My Pillow Book

My "Native Language"

2011-10-07T13:18:00.001+02:00

A few days ago I had to fill out some information about myself. One of the questions was "your native language". I set in front of the screen for 5 minutes, unable to decide what should I be writing. Previous question was about my place of birth and I, of course, chose Ukraine from a drop-down list. Ukrainian, however, cannot be my native language, since while I can understand 70%-80% of what is said/written in Ukrainian, I can't speak this language. The obvious choice should have been Russian: that was definitely my "first language," but nowadays, I feel that I am much more fluent and grammatically skilled in Hebrew. So, what was I supposed to choose? At the moment it felt like Hebrew was a better choice, but a couple of hours later I wasn't so sure anymore. I wrote about it here in Russian (ironically), so it feels stupid to come back to this subject again, but my life always thrusts this question upon me, so I guess I can't really run away from it. What is my native language? Where is my homeland? Where do I belong?

Obviously, I'm not the only one to deal with these issues, especially in our day and age. I read a discussion in a blog dedicated to Japanese culture, the participants of which are mainly Russians who live (or lived) for a long time in Japan. The discussion dealt with the question "where are you from?". A trivial question, right? If you are Japanese, visiting Paris, the answer is obvious "I'm from Japan," but if you are Russian who lived for the last 10 years in Japan and now came to Paris for sightseeing, the answer is not that obvious anymore. Understandably, different people gave different opinions regarding the subject. As for me, at least this question is OK for me, for now at least. I never hesitate when asked where I am from. I'm from Israel. Things usually got complicated, when conversation moved forward and the other person realized that I was actually born in Ukraine and hence my "from Israel" is completely unsatisfactory answer to the question posed, since it does not allow to form a correct opinion about me. Israeli people are "such and such", people from Ukraine are "such and such," and if I omit part of the information I'm actually misleading the new acquaintance.

Anyway, I should stop talking now and leave you with a poem by Lea Goldberg. I'll post it in English translation by Adriana X. Jacobs and then the Hebrew original.

Here I will not hear the cuckoo’s voice.
Here the tree will not don a turban of snow,
But in the shade of these pines
My entire childhood comes back to life.

The chiming of the needles: Once upon a time—
I will call the distance of snow a homeland,
The greenish ice that fetters the brook,
The poem’s language in a foreign land.

Perhaps only birds of travel know—
when they hang between land and sky—
This pain of the two homelands.

With you I was planted twice,
With you I grew, pines,
And my roots are in two different landscapes.

כאן לא אשמע את קול הקוקיה.

כאן לא יחבוש העץ מצנפת שלג,

אבל בצל הארנים האלה

כל ילדותי שקמה לתחיה.

צלצל המחטים: היה היה -

אקרא מולדת למרחב-השלג,

לקרח ירקרק כובל הפלג,

ללשון השיר בארץ נכריה.

אולי רק צפרי-מסע יודעות -

כשהן תלויות בין ארץ ושמים -

את זה הכאב של שתי המולדות.

אתכם אני נשתלתי פעמים,

אתכם אני צמחתי, אורנים,

ושורשי בשני נופים שונים.

Back to Writing

2011-10-06T07:50:00.001+02:00

About two weeks ago I attended a poetry reading as part of the "100,000 poets for change" event. It was really great. I have to say - surprisingly great. I'm a huge skeptic when it comes to modern poetry, my favorite poets being Pushkin, Tzvetaieva and Lea Goldberg (yes, quite a company), but this evening was very pleasant and in addition to seeing and experiencing the company of the talented and funny Karen Alkalay-Gut (who's lectures I could never comprehend due to my poor skills, but her readings and performances are always enjoyable), I discovered some new (to me! otherwise she is a very known Israeli poet) interesting people, like Raquel Chalfi who's new poetry book Sefer ha Yetzurim (a book of creatures) sounds so very promising.

So, anyway, the reason I'm mentioning this poetry gathering is that I met there a former student of mine and she told me that she (and apparently some other students) used to read this blog and that she was sort of disappointed that I stopped writing. After being properly horrified that students were reading about my personal worries (including teaching) and written in my poor English at that, I thought, well, this very nice student (who is attending poetry readings!) read it and found it somewhat funny and interesting, maybe I should resume the writing. Actually, I was planning to resume it for some time now, but I couldn't push myself to do it. That was the push. So, dear student, whether you will ever read it or not - thanks!

This time I hope to whine about my life less and write some book reviews and interesting things more, but hey, I'm only human, so you definitely can look forward for some whining.

Teachers' job

2011-06-01T12:00:00.004+03:00

Is it ok to blame myself?

2010-07-10T12:33:00.003+03:00

I have 14 tests left to grade, and for some reason this time the grading is very difficult for me and takes a huge amount of time, especially since I have to stop for brakes every 3 tests to prevent my mind from exploding. So here is the deal. I talked to a friend and told her that "I'm so slow, I can't understand why does it take me so long, no one spends so much time on these test, there must be some problem with me. My inability to concentrate for long periods of time prevents me from making any progress". So the friend tried to cheer me up saying that I graded 10 tests in 2 and a half fours and that it is a great progress and that I'm doing just fine. I kept on claiming that I'm to slow and that it's not 2 and a half hours but more, if you include breaks it was really 4 hours, and I don't have the time. So she tells me I'm resistant to cheering up. Of course, I came up with the idea that it's all my faulty character and that cheering up probably only feeds my whining. The friend then proposed the following: "see", she told me, "usually people in your position would say 'those fricking exams won't end, it's so mind blowing' and you say 'something is wrong with me, I can't finish the grading of these exams'. It's a problem".

Do you think it is really a problem?

A life of teaching assistant

2010-06-29T16:54:00.002+03:00

I strive for...
the serenity to accept the things I cannot change;
the courage to change the things I can;
and the wisdom to know the difference.

(for some reason I suspect that even once I'll become a real teacher these things will not change)

And if someone wonders, yes, I'm one step from alcoholism thanks to my job :)

Однажды, а может быть дважды. Стихи для бывших детей и будущих взрослых/ Рената Муха

2010-06-26T10:53:00.003+03:00

Для тех, кто читает на русском... Была в гостях у подруги, у которой маленькая дочка. Подруга показала мне книжку с детскими стихами, которую она купила ребенку, и я просто обязана с вами поделиться. Постов про детские книжки маразматического содержания наполняют интернет вместе с беседами по поводу «а как действует на психику ребенка упоминание карабаса-барабаса или хромого умывальника, проводящего время в маминой спальне в папино отсутсвие». Все-таки когда мы были детьми все эти буки-бяки и глотающие солнце крокодилы меньше нас пугали, чем теперь, когда мы взрослые и присваиваем этим персонажам рожи наших злобных начальников, соседей и врагов. Взрослые, научившись думать абстрактно и воспринимать метафоры, не могут уже воспринимают мойдодыра как говорящего умывальника...

Впрочем, этот пост не об этом. Книжка Ренаты Мухи Однажды, а может быть дважды как раз пример книжки которую должно быть весело читать и взрослым и детям, подзаголовок книги не врет. Хотя, есть стихи, которые больше подходят взрослым, чем детям и, возможно, стоит читать стихи детям изберательно, но их просто не возможно читать без улыбки. В книжке можно найти от длинных повествовательных стихов до коротеньких двухстрочий (смотрите дальше). Кроме того, на удивление милые илюстрации, опять-таки не пугающие взрослых. Смотрите сами.

Слоненок
Семейство Слонов
Перепугано насмерть -
Слоненок простужен:
И кашель, и насморк.
Лекарства достали,
Компрессы готовы,
Но где продается
Платок хоботовый?

Таракан
Жил в квартире Таракан,
В щели у порога.
Никого он не кусал,
Никого не трогал,
Не царапал никого,
Не щипал,
Не жалил,
И домашние его
Очень уважали.
Так бы прожил Таракан
Жизнь со всеми в мире.
...Только люди завелись
У него в квартире.

Кровать
А где продается такая кровать,
Чтоб рано ложиться и поздно вставать?

Лось
"Ну дела, - подумал Лось, -
Не хотелось.
А пришлось".

Apartment for Rent

2010-06-22T13:34:00.007+03:00

As some of you may know, I’m leaving my current apartment on Dizengoff (one of the busiest streets in Tel-Aviv) in favor of a more spacious, quite and cheaper one (not a paradox: decided to try the roommate option, so moving in with a friend). Accordingly, my current apartment must be rented out and my landlady asked me to post and add, take the calls and refer the potential tenants to her (the reason she doesn’t post her own phone is a long and boring story). So my job is to answer the phone and say: “Hi [here the person says that he calls regarding the apartment], yes, I see. You should call the landlady Ms. X and she will give you all the details, here is her phone number”. The whole thing turns out to be both bothersome and hilarious matter at the same time. Judge for yourself:

Potential tenant (henceforth “PT”) A: can I have a dog in the apartment? I have a dog.

Me: I’m not sure about that. You should ask the landlady.

PT A: What is the size of the apartment? Is it big?

Me: It’s a room and a half as stated in the add, it’s quite reasonable. (It’s a low price 1.5 room apartment in Tel-Aviv. Can you imagine it to be big?)

PT A: I have a large dog.

Me:…

PT A: The backyard, does it belong to the apartment itself?

Me: Yep, it says so in the add, but it’s quite small, so…

PT A: So, do you think a Labrador will feel comfortable there?

Me: (ask your Labrador!)I’m not sure about that…

PT A: It’s just that my dog is so important for me, you see…

Me: I see.

PT A: I really need an apartment for a dog…

---------

[Ring, Ring]

Me: Hello.

PT B: Hmmm…. One second….

Me:….

[Noise of cars passing by, people talking, a conversation with a waitress regarding cappuccino]

PT B: Are you there?

Me: Aha.

PT B: Yes… hmm… What was it that I wanted?...Oh, yes, the apartment. It’s for rent, right?

Me: Mhm.

PT B: What was it that I wanted to ask you?

Me: I’m not sure.

PT B: Oh, yes, that’s it! Can I… hmmm… Can I come and see it… let’s say… I don’t know… maybe now? What time is it?

---------

PT C: Where is the apartment?

Me: (Can’t you read?) On Dizengoff .

PT C: Really? On Dizengoff itself? Is it quite?

Me: You know, it’s Dizengoff…

PT C: You see, I’m very sensitive to noise.

Me: Well, it’s not really rear facing…

PT C: The noise is a huge issue for me. I don’t know… It’s on Dizengoff, right?

Me: Aha…

PT C: You see, the noise really irritates me, so I don’t know… So, it’s on Dizengoff itself, ah?...

Me: Indeed.

PT C: [sounds offended] Well, you see, I really can’t live in a noisy apartment, have a nice day.

---------

PT D: How big is the apartment?

Me: It’s 1.5 rooms, not very big.

PT D: Yeah, I know, but what is the area in square meters?

Me: I’m sorry, I don’t know. As I said, the landlady has all the details…

PT D: Ok, but what can you say about the rooms?

Me: It’s not a big apartment, as you may imagine, but it is quite reasonable for one person, especially for Tel-Aviv.

PT D: So, is it tiny? Can you estimate the area?

Me: It’s not tiny, but I’m afraid you will have to call the landlady if you want to know the exact area.

PT D: But I need to know the size. Is it big? Small?

Me: Maybe you should come and see for yourself. I personally find it quite reasonable.

PT D: But could you somehow define the size of the rooms?

Me: I’m not sure. It’s a living room with a small open kitchen and then there is a small bedroom with twin bed, a closet and bedside drawers.

PT D: I really need to know how big it is. Is it big? Small?

Me: I’m afraid you’ll have to call the landlady for the details.

PT D: Does it have a porch?

Me: Yes.

PT D: Does it belong to the apartment?

Me: Yes.

PT D: So, what size is it? Big? Small?...

Morning

2010-06-22T07:13:00.002+03:00

Yes, I stole it from somewhere on the net.
Too lazy (and sleepy) to create image on my own

My Thesis...

2010-06-17T10:47:00.006+03:00

In between grading students' papers and trying to translate a text by Higuchi Ichiyo from classical Japanese, I scarcely have any time to deal seriously with my thesis. But apparently I have time to read short comic strips. So I came upon this and I want to share it with you, since I can really see myself in this piece.

I'm slowly getting to this stage...

For more cool stuff from the talented author (PhD in Mechanical Engineering) go here:
http://www.phdcomics.com/

No Fear

2010-05-07T08:28:00.017+03:00

This Sunday I turned 30. Can you imagine? Well, you probably can, but I can’t. I always thought that 30-year-olds are pretty old people. Maybe not very old, but quite mature. And it is probably still true, but I personally don’t really feel this way. I always imagined that by 30 I will have two children, but things don’t always turn out as we imagine them to be. The funny thing is I never imagined myself getting married (never knew or cared what kind of a wedding dress I would like), having a family (although it was obvious to me that I will) or having a career (never thought I could actually aspire to anything special and banal things are not the stuff dreams and hopes are made of), but I could always see myself with children. The vision is still here plus some more concrete hopes and desires for my future life. So, on this happy note, I wish myself to grow up a bit (mentally that is) and go for the things I want without fear (of wanting them, of doing them, of failing and of succeeding).

To commemorate the ‘without fear’ decision I went skydiving as a birthday present for myself (with some help from a few beneficiaries to whom I’m grateful). So, please enjoy the pictures:

http://picasaweb.google.com/iritkav/Skydiving#

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hiHrEKD82MU

p.s. this blog turns into 'my next resolution' list... will strive to be more entertaining (shit, another resolution yet again)

Independence Day

2010-04-21T18:36:00.005+03:00

Israel's 62nd Independence Day went by very quietly. That is, it seems that Tel-Aviv's municipality decided not to spend too much money on fireworks and to settle for an amateurish performance on Rabin square. But I had experience of dancing to the sounds of old (nation’s age) songs, which was fun, and ate this cup-cake with Israeli flag (always thought I wanted to taste a cup-cake from this store, but waited for a special occasion) and a chicken barbecue with gin-tonic in one of my favorite pubs. Of course, also there was a street party in Florentin (I didn't go, but heard it was nice and packed as always). Wish the city was more festive looking though...

self motivation post

2010-04-18T09:48:00.003+03:00

I was planning this blog as a place to write my thoughts about books I read and about what I call "my Japanese experience", namely, anything that has to do with Japan and interests me. But it turns out I'm too lazy for that. So, I guess in order to keep up my writing, I should just write whatever comes to mind and that might eventually lead to writing something interesting. Considering the fact that almost no one reads this blog, it is almost like writing a personal journal. So, nothing to worry about.

Anyway, right now I'm summarizing a book called Gender and the Interpretation of Classical Myth by Lillian E. Doherty. I read it and found it very helpful in jump starting the introductory part of my thesis. It offers a concise and useful summery to different approaches of myth interpretation, and what is important to me, it makes a connection between myth development and myth interpretation to issues of gender and also touches (though lightly) on the issue of modern myth rewriting. So, I have to sum it's main ideas and extract useful quotations in order to incorporate that into my paper. I'm not sure if anyone knows that, but the main theme of my research is identity construction in the works of Shono Yoriko and Kirino Natsuo, specifically in their works centered on rewriting/reconstruction of Japanese mythology. Sometimes I wonder if I'm a really up to it. I had so many lapses along the way, but now I'm really determined to make it happen.

So, having said that, I must actually sit down (metaphorically, since physically already am) and write.

update

2010-02-17T10:10:00.002+02:00

I guess it's a bit boring subject for a post, but despite having all these wonderful ideas for posts, I can't seem to find the time to put them into writing. So for now just a small status update.

1. started writing emails, but it is still in progress.

2. papers graded.

problem: now have to grade tests :(

on the bright side: some students write the most wonderful stuff. Consider this sentence by one of my students. The student was writing a paper about the encounter between Jesuits and the Japanese in 16th century and their complex relationship. The student tried to show how the Jesuits characterised the Japanese in their letters to the Vatican and that's what she had to say about the Japanese:

Since they didn't have a king they were governed by reason.

don't you think it's outstanding! The student is bound to have a great future in politics (though I'm afraid there might be a slight problem with East Asian Studies...)

3. Ticket is bought!!! March 17th I'm teaching from 8 to 10 in the morning and at 15:05 I'll be already on a plain!

4. Unfortunately didn't get to my thesis. Yet again.

5. Finished reading. Review is yet to be written. Actually I have no idea what to write. It seems to me quite a marketable book, but I expect much more from Anchee Min. I promise to share my thoughts about it... when I'll get to writing the review.

6, 7, 8. Light bulb changed, socks bought. decided not to buy the rug, since winter is obviously over in this country - it's freaking 29 degrees outside in the middle of February!!!

9. is always relevant :)

To Do List

2010-01-26T15:48:00.003+02:00

Really unbelievable, the semester has ended, but I can’t seem to relax. Can’t find time to sit down and write some post, that will not be about me getting stressed and needing to do stuff. But since I promised to write more, I might as well do that, until some more quite times. So, my to-do list includes (and I have no idea in which order):

1. Write mails to my friends in Japan, to whom I owe an email for more than a month
2. Check papers of my students.
3. Stop hesitating and buy a ticket to Japan.
4. Start writing “Review of Literature” for my thesis paper (might take a while, have lots of articles to translate from Japanese... And yes, I'm not done yet. In my defense I can quote the profound wisdom of one of my colleagues: if you are not writing the thesis, it will never get written)

5. Finish reading The Pearl of China and write a review for the publishing house.
6. Change the light bulb in my bedroom.
7. Buy wooly rug for the living room.
8. Buy socks.
9. Meet friends? Watch ANTM? Have fun? ...

I hate the 10 points lists, so we can stop at nine.
Anyway, coming up – my review of The Pearl of China (now that I’ve promised, I will have to do it)

New Year Resolutions

2010-01-03T07:16:00.004+02:00

Well, like they say in Japanese "Ohisashiburi" or "Long time no see"...
When I was growing up in Ukraine, my mama taught me that on New Year's Eve I have to ask for a wish, and it will surely come true. We even had this small ceremony, in which I wrote my most important wish on a small piece of paper, made it into a tiny ball and had to swallow it with champagne (when was already allowed to drink champagne) while the clock strikes twelve times. I was asking the same thing over and over again since I was about 12... did it come true? Well... I guess it finally did, at least for a brief and glorious moment.
Anyway, now I'm more into New Year's resolutions then wishes, but hey, there are still things that are completely out of my power, so I have to wish them. So, here are two small lists.

Wishes:
* Health (for myself and my loved ones, though may everybody have perfect health)
* Love
* Strength

Resolutions:
* Learn how to relax, and let go of things that disturb me, but cannot be helped at this particular moment.
* Finish my thesis.
* Visit Japan.
* Be a better daughter, sister and friend (that is, find more time to spend time with people who really matter to me)
* Start writing again (poems/stories/something...)

I guess these are the most important things. And I used asterisks and not numbers on purpose, since I don't want to set priorities.

Happy New Year everyone! May all your wishes come true and may you accomplish all the goals you set for yourselves!

Look what I've found!

2009-08-21T08:26:00.008+03:00

אתמול התעוררתי בבוקר וגיליתי את בעל החיים המקסים הזה על הקיר שלי. אני מאוד אוהבת לטאות קטנות כאלה, כך שזאת מאד מצאה חן בעיניי, אפילו שהייתה טיפה גדולה מהרגיל. וחוץ מזה, היא הסבה את תשומת ליבי לכך שיש לי כורי עכביש בחדר ושאני חייבת לנקות. אז תודה ללטאה.

Firmin: A Metropolitan Lowlife by Sam Savage

2009-08-13T16:19:00.009+03:00

I've just finished reading a book about a rat named Firmin. He is your regular rat, living in a poor neighborhood of a flourishing and expanding metropolitan and therefore doomed to destruction. He was born in an attic of a big book store, where his mother came to hide from the sprawling streets to give birth to her ten children. Firmin, the smallest and the weakest of children, pushed away by his brothers and sisters from the little food their mother is capable to provide, starts gnawing at books.

With the food comes the knowledge, as Firmin learns how to read and discovers a whole new world of fantasy and literature, unreachable to most men or mice. The only problem of Firmin is that he never learns to talk or write, in short communicate his thoughts and ideas to people. And so he dies in oblivion together with his poor neighborhood in Boston.

Oblivion I said? Well, not exactly. Sam Savage rescued him from at least that, gave him a voice, which he always coveted, and brought his story to the readers, as Firmin probably would have wished it. The only problem is that Firmin turned out to be much too human and much too male. Jane Austen books taste like lettuce for him. Females are lovelies or else snobish bourgeois rat hating creatures, and at time he really sounds like an elderly profligate, who has the urge but cant perform (being a rat makes it quite a problem to have sex with a human female). Just imagine a rat standing in front of strip-show club, fascinated with naked dancers! His fascination with the strippers is permeating his whole life and the first encounter with a strip show poster is the self professed turning point in his life. I’m not sure why would that be so, but hey, I’m a woman, so what would I know about that.

There is another weak point to the narrative, which made it kind of difficult reading this relatively short book (162 pages English version, and 160 pages Hebrew version). Firmin defines himself as “grossly cynical, moderately vicious, and a melancholy genius,” but my problem was that I didn’t find enough cynicism in the writing. I mean the subject of art, literature and humanity giving way to technological advancement, urbanization and materialism is not a laughing matter, but it could’ve been treated, especially through a rat’s eyes, in a more cynical, wry-smile inducing manner, and it doesn’t do that enough, at least not in the Hebrew translation.

But on the bright side, overall it was a good read. The writing is carefully thought over and crafted, and the book has quite a few good passages and insights into the human nature. One of my favorites being the following (in Hebrew):

ג'רי דיבר ואני הקשבתי. בהדרגה למדתי עוד ועוד על חייו בזמן שהוא, ניתן לומר בבטחה, למד פחות ופחות על חיי. עקב השתיקה המולדת שלי הייתה לו יד חופשית לגבי האישיות שלי. הוא פחות או יותר יכול היה לעשות ממני מה שרק רוצה, ודי מהר נעשה נהיר כדי כאב שכשהוא מביט בי הוא רואה בעיקר חיה חמודה, מוקיונית ומעט טיפשה, משהו בדומה לכלב קטן מאוד בעל שיניים בולטות. [...] אני מניח שאתם חושבים שעליתם עלי. אני יודע, אני יודע מה אמרתי מוקדם יותר – התוודיתי, העדתי, ובדרכי הסוטה אפילו התגאיתי באהבתי לסדקים, בצורך הכמעט פתולוגי שלי להתחבא, בחיבה שלי למסכות. אם כך, אתם שואלים, מדוע אני מתלונן דווקא עכשיו, כשניצבת בפני אפשרות נוספת להסוואה, הזדמנות פז להפוך לבלתי נראה מאחורי החזות הבלתי חדירה של חיית מחמד מפנקת? ובכן, אני אגיד לכם למה: ההבדל בין חבישת מסכה, מעשה שתמיד מהווה הזדמנות לחירות, ובין זה שכופים עליך מסכה, הוא ההבדל בין מקום מפלט לבית כלא (עמ' 128-9).

The gist of it in English is that the mask we don on ourselves voluntarily might give us freedom, but the masks we are forced to don are prison. And it is so true. Sometimes we want to hide behind our mask and play a part, and that’s usually not too difficult, but sometimes we so desperately want to make ourselves shown, make ourselves understood, change the role we play, but society around us forces us into a certain pattern, certain expected role, and we put the mask and play the role…

***
When we see a person leaving a place which is about to be beset by troubles, or when he/she leaves a friend who is about to get in a situation which might result in a public scorn, we say that this person is like a rat deserting a sinking ship. Savage shows us that it’s merely a projection of out own nature, and in reality the rats are the ones that persist, even in the face of dilapidation and destruction. We are like the bookshop owner, Norman Shine, when faced eye to eye with a rat, our foil, we panic and try to destroy this evil twin, and the book shows it brilliantly. But Firmin is only an allegory. Savage puts a mirror in front of human society’s face, but looking at the mirror we see a rat, and isn’t it easier to think about rat’s faults and not our own? Isn’t it easier to digest an allegory? Well, I’m a fan of realism, or at least magical realism, so I’m biased against allegories.

A note on Hebrew translation: thumbs up for Erez Asherov, who created a translation in a fluent, effortless and beautiful Hebrew language, which Firmin would probably use, had he known it, and which does not remind the reader that he is reading a translated book.

Annoying things

2009-08-11T21:17:00.005+03:00

Being sick with some kind of a flu, got to catch on my TV hours and enjoy the beauty of sub-titles. You know how you just have to read the subtitles even if you can understand the spoken language.

So I was watching ER and in a certain episode Frank Martin, the desk clerck, prone to shovinist remarks, which he doesn't really means, says to one of the nurses (I think it was Chuny) as a response to something semi-feminist she says: "Put your bra back, Gloria Steinem" and this phrase was translated into Hebrew as "תלבשי בחזרה את החזיה שלך, פמיניסטית," which in English would be "Put your bra back, feminist". And I ask, is it because they didn't have enaugh space to squeez it on the screen or does the sub-title translator assumes that Israeli audience is more ignorant than American audience?

Welcome to my new blog

2009-08-10T09:00:00.002+03:00

The old one is right here, so if you wish to learn something about me, just sneak a peek there.

I’ve first started to keep a blog as a way of keeping in touch with my mom, when I went on a student exchange program for a year in Japan. My mother doesn’t like e-mails (if she ever remembers her e-mail password at all) and she also doesn’t like talking on the phone, so I had to have some means of reporting on my activities and showing her that I still look healthy. So, yep, I’m a girl with mother fixation and currently working on it.

When I came back from Japan I stopped writing the blog, since there was no any apparent need for it anymore. But after a while I started to miss the exhibitionism, maybe because my life was falling apart and I hoped to make some sense of it or try to define myself again. So, I’m still a mess and currently working on it.

I intend to keep this blog in a style of zuihitsu (random thoughts) in the spirit of Sei Shonagon’s Pillow Book, which means that there will be no particular theme, but it will probably include literature in general, Japanese literature and culture in particular and life around me. I have a deep interest in Japan, although my knowledge of it, even after all these years of study, is still very poor, but I’m working on it.

Just one more thing, I have a thing for languages. I was born with one language, grew up with another and then learned a couple of more. So, I might sometimes write in Hebrew or in Russian, but mostly, I believe, it will be bad English.