Theme Thursday=fish

I'm living in a country surrounded by the sea. Thus I feel a special connection to...fish. They are everywhere in our lives, habits and culture. Aquariums, taverns featuring fresh fish (yummy), lots of fishing boats (with interesting names) at the docks or ports and many many more. One thing I always found interesting when it comes to the subject though, is our sayings and proverbs (I am translating from Greek so bear with me :-)

1. "A Fish Stinks From the Head" (gr: Το ψάρι βρομάει από το κεφάλι)
- Meaning that the decomposition and corruption of an organism or group of people starts from the "head" i.e the leadership. This proverb is quite popular in the Balkans.

2. "If you are not soaked and wet up to your neck, you don't get to eat fish"
- As in "no pain, no gain".

3. "Eat fish with your eyes" (gr: φάτε μάτια ψάρια)
(This third is related to the cartoon above but I ended up being kinda lost in translation :-)

- Meaning that if one can't afford and acquire what he/she wants or needs (for various reasons), one can only look and not touch. As in a person who is hungry and can not eat, he tries to relief his hunger just by looking at the fish. It would be interesting to know the origins of this proverb. Since Greece has been through many wars and hardships and poverty in the past, I believe that people were trying to 'entertain' their hunger.

Finally there is this beautiful aquarium we have in Crete (Heraklion). This is a video I found on YouTube (made by freddy71165) that describes it better than words...Enjoy and relax (I find the music to be so calming).

"Monmartre...Paris"

Ahhh, Paris...

My good friend Efi used to tell me wonderful stories about Paris. We used to plan where we we'd go and which places we would visit. We were students in Manchester then and she had already spent a good six months in this wonderful city. One of the things I remember vividly about her narrations, is the way her face would light up when she was referring to Monmartre. The street vendors and artists, the people passing by. Everything sounded so...magical!


I wish I could tell you this is my portrait being made by a street artist, one beautiful day, in Monmartre. Unfortunately, I never got to travel to Paris...one day I will (hopefully). However, part of the picture is true. This is actually a part of my face. I got no idea who is posing in my 'place' because this photo is a...fotofunia product. If you want to see what you can do with your face and a few PC clicks, just visit the link and enjoy!

Hm and tomorrow is Thursday. That means "theme Thursday" and a quite demanding subject, as I recall :-)

Take care now
peace and love
xoxo

"Saturday night...(greek) fever"

So Saturday night is finally here.

When I was a student in high school I remember that Saturday night and coffee with friends was a BIG deal. Of course it wouldn't be a Saturday night out without the usual..."curfew", the "if it is 00:05 do not bother coming in the house!" or Mum sleeping on the sofa, waiting, pretending that she is reading an, up-side-down, book :-)

I remember all that today while getting ready to go out with my friends. I am meeting them in a few hours, in a Greek taverna (you know lots of meat, ouzo and opa-if you know what I mean). I am all grown up now (no need to ask for permission). However, I usually try to take these trips down memory lane, trying not to forget what it was like when I was a kid (helps me in my job, to get into my students' shoes, to remember how it was when I was their age:-)

Good times...

I wish you have a pleasant weekend and enjoy your nights out or in, with family or friends, alone or with a company. Try to treasure the moments cause they only last...for a moment. As for all the wonderful, hard-working parents out there...trust your children and the trust will come back to you (at least that is what my parents did...sort of :-)

This is a great video I found on youtube...does it make you wanna dance?

theme thursday=statue

I thought a lot about this theme. Made me think about all the possible statues-landmarks that can be found in my hometown or in Greece in general. Their history or anything special or worth saying about them. However, I knew there was something that I was forgetting...two days later it hit me!

So I am in Crete (the biggest of the Greek islands) on holiday with my university girlfriends! We are strolling down the street, by the sea, amongst the tourists (it was August 2006). Suddenly we came across a huge building that used to be a church and it was now used for exhibitions about art...something like a museum.

We noticed people standing outside the beautiful building, admiring a Greek ancient statue. We figured it was something worth watching and photographing, so we took the above shot. It was late at night so I will help you with a closer look...




It looked so real and it was like the statues that one could find on the Acropolis, decorating the Parthenon! So we had to get close and take a better photo of the statue. It wasn't until we went close and stood there to take the picture, that we realised it was in fact...a person posing and standing still!




Remember now...it was late at night, dark and...well I am out of excuses :-)

That' s it. This is my first "theme Thursday" post. I hope it' s relevant to the subject and that you enjoyed it! Till next Thursday...

take care
peace and love
xoxo

It is never too late to post a...delayed entry

I was so caught up in the activities of the past weekend (taking an exam for a permanent teaching job:-) and I realised that I have postponed some things that I wished to put up here. Since it is never too late...here they go.

Thanks to Meg and her beautiful blog I took part in a rather joyful blog game...the "interview me", game like, blog activity where one blogger sends 5 questions to another blogger and he/she answers them on his/her blog. I found it an interesting and great way to get to know each other a little better. So I did my share by letting Meg interview me (for my interview click here) and I also was the interviewer for two other fellow bloggers.

The first interview was for the great screenwriter, director, musician Raymond De Felitta, whose interview can be seen here. If you haven't watched his movies you better hurry. I recommend my favorite so far, 'the thing about my folks' and his new film that is bound to come out (hopefully soon) with Andy Garcia and Julianna Margulies, which is called "City Island"! if you haven't visited his blog you should take a look. Educational, informative, fun to watch, historical, 'musical' (a few words that come to mind and characterize it).

The second interview was with my good blog friend, Jodi, who is a working mother with a great big happy family and two adorable children. Her blog can be seen here and her interview is quite interesting so go there in a 'click' second!

It is great that via blogs people from all around the world get together, share and realise the creativity, they didn' t know existed, in this vast and great world we live in. I think of several bloggers that I would most definitely want to read the answers to their interviews. If you wish to participate just comment on this post by saying "interview me" and will e-mail you asap! join in and have fun :-)

Meanwhile I give you a picture of a radio station's microphone (my 'link' to the listeners on my radio show). Since this interview game is an interview without physically seeing the other person, one could say that it is much rather like an on-air interview without...sound! The blogs are our 'microphones' so...let's have fun!

Take care now
peace and love
xoxo

Secret...four

Remember the times when you were little and the world seemed so big and adventurous?

When I was a little girl I used to read Enid Blyton's books. Of course after the passing of the years ,and age ,I switched to Agatha (Long live Hercule!) but Enid holds a special place on my bookshelf and in my heart.

The story goes like this...I used to spend my weekends at my grandmother's house in a small village, about 20-30 minutes from the city I lived. I had a...small gang of friends there (some of them are still my friends). Inspired by Enid's "Secret Seven" we formed our own group of amateur detectives...we were the "secret four" (no surprises there:-). Every week we would meet at my grandmothers warehouse and discuss how we were going to save the world from the misfortunes and the bad people that were out there!

Now Enid Blyton's books were written in an English context and by context I mean the moody, wet, somewhat dark, misty, English weather and surroundings. Luckily in my country and village we got to have many different kinds of weather. In order for a good mystery to unfold and for us to "take matters into our own hands" autumn and winter was about the right time. So every time the season was right and the mood for a real nice mystery was set, we would be ready for any kind of stake out! Now you may not understand what I mean by that so I will provide some visual aids.

We would walk these roads searching for interesting and 'unusual' activities;-)


We would walk through these mountains...exploring (seriously we went up there!)


We would wait for the darkness to cover everything...in order for us to sneak out and do our thing (till our folks would come out, looking for us:-)


These are the places I grew up in...I am happy that they still exist in the way I left them. The only thing that is missing...a gang of four 10 year olds, walking, laughing, conspiring, imagining. I am guessing that they are inside right now watching TV...

Everything changes and yet some things remain the same...

Like this tree for example...

This tree has been the view from the back window, in my grandmother's house for...ever (which is only natural because trees are supposed to live long). What hit me the other day though is the fact that this tree has been the 'landmark' of my childhood...something that never changed through the course of time...that has never betrayed me. This tree is always there, standing proud and still, addapting to the seasons, so beautiful looking...

So here is to changes and things that remain the same in order to help us bring back the lost innocence...the years when we all thought we could change the world and...the hope that we can still change it...

Take care now
peace and love
xoxo

A special mask made...by special people!

Now I mentioned that I make plaster masks but never really got the chance to post any pictures. I'll get to it soon...I just have to get pictures and all.

However there is one special mask that I wish to post here.

My students had an idea. They had a lesson which dealt with carnivals all around the world and thought it would be interesting to create a mask and present it to class. They knew that I was into that kind of hobby so...they turned to me for help :-)

This is what we did. Now remember all I did was form the face...the painting and final creation is my students' work. Give it up for George and Rosalia (aged 10!).

Our (unnamed) cat!

Here's my cat who wishes to say hi to all the pets owned by bloggers throughout the world!!

"Hello. I live in a greek village called "loutra" (spas) and I am the beloved friend and companion of a nice granny. I like hunting mice and teasing the family's dog, flox. I have no name but I don't know why exactly. All I want is a little attention. If you don't hurt me I will not hurt you. But if you don't play with me...well then...I'll do this...



This is our unnamed, beautiful, little cat. It is true that a few years back someone poissoned another cat-pet we had, named Toto. After Toto my granny was afraid of loosing another cat so we never got a new one. Up till the spring of 2008. I saw this baby cat in a friend's house (giving them away) and I had to have her! My granny was happy about it but she said she wouldn't name it (I guess the fear of loosing it and being close to it again). So this is our cute little pet...care to offer her a name?

Interview...

These are the answers to the questions sent to me by Meggie, whose blog offers us many beautiful little treats of life :-)

I don't know who had the original and wonderful idea. I followed the tracks and this is as far as It took me (maybe I found it maybe not :-)

Enjoy!

1. If you could live in another country, which one would you choose? or would you prefer your own country?

Technically I have lived in another country for almost a year, during my MA studies. It was in the UK (Manchester). The thought crossed my mind before leaving Greece...that If I liked it there it would be nice to try and live there for a while. I mean it was such a big trip and I wouldn't want to waste it. I enjoyed every minute I spend in Manchester...I treasure the moments, the friends from other countries (some of them I still talk to regularly). Now you might say ok but...that is not the answer to the question.

Well my time there made me realise something...that I LOVE other cultures, civilizations, countries, people but...only if I know that I can come back home. So I would love to live in Greece (and be able to travel :-)

2. If you could spend a holiday in another country, which one would you choose?

I wanna go to Spain (Barchelona) and France (Paris). Me and my good friend Jim also dream about going to New York and Hong Kong (I have a dear friend living there) and...and...and...oh I want to go everywere!!!

3. Would you choose another career path, to the one you currently have? Why?

I have always wanted to be a teacher and I did everything I could in order to become one. My friends say I am the only one, they know, who knew exactly what she wanted. So...I love my job deeply and I can't imagine myself doing anything else. However, If I had the time and money I would also love to open a little shop-workshop, creating and selling my plaster masks and books (wouldn't mind if there were some of MY books on a shelf either :-)

4. What is your favourite colour, & why?

My favorite colour is blue.

I grew up in a town by the sea...my dad was born in Lesvos (a beautiful greek island) and I just think of the sea when I see all kinds of blue shades (which is funny because water is white! It's a good thing this 'interaction' with the light happens and we get that wonderful blue colour :-)

This is a picture of my hometown's little port...

5. Is there someone from your past you would like to meet up with again? Or not? & why?

Now that is an excellent question that needs thought...hmm I believe that people from our past stopped being with us, in any way, because...life happened. However, there are two people I would like to meet again :-)

The first one is Chi-ho. He is a great friend of mine and we met in Manchester during our MA studies. We became and still are friends but he is there (Hong Kong) and I am here now (Greece). Thanks to the internet we "talk" but it is not the same as having the person close, talking, touching, hearing and all. I wish that someday we will be able to meet again in person and talk like we did back then.

The second is my roomate from the university, sophia. We shared a house for three years and they were the best years of my life. We were like sisters and even though she is across the country now it would be nice to have a cup of coffee and talk like old times.

So that is all :-)

Hope you enjoyed it

Now here are the rules of the interview-game. I will post them and should anyone wishes to participate and continue this...it would be great!

1. Send me an e-mail or comment saying "interview me"

2. Then 5 questions will be e-mailed to you (questions I choose to ask you :-)

3. Answer them on your blog

4. Do not forget to re-post the rules along with your answers and offer to interview anyone else who e-mails you or comments that they wish to be interviewed!

take care now
peace and love
xoxo

The weight of the word..."child"

"Αλάφρυνε σα φτερό η λέξη κι ας είναι βουτηγμένη στο αίμα. Όσοι καμώνονται ότι την κατανοούν και την υπερασπίζονται την έννοια παιδί, δεν κατέκλυσαν τους δρόμους της οικουμένης στο άκουσμα του βομβαρδισμού ενός σχολείου κι ενός νοσοκομείου γεμάτων με παιδιά. Κι όμως είναι οι ίδιοι άνθρωποι που κόπτονταν για τα παιδιά μόλις ένα μήνα πριν. Τα παιδιά της πέτρας, της αμφισβήτησης, της... του... Το παιδί γίνεται δυσθεώρητα αξιοσέβαστο στο δυτικό πολιτισμό μόνον όταν συνοδεύεται από κτητικές αντωνυμίες. Τα δικά μας. Το δικό μου. Αλλιώς αριθμοποιούνται, ταξινομούνται, ζυγίζονται σα λιπόσαρκα αρνάκια γάλακτος κι ύστερα βγαίνει ο λύκος και διευκρινίζει πως άμα το παιδί θεωρηθεί θώρακας ή ασπίδα του εχθρού, παύει να είναι παιδί και γίνεται απλώς χαλκομανία, αριθμός θυμάτων χαμένων στο σωρό."

Λιάνα Κανέλλη (για να διαβάσετε ολόκληρο το άρθρο πατήστε εδώ)

"A word as light as a feather though covered in blood. The concept of the word "child" [...] the children holding stones in their two little hands, the children of doubt, his...hers...The child becomes respectable in the western part of the wolrd only when followed by possessive pronouns. Ours...Mine... In any other occasion children are numbered, categorized, weigh out like fleshless baby lamps and then...there comes the big bad wolf to decide whether this or that child is an enemy 'protector' or shield. Then the child is no longer considered to be a child...it becomes just another number on the pile of the lost victims and "collateral damage"...

By Liana Kanelli (Greek Jurnalist, writer, activist)


Fight against war and repression...fight for the children of Palestine...The power is in our hands to try and raise our voices against the injustice and the murder of innocent people and children. Don't stay in and watch what is happening in front of your TV. Go out and become one with the voices that demand to...

"STOP THE WAR"

What is the purpose of your life? (Ποιός είναι ο σκοπός της ζωής σου;)

(english version)

A question that simple and yet so complicated...

It is amazing how much energy, thinking and meditation is put in this-otherwise-ordinary day.

01/01/2009 and suddenly everyone starts thinking about their lives, dreams, hopes, aspirations, resolutions. We are happy the old has past and the new is here, we kiss whoever is standing next to us, we give presents, we celebrate, we remember people we never call...

01/02/2009 and suddenly everything goes back to normal. We sleep to regain the energy lost from the previous day, we stop meditating and thinking about our lives, dreams, hopes, aspirations and resolutions. We are neither happy nor sad and the new seems old somehow. We don't kiss whoever is standing next to us, got no money for more presents, we get back to work and we go back to calling only the 2-3 people we always call...

One of the interesting, yet difficult questions, I got the other day as regards the new year and life itself was this..."what is the purpose of your life?". At first I thought that the question is not fair...I mean we all have a purpose when we come into this world. It is there for us to discover it but life is not fair because a child born in Africa or Palaistine will never discover its true purpose...'life' will not let it happen. If the opportunities given in life are not the same and equal then how are we supposed to discover our true purpose? Then I started thinking about me and came down to this little conclusion...

We live in a world of our creation and we strive to find meaning in the little things it has to offer us...sometimes the smallest and meaningless thing (like a good word or jesture to somebody) can give you the biggest of pleasures. I don' t know were I am getting at with my life...all I know is that I want to try and start appreciating the small things and moments life has to offer. I' m afraid that if I miss these moments then...I miss my purpose in life itself!

Happy new 2009! Peace, love, health to all :-)

(Greek version)

Μια ερώτηση τόσο απλή αλλά ταυτόχρονα και τόσο περίπλοκη...

Είναι απίστευτο το πόση ενέργεια, σκέψη και περισυλλογή εναποθέτουμε σε αυτήν την--κατά τ' άλλα-- συνηθισμένη ημέρα.

01/01/2009 και ξαφνικά όλοι αρχίζουν να σκέφτονται για τις ζωές τους, τα όνειρα, τις ελπίδες, τις φιλοδοξίες και τις αποφάσεις τους. Είμαστε χαρούμενοι που το παλιό έχει περάσει και το νέο έχει καταφτάσει, φιλάμε όποιον έχουμε δίπλα μας, δίνουμε δώρα, το γιορτάζουμε, τηλεφωνούμε σε ανθρώπους με τους οποίους δεν συνηθίζουμε να επικοινωνούμε στην καθημερινότητα μας...

02/01/2009 και ξαφνικά όλα έρχονται στα ίσια τους. Κοιμόμαστε για να αναπληρώσουμε την ενέργεια που σπαταλήθηκε την προηγούμενη ημέρα. Σταματάμε την περισυλλογή και τις σκέψεις για τη ζωή, τα όνειρα, τις ελπίδες και τις αποφάσεις μας. Δεν είμαστε χαρούμενοι , αλλά ούτε και λυπημένοι, και το καινούριο φαντάζει παλιό κατά έναν περίεργο τρόπο. Δεν μοιράζουμε φιλιά από δω κι απο κεί και η τσέπη μας είναι άδεια για άλλα δώρα. Ετσι επιστρέφουμε στη δουλειά και στο να τηλεφωνούμε και πάλι τους 2-3 ανθρώπους με τους οποίους επικοινωνούμε σε καθημερινή βάση...

Μια από τις ποιό ενδιαφέρουσες και δύσκολες ερωτήσεις που μου έκαναν χτές, σ' ότι αφορά τον καινούριο χρόνο και τη ζωή μου, ήταν και η εξής..."Ποιός νομίζεις ότι είναι ο σκοπός της ζωής σου;". Στην αρχή σκέφτηκα ότι η ερώτηση δεν είναι δίκαιη...όλοι έχουμε έναν σκοπό όταν ερχόμαστε στη ζωή. Ο σκοπός αυτός είναι εκεί και μας περιμένει να τον ανακαλύψουμε αλλά η ζωή η ίδια μας βάζει τρικλοποδιές. Ενα παιδί που γεννήθηκε στην Αφρική ή την Παλαιστίνη δεν θα έχει την ευκαιρία να ανακαλύψει το δικό του σκοπό. Αν οι ευκαιρίες που δίνονται στη ζωή δεν είναι ίσες και ίδιες τότε πως υποτίθεται ότι θα ανακαλύψουμε τον πραγματικό σκοπό της ύπαρξης μας; Μετά άρχισα να σκέφτομαι για μένα και κατέληξα στο εξής συμπέρασμα...

Ζούμε σε έναν κόσμο που εμείς οι ίδιοι δημιούργήσαμε και παλεύουμε να βρούμε νόημα στα μικρά πράγματα που έχει να μας προσφέρει η ζωή. Μερικές φορές το πιο μικρό και χωρίς νόημα πράγμα (όπως μια κίνηση ή ένας καλός λόγος σε κάποιον) μπορεί να σου προσφέρει μεγάλη συγκίνηση και χαρά. Δεν έχω ιδέα που θα με βγάλει το μονοπάτι της ζωής μου...το μόνο που ξέρω είναι οτι θέλω να προσπαθήσω και να αρχίσω να απολαμβάνω τις μικρές χαρές και στιγμές που μου προσφέρονται. Φοβάμαι ότι αν χάσω αυτές τις στιγμές τότε...θα χάσω το νόημα της ίδιας μου της ζωής!

Καλή χρονιά! Ειρήνη, αγάπη, υγεία σε όλους :-)