Another normal day

Today is a beginning of another work week. I have butterflies in my stomach thinking of all the things it has for me. Nothing special, just... my job is exciting :)

One more to go

Tomorrow is my last exam (this month). Contrastive Typology of the English and Ukrainian Languages. I have to know all the allomorphisms (differences) and isomorphisms (similarities) of these two languages. I find this task rather stupid, cuz these languages are pretty different. Ukrainian an Hebrew are much more similar. Urgh.
But it's there, and I'll have to take this exam. I am not ready and don't think I will be. It's 11 p.m., I am veeeeryyy tired (and have been for a loooooong time), it the morning I have to go to work, which means I won't have time to prepare, even though my exam is almost at 7 p.m. - just when I'll get free from work.

But I'm drinking a delicious refreshing cocktail with amarulla and banana juice, and am feeling quite happy. So, who cares...

Have a great one yourselves!

The world is getting smaller and smaller!

I logged on to this Russian 'facebook' version and found TONS of friends from the past- kinder garden, all of my five schools, my old block, my village.... The most surprising person to meet there was Masha.
A little history... We had a house on the Dnieper river, right on the border with Belarus in the little cozy village of Kamenka. This place was all nature - forests, fields, tiny little homes with a few pensioners living in them, only one tiny shop - no cars, no pollution, no TV sets or phones (most of our neighbours didn't have these luxuries - we had an old TV). It was a perfect place to find peace. My family didn't spend much time there - Mom and Dad were too busy working in the city. My brother and I liked it in our other village more. But sometimes we went to Kamenka with grandparents. One summer our family (surprisingly Mom and Dad were there with us) met a young family there - a couple with two kids of our age - a boy Maksim my brother's age and a girl Masha my age. It was a simple miracle for a village with only old or dead people in it :) - sorry for black humor.
No need to say that our families became very close rather quickly. While our parents would solve the problems of the world enjoying a cup of tea - the four of us would play and run around till midnight. I even remember we went to a local cemetery once! Crazy childhood...
So, anyhow, we spent one summer with them - it was a fun one. Then we lost contact.

Here after 18 years Masha finds me! She is a beautiful young lady, lives in Kiev, writes poetry. We started talking. I scrolled down through her pictures looking for Maksim, too (her brother) - wondering what he looks like. The last time I saw him, that I'm aware of, he was wearing a pirate eye-patch, with black mustache and a beard painted on his face with a marker (or piece of coal?) :)))) I asked her, "so what about Maksim? How come he isn't on any of your pictures?"

The next reply I received was this: As far as I understand, you work in Edinstvennaya magazine. That means that you work in Edipresse publishers' house. That means that you work together - he is in the color-correction section.

I simply cannot believe this. My brother will be shocked :) Today I'll pay him a friendly visit. From the past.

PS. So I looked him up in our staff database. He looks so different in that picture. SO serious! In glasses and a very strict mature face. He is a real man. I think he even started balding. I'm afraid to go see him, it feels weird. What am I going to say to him? Hello, remember that 6-year old from your village? That's me, but I'm 22 now. So... how have you been?
Our photoeditor (she knows him - present him) promised to go with me, she wants to see his reaction, too :) So, I'll keep you posted.

PPS. Yep, I went to see him. He is nothing what I knew him like. I remember a tall blond tanned blue-eyed fellow. When I went to meet him I saw a short plump dark-eyed and dark-haired 30-year-old. Wow, people change. He was pretty surprised to see me. But very glad. He showed me some pictures of our village (what it looks like now, they still own a house there) and showed me around on the 10th floor :)) - I work on the 6th floor. So, it was fun. I don't think we'll become best friends though :)))

Vova and Lena wedding

They make such a beautiful bright couple.

I love this picture! So juicy!

(Anna, here's a picture of Lena's dress - just for you)

Vova played a love song for his bride, Jamie was playing piano.

So sweet, they look at each other so tenderly :)))))

My hubby is so handsome! He was one of the groomsmen. It was a real honor for him. Oh, and I felt very special too, cuz I was the official bridesmaids' stylist and hairdresser :)))

My smart tights

This is what I saw on a plastic bag my new tights were in:

Stockings with the underestimated waist 40 den.

Keep and is better emphasize Natural lines,

even if you in trousers.

:))))

Amazing me?

So cool!! I feel really honored! I was upgraded on Faith's list of blogs from just 'Dasha' to 'Amazing Dasha'! Isn't that amazing???
I don't even know how to thank my fans enough! First, the dream-reward 'Excellent' from Mumsie and now this!! It's too much. Thank you, thank you...

I feel like I got promoted twice in the wonderful blog-world. Let's celebrate!

:))))

My random famous friends

Fun, fun, fun!!! I'm very excited cuz I got to meet a famous Ukrainian TV hostess and an actress Dasha Malahova. She came to my former editorial (where I used to work 4 months ago) for a friendly visit. She became friends with TV Ekran's chief editor and just came for a visit. She brought some candy and just came to hang out with her new friend and TV Ekran team.

The funniest thing was that her and I were in VERY similar shirts (and we have the same name), so we all made a big joke of that. When my girls wanted their picture to be taken, they asked ME to be in it, too - cuz we looked so similar with Dasha :))

2 yellow Dashas (Dasha Malahova is on the left :)

Anyhow, I met another celebrity.

Oh, actually I met two celebrities in the past week. The dude's name is Antin, he is a singer. (OK, I'll include his picture, too.)

So, I think I should keep a record of my celebrity friends... gotta keep track of them. A couple of days ago I met Oleg Skripka outside in the street on my way home from university. That wasn't a planned meeting, so I just greeted him and kept going. But it's kinda fun to keep bumping into these people that you normally see on TV.

Antin

Oleg Skripka

Dancing is FUN!!!

Thinking of ... <3 love

It's so nice to be able to tell your husband you love him, even though it's not a Valentine's Day yet...
... to squeese him nice and tight so he knows he is STRONGLY loved...

... even though he can't hide his sarcastic smile while his wife is sharing her ideas and views...

...But he is still the best in the world

because no one can dance quite like him...

... and there is no other handyman like my man.

He is simply the best.

For generations yet to come

oooops... I did it again. Drank 2 cups of coffee a few hours before going to bed. I knew it would have this effect on me, but just couldn't resist... with all these Peipons around me who can drink coffee in litres and buckets... and still fall asleep when necessary. I'm pretty sure that Mom Marianna and Papa Jim are sound asleep in their bed just like my sweet hubby in the room next door. But we all had the same amount of the same coffee!!! Not fair. I'm the one who should get some sleep tonight. After all, I was the one to stay up till 2 a.m. last night, getting up early and passing my exam... (just like Jamie - he did all those too - but that's not the point, I'm trying to draw all the sympathy towards myself right now :))

So, anyhow, since I'm up anyway (though it's already 'tomorrowly late') I might as well finally write something on my poor neglected blog.

Since I just passed one of the most difficult exams, I decided to share my wisdom with those who still have some to take... I'm not going to fit a whole Theory of Literature course into this post.

I'm going to give some practical pieces of advice for a successful passing of any difficult oral exam. So, kids, listen up...

1. On the night before an exam don't try to fool yourself - one night is NOT enough to fit into your head all the social experience and knowledge that had been developing throughout yeeeeeeaaars of hard work by many gifted individuals. Whether you learned most of it or not, you gotta have a good night sleep. At least 6 hours (for a student that's considered A LOT - correct me if I'm wrong).
2. Once you wake up and try to remember anything from what you read yesterday - you'll most likely find that you don't remember a thing. Your main task here is NOT TO PANIC!!!! Don't grab your books and papers with shaking hands to try to retrieve everything. It won't help. Your mind will remain a total mess...
3. ...until the moment you get your exam questions in the class. Once you sit at your table, calm down, attentively read the task, your mind will suddenly be crystal clear - all you will remember from the wild racing through the pages of your study books will be the answers to these questions in front of you. Nothing else to interfere. Use the thoughts that come on your mind, put them on a sheet of paper, structure your oral answer.
4. When you come to speak, you have to look confident and relaxed. Say hello, smile, be charming and polite.
5. Speak starting from the things you know really well, go into details, give vivid examples, use gestures (not too much!). As far as a teacher sees how deeply and fundamentally you've studied this problem he/she might think that this is what your knowledge is like on the rest of the problems of your task. Once you start talking on the problem you're not so sure about, keep looking cool - talk confidently as if this is exactly how things are. Once you start believing your own words, the teacher will believe you too. So don't be afraid to use your imagination a little. The main thing is to look confident and speak in a normal speed, maybe even a little faster that usual - so that the teacher's impression would be 'Oh, she knows a lot on this one, she's trying to tell me everything she knows in this limited time... But I have these other students I must listen to'. This is the point where the teacher stops you to say 'Alright, I can see that you've prepared to this question very well. Let's move on to the next one...' This way you're skipping the hard part, the one you wouldn't be able to present well and with dignity.
6. Accept your 'A' mark gratefully but without much surprise and excitement - you earned it!
7. And one other thing that might help... Study. I recommend doing this one not during just one night (like I did) - but step by step during a whole semester. That helps.
I assume? ;)

What important advice have I forgotten, people? Share your experience - I still have one more to go on Tuesday.

p.s. by the way both Jamie and I successfully passed our exams today with happy well-earned 'A's'! (They should get married!) I say, glory be to God!

p.p.s. Faith, there is a special author's comment for you in the Victorious Yulia post ;)