Monthly Archives: December 2008
Recap of 2008
Internationally this year has been an interesting one, which has started to turn a little difficult towards the end, as you can see in the international, the Finnish and the Mexican 08 recaps.
Personally it was not any easier, but the end balance of has been very good I'd think. I expanded profesionally and became an expert in areas I didn't know that well at the beginning of the year in a challenging environment, and most of my energy and time went there throughtout the year (which shows in this blog, as I've been more active in Jaiku & Twitter where you need to think less to write a post).
Personally we found a place of our own that we improved for many months, but the results are there. My parents got their first grandchild, as my sister and her husband had a baby girl, whom we've now met and fallen in love with. Some friends have gotten married, some have lost their loved ones, and we've tried to be there in both cases.
With this in mind, we can hope for the best in the new year, and work hard for it.
How has been your 2008?
¡Feliz Navidad! Hyvää Joulua! Merry Christmas! Frohe Weihnachten! Buon Natale! Feliz Natal! etc.
Monocle’s Mexican fixes
I'm a big fan of Monocle magazine, and was quite amused when they talked about their main tips for the Mexican government in the year to come, which I quote below:
- Streamline the tax system and make it easier for people to pay.
- Stop police corruption by hiring better-educated cops and paying them more.
- Create a third television network so the media is not in the hands of so few.
Even though all are relevant and rather urgent, the first one was the one that got me thinking. One of the things that works especially well in Finland compared to Mexico is the taxation system.
We might disagree on the amount of taxes you have to pay (that's a whole other discussion), but it is amazingly easy to pay them: you only give an estimate at the beginning of the year, get a tax card, give it to your employer and then taxes are discounted automatically during that fiscal year (which is the same as the calendar year). If your estimate was off the mark, you can check your pre-filled tax return the next May, and you may even get a refund the next December. In 7 years I've never needed to ask any help from an accountant, and I've never had a problem.
No wonder Mexican tax payment levels are lower than Botswana's compared to GDP. Can they try to improve this for the new year?
Darkest time of the year
Rick Rolling millions
Best post on the Finnish immigration debate I’ve seen in ages
At Uusi Maailma, a Finn's view from Canada.
Snowing again
Downtown Mexico City on Ovi
Disclaimer: Yes, I work on this company and my job is related to this. It is, however, beside the point, I'm sharing this because it made me happy.
So, as you know, we recently launched certain new products and services at an event in Barcelona (that I didn't attend this year). I've been following the reactions to this in social media for a while, and of course am a heavy user of our own services.
Now imagine my pleasure when I check Mexico City in Ovi and I find this:
I knew that we had 3D landmarks, but seeing so many in Mexico City (especially the Angel of Independence) just brought a huge grin to my face. Especially since I'm so far away from there, and won't go back this Christmas.