Michael Buble vs. Josh Groban

Wise Words...

Второе рождество

(1915)


Белый праздник - рождается предвечное Слово,
белый праздник идет, и снова -
вместо елочной восковой свечи,
бродят белые прожекторов лучи,
мерцают сизые стальные мечи,
вместо елочной восковой свечи.
Вместо ангельского обещанья,
пропеллера вражьего жужжанья,
подземное страданье ожиданья,
вместо ангельского обещанья.

     Но вихрям, огню и мечу
     покориться навсегда не могу,
     я храню восковую свечу,
     я снова ее зажгу
     и буду молиться снова:
     родись, предвечное Слово!
     затепли тишину земную,
     обними землю родную...

- З.Н.Гиппиус

Thanks to Katharina Tiwald for sharing this with me! 

You always find the perfect words, even if they're not your own...

Merry Xmas!

[ via violet lightning ]

Wunderschöne Weihnachten! 

Merry Christmas! 

Счастливого Рождества! 

Vesele Vianoce!

 

Feeling of the Day...

[ via we ♥ it ]

I have always thought of Christmas time, when it has come round, as a good time; a kind, forgiving, charitable time; the only time I know of, in the long calendar of the year, when men and women seem by one consent to open their shut-up hearts freely, and to think of people below them as if they really were fellow passengers to the grave, and not another race of creatures bound on other journeys. 

~ Charles Dickens ~

Feeling of the Day...

[ Orest Kiprensky - Portrait of Alexander Pushkin, 1827 ]

Dearer to me than a host of base truths is the illusion that exalts.
  ~ Alexander Pushkin ~

Перемен

Вместо тепла - зелень стекла,
Вместо огня - дым,
Из сетки календаря выхвачен день.
Красное солнце сгорает дотла,
День догорает с ним,
На пылающий город падает тень.
Перемен! - требуют наши сердца.
Перемен! - требуют наши глаза.
В нашем смехе и в наших слезах,
И в пульсации вен:
"Перемен!
Мы ждем перемен!"
Электрический свет продолжает наш день,
И коробка от спичек пуста,
Но на кухне синим цветком горит газ.
Сигареты в руках, чай на столе - эта схема проста,
И больше нет ничего, все находится в нас.
Перемен! - требуют наши сердца.
Перемен! - требуют наши глаза.
В нашем смехе и в наших слезах,
И в пульсации вен:
"Перемен!
Мы ждем перемен!"
Мы не можем похвастаться мудростью глаз
И умелыми жестами рук,
Нам не нужно все это, чтобы друг друга понять.
Сигареты в руках, чай на столе - так замыкается круг,
И вдруг нам становится страшно что-то менять.
Перемен! - требуют наши сердца.
Перемен! - требуют наши глаза.
В нашем смехе и в наших слезах,
И в пульсации вен:
"Перемен!

- Цой Виктор

[ via NoMoreLyrics ] 

Die Originalversion von Viktor Zojs Перемен: "Wandel! fordern unsere Herzen. Wandel! fordern unsere Augen. In unserem Lachen, in unseren Tränen und im Puls der Adern: Wandel! Wir erwarten den Wandel!"

Gestern sangen die Menschen auf den Straßen von Moskau das Lied Перемен von Viktor Zoj. Das Lied stammt von 1986, hat aber an seiner Intensität und Ausdruckskraft nichts eingebüßt. Eine kleine, feine Amateur-Übersetzung davon:

Anstelle von Wärme - grünes Glas,
anstelle von Feuer - Rauch,
aus dem Netz des Kalenders wurde ein Tag herausgerissen.
Die rote Sonne verbrennt völlig,
der Tag verbrennt mit ihr.
In die lodernde Stadt fällt ein Schatten.
Wandel! - fordern unsere Herzen.
Wandel! - fordern unsere Augen.
Und in unserem Lachen und in unseren Tränen
und im Puls unserer Adern: “Wandel! Wir erwarten den Wandel!”
Das elektrische Licht verlängert unseren Tag,
und die Zündholzschachtel ist leer.
Aber in der Küche brennt das Gas als blaue Blume.
Die Zigaretten in der Hand, der Tee auf dem Tisch - der Plan ist einfach,
aber nichts ist mehr, alles liegt an uns.
Wandel! - fordern unsere Herzen.
Wandel! - fordern unsere Augen.
Und in unserem Lachen und in unseren Tränen,
und im Puls unserer Adern: “Wandel! Wir erwarten den Wandel!”
Wir können nicht prahlen mit der Weisheit unserer Augen
und geschickten und zähen Händen.
Wir brauchen das alles nicht, um einander zu verstehen.
Die Zigaretten in der Hand, der Tee auf dem Tisch - so schließt sich der Kreis.
Und plötzlich wird uns bange, etwas zu verändern.
Wandel! - fordern unsere Herzen.
Wandel! - fordern unsere Augen.
In unserem Lachen und in unseren Tränen,
und im Puls unserer Adern: “Wandel!”

DANKE MARITA!

[ via maglog ]

Feeling of the Day...

[ via we ♥ it ]

Blessed is the match consumed in kindling flame
Blessed is the flame that burns in the secret fastness of the heart.

~ Hannah Senesh ~

Feeling of the Day...

[ via we ♥ it ]

No shade, no shine, no butterflies, no bees,
No fruits, no flowers, no leaves, no birds - November!
~Thomas Hood ~

Feeling of the Day...

[ via we ♥ it ]

Wise Words...

[ via we ♥ it ]

Feeling of the Day...

[ via Listen To Your Heart ]

Feeling of the Day...

[ via step into tomorrow ]

I don't believe in pessimism. 

If something doesn't come up the way you want, forge ahead. 
If you think it's going to rain, it will.

~ Clint Eastwood ~

A World Stage...

The new World Stage film: Principal of The Royal Ballet Lauren Cuthbertson dusts on the chalk for a balletic take on the beam event in a promotional film for the 2011 winter season - obviously under Olympian influence. 

 

Music: "Still Life" by The Horrors

 

[ via Royal Opera House ]

Feeling of the Day...

[ via we ♥ it ]

A healthy mind has an easy breath.  

~ Author Unknown ~

Feeling of the Day...

[ via Sorry but this is me! ]

Tea is a cup of life. 

And cookies, of course.

They warm your soul...

Ohne Worte...

[ via Stefan R. Falk ]

Hmmm... was soll man da noch sagen?!

Randomness...

[ via we ♥ it ]

Haha, that's so like me...

Feeling of the Day...

[ via we ♥ it ]

[S]leep is the golden chain that ties health and our bodies together.  

~ Thomas Dekker ~

Feeling of the Day...

[ via we ♥ it ]

There is a harmony in autumn, 

and a luster in its sky, 

which through the summer is not heard or seen, 

as if it could not be, as if it had not been!  

~ Percy Bysshe Shelley ~

Feeling of the Day...

[ via we ♥ it ]

Delicious autumn!  
My very soul is wedded to it, 
and if I were a bird I would fly about the earth 
seeking the successive autumns.  

~ George Eliot ~

Mozart, queues and the art of sleeping with eyes wide open...

Yesterday my mom and I went to the Wiener Musikverein. We've got an subscription of the Wiener Symphoniker orchestra. Last night was the first concert of the new season. It was Mozart and Mahler. I especially admired the conductor, Lothar Zagrosek, who stood in for Fabio Luisi on short notice. I didn't know him before but he did a great job.

If it says Mozart on the program, you can be sure of a) a sold out concert hall and b) massive applause and c) lots of Japanese students in the audience (no offence, they just seem to love Mozart above anything else!). The Serbian pianist Jasminka Stancul played really well and gave an impressive encore. Applause didn't seem to fade for like 15 minutes - she had to come back on stage 5 times.

I usually spend the first half of the concert fighting against my body's urgent desire to fall asleep. It's just the time between 7.30 PM and 8.30  PM... What saves me every time is the program booklet and the latest issue of their monthly magazine. Reading those also highly adds to my classical music education - you'd be surprised what I know...

(I also realized I missed several really great concerts in September: the Tchaikovsky Symphony Orchestra from Moscow, conducted by V. Fedoseyev, played  Tchaikovsky's Violin Concert No.2 and Piano Concert No. 1 (2 of my all-time favourites by one of my all-time favourite composers) among other pieces and also works of Shostakovich whom I really love, too. Must have been the summer break - I am so out of date...)

After that we had the coffee break. Meaning I spent those 20 minutes first fighting my way through the masses to the coffee bar (why do people always have to gather/stand at the narrowest places, like doorways?!), getting my coffee - getting to the milk wasn't so easy though. Sometimes I wish I could drink black coffee, without anything. I spent the rest of the break standing in queue at - guess where?! - the toilet. As much as I love old buildings, they do lack infrastructure sometimes... (Really, one toilet for so many ladies?!)

And then Mahler started. I do love symphonies. And there were some great moments in that one. But Mahler (like Wagner and Bruckner) just never ends. Or so it seems. And I'm not getting the idea behind. It sounded to me like several independent pieces, just performed one of another (unlike the Russian symphonies for example or Beethoven. I always "feel" the story in it.). You could really feel the audience getting sleepy AND uneasy after a while. Like they were just waiting for the end. The lady next to me was snoring peacefully while my mom was fighting her cold. Running noses in a place like that can be very frustrating. There's a tiny break after each movement... It's always funny to see how many people have to cough, blow their nose, sneeze or clear their throats at the same moment... As if they had all been waiting for just that moment! Always makes me smile... At the end, the applause felt more like a relieve - compared to the franctic enthusiamn for Mozart and his piano concert. (And I have to confess I was happy to go home at 10PM!)

Being Ill...

When tightness crawls up the nose,

Slime slips down the throat,

Limbs grow cold and mind is fuzzy…

Now’s the time to save those words,

Now’s not the time for mountain climbing,

Those distant cloudscapes are better saved,

For when red blood pumps adventures’ call

Now its time to crawl abed,

To huddle under warm blankets,

Hot water bottle for a stomach,

Ten thousand pillows for a neck,

Movies for eyes and music for ears,

A fantasy for life held in stasis,

And deep dark sleep,

Where the cave of healing brings relief

Till once again health’s bright morning

Creeps under eyelids

With new horizons for the soul,

But for now the King’s trumpets do not call…

Sleep on.

 

by Mark B. Williams

 

 [ via The Mirror of Truth ]

Feeling of the Day...

[ via chibird ]

I just hate being sick...

Coffee Addict...

[ via white love cat ]

Just something about my (recent) coffee addiction. Plus it's cute. And because I live in Vienna, the metropolis of coffee and coffeehouses. Yes, we do have like a hundred different types of coffee here...

Feeling of the Day...

[ via we ♥ it ]

Yes, summer is definitely over. Today I stored away my sandals and replaced them with woolen hats and gloves. Plus I've got a heavy cold again. The usual sign of autumn...

Feeling of the Day...

[ via Cornelia Wahlberg ]

It's officially the end of summer today...

Feeling of the Day...

[ via we ♥ it ]

Health is a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being, 

and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity.  

~ World Health Organization, 1948 ~

Sound Garden...

Turn up volume to maximum level. Wow. Two of the greatest voices ever. Found it by pure chance and it's brilliant. (As is the rest of the album, really.) I have to confess I never cared that much about Placido Domingo - my all-time favourite and superhero where great voices are concerned has always been Pavarotti. But everytime I kind of stumble across him, I find something new, amazing. I especially love the song with Josh Groban but the whole album is so worth the purchase. I know I'm being a bit pathetic but it's my kind of "drool over" song...

La Tua Semplicitá - Plácido Domingo & Josh Groban
from "Amore Infinito" by Placido Domingo (Songs inspired by the poems of Johannes Paul II - Karol Wojtyla)

And here's a bit from the recoring session...

Weekly Cycle...

Since uni starts again tomorrow - and together with work full-time next Monday...

[ via chibird ]

Feeling of the Day...

[ via Listen To Your Heart ]

Clocks slay time... time is dead 

as long as it is being clicked off by little wheels; 

only when the clock stops does time come to life.  

~ William Faulkner ~

La Cuisine...

 

I finally had the time to get into my kitchen, again. I love baking. And it's rather cold today in my apartment. Plus I still had so many pears from our garden. Those muffins are perfect for a cold day, together with some strong coffee or tea. And ideal for breakfast, too - if you have a sweet tooth like me. They are not too sweet, though - as they are without any sugar and without butter. That's why some sweet jam, apple jelly or apple sauce is just a perfect accompaniment for them. The slightly bitter taste of orange marmalade goes pretty well with those, too. They are quick and easy to make and you can store them for a few days.

Pear & Ginger Muffins
[ adapted from Sophie Dahl ]

Preparation time: ~ 45 minutes (incl. baking)

Ingredients
makes 12 muffins

2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp natron (baking soda)
1 tsp ground ginger
1 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
145 g spelt flour
150 g oats
225 g pear mash (like the baby food)
4 egg whites, slightly whisked
125 ml joghurt
1 firm pear, peeled, cored and cut into cubes
110 g raisins

Preparation 
Preheat oven to 180°C (356°F). Grease muffin pan for 12 muffins with oil - or use paper baking cups. Mix baking powder, natron, ginger, cinnamon and nutmeg in a big bowl. Add flour and oats. Make a little deepening in the centre and and all moist ingredients including the pear and raisins. Stir carefully. Put into forms so that each mould is filled up to 2/3. Bake at 180°C (356°F) on medium shelf for about 25-30 minutes until golden. Best served warm together with sweet fruit jam or sauce.

Bon appetite!

[ click here for the German version ]

 

Feeling of the Day...

[ via nya nya nya ]

Le Inspiration...

[ via chibird ]

Feeling of the Day...

[ via we ♥ it ]

If you don't get everything you want, 

think of the things you don't get that you don't want.  

~ Oscar Wilde ~

Tutoriumsseminar 2011

... oder das Seminar der verbrannten Unterhose...

Jaja, wir hatten einen ziemlichen Spaß. Nebenbei wurde sogar ein bisschen gearbeitet - und zwar ziemlich produktiv. Die Gruppe war super. Abgesehen von neuen Arbeitsmethoden und (mehr oder minder unfreiwilligen) gruppendynamischen  Erfahrungen habe ich folgende Erkenntnisse aus diesen 4 Tagen in Mondsee mitgenommen:

Unser Motto: zuerst schießen, dann Fragen stellen!

Wenn das Holz zu nass für's Lagerfeuer ist, kann man auch einfach seine Unterwäsche verbrennen! (Wir haben da auch einen Spezialisten, der gerne mit Rat und Tat zur Verfügung steht...)

At night in the woods... man sollte immer eine Taschenlampe mitnehmen. Planung (zumindest ein bisschen... in irgendeiner Form) empfiehlt sich.

Nach 5 Jahren kann man zum Proto-Tutor aufsteigen. Bevorzugterweise Proto-Bulgaren.

Das Wetter in Mondsee ist einfach besser als in Wien! Ende.

Der Plan: Weltrevolution! Eh wie immer...

Außerirdische Kinder und ungarische Pornodarsteller sind Scheidungsgründe.

Unbedingt einmal im Leben das Tata Museum besuchen! Gleich nach den Patronas Towers... ^_^

Zukunftsperspektiven nach dem Slawistik-Studium: immer noch keine! Yay!

Wort des Tutoriums: Ich hätte gerne ein bisschen... Scheisse, scheisse! 

Man nehme die letzten beiden Wörter und hänge sie zur Bereicherung jeglicher Kommunikation einfach hinten an jeden x-beliebigen Satz! ^_^ 

Und damit... Good night and good luck! Aja... und ein erfolgreiches Erstsemestrigen Tutorium!

Le Inspiration...

[ via IAESTE ]

Bern... one of my favourite places on this planet. And not just because one of my all-time favourite people lives there. I fell in love with this (tiny) place the first time I came there... and it's been far too long already since my last visit. To get an idea of what to see/do/eat/shop there visit the lovely stöbern website...

Feeling of the Day...

[ via we ♥ it ]

Sweet the coming on

Of grateful evening mild; then silent night 

With this her solemn bird and this fair moon, 

And these the gems of heaven, her starry train.

~ John Milton ~

Sound Garden...

Nach langer Zeit wieder einmal ein deutscher Song, der mir wirklich gut gefällt... Die Melodie passt ja gut in mein "Beuteschema" aber ich war auch von den Lyrics sehr angetan... Unbedingt anhören! 

PS: Jetzt weiß ich endlich auch, wer Jupiter Jones ist ^_^ Alle reden drüber und ich konnte die bisher nicht wirklich zuordnen - und schon gar nicht hätte ich gedacht, dass es eine deutsche Band ist... So kann man sich irren!

Feeling of the Day...

[ via we ♥ it ]

The foolish man seeks happiness in the distance; 

the wise grows it under his feet.  

~ James Openheim ~

Feeling of the Day...

[ via we ♥ it ]

I count it as a certainty that in paradise, 

everyone naps.  

~ Tom Hodgkinson ~

Dear Lilith...

Today's one of these days when I constantly feel like crying. It's like the weight of the world is on my shoulders today and most of all I miss my friend Lilith so much. On days like that I want to call her and then we would have dressed up for a coffee at Starbuck's and a few hours of chatting, laughing and gossiping about other people... But then I remember I can't do this anymore. It's so unfair that I am here and she isn't...

I know she probably wouldn't have liked that song but I love it and it describes perfectly how I feel...

Feeling of the Day...

[ via we ♥ it ]

Stress is an ignorant state.  

It believes that everything is an emergency.  

~ Natalie Goldberg, Wild Mind~

Feeling of the Day...

[ via we ♥ it ]

For man, autumn is a time of harvest, of gathering together.  

For nature, it is a time of sowing, of scattering abroad. 

~ Edwin Way Teale ~

Love at First Sight...

Thanks to my dear friend Dushy who posted about Sophie Dahl's new cook book... I really have to get that one. Actually I should stop buying cook books as well (just like Dushy suggested) because my shelf is almost breaking down already and I will never have enough time to try out ALL the recipes from my wonderful collection... BUT (yeah, here it comes... *tata*) I so loved her previous book that there's no way around from buying this one, too. I'm just considering whether I get the English version - or if I wait until the German version gets published...

[ via Harper Collins ]

Feeling of the Day...

[ via we ♥ it ]

Feeling of the Day...

[ via we ♥ it ]

Feeling of the Day...

[ via we ♥ it ]

To see the Summer Sky
Is Poetry, though never in a Book it lie -
True Poems flee.
~ Emily Dickinson ~

Back to the 1950's...

On Saturday we celebrated Angelika and Stefan's wedding again, with all their friends. Dress code for the party was 1950's style. Had some great outfits there - and lots of fun, of course. I love those swinging skirts and the glamorous make-up of that time...

[ view all images ]

Feeling of the Day...

[ via we ♥ it ]

 I don't have to attend every argument I'm invited to.  

~ Author Unknown ~

Feeling of the Day...

[ via we ♥ it ]

Even if happiness forgets you a little bit, 
never completely forget about it.  

~ Jacques Prévert ~

Les Adorables...

Can you resist this smile?! And you should hear him talk in Spanish (not that I understand anything...) I'm off drooling...

 [ via Bruhl Daily ]

[ via coffeeandjuice ]