I spent this weekend in Helsinki, which is brilliant in the sunshine (it becomes exponentially worse in October-November when it’s absolutely pitch-dark and miserable – to survive this season most aboriginals choose to spend it mainly drunk  -> upcoming Christmas, so there’s no need for an excuse for getting sloshed around the clock those months) and it was absolutely lovely. 

What cheered me up particularly was literally injecting red wine in my eyeballs reflecting life with some of the best people I know (I’m absolutely shit at keeping in touch with people, therefore have very few friends, who, on the hand, are the “I’ll help you hide the body” – kind (their words, not mine) and dearer than anything, except possibly for my health, which I, come to think of it, regularly compromise in their company) and wandering around the lovely Finnish capital (please see the disclaimer in the first paragraph before planning your holidays, though). 

So yes, it was delightful to ditch the professional cocktail-personality (created especially for work-related functions where chitchat with random people is required) for a couple of nights. I did some reading whilst on vacation, too, notably Rachel Cusk’s Outline and Transit.​ I found the books both unsettling and fascinating. First, because the protagonist hands the centre stage to everyone she meets, like the true observer that she is, and therefore the books become them babbling on about their lives while the protagonist rarely reveals anything  about hers. Second, a reader I occasionally felt that “nobody’s in control of this story!” which was refreshing, and, as the cliche would have it, also what life is all about.

I was expecting something dramatic and/or strange to happen at any point of the novels, and nothing did. Yet I was left rather, well, unsettled. In the end I knew very little about the protagonist, who was the same person in both books and there was of continuation of the storyline – yet I weirdly felt I knew exactly what was going on. Both books have been decorated with all kinds of prizes and awards, and are a treat to read. 

In addition to the above social activities this weekend, what absolutely made me laugh was Lunch With the Financial Times in their weekend edition, because what do you know, they’d fixed Antonio “The Mooch” Scaramucci himself. It was a hilarious piece to read, and I truly believe you absolutely must read it. If for nothing else, the entertainment value is rather high (not much on substance, especially for anyone who’s read ​The Fire and Fury, but even if you have, still hilarious). 

What else was good? Well, Byredo has come out with a new perfume, Elevator Music. Into the Gloss has the full review, and unfortunately I have to schedule the sniffing gig to Brussels as no place in Helsinki stocks the said brand. Based on the review it’s very much something I could become attached to (cue: burned wood). Byredo is launching quite a lot recently, but their latest have been very interesting.