I'm here... With tons of writing, editing, serious thoughts and bad jokes.

I have not been able to update my blog as frequently as I'd like to. I have been writing some articles, my book, & lots of other stuff, attending several Litterary Meetings (like the Helsinki Travel Fair, which is a litterary happening, believe it or not), and I have tried to search for solutions how to deal with Miss Funnybunny's tantrums that make our life crazy, but kind of interesting. She is becoming a bigger and bigger lady, day by day. And very intelligent! (I have enjoyed reading La Petite Anglaise, and compared Funnybunny with her Tadpole. Not a bad comparison at all!)

But all these busy things do not lead to the conclusion I have not been thinking about the basic IStori stuff (whateverthatis).

Let me just list the basics I have in my mind right now:

THE THOUGHT: Ruhnama, the Holy Book of Turkmenistan. Written by the late dictator, Saparmurat Niyazov. Readind the holy sh*t is obligatory for the Turkmen (can't even get a drivers' licence without suffering through the book beforehand), and for everyone trying to do serious business with the locals!

THE REASON WHY: I am soon going to see this hilarious documentary, directed by Arto Halonen, soon; In The Shadow Of The Holy Book.

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THE THOUGHT: Seven suicides in one village, in a short period of time, is too much of course, but also strange.

THE REASON WHY: At times, especially in April, I tend to think about a good friend I lost 23 years ago. And then, after a shock one tends thinks "he must be the last one" and "this should never happen again", but he is not the last one, and it does happen, and it has happened. This sounds like Hillary Clinton, but in addition to parents' efforts it does take a village, and even a state, to raise our children to be good and happy people. But hey, let's do so. Never leave anyone too alone.

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THE THOUGHT: Paris

THE REASON WHY: Mr HP and I need to get some visions for our new project. I will reveal more about this later! But the best hmmm hmm hmmm... sort of places happen to be in Paris. And I'd like to meet some friends there, too. And take miss Funnybunny with me. And let Shakespeare and Co gently suck me into it's heavenly womb.

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THE THOUGHT: Auschwitz

THE REASON WHY: Sunday, 27/1, will be the 63rd anniversary of Auschwitch liberation. For me personally, at the moment, this just means a bit more writing to do. But for the mankind, more brain work. Why, oh why? A woman who survived Auschwitz just put it bluntly in a TV documentary, "the way to Auschwitz was paved with silence". I have seen the camps (or how they look about now), a lot of footage on site, and met some survivers, but yet: what actually took place escapes my mind. And, after having miss Funnybunny, killing kids becomes even more unbelievable, impossiple and devastating, as a thought.

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THE THOUGHT: Oscars

THE REASON WHY: Really difficult to explain this one! The unexpected destiny of Heath Ledger made me think of stupid stuff: "Now he'll be a hero. Like a new James Dean." That's cruel, I know. Sorry. The guy is dead, and he was kind of good actor. Unlike the overrated but yet, for some reason appreciated blank faces Tom Hanks or Leonardo DiCaprio or Kevin Costner...

There was this poll in today's Independent. (My favourite, remember!)

The Academy has announced this year's nominations. What has been its worst decision to date?

And, after seeing the list the decision was soooo difficult: Forrest Gump was total zero (except Gary Sinise as an interesting sortof-best-friend and the cleverest person there was, and even sexiest, even though he did not have legs, but hey, what do you need legs for, all the time?), and so is Costner as both an actor and a director (and probably the pic he directed in 1990 was Dances With Wolves, which was crap...)

Here we go: The Academy has announced this year's nominations. What has been its worst decision to date?

Titanic - Best Picture, 1997
Rocky - Best Picture, 1976
Can You Feel the Love Tonight - Best Original Song (The Lion King), 1994
Braveheart - Best Picture, 1995
Forrest Gump - Best Picture, 1994
Chicago - Best Picture, 2002
Kevin Costner - Best Director, 1990
Judi Dench - Best Supporting Actress (Shakespeare in Love), 1998

I ended up voting "for" Costner.