Eating Muffins in an Agitated Manner

April Fools

Posted by Sari

Can I just say how much I hate April Fool day jokes? I mean really hate. This has been a bone of contention around Casa Tali since Jukka and I got together. Jukka loves them. He actually spends time trying to think up what to do next year. I just don't get them. Maybe I have no sense of humour, maybe I have low self-esteem, whatever, but April Fool jokes are nasty evil unfunny things whose sole purpose is to make fun of the poor punter who does not get it while those who did get it congratulate themselves for being ooh-so-clever.

During our, what, nine(?) years to gether Jukka has learned that to try to fool me on April 1st usually leads to success followed by tears, shouting, a knee in his groin, and a totally disproportionate amout of pouting and snipping, but apparently the "bheer" (another thing I find completely unfunny: the fannish jargon) at SF-mafia muddled his brain so that he saw fit to mix me up in his April Fool post on Muffins.To give him the credit he is due, he said that he would take the post down if it really bothered me that much. I was really tempted to take the offer, but in the end we ended up with a compromise where the post stayed where it was, but a) I got to write a rant against April Fools day, b) I refused even to look at the post he wrote.

So if you found it funny you can feel sorry for this sad bastard who does not understand the intricate beauty of April fools day jokes, and if you - like me - don't much care for them you have my condolences and apologies.

Carpe Diem

Posted by jukkahoo

There are moments in life when you just know that "this is it". It's time to "seize the day" and "just do it".

That moment is here and now. Some of you might know, that I've been writing articles & reviews for various fanzines and semi-prozines, as well as written an odd piece of stuff for different netpapers and e-zines. And then some. During this past year, after you-know-what, I've written a fair share of this in English; to various places, like Emerald City, SF-Chronicle - and SF-Site.

Talking about the last one... They offered me a part-time job as a reviewer-editor-collector-younameit! -person. Not a lot of money, not a lot of publicity, but a heckuva amount of work, name-recognition and most importantly - a real chance to go out and try to make it in the Big world.

This doesn't mean I/we have to move. Right away. But if (and hopefully When!) they and I are satisfied with what I've been doing, it'd mean that I'd have to pack my things and, well, go.

Where? Well, Canada.

Which isn't all that bad in my book. Of course, this would mean that I'd have to give up most of my Finnish duties and positons of trust. Like Tähtivaeltaja, Wsoy, Legolas, HSFS and - most importantly - the Chair of Finncon 2006 -committee. I have already talked with Vesa Sisättö about this and he is "willing" to take the big responsability. This of curse provided that I get the job after the initial three-month trial period. Fingers crossed!

And what about Sari? I'll let her say her piece:

The SO(B) :-) may think that he can leave me behind, but there is a very good chance that after I've finished with my PhD in July, I could be eligable for a year-long tenure as a visiting Fellow at the University of Woolamaloo, in Toronto. UWT and Helsinki have a Albright-scholarship program for History and the current Fellow in Helsinki, this Canadian chap by the name of Noble Hyphen-Hyphen is willing to recommend me for the position. This would mean a LOT of hard work in order to finish the thesis, as well as a small canine problem, but this is (as Jukka says) one of those possibilities you shouldn't waste.

Part of me (Jukka, again) cannot actually believe this is at all happening. I'm aghast, flabberghasted and totally stupefied. What ever will tomorrow bring?