Wednesday, June 24

Child and animal abuse

I hit one Albanian kid today and rather hard. I guess he was shocked and so was I. I don't believe I can change anything, I cannot save any dogs in this country and what will change if I save one... but I just can't - CAN'T - watch how a gang of kids is being so cruel to a poor little thing. Hitting it with a stick, pulling it by the rope it has around the neck, holding it by the skin on the neck and the rope and turning it around in the air...is simply NOT FUN. And the poor little thing looked so hopeless and apathetic, like nothing in the life can surprise it, though it was still a puppy. More philosophical intelligence in its eyes than in the eyes of any of those boys. I swear.

Yes, that's the thing I hate the most in this nation. And while coming home and still under the impression, I was thinking that the attitude to animals (and maybe the nature in a wider sense) is the real indicator of the development and civilization. This nation has a faar faaaar faaaaaaar way to go.

Yes, and I am in favor of hitting kids if all other methods of conveying the message have been exhausted. At the age of 10-13 they are rational beings and should take responsibility of their actions. Of course, their responsibility is often inseparable of their parents, but if the parents are not able or willing to teach them the norms and values, the teachers and the rest of society has the full right.

When I was hitting this "bravest" one, for the others it was an entertainment. Oh, they laughed their heads off. Yeah, maybe he will not have a great time after this, but honestly I don't give a shit. The dog was also not having a great time. And in these moments I am in the animals' side.

Let's vote for a UN convention on animal rights.

Thursday, June 11

Nasing spešal

I was told I must see Mimino because otherwise, if I go to Georgia, I will
not understand half of the jokes.

So, now if you come to Latvia you must watch this video - the famous
speech of our ex-minister of Finance for Bloomberg (in case if you have somehow managed to miss it):

It is very much quoted nowadays, especially the famous phrase that the
crisis in Latvia is "nothing special" (nasing spešal).

So now there is "nasing spešal spa edišn" - some owner of spa center
talking about spa possibilities in Riga in a level of
English that reminds of the first edition of "nasing spešal" by Mr Slakteris

So here goes the 2nd spa edišn on nasing spešal

Sunday, June 7

check before use + HOME!

I just wasted around 30 eur by buying a health insurance for the summer period because I did not check properly the date on my university health insurance card. I thought it is only from September, but it is from September LAST YEAR... well, mistakes cost. at least it was not so much this time (though each cent matters for me at the moment). Still it is good to triple- or quadruple-check.

For the rest - I am back home in Latvia. We (me and S.) went back by ferry and it was a whole project with all the bags we had. And S.'s bicycle. We were sitting in the front of the ferry, sipping our coffees (or S.'s coffee and my orange juice) and there was this strange cover of Queen's bicycle song, it was fitting the situation so perfectly that you start to feel like acting in a comedy film :-)

Oh, and I already miss my husband, Friskis och Svettis, great Turkish kebabs and falafels, Bologna park - the most beautiful park in the Northern Europe and other goodies of Sweden...

Monday, June 1

Scandinavian summer and latest updates

Wow, today was awesome... I was looking around for the beach as Uppsala did feel like a beach city somewhere in DA SOUTH: great sun, a fresh breeze, lots of sun-tanned people in shorts and flip-flops. It feels that I have burnt my shoulders a bit. But it feels great!!!
The window is still open in my room, but it's OK!
Well, besides the fact that summer has come to the middle of Sweden, many other things have happened. Georgia and Gävle have appeared on my radar because of one (TOO MUCH) great guy and now I am leaving him and going back to the Balkans for 6 months. A career woman... what to say :)
And now I need to go to sleep because tomorrow early I go to a conference on Afghan women in Stockholm and in the evening running some 5 km women's race... sounds like a very Swedish kvinnodag tomorrow!