Kiertää kuin kissa kuumaa puuroa

is Finnish and means more or less “to circle like a cat circles hot porridge”. In Swedish it’s the same “gå som katten kring het gröt”. In Enligsh you would probably say “beat around the bush”. This is a great idiom, because it in many ways explains what the Finns are alike.

We usually don’t circle like a cat circles hot porridge. (Which we do eat a lot in Finland. The porridge I mean. Not cats. That would be wrong!!! lol) If we have something to say we say it. Upfront and without sugarcoating it. So for you Texans, this can come out as strange, since the American way is to always be polite and considerate. And don’t get me wrong – so are we Finns. We just don’t want to waste a lot of time, when we can give an answer in 2 seconds instead of 2 minutes. I’ve even had conversations with my own husband (when we still did the messenger calls because of long-distance), in which he thought that I was offending him. He realized at some point that it was due to cultural differences. 😆 Now, that we’ve been married for 3 years (wow, time flies), he still sometimes has issues with my non-sugarcoating side, when he is asking a question (expecting a conversation) and my answer consists of one simple word. Here’s an example of what one of those “conversations ” can look like:

Him: Hey, there’s this awesome new movie out. Do you wan to go and see it tonight at 10pm?

Me: No. (It’s not that I don’t like the movies or the movie, it might be coming very sudden, last minute babysitting issues, I’m probably alreay tired, yada yada yada)

Him: It’s really interesting, I think you would like it! Yes?

Me: No.

Him: Are you sure you don’t want to go?

Me: Yes. (Saying ‘no’ here would mean I wouldn’t be sure.)

Him: So you want to go?

Me: No! (I should have just kept with to the “no”.)

Him: So you don’t want to go?

Me: No. (Although technically ‘yes’ would probably be the proper way of declining at this point, but it would end up having the wrong effect. )

Obviously our conversations are not always like this, just mostly when I’m tired, hangry (hungry and angry) or for some reason showing my very Finnish side. (Usually I’m the one that won’t shut up, I do have a lot to say… which might not come as a surprise to you. 😂)

I am not saying that either way is right nor wrong. They are just different. And of course Finns are aware and don’t want to hurt anybody’s feelings on purpose. So to my new peeps in Texas – I probably won’t sugarcoat things for you. I’ll be upfront and honest about my opinions (which I tend to have in quite a big quantity, lol). Just bare with me.

And btw, if you have something to tell me, please, don’t be afraid to speak your my mind. Approach me and let me know. Don’t beat around the bush. 😉

CC

P.S. This is also one of those posts that I had started writing in 2016. Funny how it still is relevant. I guess I haven’t changed that much. 😂

Back to school

Today is the back to school day for many kids in Finland. In Texas they still get a week off or so, although their teachers had Convocation starting today.

Convocation are all the meetings teachers have before school starts.

At the college, we don’t have Convocation until next weeks Wednesday and classes start the Monday after. That means that I’m still off for another 1.5 week! 💪

Anyway, back to back to school.

Every year there are posts in social media that encourage people to take extra care in traffic when school starts, due to kids walking to school (at least in Finland). There aren’t usually many incidents per year, but unfortunately they do happen – those sad situations when kids are injured in traffic. So if you’re getting behind the wheel, please keep an extra eye out for small kids, since they know less of traffic than you do (hopefully.. if not, maybe you should take a couple of driving lessons).

In Finland kids can walk to school as young as first graders or take the local bus (which means that there’s a working local traffic system). Here in Texas, kids are mainly driven to school, there’s not much of transportation. There is a school bus system (the famous yellow busses from all the movies). A fair amount of kids are still getting dropped off by parents and needless to say, the rush hours around the schools can get pretty craaaazy. Finno people, you ain’t seen nothing!!

The police in Finland is doing a fairly good job at making themselves visible in the traffic, making sure crossovers are safe. They should be, but unfortunately drivers don’t always give the right away to pedestrians and this is sadly where a lot of the accidents take place – the one place where you should be safe crossing the street.

Right now, there has already been five different posts on the Helsinki police facebook page, promoting carefulness in traffic.

So, slow down and let the kids pass safely!

Another thing that I wanted to point out now that school is starting, is bullying.

D O N O T B E A B U L L Y .

If you see someone get bullied, report it and help the victim. There is no heroism in bullying, but there is heroism in interfering.

The police in Finland has also had big campaigns in the past years about bullying, reminding that it is against the law.

Lastly, I want to talk about a really sad aspect of school start (like the previous two weren’t depressing).

Bulletproof backpacks for kids.

You read that right. And from what I saw, the sales have increased a lot due to the past weeks events. What a sad world we live in, that these kind of items need to exit. Our children should be able to go to school feeling safe, not wearing bulletproof backpacks and have lockdown drills.

Regardless of these depressing aspects (sorry), I want to wish all kids a good school start, and best of luck to all you educators out there! You are doing an amazing job, that you are not paid nearly enough for, nor do you get as much credit as you should, but without you, our society wouldn’t be what it is.

CC

Gingerbreads and 1st of advent

For me gingerbreads are a very important part of Christmas. I’ve made gingerbreads every year since I was a child, so it’s tradition. I have always bought the dough, because it’s the easiest way to get a good dough. I’ve understood that it’s not easy to get the right consistency with a home made dough. Since I’m living abroad, I can’t really buy Myllyn Paras or Sunnuntai, so had to make it myself. I checked some Swedish and Finnish recipes and then I finally settled for this one. It was quite easy to make, getting the flour in required some muscle, but that’s what you have hubby for, right? 😄

The dough I made yesterday, since it has to rest overnight in the fridge. Today, me and hubby, got to work and baked some gingerbreads. I was astonished, and happy, that the dough was perfect – not too sticky nor too dry, but, perfect ! And the gingerbreads came out crunchy and yummy!

Cooking syrup, sugar and spices.

The dough this morning.

Rolling it out.

Dinosaurs are really Christmasie, right??

Hubby at work!

5-7 min in 360F.

Lots and lots of gingerbread! Yummy!

Next up – gingerbread house!

CC

The Olympic games

As we all know, the Olympic games have started. I want to elaborate on my home countries sport highlights, before people start asking me about it.

U.S. has a population of, what, roughly 319 million, and an amazing 554 athletes that participate in the Olympic games this year. Finland on the other hand has a population of about 5,5 million, with 54 athletes competing in Rio, which is quite a lot if you think about participants per capita.

So in which sports has Finland been successful ?

Athletics or field and track (48 gold, 35 silver and 31 bronze), with main focus on long-distance running.

The best Olympic athlete from Finland is Paavo Nurmi, who won 9 gold and 3 silver medals in the games in 1920, 1924 and 1928. He’s still ranked 3rd in multiple gold medal medalists in the Olympic games (both summer and winter games). That is quite cool.

 

Within athletics Finland has also been good at the Javelin thrust. We will be seeing several athletes competing in this sport in Rio.

Finland has also won several medals in wrestling, with 26 gold, 28 silver and 29 bronze medals.

In the winter Olympics, Finland has proven itself in cross-country skiing (no surprise there) and ski jumping (no surprise there either). Finland has most gold medals in ski jumping and is in 4th place in cross-country skiing.

 

How will we do in the Olympics in Rio 2016? I guess we’ll wait and see. 🙂

 

CC

 

Midsummer Night’s Dream

Today is a big celebration in Finland and in other Scandinavian countries – Midsummer. This is a holiday that is celebrated around Summer Solstices, which this year was the 21st of June, i.e. on Tuesday. This means that the day is the longest of all the day’s of the year. In Lapland (northern Finland), the sun does not set at all. It will actually set the next time in July (read more about Summer Solstice in my other blog post here).

This picture is taken last year in Sondby, a couple of weeks before Midsummer, at around 1.00 am.

This picture is taken last year at my Summer house, a couple of weeks before Midsummer, at around midnight.

So, the thing is, it’s almost daylight throughout the night. Midsummer is celebrated among family and/or friends. People go out to their summer houses. There are approximately 500.000 summer houses in Finland. That means that with a population of roughly 5.500.000, more or less every other family has a summer house.

So what do you do on Midsummer?

Eat

The new potatoes, fresh from the ground, are just the best potatoes on this planet! They are so sweet and delicious. A lot of different fish is severed with the boiled potatoes; herrings, salmon, whitefish etc. Barbecue and salads also make up the Midsummer table. As for drinks; beer, cider, wine and of course – snaps! Water and other non-alcoholic beverages are naturally permitted. As decoration you usually use wildflowers.

Go to sauna

Yes, as written before, the sauna culture is strong in Finland. There are between 2 and 3 million saunas in Finland, so that means that roughly every other Finn has a sauna. In some families you go to sauna during the day, before you eat and in others you end the evening with sauna. And yes, spanking with the birch branches is a must, lol.

Light a bonfire

A very common tradition is to light a bonfire. The idea is to keep bad spirits away. It was believed that the spirits become restless during both Winter and Summer Solstice. Therefore the bonfires. This is a great opportunity to get rid of branches and old wooden stuff at your summer house!

Pick wildflowers

Midsummer night is, needless to say, magical! It is said, according to old traditions, that unmarried women, who pick seven different wildflowers and place them under their pillow, will dream of their future husband. I can’t say that that happened to me – on the other hand I never picked nor placed any flowers underneath my pillow, lol. I just went to Japan. 😉

Midsummer statistics

Unfortunately a lot of people get drunk and drown. There’s nothing wrong in getting drunk, but the problem arises when people go boating, fishing or swimming while their drunk. The amount of people that drown depends roughly on the weather – the colder it is, the fewer drown. Well usually.

 

Missing Midsummer

Apart from the drownings, Midsummer is a very nice holiday. Before I moved down to Texas, I was told by several people, that the times that will be the hardest living abroad, are the holidays. The holidays, that you are used to spend according to your culture and customs, in your own country. And what can I say? True, true and true. I really miss Finland, especially the summer and the celebrations.

I want to wish all of my family and friends a lovely Midsummer! Enjoy the food and drinks, the sauna, the bonfires – all of it! And please, don’t drink too much. And when you do (because I know you will, lol) – make sure you have a friend who hides your car keys and makes sure you don’t end up in the Midsummer statistics!!!

 

Have a good one!

CC

 

 

Nightless Night and the Midnight Sun

The nightless night started yesterday in Lapland, northern Finland. This means that the sun doesn’t set at all, i.e. there’s daylight all day around. So no darkness, no night. The climax of the phenomenon is called June or Summer Solstice or the Midnight Sun, which will be on the 20th of June this year.  The nightless night will last this year until the 15th of July. So for almost two months the sun does not set at all.

 

 

The nightless night is due to the tilt of Earths axis (~23,5 degrees more or less), which permits the North and South Poles to bathe in sunlight for some weeks during the year. In summer (on the northern hemisphere) it’s the North Pole that bathes in sunlight, in winter (on the northern hemisphere) the South Pole.

During the time of Winter Solstice there’s polar night in Lapland, i.e. no day at all, which is the opposite of the Summer Solstice and the nightless night.

 

Oh, btw and fyi, it’s the tilt of the axis that causes the four seasons on this planet. Not the distances to the sun…as so many believe. 🙂

Here’s another clip about Lapland. It’s really something to see, either in summer or winter. In summer you have the nightless night and in winter the polar night with aurora borealis (polar lights). And don’t forget about the sauna! (Btw, there’s another blog post about that on my page.)

 

Here in southwest Texas we don’t have a nightless night at all, bc we are so close to the equator. The days are growing longer, but that’s all.

Missing the Finnish summer…

CC

 

More on the subject:

http://yle.fi/uutiset/nightless_nights_begin_in_northernmost_finland/7999724

http://www.visitfinland.com/article/land-of-the-midnight-sun/

https://www.lapland.fi/summer/nightless-night

http://www.timeanddate.com/worldclock/fixedtime.html?iso=20160620T2234&msg=June%20Solstice%202016

 

The Finnish Sauna Culture

Okay. Now some of you Texans are probably going like “Yes! Finally the sauna post” lol. You’ve all probably heard something about the Finnish sauna and the Finnish sauna culture. I want to shed some light over it. So here goes.

1. Yes, we go in nude. Nude as in without a bikini or towel. Nude as like the day you were born. You might have a towel to sit on for hygiene reasons, but that’s it. We are not that prude in Finland.

2. Yes, we go with family. And still nr. 1 stands. When kids get to their teenage face that might change, but that depends totally on the family. Some families go to sauna together throughout life, some take turns.

3. Yes, we go mixed. Meaning both genders mixed. And still nr. 1 and nr. 2 stands. We go with friends, family, colleagues – whatever the occasion might be.

The public mixed saunas are usually not nude because they’re, well, public. The public same sex saunas are by contrast usually nude.

4. Yes, it’s hot. Ranging from 60 C to 100 C, even 120 C. In Fahrenheit it’s a lot.
= 140 F to 212 F, even 248 F.

Are we crazy? No. It’s actually rather nice.

5. Yes, to make it feel even better, we throw “löyly“, which is water that we throw on the stow, to produce moist and a sense of warmth – yep, you heard me, even more warmth! In actuality the löyly does not raise the temperature, the contrary, but the steam gives a nice burn feeling on the skin. Sadistic?

FYI: The worst thing you can do during löyly is enter or leave the sauna. If you do so, you will here “OVI KIINNI” (and in worst case PER**** added to it – it’s a curse obviously). Why? Well, if you open the door the steam leaves the room and that nice burning warmth that people were waiting for is gone.

6. Yes, we spank ourselves with branches. Yes, you heard me correctly. Branches of birch tree. It’s called a “vihta” or “vasta” depending on where in Finland you live. The spanking cleanses and enhances both sweating and blood circulation. And let’s face it – it feels really nice. You can spank yourself or someone can spank you – however you prefer it.

The smell from fresh birch leaves is just awesome…!!

Even more sadistic? Well, I’ll leave that up to you. We don’t consider it to be that, lol.

7. Yes, if we have a chance we go skinny dipping in the lake or the sea, even in winter and preferably nude of course. And if not, we might just roll around in the snow. The change between the warm sauna and the cold water is just awesome. Just make sure you haven’t done nr. 9 too much before you dive into a lake or the sea. You don’t want to end up in the Midsummer statistics.

8. No, no Finnish saunas found abroad are Finnish. On any Finnish standard. Why? None of the above mentioned aspects do really apply. Especially nr. 4. Saunas found abroad are usually cold measured on Finnish standards. And usually you can’t throw any löyly either – it’s forbidden in most places I’ve seen. We go, but with a smirk on our face, lol.

9. Yes, we drink beer in the sauna. Yes, we drink beer outside the sauna. Sauna and beer were probably born together somewhere in the old Finnish mythology. It’s called Kalevala by the way (the mythology that is). We like to have nice cold beer with the sauna (no emphasis on “a”there, lol). It just adds that something to it. (And let’s not even get to the discussion of WHICH beer it should be. Finnish obviously…but which brand, lol.)

10. Yes, we tend to grill sausages after sauna. And eat them with mustard and ketchup (the latter being for kids in my opinion, lol). Why? No clue. It’s just tradition. And if anything, we Finns follow our traditions, lol.

By this point all male readers are still focusing on point nr. 1 and 3. Did she say nude? And mixed? Females and males? Nude? NUDE? Like in no clothes at all? (When can I go?)
But, wait, doesn’t that have, like, an effect, on like, the male, like, you know??

The answer is no, it doesn’t. (And now you’re like, uh, yeah right!!) Why? Mainly because of point nr. 4 – it’s so freaking hot! And I know you are probably smirking right now, going like “yeah, like that would stop anything”, but trust me, it does. For a first timer in sauna you can hardly breathe around 200 F. And if you don’t believe me, you are more than welcome to make a trip to Finland and have a sauna experience for yourself. I promise you that you won’t forget that any day soon.

 

I hope I was able to shed some light over the sauna culture from my perspective. Although it’s nice and warm in Texas right now, I have to say I still miss the Finnish sauna, and the sea. There’s just something special about that combination.

Have a great weekend everyone!

CC

Vappu – Vappen – Valborg

One of the biggest Holiday’s in Finland is called Vappu – Vappen in Swedish, or Valborg. It’s celebrated the 30th of April and 1st of May. The other big Holiday’s in Finland are Christmas, New Year and Midsummer.

History

Vappu used to be mainly the labor movement day (with origins in the States) and it’s an international Holiday in many countries. There are still labor marches in Finland on May 1st.

A part from the labor movement day, Vappu has both pagan and Christian roots. Vappu has pre-Christian origins dating back to the Roman Empire and the floral goddess. The name Valborg in Swedish actually derives from a catholic saint, Valburg. Beginning of May is the beginning of spring/summer and life, and it has e.g. been celebrated by the Celts and the Germanic countries. In Ireland and Scotland they used to celebrate Beltane to make livestock fertile. So there are many reasons why to celebrate. (Like we even need one, lol)

Picninc in Kaivopuisto, one of the biggest parks in Helsinki

Celebration

Vappu is usually celebrated in the cities with a picnic in the park. The parks are filled with people who are enjoying food and drink. Sparkling wine and sima (a home made mead) are common drinks along with other alcoholic beverages. Typical pastries for Vappu are funnel cakes and doughnuts. But basically you can bring whatever you want to the picninc table. Kids usually get Vappu-balloons, which look like cartoon figures (everything from My Little Pony to Spiderman).

Funnel cakes and doughnuts

Vappu is also a big celebration for university/college students. By the end of high-school students receive a white cap and that cap used to be worn by students during summer time, from Vappu to September. I did not wear my cap this year, since mine is in a box somewhere in the harbor of Vuosaari, lol.

The student cap with the most common cockade

A statue named Havis Amanda always receives a student cap on the 30th of April at 18.00. The cap is placed by a different students organization every year. After that everyone can put their cap on and the celebration is ON! People usually celebrate out in the streets, even though it’s spring and not too warm (c’mon it’s Finland). Before Vappu the tabloids make a lot of money publishing BIG news on what kind of weather has been promised for Vappu. And regardless of weather, there are still a lot of people in the parks and the streets. It’s not so much about the weather – it’s about clothing!

Havis Amanda getting her cap on the 30th of April

So, Vappu is a celebration with friends and family, with food and drink, in hopefully nice warm weather (yeah right). Basically it’s a good reason to sit out in a park, get tipsy and have a nice ‘day buzz’ (päiväkänni in Finnish).

Vappu in Del Rio

At least around here Vappu wasn’t celebrated (or somebody forgot to invite me, lol). And I didn’t put any effort to make a celebration out of it either this year (sorry about that, shame on me, yes yes).

Maybe we’ll celebrate it big next year – who knows!

CC

 

More on the topic:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/May_Day
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saint_Walpurga
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Student_cap

About me – the Finn who moved to Texas

I’m a 31 year old young woman from Helsinki, Finland. Now some of you who know my husband might think, wait, what? She’s only 31!? That means that you’re like a lot younger than him! Yes, I am. But age is no more than a number. And the age of your body is not necessarily equivalent to the age of your mind and spirit.

I grew up in the Capital of Finland, which is a nice city with approximately 600.000 habitats. Helsinki is located by the Baltic Sea, so I grew up with water around me. Therefore water is a vital element for me. You can imagine how happy I was when I learned that Del Rio has it’s own lake. And that my husband (to-be at the time) has a jet-ski (or wave runner as you call it) and a boat. I’m ready for some serious piña coladas and margaritas! (I already know one person who’ll join me for that!! We’ll spend some nice weekends out there at the lake! 😉 )

My second nature is nature itself. I love nature. No wonder I wanted our wedding ceremony to be outside, right? The Finnish nature is absolutely beautiful in all four seasons. (And yes I know, I know, the four seasons of Finland also have their downside – they are not picture perfect, lol!) But there is always beauty to be found in any season and any day. You just have to open your eyes and see it. I learned a lot regarding that when I studied art. Even in November there are a lot of beautiful shades if you take the time to look for them. But lets face it – who does, since everybody (including me) are so depressed in November?? lol (Advice: Do not visit Finland in November, it’s rainy and depressing!) The pics below are obviously not from November, lol, more like June. 🙂

 

 

I’m a Swedish-speaking Finn (I’ll post later on that topic). I speak Swedish, Finnish, English and Spanish, and therefore I will be posting in more or less all those languages, depending on how I feel. I will also be elaborating on some beautiful aspects of the Finnish and Swedish languages, mainly Finnish though, because it has no comparison! Everyone who has ever learned or tried learning Finnish knows that! 😀

I’m a Finn. To explain what a Finn is, would probably take a lifetime. I will therefore elaborate on that in different posts, so you can start getting an idea.

And then I’m me. An odd bird, even in Finland. I’m not the stereotypic Finn. I’m not silent (lol, heck no, everybody knows that) nor am I introverted or shy (and Finns aren’t really like that, they just need time to warm up. Or a few beers. Make it five or ten and they’ll tell you their whole life story, lol).

I want to borrow my good friends words, because what he wrote the other day was really true. Juuso is a good friend of mine and he does great stand-up in Finland. You can check out his website at http://www.juusokekkonen.fi/. Juuso, maybe you can come and shock Texas at some point? lol

What he wrote was “To your new friends and family: She is not kidding, she is an odd one. And that’s a plus! She is strong-willed, independent and will, in the end, always do what she wants. You should take the fact that she chose to move her whole life to Texas as the biggest possible compliment. You must be quite awesome too! I hope to come and visit one day!” Yes, Juuso, I’m odd and yes, you should one day visit Texas. And not only Austin this time, because Austin is probably as odd in Texas as I am, lol!
Btw, I’ve been told by several people that I’ll probably love Austin – I guess that’s a date then Austin! ❤

My sense of humor is very sarcastic and ironic. I don’t mean to offend anybody, so if you by some chance feel offended, then please, by all means, stop reading my blog. Like right now. I tend to joke about a lot of things, even things that might be considered politically incorrect or border-line. If I by some chance joke like that in your presence it only means one thing: that I feel comfortable around you and that I trust you (at least to some extent, lol). The more relaxed I feel around people, the easier it is for me to be me (obviously).

Nothing starts my day off quite like an inspirational tweet! May your day go fast, your socks match and your underwear not ride up your ass.

– Unknown

I will be posting about life, combining my roots from Finland to my new adventures in Texas. Therefore it will be a mixture of cultures. I want to tell my story, about my personal experiences in a new world, where there is so much to explore.

A good friend of mine reminded me the other day about writing a blog based on your own experiences and opinions. What he said is that everyone commits errors along the way – i.e. you say something that should have been better unsaid. That’s what’s bound to happen when you write in public. Thank you Otso for reminding me of that! When that day hits me, I hope you can all forgive my ignorance and stupidity. I’m not perfect (although I am a perfectionist), I’m only humane.

Lot’s of love to everyone,
CC

Sataa kuin Esterin perseestä

Okay. I’ve officially started a blog about my new life in Texas! Yay! My first post was the same I posted on my facebook page a few days ago. I will at some point write some things about me, which will hopefully shed some light to who I am. I will be posting in 1-4 languages, depending on how I feel. I want to combine my roots (Finland) with my new experiences (Texas).

So, to you who are wondering what on earth the headline is about

“Sataa kuin Esterin perseestä” is Finnish. It means “Raining as from Esteri’s ass”. Which means it rains a lot. A lot. A LOT.

In English you would say “Raining cats and dogs”. Well, it doesn’t really rain either cats nor dogs – nor from a Womans butt. Whoever came up with idioms deserves a Nobel Price in Literature, lol. And yes, for English-speakers the Finnish version is probably appalling and horrific. Finnish idioms have a tendency to be like that, I’m not joking! (If you feel offended now, please stop reading my blog. I don’t mean to offend anybody. My sense of humor is based mostly on sarcasm and irony anyway.)

What am I trying to say by all this?

Well. In Finland we have four beautiful seasons. (And yes, I’ll immediately admit: winter is cold and dark. Don’t go to Finland in winter. No kidding.) And here I am moving all the way to Texas, and not only Texas, but southwest Texas, which is more or less a desert. So I’ve been preparing for arid air, sand and lots and lots of SUN. And what have I seen so far? Mostly rain. Wait. What!? Rain? You heard me. RAIN. And here I’ve been smiling and smirking throughout the past year when my husband (Yay! I get to say that now!) has been talking about heavy rains in Texas. I’ll admit my ignorance. When it rains here – it rains! Like cats and dogs, or as from Esteri’s ass. Really. No shitting here.

Note to self: Don’t forget your umbrella, even in Texas!

And when it thunders – it thunders! Last week it was thundering and raining so bad that I didn’t even want to leave the car – and I am usually fascinated by thunderstorms! The San Felipe Creek, were we had our wedding ceremony, was flooded yesterday. I’m so happy the rain and thunder gods (Thor? 😉 ) weren’t around on Saturday, lol.

And I’m so happy that no more damage was caused to Del Rio, my new hometown. Unfortunately other places have not been as lucky, as you’ve probably seen on the news. The damage has been severe and an awful lot of people have been affected by it. Hopefully there will be no more casualties.