I’m so tired that I can’t sleep. Up at 4:15.

With a new perspective, I tried enjoying bed. Drank coffee with pillows behind me. Long shower. Listened to blues. Listened to David Sedaris. Embracing joy and the slowness of time.

Sitting in the hotel restaurant watching light turn to light, a Helsinki sunrise in August when it never gets dark, and the morning crew making their way through exercise and work commutes. A happy lot. A lightness of step. Not like New Yorkers, who look so mad and beaten. Why is that?

Continuing with that theme, I made a point of walking very slowly through the buffet. I picked exactly what I wanted, tried everything I wanted to try, something new for me. I ate slowly and just a bite here or there when I wanted, and it was just perfect.

Now if I can just remind myself of that on a daily basis. You don’t need to rush through the line because of the people behind you. You are not in trouble. Ask for what you want and what you need. You deserve it.

I like how a woman can be a woman in Finland. I never feel like I’m being checked out or judged, and that goes for men and women both. Why is that?

I like how the Finns are not overly friendly, the way Americans are. They don’t require you to make eye contact and smile and exude ‘I like you, you like me’ type of vibes. But if you do reach out, say hello, ask how they are doing, they answer with kindness and not the fake stuff. You can drink water from the faucet, you can drink water from the stream, and you can eat the blueberries off the bushes growing at your feet.