Speak English!

How To Have Fun Without Trying

2012-01-11T16:13:00.000-08:00

Dress up as colorful as you can.
Take a musical instrument and play it.
Sing all the songs you know.
Smile at yourself.
Eat healthy and tasty food.
Dance alone or with anyone willing.
Talk with friendly people.
Play new games.
Draw cute animals.
Hug your pets.
Write a song or a poem.
Use Python as a programming language.
Speak in a foreign language.

Aloha!

2011-10-25T15:10:00.000-07:00

I love my ukulele. I do. I really do. I get tones of fun with minimum effort. It's the best thing I have ever purchased. And it was cheap.

The idea came to me from the book "How to be free" by Tom Hodgkinson.
This book mentions, among other memorable things, a Chekhov story ("Who Was To Blame?") about a man who tried to learn his cat to catch mice. It reminded me of my years in school.

Mahalo Tom!

Free At Last!

2011-09-03T18:18:00.000-07:00

I'm learning how to play the guitar. My goal is to sing to the guitar any song I want.
When I was young my parents sent me together with my older brother to a children guitar group. My brother totally loved it and I totally hate it. I was too young for that. The guitar was too big, the strings too strong, I didn't know how to read or write. I only knew how to sing along with other children. Maybe it wasn't a complete waste of time. Maybe I have learned some things. But I didn't enjoy it and it blocked me for thirty years.
I have a good musical ear. I can sing decently. I have rhythm. And from now on, I can also play the guitar. There is a long way in front of me. But I have made the first step.

Easter Haiku

2011-07-17T18:28:00.001-07:00

I painted the egg
To keep an old tradition
From Eastern Europe.

Hope

2011-06-10T07:00:00.000-07:00

"I WILL meet one day the Life within me, the joy that hides in my life, though the days perplex my path with their idle dust.

I have known it in glimpses, and its fitful breath has come upon me, making my thoughts fragrant for a while.

I will meet one day the Joy without me that dwells behind the screen of light--and will stand in the overflowing solitude where all things are seen as by their creator."
from Tagore's Fruit-Gathering

Inner World

2011-05-16T15:14:00.000-07:00

Ivory towers
Surround my reality.
Feel of solitude.

The Stuff Of Thought

2011-05-09T13:30:00.000-07:00

I'm proud to say that I found a mistake in Steven Pinker's book. When explaining about onomatopoeia he illustrates the idea with a comic in which four dog bark in four different languages. But the Romanian and Portuguese dogs got switched. A Romanian dog would say "ham-ham" for sure. I know. I heard them.

Now I would like to present some of the "Fifty Thousand Innate Concepts" I learned from this book.

Theories of conceptual semantics
- Extreme Nativism
Nativism refers to an emphasis on innate mental organization
Ideas:
* single-morpheme word vs multi-morpheme words
* definition vs semantic representation
* verbs are composed from a smaller number of conceptual particles
* conative alternations (eg. possessor-raising, locative, anti-causative)

- Radical Pragmatics

The mind does not contain fixed representations of the meanings of words.

Oxymoron = a figure of speech that combines contradictory terms.
Polysemy (many meanings) = a word having a number of distinct but related senses
* iregular
* regular
Homonymy (same name) = a single word having several unrelated meanings
Homophony (same sound) = distinct words are pronounced the same way
Euphemism = a substitution for an expression that may offend with a more agreeable one
Dysphemism = deliberately offensive speech
Metonym = a figure of speech used in rhetoric in which a thing or concept is not called by its own name, but by the name of something intimately associated with that thing or concept
A hyponym is a word or phrase whose semantic field is included within that of another word, its hypernym.
Subtext = implicit content of a text
Wordplay = a literary technique in which the words that are used become the main subject of the work, primarily for the purpose of intended effect or amusement.
Metaphor = the concept of understanding one thing in terms of another.

- Linguistic Determinism

Our native language is the language of thought, and so determines the kinds of thoughts we can think.

Sapir–Whorf hypothesis
1) Language affects thought because we get much of our knowledge through reading and conversation.
2) A sentence can frame an event, affecting the way that people construe it, in addition to simply conveying who did what to whom.
3) The stock of words in a language reflects the kinds of things its speakers deal with in their lives and hence think about.
4) If someone uses the word language in a loose way to refer to meanings, then language affects thought - language is thought - by definition.
5) When people think about an entity, among the many attributes they can think about is its name.
6) Any computational system must have the means to store the intermediate products of its computations.
phonological loop = the part of working memory that rehearses verbal information
7) Every language forces speakers to pay attention to certain aspects of the world when they are composing or interpreting sentences.
8) The words and grammatical structures of a language have a profound effect on how its speakers reason, even when they aren't actually speaking or listening.
9) The medium of thought consists of actual words and sentences in the language the person speaks.
10) If two cultures speak languages that differ in the concepts they can express, their beliefs are incommensurable, and communication between them is impossible.

Coordinate system types or reference frame:
- geocentric
- object-centered
- egocentric

polyglot lesson

Rules of Thumb

2011-05-09T12:17:00.000-07:00

Smile, and the world smiles with you; cry, and you cry alone.

The best of friends need not speak face to face.

All cats love fish but hate to get their paws wet.

and more

Rain God

2011-05-09T11:50:00.000-07:00

And as he drove on, the rainclouds dragged down the sky after him, for, though he did not know it, Rob McKeena was a Rain God. All he knew was that his working days were miserable and he had a succession of lousy holidays. All the clouds knew was that they loved him and wanted to be near him, to cherish him, and to water him.

The_Hitchhiker's_Guide_to_the_Galaxy quotes

The Travelers’ Prayer

2011-05-09T11:37:00.001-07:00

May the road rise to meet you.
May the wind be always at your back.
May the sun shine warm upon your face,
The rains fall soft upon your fields
And, until we meet again,
May God hold you in the palm of His hand.

This is the motto of a nice lyrics book.

Dance Quotes

2011-04-06T11:49:00.001-07:00

google cache from an old site kathleenacademy.com

"Dance isn't a form, it's a way of life." ~anonymous

"Dancers are the athletes of God." ~Albert Einstein

"To tap or not to tap...silly question!!" ~anonymous

"We dance for laughter, we dance for tears, we dance for madness, we dance for fears, we dance for hopes, we dance for screams, we are the dancers, we create the dreams."

"Whatever you want to do, do it. There are only so many tomorrows"

"Imagination is more important than knowledge" ~Albert Einstein

"To dance is to be out of yourself. Larger, more beautiful, more powerful. This is power, it is glory on earth and it is yours for the taking." ~Agnes De Mille

"If dancing were any easier it would be called football." ~anonymous

"Quitters never win and winners never quit." ~anonymous

"Try to be fearless, because fear can inhibit you and keep you from a life." ~Miranda Weese (NYCB)

"If ballet was easy then everyone would be doing it." ~anonymous

"Dancing with the feet is one thing, but dancing with the heart is another." ~anonymous

"The Dancer believes that his art has something to say which cannot be expressed in words or in any other way than by dancing... there are times when the simple dignity of movement can fulfill the function of a volume of words. There are movements which impinge upon the nerves with a strength that is incomparable, for movement has power to stir the senses and emotions, unique in itself. This is the dancer's justification for being, and his reason for searching further for deeper aspects of his art." ~Doris Humphrey, 1937

"Behind each victory is a long train of suffering!" ~anonymous

"I don't have an attitude, I'm just REALLY good!" ~Dance Caravan

"The people who do not dance are the dead." ~Jerry Rose of Dance Caravan

"Ginger Rogers did everything Fred Astaire did, but she did it backwards and in high heels." ~anonymous

"If you say you can you can, but if you say you can't your right!" ~anonymous

"You know you're dancing when tears of pain and happiness blend in with your sweat" ~anonymous

"Artists lead unglamorous daily lives of discipline and routine, but their work is full of passion. Each has a vision and feels responsibility to that vision." ~Merryl Brockway

Ballet is not technique but a way of expression that comes more closely to the inner language of man than any other." ~George Borodin

It's what I always wanted to do, to show the laughter, the fun, the joy of dance." ~Martha Graham

"Life is a dance, from one stage to the next."

"Set yourself up for success and anything is possible."

"It takes an athlete to dance, but an artist to be a dancer."

"Dancers aren't made of their technique, but their passion."

"Your love for yourself is only shown when you are dancing freely."

"Dancers are instruments, like a piano the choreographer plays." ~George Balanchine

"When AIDS is stopped we will dance for joy. Until then we will dance for life."

"Dancers are among the most passionate and dedicated of artists and rarely take their work for granted."

"You can't see a painter or a writer or a musician if you just look at them, but you can see a dancer in a child if they've studied ballet for a year." ~"The Dancer and the Dance" movie

"You can't make a pointe if you don't understand the details."

The teacher doesn't teach, not really. The teacher offers stimulation and ways in which the person can educate himself or herself. At best the teacher wakes up that person and makes a person hungry.

Dancers work and live from the inside. They drive themselves constantly producing a glow that lights not only themselves but audience after audience." ~M. Louis

"When in doubt......dance!"

"Why do I dance?.....Why do I breathe?" ~anonymous

"A child sings before it speaks, dances almost before it walks. Music is in our hearts from the beginning." ~Pamela Brown

"Tomorrow's success begins today."

"Then come the lights shining on you from above. You are a performer. You forget all you learned, the process of technique, the fear, the pain, you even forget who you are you become one with the music, the lights, indeed one with the dance." ~Shirley Maclaine

"You can dance anywhere, even if only in your heart." ~Unknown

"I see dance being used as communication between body and soul, to express what it too deep to find for words." ~Ruth St. Denis

"Dance for yourself, if someone understands good. If not then no matter, go right on doing what you love." ~Lois Hurst

"Dance is your pulse, your heartbeat, your breathing. It's the rhythm of your life. It's the expression in time and movement, in happiness, joy, sadness and envy." ~Jaques D'ambroise

"You know you're dancing when tears of pain and happiness blend in with your sweat" ~anonymous

All there is to be said for work compared to dance is that the latter is so much easier." ~Heywood Brown

"Dance for life."

spring haiku

2011-03-21T15:02:00.000-07:00

Yellow crocuses
are just miraculously
rising from the snow.

sound cloud

2011-03-01T15:14:00.000-08:00

I found a place on the web for my sound recordings. It is called soundcloud.
I uploaded all my attempts there.
Two years ago I've had a productive period at recording myself singing or talking in foreign languages.
My instruments were a tiny microphone, my PC, Ubuntu, and audacity.
All this was, is and will be serious fun for me.

livemocha exercises

2011-02-12T10:18:00.001-08:00

The Weather

It's the third of December. In the evening the air is cold and the streets are dry. The lights of the town diffuse into the milky fog. Few people hurry shivering at home. The summer is in their minds when the sun was up until late and the wind was soft and warm.

Favorite Drink

My favorite drink is jasmine green tea. I like looking at the leaves slowly opening in the hot water. I also love the smell of jasmine. As much tea as possible for me, please! If I'm hungry I would like a hot sandwich with bacon, pressed cheese and tomatoes or green pepper.

At The Park

At the park, I use to walk and then rest for a few minutes on a bench. I like to look at the trees, the grass, and the sky. I like to listen to the birds and to watch the children playing. When I was a teenager, I used to sing there with my friends.

Last Holiday

I don't remember when I vacationed last time. It seems like a very long time ago. I like traveling and I have a job that permits me to go to places that I have never dreamed of visiting. But this is not a vacation. My last vacation was in Baile Herculane, a mountain town in Romania. It is an ancient resort. It used to be an architectural jewel, but now things have changed, unfortunately. But the surrounding area is beautiful. It is an ideal place for someone who loves mountains as well as comfort.

Shopping

I went shopping last week. I bought a long-sleeved, frilly, winter dress. It is a knit blend of acrylic, wool, and cotton. It cost 120 RON. This means 28 EUR or $41.32

Favorite Restaurant

My favorite restaurant is a Chinese Restaurant. The food served there contains a lot of rice and exotic mushrooms, a lot of soy sauce, thin sliced meat and vegetables, and it is served with chopsticks. My favorite dish is noodle soup, but unfortunately it is not served in my town. But I also like food served on a sizzling plate.

National Event

Romania has a big national event on the 1st of December. This is the day when Romania was consolidated into a single state (country?). In the year 1918, the provinces of Transylvania, Banat, Bukovina and Bessarabia were united with the Romanian Kingdom. This day is called the Great Union Day. Special celebrations are held each year in Alba Iulia, the town where the event happened in 1918 but also all over Romania. People go out and participate at the parades holding national flags in their hands. Also there are flags on all the important buildings.

My Town

Timisoara is an old town in the Banat region of Romania. It was a cosmopolitan town from the beginning because of its geographical position. Romanians have always lived peacefully near Germans, Hungarians, Serbs and recently Italians. This can be seen in the town's architecture.Timisoara is also called "Little Vienna". The town is at its best in spring and in fall because of the beautiful colors of the trees in the parks and on the banks of the river that passes through it. It's also called the City of Roses, because in May roses can be seen almost everywhere. Timisoara was the first town in Europe with electric street lighting. Lately the biggest attraction is, unfortunately, the Mall.

My Country

Romania shares borders to the North with Ukraine, to the East with Moldova, to the South East with the Black Sea, to the South with Bulgaria, to the South West with Serbia and to the north-west with Hungary. Romania has beautiful landscapes, especially in the Carpatian Mountains and Danube Delta.

Favorite Meal

My favorite meal is stuffed cabbage with polenta and cream. For stuffed cabbage you need a pickled cabbage, rice, mincemeat, a carrot, an onion, pepper, salt, some laurel leaves. Mix all ingredients, except for the cabbage. Cover the bottom of a pot with some chopped cabbage. Now make the cabbage rolls one by one. Spread each cabbage leaf on your palm, put in some of the meat mixture, roll it and then seal it by pushing in from the side with your fingers. Arrange the resulted rolls in a circle in the pot, add some water, cover the pot. Let it boil for eighty minutes. Shake the pot from time to time to be sure the rolls don't stick to the pot. Meantime make the polenta. For this you'll need cornmeal, salt and water. Boil the water, put some salt and then add the cornmeal gradually, blending continuously with a kitchen spoon. Boil it for ten minutes until it thickens. Turn it over on a large plate. Serve the cooked rolls with a lot of cream and hot polenta. Enjoy your meal!

Describe Yourself

I'm learning English because I like it and because it is very helpful anywhere you go and in any foreign situation. I especially like British English and I would like to catch a bit of British accent. I also use English in my professional life. A long time I didn't have the courage to speak in English freely. But now, even if I make mistakes I don't care so much. I would like to begin thinking in English and to speak it fluently like my own language.
I'm from Romania. Romanian is a Romance Language. That's why I understand very much of Portuguese, Italian or Spanish without studying them before.

Transportation

I usually walk. I also use taxi if I'm in a real hurry or if the distance is too long. Sometimes if I don't have enough money I use the bus. In vacations I use airplanes or trains, depending on the destination. I don't own a car.

Traditional Drink

The traditional drink in Romania is called tzuika. It is an alcoholic beverage made from plums, but it can be made also from pears, apples, apricots, peaches. The fruits are left to ferment for several weeks and then the resulting mix is distilled. Depending on the number of distillations applied, the drink can have three grades, each with its special name. It is served before the meal in small quantities. It is an excellent appetizer.

My Family

My family consists of my parents, my brother, my two uncles and my grandmother. We don't live together but we take care of each other.
My brother is seven years older then I. He was my role model in childhood. That's why I was boyish a long period of time. One of my uncles lives near the Danube Delta and he likes to fish. The other uncle lives with my grandmother and he takes care of her.
Both my parents are retired. My mother used to work as a primary school mistress and my father used to work as an electrical engineer.
Their new preoccupations are gardening and animal caring. We have three dogs: Benny, Niel and Nero, two cats, a lamb and some hens. My brother and his girlfriend live with my parents. I live with my boyfriend.

Inter-relationship - Thich Nhat Hanh

2010-12-22T14:43:00.000-08:00

You are me, and I am you.
Isn't it obvious that we "inter-are"?
You cultivate the flower in yourself,
so that I will be beautiful.
I transform the garbage in myself,
so that you will not have to suffer.

I support you;
you support me.
I am in this world to offer you peace;
you are in this world to bring me joy.

Delivery Day

2010-12-06T18:14:00.000-08:00

Composing a poem
How hard can it be?
Post to the quorum
A remembrance of me.

White paper, blue pen?
I'll better type here.
The struggle cause pain
To an experienced ear.

Don't look disappointed,
Please wait for the rest.
It's this rhythm I wanted
And hope it's the best!

Though rhymes don't allow
I've searched for the beat.
Plain words glued somehow
Leaving creation complete.

Personal Value System

2010-11-15T11:10:00.000-08:00

"I am an animal, you see that. I don’t have the words, they didn’t teach me the words. I don’t know how to think, the bastards didn’t let me learn how to think. But if you really are...all-powerful...all-knowing... then you figure it out! Look into my heart. I know that everything you need is in there. It has to be. I never sold my soul to anyone! It’s mine, it’s human! You take from me what it is I want... it just can’t be that I would want something bad! Damn it all, I can’t think of anything, except those words of his... ’HAPPINESS FOR EVERYBODY, FREE, AND NO ONE WILL GO AWAY UNSATISFIED!’"

This is the end of the book "Roadside Picnic" by Arkady and Boris Strugatsky.
Trying to bring light to the things that I value most in life, I confronted the same problem as Redrick had in the front of the magical sphere that granted all the wishes.
I didn't know what to say and the harder I thought the more difficult it became.
But then I was illuminated.

What I value most in life is FAIRNESS, in all its forms.

Love

2010-10-25T15:46:00.000-07:00

Butterfly wings are
sensitive ladies' delight.
Smile on their faces.

Migration

2010-10-12T12:21:00.000-07:00

Look up to the sky!
The blue bright light around us
balance is bringing.

Birds, full of care, fly
away to warmer places.
Leaves are red and gold.

Who is afraid of
valiant decisions
to seek happiness?

For the ones waiting
when the winter is over
Return will be sweet.

A wicked wind has blown the ribbons from my curls!

2010-09-25T02:18:00.000-07:00

My innocence is lost. I have grown up.
I will celebrate this moment with a poem I found on the Internet by chance.
I don't know who wrote it but I'm grateful because it summarize the whole idea.

Innocence of a Woman

Things have changed forever more.
Time has stood still.
No longer am I the little girl that I used to be.
The memories will remain close in my heart, but the Innocence is gone forever.
Through time, marriage and children, so much knowledge has been gained.
And yet so many questions still remain.

Will the answers ever unfold?
Attitude and thoughts are now conceived so differently.
Who are the real friends, and who are the real enemies?
Who and what are the real priorities?
Will you still lose yourself trying to do for everyone else?

I think not, the most valuable lesson you have learned,
Your soul needs nourishing too.
But which path you take to do so, only you can decide.
The impact may be great, but I shall stay strong.
I now carry myself in a different way.
Some say for good, others say for worse.
But as long as I know and remember my reflections of yesterday,
Then I am the one who will say.

Emotions are so high, and so low, and in between,
I run fast, and chase them all day.
Never really knowing which one will be caught.
At this point and time in my life, I have certainly been put to the test,
But I can still try to do my very best.
There are still thoughts that I hold on to,
I still have my angels guiding me safely.
And I know that there will always be a rainbow after the storm,
And that tomorrow will be a different day, beginning with a new sunrise.
And with each person that has true passion and unconditional love for me,
Will remain by my side to help catch me if I shall fall or call.

Through all the changes that have taken place,
I know I still have my saving Grace.
I shall be aware, and hopefully better prepared for the years ahead.
They also will bring more change.
Is that not what time is suppose to do?
But I shall survive even if the little girl has vanished,
I can still reflect back on my wonderful memories.
After all if it were not for her, I could not be the woman I am today.
Even though her voice will always haunt me,

Now is the time, to say goodbye to the Innocence of my childhood,
And really concentrate and savor the Innocence of my womanhood.

Perennial Weeds

2010-08-24T16:59:00.000-07:00

How would I be without the hand-weeding experience? What kind of person?
On my last visit to my grandparents village, (God rest them in peace!) I visited the garden I used to clean of weeds every time I arrived there on summer holiday.
I remember the feeling of peace and happiness associated with it. The taller the weed, the greater the challenge.
The neighbors have seen me with my feet up in the air because of the ambition involved. The Giant Radish kind of thing. But the roots filled with earth were the long worked prize.
The garden was big enough to clean my mind in the process.
I was a benefactor for others too: the cow, the hens, the pig and other domestic animals around the house that appreciated the simple things in life.
Times of bliss never forgotten.

Random Thoughts

2010-08-04T17:34:00.000-07:00

Who visits me lately?
Thoughts that just come and go and nothing really useful remains behind.
Thoughts that makes me stay awake for no particular reason.
Thoughts associated with nervousness and impatience.
Thoughts that blur the vision. Dark thoughts.
"As a man thinketh in his heart, so is he."
Therefore I am dark. I'm sitting on the dark side of self.
What have I done for me lately? Good question. No answer yet.

Sweet Dreams!

2010-06-14T17:04:00.000-07:00

Thank you for being our friend. We will miss you.

The Extraordinary Voyages

2010-03-01T12:05:00.000-08:00

I began to polish my geography and French knowledge by reading two volumes from "Voyages Extraordinaires" by Jules Verne. I was lucky to read them in the original Hetzel edition.
These two volumes are "Cesar Cascabel" and "Bourses de voyage". Here are the included maps: CC1 CC2 BV

The first book describes a walking journey from North America to France over the frozen Behring Sea. The second one describes a sea journey from London to Antilles. I read them in French so I could use a second reading, but I understood enough to keep me interested. When I really started to learn English, I used songs lyrics and fashion magazines. Now learning French by reading book by Jules Verne is the best way for me. That's why I'll keep an eye on this web collection.

gardens

2010-01-05T18:47:00.000-08:00

The Garden of the Plynck and The Secret Garden, two beautiful stories about the interior life and soul transformations. It is something about the gardens (real or imaginary) that changes people's minds. The flowers react at your behavior. If you treat them good they grow and bloom, if you treat them bad they just die. You get quick feedback from them and you can adjust.

On the Bummel

2010-01-03T17:40:00.000-08:00

So, I said I've read Three Men in a Boat. Now I can tell I've gone further by reading also Three Men on the Bummel. Again I laughed a lot. I'm pretty sure that some Python's sketches, such as Dirty Hungarian Phrasebook and Bicycle Repair Man, are inspired from these two books.
I will not try to explain the British humor, but I must say that I like it very much. I want more of it. Until now I only know about Monty Python, Douglas Adams, Jerome K. Jerome, A bit of Fry and Laurie, and, of course, Mr. Bean (Rowan Atkinson).

To say nothing of the dog!

2009-12-27T19:14:00.000-08:00

I've just read "Three Men In A Boat" by Jerome K. Jerome. I wasn't expecting so much fun. It is a totally entertaining book. The jokes hit you suddenly, even though they develop gently and clearly in time. You know he is going to make a joke, but eventually you laugh like a child. Some common sense wisdom is strewn between the funny fragments. Maybe it is not a highly philosophical book but it certainly suggests a healthy philosophy of life. Nature is also described in an inspired manner. Over all it delighted me and I'm sure it has done so and it will continue to do so to many other people. I also listened to it using the recordings made by librivox.
The most important idea I took from the book is that in any voyage, including the voyage through life, you have to take with you only things, people, ideas you cannot live without.

Parrot Style

2009-12-03T13:50:00.000-08:00

I'm wearing a yellow roll neck jersey top, a green vest, a pair of hearts print pijama pants, green and white socks and red slippers.
I'm also wearing a very unprofessional updo arranged with some brown hair clips, a golden ring, small earrings, silver eye glasses and a fresh lemon perfume.

Wink, wink! Nudge, nudge! Say No More!

2009-12-02T13:12:00.000-08:00

Yes, I like sports.
I like swimming. This is a physical activity that I practice anytime the opportunity arises.
I love swimming in nature. I like the rivers, the flowing waters, but I also like the sea.
I also like hiking, trekking and backpacking.
But because I live in a town with no mountains near, I also enjoy table tennis.
As a little girl I practiced rhythmic gymnastics.
I learned to coordinate my body, I learned about equilibrium and rhythm.
I especially loved playing with ribbons and ropes.
I tolerate athletics, basketball and volleyball.
So it was not such an ice breaker anyway!

Flow State

2009-08-05T13:31:00.001-07:00

Done a lot of image processing with gimp. Loved it. The creative beast is trying to escape from inside me. The feeling is wonderful. I slowly remember what it means to stay in the flow.
I have a lot of natural artistic talents but none of them are really cultivated. Probably by a lack of self discipline. But I still have my chances. I'll express myself in this way more and maybe I'll get better. It makes me happy and this all that I really need.

The Man Without a Past

2009-06-09T12:26:00.000-07:00

I'm amazed of the effect Aki Kaurismäki's movie has over me. It's an atypical movie. The characters are mature people with wrinkles under their eyes and with a strong interior life. The movie scenes are like painted with color and music, there is plenty of time for everything. All details are important and nothing is there without a reason. Emotions are felt strongly by the spectator even if the characters try to hide them.
The movie told me that life can be beautiful when you love, have friends and respect for yourself. Life can be modeled only from the inside. As long as we stay together and help each other, we'll be fearless in harsh times.

livemocha

2009-04-25T03:06:00.000-07:00

Live language exchange with real people at livemocha. Add friends, chat, learn by attending courses or doing exercises, teach others. The main advantage is that there are people who can correct any mistakes you make. Romanian courses are also available. They offer virtual keyboard for some languages but not for all, so one solution is to use gate2home. The other one is to configure your PC to support the languages you want to learn. I prefer the first solution because it's easier for me. On livemocha I use a lot the flashcards, the interactive lessons and sometimes the chat. If I want to study something new I have to ignore any chat requests but if I only practice I prefer speaking with people. I usually choose a song I like and translate it of course using google translate. We live in the Google's era. I create flashcards and then I record myself singing it. I already done this with Portuguese and I would also like to try with German, Russian and French. Because I love music. But I repeat myself.

romanian poetry

2009-04-22T00:11:00.000-07:00

The most famous poet is Mihai Eminescu.
I've chosen from the linked site two of my favorites.

Ode (in ancient meter)

Hardly had I thought I should learn to perish;
Ever young, enwrapped in my robe I wandered,
Raising dreamy eyes to the star styled often
Solitude's symbol.

All at once, however, you crossed my pathway -
Suffering - you, painfully sweet, yet torture...
To the lees I drank the delight of dying -
Pitiless torment.

Sadly racked, I'm burning alive like Nessus,
Or like Hercules by his garment poisoned;
Nor can I extinguish my flames with every
Billow of oceans.

By my own illusion consumed I'm wailing,
On my own grim pyre in flames I'm melting...
Can I hope to rise again like the Phoenix
Bird from the ashes?

May all tempting eyes vanish from my pathway,
Come back to my breast, you indifferent sorrow!
So that I may quietly die, restore me
To my own being!

(1883, Translated by Andrei Bantas)

Eve on the hill
Dreary the horn sounds in the eve on the hill,
Sheepflocks return, stars on their way twinkle still,
Watersprings weep murmuring clear, and I see
Under a tree, love, thou art waiting for me.
Holy and pure passes the moon on the sky,
Moist seem the stars born from the vault clear and high,
Longing thine eyes look from afar to divine,
Heaving thy breast, pensive thy head doth recline.
Tired with their toil, peasants come back from the field,
From the old church, labourer's comfort and shield,
Voices of bells thrill the whole sky high above;
Struck is my heart, trembling and burning with love.
Ah! very soon quietness steals over all,
Ah! very soon hasten shall I to thy call,
Under the tree, there I shall sit the whole night,
Telling thee, love, thou art my only delight.
Cheek press'd to cheek, there in sweet ecstasy we,
Falling asleep under the old locust-tree,
Smiling in dream, seem in a heaven to live,
For such a night who his whole life would not give?
(1885, Translated by P. Grimm)

monty python

2009-04-21T00:28:00.000-07:00

My life philosophy is extracted from Monty Python's work.
No very serious but surely healthy. The philosophy of laughter.

I learned to "always look on the bright side of life".

I learned how to pray:
"Oh Lord please don't burn us don't kill or toast your flock
Don't put us on the barbecue or simmer us in stock,
Don't bake or baste or boil us or stir-fry us in a wok."

I learned the difference between an argument and a contradiction.
“No it can't! An argument is a connected series of statements intended to establish a proposition.”

"And now for something completely different" repeat after me:

- You're All Individuals!

- "We're All Individuals!"

- You're All Different!

- "Yes. We are all different!"

- [I'm Not]

I don't want to steal you

2009-04-12T14:51:00.000-07:00

Florin Chilian's music is like life itself: sometimes beautiful, sometimes sad but always true and full of meaning. Listen to the song and read the lyrics.

I will try a personal translation to this song.

I don't want to steal you,
I just want to meet you, somewhere in the middle,
My heart in your heart instead to find.
I don't want you to steal yourself,
I only want you not delude yourself, somewhere in the middle,
Between you and yourself, in the light of your heart to glance!
I don't want you to steal me,
I just want you indulge in receiving gifts from me, somewhere in the middle,
In the serenity of your glance to whirl!
I don't want you to steal us,
I just want you to join us, somewhere in the middle,
In the dream world that only in thought can be retrieved!
I don't want you to steal me,
I don't want you to steal yourself,
I don't want you to steal us!

I don't want to steal you
I just want you to lavish me, somewhere in the middle,
Between everything you are and all that you wish!
I don't want you to steal yourself
I just want you not to stray, somewhere in the middle,
Between all you have lost and all that you can't find!
I don't want you to steal me
I just want you to comfort me, somewhere in the middle,
Between all that I am and all that I miss about you!
I don't want you to steal us
I just want you to protect us, somewhere in the middle,
Between all that I don't tell you and all that you think!

I don't want you to steal me,
I don't want you to steal yourself,
I don't want you to steal us!

Beştepe

2009-03-27T01:00:00.000-07:00

My mother's parents village on eComunitate. I love this village. I know all its ins and outs. I was happy to find it mentioned on Herpetofauna of Europe, a site of a biologist. Also found pictures on deviantart. A bicycle tour. Some other images with fauna from Danube Delta.

difference equations

2009-03-26T02:23:00.000-07:00

MIT Blossoms offers a simple and attractive presentation to fractals here. Mandelbrot image is a courtesy to badc0ded.

Gimp

2009-03-15T06:55:00.000-07:00

Yesterday I played with gimp. I learned how to use layers and layer mask. I also used clone tool and curves, paths tool and all kind of selects. I found some nice gimp tutorials. The results can be found on picasa. Mean time I listened to "Act venetian" by Camil Petrescu. I remembered my old disappointment on the fact that women don't express themselves more. The world needs new vision.

Alice in Wonderland

2009-03-13T18:03:00.000-07:00

Thanks to trilulilu I found Alice in tara minunilor, romanian radiophonic theatre for children. I used to listen to this story multiple times when I was a little girl.
Here is a list of other loved audio stories: Neghinita, Califul si cadiul, Printul fericit, Fetita cu chibriturile, Alba ca zapada si cei 7 pitici, Muck cel mic, Harap Alb, Frumoasa din padurea adormita, Pasarea maiastra, Sarea in bucate.
I would like to write beautiful children stories with nice images and a lot of dialogue.

mall effect

2009-03-08T16:24:00.000-07:00

I like cyan and handmade bags and purses. Which led me to Makezine.

Făt-Frumos

2009-03-04T11:38:00.000-08:00

Song sung by Mircea Vintila, lyrics by Adrian Paunescu.
The idea of the song is enclosed in this quote from Einstein "Imagination is more important than knowledge. Knowledge is limited. Imagination encircles the world."

without glasses

2009-03-01T16:47:00.000-08:00

Found a guide about strengthening the eyes with exercises. This also lead me to some NLP videos on how to transform likes in dislikes. Change your beliefs. Free your mind. Shit like this.
If I wouldn't be so lazy I would try everything once. But by knowing how I am, I'll only persevere on what I already started.One baby step at the time. For me one chosen way is better then all the other possible and maybe shinier ways.

learning C++

2009-03-01T05:39:00.000-08:00

A hopefully helpful collection of video lectures on programming. Also Stanford CS video lectures.
Bruce Eckel's books are a real source of knowledge and they are free.

A Doll's House

2009-02-26T14:03:00.000-08:00

Beautiful dolls inspire me. I love them for their long hair, shiny eyes and permanent smile.
They can teach you happiness.
Enchanted Doll
Marina's dolls on flickr

The Killed Albatros

2009-02-26T11:02:00.000-08:00

...the storm warrior thrown among molluscs...

Mike Goudreau Band

2009-02-24T10:17:00.001-08:00

http://www.myspace.com/mikegoudreauband
Remembered me that the grass ain't greener on the other side of the fence.

Emma Wallace

2009-02-22T15:37:00.002-08:00

http://www.myspace.com/iamemma
This girl is a complete artist. I listen to her music in an obsessive manner. She's in harmony with herself and this can be felt in her music. I will cite a good friend of mine: "Her voice is like the light from the full moon". She knows everything.

For the First Time Here

2008-06-21T15:15:00.000-07:00

Older and almost lost diary: erislysis.pitas.com .The blog was in close relationship with my old site. I found it using wayback machine. I even found my long lost site