Other Hobbies


1. Folk Music and Folk Dance.
These are hobbies which are possible all the year round.  I am playing the accordion in one group and dancing in two others.


2. The Mac.
I have used Macintosh computers since 1985.  In November 2012 I bought my newest one,  a 3.2 Ghz quadcore Intel iMac with  a  27" screen! This is a fantastic computer.  Over  the years I have used may be 100 different programs, many of them CAD, animation and image manipulation programs as well as music, astronomy, GPS navigation and other programs.  You can see the results of this work on these pages.


3. Cycling.  
Helsinki is one of the best cities in Europe for cycling. We have excellent cycling routes to the east, the west and the north. You don't need to cycle among cars, the tracks are often hundreds of meters from the streets. I  cycle usually over 1000 km each summer.  
bikes

4. Geocaching (July 2015)
This is a fairly new sport but spreading rapidly.  I have found over 1000 geocaches so far.  I also have made 18 geocaches.  My Laajasaalo bicycle tour has been very popular.  The Holy Grail is the most difficult of my caches to reach (with 5 stars).  Take a look at the Log Statistics of my Caches. Geocaches are often placed on the most beautiful surroundings of the particular area. This is my reason for going geocaching.
geocaching

5. Boating and Paddling.
I have owned rubber boats and canoes for a bout 40 years. A rubber boat or a canoe is very practical to carry anywhere, it fits into a car trunk.  I own both a Juca boat and a Tramper canoe.
paddling

6. Skiing
Helsinki surroundings would be great for skiing.....if we only could get rid of the greenhouse effect.   For many, many winters in recent years there has been no snow or the snow remains on the ground for a few weeks only.. Lapland and Eastern Finland still have good amount of snow for skiing. The winter 2005/2006 was pretty good in Helsinki but at the moment it looks bad (December 2006).  We still have +10 degrees C when it should be -10!
skiing

7. Adventure skating.
This was my substitute for skiing when I started ten years ago.  We had frozen lakes and ice-covered sea instead of snow.   I soon found this to be a really great sport! Look at the accompanying picture.
skating

8. Tinkering & Fiddling
I started to build various things when I was a young school boy. I still have the tendency to do the same if something breaks at home. Throwing away a broken washing machine, refrigerator or computer is not my first reaction to the problem. I first open the thing to see if something can be done with it. More often than not, I have succeeded in repairing the thing.  This was the case when the door lock of my twenty-year old washing machine broke. I  dismantled the door, made a drawing of the part to be milled of aluminum.  Some years ago I also succeeded in repairing my daughters iMac computer. Lately I have modified my Roland Digital Accordeon with a new volume control system and recharging device.
iMac

9. Astronomy and Space.  
I  have been a member of the Finnish astronomy society URSA for about 20 years and a member of the Planetary Society for about the same time. Internet is my main source of information and I feel privileged to experience the adventures of the Mars Rovers or the Saturn moon Titan lander. I also have made some astronomy programs of my own.
space



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