witness

I'm engaged in watching the 'Witness for the Prosecution', a 1957 Billy Wilder film, based on Agatha Christie's story.

I'm watching these old films on YouTube while they are on.

I'll be soon up with the solution for round 10 in the Take a close look photo contest. Please feel free to return and cast your guesses.

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I have been witnessing school events directly in the classroom as two days in this week were dedicated to showing parents, grandparents and anyone interested just exactly what is going on in the classroom during a lesson.

In Hungary, classrooms are closed except for the teacher and his/her pupils. No one is allowed there. But there are exceptions. The most important are these 'Open Days' I have just mentioned.

Kids are excited, and the parents, too.

But a parent might visit any other class outside of the frame of these Open Days, when said parent and the teacher involved mutually agrees upon it. I, mother of a suspected case of serious AD/HD son, have been allowed to watch the 'horrible actions' my son is capable of while in class. Those times are seem to have gone, my son is getting older and more mature.

When he was transferred to his now third school, the Headress (word?) of the School looked upon him and asked: Oh, so he's the boy with the serious case of AD/HD, isn't he?

My son was infamous all over the city BEFORE he entered this 3rd school.

After all, it all turned out for the better.

Son has started to show noticable improvement in the behaviour section, finally.

Almost all of his teachers have proved to be tolerant, understanding and loving, and the list includes the Head of the school as well.

They accept him and are constructive in helping him to overcome his difficulties.

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I attended 2 of my son's classes and 3 of my daughter's.

My daughter is now 7.5 years old and is in the first grade. They are learning the alphabet, including those funny Hungarian characters as well :)

One of the tasks these first graders faced was reading out a word aloud. Once they did this, each of them had to embed it into a sentence.

The word was hó (snow). A very easy word to decipher, I guess.

Most of the kids came up with sentences like:

- We make snowballs in the garden.

- There is snow on the road.

- A car slips in the snow.

But behold when it comes to my daughter; her version was something along this:

- It is snowing outside and we are throwing snowballs, and are building a snowman, who is standing in the snowcastle we have just made from the snow and it is still snowing.

Talking about love of words? And showing?

Here's a drawing she recently made:

cost and outcome

I've already written about the Restless Dawn Short Story contest at Jason's site. First of all I would like to acknowledge the enormous work hosting a contest surely must mean. Thank you Jason for the opportunity. This the second writing contest I enter at his site and the third I enter in my life. These help me a lot. Discarding words, finding the unnecessary ones to reach the word limit is a very important tool to improve. I tend to write way too much.

My entry, titled Restless Dawn is at number 16. I guess most of my regular readers have read and commented over there. Therefore I'm not going to publish it over here.

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I read all the entries. I keep reading them as they appear.
Most of them are quite interesting, sometimes surprising, and most of all, almost all of them are technically excellent.

I recall how hard it was to cast my vote on one single entry when I was asked, when all contestants were asked (by Jason) to name one, just one for the 'Reader's Choice' Award. I have my favourites now and choosing will be tough again.

Stories I like strike a chord within me. I marvel at the story AND the way it is told.

Because the way is just as much important.

I don't think there's any doubt that bad writing makes any *insert adjective here (heartbreaking/clever/intelligent/surprising/warming/charming)* story bad/dull/uninteresting/hard-to-chew.

Yet, there are stories where writing is brilliant, and a complete galore of technical skills are displayed. The WAY the story is told gets into one's mind and lingers within. It makes you think, it gets under your skin. That is right, except that the premise and the characters are sick.

No, I don't wish to re-run my whinges about disgusting characters and subjects. I did that part a while ago here.

I'm into a more general thing now: I happen to believe that we are wired for the need to feel catharsis when reading. A climax, a solution. To see the bad punished, to be left with something that eases any pain that had been created, to see the 'good' remain happy after all, and so on.

At the same time I'd like to point out that ambiguity is quite fine with me and it is almost a must in some of the genres.

Rotten characters, evil actions, a no-winner-no-hope situation DOES have an effect on the reader. In most of the times, the effect can be a bigger one than that of a reassuring and calm story. I think most of us are mischievous like that.

So, what's up with that?

You've been exposed and experienced a shock/terror. It reached your guts for sure. The experience is strong. Is this called a 'great' experience? Do we really, really NEED for SUCH experiences?

While most writers want to get the attention of the readers, to really shake them, I do think the WAY writers achieve his/her goal matters.

Do you know the saying that translates to something like: 'the objective endorses the method'.

I think this is one of the biggest lies in history.

Take a really close look #10

This is the last round in the series of guessing the object of a close-up photograph.

In the previous game number 9, we had 6 players (Aine, Beth, Jason, The Quoibler, Church Lady and Ello; and since multiple guesses are allowed, 14 deviations. First of all, I'd like to thank all of who for playing along !

I suggest you take a short glance back to the original photo HERE.

-

Your ideas ranged from a simple pumpkin skin to the more sizzling 'freshly baken bread', 'cheese on casserole top', 'sugar muffin', or 'cornbread'.

I am really sorry to say that this time NONE of you were EXACTLY right.

In order to avoid the much dreaded 'no winner(s)' situation, I had some time deciding which of the guesses came CLOSE ENOUGH.

I discarded suggestions involving and/or referring to simple and shiny surfaces and/or objects; since the original thing did not have such characteristics. 'Pizza' and 'baked cheese' (separate entries) however, do come closer a bit, but not close enough.

And while 'sugar cookies' are anything but close to the reality, the phrase 'crystalline' got me.

-

And therefore yes, we have a WINNER.

Congratulations, Aine.

And just what exactly this photo was about?
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Voilá: A coat of fried breadcrumbs on a slice of a giant puffball.

Here's the proof:

This is how it is done: Mushroom slices are coated with flour, beaten whole eggs and breadcrumbs, in this order. Coated slices are then fried in oil. This process results in a crunchy, salty coating that hides the inner softer part.
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Before moving onto the last photo, hear my bonus questions:
Is everyone familiar with this type of cooking? Do you have a special name attached to it?

And now, this is the end, my friends:
What exactly this might be?
Take a closer look.

Have fun!

Pork with sauerkraut

While other people have fun partying, I'm providing you with a recipe to one of the most popular dishes in Hungary. I'm doing it partly because I, although might look the opposite, like to party as well, so basically my mind is occupied by just listening to the sizzling OUT THERE.

Update: I have entered Jason's contest with a 249-word piece. According to rules, I can only post it here as soon as it is up over there.

So, to celebrate all that buzz that's going around I thought I'd give a hearty, though virtual meal to all those meat-lovers out there.

This is called toroskáposzta (toh-rosh-kah-pos-tah) where 'toros' refers to this meal being prepared during the slaughter of a house-reared pig, while 'káposzta' simply means 'cabbage'.

In proper households this meal is made with home made sauerkraut, while those who have no sense make it with sweet cabbage. But the results are nowhere similar. This has to be done with sauerkraut. Period.

Ingredients for 6 person:

1 kg of pork, possibly organic, diced

3 large onions, diced

3 Tbsp red pepper powder, also known as paprika

1 kg sauerkraut (depending on the acidity some let said mighty substance soak in water prior to use. Well, there are more decent cooks than those who allow such horrible actions to take place. A well-made sauerkraut is pleasant to taste, not overly sour, and thus it should not be allowed to bear the sufferings of being soaked and drained and such.)

a LARGE pot

4-5 Tbsp oil

100g plain bacon, diced

Beware: salt is NOT needed

Perhaps you have already noticed how simple this thing is : The weight of cabbage equals that of the meat, while onion is about one-third of this amount.

Here's how to prepare this goodness:

Step 1. sauté onion and bacon on oil
And this is how it should look when it's ready for the next step:

Step 2. Add the red paprika powder and be careful to keep stirring it - burnt paprika becomes bitter in a bad way. Do not spoil your lunch. This is the toughest part. If in doubts, the best you can do is not to do Step 2 longer than a few seconds, but this step is the shortest one anyway. It shouldn't take more than a minute.

Step 3. Add meat and keep stirring. When the meat has changed it's color, proceed to Step 4.
Step 4. Add sauerkraut. Stir in and make a thorough mix. Since cabbage will release some of it's own liquid, you may not need to add water. But you do have to watch and be careful so as not to burn it. Yes, you may add some water every now and then. Depending on the size of meat-cubes and the age of swine, the acidity of cabbage, cooking will take 1-1,5 hours.
Step 5. You know it's ready when the meat cubes are soft, and the red color of the paprika has worn off a bit.
Step 6. Serve with bread. People who serve it with anything else than bread are bordering blasphemy. Don't ever trust them. Toroskáposzta should come with bread.

Pictured here with my own, hand made bread. But it is just as fine with white bread one gets in shops.

Step 7 (Optional). Have another helping.

Step 8. Since sauerkraut if well made contains helpful bacteria, you can safely keep it in the fridge for 2-3 days. Which means you can still have this fine thing on a second day. Also, you can put it in a deep freezer. A very reasonable option!

The Joke that not everyone gets

in my last entry I let you read a joke, assuming that almost noone would find it funny.

I considered it as a cultural and/or social research and I would like to say words of appreciation for everyone who's taken part, and time to read the 'joke' through and to provide me with thoughts.

If you have NOT read it yet, please feel free to do so. And don't forget to comment :)

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I think I owe you some explanation, which I will give now, but I don't think anyone not having found the joke funny in the first place would feel like laughing.

During the soviet regime people were burdened with a perplexing set of seemingly random laws and regulations. The chances of completely observing these less-than-intelligently articulated, unnecessary and cumbersome rules was next to nothing. Yet people survived because there have been those shortcuts, u-turns and indirect routes everyone knew of, yet noone has spoken of. If one knew the how of things, the place of the secret door to hide away, one was safe.

We had rules, and we had to have the knowledge to disobey them.

This knowledge is what the rabbit has in the joke.

The rabbit is well aware that if he follows the rule he will be dead.

But he tries anything to save his life.

'Can the rules be overlooked just for me, just for now, please, oh mighty bear, whom I fear?' - this is what he has in his voice. And also: 'Can't you just posibly look away, pretending I don't even exist?'

Awful laws, seeking for alleviation in a personal way, corruption, misery and mischief - all condensed into one single political joke.

Some of you found this joke disturbing. Now you know why.

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Surfing through the web I came accross this vocabulary quiz. All you have to do is find a synonym to a word. There are four options to choose from. If you don't find the correct match, nothing happens. But if you do, 10 grains (not grams, grains) are donated to someone in a poor country in the framework of the World Food Programme.

Give it a try.

I played today and raised 680 grains by matching and mis-matching words with their synonims. My knowledge fits somewhere between levels 28-32. The higher the level, the more difficult/strange the words are.

UPDATE: I played again and gained 800 grains. My vocabulary keeps expanding!

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and if you've done your part, grab your keyboard and what's left of your brain and head towards The Clarity of Night, where another short fiction writing contest is up and effective as of this Wednesday, 7 November.

Don't miss it.

I'm on 286, dang. Cut, cut and cut.

different perceptions

Last weekend, Ello has posted a videoclip she found funny.

Having read the comments, I think I was the only one who did not care much about it.

I know that people have a different sense of humor. Not everyone likes jokes about the dead for example, or jokes that include bad language.

But there's more to that - I think there are cultural differences, too.

To supply my theory, I have only one example. Which is not wuite supportive, but let's see.

Everytime my DH goes abroad and/or into a group of people, where politics is a debated issue, he discharges one of his favourite jokes (read above).

He found that all people living in any of the countries that had been occupied by the former soviet regime find it hilarious. They laugh, but it is also an ironic laugh. He also found that if the same joke is told to anyone outside said regions, no laughs depart the lips of the audience. Only a slight 'wow, that must be funny' is expected.

I let you read the joke.

Please tell me your reaction. Was it funny, sardonic, sad, perhaps? Or anything else that enters your mind.

****

The inhabitants of the forest are informed that the bear has created a 'death-list'. The death list contains names of animals and those who are listed will be personally killed (and eaten) by the bear itself.

The wolf is really scred, too. He decides to meet the bear in it's cave, asking about the list.

He enters the cave, calling out to the bear: Is there really a list of death, of great bear?

Oh yes growls the bear.

Am I on the list, my bear?

The same growl comes as a response.

Would I be killed, too?

The bear growls and catchtes the wolf in the same instant, garbs him and kills him instantly.

Another day, the fox becomes scared, too. He also desices to visit the bear.

Am I on your death list? the fox asks in a small voice.

Yes.

Will I be killed?

Yes, comes the quick answer and off the fox's head goes. The fox is eaten by the bear the same minute.

The other day the rabbit find himself wondering about his own fate. He decides to go up to the cave and ask the bear.

Am I on the list, bear?

Yes, comes the mighty roar.

Is it possible to remove my name from the list, bear?

Yes, answers the bear, and deletes 'Rabbit' from the list.

***

Memories recharged - Argos

This is a writing exercise. I think I fled a bit (?!) far from the original settings of the Church Lady. These are her very words, describing the task:

Create and name a God. Describe him or her. This God has powers. What are they? Someone prays to this God's powers. Who? Describe this person.Is there a ceremony? In what kind of temple? What will archeologists find years later?

With no set word count limit, my entry was flowing away a bit. I've outlined it, written it in two goes, re-writing it once. It's got 610 words.

Here you go.

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- Are you there?
- Yes, well, I think I am.
- How old are you?
- Almost eleven. My name is Ewen. It’s warm outside and I’m kneeling beside the barn. I have company, my younger sister, Jenny. She’s five.
- Go on, Eric.

‘A day before my 11th birthday Argos died. Jenny was so upset she hardly spoke. She even did not talk to her corn-doll anymore before going to bed. Now, that was a sign, Mom said. She allowed us to bury him in the garden. Jenny wanted to spread flowers on top so I decided to make a tomb she can decorate.

We went to the meadow to get some earth to make the tomb.
- Come on, dig harder, we’ve almost done.
- But my spade is broken.
- Here’s mine, take it.

We kept on digging until the cart was full.
Jenny said we should top the heap off so that I could carry her back in the cart but I rejected.
- Think about Argos, you stupid.
- I’ll tell Momma.
- Just go ahead. Argos is big. He needs a big tomb. Go, get some flowers instead. I’m not carrying you.

I brought the cart beside the barn. There lied Argos, eyes closed. He has not moved an inch since yesterday. He was dead. Jenny returned with a basket in her hand.
- Look what I brought.
- All right.
- I’ve got daisies, lilies, dandelions, look, a whole bunch of dandelions.
- Mom will kill you for picking her lilies for a dog.
- No, Mom likes Argos, too.
- Liked. He is dead.
- No, he’s just….- Jenny’s voice was dangerously weak and trembling now.
- All right. Don’t cry. Argos will be all right.

Argos’s rag was placed at the bottom and we arranged him as if he were asleep. Dad allowed me to use some of those big stones to make a tomb around Argos.
- Ewen, when will Argos awake now?
- He will not.
- But, how do we know he’s all right? That he’s got his meat every day.
- He does not need food anymore, don’t you see? He’s dead.

Jenny shook her head in disbelief.
- But his favorite bone. He will miss it.
- Go and get it if you want.

When she returned I was almost ready. Jenny put the bone in and I shoveled the soil on top of him. Those large stones I carried here in the morning made a good stand. I covered them with soil, too. My body and forehead were hot with all that hard work. Jenny put the flowers there on top.
- But Ewen, who will take care of Argos, down there?
- An angel.
- Let’s pray to the angel to be a good master.’

- Mr. Rogers I think the memory is over.
- That is completely all right, Eric. I will be counting from five to one and you return to this very day. I’m starting now.

Five. (That heap was one of the secret places in our family. As I grew older, I did not let my friends see it. I pretended not recognizing the tomb at all.)

Four. (The guilt was there. A loss and denial of our beloved Argos. Argos? What a fine name.)

Three. (The guilt has almost gotten me. Not knowing what it was about I felt terrified. I am fine now.)

Two. (I will always have a special place in my heart for Argos now. I will remember him.)

One. (I am fine with my memories. I am here.)

You are here. You are in the present.

Five haiku

Late fall obtains
treasures of trees, casting gold
and ruby on earth.
---

I'm fading back to
you again said a leaf while
floating towards Earth.

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A lush yellow
carpet welcomes the hiker -
lovers of autumn

---

With light's withdrawal
My heart will raise the fire
To guide through winter

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A haiku to a leaf

Do you disappear
for good - or to return when
warmth calls upon you?
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Take a really close look # 9

This is the one before the very last in the series.

I think my readers prefer guessing to reading...? (I don't know. Every time I get no response to a post I start thinking my writing was so horrible it left my readers gasping for fresh air. But it might not be the case. Not all of us spend as much time in front of the computer surfing sites as I do. Shame on me.)

Well, number eight DID seem the toughest one.

Somehow I suspected it would be tough, so I posted two macro-shots, but, as no guess came really close to the subject, I posted a normal shot of the same thing.

I suggest you following the links and seeing again.

Allright, welcome back.

This time there were 9 players!! Wow!

I'm so glad that so many of you took part.

Let me count the guesses: 16 + a number of 'I have no clue'-s, or anything to that effect.

I like how people this time have truly unleashed their imagination - guesses went anything between 'something nasty' through 'insect' to variuos kinds of plants like walnut shell, tree stumps, moss. Some suspected intelligence behind these misterious-looking shapes and surfaces.

Hoodie went into guessing 'petrified alligator head', which sounds really reasonable.

Still she was far from the truth.

But those who mentioned moss, fungus, mold were all right.

It all comes together, the IT is all of the above.

And yes, we have a winner, someone said it must be 'some kind of puffball-like mushroom', and he was absolutely right. I thought the winner would be Ello with 'mushroom', but I'm sorry, puffball mushroom is just exactly what it is, or rather, what is used to be.

It is a puffball mushroom that was covered with mould.

and the winner is....

Jason! Congratulations!

Here are some photos of the very same object, BEFORE. The first two photo were made in 15 July, 2007.

This one was captured two days later. The mushroom has started overgrowing, and the skin was ripping to pieces. To adjust the real size of the pufball, pictured is my hunband's hand.
and now, it's time for the 9th round.

It will be very very easy.
But again, what it is? More than one guess per people is highly recommended.

Brain, off guard you go again.

Approaching the dark side

There's a writing contest at EvilEditor's. The set is: a maximum of 200 words, and the starting first line is given. My freedom was to pick a famous character to take part. I invited Carrie.

I’ve seen the movie some 10-15 years ago, but honestly, I don’t remember if there is a Halloween scene in the movie. I just wished to complete the task. Why I chose Carrie? I think I feel sympathy for her. I remember having kept wondering throughout the film how would this end, what revenge, if any, would Carrie take on her bullies.

Here's my take. Enjoy. Or be afraid. Enjoy being afraid. Or frown at it. Enjoy frowning. Or be afraid to tell me how you frowned. Oh, shut up.

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It was Halloween night, but there'd been no trick or treaters at the home of Carrie, who was about to go to bed when the doorbell rang.
The blinds were not drawn.
If I poke just one finger ahead and wave the curtain aside a bit, they will not notice. Mom won’t notice either. Sandy and company. You can’t hide. I don’t mind the costumes, I can feel the stench of their cheap perfumes.
You wish you had one of your own, don’t you? Shut up.
I’m not going down. Definitely not. Will not confront. Not now.
Promise me you won’t.
But what if…?
A second rang.
A step closer to the window. Avoiding that stave in the parquetry, Carrie stretched her body to have a good peep.
Daisy’s doing faces and gestures. Mimicking me, being embarrassed, seen that? No, she can’t do that to me.
Eyes wide open now, Carrie quivered.
Daisy’s grabbed her own arm. Another hit. Various hits over her arms and shoulder.
How sweet my power is.
Oh, please. And don’t move or else you’ll be seen.
The wood creaked.
Hushhh. Mom’s asleep.
I wish they went away.
The bunch of youngsters on the street looked confused and surprised.
Stay still.

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The event on family

Here's our draft for the evening - as you might or might not remember, I have company, two other mothers. My parts are modules 2, 4, 6 and 7.

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1. Introduction of the speakers and, should there be anyone outside of the women's organization, of the organization itself. Chances are that the evening will be held 'only' for the members. I don't really mind that, though. We are the most interested parties, aren't we?

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2a. An introduction of the subject itself. What do we think a family is? What are its roles? What does it mean to us? I'm thinking of starting this module by showing drawings of 5-graders. Guess what. I asked the head of my son's class to prepare some drawings for the event, for me. She was more than willing to co-operate, saying that schools make their pupils make drawings of families. What a great luck:) A typical 5-grader in Hungary is 11 years old.

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2b. Conversation about how are the original roles fulfilled, what is dysfunctional and why. I'd like to emphasize the effect of stress, working overtime, bank loans and ethics. Although to some it might seem obvious, I do NOT wish to enter the subject of religion.

---

3. Interesting facts about family as a unit. It will be done by my partner, D. I guess she will bring up issues like the amazingly high number of divorces and singles, the possibilities of working from home, shared and part-time jobs.

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4. A debate on the size of the family. As I have mentioned earlier, family have meant the co-living of at least three (3) generations. Now it's almost completely gone. Grandparents, for most of the case are either working or too old to help, or are living in a different town. Still, from time to time, there is a chance for the family to re-unite. Living with the old has many pros and cons. I am to use a special method I've heard about somewhere. It goes like this. The group is split into two subgroups: one pro, one against. They would gather their reasons and make a nice speach for and against co-living. When finished their roles flip. The arguments used before are NOT allowed to be recycled. I hope it will spice up the athmosphere a bit :)

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5. A quiz on facts and things about living in a family. I'm not really familiar with this module. This will be done by K, the 3rd partner.

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6. Towards the end of the evening I'd like to return to module 2b., only this time we'd be focusing on solutions. I'd also like to hear the audience's opinion and suggestions. This is where the most questions and reasoning might come. It will be really long and fairly short as well. I'll see how it goes.

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7. The end would be a poem, or rather, 3 poems read by each of the 3 speakers. The idea is to have a constructive ending. The evening will be too much focused on how dysfunctional and out-of-place family is, so it is there to give a promise at the end. I still don't know which poem will I be reading...I'm searching!

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What do you think? Any suggestions?

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October, what will you bring?

On 23 October Hungarians and supportive other people of any nations of the world are to remember the heroes of 1956, who tried as best as they could, to stop the reign of the Soviet Regime within our country. They failed. We have to remember their heroism, bravery and faith that they can achieve something. They overlooked their own personal well being for the well being of a nation. That's what makes a hero, isn't it?

There is a nicely written summary of the events and the similar events that took part in 1968 in Chechoslovakia by Steve.

The reason I suggesting reading his entry is at the end of his 'essay'.

He writes that a regime without a human face was/is the key factor in initiating a revolution and I like this approach.

For in 2006, on the 50th anniversary of 1956, people in their right mind wished to get rid of a goverment that was lying. But that was just the surface...

It might be difficult to understand for those readers of mine who ahve never experienced what we are going through.

Education, the medical system, social network is all failing.

Privatization to no end. Electricity for example is also sold. What comes next? Water supplies sold to foreigners?

Most of our arable lands are already sold.

Does it make any sense knowing the fact that Hungary's most important resource is land?

Have anyone heard of the famous Hungarian mines? Steel industry? Machinery production? Oil? Silicone?

Me neither.

Land. Agriculture.

Wine and vegetables and fruits and grain crops that outsmart any place of production on Europe. Meat of excellent quality. Yes, I have heard of those. Tasted those. Would be proud of offering a taste to anyone, anywhere.

By selling out land, those are at stake.

Raise hands anyone who, thinking of attending a national holiday in one's own country, would be afraid to carry and raise a national flag!

No one?

I wonder why....

Because here if anyone is suspected or seen wearing any sign that resembles any of the national traditional symbols at a street event is risking facing this:

YouTube video represents events of 2006. Update: 53 people were arrested and kept confined for a night. People on the streets were captured by the state police for no articulate reason.

Is it acceptable?

No way.

Giving away our ancestors' land away to strangers, who has no attachment to the land, the despisal and restriction of the use of our national symbols are only parts of the picture.

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The restrictions are squeezing upon those who care, who see further than their own paychecks and/or kitchentable.

Who wish to retain the fertile land for the future Hungarian generations.

On a side note, I don't mind foreigners buying a land or two, provided they accept the rules, accommodate to our customs and do not start a sect against us :)

But I see some difference between selling one or two plots to some families from another country AND selling village-sized lands to international corporations, whose solitary objective is to exploit the land, the people, and more frighteningly, the mind of those people, too.

---

I know of people who don't care about the flow of events much. As long as they have their share of food, job and housing, which they all do, they don't mind who's in the government.

Well, I do mind.

And I don't like what I see.

I'm not alone with my views.

In the fear of risking my family life and my potential to raise my kids I do not take part in street events, do not join any group at any level of aggression.

I am unsure what will bring the right solution. Will it come at once or step by step? Will it be peaceful or violent? How much will the good Hungarians have to suffer for the final success?

---

The largest party in opposition, Fidesz, is speaking of tolerance and peaceful waiting.

Last night, my DH cited Gandhi in this subject.

Gandhi once said that if he had to choose between cowardice and aggression/fight, he would choose the latter.

This makes me think twice.

I don't believe in violence and Mark Twain's The War Prayer has just strengthened me in this belief.

But Gandhi, oh, the ever-so-peaceful had to say those words of his...

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Take a really close look #8 - REPLAY

Ouch, this is so difficult, I hear you all saying :)
I like it.

In the last 'Take a really close look' post, you'd been given a chance to take a close look at something that was in our garden.
There were some awsome guesses here. Like petrified alligator head.
So, I'll let you have the whole picture.
Guess what it is.

I'll be away until 24 October. As you probably know, 23 October is a National Holiday in Hungary. More on that later.

My kids will be at home, so there's not much of a chance for me to indulge in writing new entries. I'm sorry. Be safe, God bless you all.

I have a family, so I am disabled PART2

Dear readers,
it seems that my words were unclear.

A very unfortunate situation indeed, for I have asked for some thoughts, co-operation and brainstorming. I think you were about to give it, but were hindered by my not-so-clear introduction.

Allow me to have a tabula rasa in this subject.

---

I volunteer at an organization (I recently quitted - another story). Each month this year members and volunteers organize a special evening. Each month is focused on one of the disabled group of people.

If you think of the circle of 'handicapped' people, please think about it in a broader sense. Those who have some serious physical disability (like having no sight for example) are clearly handicapped. The mentally challenged are also. Their place and potential in life is limited, right?

There are the homeless, the poor, the list is endless.

---

It seems to me that somehow, everyone is handicapped in some way. But I DO think it's another story. Well, I have to learn to keep my mouth shut.

---

Okay, here's the organization.

Each month.

A disabled group.

It's October.

The subject is 'family'.

---

Sometime in the spring, it was 'women/women with kids'.

Do you see how they fit into the category of handicapped?

I don't know about your circumstances, but in Hungary a woman gets less salary than a man in the same position in the very same firm.

Women are supposed to work PLUS do all the cooking AND housekeeping and be that lovey-dovey wife, while not being acknowledged for all those tremendeous efforts they usually do for the sake of the family.

---

Feminism put aside, October is about FAMILY.

I don't know about your circumstances, but in Hungary there's no such a thing as tax by families. We have things like a long maternity leave (for 1,5 YEARS after the baby is born the mother receives 75% of her last salary), a monthly childcare allowance paid by employers.

It may all sound nice, but money-wise that's just about it.

There are 3 of us who are doing this project.

We have the assumption that FAMILY as such is decaying.

---

I don't know about your circumstances, but apart from the XXth century, FAMILY in Hungary used to mean the co-living of generations. Children grew up hard working, yes, that is one side of the coin, BUT they were surrounded not only by their grandparents, but in most cases, by their grand-grandparents as well. Sometimes the very old had to work, too, but they were also there to tell stories, fables and ease any pain the young met.

---

Where are those (grand-) grandparents now?

Where is a normal family now?

---

And now, about the word ROOT - that stirred up my kind readers the most.

In the Hungarian language, root (gyökér) refers to

1.) the part of a plant that is within the ground. It is to supply the plant with nutrients and water, right?

2.) quite metaphorically, the very same word refer to one's family.

If you come to think about it was your parents (and grandparents) who have made you come to alive, and they did supply you with all the necessary elements to make you become of what you are now. I'm speaking, as I more often than not, BOTH in the physical, psychological and mental sense. I mean all the three aspects. If one's adopted, one got the body from his real parents, but all the rest must be coming from the adoptive parents, right?

Without a root, a plant dies.

And so do humans without a family.

Anyone disagreeing?

There.

---

Now, the word gyökér (root) has undergone a change in the past few decades.

From being a neutral word, it became a negative judgement about one's mental capacities. A synonim for being dumb, inarticulate, incoherent, unintelligent, ignorant. Thanks Thesaurus, I love you.

I remember when in highschool I was taught the word 'g-a-y'. It was just an ordinary word for me, nothing more. (Special punctuation is for search engines. Or rather, against them.)

Later on I was informed that it had other, very specific connotations attached to it.

Would I, in my right mind use the very same 3-letter word to describe someone who's happy?/animate?/colorful?/bright?

No way!

---

So the word gyökér (root), which used to have a nice feeling around it, for it referred to something nutritive, familiar (I'm playing with words here, people), desireable... Now people see the word as something negative.

I believe in the power of words.

Why else would I be writing this?

If we attach meanings to words, there'll be meaning within them.

---

If we think the very word 'root' is undesireable, then sooner or later we'll begin having the same ideas about the meaning BEHIND the pure combination of four letters. (root).

My hypothesis is that derogating the word 'root' means derogating the meaning behind it, too.

This event will NOT be a linguistic lecture for sure.

It is just an example.

We have started to consider our 'roots' as something negative.

I think this is a TERRIBLE MISTAKE.

---

I love this word: mistake.

For me it means that we mis-take. Choose something falsely.

(Did I mention I was conservative, btw? Perhaps, to mainstream liberalists like those in the leadership of that women's organization my ideas will mean nothing.)

I think that's enough.

Tell me to shoot myself.

I have a family, I am handicapped

TOTALLY UPDATED VERSION. To ELLO!!!I know of a women's organization (I have just quitted membership today, a very sad and political story, nevermind). For this year, they are organizing consciousness-raising events/lectured/gatherings for their members and for anyone interested.

Each month the subject is a group of people that is in some way handicapped in today's society. In January, it was the 'country-people'. (For those who are unfamiliar with the Hungarian state of events these days, it means pheasants and other poor people outside the cities.)

In February and March, it was I don't know.

In April, it was the environmentalists. Do check back to see my opinion about that event. Reference and links in the paragraph below.

Also, I'd like to call Ello's attention to the comment I left on her site re: Al Gore and the Nobel Prize for Peace. Yes, I am one of those lunatics.

In May, it was 'women' - we all know how disabled they/we are: Lower wages for the same job to name the most obvious one.

And this is October and the theme is 'families'.

My hypothesis is that 'family' is a disability.

It is TOTALLY WRONG in every sense, but we have to face the truth.

You must name the beast to be able to tame it, right?

So, this is the new project I'm working on.

The last project I wanted to make was about the state of the environment. This went off, for various reasons. I think I was too crazy about the issue, while my partner-to-be thought a moderate (read nothing really shocking) lecture would just as do. As I firmly believe that nothing shocking is shocking enough when it comes to saving the Earth, I quitted. Well, my partner-to-be dumped me. That was all the better for the two of us.

Now, the main focus is on the family.

I have no troubles seeing 'family' as a unit in danger, as a hindrance in nowadays' hustle.

This time, there are 3 of us doing the topic.

I imagine to have an interactual lecture, to make the listeners think and inter-act with each other.

So far, I have come up with the following ideas:

- in the Hungarian, the word that means 'root' has become a pejorative. Dumb, slow-witted people are often called 'root'.

Before going further, I pray for your opinion:

How is it related to the subject?

Is it a bad or a negligible phenomenon in the language?

Any other opinions?

Photos depict my children on 7 October 2007.

Below is a videoclip, with two songs of the Hungarian band called Kormorán. The band uses traditional elements of folk music and folk instruments as well.

Remembering Octopus

I won a contest.
Kaitlyn F. Gallagher had a writing contest a month ago.
You can read about the task, the limitations and my entry here in my blog.

It was a whole new experience for me, writing in first person POV, I found it challenging and somehow limiting. I imagined the setting in a kitchen, with all those elements that tickle one's senses. The main character is the POV's daughter, since the sentence we had to use I am sister to the serious octopus was originally said by Kaitlyn's daughter. I started working with keeping this in mind and the story was quite at hand from that on, it just unfolded to me.

I liked writing it. I enjoyed working with the senses. It was a truly useful, and most enjoyable exercise to me.

And now, Kaitlyn has announced that I won.

Hurray!

For her commentary and presentation of my entry is available at the link above.

StrugglingWriter has also entered with a funny piece. (If you go and visit his place you'll have the chance to read his entry.)

I would like to thank Kaitlyn for her inspiration!

I'm looking forward to seeing more challenges at her site!

Take a really close look # 8

Dear all,

I'm planning to have this series end at 10.

This is the eighth round, but before I present you with this precious picture I made for you to guess over, let me tell you the results of the seventh quiz. I'd like to ask you to go and check the original picure HERE!

We had four contestants, Hoodie, Anniina, Bobealia and Ello.

On a side-note to one of my curious fellow-bloggers: Beth was NOT taking part.

Guesses ranged from 'don't know' (heehee) to berries, figs, sunflowers, pinecones - and the more impressed ventured into saying heads of bald crows even!!! Wow!

I'd like to bow in front of the creativity of Anniina for this guess.

I wish I HAD the chance to make photos of bald crows.

I wish I really did.

I wonder at what circumstances one can make a photo of bald crows.

It really makes one's imagination soar, doesn't it?

Anyway...the WINNER is....

Hoodie, with sunflower!!!!

CONGRATULATIONS, Hoodie!!

Here's the proof:

And here's another pic of the same thing - this photo used to be my desktop wall-paper for quite a time. I love the colors, the rythym, the winding of the curves...

How can be someone NOT obsessed with such a perfection?

And now it's time for the EIGHTH RUN:

And here's a second photo of the SAME thing.

What is it? This time, the more detailed your guess is, the better your chances are.

on horses, drugs and the state of my ankle

As my kind readers have surely noticed, I'm back from that survival trip I referred to in my last post. There were about 200-250 fellow hikers, some of them covered 20 kms, like we did, some others went 35, and behold - some opted for the 60kms version.

I went for this trip for various reasons. I wished to brush off my melancholy - check, well done.

I wished to spend hours, uniterrupted in the autumn forest - check, well done.

I also came down with a periostitis, which was an unfortunate addition to my check-list.

At this moment some old people enter my imagination, who, with hazed eyes, marvel into the upholstery and start sentences with...when I was young...

And at this moment, I'm joining their club....

When I was young(er), walking 20kms was not a big deal. Now I seem to have fallen out of practice, which is a shame, and I must render the situation right. I must return to the habit of having a 10-25 km walk in every month or two. That keeps one in shape and avoids nasty things to one's ankle.

In fact, my ankle was quite allright after the tour, but a mis-step on the floor of the bathroom proved wrong. I was unable to place my weight on my left ankle and had to keep limping. For the sake of getting things done at home, thanks for the question.

What painkillers I did take?

You must be joking.

This is exactly one of the cases when one should NOT take any.

I took none, but to avoid pain, I rested my leg. I simply HAD TO rest it. I even wrapped it into a sack made of wool. That thing kept my ankle warm. If the sensation of pain had been taken away by drugs, I wouldn't have been able to rest. Now, 3 days after the trip my leg is almost back to normal.

All right, let's hear about our 20km trip.

It started in the middle of the town and after some wondering into the nearby valleys and forests, the route went right back to the starting point.

The location of the town I live in neglects any high mountains and/or dangerous rocks/waters...Some might say it's dull. Others might say it's comforting and gives you the feeling of a friendly environment. Those who feel there's no challenge in a surrounding like this should try walking 60 kms within it. 20kms took less than 6 hours for me. I walked in a pace that is rather relaxing than exhausting. For honesty, I have to add that the total elevation during these 6 hours was about 200-400 metres.

A six-hour walk in the High Tatras is something of a completely different experience. An enjoyable one at that, but different. We plan to get there in 2009, btw.

Each participant was given a map of the tour. We were following various forest trails. We followed the red for a while, than switched to the yellow mark and so on. Tourist trails are quite well marked throughout Hungary - most of the trails go in and out forests, through meadows but some lead to famous places in towns. I said well marked, and if you click to enlargen this particular photo you'll see the red sign and above, a green dot. The red is a line, which means trail, dot means a natural/artificial well/spring of a water, a cross means intersection of different trails and so on. I said well marked, but those who painted those lines upon trees trusted the tourists and have definitely left something for the imagination. At some places the tourist need to rely on his/her compass, map or instinct. Education at its best, hm?

But as there are settlements practically everywhere in the country, noone can get completely lost and eaten by angry wild animals - mainly because those are extinct.

The well I referred to is here below - sorry for the quality. Those two kids are my son and a friend. Fortunately, most of the time we were alone in the forest. I went with my girlfriend and we both had our elder sons with us.

This is a trap the boys found. They were really excited about it. Our trip at 13-15 kms wandered around a famous horse-farm. In fact this is where one of our four-time world champion coach-driving team is located, and is called an Equestrian Park. This is where they keep their animals and train horses and drivers. They run shows for the public as well. This little lady here was training, but judging from the way she was sitting, she was rather having fun, than a serious stress. I bet this girl in the seat was younger than 18. And she managed this drive of four horses.
Besides horses, said farm keeps cattle. There are two varieties, both endemic to the Carpathian basin. The brownish ones in the front are Hungarian Speckled ones, while the lighter-colored ones are Hungarian Grey Cattles. While the speckled variety is a good milker, the more sturdier-built Greys have excellent meat qualities. The trip went right beside the farm's boundaries. A coach pulled by four black horses was driving near the tourists.

We arrived home safe, with some normal pain in our muscles :)

Liver

At the beginning of July, I wrote about how I make our bread. It's not that I never buy bread in shops, but most of the time what we eat as bread, is what I make and bake in the regular oven. At present we do not have a home-made oven. But I think this sentence needs a 'yet' at the end.

At the end of that post I promised to write about what comes on top of the bread.

Here we go.

Liver spread. I've heard that some people find eating the inner parts of an animal disgusting. If you are one of those, skip this entry, but please inform me about the situation. I am not a fan of inmeats, but I like liver-spread. And since I don't trust those sold in shops, I prefer to make my own.

Ingredients:

- liver, fresh, sliced or chunked (I do this here with chicken, but I think swine liver works quite nicely as well)

- onion, finely chopped (about half the volume of liver)

- bacon, finely diced (about a quarter of the volume of the liver)

-salt (according to taste)

- some seasoning according to taste. (I suggest marjoram, oregano, basil, black pepper, chopped garlic, parsley leaves, a combination of these, or anything else you like.)

- water (depends on how thick you would like the spread to be)

- oil (not really much)

Preparation:

1. Sauté the bacon in oil. When almost all its fat comes out, add the onion.


2. Sauté the onion until translucent.

3. Add liver. Stir frequently until all the sides of the liver chunks are turned brown. Soon enough, the liver will release some water and you don't really have to worry about the spread being burnt, but eventually, you'll have to add some water to the mix.

4. When the whole thing turns brown, cook for about 20-25 minutes. Stir from time to time. Make sure not to burn it.

5. When it is ready, use a mixer and make a smooth creme.

6. Store in a fridge/deep-freezer. What you put in the fridge must be used within the next 2-3 days.

What is life is like on 6 October

This time, Church Lady polled us on our view of life....

Check the site for some funny insights.

Here are my versions.

- Life is like the coming and going of seasons. Only that spring with all its buds and lovely scents and also summer, with all those juicy fruits last much shorter than winter, when you have to do everything you can to protect you from freezing to death.

- Life is like dreaming. Faintly, deep within, you know of a much stronger reality, but everything around you seems to make you forget about it.

I admit, these reflect my present state of being.

But honestly, I'm thinking of flipping the bird towards depression.

I'm sick of it.

I'm trying to get rid of it.

All possible means come to my head.

Like doing a 'survival trip' this Saturday, when participants has to walk 20 kms. The trip goes partly within the small town, but basically it's about touring the forests and hills around it.

---

This is a memorial tour in rememberance of 6 October.

October 6 is one of our national holidays.

Hungarians fought a great Revolution and War of Independence between 1848 and 1849. There were enthusiastic peagants and well-kept soldiers in our troops. Part of the fame of the Hungarian 'husars' is dating back to that period. They fought for freedom.

The opposite side, the Austrian army was at the verge of loosing the war, when, out of the sudden they let the Russian army in.

The fresh foreign soldiers easily broke our resistance.

The war was lost.

But the horror did not end here.

To make sure that no such rebel would take place in the foreseeable future, all the 13 generals were executed in the town of Arad, Transsylvania.

Some of them were hung, some shot.

As an extra treat, the Prime Minister of the time was also executed.

Each year on 6 October, good Hungarians remember the 'Arad Thirteen', the lost case of the war of independence, the way they were captured and killed.

Life moves on and we do not mourn over the loss for long. But we do stop and bow our heads. It is our duty to do so.

another look on global warming

This is what I found.

Grief and Disbelief

After the last mellow fruit has fallen
and the bright mantle of summer is shed

nothing else's there to offer but

branches torn by winds and bent beneath the burden

---

how many leaves does a tree has to loose before it dies

where does its hope come from

that there will be budtime again

why is its faith

in the face of the bare fangs of winter

into the void eyes of snow

why does it sleep and dream

instead of asking for the final steel

---

And so, the Sun has tumbled away

falling behind the dark side of the world

say goodbye to

whatever now

your skeleton is what you have

---

and what am I supposed to do with

the fresh foam of troubled anger?

with a cold sweep of shadowed water?

without a body?

---

Health quiz - a step-by-step solution

Yes, I am kind.
Taken from the previous post, with solution after each sentence!!!
This was the question!!!!

Which of the items listed below does SzélsőFa have?

(Solutions capitalized, in brackets - with some explanations here and there)

x.) National Health Care Insurance (FALSE - as I am not a registered employee, I'm not covered. So far so good.)

c.) A wish to see the doctor's (FALSE - I'd have to be really sick to go to see the doctor. A broken bone might take me to the office for example. I'm 37 and have not broken ANY of my bones. So far so good.)

a.) (an) infected ear(s), an infected throat (TRUE - oh yes.)

a.) a wish to read 'The Wind in the Door' (TRUE - *waves a friendly Hello to Chris, in Maryland*)

u.) a neutered male cat named Berci (FALSE - Berci used to be a female. I think I wrote about that some time earlier. Or not.)

i.) a neutered female cat named Berci (TRUE - see above.)

h.) a friend in Japan (TRUE - see the sidebar for links)

y.) friends in the USA (TRUE - chances are, you, yes you are one of those people.)

e.) a former high-school class mate in the USA (TRUE - okay, this was difficult.)

w.) a subscription to 'Medical news' in Hungarian (FALSE - this was the one I thought the most easiest one.)

p.) a trust in doctors (FALSE - you must be kidding.)

n.) a positive attitude when being sick (TRUE - why the hell else would I be writing this post?)

o.) belief in modern day medicines (FALSE - no comment.)

r.) belief in older-day medicines, like herbs and natural ointments (TRUE - sure. I am old-fashioned. I am a tree.)

v.) a friend who can actually make illnesses go away by touching (TRUE - I think this was a bit tough. He's not.)

Now, you have all those letters in front of the sentences marked (TRUE)

Pick the letters, and you have

a,a,i,h,y,e,n,r and v.

Can you make 2 words out of them?

Thank you for playing.

Do you think it was boring?