meu brasil brasileiro

6 dec 2009

8.28 in the morning now. i am finishing up with packing before i catch the coach to go to london healthrow airport terminal 4 to catch my tam flight to sao paulo to then catch another flight to fortaleza to finally be in another tam flight to teresina - home at last!

i don't even really know what i'm feeling right now. since i finished teaching on friday i've been sort of entering in a new 'layer' of existence, as it is my plan to take things easy on me from now on. the nuffield theater with diana was an excellent starting point for all this. saturday and today i still feel very much occupied with lots of administrative things to do, about both the trip and my research. however, i do want new life, new mode, new energy in the very inside of me.

until almost 2o'clock in the morning of this very sunday 6 december i was sending documents to people here and in brasil concerning this data collection / the research, which is work that requires full concentration. still, i want to see and feel it all pretty much under new perspectives from now on: lighter, more joyful, and fulfilling.

now i have to finish up packing. at times i wonder if i have forgotten something. i'm afraid i have )-: but let's hope it is just my ordinary worry, and that it should not be confirmed as such.

Me aguarde, meu Brasil lindo e colorido e caloroso e alegre e de amor e de abracos e beijnhos e carinhos sem ter fim. . . chega de saudade!!! (obrigada Joao Gilberto)

Kalina Morena

cheers

1 dec 2009

today i went to the cowherds to spend some time with my good friends from uni. i walked from avenue with mariko a little before 7pm. there we met with sonia and callum. later on agota justyna and adalberto arrived and then agota. it was fantastic and i am so glad i did go to this one because i have missed so many events latelly i would not be surprised if people stopped inviting me, but they are all so understanding of my hectic days, as they sort of go through the same situation.

it was started with sonia wanting to see us before she and callum move back to the isle of wight. it is their plan to stay there for a while to organize their life together and save up some money. callum has a house there which is currently rented out for some young guys. he's do some refurbishment in the house to rent it out for a family. i love sonia. she is such a sweet person. and she likes me so much. every time we meet she gives me big hugs. today she asked me so many questions about brazil, about my life, about my job with the justice system, very interesting questions.

callum said his idea of brasil is the one from violent movies. i said to him that the violence from movies such as 'city of god' is part of the story, not the whole story. it is not possible for any country to be, the whole country, one single thing. if brazil were all about slums and violence, it would no really be a charming country. i don't even believe it is possible to have such a large extension of land populated by violence. how can that be? i said to him i believe any generalization is unfair.

it had been a while i didn't see justyna and adalberto. for me it was a great opportunity to see my friends before i go to brazil this sunday. and even better because we met right here at the cowherds, this great pub right close to where i live. we laughed and ate good food (i ate the chargrilled chicken with mushroom tagliatelle) and talked and hugged and wished us all good wishes and promised ourselves to get together for a tea or something when i come back from brazil in the beginning of january. i was really so pleased and light after these almost three hours with good people. this time i didn't have my camera on me. too bad, but the photographs are taken, i am certain, and stamped in my heart. colorful and soothing images of camaraderie.

‘every day is a winding road’

30 nov 2009

We had a particularly tough morning today because the wind was very strong. The rain was no big deal, but insistent. It was a very cold morning, of four degrees only. I walked to Highfield, bought myself a cup of coffee and went to the law building to work. My umbrella was falling apart in harmony with the wind, which blows everything away.

I finished work and stopped by the uni shop to buy blank dvds and an umbrella, now a navy blue one. It was freezing cold and windy outside. I got some money from the cash point by the uni shop and this girl in the queue was shivering of cold. I had no choice but to enter susu building to equip myself: put on scarf, hat, and gloves, this big operation to face the not so unpredictable British weather: yes, it is not going to be so nice, at least not for long.

Well, i ended up getting late for a meeting with Jo. She was going to talk to me about the writing teaching that we do here in the programme. We ended up meeting later on, after 12 o’clock, as I had some ‘emergencies’: I needed to call Dorothy and we talked for a while.

Here is another emergency: I was walking towards my office (after the phone call) when Mariko approached me with such a sad face. It was to tell me that George Blue, our very nice and friendly George Blue, died this past Friday. He had been operated on a few weeks before and, as far as I knew, was recovering really well. According to Rob, it was a triple bypass heart surgery. He was my friend Buk’s supervisor. Buk had told me he was recovering ok, doing short walks, and Buk even visited him in his house one or two weeks ago. I knew he was seeing his students and talking for no longer than a half hour, but that he would be able to be back to work in January in full capacity. Well, the man passed away, apparently while sleeping, but I have no details.

And there I stayed in the corridor, talking with Mariko for a long time, we both in shock for such a sad end for our Blue. She had watery eyes, I could see it. It was interesting, because she insisted in being there with me for this long while in the corridor, as if she needed it, to talk, to share, to express sadness, and maybe – maybe – to understand all this. Mariko invited me to come down to the canteen at 12.30 to have lunch with her and Rob.

‘wait a minute mister postman’

27 nov 2009

I got my cute white voice recorder in the mail today. All the parcels addressed to St Margaret’s, which is where I live, are delivered to Gateley hall, where we should go and fetch them. Only envelope letters are kept here in our mailboxes, because these are not large enough for the parcels. Well, I’ve made my way to Gateley Hall quite often lately actually as I have bought some stuff – books and dvds – from Amazon.

I was ready to go once again for this one, but, surprise surprise I got this nice phone call on Friday morning. During the day I really basically never pick up phone calls as I am almost always at the office busy with something. This time I felt my mobile vibrating in my backpack and decided to check it out. Of course when I got it the call was ended. I called it back and spoke with this gentle mister postman. Yes, the postman waited a minute to deliver the parcel for me. Sooo cool!!! It took me a little while to understand what was going on, but he was very clear: he was in St Margaret’s, he had a parcel for me and wanted to know if it would be ok for me if her left the parcel right there in my flat. It surprised me for it was really unexpected. Plus, I wondered how he would have access to my flat. I said ‘yes, please, thank you, be my guest, just drop it in there and you make me happy.’ He did it.

When I got home Li came by my room with the voice recorder, which is going to be a very important instrument in my research to register data and make my life easier. I will record so many events to come. . . oh my!!! This new toy of mine is very light and white and modern. Indeed.

this constructive side of mine

27 nov 2009

in these busy and confusing days i managed to have a more than productive friday. it did make me feel very good about myself and how i managed so many 'to dos' in such a short period of time.

the thing is my students told me they were not coming to class this friday because they were going to celebrate eid, this muslim holiday. this gave me the free day.

last wednesday 25 i came home when it was 10.40 in the night. my friend buk walked through the forest with me. we both stayed working late in the office. i devoted more than eight hours to my research this wednesday. got home starving and almost numb of tiredness, but since i wanted to go straight to bed i only had a bowl of cereal with milk and yogurt. to make matters really disturbing, i don't think i slept more than one and a half hour the whole night. i was tired but awake and didn't understand why. i just remained in bed seeing the hours pass all night long. had to get up at 6am because i had stuff to do before teaching at 9am. during the teaching this student of mine asked me if i had slept properly and reminded me of the arab coffee they had offered me while i was working in the office the wed night. oh no!!! it was the coffee that kept me with wide opened eyes. that was a nightmare. so i had this tired body for the rest of the day, but decided to stay at avenue as much as possible for the obvious heavy load of work i have to do.

again on thursday 26 i stayed in the office until sometime after 9pm, but not very productive anymore. i had gone to bed the night before around 11 on wednesday. actually i was thinking of reading a bit more before going to bed but i was way too tired to do so. i woke up at 7.30 today (friday). i had a list of things to do in this free friday. the day started windy and rainy, but i don't complain. it was a come and go rain, and it was not very cold. fine, indeed. here is the list:
1. uni for ticket to and from london (done) - relieved this one is sorted out. no need to worry about it anymore. just pack and be ready to go and come back
2. ssc bldg 40 (nope)
3. next (shop in shopping centre) to return a jumper (done) - important stuff because i didn't want to travel not having solved this one.
4. mobile (done) - very glad got this done
5. tk maxx for br shopping (done) - very glad i got kass' sunglasses. phew!
6. mom's xmas stocking (done) - but i am not too happy about it. i'll see if i find something better for her.
7. my shampoos (done) yey!!!

ah, not listed but happily accomplished, i had lunch at supreme restaurant. once again had my warm, delicious, wonton noodle soup. so comforting :-)

not listed here either, i also organized articles for my research and have now a plan in my mind on how to go about what i have to do. it should be fine. if i devote fair time and effort to my research i always feel i am in the right track, and i need it to feel fine. it is nice and fulfilling after all.

finally, more than ever, during these over busy and really difficult days, for various reasons, i have been very systematic in listing what i have to do, and my diary has been loaded. i of course don't always do everything, but at the end of the day if i can tick the things i did, well, this makes me feel so nice. it is interesting that i list some things and don't do them, for days in a row, but then i think about it and why i am being lax on them, because there must be a reason to it, of course. from the list i get to understand myself. sort of. it is just fair to ourselves that we acknowledge what we manage to do. it can be like a powerful file to be accessed in days of 'oh, i can't do a thing'.

ain't no sunshine when it rains

25 nov 2009

and the bad times?
and the good times?
and these days in UK with the sun that smiles; then the sun shied away from life by the punctual rain that wants to 'attend class' and keep the tradition; with the wind that sometimes takes you places you don't want to go, but that also takes away undesired feelings. again put on sunglasses, sun is back. not for long, though. rain is back.

and what about the always changeable weather from both the inner side and the surroundings of ourselves?
this is so much about life. i have just been wondering how true to life the weather here really is. i see people everyday complaining about it. it is very common to hear: 'horrible weather', 'horrible day' and . . . ah, another one that we received by email last year, when some activities were canceled due to 'inclement weather'. i find both the word used to name it and the weather itself romantic and inspiring.

it is very interesting indeed what happens here weatherwise, and i think it is a metaphor for life: it rains, then the day gets somber and dark, with a movie scenario of naked trees and the strong wind blowing their leaves elsewhere in search of shelter. then the sun is back, proving nothing lasts forever. sun, darkness, sun, rain, leaves blown away. life, here, there, and everywhere, i suppose.

it is not possible to do 'any' planned action no matter the weather, but we can learn to work around the weather, keeping an eye on how it has an impact upon our lives. it does pose some limitations, but it does open alternative doors as well. ain't it about life?

the monday market

23 nov 2009

every monday we have this nice market in highfield. they sell various goods: cookies, sausages, cheese, fruits and veggies, and there is this big stand with films and books. i've bought quite a few books in different occasions. this time i bought this one: 'lost in translation' (more to come on the film whenever i watch it).

why is it always a woman who sells the cookies? i bought one once, but it was not so good. i like moist, soft cookies, not the crunchy ones.

when i was checking the films out to choose one or more, i asked the man for the old movies. he said he had no clue where they are in his big table apparently well organized. he answered so quickly both informing me that he was not prepared to answer his potential client's quesion but also that he does not care much about his goods. it was a schocking surprise at first but then i recalle he had given me this sort of same answer long ago, maybe last year, when i came by and bought a different movie. he looks like somebody who will be able to deal with the clients and talk a bit on the products, but no, he is just there to get the movie for the films and hand the films over to the clients. very interesting way of making business.

this same 'help yourself' strategy i find in many shops around here. it is difficult for us who come from a culture where the client is informed of everything, including false promises about prices and delivery dates is that's the case. here they beleive that if they are after you to show you jumpers, trousers, sneakers, or whatever, they are bothering you. rather you should be left to make up your own free decisions. this was say to me by a friend who worked in a shop here. this distance from the client gives me the impression that there is no financial crisis going on in this country.

but this past monday i bought fruits and vegetables. the products are neatly displayed in a format that resemble a labyrinth, we walk through it already in the queue. i like the display of it, the planning and everything. we walk towards the cashier doing the shopping. i bought this 'use reuse recycle' cute bag because i had no other bag on me this time.

another point is that in many shops here they do not give us any bag anymore. we do have to pay for them. i see quite often people say 'no, thanks' for the offer to buy a bag. they bring something from here.
yes, let's do our little share in saving the planet.

mariko, a fantastica!

19 nov 2009
(post gerado de um email enviado a amigos sobre esse momento de beleza nas relacoes entre os mortais, no meio de dias dificeis pra mim. . .)

oi,

so pra compartilhar meu email com a Mariko, minha amiga japonesa que apresentou o piloto da pesquisa dela nessa semana no nosso grupo de pesquisa que tem encontros quinzenias ou mais proximos as vezes. a apresentacao dela foi sensacional!!!!! ela levou o padrao das apresentacoes la pras alturas. lascou quem vem depois. hehehe ela fez uma organizacao e analise dos achados super profissional. fantastica eh o minimo pra se dizer do trabalho dela. e o power point tava lindo demais. a pesquisa dela eh sobre crencas / atitudes a respeito do ingles de pessoas no sudeste da asia. ela vai cobrir varios paises, como por exemplo coreia, japao, china, tailandia. . .

eu mandei um email cedinho pra desejar boa sorte e ela apreciou tanto. as vezes a gente so oferece um sorriso e alegra e aquece o coracao da outra pessoa. eu queria compartilhar isso.

abraco beeeem grande pra voce,

morena

__________________________
_Yey!!!!! Mariko
Yes, I am going. I am very happy to have you as a friend as well.
See you soon
Kalina

_______________________________________

From: Kitazawa M.
Sent: 18 November 2009 16:34
To: Lima K.S.D.
Subject: RE: presentation

Thank you Kalina for everything!

You emailed me this morning with nice warm words, you showed up even if you had teaching in the Highfield, and now you gave me this very nice and kind e-mail again!!!! I'm really happy to have you - such a super nice friend!!! :)

I hope we can talk very soon (are you coming to the annual talk today??)- and let's hang out again!! Yey!
Mariko

o carrocel (das emocoes)

17 nov 2009

(this song is on and off in my mind all the time)

O Circo

Nara Leao by Sidney Miller Friends

Vai, vai, vai comecar a brincadeira
Tem charanga tocando a noite inteira
Vem, vem, vem ver o circo de verdade
Tem, tem, tem picadeiro e qualidade


Corre, corre, minha gente que eh preciso ser esperto
Quem quiser que ve na frente, ve melhor quem ve de perto
Mas no meio da folia, noite alta, ceu aberto
Sopra o vento que protesta, cai no teto, rompe a lona
Pra que a lua de carona tambem possa ver a festa


Bem me lembro o trapezista que mortal era seu salto
Balancando la no alto parecia de brinquedo
Mas fazia tanto medo que o Zezinho do Trombone
De renome consagrado esquecia o pr�prio nome
E abracava o microfone pra tocar o seu dobrado

off track

15 nov 2009 - sunday 1.39pm - avenue campus

i have been off track, basically. this is probably the most honest statement i utter in the last few weeks. now i am swamped with work, desperate because of deadlines, and feeling unproductive. this is a thesis statement of my text today, a synthesis of the whole situation.

i have made some decisions that would apparently help me keep focused in my main purpose here in uk, which is to carry out my phd research. that has been the truth, however. it all started over the summer and the situation has been going on and on and on. i need to understand it at least so that i can think of doing something about it.

for the summer i found a wonderful, rewarding, job. it was rewarding in various aspects: academically and professionally because it dealt exactly with my passion for writing and for academic life in general. so, being part of a team that was set up to help prepare international students for their academic life here was without a doubt superb, of course even helping myself in the same terms. it was also quite handy, actually, this job was a life saver, because the pay went directly to my fees here at uni.

but but but . . . the work did not stop after 10 weeks. i was very very glad i had the chance to teach the extra two weeks, but i now wonder if i did the right thing. i need to find time for my academic work here. and i have not done this lately. ros is very angry at me. i don't understand it all, as it gives me the feeling she doesn't trust me, but in a way she is right. if i had not had so much distraction from my research i would probably be in better shape concerning my plans to Brazil, for instance.

the toilet bulb

12 nov 2009

got home today to find this cute little note andy posted in the toilet door to let us know the bulb is gone but should still be repaired today. sweety!!! people may complain but i enjoyed having the shower in the dark for a change. it is not even too dark.

to spread out or not to spread out

11 nov 2009

today i got up feeling even worse, with a hoarse voice, and feeling pain all over the body. i asked myself how i was going to make it to the day, as i would have a class to teach at 9am. well, took a shower, had cereal with banana and yogurt, and headed to uni - avenue campus. i had spent the night coughing too much, and had coughed and sneezed a lot during the day yesterday. i took a bottle of water with me to the classroom and delivered the planned lesson of the day: tutorials. after a while i started to feel a little better.

i knew i had three appointments during the day: - lunch at noon with some friends, to celebrate hsuya's birthday; - a pgr talk at 1pm; and - a calr presentation at 5pm, about which i was highly interested (topic: elf). moreover, i didn't  want any nasty looks on me (remember i looked ill with the cough). i was really not sure whether i should go or not to the canteen for the lunch to start with, but i did go anyway. i did a little - and cynical - survey to feel people's acceptance on my current 'state of the art'. they were all admant in telling me i should not attend any of the talks of the day, and that i could go next week, trying to console me, and obviously to convince me to stay away with my germs. i was at that time - lunch time - thinking of going, cause i was no longer sneezing or coughing.

it was funny because later on i was at my desk, next to hsuya's, and najima came over to greet hsuya for her birthday. nagima took the chance to say that yes i should go to the calr presentation at 5. i also knew they would go to the cowherds after the presentation, as we did the other day. najima asked for hsuya's confirmation that i should come along, which she did, but i knew she thought i was not in the best shape to be in a closed lecture theater with lots of people. i didn't go, after all. i also had an extra good reason not to go: i have lots lots lots to do, about both my research and my teaching. one thing at a time, kalina. i decided not to spread out my so called swine flu. photos: notes posted on campus.

no limiar da exaustao

10 nov 2009

(post originado de partes de um email enviado a minha irma kassandra)

ontem o dia foi de correria insana, como tem sido as segundas-feiras, com aulas de manha e de tarde, e em highfield, onde nao tenho uma estrutura de escritorio que facilite minha vida e onde termino almocando qualquer comida nada recomendavel. ainda tive que ir em portswood na hora do almoco pra mandar preparar na farmacia o meu atenolol que tinha acabado no domigo. pra completar, a farmaceutica foi atender uma velhinha e eu tive que esperar pra ela liberar meu remedio.

dei 6 aulas ontem. durante uma aula, de tarde, minha exaustao era tao grande que eu achei que ia desmaiar. ai pensei 'quem vai me levantar'? haaaaaaa (to morrendo de rir) e segurei a onda. segunda de manha sao  aulas normais do programa de EAS, e de tarde sao as aulas de ingles academico pra alunos de mestrado em marketing, management, recursos humanos, economia e financas. as duas turmas bem interessadas e precisando da aula. . . minha cabeca conseguiu se concentrar e as aulas foram muito boas. acho que o compromisso e a concentracao me salvam muitas vezes.

supreme

07 Nov 2009

i've already mentioned here that i had a quite busy week and that i was feeling super tired. well, last night i went to bed around 11 o'clock, after doing some readings for my literature review. i was so tired last night i could not go to Viktoria's farewell party, which has made me feel bad, but i was not really in proper conditions for such an endeavour.

got up this morning still tired. i did a little work in the laptop and jumped back in bed. this jumping back in bed over weekends is something i hold precious as it is never possible on weekdays. even breaskfast today i had only after 9am. actually, i woke up around 7am, but remained in bed. . . 'so lucky to be me' but i actually sang 'so happy to be me' :-) (this is a line from a song). at first i doubted i was going to make it to city centre, because my list of to-do things was far from short. i ended up leaving  later than i had planned, but i did go and do practically everything listed. YEY!!!

after an invigorating shower i felt much better and ready to go. my list included places / shops such as: matalan, poundland, tkmaxx, supreme (chinese restaurant), bhs, boots pharmacy, aldi (went to asda instead). these are the places, along with a really long list of items to buy both for me and to take to brazil. i can't believe i did almost everything, calmly, despite the long queues everywhere and my being tired.

prescription for happiness

05 Nov 2009

highfield campus today 5 nov 2009

whenever you feel quite tired and fear you can no longer concentrate and be productive, i mean, those days  . . . when you're drained and all you see before your eyes (mind) is a bed, silence, and a fair rest. well, give your hairdresser a call and you may be lucky enough to find a free slot for an appointment. go ahead and get it. go to that hairdresser where people don't care much about others around, where they go to get rid of any sign of ugliness or ageing, where you can just sit, be treated, check out the gossip magazines . . . and after a little while you do look and feel so much better. and, guess what, you'll have had a quite productive day afterall.
that was me today. ah, on your way to the hairdresser do whatever else pleases you, such as taking pictures of . . . whatever.
cheers,
Kalina

'after a while, crocodile'

02 nov 2009

today i attended this great event from the portuguese studies folks. it was a pleasure to meet Astrid. i love the experience of listening to the author reading her poems and telling us about them, why she wrote them that way. she read the original protuguese and jaine beswick read the translation to english. great reading by jaine. loved it, too. astrid has a beautiful voice and seasoned the words with the forest accent as she comes from the amazon region. this accent is different from mine. when i listen to somebody reading poetry i feel like closing my eyes and just feeling it. also, listening to the author's reading give a particular interpretation, one that is different from mine. poetry should always be read out loud. here is my favorite, original followed by translation:

cave canem
dentro de mim ha cachorros
que uivam em horas de raiva
contra as jaulas da cortesia
e as coleiras do bom senso.
solto-os em nome da justica
tomada de coragem homicida.
mas sabendo que raiva mata
aa mingua de domar meus caes
vacinei-os. ladrem mas nao mordam
e caso mordam, nao matem.

oh happy day!

1st Nov 2009

oh happy day!!!!

                                             
i was planning to go for my inspiring walk in the Common this morning, but the day came up rainy and windy. i don't mind the rain, i can happily walk through it, the wind is a little problematic. moreover, it was pouring early in the morning, it was not really good to walk in that rain. so, i decided to stay home instead.

i have not even gone to avenue campus yet. i might go later on, but i doubt it. well, i stay home but that doesn't mean i have the whole day free to watch movies and have fun. actually, i am super busy with different materials to read for my research and also materials from the classes i am teaching now. the good thing about staying home is that here i listen to my soft jazz at itunes, from apple. right now listening to Carmen Mcrae. sooo good.

Vô Crescêncio e o alvorecer

Southampton, UK, 31 de outubro de 2009.

a foto do Vô Crescêncio eh afanada do facebook da Isabela Pinho, as do livro sao de minha autoria :-)

Book review

de Pinho, Crescêncio Marinho. Do alvorecer ao sol posto: retalhos do passado. Memorias. ABC Editora, Rio – Sao Paulo – Fortaleza. 2007


Acabei de ler esse livro com as memorias do Vô Crescêncio. Eita, nem sei por onde comecar esse meu primeiro ‘book review’. Isso mesmo, a delicia da leitura me fez pensar em compartilhar o conteudo desse livro precioso, que traz as memorias do menino sonhador que saiu de Sobral no dia 16 de julho de 1936, aos 18 anos, 7 meses e 5 dias de idade, para comecar uma outra jornada da vida nos varios lugares onde morou. Durante o livro todo Vô Crescêncio nos conta da vida em seu tempo, no Ceara da Monsenhor Tabosa (antiga Telha). O livro traz historia, aventura, cultura, conversa de gente braba, de gente preguicosa; enfim, de muita gente que cruzou o caminho do Vô Crescêncio.


Eh claro que o menino que, juntamente com a irma Maria pegou caxumba e quase precisava ser amarrado pra ficar quieto, nao ia ser queitinho nunca nessa vida. Uma memoria de Tamboril de quando estava com a familia, todos conversando na calcada, ilustra o espirito do garoto:
“Em dado momento, meti a mao no bolso superior da blusa e encontrei um prego, de uma polegada ou pouco menos. Dizem que em bolso de menino pobre nunca faltam prego e cordao. Da existencia do cordao, naquele dia, nao dou conta; quanto ao prego, la estava ele e quase me mete em encrencas. Retirando-o do bolso, levei-o aa boca, prendendo entre os labios. Talvez porque continuasse falando, o prego, desprendendo-se, escapou goela abaixo, antes de qualquer gesto meu para conter-lhe a descida. Sentindo que ele se me atravessava na garganta, dei o alarme. Foi um deus-nos-acuda. Deram-me a comer pedacos de banana, farinha e outras coisas mais consistentes, que pudessem o intruso na ‘caminhada’. Tal era a minha aflicao que nem sequer sabia o que estavam me dando a deglutir. Tudo, finalmente, voltou aa calma quando senti que nao mais estava sendo por ele incomodado.” (p. 21)

Clive the clever

28 Oct 2009

Clive the clever & the gold run at the Common

I have a hectic day ahead and decided to gor a little walk in the Common, again following my sister's advice. i hade a sore body, and feel very much out shape, i mean, i AM in a unique / bizarre shape at the moment and i wonder if this is physically only.

well, in the very entrance to the park i saw this man running. i try sometimes to run a little, even if for 5 seconds only, as part of my plan to carry out 'unimagined tasks' :-) . as i attempted to run this smiley man crossed the walking track to speak with me. he said something like:

'never run on this, always run on the grass. i am 80 years old and i've been running for 40 years. if you run on the hard surface your knees are gone after 20 years. always always try the softer ground to run. try and buy the best shoes possible and run or even walk in there (pointing to the grass). it is wet, your feet are going to get wet, but it is much better than spoiling your knees.'

the moves of the day

27 Oct 2009

at Lattes Cafe Bar with Hilra and Highfield Campus in Autumn 2009

Today i came to Highfield campus to teach an Academic English class on Management building. After that i came by Hilra's building (Education) to do something with her about my blog. We went up in this super secure lift which only the cool people can ride, such as Hilra and whoever is lucky enough to follow her, like myself today, as you need an ID to make the machine work.

Then we went for our agreed upon nice coffee at Lattes Cafe Bar, the staff club. We had our calories for the whole week (I had a chocolate muffin with coffee and Hilra had this unbelievably caloric fruit cake with coffee) in one single sit and talked about life. . . It is usually inspiring to talk with Hilra, and the conversation always goes on and on and on and on from one topic to the other in a very interesting flow that does not require clear cohesive devices to be coherent. What makes the whole bit coherent is our understanding and the freedom to speak up freely, which we certainly do.

It is amazing how we can find pleasure out of dealing with pain to an extent. It is really a puzzle to me sometimes that we choose to be around the ones with whom we can exactly talk about what worries us rather than just spending time with people to laugh only. . . My meetings with Hilra have been opportunities to explore thoughts, experiences, (im)possibilities and whatever the topic of the day is. Sometimes our conversation is so seriously around concrete worries, not only about ourselves, but also about others who relate to us, and it is so nice, so nice. And we say bye bye with the feeling that we still have this something else to say about whatever. hehehe

Well, today I had to bear with a new feature my friend Hilra is starting to display, which is a sort of neologism, well, not exactly neologism, but more like 'hibridism' in the sense that she, after having been living here for more than five years now does sometimes mix Portuguese with English. We clearly speak only one language at a time, which may in the end be another sort of symptom :-) but the point is we two try to keep being the naturally good Portuguese speakers that we are. My friend, however, is now with this little problem, so funny! She said she feels the need to buy two dictionaries to help her out on this issue, both of them starting with the letter O: Oxford dictionary (for English, of course) and Orélio dictionary (for Portuguese support, obviously).

Anyway, the main point of this post is to emphasize my rationale that no matter how busy you are, if you want to, you can manage to find a moment to spend with a friend and help and be helped in all ways. This Tuesday has been (it's 5.55pm now) a very busy day for me. Still, we had agreed to meet for a coffee today and the new things I had to add to my day to do as well, which represented round trips from highfield to avenue throughout the day, were not important enough for me to cancel our meeting. I am happy because these breaks during the day are so invigorating and should be part of life. It is like being responsible in a more harmonic way.

I feel so tired right now because I came to Highfield to teach 9 - 10:45 in the morning, spoke with Hilra from 11am to 1pm, walked back to avenue campus, grabbed a slice of pizza to eat, taught an EAS class 2 - 3.30pm, met with Chris Sinclair, walked back to highfield for an appointment here at 4.30. I am now free and waiting until the buses are not too packed with people. I need to buy fruits, but am not in the mood to go to supermarkets and queue up and carry heavy bags home.

I have to write an email to this one person to talk about something really bad that is going on now and is having an undesired implication on my personal life. I should stop torturing myself and just go ahead and write the email. duh!!!

Kalina Morena

bus stop at the Avenue, and Highfield Campus in colourful  Autumn 2009

nous allons voyager a Paris

26 Oct 2009

our French class today was so much fun. we were supposed to, in groups plan a trip to Paris. our group planned a trip for a four-day trip. my classmates are all so young and cute and nice, i like them very much. the activity was very  creative and practical. Manu, the teacher gave maps of Paris, a plan for the underground, the informaion about Eurostar, the train that travel through the English channel, and about hotels. well, when we were looking for a hotel my peers right away spotted a hostel, like any youngster naturally does when planning a trip. i found it so cute and smile. i suggested we picked an expensive hotel instead because Manu was going to pay for everything. they liked the idea and we decided to stay at a great hotel very close to Montmarte and to Sacre Coeur. 'au pied de Montmarte et pres de la basilique de Sacre Coeur.' the groups then had a chance to present their plans to class. we had a blast and Manu showed us his pockets were empty actually, with no money to pay for our trip, and said that he stays in Marseille, not in Paris. i told him everything is possible when you dream. he corrected my French to something like 'tout c'est possible quand on reve'.

Stacey Kent at the cathedral in Winchester

from yesteday - 24 Oct 2009

i have a hoarse voice from talking so much with my friends about the concert. i am sooo happy that they after the show asked me to tell them again whenever there is another concert for us to go together. awesome!!!

chilly and colourful autumn morning in highfield

23 Oct 2009

We had such a chilly and beauti

"living word"

from yesterday - 20 Oct 2009

the acude grande - Campo Maior - PI, Brazil

this is about our meeting yesterday from the group 'Living word'. It was our second meeting this school year. This time we had five more students coming along for the meeting. so nice to realize that the rain didn't sahy people away from coming to have this moment of quiet and peace.

Because it was at Catherine and Liliana's place, we took shoes off as we entered the house. This is actually very common around here and i find it cool for it helps keep the house quite clean. The house was by the way suuuper clean. So, we sat together in the lounge and started talking friendly, very nice atmosphere. i saw the people i had met the week before and also had a chance to meet new people, such as this Nigerian guy whose name insists in not sticking in my mind, this Brazilian guy who was adopted by a Maltese family and would love to visit Brazil at some point in his life and to speak Portuguese.

We are from both Solent University and the University of Southampton. Each week one university plans wht we do in our meeting. Yesterday was Solent's day. I like this a lot because it gives equal opportunity for the different uni guys to plan something they / we find interesting. We started off by singing two songs, with Liliana playing the guitar. I loved it. Liliana is in charge of the Solent Uni students whereas Catherine looks after us from the Uni of Southampton. I tried to concentrate in the words of the songs (church tunes) and to listen to the voices of the group singing together. It did feel good. The tunes were followed by a reading from the Bible - Luke 19, 1-10, about Jesus and Zachaeus. The guy who read studies performance and is an actor. He's got such a strong voice. He read the passage and made some comment about it. I honestly did not pay much attention to it. I think the opennes of having him read and make a comment might mean that in the future each one of us, or at least the ones interested in, can do the same.

Liliana then said a few words, making a connection with our talk from the previous week, which was about the reasons to pray, and then we had some quiet moment for individual prayer. this time anyone could speak up and say whom or why we should pray for. i remained quiet but my thoughts and my prayer were all devoted to a colleague of ours here at uni, who died about two days ago now. I will omit her name here because the most important thing for me now is that we reflect about death and why it happens sometimes when it should not have happened really. I thought, really did, of asking us to pray for her but held my piece because i was a bit insecure about the reception of the group on the terms of how her death happen: she committed suicide.

I remember when I was a child in Campo Maior, Northeast Brazil, one day I was told the Catholic church would not ring the church bells for the people who committed suicide. I remember not understanding it quite well, and finding it not so fair. It was a tradition at that time for the church to ring the bell to announce people's death in the city, so that everyone would know somebody died. I reproduced this practice yesterday, when i neglected my colleague of having the group have her in mind while praying. I did and i still do feel bad about it, in spite of my prayers having been devoted to her, for her to find peace.

My sweet Dorothy made a comment about suicide, saying that it is very sad when people make this choice thinking this is the only way out of any terrible situation when in fact there are various possibilities, always. I am left with my prayers.

- i picked a saying from the hand out we got yesterday:

"Prayer in my opinion is nothing else than a close sharing between friends; it means taking time frequently to be alone with Him who we know loves us." St. Teresa of Jesus

movie "Sukkar banat" or "Caramel"

this is the view from my window, and my feet resting a bit :-)

19 Oct 2009

i should be at uni now doing more reading and writing my literature review. instead, i decided to stay home and watch this very nice lebanese movie called originally Sukkar banat and Caramel in English, about the life of five lebanese women living in beirut. 

i do love and recommend the movie. it is very interesting that through cinema we have the chance for a flavor of other cultures and their peculiar perspectives on life. 'caramel' tells of the life of these five lebanese women who have different personal needs and possibilities and how they struggle in life. it also points out the common things between them, the beauty parlor being the main stage for this. the beauty parlor - with its sweet 'caramel' - i reckon stands for femininity and the inner search for outside look of ok & acceptable & attractive appearance that gives everyone, we all included, the impression that the situation is pretty much under control. but this is not enough, of course, to guarantee that life is indeed under control for them. that is clearly stated throughout the movie, so beautifully expressed in the song that talks about their search for identity. the song that plays in the end was, according to karen, a lebanese girl who is my flatmate, especially composed for the movie. this musician is married to Nadine Labaki, the movie Director. She plays layale, the main character in the movie. caramel is a must see movie.

the soothing song goes a little little this:
'mirror on the wall
listen to my story
tell me who i am'

another point that has drawn my attention is the language. i had no idea the arabic they speak in lebanon would sound very soft and display an enormous french influence. it actually has some french words incorporated to its daily speaking. 'merci' for this extra piece of precious information about the lebanese culture, nadine.

from the movie:
Sukkar banat or Caramel
- Director: Nadine Labaki
- Writers: Rodney El Haddad (writer)
             Jihad Hojeily (writer)
- Awards:3 wins & 2 nominations more
- Cast (Credited cast)
Nadine Labaki ... Layale
Yasmine Elmasri ... Nisrine (as Yasmine Al Masri)
Joanna Moukarzel ... Rima
Gisèle Aouad ... Jamale
Adel Karam ... Youssef
Sihame Haddad ... Rose (as Siham Haddad)
Aziza Semaan ... Lili
Fatmeh Safa ... Siham
Dimitri Staneofski ... Charles
Fadia Stella ... Christine
Ismaïl Antar ... Bassam

cheers,
Kalina

movie and book: 'Le scaphandre et le papillon'

 Jean-Do dictating his book. .

                                                               photo from wikipedia

 Le scaphandre et le papillon or The diving bell and the butterfly

I saw this movie a few days ago. It is impressive how Jean Dominique Bauby (Jean-do) managed to write a book by only blinking his left eye after he had a cerebro-vascular accident. At the beginning of the movie he is waking up from a 3-week coma after the accident. we see the room in the hospital from his perspective, from what his eyes manage to see. It is sort of disturbing. Well, the doctors and therapists come by and talk to him about his problem and explain to him he has this 'locked-in syndrome' and thus will need help for anything he might need or want. There is a strong scene when the doctor stictches his right eye. Jean-do is bedridden but his brain works perfectly. From his perspective we see the doctor coming close to him and saying that he is going to stich his eye because it is dry, no longer good. stitch by stitch we see a wondow being closed.

He start different therapies: physical, and speech therapy. we hear his thoughts throughout the film. he says that after the accident he only has his memories and his imagination left to him. when this therapist comes to help him she teaches him to dictate to her what he wants to say, by blinking his left eye. amazing!!! everyone should watch this movie and, i believe, read the book.

i ordered the book and already got it in the mail. i'll read it as soon as i have some free time.

from the movie
Director: Julian Schnabel

- Writers (WGA):Ronald Harwood (screenplay)
                           Jean-Dominique Bauby (book)
- Awards: Nominated for 4 Oscars. Another 40 wins & 33 nominations
- Cast (Cast overview, first billed only)

Mathieu Amalric ... Jean-Do
Emmanuelle Seigner ... Céline
Marie-Josée Croze ... Henriette Roi
Anne Consigny ... Claude
Patrick Chesnais ... Le Docteur Lepage

cheers,
Kalina

my 'carbonara, pero no mucho'

20 Oct 2009

I made this pasta carbonara today as part of my project to stay away from number one obligation: my PhD research. no, seriously, every time i cook i do it so that i can eat the food up to 4 times. mostly i cook pasta, with some variations, and add veggies to it.

the menu today:
Ginger, garlic, seasalt, crushed chilli (very hot), courgette, fresh mushrooms, seastick (immitation crab meat in the US and kani kama in Brazil), maybe three slices of ham, fusili, mustrd, olive oil, milk, and cream. i boiled the fusili, stir fried the garlic, crushed chilli, and ginger. Added the courgettes, fresh mushrooms, ham, and wait a little for it to cook some. then i added the boiled fusili, a dash of milk, wait a little. last ingredients to be added were the seastick and the cream. make sure it is really warm. Food is ready!!!
I added frozen (defrosted) veggies to the pasta. these frozen vegetables are very practical indeed. Leftovers are enough for three more meals. YEY!!! it was fine, but not so special. Mark: 7.5. my scale is 0 - 10.

want some?
cheers!!!

Living word - 'what's the point of prayer?'

Sunday 18 October 2009

........CATHOLIC SOCIETY
........dear all,a summary of what's on this week Cathsoc wise...

TUESDAY: 7.30pm at Chaplaincy we'll be beginning the 'Living Word' group.. an informal time of reflection and faith sharing together.. the theme for the first evening will be 'what's the point of prayer?'.

Praying for you all this week,Catherine

what you have above is the invitation from our Catholic Society here on campus. i deleted the other part of the message, as i will talk about our group meeting on Tuesdays only this time. Catherine sends us messages about what goes on every week. finally i managed to go this week to this discussion group. it was really nice. we were a total of eight people: Liliana and two other english students at Solent University (can't remember their names, but one's is Tom). Liliana coordinates for Solent University the same chaplaincy activities Catherine carries on for us here at University of Southampton. Plus Catherine, this other english guy, a girl from Sri Lanka, named Asha (suuuper talkative), and a french guy who came over a little late but still participate in the discussion. i DO want to speak english with a french accent. it is the coolest possibility ever. oh, and myself.

we read, prayed, and discussed. i really enjoyed the time for reflection and the opportunity to get to meet new people around.

Chilly morning at the Common

Sunday 18 October 2009

i went this morning for a very nice walk at the Common, this awesome park in the city. you can in a way get to it from so many different areas. I am in the Hants now, and when i walk for some 20 something minutes i get to Shirley. sooo cool.

when i left the flat it was making 3degrees, very cold indeed. but as you walk for a little while the body warms up and the first impression turns into something more relaxing. i went to bed almost 3 o'clock in the morning, as i was reading a nice article by Dick Allwright about one of his many studies in Brazil. i wasn't really very tired bu decided it was time to go to bed anyway because i had this walk for the early morning today and i know if i come to uni it is very likely that when i leave it here it is already too dark for a walk in the park. plus today i am planning to go to church, to our 6.30 mass in highfield campus.

when i was back from the walk i cooked myself some pasta (fusili) and added stir fried mushrooms and pesto sauce to it. i will have it with vegetables. by the way, the most practicl way of eating veggies aroung - ha!! i bought this bag with four individual packs of a mixture of veggies. i keep the bag in the freezer and whenever i want to eat it i just warm it up in the microwave oven. what else can a lazy soul ask for? but it is good, trust me :-)

the walking this morning was a suggestion Kassandra gave to me the other day. she said i should take a nice walk in the park over the weekend, especially because we are happy for 'things' that are going so right for me these days. YEY!!! therefore, i devote this happy walk to my sister, my lovely sister.

sooo much love, but now i'd better go back to work because i go by deadlines all the time - hellooo!!!

From Summer to Fall 2009 - changing places

from 19 Sept 2009

this day everyone was expected to vacate their rooms everyone in uni accommodation. i moved out of Montefiore 3 in Swaythling to St Margaret's hall, which is very close to the Common and also to Avenue campus, my main campus.

Montefiore is very beautiful and has nice gardens full of colourful flowers, surrounded by green, large, trees. this days was very busy, with loads of students moving in and out all day long. i was sitting for a long time in a bunch at the entrance, close to the reception, greeting people, chatting with my friend Campi, from Thailand, and taking pictures. the two musliim girls were quite happy to pose for me. i did all this while waiting for Ines.

it was a very smooth moving of houses :-) because i had some precious hands of friends all over the process.

the only belongings i ended up losing in the movinf out and in were my clothes rack, but Ines already gave a new one. and i happy. the other thing i lost was a little beautiful basil plant. i was really sad about it. when i bought it i got so scared of having it could die i realized that i don't buy much of this things is because i am afraid i won't be able to treat them properly and they'll end up dying in my hands. i just bought a new one, and it is in the kitchen now. i ate some of it last night night with my frittata (await for a post on this one).

A new start

Lovers walk is on my way to Avenue Campus

15 October 2009
6.22pm - Southampton, Hampshire, UK

I am trying to start a new blog, this time calling it The Soton Times, which is the name i informally have been giving to some of my writings about my experience here in the UK since September 2008.

For some reason my writings have had a little downfall these days. I believed it started over the summer, but it will come back as fruitful as it has been in good previous times, so i want it to.

i will add to this post later on, and include a photograph to it eventually.

cheers
Kalina

o calor da amizade

manha de segunda-feira 14 set 2009

(post escrito a partir de um email pra minha irma kassandra)

From: Lima K.S.D.

Sent: 14 September 2009 11:22
To: 'Kassandra Lima'; 'adieltaf@googlemail.com'

Subject:
Monday morning 14 sept 2009

Bom dia minha irmazinha linda e branquinha

Depois vou ler direito seu email de ontem. To super ocupada aqui. Esse email aqui eh so pra dar uma noticia breve. Comecei a escrever isso - abaixo - num scrap pra hilra e achei melhor espalhar a boa nova, ne nao? hehehe

[to aqui na uni, agarrada com o servico. ontem meu amigo adiel chegou e dormiu comigo no flat. que balsamo de alivio que Deus mandou pra mim. Fui encontra-lo no onibus. Ele veio de londres de trem, e desceu na estacao no aeroporto e pegou o onibus, que para ali quase em seguida onde moro. fomos caminhando pelo parque ate o pub otimo que tem la no final. jantamos e conversamos muuuuito mesmo. ah, vou mandar isso por email.
beijo e me diga como ta tu.]

Pois eh, adorei a chegada do adiel. Ele veio de Praga - republica tcheca, onde apresentou dois papers numa conferencia internacional, um com o pai dele, que eh tb prof da federal de pernambuco e outro com o pai e mais outro povo. Tudo ja publicado num livro chique demais. Como foi bom ele vir e especialmente nesse domingo que eu tava meio sem rumo e com coisas pra cuidar.

Antes eu tinha conversado muito e, claro, me acabado de rir com a hilra, mas nao podia ir pra rua vadiar.

le plat du jour

19 may 2009

le plat: penne with ham and black pepper and bacon with and mushroom omelette.

l'assiete: null

la boisson: english tea

at mercury point. funny days.

fly me to the moon

20 mar 2009

cynthia filmed me singing 'fly me to the moon' and jenny dancing to it at out prg kitchen on the avenue campus. we had lots of fun doing the video. click here for the video.

sunday around town

12 feb 2009

this was a nice sunday to go shopping and chatting. ines and we went first to asda where had lunch and then we walked around city centre. it is amazing how ines knows it all about everything, about the shops and the nice spots in town. she goes straight to the places and gets what she wants. very interesting. in spite of our obviously busy lives we always find time to meet and talk and we do talk a lot about various things. it is nice. she has helped me a lot by telling me about life here. in this cold winter she has been really helpful.

pra ver a neve cair

02 e 04 fev 2009 - The Soton Times‏
Sent: Wednesday, February 04, 2009 12:36:59 PM


02 fev 2009

bom, eu vim trabalhar mas nao apareceu nenhum aluno. portanto, eu faco aqui mais uma edicao desse jornal que aumentou em 2009 em 15% seu numero de assinantes.

seguinte: estavamos avisados, desde ontem, que hoje nevaria. ok. durante o dia cairam uns floquinhos 'flurries' simpaticos mas nada de neve grande. de noite nos fomos - de novo - jantar na casa do Peter, ex-marido da Margaret, a senhora dona da casa onde moro. era um encontro especial para a despedida do Adiel, que foi embora pra recife hoje de madrugada. fomos e - mais uma vez - foi um programa bacana, com conversa animada e, como dessa vez foi de ultima hora, pedimos pizza ao inves de jantarzao valendo. e tomamos vinho e tal.

ah, o Peter me ofereceu uma bebida fortissima. eu aceitei porque nao sabia o que era. acho que era como se fosse uma cachaca licorosa, porque era meio cremosa, mas era suuuper forte. provei e nao consegui tomar. no final da noite ele percebeu isso, eu pedi desculpas, e ele virou minha tacinha miuda de 'queima guela' num recipiente que ele usa pra guardar sobras de queijo. pode? pense na arrumacao! todo pedacinho de queijo que sobra ele bota la, e rega com bebida alcoolica, ou seja, sobejo de bebida alcoolica, e vai comendo o queijo embriagado. sera bom pra saude um servico desse? ele disse que come o tempo todo. eu cheirei porque outra pessoa na mesa tambem cheirou, mas 'Deusolive'. :-)

entao, como de rotina eu tirei umas fotos no jantar.

11.30h de 04 Fev 2009 (continuando)

faz tantos dias que nao escrevo como quero que essa edicao vai ter o proposito de tambem explicar minha 'ausencia', porque os dias tem sido cheios de atividades e extras e tal e coisa.

enquanto escrevo tomo um cha do Ceilao que comprei outro dia. caixa linda, mas o cha nao eh tao delicioso quanto o de Taiwan que eu tomo de vez em quando, oferecido pela Hsu Ya. eu quis o nome pra comprar por aqui, mas ela me disse que nao encontro mesmo aquele cha aqui. a proposito, aqui voce encontra lojas com comida do mundo inteiro. ate farinha a gente acha nas lojas paquistanesas e se chama 'gari'.

meu final de semana foi recheado de emocoes pela saida do Adiel e por eventos 'outros' e mais o estresse medonho de concluir um paper pra ser entregue na segunda-feira.

no domingo fui almocar na casa da Ines. o marido dela - Paul - cozinhou comida tipica dos domingos inglesas - 'roasted chicken and potatoes and steamed vegetables' frango e vegetais assados no forno com vegetais no vapor. estava tudo uma maravilha. ah, e tinha gravy pra botar na carne. delicia!!!! de sobremesa tomamos um sorvete sensacional e uma goiabada maravilhosa que o Adiel me deu. a Ines se atolou na goiabada com creme. foi um programa delicioso, bom papo, comida maravilhosa e tal e coisa e coisa e tal.

no domingo de noite teve a pizza de despedida do Adiel na casa do Peter. quando saimos de la a neve estava definitivamente chegando, porque durante o dia foi so uns floquinhos. chegamos em casa e eu com o Adiel conversando ate a hora que ele foi embora: 1 da manha de segunda. so ai fui retomar o servico no meu paper. fui dormir quase 3 da manha.

na segunda-feira, dia 2, me levantei cedinho porque a agenda eh apertada o dia inteiro, eu ainda queria ler pra revisar meu paper e ainda faltava - MESMO - concluir a analise de uns dados. nas segundas-feiras tenho aula de 9 as 11 e depois trabalho de 2 as 4 da tarde. o departamento que recebe os trabalhos esta aberto de 10 as 4 da tarde. eu estava so pensando no meu tempo apertado.

bom, acordei com o dia muito escuro - 6 e pouco da manha - e fui tomar banho. pense num frio! da janela do meu quarto eu vi o monte de neve nas casas e na rua e nos carros. quando abri a porta de casa pra ir embora encontrei o carro da Margaret coberto de neve e a planta que fica na porta tambem, e a calcada dela tambem, e a rua tambem. ai fui andando e vendo que a cidade toda estava coberta de neve. quando sai de casa era no maximo 8 da manha, dia escuro e quase todo branco. MAS o povo todo estava feliz!!!!

fui andando pela nossa rua, tranquila e fagueira, e, claro, tirando foto ;-) quando eu ia caminhando na Avenue eu reparei como os carros estavam dirigindo beeeeeem lentamente. cuidado extremo porque as ruas estavam muito escorregadias. quando me dei conta de toda essa mobilizacao, quem invade minha alma? Chique Buarque!!! e ai 'A Banda' ficou tocando direito na minha cabeca, porque a cidade toda para pra ver a banda passar, e eu querendo cantar 'a cidade - O PAIS! - toda/o parou pra ver a neve cair'. bom, nao rimou mas eu nao liguei. continuei cantando e pensando no que deve ter inspirado o Chico nessa obra de arte. pensei nessa musica e em como a neve mobilizou esse pais esses dias todos. no meio do caminho parei tres pessoas diferentes e pedi que elas tirassem minha foto. eu nunca tinha feito isso, mas alguma coisa no ar me dizia que era permitido interagir. todas as pessoas tiraram as fotos alegremente. geralmente quando o povo tira uma foto da gente aqui eles perguntam: 'ficou bom?' porque qualquer coisa eles tiram mais outra :-) mas ficou tudo otimo, eu achei. a ultima pessoa foi uma mulher. eu disse 'por favor, pegue a neve, a rua, eu, os carros, essas cores'. ela riu e disse 'ta lindo, num ta?' (it's so beautiful, isn't it?) eu so respondi com um sorriso confirmador e com minha pose pra foto.

sim, ai continuei caminhando rumo ao meu campus. atravessei o sinal pra ir atravessar mais uma rua e em seguida entrar na floresta antes de chegar ao campus (entre 17 e 20 minutos de casa ao meu campus). a foto de numero 26, eu acho, foi a ultima foto que tirei antes de levar uma senhora queda - haaaa. Eu cai sem chance de evitar a queda. Cai quando pisei na rua, saindo da calcada da igreja Saint Andrews. Pro tamanho da queda acho que me levantei bem e depressa. Os carros estavam dirigindo lentamente e cada um concentrado nisso. Nem sei dizer se alguem me viu cair. Mas o que a gente faz quando cai? Levanta, sacode a neve e da a volta por cima. Fui o que fiz, e continuei caminhando, agora pra entrar na floresta. Ai eu comecei a me preocupar, porque ja vi muita neve antes, mas NUNCA tinha levado uma queda sequer, nem mesmo no Tennesse com tantos ‘hills’ e ruas escorregadias, mas aqui eh muito umido, o que piora tudo. Nessa hora eu so pensei se meus joelhos doiam muito, e nao doiam. Isso me tranquilizou. Achei que estava inteiraca e fiquei admirada dessa sensacao porque a queda foi grande e a massa corporea aqui. . .

Ri um bocado da queda e andei um minuto, talvez dois. Tentei tirar uma foto de um banco lindo que eu adoro fazer fotos dele. Quase nao consigo fazer a foto. Tentei tentei e entao olhei pra minha camera e vi que o zoom estava um pouco amassado. Moral da historia: ontem fui a dois lugares tentar consertar e todas as pessoas me disseram que eu vou gastar o preco de uma nova pra consertar aquela. Ela me custou 1.000 reais no brasil. Os amigos dizendo que eu deveria ficar feliz porque estava inteira e a maquina quebrada e nao o contrario. Ok.

Cheguei na sala de aula e falei que tinha caido. Gargalhada geral. Moral da historia: curticao com a queda dos outros nao tem nacionalidade. Muita gente bem atrasada e quase metade da turma caiu no caminho pra ca. Erica, uma funcionaria do centro de linguas, foi hospitalizada porque caiu e quebrou a mao.

Recebemos emails cancelando eventos, dando dicas do que fazer, avisando do fechamento antecipado de bibliotecas, onibus parados e o conselho pra irmos pra casa cedo e com cuidado. Aqui estao dois emails apenas pra ilustrar.

Esse primeiro eh da Ros Mitchell, minha orientadora. Veja que ela eh compreensiva com quem nao pode vir mas ali mesmo da as instrucoes pro proxim dia. Sem tregua no batente.

________________________________

From: Prof Rosamond Mitchell
Sent: 02 February 2009 15:13
Subject: LING6002 update: LING6002-16889-08-09
Dear LING6002 participants


Congratulations to everyone who made it into class today, over slippery paths! Take care on the way home!
If you didn't make it to class today, but still want to take the unit, please join us at the NEXT class (Friday 6 Feb at 1100 in 65/2151. (Workshop on transcription using Soundscriber and CHAT.)


We will take some time on Friday to discuss/ develop your ideas for team research projects. On the Blackboard "Discussion Board" for the unit, you can see the list of classmates interested in different general areas. You don't have to wait until Friday to start talking!


And finally - in preparation for Monday 9 Feb, please read AT LEAST ONE of the Ethics Guidelines available in theBlackboard "Course Documents" page.


Best wishes
Ros

- Esse outro email eh avisando que a biblioteca do nosso campus vai fechar mais cedo.

_______________________________________

From: M.A.Homan
Sent: 02 February 2009 14:20
To: WebSISGroup
Subject: Avenue Campus Library to close earlier today


In view of the adverse weather conditions (conditions which are not improving), and the need for staff to travel home safely, the Avenue Library will be closing at 5pm this evening as opposed to the usual 7.25pm. We apologise for any inconvenience caused.


Nick Gates
Avenue Library


Consegui, com muito aperto e correria, concluir o paper de 4.500 palavras e submete-lo um pouco antes de 2 da tarde. As 2 fui trabalhar de novo. Tem um assunto otimo do trabalho, mas deixa pra depois porque eh historia longa demais e MUUUUITO inter-multi-cultural. Eu adooooro!!!

Na segunda de noite eu estava exausta. Fui embora em torno de 4 da tarde. Conversei um pouco com a Margaret e comi um pouco. Quando tentei escrever emails e mexer nas fotos comecei a me dar conta de dores fortes nas costas e na canela. E mais um cansaco enorme, que acho que foi o acumulo de muitos dias. Acho que ate mesmo ter concluido o paper e poder ir pra frente me deu essa sensacao de esgotamento. Da um vazio as vezes. Bom, antes de 10 da noite eu fui dormir, pensando em escrever e responder varios dos emails que tinha pra fazer, tanto de trabalho como pessoais, - perdao ai pelo atraso – e tambem em editar as fotos, mas nao aguentei. Comecei e nao terminei de rezar um terco.

Na terca-feira, ontem, acordei mais ou menos 5 da manha, disposta e tal. Vi pela janela que havia mais neve ainda. Cade minha maquina fotografica? )-: dessa vez fui caminhando bem devagar, com medo de cair de novo. Eu tinha aula no outro campus, que eh mais longe ainda. Pensei em tomar o onibus, mas nao queria perder a oportunidade de apreciar um dia tao diferente e especial. Segui as recomendacoes de tomar cuidado da Ines e dos amigos, e fui pisando de preferencia onde ninguem tivesse pisado ainda. No Avenue campus encontrei meu amigo Abuklaish, que eu so chamo de Buk e ele morre de rir, e fomos juntos pro Highfield campus, eu de vez em quando me agarrando no braco dele e pense no grito quando levei uns 3 sustos de queda.

Aqui so se fala no tempo tao diferente. Ha 18 anos atras eles tiveram neve assim em Southamptom. Todo mundo brincando na rua, fazendo homem de neve, enfim uma festa sem lista de convidados. Todos so curtindo o presente da natureza.

Ontem de manha eu assiti o noticiario enquanto me arrumava e um telespectador ligou pra tv e pediu ‘please, do not talk about snow anymore’. Os jornalistas riram.

Fotos do comecinho de fevereiro: http://kalinamorena.nafoto.net/lastPeriod.html
Fotos so da neve: http://kalinamorena.nafoto.net/photo20090203180158.html
Fotos do fotolog todo: http://kalinamorena.nafoto.net

Enfim, fique ah vontade pra ver essas e outras, mais antigas. Eu editei algumas pra diminuir o numero de fotos mas achei mais justo mostrar a paisagem toda, que me tirou o folego, que fez a cidade parar pra ver a neve cair. To cantando!

Abraco muito grande e saudades . . .

Kalina

- (saindo da neve e entrando na Linguistica)

Hoje de tarde vou assistir a palestra do Michael Swan. Grande nome! Essas palestras acontecem a cada 15 dias e quase sempre servem vinho antes com alguma merendinha. Esse campus eh diferente do que eu tinha visto nos estados unidos: aqui pode-se consumir alcool.

aqui o convite para a palestra:

From: Prof Jennifer Jenkins
Sent: 03 February 2009 13:29
Subject: CALR seminar tomorrow, Wednesday 4th February: ML-6000

CALR seminar Wednesday 4 February (17:00 -18:30) in Lecture Theatre C
Professor Michael Swan of St Mary’s University College, Twickenham will be asking: CALR seminar Wednesday 4 February (17:00 -18:30) in Lecture Theatre C
Professor Michael Swan of St Mary’s University College, Twickenham will be asking:


'What is grammar?'
Abstract: We all know what grammar is - until somebody asks us. The speaker will look beyond the rather unhelpful dictionary definition ('rules for changing the form of words and combining them into sentences') to consider the following questions:
What exactly is 'grammmar'?
Why do languages need it?
What can be communicated without grammar - and what can't?
Why do different languages use grammar in such different ways?

All welcome!

arakatuba - great music

The Soton Times - 13 Jan 2009‏ (as it was sent by email)

From: Kalina Lima (kalinasaraiva@hotmail.com)
Sent: Tuesday, January 13, 2009 2:08:10 PM

Arakatuba

ontem, dia 12 de janeiro, eu vi um show de musica brasileira que me jogou numa orbita magica e de onde eu gostaria de nao precisar sair mais.

seguinte: as segundas-feiras eu tenho aula de 'Descrition of Language' no Highfield campus, de 11 da manha a 1 da tarde. 1 da tarde temos reuniao do curso no outro (nosso) campus, o Avenue campus, que he onde fica o centro de humanidades http://www.humanities.soton.ac.uk/.

bom, assisti minha aula na boa. a aula terminou 15 pra 1. estavamos todos nos dirigindo pro outro campus, quem tinha levado guarda-chuva (como eu) estava abrigado da chuva, quem nao tinha se encostava em alguem ou ia mesmo na chuva. eu ja fiz isso muitas vezes e eh muito eh bom.

la vou eu quase subindo uma escadaria antes de entrar na floresta, e la vem na direcao contraria quatro pessoas: a americana Cassandra, e tres alemaes: a Gabi (professora aqui), o Hauke (aluno aqui) e uma outra menina que conheco muito mas nao sei o nome. bom, esse povo eh de Transnational studies. http://www.transnational.soton.ac.uk/ tudo gente que adora as culturas mundo afora, e america latina em especial. Cassandra e Hauke falam portugues. Cassandra fala muuuito bem mesmo. nao falei muito com o Hauke ainda em portugues, mas sei que ele estuda e tem interesse no brasil e tal e coisa.

entao, a Cassandra me perguntou ali se eu nao tinha recebido a mensagem que ela me mandou. eu falei que nao, pensando que tinha sido por email. ela tinha me mandado pro celular, mas eu nem olho pra celular durante o dia. ele fica no silencioso quase sempre. eles estavam indo pro Turner Sims Hall, um teatro lindo no campus, pra ver um show de musica brasileira. e me arrastaram. eles estavam tao empolgados com o programa, e eu ando tao cheia de coisas .. . . e leituras. . . e prazos. . . e tal. . . que nao tive duvida: dei meia volta e fui pro teatro com eles. nao tive tempo de avisar ninguem. eu na fila pra entrar no teatro e pensando no Adiel, que deveria talvez estar no campus, mas nao tive nem tempo de ligar pra ele.

entramos no teatro - LIIINNNNDO - e sentamos quase na frente. teatro quase que completamente lotado. eu fiquei impressionada, por todas as razoes: horario, falta de anuncio, musica brasileira. . . essas coisas. mas o teatro estava lotado e povo notadamente feliz com a performance do grupo.

a apresentacao foi SENSACIONAL!! a primeira musica que eles tocaram foi um chorinho da Chiquinha Gonzaga. a banda - Arakatuba - eh coordenada por um moco chamada Bosco de Oliveira. eles falou em bom ingles entre as musicas, antes do show, explicando o ritmo, a letra, o autor, uma beleza! assim que terminou a primeira musica ele explicou que ela eh composicao da primeira feminista Brasileira, Chiquinha Gonzaga, e que foi composta em 1897. falou que eh um tango brasileiro. eles tem tantos instrumentos de percussao sensacionais. eu nao sei nem os nomes, nao sei mesmo, mas o efeito, o som, fiquei encantada com tudo. e gostei de ver umas mocas bem novinhas ali na fila da frente puxarem um aplauso caloroso no meio da musica. ah, entre os instrumentos tinha um pau de chuva, bem pequeno, lindo. ate pau de chuva pode ser pequeno - hehehehe. nao resisto e tenho que comentar :-)

publico suuuper atento e silencioso pra sentir mesmo a musica. eles tocaram Paulinho da Viola, Baden Powell, Villa Lobos, Paulinho da Viola, tocaram uma gafieira, e composicoes do Bosco tambem.

o clima do show me invadiu e quando eu estava sentada ali no auditorio so um pensamento me ocorreu: a melhor coisa da minha vida eh ser brasileira. como nos temos alma!!!

infelizmente eu nao pude esperar ate o fim do show. sai as 15 pras 2, porque ia trabalhar as 2 horas. mas a menina alema me disse mais tarde que eles tiveram que terminar as 2 e tal. mas eu queria ter falado com eles. eu ainda disse 'chorinho' quando ele tava falando da Chiguinha Gonzaga sem usar essa palavra. . .

ai vim PILHADA caminhando de volta pro meu campus, toda feliz e visivelmente alegrissima! o povo que me via ria e eu sai contando pra todo mundo que tinha acabado de ver uma show de musica brasileira. meu amigo de Taiwan disse (porque eu nao fui pra nossa reuniao pra ir pro show): 'that's ok'. eu cheguei aqui no campus e corri pra comprar um sanduiche de salmao e uma coca, porque tava ficando atrasada e precisava comer alguma coisa. encontrei meus alunos no restaurante. eles fizeram a festa, pq estavamos nos vendo pela primeira vez esse ano. eu falei pra ele sque talvez me atrasasse uns 3 minutos. ai eles me disseram que eu poderia me atrasar 10 minutos, rindo (aluno eh do mesmo jeito em todo lugar).

comi e fui trabalhar. feliz!!!! parece que o show deu uma carregada nas minhas baterias, mas tao grande que eu nem sei explicar direito. quando eu sai eles estavam tocando Edu Lobo: currupiao. quando eles falaram em Edu Lobo fiquei pensando na minha mae, que adoooora o Edu Lobo. ai fui embora com esse sentimento de leveza, de agradecimento a Deus por ter dados ah Benilde e ao Mamede a sorte de me fazerem nascer brasileira. JUUURO que pensei nessas coisas. sim, ai sai serelepe e PILHADA - parece que essa palavra chega perto do que senti, e cantando, ate hoje eu vim cantando na rua: 'Upa neguinho na estrada, upa pra la e pra ca. . . vixe que coisa mais linda. . . upa neguinho comecando a andar comecando a andar . . .' e tal!

ontem de noite eu fiz uma pesquisa no google sobre esse povo. tem um site onde a gente escuta a musica otima deles, de graca, mas so se a pessoa estiver nos estados unidos. (nao se pode ter tudo).

durante o show inteiro nos dancamos nas cadeiras, vibramos, e eu olhando pros alemaes com cara de boba engracada pela propria cachaca. que bom viver isso! que bom que existem pessoas que leem (sem acento - ui!) a identificacao com o mundo pela leitura da alma, dos sons. eh ler de olhos fechados. magica pura!!!!!!!

abracos felizes,

Kalina