if it's a seven-hour flight or a 45-minute drive

It seems I'm finally going to Brussels again! I'm going back! YES!!! I bought a ticket to Germany yesterday, so I'm going to spend a weekend in Trier... then I'd love to see Muse in Cologne and then... Brussels!!! Bruxelles!!! Irina!!! ISTI! av. Louise! Tram n. 94 (nonant-quatre, not quatre-vingt quatorze), les gauffres! le chocolat!!! Victor Horta! Mr. Louis? Monsieur Louis, est-ce que vous travaillez encore a l'ISTI? Tant de choses a voir!!!!!

Off we go

We have been rewarded for the effort - today at 3 p.m. I opened my passport and saw the thing I've been longing for for this whole year... Tomorrow at 9 a.m. we are leaving for Finland and then at 23.05 (local time) flying from Tampere to London.

We're now thinking about a name for our common blog. I'll post the link here.

Какая-то печально-радостная эйфория... Вот оно, приключение!!! Надо просто пережить чемоданное настроение. Леон, мое лимонное дерево, смотрит на меня с подоконника. Пусть не боится, мама поливает лучше и регулярнее, чем я. Со мной поедет мишка и Monsieur Louis le Renard.

Will write soon,

Sasha

another attempt

I've applied online for the UK visa and on Thursday I'll have to rush to the visa centre right after I am given my diploma.

Do I hope? I do. I still hope that they will take into account all the papers that we've attached, the touching cover letter that I'm going to write and be merciful...

I'm on the brink of a very big disappointment. I've been studying the English language for 15 years now, I've been dreaming about Britain since I was 15 and now I can't make my dreams come true because of some bastards in the consulate. If they don't grant us a visa again, Britain will get the Disappointment of the Year award.

dreaming

this would be perfect http://maps.google.com/maps?f=d&source=s_d&saddr=Dover,+UK&daddr=Gloucester&hl=ru&geocode=&mra=ls&sll=51.866742,-2.24867&sspn=0.217935,0.616608&ie=UTF8&z=8

beware of offices

Office life and office people (as my, well, ok, meagre experience shows) eat out your brain. those who I'm working with at the moment are mostly 1) ambitious, 2) not too amicable, 3) too self-confident. which is not exactly the type of people I like... Unfortunately, this generally refers to the younger employees... And I really can't imagine (due to my egocentrism or I don't know what) how anyone at the age of 30 could possibly like this rather dull office job so much that they could work over time and not rush out of the office towards freedom, summer, fresh air and so on and so on, as soon as the working days is over.

plunged into accounting

I'm here earlier than I planned. I was offered a job for two weeks, I refused at first, but then.. tempted by the money I was promised and by the chance itself to get some experience in interpreting right at the beginning of my "career", I agreed, talked to my grandma, got her consent and exchanged the ticket. So, today was my first day at this company. Next time I will not focus on particular terms but will ask for a general explanation of what is going on. Because the first, say, three hours today was, as D. says, "pain and humiliation". My interpreting skills and knowledge seemed like a very subtle advantage. Everyone (but me, of course) had an idea of what was being discussed, while I was groping for the right words. I felt like a blind person who's been asked to lead a group of more or less healthy people. They didn't mock at me or something... but there were these condescending smiles and looks on their faces when I said something in a hesitating voice - like, "oh, look at her, poor girl, she doesn't know a thing in our field". Anyway, after a few hours of trying and listening, I finally got some image and timorrow, I'll show them who is who.

news from the front line

Today we applied for a Finnish visa. We haven't given up our plans and dreams and are going to fight for them. Switched to Plan B.

refusal

We have been refused an entry clearance in the UK for a bloody stupid reason - an account reference is not enough. The bastards need a HISTORY of our bank accounts. I hate the consulate.

dancing queen

I've been to a concert where my 9-year-old student took part, she danced flamenco. there were lots of younger children, and loads of dances with them. It was funny and cute at first, but I got a bit bored with their clumsy movements and silly music) not a parent of any of them, maybe, that's why) there was one very little girl who danced belly dance and that was a lot of fun. The famous song "Habibi" and a girl who hasn't even got a proper belly))

and it was a bit unfair for other children, because my student had only one dance... and she was beautiful!!! Wearing this Spanish dress and moving her hands she looked very serious, like a real woman)

digest

I haven't written much here lately... I can't say that nothing has happened, though. Actually, quite a lot. I'm finally through with the studies and with the thesis and with the exams. It will be completely over next Friday... that's the formal part.

I'm missing you, Grusha! (the thing I've been eager to say) I'm so glad you came here this year and I had a chance to get to know you better) I knew that you are fantastic and I was right))

We have finally applied for the UK visa. Well, I don't know if we have any chances... At least they accepted the applications and all the documents. The only thing we can do now is to keep our fingers crossed and hope for the best.

Last Wednesday I went to the dacha and apart from helping my mum with the garden and falling from the bike I had an opportunity to watch one of our cats playing with a rat. We were thinking about letting it go, but decided that rats are rats. They eat the hens' eggs, so why should we meddle with the nature's laws? I managed to take some photos, but I'm feeling kind of guilty now... I definitely wasn't born to be a wildlife photographer.

my trip to Chile

the sky as seen from my balcony

memories from the oceanarium

These are some photos I took in the oceanarium. I especially liked the transparent fish and am very glad that they are not blurry.

Lily, Dear! In Lieu of a Letter

I found the translation of my favourite poem by Mayakovsky. And my favourite poem in general, I guess. I didn't think it was possible to translate it.

Lily, Dear! In Lieu of a Letter

The room's a chapter of Kruchonikh's Inferno.
Air
gnawed out by tobacco smoke.
Remember – 
at the window,
for the first time,
burning,
with tender frenzy your arms I'd stroke?
Now you're sitting there,
heart in armour;
a day,
and perhaps,
I'll be driven out.
To the bleary hall:
let's dress: be calmer,
crazy heart, don't hammer so loud!
I'll rush out, raving,
hurl my body into the street,
slashed by despair from foot to brow.
Don't,
don't do it,
darling,
sweet!
Better say good-bye right now.
Anyway,
my love's a crippling weight
to hang on you
wherever you flee.
Let me sob it out
in a last complaint,
the bitterness of my misery.
A bull tired out by a day of sweat
can plunge into water,
get cooled and rested.
For me
there's no sea but your love,
and yet
from that even tears can't wrest me a respite.
If a weary elephant wants some calm,
lordly, he'll lounge on the sun-baked sand.
I've
only your love
for sun and balm,
yet I can't even guess who'll be fondling your hand.
If a poet were so tormented
he might
batter his love for cash and fame.
For me
the world holds on other delight
than the ring and glitter of your dear name.
No rope will be noosed,
no river leapt in,
nor will bullet or poison take my life.
No power over me,
your glance excepting,
has the blade of any knife.
Tomorrow you'll forget
it was I who crowned you,
I
who seared out a flowering soul.
The pages of my books will be vortexed
around you
by a vain existence's carnival whirl.
Could my words,
dry leaves that they are but,
detain you
with throbbing heart?
Ah,
let the last of my tenderness carpet
your footfall as you depart!

1916
Translated by Dorian Rottenberg

The pause hasn't lasted long. My bla-bla-bla blogue is finally turning into something closer to a traveller's blogue. Fingers crossed.

We have received an informal confirmation from Cathedral Camps and asked them to send a more official one. Going to apply for a visa next week.

Last week I saw the latest Wallace and Gromit cartoon. A short one. As good as usual, but Gromit has become somewhat predictable... Wallace keeps falling in love with sinister and rather ugly women.

I'll go for a pause.

So, in the last 50 hours:

- I have been speaking English for about 30 hours

- I have been laughing for about 10 hours altogether

- I have received the excellent mark for my simultaneous interpreting exam

I love English. and I'm a sinister perverted Russian witch))))

week-end

This was what I would call a student week-end. Instead of preparing for the finals we went to the Hermitage with a hilarious boy from the Lake district who says "boot" instead of "but". Later on Max and I went to a book fair. I didn't buy any books actually, but I did buy a plate (!) from Samarkand, two postcards (one of them is in fact a picture for "Cabot-Caboche" by Danniel Pennac) and a CD with cossack music. Haven't listened to it yet, though.

Today I went to the dacha to see my parents (mostly my dad, because my mom comes to see me quite often), it is sunny an warm at last and we had a great meal outside. Then together with my mom we hurried back to town. she went to a concert and I went to the cinema with a girl from the Czech Republic. She came with her friend (who had the same name if I'm not mistaken) and I was stupid enough to tell them that they could speak Czech because "I understand some of it". So they did and I haven't got the slightest idea of what they were talking about. On the other hand it was funny to listen to them, getting only occasional words. We saw a Spanish film called "Azuloscurocasinegro" which was great, by the way. My linguistical disaster didn't last long after the film because the other girl went home and we could get back to Russian. The girl said she loves Russian literature and her favourite writer is... Daniil Kharms!!!! It was quite a surprise!!! I recommended Dovlatov and 'glazirovannye syrki" to her.

digest

1) I've taken my first and the most diffucult exam - simultaneous interpreting. That was rather difficult and brain-killing, but I hope it wasn't too bad for a satisfactory mark. Anyway, I did better than usual.
2) Thanks to Lena (you're a treasure) I've found this couchsurfing thing and we won't have to sleep at trainstations, it seems. Tomorrow, V. and I are showing the Hermitage to a boy from the LAke District. He's been to Mongolia!
3) We have finally transferred the money to Cathedral Camps and have received the confirmation of the payment. Tomorrow I'm hoping to fax our applications.
4) My research doesn't seem to be that useless and hopeless, I had a fruitful talk with my tuitor.
5) It seems that the last week of University studies in my life is over... I haven't fully realized that, but I'm going to be sad about that. I'm pretty sure.

Yesterday was grey and rainy. I was walking along Nevsky, my hair started curling because of the rain and I thought that with all my rotten nature I love this marshy city.

I read my translation at the Translations Evening and it was very warmly welcomed. That inspired me and now I'm thinking of continuing, or rather starting from the beginning, because the exract I read is right in the middle of the novel. People laughed at all jokes they were supposed to laugh at)

My sister posted some family photos on the Internet, I was looking at them and suddenly felt bitterly sad...

I have finally received the confirmation e-mail for my Reading ticket!!! Hurray!
And today I'm going to the oceanarium with my school teacher's niece called Elly, or Elza.

the contents of my drawer

I was digging in my drawer and came across dozens of old letters, stickers, postcards, papers etc... It brought back so many memories... Sometimes it was just like seeing a particular image and feeling that very feeling I felt at one particular moment in the past...

April Fool's Day

Although nobody made fun of me, I had a good laugh right at the beginning of the day. Here's what happened.

keep on riding

oh, and some photos from the horse-riding!

translation

I'm now working on my translation of an extract from "Ni d'Eve ni d'Adam" by Amélie Nothomb. I've told Max that I will read it at the "Translation Evening" at his faculty. I've always wanted to take part in this event, but given that this is the faculty of Oriental Studies and I don't speak any languages of the kind and much less do I translate from any, it was rather difficult. But this year it occurred to me that I could translate something ABOUT the East from English or French. And a novel by a Belgian (!!!) writer about Japan is exactly what I needed.
It turned out to be rather difficult, though in French it reads extremely easily. In Russian these short sentences don't sound the same way... instead, they sound primitive... It's getting easier though as I'm working through to the end of the episode, so, hopefully, I'll be able to find the adequate way of translating.
And I'm thinking about the title. This phrase in French is used in combination with the verb "connaitre" (to know), and altogether it means "not to know somebody at all", "ni d'Eve ni d'Adam" standing for "at all". But "At all" doesn't look like a title, does it? It's no better in Russian. The official translation in English is "Tokyo Fiancee" which sounds boring to me... Yes, it's about the plot, but it loses the flavour... Food for thought, huh?
And I'm going to post the extract here, though it's huge and in Russian.

Reading?

I finally managed to get through to the website and ordered a ticket. The bank says the money has been charged, but I haven't received the confirmation e-mail so far, which is a bit worrying. I've decided not to care and start bombarding the site with question if I don't get the letter in the morning. Anyway, the lineup is fantastic! I'm especially excited about Arctic Monkeys, Radiohead and Vampire Weekend!
I've been limping all day because everything is aching after yesterday's horse-riding. I liked it a lot though, and what's more, it made me realize that I have some muscles!

-----

I'm physically and mentally exhausted. The tickets are sold out and I didn't manage to get through... (((

fond of reading

Just a few hours left till the rest of the tickets for the 2009 Reading Festival are on sale. I can't wait.
Tomorrow I'm going out of town to ride a horse! And I'm doing excercises which my student showed me. She's a gymnast and says that I could do the splits (or whatever it's called) in a week or two. We teach each other)

the gap

I was walking home from the children I had lessons with when I saw this old lady selling newspapers. It was bloody freezing, but she had been standing outside for at least two and a half hours because I had seen her on my way to the lessons. It turned out that the papers were almost two years old and she was asking only four roubles for each. Four roubles! It's... well, it's nothing. But before I could say a word she dropped the price to three roubles. I took out all the change I had in the purse and gave her everything. It wasn't much actually, about 15 roubles, but she seemed to be on cloud nine. I feel like crying.

tears

Without any particular reason I have suddenly remembered the three men I have seen crying. Well, maybe not crying, but dropping some tears. The first one was really crying, though, just like a baby... His mother told him that she was allergic and they wouldn't be able to keep the cat. And he burst into tears. I was eight or nine, I think... and yet I clearly remember it. I was in love with the boy and my heart leapt.
The next one was older than me but looked like a teenager. We were interviewing him for the documentary. He was speaking about his youth, his drug addiction and HIV and then about his fears, and the girl who left him when she had found out about the infection. Nobody was looking at him except for L., the director, so that he would look her in the eyes. But I was the only one who understood what he was saying because he was speaking Russian. His voice was trembling. And then there was a pause. I didn't look up at first but he wouldn't start speaking again, so I glanced at him and saw tears running down his cheeks... We all looked away not to embarrass him... But this was one of the most intense moments... Strangely enough, I wanted to kiss him...
The third one... I can't speak about the third one... There were only a couple of tears, but I got so frightened as if the skies were falling on us. I loved him even more after that.
I've been told about other men crying, but thank god, I haven't seen it. My heart would not be enough.

my dream

When I suddenly realised whom I had seen in my dream this night I was so shocked that I stood in the middle of the kitchen with my mouth open. Dear brain, please, don't do that again. Though it was extremely pleasant, we both know that this person does not exist and has hardly ever existed. Let's not illude ourselves...

Although we (V. and me) both overslept, we did have a meeting/interview with our potential employer. And we both liked him a lot. And he told us something that filled my mind with ambitions...

After spending almost three hours at the library (stealing quotations for my paper) I rushed to the post office. Then I rushed home and then back to the office and only then back home. Testa vota!

And I'm still thinking about my dream. Why? Why? Why?

books we read

As I was sitting in the tram reading a book on Gamblers Anonymous (which I need for my translation), I noticed that the old lady in front of me was reading a book on chess tactics. It made me smile.

I dare you!

For the first time in my life I've had 4 lessons with different students in a row. The age of my students ranges from nine to sixty something.
And during all this time I had an unbearable desire to scratch my throat. It seems I'm getting a cold. On the bright side the lessons were getting better and better, and my eldest student proved to be the best one))

three reasons to love life

"The sun is shining, the birds are singing, the water is wet. Life is beautiful."

I especially like the third one.

Californication

I had six episodes left and the only way to resist the desire to watch them all was to download them one by one and prolong the pleasure. But this time I didn't have enough will power, downloaded all of them, and watched them in a row until the last minute as soon as I came home. It is a bit less natural and fresh as the first season, but I liked it anyway.
It made me think about father-daughter relationship and relationship in families in general.
I've heard and read a lot about something special between fathers and daughters... I don't know... I have never felt it... I've always understood my mom better, because... well... because she's my mother. and I've always taken her side. 99%.
And I will never judge anyone because someone else blames him/her. Nothing happens without a reason. And no one is a saint.
And there's another phrase from the series: "No matter what you did, don't give up. Because if she loves, she'll forgive you."
True enough. but what if you've already killed love?

dreaming

I wish I could clone myself and live several lives. Clone number one would be actually number one and control all the others except for number five. She would enjoy books, movies, dates etc. Number two would study hard, attend lectures and do the homework. Number three would work and earn money. So, the first three clones would actually be like three parts of me.
Number four would be different. She would be more beautiful and vindictive. She would be une femme fatale who would conquer those hearts I haven't conquered and tell me (that is number one) how it feels.
And, finally, number five, the one who would not be controlled, would be purely experimental. She would be just like me, but she would fall in love with a different person back at school, would choose a different profession (say, in genetics), would consequently have different friends etc. And then we would see if we end up the same (which I doubt).

downwards

I can't stand falling asleep at the theatre, especially when the play is great and I want to see it, but I just can't keep my eyes open...
I can't stand losing friends and not knowing the reasons...
I can't stand not knowing the reasons in general...
But most of all I hate the feeling that what was to happen has happened and nothing can be done about it.

caviar

don't leave so soon, have some tea with us

My little pupil is charming! She is absent-minded and I have to repeat everything five times, but she likes our lessons and hugs me when I'm leaving and tells me to come back soon.

ideas

I've had a few ideas... One of them is a birthday present. I am going to take a photograph which will make V.'s mouth water and be a little something from myself. I can clearly see two images but I don't know which one will look better in reality... I'll post both if I manage to set the light.

Another thing I've been thinking about is drawing/painting a few scenes from "Vodka Lemon" (an Armenian film we watched last week). I was struck by the ice-capped mountains, the blue sky , the white-haired man, a bed dragged by a truck and an elder couple playing the piano right in the middle of the road. The problem is - I can't draw. or paint.

Happiness

Tomorrow will be two weeks that I've been feeling sooo good! This happiness is fragile, I'm afraid of somebody ruining it, but so far nobody and nothing has been able to do that. Which is promising.
"When I get to the bottom I get back to the top..."
Today I got my "salary" for the bloody four days I worked for the bloody translation agency. The sum turned out to be almost twice smaller than the employer had promised it would be... I guess there's been some cheating. Anyway, that only proves that I've made the right decision and left them before they have ruined my nerves.
After that I spent an hour in the library and I daresay that I start getting involved and... maybe... I'll end up enjoying my research)) hopefully.
And finally, after two classes I had another lecture on English aestheticism, namely on Oscar Wilde. The writer himself begins to bore me, but I'm ready to attend the lectures for the sake of Ast's voice, stuttering, charisma and... eroticism. Mmmmm... Idols come, idols go... and vice versa.
Oh, I almost forgot! Yesterday I stumbled upon this marvellous site http://savethewords.org/ . I adopted three words, but I can't even remember their meanings and I'm not sure whether they really exist and this is not some kind of a joke) But I definitely like the word "magistricide" (it speaks for itself). And I remembered (looked it up again, to tell the truth) another one - pamphagous - which is similar to omnivorous, if I'm not mistaken.

my pride

There is a person, who I'm infinitely proud of. She is so modest that at first she didn't even want to tell me about what she had done. So that nobody could think that this was a way of showing off or playing generosity. But she did tell me, and it made me cry and I am happy. This is so much like Amelie and like HER.

to begin with

I've been thinking about starting a new blog for quite a long time... and it seems that the day has come. It's not that I'm cheating on my good old liveinternet diary (because I do call it diary), but I want this one to be different, to be non-Russian to begin with. I don't know the exact reason why I'm doing it... I guess I'm partly inspired by other people whose blogs I follow (;-)), and partly... by Hank Moody... yes, yes, I've been watching Californication for a couple of days and it seems that I'm getting addicted. There are only two things that I don't like about it - I feel a strong desire to use foul language (especially thinking about my so-called research paper, which is nothing but a piece of s**t) and now my inner voice vaguely resembles American accent... Anyway, another reason is that I've been thinking about what Larry said... that being translators we are not obliged to write, of course, but, speaking about translating into English, we could use a simpler and at the same time more elegant language...So, this is a chance to pratiquer la langue as well.
Good luck to me! Ecco mi qua!
P.S. I almost forgot - whoever may read this blog, please, don't be too critical! English is not my mother tongue after all)
P.P.S. but I don't mind being corrected;-)