Local Elections & Some Issues

Local government election time is here again. Honestly, I haven’t been paying much attention to the candidates. The only one I know is the current Mayor of Warsaw whom I have mixed feelings about.

The current candidates from what I have overheard on the news are all making promises which they probably won’t be able to keep. It’s easy to say ‘we’re going to build new pre-schools’ or ‘vote for us and we’ll fix the crowded public transport problem’ – they’ll say anything to get people to vote for them but when push comes to shove they won’t be putting their money where their mouths are.

I’ve been living in Warsaw for the past three and a half years and there are a number of evident problems facing the city;

*litter – there’s aren’t enough rubbish bins on platforms or on the streets. Recycling bins have been placed in the city center but when the garbage collectors come they place the segregated rubbish into one pile anyway – the same thing happens to the rubbish segregated in many Polish homes. Fining people for littering could be a good option to clean up the city (and keep it clean) and raise some money to fix the budget deficit. The problem is even worse for chucking rubbish in the forest; people get fined for taking rubbish from home and putting it in a public bin but no one seems to notice when they pollute the beautiful forests.

*homelessness – it breaks my heart when I see people who should be enjoying their retirement begging on the streets, trying to make ends meet by handing out brochures or selling flowers to anyone who passes. It is sickening to see drunken men (and occasionally women) sprawled at a bus stop next to Centralna Station. Sure, the Straz Miejska gets them to move but they simply go to another bus stop or public place and the cycle repeats.

*road condition – shocking, shocking and once again shocking. A road gets fixed this week and will need repairs by next year. There are holes everywhere. I’m surprised that people haven’t tried to sue their local councils for the costs of repair due to the disgusting road conditions in some areas. Not surprising, now that election time has started road works are under way in many suburbs.

*customer service – okay it’s improving but at snail’s pace. Local council and many government offices lack in customer service skills. This may seem like a small issue in comparison to the others but when you’re trying to get something done you want to communicate with humans who are kind rather than mean spirited. A smile won’t kill them; it might even improve their day. Oh and I’m so sorry that my urgent need for documentation disturbed the gossip session you were having with your colleague.

*truancy – being a TEFL teacher I have very flexible working hours; it’s not uncommon for me to visit a café in one of the shopping centers in between lessons. I’m amazed at the amount of middle and high school students that are very likely ditching school. Uniforms would help solve this problem especially if police and straz miejska had some control and could transport these pupils back to their schools (and give them some sort of punishment – maybe a bit of community service like helping out at a homeless shelter would do the trick)

Some minor and some major issues, and that’s just a start. I know that it’s impossible to solve all the problems in society. A utopia is impossible where humans are involved, there’s always going to be someone against the system.

So, we’ll see what affects these local elections will bring. I’d like to steer towards optimism and hope that they will leave what works alone, and change what doesn’t so that it does. Simple. Isn’t it?

Attention to Detail

Attention to detail doesn’t seem to be my forte lately. I’ve been making silly mistakes which make me feel & look stupid.

I made a mistake and now I want to curl up in a dark hole somewhere and not come out. It was a serious mistake which I hope can be amended quickly; it made me look stupid and unprofessional. These things happen but they shouldn’t - not for someone who is working towards becoming a freelance writer.

There are plenty of excuses I could use for making some of these mistakes – stress, lack of time, stress again – but none of them are good enough. As a writer it is my job to provide work that is without errors, sure spelling mistakes get overlooked, a comma gets put in the wrong place – that’s forgivable – writing someone’s name inaccurately isn’t. The mistake happened because I wasn’t thorough enough before submitting the assignment. Now I’m kicking myself for being so careless.

The advice I have for myself or anyone who’s reading is not only read what you have written to check for errors but actually go through every part of your writing to ensure that it is error free. Fact check once, and fact check again. One small mistake can be costly and as a writer I or anyone else cannot afford that.

Being slack with my writing

Slack. That’s all I can say about myself and writing on this blog. It just hasn’t been happening. I can’t get motivated or inspired to write anything here. What is wrong? I don’t have any focus. I’m not entirely sure what I want the blog to do if anything at all. It was supposed to be about life in Poland, well, do you really care what goes on here? Do I?

That’s the problem. My motivation to get this blog going has reduced to a few tidbits of nothing. My writing feels fake, dull, and pretentious. I am jeopardizing my own progress by making excuses for not writing what I should be writing.

Recently, there have been days where I feel like stopping completely. That’s right, taking everything I have ever written and throwing it into the fireplace and either giving it up for another activity or starting all over again.

Maybe I’m rushing. I have a tendency to do that with many things in my life. I want results quickly. I want everything to happen right now. At the beginning of the year I set my goals a little bit too high. Okay, I admit. Extremely high. I don’t have the time to achieve them all unless I cut back my sleeping time down to four hours and stop teaching English. That’s not going to happen so I’m going to have to set more realistic goals from now on or stop setting them and actually do something.

So for this week there’s only one goal: Take action by finishing some of the writing projects including queries, outlines, university assignments, novel in progress, that sort of thing. And throwing out anything without future potential to make room for new ideas and projects.

Rising PKP Charges

Nothing should surprise me anymore but once again I couldn’t believe me ears. On my way to work today and listening to the radio I heard another ridiculous idea. It seems that PKP want to start charging people to be able to use the station and its platforms, and pay to catch the train.

„Dworce mogą wyglądać tak jak lotniska. Być bezpieczne, czyste i ładne - przekonuje w swojej najnowszej kampanii informacyjnej spółka PKP i wyciąga rękę do naszej kieszeni. Z błogosławieństwem rządu, podkreśla "Metro"” http://biznes.onet.pl/oplata-dworcowa-juz-za-dwa-lata,18727,3601444,1,prasa-detal

Do the stations have to look like airports? Nope. Should they be safe, clean and pretty. Yes, but that should be a given not something I or any other passenger has to pay extra for.

Personally, I don’t like entering the stations for free so I doubt that I’ll be wanting to use them when I have to pay extra. Most are disgusting, poorly looked after, stink of piss and drunks, have limited public utilities which you have to pay for, and unpleasant staff who don’t understand the concept of customer service.

I’m curious as to where all the money they earn now goes. A normal ticket costs about 2.80zl for the SKM lines. PKP charge a lot more depending on the distance you travel. On top of that there is also the EU funding which Poland received which reaches the tens of billions. What’s happening to that money? Why does the government and all the other organization persist with taking money from the citizens but refuse to give anything in return?

„Według wyliczeń resortu infrastruktury nasi przewoźnicy płaciliby rocznie 134 mln zł opłat dworcowych. Wstępne symulacje wskazują, że koszt podróży jednego pasażera podniósłby się wtedy od 10 do 80 gr.” http://biznes.onet.pl/oplata-dworcowa-juz-za-dwa-lata,18727,3601444,1,prasa-detal

10-80gr extra doesn’t seem like a lot. But what guarantee do passengers have that the PKP are going to keep to their word and provide the region with ‘safe, clean and pretty’ stations everywhere. Whenever there are extra charges, the money seems to disappear into thin air in this country and no one knows exactly where it goes. I’d like to see the promised changes made before I fork out any extra cash otherwise I prefer to cycle.

Computer troubles

As a writer my Internet usage is very high. Unless I’m on holidays I’m constantly doing something on the Internet or on the computer in general. Writing. Researching. Reading. Surfing. When the computer starts playing up my blood pressure rises. The area I live in has a poor Internet connection even though it’s classified as Warsaw. Go figure. The capital city and I can’t get fast Internet just some slow crap. It just stops halfway through uploading something. Or cuts out completely for no apparent reason. Recently it’s begun to shut down all the Internet pages I’m using. To say it’s getting on my nerves is a understatement. Frequently, I change the rooms in which I work to get a better connection.

Last week my lap top started making funny noises. I’ve had it for almost two years and apparently the computer repair guy told me that after one year it has a right to start breaking down. Yikes. So does that mean that I have to have a few thousand ready every year or so to get a new lap top. That’s crazy. And the Internet connection? Do I have to move to the centre of town to be able to get decent Internet speed?

Other than that, I can’t imagine not working on my lap top but it definitely is time for a new one. Maybe I’ll treat myself to a Macbook Pro for Christmas if I behave and get my work done to satisfaction.

A brief update

I haven’t been motivated to write on this blog for a while now. I guess I’m uncertain of the direction I want it to take. At first I considered it to be a blog about life in Poland as well as my writing journey and that’s not a bad idea but I do need to make it a more regular activity. I’d like to promote Poland a little. It’s a beautiful country from an ecological perspective. No venomous snakes and spiders that you have to worry about when you go wandering in the forest. I’m going to try and make an effort to post at least once a week.

Recent updates are that the Polish government needs a lot of work. The fact that Poland is a part of the EU is saving it from an internal battlefield. I feel uncomfortable with what is going on between PO and PIS and their supporters. What happened with the cross outside the Presidential Palace in Krakowskie Przedmiescie was a joke. It got so much media coverage that the nation forgot about more important things like the floods that have jeopardized the livelihood of thousands of Poles. Komorowski won the election and Kaczynski has shown his true personality now that the race for President is over. No surprise since it’s virtually impossible to change your persona over night and do it genuinely. Whether things are going to improve is anyone’s guess. The government and all its Ministers need to start taking responsibility for their actions and actually do something instead of falling asleep, pointing fingers and earning money, well, for pretty much doing nothing. Palikot has been in the news recently. While many people don’t like him, he definitely gets my vote. If he toned down his blatant attitude just a little bit I think that he could really go a long way. A politician like him would take control and slowly but surely solve the many problems that surround Polish politics, society and economy.

On a personal note I have been very busy over the past two month. Writing articles and trying to finish my novel. Enjoying the summer with a bit of traveling. Training for a marathon. Cooking. Relaxing. Forgetting to write on the blog. It’s been a busy few months.

11 Random Monday Acts

1 - Ate half a packet of Tim Tam’s
2 - Cooked Bombay Masala for dinner – note to self: try that new restaurant on ul. Nowy Swiat 23, ‘Buddha Bar & Restaurant’ which has Indian, Chinese and Thai cuisine. Yummy.
3 - Wrote lots, well came up with lots of ideas for articles anyway – that’s still being productive isn’t it? At least now I don’t have any excuses not to write query letters.
4 - Procrastinated about exercise – maybe I’ll do some weights tonight, my planned interval run will have to be put off for tomorrow
5 - Commented on Facebook – twice…weird I don't normally do that. Could social networking be growing on me?
6 - First day of session 2 uni, I’m doing Public Writing and Media Debates and Controversies – I’m wondering if I’m going to be the endless student?
7 - Hold on I did write a chapter of my chick lit work in progress
8 - Tried to think positively though it becomes impossible every time I have contact with Poland’s health care system, in particular their hospitals. They constantly break the European Patient Laws (Prawa Pacjenta –www.bpp.waw.pl) but I suppose I did a lot of that yesterday. I’m working on some ideas for an article regarding this area. The problem is that people are afraid to stand up for themselves in case a doctor will leave a needle inside them after surgery, forget to check their blood pressure, or something much worse. Accidents do happen.
9 - Wasted a lot of time surfing the Internet. It’s research okay. I’m really enjoying going through the Matador site. www.matadortravel.com
10 – Taught a TEFL lesson, just one, it’s so lovely to be finished by 10am, than again it is the holidays so many people are taking a break from learning English.
11 – Looked for jobs in London, thought about working in Spain or Austria or maybe even China. I’d love to spend 3-6 months working in one or two more countries. What is stopping me?

Komorowski v Kaczynski

No surprise as to the result. Komorowski up front with just over 40% and Kaczynski not far behind with 35% of votes (www.wp.pl). Napieralski didn’t do to badly with just 14% of Poles voting for him. If he presents himself well over the next few years, doesn’t get into trouble and stays away from corruptive activities while working towards a better Poland he could have shot at the Presidential seat next time around. So now the two candidates have another two weeks to persuade Poles to vote for them. With very close votes for both it will be difficult to tell who will get the final one. In 2005 there was a similar position and in round two the late Kaczynski won. With only a 54.4% turn out, round two is anyone’s guess as to what will happen on July 4.

Lately it’s been hard to tell who’s better and who’s worse when it comes to these two. Both have their positive and negative aspects, and most likely ulterior motives. Poland seems to be very incompetent when it comes to participating in Presidential elections and this is a downfall of this society. If more people voted there may not have had to be a round two or we may have gotten a surprise result with one of the other candidates getting the seat. It’s hard to tell who’s the better of the two, or which one is going to be the best for Poland’s future. I don’t believe Kaczynski could have changed so dramatically since the tragedy of April 10 and Poles shouldn’t necessarily give him the benefit of the doubt. He may have good intentions but will these intentions come to fruition if he gets elected in the run off, and there is a good chance that he will.

Both candidates campaigns over the next two weeks will need to work magic in order to persuade those individuals who voted to vote for them again, and those who didn’t to sway towards their side. Is this possible? Difficult to tell, one wrong move can cost many votes. The turn out may also be higher and this may have a strong influence on the final result. Let’s hope the turn will be better than today’s.

What will need to be considered is the future of health care, education, welfare, Euro adoption and Polish – Russian and Polish-American relations. Many issues which the government and President have not been able to agree on in the past. When deciding we shouldn’t let the campaigns alone swing our decisions but also consider the actions and attitudes of these two politicians. What have they done so far that has benefited Poland? What do they want to achieve? How have they behaved? What do they stand for? Do they want to help the majority or the minority? Will they think independently regardless of the party they belong to?

It’s a hard choice to make. The decision will also decide the direction Poland will take.

Here's a link to some comments against Komorowski (in Polish)
http://moimzdaniem.salon24.pl/184920,kaczynski-vs-komorowski-czyli-kto-gorszy-dla-po

General information on both candidates
http://europeancourier.org/test/2010/05/28/june-20-komorowski-v-kaczynski/

Some more info on the important issues to be considered during this election
http://en.rian.ru/analysis/20100618/159483099.html

http://www.businessweek.com/news/2010-06-20/poles-vote-for-president-in-euro-deficit-referendum-update1-.html

Must Vote, but for Whom?

This Sunday responsible Poles of legal age are going to make their way to the voting booths. The two prime candidates for the position of President are Bronislaw Komorowski and Jaroslaw Kaczynski. If we look at statistics the other eight candidates don’t stand a chance. The race is on between the two PO and PIS candidates. Who to vote for?

It’s a tough question. Listening and watching their campaigns makes my stomach turns. My trust in Polish politics is limited. After three years living in this country and taking an interest in politics I am shocked as to the behaviour of many of the politicians here and the rules that apply to them. From what I can see is that there aren’t rules. Candidates who should be removed from politics immediately are allowed to run for President. Lies, bribery and charges seem to be irrelevant here. I try to keep a positive outlook on all this but at times it does get difficult.

I’d like to see Poland become the country that it can be. To prosper and grow. To give equal opportunity to all its citizens. To develop the agriculture, tourism and construction industries. There are so many opportunities and talents that are wasted due to a lack of knowledge, resources, support or all of the above. It’s a shame because the potential is there. Poland is a beautiful country.

Poland requires a leader. Komorowski and Kaczynski as leaders are questionable. They are the only two candidates that are the most appealing and suitable but not necessarily ideal. They have their strengths and weaknesses but I don’t think that their abilities weigh up to the requirements of this country’s needs at the present time. Poland needs someone who isn’t just going to be charismatic and persuasive with the public. Poland requires a President who can make independent decisions irrespective of which party he belongs to. A President who will be able to assess the current situation in Poland and make educated and logical decisions in relation to education, the health care system, welfare, infrastructure and the future of the country. Someone who will put the people’s needs first, and their own second.

In order for Poland to become the best it can be, the country is going to require a strong leader with good intentions. A leader who can make those intentions into reality. Both candidates have made promises about what they intend on doing once they are in the Presidential seat. However, these are just words, and history tells us that during the campaigns, many of these words are empty.

I hope that every Pole that is legally allowed to is going to vote on Sunday. I think this election is one of the most important ones in recent years, especially due to the recent tragedies in Smolenski and with the floods. The people need a President who they can rely on and trust not only in times of tragedy and sorrow, but also in times of prosperity and change for the better. A President who will stop looking at the past and start thinking about the present and beyond.

Voters need to look at this objectively and without emotion. The future of Poland will be determined by the result of these elections. It’s a shame that we don’t have a leader who we’d like to vote for without a doubt.

Relaxing in Bieszczady

Bieszczady are one of my favourite places to visit in Poland, especially in the summer. They aren't as crowded as other parts of Poland like Zakopane, but have enough attractions and peace and quite to keep me satisfied and in a holiday mood. We tend to go every year, and last year we even purchased a piece of land so that maybe we can build a holiday home or a permanent home in the future.




Zagórz - ruins of a 19th century monastery




Lake Solina

A kinda anniversary

Three years today.
Wow. It's hard to believe. Where have the past 1096 disappeared too. It sure as heck doesn't feel like I've been taking up space in Poland for that long.

What have I done in all this time? Has it been wasted? Has it been worthwhile?
Well, in my personal guidebook for life I like to think that every experience is a valuable one. There will always be good times, bad times and indifferent times. The only thing I hope for at this moment is that I have grown as a person. The rest doesn't really matter.

So how am I celebrating?
A delicious bowl of pasta, glass of red, and an assignment for my Masters that must be finished today, no excuses. Joy.

Taking Your Own Advice

Why is it always easier to give others advice but when it comes to taking our own it just doesn't happen. I'm beginning to wonder whether or not I'm looking at life a little bit inappropriately. Being born under the sign of the Pig, I am a Taurus. Taurus's are stubborn, love life and food, like to get what they want and can be temperamental. I am all those things with little boundaries. They also like the fine things in life and to be surrounded by people they can be proud of. When this does not happen, life can go haywire for some Taurus's. And if they aren't satisfying their life expectations every day, things get nasty.

I've noticed in recent months that things are getting nasty for me. The people around me are driving me crazy. I see their imperfections and I realise that some of the things I dislike in them, are actually the things I can't stand about myself. As a result I feel down most of the time and feel like packing my suitcase and disappearing.

The problem? Me, really. I've stopped doing the things that I love and moving in the direction that I want to go in.

The solution? Get off my ass, start dong the things that matter to me and stop caring about what others think. Until I am happy with who I am and what I'm doing, nothing will change.

Good news or bad news?

Reading the newspaper on-line has become an everyday ritual. It's one of the first things I do when I turn on my computer whether it's in the morning or afternoon. Keeping abreast of all the latest in news headlines keeps me aware of what is going on in the world. I always thought this was a good thing. Lately, I'm beginning to wonder.

Wherever I look there's bad news posted on the page. Murder, violence, drugs, accidents, fraud, crime, war. I'm sick of it. I'm sick of seeing all the negativity in the world. Yes, I know that the reality is that there are good and bad people. Unfortunately, it's just those that commit crimes or do something stupid who get attention. The individuals who actually make a positive difference to society are rarely heard of. Why? Yes, we are obsessed with bad news. It's what sells. Just like sex sells, bad news sells. Which newspaper would you be more likely to buy, 'Five Beat Up in Nightclub Raid' or 'Mother of Five Saves Stray Dogs'?

Shouldn't journalists be paying as much, if not more attention to stories that show the positive sides of people. Wouldn't that have a positive impact on society's behaviour? Set an example to act like decent human beings? Maybe it's all the bad news that's broadcast around the world which is leading to even more crime and violence. I'm worried that in five or ten years time it's going to be dangerous to go outside like portrayed in one of those lame futuristic films.

What do you think?

II Bieg Zoo, Warsaw

Yesterday at 10am, 1000 people from all over Poland joined together to participate in the second 10km Bieg Zoo in Praga, Warsaw. While the weather was in our favour, the morning was filled with sweaty smiles, laughter and exhaustion. A combination enjoyed by many runners.
Running is one of those sports where everyone is equal. No one is judged by their occupation, income levels, age or likes and dislikes. Everyone on this day is a runner and there for the same thing, to give it their best and have a good time. Some people beat records, others are happy to finish the race. The atmosphere was great regardless of the rain.

While I had fun, this was one of my lousiest runs. My body somehow failed me but I managed to finish with a time of 52:17 minutes. At one point I had nausea, stomach ache and a stitch at the same time which slowed me down incredibly. Why? I'm guessing it was the large breakfast I had on the morning of the race. Next time, I'll remember to eat less before the race. Jarek finished with a great time of 46:32.

Poland in Mourning

April 10th 2010. A day meant for commemeration. A day for remembrance. The 70th anniversary of the Katyn tragedies.

Instead, Poland is in mourning another tragedy.

The Polish President and his wife, have been tragically killed in an aeroplane catastrophe near the Smolensk Airport.

What has occurred is beyond anyone's imagination. What happened this morning is one of the biggest tragedies of the 21st Century that a nation could experience.

As the TVN broadcasters read out the names, one by one, they claim that there were 88 individuals on board, though the number could be lower or higher. Many of them important parliamentary and religious figures in Poland.

The loss experienced is beyond words, beyond understanding, unimaginable, unbelievable.

How could this tragedy have occurred?
Why?

Questions that may not be answered to anyone's satisfaction.
Faulty aeroplane. Bad weather. Something else.

The irony in it.

70 years ago Poles were killed in Katyn. Today, 70 years after, another catastrophe has hit Poland.

An investigation will take place. But whatever they find, it will not bring back the lives of those lost. Condolences and sympathies to the entire nation.

When things like this occur, it forces us to reflect. To wonder about what is life about. How insignificant the things we worry about are. We don't know what tomorrow brings. Yesterday shouldn't matter, tomorrow doesn't exist, and we should focus on the present because really it's a present to have every extra day. Accidents happen, we cannot predict them. Things happen that are out of our control.

The magnitude of this tragedy, the repercussions on the nation. What will happen next?

Writing Excessively or Not

I often read about the problem with overwriting. Too many details, too many words, similes, metaphors, unnecessary adverbs and weak verbs. Looking over my manuscript I find that my problem is 'skinny' writing. I'm yet to come across an article telling me how to avoid this – I doubt that I am the only one with this problem.

I've written and thrown out about a dozen novels. My apprenticeship as I see it. The problem is that once I get to about 60,000 words I'm finished. The story is finished. There's a lot happening. The problem is that I don't know how to thicken the scenes out.

So what is my solution?

Well I need to learn to write excessively. Figuring that out is the easy part. How does one write excessively?

Details. Details within the details. Description. It's easy, so why can't I manage to do it?

Any advice?

Did I or Didn't I?

Lent is finished. At the start of this period I created some goals. I have to say that life got in the way. My work load was higher and there were a lot of other things in the middle that couldn't be avoided. Some positive some negative, most unavoidable.

So how did I go?

I successfully managed not to eat any chocolate, cakes or sweets during the Lent period. This was probably the most important goal because I love eating chocolate. Surprisingly it wasn't as difficult as I assumed. This morning I was reading a health magazine and there was a short filler on the benefits of dark chocolate on stress levels. Eating a small piece or two of dark chocolate every day can reduce stress levels – that probably explains me having a short fuse over the past forty days.

Exercise was overlooked a little bit. Weather and time constraints. Yes, excuses, excuses. But I have started a regular exercise regime again to stay fit and improve my fitness level, running time and general health. I've got a 10km run coming up mid April – Bieg Zoo – or Zoo Run. It's a few laps around the Warsaw Zoo.

Writing those queries. This was a tough goal. I probably overestimated my abilities and time availability. I slacked off a bit. The aim was to write and submit 100 queries. I've submitted about 50. This is still a good effort. Every extra query I send out is better than none. The results from this effort? I've had one acceptance so far and five rejections. I'll give it another two weeks before I follow up. The rejected queries are going to be sent out to start looking for another home.

Happy Easter to All!

What defines you?

Who are you? What do you do? Is it your name, your job or your age that defines you. Does being called Zeus make you more powerful than Andrew? Does being a lawyer make you smarter than a teacher? Is being 25 make you less aware than if you're 65?

While a name can have a lot of influence on your personality it doesn't necessarily define you. When people ask us who we are the most common responses are, 'I'm Sally, an accountant.' or 'I'm Bob, the personal trainer.'

That's not who you are. That's just what you do.

Is there a better response?

Who are you? Well, I'm a hard working individual with big dreams and ambitions. While that might be true, it's not usually the thing we say when someone presents us with that question.
When we think about what defines us we need to look at all the moments in our lives and how we reacted to them. We need to remember our thoughts and feelings and why was this moment so important to us.

My defining moment? I think there's been many. However, as I'm getting older, the defining moment would be leaving my adopted country, Australia, and going back to my birth country, Poland, and trying to start a new life. I think this showed my need for change, for independence, and being challenged. Maybe even proving to myself that I was capable of anything I set my mind to.

What defines you?

Mid March Snowfall

Keeping an Open Mind

Being open-minded is having the ability to listen to other people's opinions, consider them and come to your own conclusions. I don't believe there is just one answer to every problem. Nor do I think that what open-minded people say is convenient. It might even be derogatory but with good means. Maybe it's simply to encourage discussion, provoking emotional outbursts and debates.

Not everyone's likes what we say. Life would be too simple if we could satisfy every person we come into contact with. However, when two or more people are having a general discussion, getting offended or being proven wrong is not a reason to get snappy or judgemental. Living in a democracy we are permitted to have an opinion, that's what freedom of speech is for. Unfortunately many people refuse to accept opinions that are not their own.

I think it's important for writers to have an open-mind. Writers deal with many different stories, people, situations. They come in contact with so many tales of fame, fortune, tragedy, drama and everything in between. In order to write well, they need to not only be able to see two sides to every story but also remain open to new ideas. Sometimes you even have to play devil's advocate.

Teachers, I think are in the same position. In order to teach you have to stay open to suggestions, difference in opinion, and taking sides in order to entice discussion and debate. Usually this works well, problems arise however, when students take offence and don't like your opinion. The best way to deal with this is to change the subject and next time choose a less controversial topic to discuss. However, don't be afraid to play the devil's advocate to keep the conversation flowing.

Do you consider yourself an open-minded person?

A quick update

Session 1 of Uni starts today. Master of Communications. OK, I am a little bit worried. After having a look through the course content and assignment requirements my pulse quickened. How in the world am I going to manage this and everything else I have on my plate?
Ten minutes later I am a little bit calmer, though I know that there is a lot of work ahead of me. I'm still trying to decide whether I made the right decision taking up this course. I hope so. I think so.

For the first time in like a month I went running today. It felt great. Why have I neglected my running routine? A lot has been happening. But now with spring in the air, it's time to start running again. No more excuses!

The Lent sacrifice of chocolate and sweets is working well. Two weeks down. Four to go. Surprisingly, I haven't experienced any cravings even when people were eating chocolate and chocolate brownies in front of me. Could I be cured of chocolism or is this just a phase and I'll be back to consuming it every day after Easter?

Query letters. Don't you love those? Yeah. It's a love and hate thing definitely. My aim is to write 100 before Easter. Huge feat but hey a girl's gotta have challenges. I've submitted 6 queries so far (yeah not many I know), received two rejections, a request for an on spec piece, request for a piece with no payment, and received from an editor a potential market to send a piece that was rejected.

Just Another Ordinary Day

Travelling by train or bus or tram or any public transport around Warsaw can turn out to be a lot of things. Boring. Exciting. Uneventful. Colourful. Disgusting. Or all of the above. Sometimes I have to wonder what certain individuals have in their mind.

Half past nine in the morning, I'm travelling from the west part of Warsaw the east. Taking a few minutes to read a novel. It's just a five train stops. Two dodgy looking men enter the train and sit in the same wagon. Warning signs go off to move to another part of the train, but that would be to obvious so I sit, staring out the window to avoid eye contact. But I can't help but listen in on their conversation.

'I need a cigarette. I'll be back in a minute' one of them says.
A few moments later.
'#(&) there's no where to smoke here.' he says to his friend.
Looking around the carriage, he sits back down in the seat and lights up his cigarette. Smokes it without a care in the world.

Unfortunately this isn't a one off incident.
So you're probably wondering why no one says anything.
Well, the result might be;
a – you'll get cursed and spat at
b – you might get beaten up
c – you might get killed
It's just not worth it. Yes it's unfortunate. If more people stood up for what they believed, protected the rights of others and started giving a damn about their own backyard and the backyards of those around them, the whole world might be a better place. Or they could learn to read, 'No Smoking' means don't light that damn cigarette.

The funny thing was that this guy was talking to his mate about what a great student he was at school, getting straight A's, being a goody two shoes and than taking a wrong turn somewhere around college when he dropped out and turned to crime. There's a great possibility that he was recently released from prison.

I kept my mouth shut. Though I was tempted to tell him that he should turn in the right direction and put the cigarette out before he got into more trouble by authorities. Unfortunately I wasn't brave enough, probably for the best.

I'm rambling

Word Count: 7629 chick lit

I'm editing. I can't stand editing. My worst inner critic rears it's ugly head and forces me into emotional turmoil. Everything I write sucks. According to me, my mother tells me. Not that she's read a word I've written. I can't let that happen. Not until there's a book on the shelf and a publishing deal.

I'm writing chick lit. It's fun. It's entertaining. It's light. Sweet. It's life. Well sort of. No it's not based on me or anything. Did I mention it's fun? Well it is when the words are flowing, a complete different story when I have no idea what to write, or rewrite!

Carnival Ends, Lent Begins

Lent starts today. Living in a Catholic country it's impossible to avoid knowing this fact and being reminded by every devout individual, usually above the age of 60 that I am not permitted to eat pretty much anything, especially meat. While for me that's not a problem because I prefer vegetables. Chocolate on the other hand is my weakness. I can easily consume a full block of milk or dark chocolate every day. Yes, it's hideously unhealthy but we all gotta have our weaknesses.

Completely abstaining from different food groups like meat products, grains or fruit and vegetables is a bad idea. Our bodies require nutrients every day. Abstaining from cigarettes for smokers, alcohol for alcoholics, chocolate for chocoholics however is a good idea. Plus it's also an opportunity to purge bad habits and create good ones.

So for the next 40 days, yes, 40. I will avoid chocolate, sweets, cookies and cakes at all costs. I did it last year, so I don't think this will be a huge difficulty. Of course, it's also very likely that at the end of it all I am going to go on a huge Lindt chocolate binge. No one's perfect.

I'm going to make this Lent time even extra difficult for myself. I'm going to have to work out every single day for a minimum of 30 minutes. Ideally I would be running every day, however due to the weather conditions I could end up in hospital. So exercise can include anything from walking, swimming (indoor pool), rowing, weights, Pilates, aerobics, Nordic skiing, etc. Bugger, that means I have to start today!

My writing isn't going to suffer either during this period. It's going to improve. At least my output will. The aim is to send out 100 queries over the next forty days. This is a huge challenge for because at the moment my motivation has disappeared and every idea has melted away or seems ridiculous. Tough. Even ridiculous ideas find homes. Right?

Meditation is also important. I don't see myself as a devout Catholic, that's just something my parents decided when they had me. However, this time even for non practising Catholics is a good time to reflect on our lives, on what is important to us, where we are and where we want to go. Meditation is a good way to unwind, and take a step back.

Are you abstaining from anything over the next 40 days? Or maybe setting some new goals for this period?

Tuesday Rant

Working from home. Earning thousands a week. Loving every moment. Taking holidays twice a year and frequent weekends away. Hitting the gym most days. Running through the forest at weekends. Spending Sunday mornings reading the paper and enjoying breakfast in bed. Shopping with friends in the afternoon and trying new restaurants mid week. I would be a liar if I said I don't do any of those things.

I take holidays and I even manage a few weekends away. A quarter my time I spend working from home. I often read magazines in the paper. I go shopping with friends and often try new cafes and restaurants. The gym is a regular place to be on Saturdays, and there's a forest at the end of the street (on both sides).

So the only thing missing is earning thousands a week. But I can work on that, can't I?

So why am I still complaining?

My theory is that it's cold outside. The first week of snow was beautiful. Now it's becoming a pain in the backside. There's a heap of snow everywhere and I can't remember the last time I spent a day in a pair of dry shoes. It's impossible not to get them wet when you're constantly walking on snow. The sky is grey, I haven't been able to go for a run in the past three weeks for numerous reasons.

Is that enough reason?

I could go on but it's not going to achieve anything. Instead I'd like to think about all those positive things that are around me and should be enough reason to stop complaining. My partner, my family, my friends, my health, my job, and everything else that is in my life.
Much better now. Time to go back to writing.

How's the winter weather working on you?

It's short, don't waste it

Life is short. Get out there and make your dreams come true. Don't wait till tomorrow, because tomorrow doesn't exist.

Without wanting to sound morbid nor sombre, I think that death is a wake up call. Not when it's distanced from us, that we don't witness the day to day consequences that happen after, but the death that's close and in full view.

Some say that when you know that it's coming it eases the pain. When it's sudden and unexpected the pain is intensified. I don't believe there's a difference. The truth is that the person is there one day and gone the next. Each day you think they are going to walk through the door from work or a holiday of sorts. Deep down you know they won't. It doesn't happen. It'll never happen again.

Each day becomes easier but you never forget. You wonder what if. What if something else was said? What if they hadn't done this or that? What if we were around we could have done something? The 'what ifs' come tumbling from every direction but not one will change the fact that the person is gone. When you look into the eyes of the people who were even closer, you see the pain, their question of 'why'?

Life is short don't let it get away.

Trouble with words

I first read this in the WritingWorld newsletter, followed their link and had to read what this was all about.

A school in California wanted to ban a dictionary because parents complained of 'racy content' inside. It seems they don't want their children looking up definitions of sexual nature. Well than if the dictionary's a culprit, you might as well ban the Internet, television, advertising, books, magazines and opening your eyes or ears when you step outside. Get over it. Teach your kids common sense instead of pulling them away from the dictionary. At least they'll know how to spell if they shove their heads in one from time to time. Check out http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-dictionary27-2010jan27,0,5566022.story for the full story.

Yes, children do need to be protected from some information, however if they know a word, and they look it up in the dictionary than we should be looking at where they got the word or idea from initially, not just where they go to find more information. There are much worse things than a fifth grader looking up a dirty word in the dictionary. What message are you trying to give them? That dictionary's are bad? Come on, here's what will happen.

'Oh gosh what are you reading? Give me that!' mummy hurls herself at the child and grabs the thick dictionary from their small trembling hands.
'It's just f...'
'Stop, don't say that. It's bad.'
So the kid goes to his room, plays computer games, surfs the Internet, gets brainwashed by all the sexual reference on television and is confused about the dictionary. But I thought the dictionary was for learning. Learning is good, right?
Two weeks later.
'Mum how do you spell 'extraordinary'?'
'Check the dictionary.' she calls too busy to move away from cooking chicken nuggets.
'But you said the dictionary is bad.'
'Forget what I said, just look it up.'

My point is that we have double standards for everything. We do what suits us at a given time without thinking it through.

Do we really need to censor everything? Are bored people running out of things to pick at? Do you think all the naughty language should be taken out of the dictionary?

Goodbye January, Hello February

Well it's the start of a new month. February is finally here and I'm glad that January is over and done with. Not that it was a bad month or anything, it was actually pretty good but when you're in Poland and it's above -20 degrees and there's lots of snow and you have to get up at 5;30 to go to work than it's a completely different story.

In February the days begin to drag for longer. It no longer goes dark at 3;30 in the afternoon so that you're able to glimpse a little bit more of the natural light and even sun light if we're lucky enough to get a sunny winter day. I prefer those, even though if it's sunny, it gets even frostier at night but at least there's usually no wind, rain or snow fall.

February has started on a roll. I love it when on Monday's, and especially when it's the beginning of a new month I get very productive. Today's productivity is on a medium to high level. I've written a few articles, a couple of queries, some follow ups I taught English in the city before coming back home to do a lesson wiht my younger cousin as she is on school holidays and we have more time to work on her English over the next two weeks. Which I hope we will. This also means I have more time to write as a number of my students have taken leave to go away with their children.

I love February. Even though it's cold and snowy, there are many birthday's and name's days (celebrated in Poland), as well as Valentine's Day. There's so much to do, gifts to buy for family and friends and maybe even find the time to build a snowman or have a snow ball fight. It's 28 days where anything can happen. I'm counting on making February a creative and productive month that will set the pace for the rest of the year.

How was the first day of the month for you?

Getting Organised

After a long sleep in, breakfast of pancakes with cottage cheese, jam and nutella, we spent Sunday morning cleaning. I don't mean just a dust and a vacuum and the job is done but actually going through every shelve, drawer and corner and throwing everything that isn't needed out into the trash. It feels fantastic. Now I know where my sport magazines lie,where all my writing materials are, teaching books, and wedding magazines and planning. It's all sorted and organised so that it will be much easier for me to find when I need it all.

Unfortunately I know that within a week it will all be disorganised once again. I'd love to be pedantic about keeping things clean. When I have books, magazines and everything else all over the place it drives me up the wall. My sleep is disrupted, I feel tired and unmotivated. Obviously something needs to change. I dread parting with things. This time around I am going to have to be tough on myself. Today we threw out about four bags full of rubbish. Once it was all done, it felt like a huge relief, a weight lifted of our shoulders.

The next four weeks I'm going to focus on getting a little bit more organised so that I am more productive and I'm not losing things when I need them the most. The only way to do that is go shopping. I will need to buy a small bookcase or some shelves, photo albums, three four-ring binders, magazine stacks, and a few other bits and pieces. That will be the fun part. The next four weeks I will slowly start to part with items I really know I don't need and make room for things that I do.

Week 1 - Organise my writing. Get folders and file ideas under categories - woman's, commercial, parenting, TEFL, education, health and fitness, travel, other. Dispose of any useless pieces of paper that are never going to be used. Bundle all the magazines that I want to write for so that they are all in the one place. Recyle all the magazines that I know I will never read again. Clean up my computer files so that everything is easy to manage, find and use.

Week 2 - Go through all my TEFL books, notes, magazines and miscellaneous items. Recycle all the loose papers that are not used. Sort through work contracts, attendance lists and other items and file them into three folders. One for each school that I am employed by.

Week 3 - Sort through all my clothes, shoes, bags and accessories. Last year I disposed of about three bags full of clothes I no longer needed. Some went to a younger family member and the rest went to a charity bin. I need to do that again, and this time be more generous with what I throw out. I can honestly say that I only wear about 50% of the clothes I own. The other simply take up space. This week I will be making more room in my wardrobe.

Week 4 - Sort through all the miscellaneous items left over. Get rid of any magazines that are collecting dust, empty chocolate containers that are never going to be used for anything, used up perfume bottles that don't need to be left as an ornament on a bookcase.

Once all that is done I anticipate being a much more productive individual. I will no longer be wasting time searching for the items I need to do my job. My living space will also become a much more pleasant and ergonomic place to be in. A couple of hours a week is all it's going to take.

Take Risks, Create Your Own Luck

Do I want too much from the very start? It's possible. Maybe if I had taken things slowly and done things properly from the start than I would be more successful now. Who knows? That's the beauty of it. Any decision we make involves taking a risk. It's one of the topics in one of my Advanced English classes at the moment. Risk is all around us. It's unavoidable. We take a risk every time we get out of the shower, get into the car, ride our bike without a helmet, light up a cigarette or avoid exercise while indulging in greasy food every day of the week. Risk is a fact of life. It's unavoidable.

Writers take a risk each time they put words on paper, write a query or full manuscript and send it out to the world of editors, publishers and magazines. They risk rejection and pain, and so much more. It's their creation that is being judged, they feel they are being judged. It's personal. But by not taking the risk of rejection, they are risking something for worse, something that will be far more painful than rejection or a template non-personal 'no thank you we're not interested in your piece' letter or email. Not putting yourself at risk of rejection, a writer puts themselves at risk of failure, at not reaching their dreams of success. That's a much more painful risk to take.

Not all risk is created equal. Some people choose to recklessly risk their lives, relationships and their world, while others choose to take a safer course of action and calculate their risks. But in truth, a successful outcome is not always due to the right calculation but luck. Others would beg to differ but sometimes even doing all the right things and minimising risk doesn't result in the desired outcome while a situation that maximises risk can have fantastic results. Luck plays a huge role. The good thing is that we can help create our own luck by putting ourselves at risk that may lead to our desired result.

How a writer can minimise their risk of rejection?
Stop writing and find another hobby or profession. Seriously the thought has crossed my mind a million and one times. Does the world really need another writer?

Seriously speaking though, it's possible to minimize your risk of rejection and the risk of not succeeding. With a few pints of luck, a sprinkle of determination, a dash of perseverance, a ton of hard work, and a bucket load of revision and your risk of rejection is minimised. But first you need to have the courage to send the work out to create your own luck while risking rejection and criticism.

I've had a few pieces published. The ones that did get published quickly were ones that didn't take too long to right. A quick 30 minute stint where I managed to send my inner critic on a break for just enough time to churn out enough words for a market that required pieces 'on spec'. Written, edited and sent out in under an hour made me a quick $100 a few weeks later. I took a risk. I quit thinking about the risk of rejection for a moment and sent the story out. Luck played a huge part I'm sure, but so did the fact that I put myself out there. In a sense, the action of sending out the article opened a window for me to get lucky. A risk that led to an article being sold.

Now as I write this, I can confidently say that each time I sent out ten or twenty queries within a few days, I scored a publication credit. Then I stopped. Why? Fear of rejection, afraid of taking another risk. And so the cycle continued. By not continuing to send out queries every day, I am taking the biggest risk ever. The risk of not succeeding as a writer. I'm not sure I can afford to take that risk.

Gotta Love Public Transport

Standing crammed between other passengers in a stuffy and smelly train is no one's idea of a comfy trip home. On the contrary, it's a pain in the ass and the ribs, especially when someone decides to elbow you as the train comes to a screeching halt at one of the stations where even more passengers attempt to push through and make the limited amount of breathing space available disappear.

There's a public transport problem in Poland to say the least. It's probably one of the worst I have seen or experienced. And they are never prepared for winter, claiming that once again it has taken them by surprise. Come on, we know that in this part of the world winter comes, oh I don't know, about once a year between November and March, it's usually too f*@*ing cold to forget. Winter's been mild the past few years, which is a great opportunity for the government to save some cash and improve the train lines and public transport system in general. It could also improve the walking ability of many citizens who travel by foot, and hire people to shovel the snow or better still let the petty crooks sitting in jail and wasting tax payers money do the hard work for free with signs on their backs advertising their crimes and then they may feel too ashamed and exhausted to become repeat offenders. That's like 'killing two birds with one stone' as the saying goes. Less snow on the streets, pathways to enable proper functioning of public transport like trains, buses and trams, and more crooks actually having a chance of being rehabilitated and cured of their menacing ways.

My train was once again 30 minutes late today as it was yesterday. I should be used to it by now but then again, why should I? I pay to use the transport system every month. I should therefore get quality and timely service but it turns out that KM and ZTM prefer to treat their customers like they are nothing but cattle. Now I'm off to catch the next train home and can't help but wonder what will be in store. Crushed against dozens of other passengers, stuffy, sweaty, smelly and equally furious. What a treat!

On a much happier note, for some anyway, today in Poland is Grandmother's Day and tomorrow is Grandfather's Day. It's fantastic that they celebrate this here as in many parts of the world as grandparents need to be shown more appreciation. It's a day when a simple bunch of flowers or a phone call can make a difference and put a smile on their face.

Believing... your own way?

We went to church today. We rarely go but it was an important occasion for my partners family, so we went. It was supposed to be a normal mass until the priest announced and welcomed a guest to speak to the crowd. A missionary. Fine, I thought. Maybe he is collecting money for a worthy cause, or he's here to help the poor and less fortunate. The picture in my mind of a missionary is one who helps people. Who has a calling from God or any higher power to help others. To do good things around the world.

I couldn't have been more wrong.

The missionary began to speak. Everyone listened. Ninety per cent of the church was filled with woman over the age of sixty. For these women, church and God is the centre of their lives. People who rarely question what the priest in front of them says. As was the case here.
I believe in a God not an institution. But that's not the issue here. What is the issue is that a man walks up to the microphone whose life is simple, he lives of other people's generosity, travels the world and he has the audacity to tell them that trying to make their life easier is a sin.

Demons. Contraception. Lucifer. Occult. These were words that were frequently used and abused by this missionary, as well as many others. I thought I was taken back to the middle century listening to a guy telling us we're all evil if we don't eat, live and dream Christianity. As this was in a small town outside the city, it was easy for a missionary to be sent to such a church. In the city, I doubt that people would tolerate such an obscene, insulting and brainwashing speech. He was anti New Age perceptions, anti equality, fun and reality. One older woman most probably in her 70's walked out, having heard enough of his vulgarities about demons, other according to him 'false' religions, and over the top lecture which no one asked for.

I don't spend much time going to church other than special occasions like weddings, funerals, christenings and the like. This was something different. It was not a typical mass. It was nothing more than a witch hunt. He wanted to convert those who could be converted and purge what in his view was evil. While he announced that he was well travelled - I'm sure by using all the money innocent and poor people have donated his way - to the crowd, he said that people should be sorry to have departed Poland, to have left their roots, that mothers who worked were sinful, that that was the reason for vandalism, bandits and criminal behaviour in youth. It was insulting. Even more so when he began to scorn other religions, practically laughing when speaking of their beliefs and virtues.

No one has the right to insult another religion. There are more than six billion people on this planet. Everyone believes in something. Even atheists have something to believe in. We all should have the right to choose. What right did this missionary have, or any other priest or religious leader has, to shout out that theirs is the right way, the only way and everything else, who feels differently, is delusive? The last thing most people want is to go to church to pray for a loved one and to listen to such a tirade as we encountered today.

Staying Fit for Health & Creativity

I've mentioned that I run frequently. I find running not only keeps me fit and healthy but also boosts my creativity level. Usually when I hit the pavement or the treadmill my mind clears so that when I'm done I can get back to work without feeling overwhelmed. Plus it allows me to enjoy all the simple pleasures in life – red wine, cheese, chocolate, Italian food and curries. Yummy.
Now I'm training for the Warsaw Half Marathon in March.
Recently I've noticed that the more regular my running and training is, the easier the writing flows. I recommend any type of exercise to clear your mind and unlock your creativity.

On a more current news, yesterday, the Great Christmas Aid Orchestra played for the 18th time in a nation-wide money raising event for children's hospitals around the country. They raised over 36 million zloty, which is just under 1 zloty per person in Poland. That's not a lot to give, but when added up it can help thousands of children around the country who suffer from illness or disability. This is a non government and non profit event that is supported by millions of Poles. It's a shame that the government can't do something positive and non profit for its citizens, instead it chooses to take from them. Alone it's difficult to make a difference, together when people unite they can do enormous things.

This week's summary

I've set goals, I've written, I've taught, I even managed to sneak in two 10km runs on the treadmill as I'm not prepared for running in the snow, and I fit shopping into the week.

Am I on track with my writing goals? Well, sort of.

Five queries later I am waiting for responses and coming up with more article ideas. Instead of getting easier it just gets harder. The inner critic gets stronger and stronger. But it's important to persevere. Fortunately my partner has been very supportive and has lots of words of encouragement when I hit a slump. Or if that fails, I reread all the positive feedback I've received to boost my writing confidence.

How do you deal with your inner critic?

There's lots to do in the upcoming week. So I'm off to finish of some lesson plans, eat dinner and take the rest of the day off to relax. It is Sunday after all.

Anything is Possible...Right?

It's another cold day. On the way to work I got splashed with muddy snow all over my white jacket. The train was twenty minutes later and extremely crowded with no breathing space. I had one lesson in the morning, ran some errands and was back at home around noon.
Now once again I am wasting time, sitting on under the duvet in bed, listening to Pink's latest CD, and trying to get some writing done. I need to try harder.

Yesterday was a good day. Thanks to following up I sold an article, signed the agreement and sent off the invoice all within 30 minutes of following up with the editor. If only all the submissions and follow ups went so smoothly. A great start to the year.

Here's a crazy idea. A goal of selling one article per week. Mm, sounds interesting. Challenging and almost impossible. But is it? I've sold one for the first week of January. Can I sell another one in the next seven days? Tempting. What would I have to do? Well, submit more queries and finished articles, essays and short stories every day. That's not so hard is it? One of my goals for this year was to get at least 50 published credits to my name. One a week. With a ten per cent acceptance rate I would need to send 10 queries per week.

Scary. But hey why not? I've nothing to lose. So here goes.

Three hours later I have three query drafts that I am working on. Just a few details to check before I send them off.

And I'm done for the day. Now I'm off to relax for an hour or so before heading off to my final TEFL lesson for the day.

Winter

I can't stand the cold. This morning I was waiting for a bus. Standing for about twenty minutes in -7 is not pleasant. Shivering from the inside out even though I was wearing a couple of layers of clothes was not pleasant. I began to wonder how the homeless feel in Warsaw. There are many of them. Of course there are shelters available however there are conditions upon entry. Those under the influence of drugs or alcohol are usualy not welcome and end up in the cold. When temperatures reach -10 or -20 or more, survival is grim and unfortunately many homeless die.

Poverty is a huge problem in Poland. Everyday I see homeless individuals on the streets of Warsaw. They are not looked after. There's no workable system in place to help them. They are treated as if they are nothing, left on the streets to beg, steal, and drink. After a while people stop noticing them, they simply begin to blend into the background of the city. Some choose to be there, others have little choice.

According to the Krakow Post (www.krakowpost.com) more than 300,000 homeless are fighting to survive this winter. That's a huge number of people at risk of dying this season. Over the New Year long weekend alone there were more than 13 deaths in Poland due to extremely low temperatures (www.news.ninemsn.com.au). Cases of hyperthermia are common every winter, yet not enough is being done to fix the problem. Sometimes a bit of spare change can make a huge difference. To most people a couple of zloty won't make a difference, to someone on the street the same couple of zloty could mean everything.

Bye bye '09, Welcome '10

The year has started, it's already five days in and I am falling off track. What am I doing with my writing? I've started rewriting my novel in progress and the process feels like swimming through thick mud. Every word is so difficult. There are still scenes that need to be reworked, added and deleted to make it work. During some moments it's rather depressing but I must persist. Persistence is the only key to success. Along with continuous education. Continuous education in many fields. Especially with writing, continuously writing in order to make rapid improvements.
I would like to say that persistence always pays off in the way that we want it to. Unfortunately that's not always the case. Usually but not always. Success comes from hard work and persistence, combined with talent and luck. All four are required in order to achieve. However, even hard work, persistence, talent and luck may not be enough on their own. At first it may seem like a lost cause, but eventually it does happen. In one way or another the hard work and persistence pays off. At least that's the way I see it. The people who say they fail are usually the ones that have given up without giving it an adequate go. Over the past two years there have been many times when I thought about giving up. I'm glad I didn't. I'm going to persist until I get to where I want to be and beyond.

2009 has finished. Last year was a tricky year for many people. It was a difficult year. One that many will want to forget and move on from. It is also a year that taught many lessons to many people, including me. Lessons in love, life and finance. Lessons in friendship, trust and education. Last year I spent too much money, didn't laugh enough, didn't learn enough, went out to little, spend too few moments with my family and friends, wasn't thankful enough, and didn't bite my tongue and keep my mouth shut often enough, nor did I write as much as I wanted to or was as active as I hoped to be. All my fault of course.

2010 is a year I hope to do the right thing, whatever that is. My goal is to be a better writer, friend, partner, daughter, teacher, athlete, person. I'm not sure how that's all going to work. I do know that it's not going to be smooth sailing. There will be difficult moments but there will also be moments I won't want to forget which will push me past the tough times and get me through it all.

What do you want from yourself in 2010?

I'm back... it's cold