She spreads the blessing wide as human kin

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The photographs were taken on October 15th.

This morning I walked for 2 1/2 hours at Timmermalmi nature protection area, exploring the swamps, which were flooding due to melting snow. I thought about stereotypes, for example the feeling that many people from the USA are not really grown up even though they may look like adults. And when you meet US people the stereotype usually doesn't hold, but still it persists. And then Donald Trump is elected president, and that fits completely the stereotype. Who except people who are not adults would elect Trump?

(Posting title is from the poem Slavery by Hannah More.)

I see you're already lower-casing him...

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The photographs were taken on September 24th.

My left arm is still a bit sore after the flu shot, but there have been no other symptoms, as expected. The weather has been rather wet, but for today the forecast promises even some sunshine. That is good to have.

The vindictiveness of Donald Trump and his minions (or rather frenemies) is becoming more and more apparent. The clown is willing to go to any lengths to harm those people who are not willing to ingratiate and brownnose him.

(Posting title is from the poem Birthday Blues by Mark Rudman.)

Is always repeating itself

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The photographs were taken on July 20th in Helsinki.

Is there much else to say except that racism is a cancer that needs to be removed? The same applies to Trump.

(Posting title is from the song Waterloo by ABBA.)

It makes you bad, bad

Field

The photograph was taken on July 13th.

Yesterday it became evident without doubt that the President of United States is a supporter of nazis. In World War II the United States lost 407,300 people, most of whom were military. Now there are evil racists showing the nazi flag within the country, with the blessing of Trump. Who would have thought that something like this would be possible.

(Posting title is from the poem My Sister Says White Supremacy Is Turning Her Crazy by Morgan Parker.)

To those who call evil good

Flower

The photograph was taken at Vuokatti on July 4th.

Even though I abhor violence, today I feel great sympathy towards those who wish to punch nazis. It is remarkable how Trump and his minions protect neo-nazis and white supremacists, even though 73% of mass killings in the US since 1983 have been committed by white men. Well, perhaps this isn't so remarkable given that 90 years ago Trump's father was arrested at a KKK rally in Queens.

(Posting title is from the song If You Had A Vinyard by Sinead O'Conner.)

I set the world on fire

Sand 1

Sand 2

Sand 3

Sand 4

The photographs were taken at lake Hiisijärvi, which is an interesting place to visit because of the white sand dunes.

I wrote another poem about Trump, or tried at least.

I love dark money,
building golden towers,
and admire myself in the mirrors.
Poisoning air, earth and water
I set the world on fire.

Could see, and not seeing what we could not see

Tree

The photograph was taken on June 16th while visiting Timmermalmi.

Here are some happy things:

• The novel The Wonder by Emma Donoghue is absolutely great, combining gothic horror with closely observed domestic life.
  
• The iPhone SE camera is a worthwhile tool, even though it is not a match to a real camera such as the Panasonic LX100. But when I'm riding the bicycle, the iPhone is the tool I take with me in case there is something to capture.
  
• You can't hide the truth forever, which is more and more apparent when observing what is happening in the United States regarding the Trump kleptocracy. Good people #resist.
  

(Posting title is from the poem Wonder as Wander by Sharon Olds.)

An urge to hoist whatever's there, hard

Spring 1

Spring 2

Spring 3

The photographs were taken at Sipoonkorpi National Park on May 25th, using an iPhone SE, because I forgot the LX100 camera at home. The photographs are rather different than they would be with the LX100. Not necessarily better or worse, just different.

Yesterday an important news items was that data of almost 200 million voters in the United States leaked online by GOP analytics firm. What is interesting about such data is the way it can be used to subvert democracy. By targeting ads to each individual person, a political party can give each person a different message (or "promise"). And when they get in power, they can do whatever they want, regardless of their campaign promises, because none of this information was publicly available or widely known.

(Posting title is from the poem Guns by Katrina Roberts.)

The news people is the only ones who got us out

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The photographs were taken at Kytäjä-Usmi on May 13th.

This morning I visited the golf course at Petikko. I don't mean that I played golf (Trump is reason enough to alienate from such thoughts). Instead, I explored the forests on the east side of the golf course. In all I got 2 1/2 hours of walking.

Each morning before reading the news I wonder whether they have managed to clean the house, or is Trump still president?

(Posting title is from the poem Convention Centers of the New World by Raymond McDaniel.)

The Evil God did not answer

Red

Gray

The photographs were taken in Petikko on May 7th.

Chaos seems to be in charge in the United States. The leaders of the Republican Party say "In God We Trust", but the God they worship is an evil one, reflecting the evil within themselves.

(Posting title is from the poem The Good God and the Evil God by Kahlil Gibran.)

The whole wide world around some day

Anemone

The photograph was taken on May 7th in Petikko.

It is really quite extraordinary that a stupid and dangerous clown is acting as the President of the United States. One shudders what can happen when a man with so diminutive capabilities, without any compassion, needs to make decisions. There is no other way to save the planet than to #resist.

(Posting title is from the song We Shall Overcome by Bruce Springsteen.)

It’s a figure like a frame among

Frog

The photograph was taken in Luukki on May 6th.

Today the temperature was 3 °C in the morning and 8 °C in the afternoon. When riding the bicycle back home there was strong headwind, 12 m/s, and in gusts up to 18 m/s. The road was littered by twigs and branches fallen from trees.

It seems that Trump has three main activities (between the tweets):

1. obey commands from Putin and Russia (and their minions and collaborators)
   
2. grab pots of money (preferably while playing golf)
   
3. destroy the federal government of the United States (and also devastate the health care, the education system, and the environment)
   

What should we do to make our planet great again? There can be no plan B, because there is no planet B.

(Posting title is from the poem Congratulating Wedge by Alice Notley.)

Discovering all the cheat

Lake 1

Lake 2

The photographs were taken in Luukki on May 1st.

Today I thought about #covfefe. Perhaps it means уходить in Russian?

So far this year I have got 2,523 km riding the bicycle, and 653 km since the beginning of May.

(Posting title is from the poem Angellica’s Lament by Aphra Behn.)

You know I got to flow on

Snow 1

Snow 2

Snow 3

The photographs were taken on April 30th.

Looking at the United States, one must wonder about the mafia-type structures which are becoming more and more apparent. Trump is completely immersed in this rot and dirtiness, as well as the Republican Party. Where is the land of freedom and opportunity these days?

Another thing which is apparent about the corruption is how the United States has turned away from the motto "In God We Trust". Trump and his minions, as well as the leaders of the Republican Party, appear to me as an antithesis of the Christian values written in the Bible.

I'm not religious and not especially knowledgeable about the Bible, but those values that to me seem to be the most enduring content of the book are not to be found in the leaders or the politics of the party. Of course, the book was written by humans and thus is far from perfect, but still I think it doesn't take a genius to understand what the book is about. It is not about those in power trampling, oppressing, persecuting, tyrannizing, repressing, and bullying the people.

Trump and his minions are worshipping money, fame, and power. To me they are non-Christian. Or perhaps "anti-Christian" is the most appropriate term here.

(Posting title is from the song Freestyler by BomFunk MC's.)

And let me see things as they used to seem to me

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Snow 2

Snow 3

The photographs were taken in Petikko on April 30th.

In five days I got 11 1/2 hours of exercise, enjoying the landscape of late spring and early summer. Today I'm planning to take it a little easier. During the winter my weight got up 5 kg, but now it is coming nicely down again.

Yesterday I wrote about the danger and stupidity of Trump and his administration. When I woke up this morning and read the news about Jared Kushner and the back-channel to Kremlin, I wasn't greatly surprised, but still, this is quite something. It fits the wider picture of the Republican Party.

I'm more and more convinced that the prevailing attitude among the leadership of the party (and many of the voters) is quite similar to the slave-owners. Take away all benefits from the poor, the sick, the children, the elderly, the women... The party belongs to the rich, white, and male, i.e., those who are in the "owner of the slaves" position.

I'm currently reading the book Underground Airlines, a thriller by Ben H. Winters: "It is the present-day, and the world is as we know it: smartphones, social networking and Happy Meals. Save for one thing: the Civil War never occurred." The book makes me shudder, but I just have to keep on reading.

(Posting title is from the poem Falling Water by John Koethe.)

More light came in, opening out like a fan

Street

The photograph was taken on April 25th in Turku.

Should I write something about the Trump sinkhole? Perhaps it is enough to note that fortunately there are people with courage and understanding who can put a stop to the bullying, whining and scamming that is perpetrated by the Orange One.

(Posting title is from the poem History of My Heart by Robert Pinsky.)

While every neighbour’s eye was fixed on me

View

The photograph was taken on April 22nd.

This morning I walked for over two hours, exploring Timmermalmi nature protection area. The weather was warm, 18 °C, and birds were making a racket.

If someone would have written two years ago a novel or a movie script about what is being revealed about Trump, nobody would have believed:

• The family* and people in key positions in the campaign have been engaged in massive money laundering, through various intermediaries and places such as the Cayman Islands. Billions of dollars from Russia etc. have been passed through these people.
  
• The campaign colluded with Russia in the election, coordinating the efforts through intermediaries such as Flynn, Manafort, etc.
  
• Russia is engaged in a massive effort to spread falsehoods about people critical of Trump, using advanced data analytics for precise targeting of propaganda on platforms such as Twitter and Facebook. This effort is carefully coordinated, for example using Trump's tweets as magnifiers of propaganda.
  
• Trump and people close to him have shared classified information with Russia, and made policy decisions advancing the interests of Russia.
  
• Also, people close to Trump have been engaging in policy decisions which will in longer term destroy the environment, crush the education system, and wipe out health care in the United States. One example of this is denial of climate change, benefiting the oil industry, and thus Russia.
  
• Not to forget the hundreds of lies Trump alone has told since January, or other such "minor" details, which are just the tip of the iceberg of the disinformation campaign going on.
  
• Also, there is the case of emoluments, i.e. the president taking money and other benefits from foreign states.
  
• When facts about the wrongdoings have been leaking, Trump and his people have engaged in measures which are clearly obstruction of justice.
  

It is good to see that New York Times, Washington Post, Wall Street Journal etc. have woken up and are writing about the revelations. Even better is the work done by activists and "citizen journalists", who often reveal information about Trump and his minions weeks or months before it has been verified by more official sources.

* Here I use the word "family" in a meaning that is familiar from mafia movies.

(Posting title is from the poem A Disappointment by Joanna Baillie.)

Look at how you've spent your life

Blue

The photograph was taken on April 14th.

The temperature dropped to -3 °C during the night, and snow covered the ground outside the house in the morning. Fortunately the roads were dry, so it was not slippery when commuting by bicycle.

What is slippery is the leadership in the United States. One thinks that matters can't get any worse, and then they get. Where are the people with courage to #resist and to stop the endless stupidity of the Twittler?

(Posting title is from the song Perfect Crime by Guns N' Roses.)

Out in the middle of the poem

Tower 1

Tower 2

Tower 3

The photographs were taken on April 1st.

What can one say of the big fool with tiny hands? #resist

(Posting title is from the poem “Any fool can get into an ocean...” by Jack Spicer.)

In a sorcery of forgetfulness

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The photographs were taken on March 31st in Helsinki.

Yesterday we got a hail shower, and this morning it is snowing. Doesn't feel like spring, but I guess the snow will melt away within a couple of hours.

Yesterday was #marchforscience, drawing huge crowds. It was called The Dark Ages when we lived without science. Science trumps crazy twittlers.

(Posting title is from the poem Howl by Amy Newman.)