Polish Man in New World

February is Finished and I Finish with Filling the Field up here with Frazes with F. Proffesional life is not that flexible as I supposed. I have to give up the idea of hitchiking - at least for now. I was so excited about going to my girlfriend I forgot that on upcoming Tuesday i have a fixed meeting with my professor and as I am going through the probation period .... : ) it is good to show myself from the best side. I need to cancell meeting Kate's brother in Port Macquarie. I booked already a flight for Tuesday evening - no road adventure this time, boring check-in only : ).

My employer is an easy going man. Very flexible working hours let me take a week-off for short holiday inj Gold Coast. Christina is already there : ) taking part in a scientific course on statistics. I am not very much familiar with this part of mathmatics but I decided that I will come and give her some support : ) And the moment of truth is soon to come. I challenge all the Australian Drivers on Sunday morning. First I hitchhike to Port Macquarie (BIG Thanks Kate for contact to your Brother!) and very next day i hit the road toward GC. And I heard already the story of this road psycho several times. I will share my adventures with you if I stay alive :P So I disapear for one week. Hitchhiking in Eastern Europe is a normal way of travelling. It is called "autostop" and we even have joyful song about it : ) Jedziemy autostopem, jedziemy autostopem. We go by autostop, we go... W ten sposób możesz bracie przejechać Europę. In this way you may visit whole Europe Gdzie szosy b...

I cant stand it anymore. The wise old people are again and again full of fear about the internet. Look what Jackie writes in Guardian magazine: When it comes to complicated issues, we also need time and space. Not everything can be whittled down to text messages. We are living in a world of fact boxes, ever shorter sentences and flatter, simpler statements; and I wonder if we can begin to resolve some of these complex challenges this way. I'm obviously not alone. It's been pointed out that the public appetite for live debates and lectures is growing fast; from book festivals to local protest meetings, there seems to be a celebration of direct contact that's going in the opposite direction to Facebook-ism. I never think about internet as a something what replaces my real life. I can’t even physically sit longer than two hours in front of computer. If it takes more time my head goes dizzy and I am close to faint. I need to get out of room and get some fresh air. This article...

Just lately I came to know the second meaning of the word Gay : ) It is adjective which stands for joyful and colourful. I think that soon students at Macquarie University start their next semester. Today I was overwhelmed by number of different stalls offering different information for newcomers. they were all standing on my way to lunch : ) So called O-week (O for orientation). Among them I passed also this colourful Volkswagen Beatle with condoms-for-free stickers on it. The car was very gay. An attractive older woman was giving away the condoms. For free. First time I passed it quickly. Second time I overcome embarrassment and I stopped by her. "Help yourself" she said with broad and relaxed smile just like by handing out the candies. Next question I asked was about taking a photo : ) In one year, only two of every 100 couples who use condoms consistently and correctly will experience an unintended pregnancy—two pregnancies arising from an estimated 8,300 acts of sexual ...

Tomorrow is the day when new train connection will be open. Finally Chatswood will get connected with Epping via 3 stops only. The return ticket is going to cost me only 7.40$. But I don't stop using bikes : ) I want to send thanks to Oliver - Swiss guy from Kings Cross who sold his mountain bike to me together with lock and helmet for only 40$. I spent another 40 for new parts and I spent 2 days repairing it but it was worth it. The bike is working very well. My partner flies across the Sydney hills on it : ) I want to sent thanks to Clark - Asian guy who decided to get rid off his new present from his uncle that is a brand new road bike for only 230$. I get to work quicker than by car in peak hours. Take a look at those Beauties: It takes me around 30 minutes to get to my workplace. And My brain get so much oxygenated that i don't need any coffee in the morning : ) Every cell is active and productive. I did already 6 rides to work and back and this way I managed to save on t...

I wonder if any of You tried to find a explanation for the name of "our" State? : ) If to follow what Wikipedia says James Cook was the man who gave us a name. In the journal covering his survey of the eastern coast of the Australian continent, Cook first named the east coast of Australia "New Wales", which he later corrected in his journal to "New South Wales". I wonder what was his connection to Wales in UK? As I see it is unclear. Maybe he wanted to commemorate his spoiled-by-voyages affection to Lady from Wales : ) And I wonder whether You tried to guess why I decided to name my blog this way ("Polishman in New Wales) :). I heard about Cook just recently. But I felt like an alien from the very beginning just like Enlglishman in New York : ) But story of name for New York is well-known. This province was named for James, Duke of York, brother to Charles II of England in 1664. He never has visited this land, though. I'm an alien I'm a legal...

Total surprise. Christina came back home one day before scheduled time :))))) after 6 weeks of fieldwork in Victoria State. I think I will stop blogging for some time. Let me leave You with one more excellent song from my country. It starts like this: Niech słowa pięści zamienią w szum wody (Let the words turn fists into water rustle) Niech przyjdą noce szalonej miłości (Let the nights of crazy love come) Niech to co wzięte zostanie oddane (Let the stolen things be given back) Niech to co inne zostanie pokochane (let all what is strange be loved again) Niech miłość płonie w świetlistej koronie (let the love burn in light crown) And the refrain goes like this: Aborygen, Aborygen ( Aborigine, Aborigine) Niech tańczy na niebie (Let him dance in the skies) Aborygen, Aborygen Wolny jak ptak (Free like a bird) Aborygen, Aborygen Niech tańczy na niebie (Let him dance in the skies) Niech tańczy na niebie

It seems that it was a thorny day. I ve read today and before today that The Flower Growers Group of NSW lost a lot of money because of controversial competition of flower importers. Rose come from countries of dictatorship like Ecuador, Tanzania and Zimbabwe. In many of these countries women and children as young as nice work long hours in sealed glasshouses contaminated with potentially fatal doses of DDT as they harvest the most chemical intensive crops on the planet.(The Sydney Morning Herald(14-15.02.09)) Let me reduce the contamination of this day a by presenting one, very beautifull song. It won second place in Eurovision Song Contest in 1994 that is at the times when this event was considered more serious than today : ) The lyrics are .... like this: Świat mój tak zwyczajny My world so usuall Pod niebem biało-czarnym Under the white-black skies Ludzie są wycięci z szarych stron People are cut off from the grey pages Ze środka ksiąg From the middle of the books Piękni są z roman...

Pushbikes are entering a digital era. Push a button and an electronic signal is sent to a tiny motor that shifts you up or down a gear. No more cable, no more pushing levers and no more waiting. They will cost only 3000$ more. And I am just after purchasing 2 old-stylish bicycles :/ . One of them goes to me and one goes for Christina. I hope she won't be disappointed : ) I am not. I am doing very well. Yesterday it took me one hour to get to University (it was raining). Today I made a big progress. Within 33 minutes I reached my workplace. Soon I will install odometer to measure my average speed : ) I love to manoeuvre between all those nice cars stuck in the traffic jam! But on my way home today it was raining again like hell. If it continues like this I will spend all the money i saved on bus tickets on washing powder : ) Source: The Sydney Morning Herald (17.02.2009) "Bicycle technology cranks up a gear", p. 3.

Ach, Australia : ) Laid back, with no-worries attitude. Nevertheless I am full of gratitude to all people who gave me a chance to work for Macquarie University. I had my nearly 2 years long break in mental activity. I am very happy I can read books again and discover the secrets of life around us via science. It was a day of a lot of goings. I got forms in one office then after I filled them up I had to find another office and so on and so forth. I was also given a thick file to read. Usually noone is reading it : ). Look at the name of it : Enterprise Agreement. The title itself says that you are going to get in touch with boredom. But I put up a fight : ) I read almost every single page of nearly 100 of them. And to my surprise you can find some entertaining information in there as well. What more, I feel like my vocabulary is enriched again: 2.8.13. Point about being drunk at workplace. If I decide to come to work under influence of alcohol I may be either consider as a sick man or ...

From the moment we're born, we begin to die. But death is actually a fairly new invention. Death has been around, as a natural way of life, for only a small percentage of the time that life has been on our planet! Our planet is about 4.6 billion years old. (A Billion is 1,000 million.) Life began about 3.8 billion years ago - and for most of that 3.8 billion years, living creatures were effectively immortal, and did not die. From 3.8 billion years ago, to one billion years ago, each living creature was made up of a single cell. So a single-celled creature would grow to a certain size, and then split into two, and each of those two cells would then keep on growing until they divided and so forth. These single-celled creatures would never die of old age. They might die from being run over by a rolling stone, or by being eaten by another bigger single-celled creature - but apart from that they would not die. Sometimes I think that we were created as highly-organized organism to provid...

I stepped out to the balcony and the salty wind from above Haapsalu brushed my face My girl is from this small town located in North - Western Estonia. The trip from my city takes around 24 hours . The curiosity of locals reflect in their eyes: - "I am sure it is a tourist" - "Take a look how shyly he is looking around" It seems it is our fate to be away from each other. Australia kidnapped her for another 6 weeks-long fieldwork. - "Or maybe he wants to suck us in, he is staring so intensively" - "Did he get lost? Should we offer him our help?" - "I think it is better not to disturb his silence". Only seagulls chatter loudly over the sea waves, And Peter Tchaikovsky keeps on composing his music. I wait.

This question makes me feel uncomfortable, because I don't know how to answer it properly : ) It happened again few days ago while working together with English girl on olives. The easiest way out is always to compare: - English streets are much broader, the cars are on average bigger and drivers are usually more polite : ) Polish drivers wont let you cross the street on zebra so willingly. They are always in hurry, exceeding area speed limits constantly. We have very few lines of highways. Most of the roads are two ways roads with extra narrow lanes on both sides for hitchhikers : ) - it is one of the most hitchhikable country in Europe. - Kerbs. It is so easy to make it smoothly but not in Poland. Whether you push the baby carriage or ride a bike you hit against a kerb again and again : ) I tried to find some video promoting my city to foreigners but all of them were sort of depressing : ) I think that's what is East about. Despite of suffering in harsh conditions, being dis...

On the picture below in my last polish post You can see the view from my new room I rent in St Leonards. Recently it is all the time dark and drizzling, showering, raining… Nevertheless I moved for exploration of my surroundings. The traffic is very tiring but Sydney city offers quickly a relief for pissed-off walkers. I entered a beautiful green area. Just turn left from Flat Rock Drive into path walk which leads to Flat Rock Park: Up and down, across the creek Pawel’s jumping on his feet : ) Fully refreshed, I again hit the road through tiring noisy streets. Gore Hill Cemetery grabbed me firmly and sucked me in. In this way I found another oasis of peace. It looked like only spiders guards in here. The stone graves stick out shyly from the grassy plants: It is I think only in Poland where you don’t let the people be buried in peace like this. We spend a lot of money to build up huge, weather-proof graves. If we continue this way my country will look soon like one big cemetery. I wish...

Razem z Jerzem przyszło nam w udziale kochać białogłowy rodem z Ludów Ugrofińskich. Ja osiedliłem się z moją Ugrofinką w Sydney a mój drogi Warszawiak już prawie przekonał swoją dziewczynę do naszej stolicy : ) Dzisiaj za oknem szaruga jakiej nie widziałem już od dawna. Siąpi i pada. Wszystko to przywodzi mi na myśl środkowo – wschodni zakątek Europy. Czasy zamykania się w pokoju, bo pizdzi. Czasy wspinania się na zalane deszczem wzgórza Otrytu – tych niedaleko błotnistych Bieszczad. No i muchomory mglejarki też mi się plączą po głowie :) Tak wygląda dzisiaj Sydney z mojego okna (siódme piętro). Zazwyczaj kościoły wyglądają jak zwyczajne budynki, z czerwonej cegły, wkomponowane w tło. Ten tutaj jest wyjątkiem i do tego ma wieżę: Wczoraj wprowadziłem sie do mojego nowego mieszkanka. Dzielę je z Mateuszem – Kanadyjczykiem i Helga – przy kości babka. Jest ona jedynym żywicielem rodziny. Chłop za to gotuje i sprząta : ) Poznali się na czatach internetowych w marcu ubiegłego roku, spotkali...

The best thing which may happen to the European White Man in Australia is meeting such lovely people like Richard and Florence. Recall the landing of captain Phillip. He was welcome by black blokes with sharp spears in their hands : ) Richard drives his car and he is very happy watching WWOOFers working on the Rosnay farm. I put the olives into bottles and I am happy I don't have to starve like those guys from first settlement in Sydney Cove : ) And I can't mention about the lunches. Everyday Florence prepared something very delicious. It was not a problem for her that I am on the gluten free diet. Mmmmmmmmmmmmm Delicieux, tres bien : ) Good Bye photo with most lovely people I ever met in Australia: Emu Plains station. Passengers become more and more "diversified" in size, in skin colours, in fashion, in behaviour, in .... and it is getting more and more crowdy. Good I started going in Lithgow. I managed to find very convenient (strategic) place for my very heavy lugg...

Today by the dinner Richard asked me whether I wrote also a blog about Poland. Surely not, Australia made me blogging : ) Let me go against the habits of regular bloggers. I will bring up here some stories not from the present but from the past. Last year I spent in small country called Estonia. I was employed by Tartu greenhouse: www.grynefee.ee I worked there with two more Polish guys. Rest of the employees (that is around 100) consisted of Russians and Estonians. We worked between two different histories (people from ex-empire and people who used to be enslaved by this empire), between two cultures and between two languages. Poles managed to learn both of them while Russians do not learn Estonian and most of the Estonians do not want to speak Russian even if they know it. I speak a little both of them : ) The main boss of Gryne Fee Eesti made once a comment: "Poles seem to be born to be polyglots". That is how a geographic location makes a great impact on the culture of on...

Na winogronach i oliwkach egzotyka tego miejsca się nie kończy : ) Figi. Właśnie zaczął się okres ich zbierania. Rozkoszne w smaku. Owoce są zamknięte w czymś na kształt małej cebuli : ) , które dojrzewają w buszu liści. Mięsiste, najbardziej słodkie z ziemskich owoców , a wszytko to ukryte pod różnokolorową skórką. Uwielbiam je. Dżem, kóry przyrządza Florencja jest bardzo pyszny (I tylko 0,5 kilo cukru na kilo fig:)): Ponoć Mohamet raz powiedział, że jak by pożądał owoce w Raju byłyby to figi . Jest około 700 odmian drzew figowych. Jednym z nich jest figa religijna ( Ficus religiosa ), która sadzą indyjscy buddyści przy swoich światyniach – pomaga w medytacji. Ciekawy jestem, czy ten sam gatunek posłużył Adamie i Ewie do sporządzenia opaski na wstydliwe miejsca : )??? No i nie można nie wspomnąć o chrześcijaństwie. Przecież cały polski katolicyzm zrodził się w egzotycznym Państwie Judejskim. W przypowieści o winoroślach wplatają sie gaje oliwne jak i drzewa figowe: Mateusz 21:19 “…A w...

Let me upload some few more lines of R. Walsch again : ) Soon I leave Rosnay together with this great book on spirituality: Whereas knowledge simply acquires information, wisdom requires understanding it. Knowledge looks at things objectively; wisdom examines them subjectively to recognize their implication for life and how to live life well. Knowledge informs us, wisdom transforms us. Knowledge is something we have, wisdom something we must become. Knowledge is expressed in words, wisdom in our lives. Knowledge empowers; wisdom empowers and enlightens. Buddhims claims that: One momentary glimpse of divine Wisdom born of meditation is more precious then amount of knowledge : ) And I am just before entering the big company producing knowledge called University. They say that mental work is more prestige than physical one but why? If I pick the apples in the orchard I ve got so much space for my own thoughts. They run freely across my mind. I can visit any place in cosmos : ) but they ar...

On that very sunny Sunday I have visited also the only fish fossil museum in southern hemisphere :) Little town of Canowindra bears a lot of mysteries :) Again and again I discover something new. 360 millions years ago it was a place where air-breathing fish species used to live - Sarcopterygians , the ones which include the ancestors of the first vertebrates (that is frogs for instance). I was shocked by all those informations I found in that museum - the theory of evolution which I have learned ages ago in the primary school is still up-to-date: There was a chaos in the beginning, the earth was without form and void. Small organisms developed out of soup of organic compounds. Swimming in the dark water they were becoming more and more complex and of more and more complicated structure. At the end of this chain reaction man was created (Is science really against the story of genesis?). At the moment we share around 40% of DNA with plants : ) and 99% with monkeys. "...Unlike the ...

Kate has sent me some days ago a very beautiful poem on “live wood” : ) So I couldn’t resist, I had to listen to the tree as well. I climbed that pretty Eucalyptus yesterday. She was growing between Rosnay vineyards. God knows how long she is staying there but she stands still. After i pressed my ear to the bark I didn’t hear anything but wind who blows and rustles as if he were jealous that I hug her trunk : ). Ants kept on biting and irritating me. It is kind of intimate relationship and I decided not to hang out there too long. I just managed to make those photos (below) for my Polish friend Piotrka who shows always an interest for wine and winegrapes : ) PS I still have bloody marks on my both hands since she was tall, rough and hard-to-get.

Wczoraj pomiędzy 22 a 3 nad ranem przyjechał kombajn do zbioru winogron. Nie znalazłem siły by iść i podpatrzeć jak to działa. Tuż przed tym jak poszedłem spać widziałem tylko dużo światła na horyzoncie : ) – diabelska robota. Ale poszedłem dzisiaj po pracy. Można było jeszcze znalezć pojedyncze jagody Shiraz. Roślinki były niezle wytrzęsione. Zbiera je sie o tej porze, by zapobiec zbyt szybkiej fermentacji. W ciągu dnia jest za gorąco. Dodaje się też odliczoną dawkę pirosiarczanu potasu (Potassium metabisulphate), by zabić wszystkie dzikie drożdże i inne zarazki. Do winiarni zaprasza się najładniejsze dziewczyny z okolic, żeby ugniatać i wyciskać sok. Potem zostaje on odcedzony od reszty organicznej masy i dozuje się specjalne winne drożdże. Po około 6 miesącach fermentacji (zazwyczaj w dębowych beczkach) produkt jest butelkowany. Czerwone wino musi jeszcze poleżakować przynajmniej rok. Rzut oka z pobliskiego eukaliptusa na blok winogron z gatunku Shiraz: Tylko nawadniane pola wygląda...

I don’t know why. Maybe it is natural state but I worry. It is this kind of worry when you enter new environment. You don’t know what kind of people you will meet. What kind of values they appreciate. Will they accept me? If we meet someone on the far away seminar whom we know we immediately cling to him/her. Farmers from Cowra stick together as farmers from Canberra do : ) I wish I could achieve state I don’t worry about the mistakes, I just freely hit to the foreign person and ask how is she/he doing? : ) Today I ve learned one saying which I consider useful – to play by ears. To take life as it is in that given moment. Do not think! The past is history, The future is mystery, This moment is a gift, Which is why it is called “THE PRESENT”.

We are still in a state of shock that we did it. I used to consider myself as a sun lover but from today on I think I have become an Australian : ) – I hide myself at the moment in a dark air-conditioned room. Together with Richard we were biking back to Rosnay farm from Canowindra (relatively short distance). It was somewhere around midday. Sun was cutting us to the pieces and frying on the melting down asphalt : ) Up-the-hill rides were most down (de)pressing. Poor sheeps had only one shade to share: Maybe that is why our (yours) christianized ancestor didn’t change the name of this day to Godday (what seems to be more logic than sunday). The power of sun is more visible to the sinners like us. Polish Niedziela derives from uneven/undivisable word because it is seventh day of the week. But Saturday (Sobota), though is rooting from old Slavic word meaning a celebration of the longest sunny day in a year : ). We are all pagans it seems. I ve made a small calculation. I have counted the...