School adventure

Childhood is the happiest period in human life. No responsibility, always having fun, drawing, singing, learning by heart was easy and natural at that time. When I was in primary school I had a friend who always had many crazy ideas. It was a rainy but rather warm day. The playground of our school was still under construction. Instead of children's playground there were some muddy hillocks covered with slippery reddish clay. My friend came up with the idea to sledge down the hillock on our schoolbags. I was doubtful but as she was quite clever and sly at the age of 8 she managed to convince me. After half an hour of fun we decided to stop because we were all smudged with clay, especially our shoes. Our teacher noticed us through a class window and she called us and asked if we wanted to rinse up our shoes a bit. We were grateful because we knew our parents wouldn’t be in seventh heaven considering our state. So we cleaned our shoes up and thanked our teacher and came back home. 

Merry Xmas! 

"Get" story

    It started getting (…) in New York, you could hardly see any stars because of the plethora of billboards and neon publicities shining insistently. Autumn days were getting (…).I don’t usually like getting (…) the city, but that night things were different. I was so tired because during three months I was working extremely hard to get (…). One thought was giving me (…)- that I was getting (..) that day. I got a yellow (…). It was getting on for  7 p.m. The taxi driver charged me twice the normal price. Apparently that wasn’t my lucky day. At least I finally got to the airport at time. I got on (…). After seven-hour flight I arrived at my homeland- France. As soon as I entered my house, I realized that my wife had cheated on me. Well, we never got (...) very well. It got me (…) a very bad mood, so I decided to get (…). I knew one bar near my house which was still open at that late hour. A barman asked me if he could get me (…) because I looked so gaunt. I told him my story. He got my (…) and seemed sympathizing with me. He said that I would get (…) to it,  I should get (…) as soon as possible, however my wife shouldn’t get (…) with it. At 5 a.m. I got to a (…) completely drunk but with lighter heart.

Differences between French in Quebec and France

I have recently seen an interesting video explaining the differences between French spoken in France and the dialect spoken in Canada. French is used mostly in Quebec- the only francophone Canadian province.  Montreal is the second largest francophone city in the world after Paris. The accent is different, harder, we can notice some Anglo-Saxon  influences. Some people believe that the Quebec version is the one which was used by French people in XVII century during the conquest of this province by Cartier. The fact is Quebec accent differs a lot and it’s hard to understand it if you are not used to it. There’s a law 101 which orders to translate each English word into French to prevent this language from disappearing in Canada.  Metropolitan French has many anglicisms, e. g. on a stop sign in Quebec we can notice “Arret” inscription in contrast to France which adopted English term “Stop”.  If you want to know more about cultural and linguistic differences between those two francophone countries I recommend to watch this video which has English subtitles.

Sickeningy sweet

I’ve recently found a great video which gives us an insight into consequences of the excessive sugar consumption. Starting from prehistory human species were conditioned to crave for sweets which could be found at that time only in fruits. When people learned how to extract saccharose from cane and beet, it changed its position from luxury object of desire in XVII century to substance present in nearly every highly-processed food in XXI century.

A recent survey shows clearly the correlation between high sugar consumption and the 700% increase in the number of diabetes patients.  

The particle of sucrose is composed of one molecule of glucose and fructose linked together. Glucose is metabolized by every species on Earth, every human organ can feed on it. It can be called  “an universal fuel of life ”. It’s relatively not very sweet comparing to other sweeteners. On the other hand, fructose is sweeter and that’s the particle our body crave for. It can be metabolized only in the liver because this organ is the only one that disposes of fructose transporters. It is metabolized to fat accumulated later in the liver. That fact makes it toxic. Insulin resistance develops, the pancreas is forced to produce more insulin in order to prevent sugar fluctuations in bloodstream. It leads to diabetes. The fructose has the same impact on the organism that the alcohol. It’s excessive intake can lead to addiction and serious long-term illnesses like high blood pressure, heart attack, obesity and so on.

I strongly recommend this short video, it explained many issues to me. 

The sweet life in Italy

‘Bella Tuscany’-it’s a book that I've read this summer, best selling continuation of ‘Under the Tuscan Sun’. It was written by Frances Mayes, an American author and formerly a professor of creative writing. She fell in love with Italy while visiting its most picturesque region- Tuscany. Bewitched by a neglected farmhouse she decided to divide  her time between Bramasole and Northern Carolina. She depicts her everyday life, small quotidian pleasures like buying new plants for her garden, cooking traditional Italian dishes using available local products, discovering history of small villages she passes with her husband. She cherishes serenity  and hillock view from her newly restored mansion. The author is always on good terms  with local inhabitants showing interest of their life history which is always connected to the core to their homeland. The book is some sort of a diary, the reader is guided through overwhelming scents, bright colors, intense flavors. Everything there seems so different comparing to American lifestyle- slow food, strong bond with the nature cordial relations between peasants, omnipresent past, repetitive lifestyle with no tension nor fear. It’s almost a manual of a bon vivant. After reading this book I’m definitely in love with Tuscany.

Neighbors from hell

I live in a semi-detached house with my family. I don’t spend a lot of time at home, I don’t deal with problems connected with my neighbors. I joke often that they are invisible because I meet them very rarely. Recently I have heard from my relatives that the neighbor on the right plans to found a company which melts precious metals. It  would have disastrous consequences on plants growing in my garden as well as fruit trees, bees and other insects according to my father who is chemist. Logically it can influence human metabolism too. That’s why it’s so crucial to prevent it from happening. By the way, how irresponsible should you be just to consider such a localization for  this kind of activity. I don’t live in a deserted forest or some small village but in the suburbs of a big city. The area is already quite polluted because of the heavy traffic and a tram depot. I hope the whole idea will be refuted and I will be able to cherish fresh air and birds singing.

 

PS. I realize how British people are creative. I have found a website of a company set up in 2002 specializing in dealing with noisy and anti-social neighbors. You can find there some British law concerning your case or ask other users about their method of  getting rid of the problematic http://www.nfh.org.uk/neighbor.

France has voted

France has voted. Every five years, after the period called quinquennat, a new president of the French Republic is chosen. The suffrage is divided into two rounds if during the first round one of the candidates doesn’t obtain at least 50 % of votes. That’s the case of this-year-elections. A socialist candidate related to the French socialist party Francois Hollande has obtained 28,63% of votes and he’s the winner of the first tour. Only with 1% of difference, the second result belongs to the former president- Nicolas Sarkozy(27,08%). What is quite surprising, France has one of the strongest extreme right wing party in Europe. I’m talking about Marine le Pen who has obtained the third result (18,01%) and her party Front National, established by her father Jean Marie le Pen has very strong position on the French politics scene.

Waiting for the second tour which takes place the 6th May everybody asks the same question-  what will be the repartition of votes of those who have lost already. Knowing the French history of elections i think Francois Hollande will win. French people are always discontented with the way their politics govern, so they choose alternately a right wing and a left wing candidate, like a sinusoid.

http://www.lemonde.fr/election-presidentielle-2012/article/2012/04/23/le-premier-tour-si-vous-avez-manque-le-debut_1689380_1471069.html

To eat or not to eat...

Supersize.vs.Superskinny is a TV programme broadcast in the UK hosted by dr Christian Jessen. He tries to alter bad nutritional habits that have caused severe  underweight or obesity.  During each episode two people move to a clinic in London, every time one person is nearly anorectic, the second one should lose many pounds but their height is more or less the same. For both of them to see their silhouette opposite is quite shocking. But that’s just the beginning. There is some type of a closed tube in which all the food eaten usually by these patients is thrown out. It helps them to realize  if they eat small or gigantic portions, if they drink a lot of coffee and so on. The next day they swap their diets, they prepare meals for each other. It’s always shocking for me to see in what way people can feed themselves. It seems that this method works well, but the motivation is the most important. If people don’t feel the need of changes even the best dieticians, trainers, doctors won’t help.

And the Oscar goes to...

‘Les Intouchables’ it’s a French dramatic comedy that was released on November 2011. Directed by a famous duo - Olivier Nakache and Éric Toledano (makers of ‘Tellement Proches’ and ‘ Nos jours heureux’) that movie has been acclaimed cultural phenomenon by French public opinion. The action takes place in a sumptuous arrondissement in Paris as well as in the poor suburbs during modern times. Generally speaking all the screenplay is based on the contrast between the rich and the poor, between well-educated and truants, between well-mannered and ill-mannered which creates comic effect. One of the main character- Driss (a young son of immigrants with Senegalese accent, played by a very famous French comedian Omar Sy) comes to an interview organized by a wealthy tetraplegic – Philippe( played by an excellent actor Francois Cluzet)  who is searching for a male nurse. Driss does it only to obtain a signature that is obligatory to get the unemployment benefit . You can imagine how he’s surprised when he acknowledge that he has been employed by an elderly man. They soon become friends, they share their experiences, Philippe is happy that he has finally found a man who doesn’t  pity him and Driss (turned into the street by his mother) has a roof above his head, he can taste a luxurious life, drive Masserati  and become acquainted with classical music. Driss organize a date for his employer with a mysterious girl who is a platonic love of Philippe even though they have never seen each other. The movie is based on the real story of an aristocrat and his Algerian male nurse. It’s an universal story of the comprehension between social classes- very utopian for me but pleasant for poor people. Social differences in  France, especially in Parisian region provoke riots, that’s why big efforts are made to appease it. We can notice also that both poor and rich are presented in a positive light, maybe that’s why this film is successfull. It’s an illustration of a thesis that we are all equal because we are human and money doesn't count. In the country where a revolutionary motto ‘Liberté, égalité, fraternité’ has recently lost on the significance, that movie wakes up the republican spirit of French people. I didn’t laugh a lot during the movie but i found it touching. Actors were just made for their roles. Summing up i recommend this film for everybody who speaks French cause I’m not sure if it can be seen in polish cinemas.

Like a fluffy cat

My future hut

Here i am, a new member of an elite group called blogers. Basically, the idea is to write posts regulary to eliminate grammar mistakes, learn new vocabulary, roughly speaking to learn english. If i wasn't forced i would probably never set up a blog, maybe because i have always trouble finding some leisure time in order to focus and write sth inspirating and interesting for other web users. However, as we are all different i find  somehow fascinating the fact of sharing emotions, observations, attitudes with friends, e-pal or sometimes with complete stangers. I will benefit from the occasion to present myself, sb may find it inquiring. Thus, i'm like a fluffy cat, quite lazy (i make an effort only when i'm forced by some higher, supernatural power, like my mum f. ex.), overweight - i could lose some pounds :-P- i work on it studying dietetics ( i haven't found yet some good diet based on chocolate and coffee, but i don't give up :-P), gourmand- connected with the previous feature, i just love food, Italian cuisine rocks- spaghetti, pizza, tortellini, pesto and ......i am day-dreaming again :-P, yeah, i've forgotten  that i'm rather scatterbrained, i have tried to change it many times, but everybody who has ever had New Year resolutions knows exacly how difficult it is to alter some bad habits. What else.......i love art, i think in the previous life i was a singer or a painter, at least i hope so. I just adore Musee d'Orsay in Paris because of their breath-taking collection of impressionists paintings. I remember when i was a child, i saw some of these paintings in Poznan thanks to some kind of temporary exhibition. Bright colours, sparkling water, beam of light, vivacity of strokes of the brush- that's what i prefer and what i can find in impressionism. I love French art in particular, that's why i study French. After reading Houellebecq' or Zola books i feel deep admiration for them. I would love to see so many places, unfortunately currently i watch only one Spanish tv progamme called "Espanoles en el mundo" when i can see how people from other countries live. Presently i'm on a stage of saving up in order to buy some small wooden hut in French Polinesia and spend the rest of my life eating coconuts and drinking spring water. :-P