Tommi Asiala's blog

A friend of mine asked me to participate on a 35km race with a kirkkovene, a sort of viking boat. Without hesitating (actually without looking what I was signing up to) I answered yes. It was the 33rd annual Pirkan soutu rowing competition in a easy going group called the second wave. The first wave was the Finnish national competition. We, the team Kölinallet with the Nalle Puh balloon, started late behind others but managed to catch many holding the fourth place for a while and being near third. I have never really rowed before and neither had most of my teammates. Somewhat unfortunately the actual race was shortened to some 29,5km in the middle of the race but it was still long enough trip taking 2 hours 49 minutes. Fun race especially in a challenge yourself -way. And I think it actually did good to my shoulders. We finished 5/12.

See detailed results here: http://www.pirkankierros.fi/Tulokset_2011SO054_1.htm

Just browsed through http://www.hs.fi/, the website of largest subscription newspaper in Finland. It had the following piece of news about the current Minister of Finance.

The headline (loosely translated): “The secret weapon of Urpilainen in a meeting: colored bubbles”. Instead of writing about what’s in those bubbles, Annamari Sipilä makes a big deal about the colors. Seriously. It isn’t news that the website of Helsingin Sanomat has plummeted to the level of yellow press for several years now. It’s just a shame because it reflects what we are interested in.

Facebook just doesn’t do it for me anymore. It..

• brings out the vanity and oversharing of boring stuff
• constraints the wall to only to those I’ve interacted lately
• is addictive
• does not offer easy access to my friend’s email addresses

Now it does have some good features but they are overrun by the negatives. Google+ Circles combats the sharing problem the wrong around to my taste. Sparks might work though. I’ll try it out when Google offers Profile service to Google Apps accounts. See list of Latin phrases) for fun.

Did you know that Bio Rex Sello has more cozier 28-seated screen with recliners? Better than the average, but unlike the movie).

While searching for material for the previous post, I noticed what Anne Sinnemäki spoke in the parliament (loosely translated):

The income gap is tightened in this new program, as it should be, in many ways. It means that the wealthy, who get capital gains, will pay more taxes and the poor, who live on various benefits, will have lower taxes.

Earlier today I read a politician, who’s name I can’t remember, saying that it’s justice that the wealthy pay more taxes. I’m all for keeping this country running and for that to happen with current structure, it means that the wealthy do have to pay more taxes than the poor. But I can’t put head around the idea, that it’s somehow morally obviously right solution. What’s the limit on progressive taxation? Is it justice that everybody get’s the same share after taxes? I understand even less why the disparity of income is a bad thing. Shouldn’t we strive for that everybody can make a living and be well, not equal income? There’s a wikipedia article on income inequality metrics and if I’m reading the list of countries by income equality right then Finland is among the most equal countries by income in the world. Moderate inequality is even said to encourage economical growth.

This year’s Finland’s parliamentary election increased people’s, including my interest in politics. Alex Stubb, the guy who I voted, has a blog anda a twitter account. I thought he’d be easy to follow and learn from. The “job description” of a member of parliament (MP) does not include writing blog posts. The primary task is very different from that and it’s a full time job in itself. However, a blog can, among other things, provide a medium for the MP to reflect his thoughts, educate and also prove to the citizens that you are on top of things. So, while Stubb certainly has no obligation to write about his work, he has done so and I appreciate it. But the thing is, I hoped to learn what and how he thinks. Looking back at his writings I realize that he’s being extremely diplomatic, acting more like a news agency than a person with in-depth thoughts. I’d prefer to read thoughts, views and ideas over news. See the http://blogit.edustajamme.fi/ for syndicated blog posts from most of the Finnish MPs.

Bon Jovi at Helsinki Olympic Stadium 17th of June 2011, warmup by The Breakers.

See the full gallery on Posterous

See the full gallery on Posterous

Fun apples and oranges comparison about the size of some countries compared to the size of Africa by Kai Krause. In other words, Africa is almost twice the size of Russia.

Stuffed peppers with minced meat, various ingredients and whole lot of spices. Excellent taste.

There are many reasons why not to use Facebook email. Here’s one: it screws up your formatting.

\ This is what I sent:

And this is what I received. Clicking the expand shows the same view.

The following image is a representation of my iPhone GPS cell tower location map from July 2010 to April 2011. Made with iPhone Tracker.

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Estrella Galicia reminds me of Lapin Kulta. 1/3.

Most of the boats are still on dry land.

After calculating the cost of a new car, taking in to consideration my current good location near bus and railway stations and pondering about life choices I made up mind. I sold the car and purchased a bicycle as seen below.

It’s the Specialized Sirrus Elite Disc from Sellon pyörä to which I still need to install the lock and the cup holder. Ready to rock and roll :)