Simple living in rural Finland

Michael’s diary: Week Four

Monday

It’s been a little over a month since I arrived at my cousins place. Time really does fly. I know the saying well, and yet, it comes as a surprise nonetheless. I’ve gotten accustomed to the lifestyle here, to a degree. It is simple living, and it’s growing on me.

The weather has been far cooler than the hot streak that happened previously, which had broken a record from more than a few decades ago.

Everywhere I look, I see small signs of progress. The property is becoming more organized, with fewer urgent jobs to tackle. I know that, eventually, I’ll be in the forest with my cousin, helping collect firewood for the winter. But I’m not nearly as worried about it as I once was.

It was a day of minor maintenance and nothing overly exciting happening, and they are enjoyable as are the days where plenty of work is needed.

A month has come and gone, and life here is starting to feel like my own.

A month has come and gone, and life here is starting to feel like my own.

Tuesday

We were in need of a few things and we headed into the bigger city that is nearby: Kajaani. I’d been there previously with my sister and father which gave me a rough idea of where things were. Not that it helped at all. The shops we went to weren’t in the city centre where the walking streets are, but around the edges.

We were in search of a tarp repair patch, and potentially a few other things that my cousin was after. The main thing I wanted was a proper outdoor shirt that could be used for when we go into the forest. It was partially why we hadn’t before. I lacked the proper attire. We had gone when I first arrived and it was less than optimal.

I bought a proper bottle that I can use to keep my water cool and crisp, and then we had a quick lunch before heading back.

The drive is about an hour each way, so it made for a long outing, but it was a nice change of scenery.

Wednesday

The long hours in the city led to a relaxing day of minor maintenance once more. They were becoming more frequent as the place slowly came together. I wasn’t complaining.

My freelance writing workload has been steadily growing, so my days now have a nice rhythm: writing in the mornings, a few hours of rest, then outside work in the afternoon, with any final edits done in the evening.

The garden was checked and the place was touched up with trimming any excess growth. There was more work needed in a garden than I realised, or perhaps it was because of how much was growing around? The plants were coming in nicely and I was surprised by how many there were. Hopefully they’d be edible. I’m unsure of how much of a green thumb I have.

Thursday

My usual routine with gardening and yard work was coming together.

I’d check the garden in the morning, water if needed, and do small yardwork jobs. I was thankful the sun wasn’t bearing down upon the plants as much as they were, as the rhubarb was not looking good. I’m sure it wouldn’t grow much longer though the recent addition that I had planted should grow better.

I’ve noticed Finnish people have plenty of rhubarb growing, and I constantly forget to take photos whenever I see them in town.

Hopefully we’d be able to grow some more in the future and have a steady collection of various vegetables on hand.

The rest of my day was spent clearing the driveway of deadfall. There was more than I thought and it was brought over to the fireplace which had been seeing more use with the rocks in place. I knew the sides of the driveway would need to be cleaned at some point though it wasn’t a necessity at the moment. There were always small things to be done and it was better to spread them out rather than rush to get it all at once.

Friday

The morning started with the usual garden check, then I moved on to the day’s main task: de-rusting the fire poker. I’d never done that before, but I was ready to give it a try. The shed is full of useful odds and ends left by the previous owners, including a variety of sandpaper grades.

I worked my way through from coarse to fine, focusing on the handle and the part most often held. It’s not a perfect restoration, but it’s a big improvement. Painting it will have to wait for another day.

Afterwards, I turned my attention to the well cover I’d accidentally broken earlier. With my new outdoor shirt on, I trekked into the forest, found a good replacement board, and laid it in place. It’s a small fix, but a necessary one.

Another productive day, and one more step in keeping this place running smoothly.

Read more blog posts:

• September 2025
• August 2025
• July 2025