All good things come to an end

Story of my life... I had a wonderful last week. There wasn't a day I wouldn't enjoy even though I had to work and study...

Monday was pretty normal, nothing special. Well, I managed to write a response paper, so that felt good. Although not a good one. On Tuesday I started treating myself. After a choir rehearsal two of my good friends persuaded me to have a glass of wine with them. So we went to a winery. And yeah, we had more than one glass. I really enjoyed our time together. Although I wasn't that happy the next morning when getting up at six, but still, it was worth it.

On Wednesday we went to a long awaited concert of the band Bran. What a concert it was! They are great every time, but this time they were superb. They took it to a whole new level when during one of my favorite songs, Ilhala, Petr took out his trombone. It was amazing! Here is the song, although without the trombone:

On Thursday I went out with a friend of mine whom I hadn't seen for ages, so we had a lot to catch up. It was a very nice calm evening. Then on Friday I went to an observatory and planetarium to watch a movie called Dark World. All we learned that there is a lot of dark matter and dark energy in the universe (which wasn't anything new for us) but visually it was breathtaking. Then off we went to a cafe. So again I had a very pleasant evening.

The weekend was great as well, we had an intensive choir rehearsal and we managed to do a lot and that left us feeling great. I did quite a lot of work putting two plays together to make them readable for students (being an assistant to a professor has its perks) and I translated one long abstract. And I learned that watching medical dramas (although soapy most of the time) pays up. I realized that I know a lot of medical expressions that I wouldn't normally know (I am talking of English expression obviously). And on Sunday evening we went to the cinema to see the movie Kingsman. It was the second time I saw the movie and I would watch it for the third time. I love everything about it!

So a week full of working, studying and a lot of socializing was great!

But yesterday the reality caught up to me. When I started reading the theoretical essays on postcolonial and feminist rewritings of master narratives, it just outraged me. But recently everything I read seems far-fetched to me. Why do all those theorist try to prove that the other ones neglected to mention something so now we have to prove that there is something more to talk about and that they know something better? To me, it is simple, every woman has a right to make her choice and whatever the hell she wants with her life and not one person should make her feel inferior or nuts or whatever. But maybe it is just my academic crisis talking and other time I would find something worthwhile in it. Or not, because recently I feel too pragmatic to be a student of literature. Moreover the feeling that my ongoing academic writing crisis is still currently ongoing (at least this Cabin pressure reference makes me smile).

Finishing a blog post negatively... not a good thing. Well I guess I need to put on a brave face, find something that interests me and keep on going and hoping that the academic crisis will pass eventually. Maybe going to the gym and the new training plan will help with that because I guess this is the only thing that makes me feel good and who knows, maybe during push-ups Muse kicks with a brilliant idea for a master thesis!

Bretónsky deň v Brne

Milujem jarné a víkendové Brno. Atmosféra mesta je vtedy veľmi príjemná. Už celý týždeň bolo veľmi pekne, ale až dnes som si ho užila. Samozrejme, je to tým, že cez týždeň neviem, kde mi hlava stojí, keďže pendlujem medzi prácou a školou. Nehovoriac o tom, že aj doma sa musím pripravovať ako do školy, tak aj do práce. A aj keď by som celý víkend mohla stráviť nad knihami a stále by som bola pozadu, aj tak som sa rozhodla vyhradiť si sobotu len pre seba a pre aktívny odpočinok.

Včera som v podstate zistila, že som sa prihlásila na workshop bretónskych tancov, a aj keď mi to pripadalo ako skvelý nápad pri prihlasovaní, tak včera po celom dni v práci, som náladu na tancovanie nemala. Ešteže ráno je múdrejšie večera, takže keď som sa dnes ráno zobudila, tak nechcenie bolo preč.

Workshop bol úžasný. Až na to, že som zistila, že mám z predchádzajúceho dňa svalovku na nohách. Deň predtým som sa rozhodla, že miesto toho, aby som musela čakať 15 na ďalší vlak, tak dobehnem ten, čo mal ísť pre ním. v podstate som mala 5 minút na 1,2 kilometra. A občas mi v hlave skrsne nápad, ktorého uskutočnenie neskôr ľutujem. Asi 800 metrov trasy k stanici bolo dolu nehorázne prudkým kopcom. Má to svoje nevýhody aj výhody. Nemusela som vynaložiť toľko sily na beh, takže to nebolo také zlé, ale musela som vynaložiť veľa síl na brzdenie, aby som dolu kopcom nerobila kotrmelce... čo by na asfalte nebolo ani trochu príjemné. Takže preto tá svalovka.

Workhop bol skvelý, veľa som sa naučila aj nenaučila. Niektoré kroky boli nad moje sily. Nabudúce už to bude snáď lepšie. Počas workshopu sme mali prestávku na obed, ktorú sme strávili v parku, kde sme jedli to, čo sme si doniesli. Taký menší piknik. Konečne som bola vonku! Samozrejme nerátam chodenie mestom do práce a do školy. Po workshope sme sa vybrali na miesto festivalu, kde bolo báječne. Tí, čo ma poznajú, vedia, že z davov ľudí na kope mám tak trochu fóbiu, ale aj keď prvý pocit, keď som zbadala toľko ľudí, bol dosť nepríjemný, keď som ho prekonala, tak som si to užila. Káva, môj všeliek, mi dosť pomohla prekonať nepríjemné pocity. Kúpila som si skvelé šampóny (levanduľový a čajovníkový) a domáci levanduľovo-čučoriedkový sirup, ktorý v Brne môžete ochutnať v Skogu.

Festival všetkého bretónskeho sa samozrejme nemohol zaobísť bez bretónskych palaciniek. Mňam, mňam. Všetkým brňákom doporučujem navštíviť palacinkáreň La Phare, palacinky sú tam fakt vynikajúce! Slávnosti sa konali viacmenej na železnici, takže palacinky sme jedli s výhľadom na koľajnice a vlaky, a to mi pripomenulo knižku z detstva, ktorú som milovala - Deti železnice od Edith Nesbittovej. Celý deň mi spríjemňovala spoločnosť skvelých kamarátok, bez nich by to nebolo ono.

No a deň sme uzavreli aplikovaním novonadobudnutých tanečných schopností. Pre predstavu, ako asi bretónske tance vyzerajú, pridávam video:




Keď sme odchádzali, tak začínalo pršať. Napriek tomu som sa rozhodla ísť domov peši, čo znamená asi 40 minút chôdze. Milujem chôdzu v daždi, keď už je jar, je príjemne teplo, a prší. Na dnešný deň tak ľahko nezabudnem!

He For She

I know that today is International Women's Day and I should praise the strong women in my life but I want to acknowledge my dad's attitude towards women, especially my mum, since he has been an equal partner to her for 27 years (29 if dating counts).

As far as I remember I have never heard him humiliate my mum in any way, not in public, nor in private. Of course they sometimes argue, but they never humiliate each other and that's what I love about them. 

Also, he is a great example to me and my brothers when it comes to the chores. You would never hear him say to my brothers something like: "don't do this, that's women's work, let your mum and sister do it". You would never hear him say this is women's work or that is men's work. If I want to chop the wood, he lets me. But also his actions speak louder than words. He is not the kind of man who comes home from work, sits around and does nothing. He does everything that needs to be done... from washing the dishes to minor plumbing. Sometimes to the level we wish he would just sit down and read a book or something. I am really glad that me and my brothers get to see this every day (well I don't get see this every days since I don't live with them anymore, but still...)

I guess I just wanted to say that I am thankful to my dad for having to grow up in a home where both men and women are equal and that he makes women in our family feel appreciated. 

Btw, my mum is an amazing, strong, independent woman!

Creative Writing

These past days I have been trying to use my time more productively and creatively. I have always been afraid of being creative, because I feel like I am not good enough. Before I started studying English literature at University I had always participated in the competitions that had to do with math, chemistry and sports. I have always been a bookworm but have never written anything.

Plus I've been organizing a Creative Writing Contest at our department so it got me thinking that I should try to write something. So last Monday when we had the students' session of creative writing I wrote something...

In the library

My favorite place to be. Surrounded by all the stories I have read and all those I am going to read. It give me hope. Hope that I can conquer all. Because when I am there, I am myself. I don't have to be the responsible eldest, a perfect Christian, or a smart student... I am me. Me, with the dreams, desires, full of hope.
The smell. I love this smell. The smell of the old books mixed with the new ones. Old ones representing everything that has happened, the new one everything that is awaiting me. Endless possibilities and opportunities. I feel like I can do whatever I want. But not only that. I can achieve all  of my goals.
Although I am young, my story is worth reading, hearing about. My life matters. Just like the lives of all the authors present in their writings. Because any book I pick to read next, I know that there is going to be something worth learning about. Even how not to write. Because every voice counts and matters. So does mine.

How I haven't finished American Psycho

This time I am writing in English. I think it's more natural for me to write in English when writing about literature. Or maybe it's because I read this book in English, I don't know. It doesn't really matter. The point is, this is one of a few books I haven't finished reading.

American Psycho is one of the books assigned for my class of American Gothic literature and since I was really busy during semester I didn't have time to read it, so I decided I would do it during Christmas. So I started reading it 5 or 6 days ago. At first, it was a bit boring, maybe because I was there when the professor talked about it and she gave some things away. It took me 4 days to get to page 200. And then it started.

Yesterday I started reading after lunch and around page 200 murders began. It was that terrible, but really soon it escalated. But then I had an evening out with my best friend, so I didn't get to the worst things. After I got back I decided to finish the book, but I regretted it very soon. Who in their right mind enjoys reading this? I don't want to sound harsh because I know someone who likes the book and that person is one if the nicest I've ever met, but I don't get it. It wasn't horrifying, because I read about too many murders, and I think I am not that easily scared or surprised, it was disgusting. I really find nothing enjoyable about mutilating women while they are still alive and slowly and painfully murdering them. I really don't. 

Ok I get that this book is a criticism of the 80s society and also there are many witty and sarcastic passages, but I think there is a better way to criticize society than through the life and mind of a psychopath who mutilates and kills people. Take Jane Austen. When you look past the romance, her criticism is full of wit and sarcasm. Or Thomas Hardy. Tess of the d'Urbervilles or Jude the Obscure by no means have happy ending, so you can't complain that it is too romantic. He is less subtle about his criticism, but his criticism is harsh. Or there is Dickens; I could go on and on naming all the authors who criticize society. And that's just 19th century literature. 

To sum up, I stopped reading the book around page 364, which is about 40 pages till the end, but I was too disgusted to finish. I think I will stick to the genres I love when feeling like reading something. Have a nice day.

Freyin piatok v sobotu

Už neuveriteľne dlho sa chystám na to, že začnem svoj blog. Založila som si ho strašne dávno, i názov som mu dala, ale nikdy sa mi nepodarilo ho začať. Dôvodov bolo mnoho: nemala som čas, potom som zrovna nemala náladu na písanie, ale hlavne som mala pocit, že nemám čo povedať. A možno ani nemám, ale konečne som si povedala, že svoju kreativitu aj niekde a niekedy musím rozvíjať. Keď už to IQ stúpať nebude, tak aspoň udržiavať ho musím. A prečo začínam dnes? Ďalší príspevok mojej drahej kamarátky Fay du Fée ma inšpiroval. Niežeby bola inšpiratívna len teraz, to ona je vždy, ale konečne trafila aj moju náladu ;)

Prečo ten názov Freya's Friday? Hm, jedného dňa som zistila, že piatok, t.j. Friday znamená Freyin deň, tak som si povedala, že budem pridávať príspevky v piatok, keďže je to práve môj (Freyin) deň. Lenže ako sa poznám, tak určite nebudem písať len v piatky, že to bude skôr sporadické a keď ma kopne Múza, tak som sa vyhovorila na to, že predsa Freya's Friday = Freya's Freya's day = každý deň je predsa Freyin. Neviem, či túto logiku chápete, ale to je predsa jedno.

Posledné dni som neuveriteľne zaneprázdnená a na nič nemám čas, ale to je dobre. Síce som na konci týždňa veľmi unavená, ale aspoň mám pocit dobre vykonanej práce. Neviem, o čom písať skôr, lebo je toho veľa nového a zaujímavého (aspoň pre mňa) zas písať o všetkom naraz nie je zrovna najlepší nápad. Začnem tým najnovším.

Včera skoro ráno som cestovala domov. Z Brna do Levíc. Je to cesta na tri hodiny trištvrte, tak som si druhú polovicu cesty čítala. Čítala som Avant - Garde Theatre od Christophera Innesa a zistila som, že by som chcela vidieť predstavenie Marlowho Dr. Fausta v podaní Grotowského. Prečo? Jednoducho povedané, obecenstvo sa podieľalo na predstavení, boli hosťami Fausta, a on im servíroval jedlá, ktoré boli montážou jeho života, a ktoré herec zahral pred nimi. Plus neskôr obecenstvo zistilo, že reprezentovali banalitu každodenného života. Veľmi ma to zaujalo, a byť súčasťou niečoho takého, by bolo skvelé. Plus ak ste zoznámení s týmto dielom Christophera Marlowa, tak vám je jasné, že v tom predstavení muselo byť toho zaujímavého fakt veľa. Jediné, čo mi trochu vadilo bolo, že renesančnej dráme v avantgarde venovali len tri strany. Na druhú stranu, je to aj logické, keďže tá kniha poníma avantgardu veľmi zoširoka, a keď sa chcem o renesančných dielach v avantgarde dozvedieť viac, tak si musím zohnať niečo špecifickejšie a podrobnejšie.

Od včera mám pocit, akoby sa zastavil čas. Aj keď mám toho veľa a mala by som čo to prečítať na hodiny literatúry, tak doma na to čas nemám. A ani chuť. Mám pocit, že doma okrem varenia a pečenia nič iné nerobím. Ale nesťažujem sa, baví ma robiť radosť svojej rodine.

Teraz by som sa mala ísť venovať prekladu, aby som to mala čo najskôr z krku, pretože potom príde divadlo, deadline na príspevky do časopisu a kopec iných vecí. Nemôžem si predsa nechať všetko na poslednú chvíľu, nechcem sa zblázniť.