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It's been months so here is a brief relevant "current events" list:

I'm busy as usual, which is part of the reason why I haven't kept up with the entries. As a friend of mine keeps reminding himself, "I need to blog!" My prelims list is almost ready and I'm reading nonstop. I've also been watching the playoffs, which this year resound with Kusturica's "KATASTROFA" (Underground) -- the Yankees are gone, so I'm hoping the White Sox win, due to geographical association more than any affective identification with Chicago. In addition, I'm discovering the world of Podcasting, at this point just to help my students maintain more contact with Spanish. The possibilites here are amazing.

Elections

In response to the previous comment -- things are complicated. The Socialist Party won the elections without enough majority to form a government. The second party is the ex-rey's (center-right), in power up until now. The logical course would be for the two of them to form a coalition, except the big question is who the PM will be. Stanishev (Socialist) wants the position (and should legally get the mandate) but it sounds like the only way Simeon would enter into a coalition is if he gets to be the PM again, which ultimately means forgoing the people's vote. The three right-wing parties (each got about 10%) have refused to enter a coalition with the Socialists under any circumstances, and the ultra-nationalist Ataka has been isolated by everyone. Big question #2 is who the party that gets the ethnically Tirkish vote in BG will side with. The Socialists are talking as I write and have already invited Simeon to discuss the possibilities. What I wonder is how long this will take and what the implications will be.

From Bulgaria

I abandoned this site for a while, around the end of the semester, my trip to Puerto Rico and the trip back to Bulgaria. I had a great time in PR -- useful, because I saw interesting films in the archives, and quite enjoyable, because I managed to have some fun at the beach, in the Old San Juan and at a friend's wedding.

Bulgaria has been tough to get adjusted to. First of all, I am still getting over the 7-hour time difference and a brutal jet lag that keeps waking me up at 5 am. I should be doing more work than I have been able to, but the plan is to get myself together soon. On the positive side, I am trying to learn Portuguese on my own, and really enjoying it! I also started taking salsa lessons -- strangely enough, salsa is quite popular here and there are at least 10 clubs in Sofia only!

Coffee time. Stay tuned.

Quotes on Language

I'm finishing up my teaching portfolio and while looking for a cool quote on language for my statement, I ran into a number of websites. Here's a selection from my favorite quotes:

* I personally believe we developed language because of our deep inner need to complain. ~Jane Wagner

* Slang is a language that rolls up its sleeves, spits on its hands and goes to work. ~Carl Sandburg, New York Times, 13 February 1959

* At no time is freedom of speech more precious than when a man hits his thumb with a hammer. ~Marshall Lumsden

*I kept an eye out for foreigners, the Europeans shopping on my SoHo street and the cleaning women who'd answer "Poland" or "El Salvador" when asked a yes-or-no question. I felt that it was my responsibility to protect these people, to give them directions they didn't want and generally scare them with my kindness.~David Sedaris, Me Talk Pretty One Day

*It's a common mistake for vacationing Americans to assume that everyone around them is French and therefore speaks no English whatsoever. [...] An experienced traveler could have told by looking at my shoes that I wasn't French. And even if I were French, it's not as if English is some mysterious tribal dialect spoken only by anthropologists and a small population of cannibals.~David Sedaris, Me Talk Pretty One Day

And this last one, which might just explain why I've been doing this for the past hour:

*I love deadlines. I love the whooshing sound they make as they go by.~Douglas Adams

Posting Comments

People have asked me why it doesn't work. Try posting as "anonymous" by chosing it from the options that you are given when you try to post. Of course, I'd love to know who you are, so give me some clue :-)

Almost There.

Last day of classes -- just another week of writing and grading left. My students took their listening exam today, and that was the end of it, at least for this semester.

It's been weeks since I last saw a good film and I am have been missing it a lot. It won't happen before I'm done with papers -- besides, I don't think I can get any company to watch movies with me before the end of April -- but regardless, I'm making a mental list. Here's part of it, and suggestions for other films are more than welcome:

Three Days of the Condor
Hitchcock (whatever I haven't seen yet)
Meet the Fockers (come on now...)
Traffic

!*!*!*!*!*!*!*!

Sssssooooooo... Today I found out that revolutions work in strange ways and in all places. Here's a post-Happy Hour *cheers* to the "partners in crime"!!!

Spring has been on its way to the Wolverine State for a while but doesn't seem in much hurry to get here. So sunny and chilly and windy that it gets confusing. Three more weeks.

While looking for inspiration to start paper #2, I was browsing through A. O. Scott's reviews for the New York Times. It turned into an exploration of a very shady line between inspiration a intimidation. I want to write like him. AND I want his job.

I've received a request for pictures... More later.

Tech Throes

My computer took almost an hour to shut down and restart, ironically after I had a tragicomic conversation with a friend about how sick the poor machine is -- it is beyond salvation, no antivirus program can deal with it and it needs to be euthanized -- as soon as I can get a Mac. Then my camera refused to download the pictures I took of girls in pink+purple (not what you think, trust me) at the department today. Arghhh!

On a more cheerful note, only three days left till the end of classes (I'm counting :-). I already had my last Teaching Methods class today. I can't wait to get out of AA and head out to adventure -- hang out for a week of movies and red wine, then research in PR, then BG for about two months....

Morning.....

I was working on this until 3am and I could hardly open my eyes this morning. The routine helps (somewhat) -- coffee, email and the NY Times. Almost finished with paper #1 but still far from done for the semester -- I can't believe there are only four days of classes left! Must get going.

Cute

my favorite flower, and a postcard i got a while ago :-))

Hey!

This is the consequence of (1) several recent and unsuccessful attempts at keeping a paper journal; (2) someone-I-know's fantastic idea about a subject-specific blog on film; and (3) the after-mindnight unwind time that I have not reserved for writing final papers (two more weeks). I'll take it from here. Pics and updates coming soon.