, you can’t come now. I’m taking Kaarna with me this time. We’ll be back in the evening.
Mari laughs when Kaarna comes out:
- Beanie, mittens and a woollen scarf! It’s June already!
- Didn’t you notice it was snowing yesterday? Snowing!
- Really? I was inside all day watching movies, didn’t notice anything.
- Yes, really. On the first day of June. You’ll freeze to death in Kotka.
- Beanie, mittens and a woollen scarf! It’s June already!
- Didn’t you notice it was snowing yesterday? Snowing!
- Really? I was inside all day watching movies, didn’t notice anything.
- Yes, really. On the first day of June. You’ll freeze to death in Kotka.
While Mari is meeting the director, Kaarna walks around the city. Kotka is a coastal town and its speciality are the many parks with blooming flowers and big trees.
The town center is truly beautiful. Kotka might be the prettiest town in Finland.
Mari is definitely freezing in the sea wind.
Kaarna feels sorry for her and gives her the scarf so that they can spend some together time at Katarina Seaside Park.
Ken has to take more shifts at the Post to be able to pay for the credit card debts.
While Ken is at work, Kaarna needs to figure out all the byrocracy that comes with starting a business. Luckily the weather is still so cold that having to spend all day doing this annoying shit doesn’t really matter that much.
Working at the Post has become boring and Ken is excited about the upcoming co-operation with the new entrepreneur Kaarna:
- Did you get all the paperwork done?
- I did. I am now officially an entrepreneur!
- Excellent! Can we start building the web shop tomorrow?
- Ha! Abso-fucking-lutely not! Did you see the forecast?! Summer is finally beginning and I will enjoy the free money I’m getting now! I’m not going to do any work all year!
- The business starting benefit money… Of course... I should’ve known.
- Did you get all the paperwork done?
- I did. I am now officially an entrepreneur!
- Excellent! Can we start building the web shop tomorrow?
- Ha! Abso-fucking-lutely not! Did you see the forecast?! Summer is finally beginning and I will enjoy the free money I’m getting now! I’m not going to do any work all year!
- The business starting benefit money… Of course... I should’ve known.
And all of a sudden the summer really starts! Ken and Kaarna decide to explore the recreation areas of Lake Saimaa this year. No need to drive around the world when you have amazing nature right where you live!
- This place is a bit too crowded, but the folks seem to behave and be quiet.
- This place is a bit too crowded, but the folks seem to behave and be quiet.
Luckily the sandy beach is one kilometer long. There’s plenty of privacy.
- Warm sand! Blue sky! The lovely smell of skin getting tanned! Oh heavens how I’ve missed all this, Ken sighs happily.
- Warm sand! Blue sky! The lovely smell of skin getting tanned! Oh heavens how I’ve missed all this, Ken sighs happily.
In the morning Ken checks his phone and says:
- Looks like there’s a geocache at the tip of this cape. We could go find it!
- It better not be a boring tube hanging on a branch of a spruse tree!
- Can’t be! Only pine trees seem to grow here.
- Looks like there’s a geocache at the tip of this cape. We could go find it!
- It better not be a boring tube hanging on a branch of a spruse tree!
- Can’t be! Only pine trees seem to grow here.
Even if this geocache turns out to be a lot bigger than they tend to be, it was a bit tricky to find. Luckily it didn’t matter since all the mosquitos have died during the freezing weeks of June!
Ken sighs:
- I wish I could live like this all the time.
- When you retire, you can!
- After 20 years… ouch. By the way, with that solar panel and battery we can start building that web shop of ours right here on the beach! Get your laptop!
- I wish I could live like this all the time.
- When you retire, you can!
- After 20 years… ouch. By the way, with that solar panel and battery we can start building that web shop of ours right here on the beach! Get your laptop!
- Ken, your pile has collapsed, Kaarna notices when they return home.
- A lot sooner than I expected. As if I had time to fix that now… Ken mumbles.
- A lot sooner than I expected. As if I had time to fix that now… Ken mumbles.