Christmas came and went

This point, at which one year ends and another starts, is the time for coming back. Not symbolically, but because that is what I personally want all the time. It's like a Christmas gift to myself, a gift that requires an occasion. Being with people I love and miss all the time. This is, however, the time of great sadness, lurking just behind the corner to take over. Time of realizing how temporary and fragile this precious time is. The best time of the year. Well, maybe summer is better, but this is more recent.

So, I went home for Christimas, and spent 3 amazing weeks in my home country. Met all my best friends, strengthened my relationships, spent time with my beloved ones. After four months abroad, I got over from emptiness and loneliness. Brought back to Sweden a lot of memorable moments, warm hugs, and, sadly, a few good-bye kisses.

This post is not going to be an organised one, but when I do not write for a while, I lose the skill, just like in sports or studying. It's been embarrassingly long since the last post, so it just feels good to be back and not pressure myself.

Some news: I am going on an Erasmus exchange in Newcastle, England, for this spring semester. I'm leaving on Monday, so, from then on, it is expected to reflect here, in this blog, maybe even including some impression-based posts or first opinions :)

So, back to my holiday. despite all these bad feelings that are in me now, I feel like this period of time was one of those that people remember when they are old and think how great these times were. But, since I am not planning to stop being crazy when I am with these people,the list of my best memories is still open, and that's something to look for :)

As for this blog's future, I have got plenty of topics to write about and am still open for constructive critic and suggestions. I am also working on getting rid of unreasonable excuses, sso this is just about to show how it goes for me.

Birthday marathon :)

Home-made cookies with my art on them :)

Me and my brother

Technology, back off.

Today, I got really really lucky. Today I got to feel weightless and perfectly peaceful. No drugs, no yoga, no meditation, just hard, long work. Today was the time for packing and cleaning, getting ready to finally leave for the summer, working from early morning to late afternoon. People usually hate those days. But today I was truly into it. Don't know why, don't know how, but I was. How do I know that? Caught myself running around with my stomach making noises of a mating whale. And this, one must admit, doesn't happen very often, especially now, when the weather is so nice and warm and your whole existence is constantly searching for an excuse from work (by the way, if it doesn't find one, there's always a backup plan- 'I'm hungry', even if it's not really so). So then I make soup, putting in the pot whatever I can find in the fridge and stand by the stove, impatient, smelling the food. Time slows down to almost zero speed. When I pour the contents of the pot in the bowl, I realize it is a little bit under-cooked, but...whales in my stomach won't shut up, I really need to eat.
But then I go to my emptied room and sit on the floor. The windows are open and I can hear the birds. My computer is turned off, and, I guess, this completes the feeling. I end up sitting there, slightly smiling, thinking nothing, being a part of the nature, of the house, a part of the room, all of us just being one. The soup cools down.

Good old cinnamon

We all know cinnamon as one of the best-smelling natural food preservatives. When we were little,  I guess, most of us also tried tasting it, and, surprisingly, cinnamon alone was disgusting. And that's what spices are like: you can not enjoy eating them alone, but when you combine it with certain foods, just a little dash of spices can make miracles.
If that alone wasn't enough, quite recently I happened to find some information, proving cinnamon to be very useful for us. What I found was that many centuries ago cinnamon was used to treat certain diseases. Consequently, cinnamon can have positive effects to those who have type 2 diabetes, also to have an anti-clotting effect on the blood, lower bad cholesterol, and relieve arthritis pain. In addition to that, very recently cinnamon has been found to be a natural remedy to eliminate headaches and migraine relief. Surprisingly, I also found that smelling cinnamon boosts cognitive function and memory! This sounds quite weird, but I think it's worth a shot.
And finally, just before I end this post- good news for those who are trying hard to get fit- cinnamon can stabilize blood sugar, which means, it fastens weight-loss. So, this information I found once again proves that big difference comes out of small changes. Conclusion: I should go and get some cinnamon. To end this small article, some tips and tricks from me on combining your meal with cinnamon:
1. Simply put a couple of dashes of it in your cereal or morning coffee.
2. One of my favorite light snacks: chop some apples, pour yogurt on them and then put some cinnamon on top.
3. When mixing the dough for your morning pancakes, put a little bit of cinnamon, along with vanilla sugar in it- your entire kitchen will smell good after you are finished cooking.