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Posts by f stop  

Joined: 9 Dec 2009 / Female ♀ 		Last Post: 9 Oct 2015
Threads: Total: 24 / Live: 2 / Archived: 22
Posts: Total: 2493 / Live: 570 / Archived: 1923 		From: USA, dirty south
Speaks Polish?: tak
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Displayed posts: 572 / page 3 of 20
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f stop   
3 Nov 2013
Life / Halloween vs All Saints' Day in Poland [48]

From wiki:
Hallowmas, also known as the Triduum of All Hallows (Triduum of All Saints), is the triduum encompassing the Western Christian observances of All Hallows' Eve (Hallowe'en), All Saints' Day (All Hallows') and All Souls' Day, which last from October 31 to November 2 annually. Hallowmas is a time to remember the dead, including martyrs, saints, and all faithful departed Christians. The dates of Hallowmas were established in the 8th century AD.
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2 Nov 2013
Language / IS "MURZYN" word RACIST? [686]

I had to check who revived this old thread...
Surprise!
Pierogi!
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1 Nov 2013
Life / Halloween vs All Saints' Day in Poland [48]

You make some very good points, WielkiPolak. However, TV is full of stuff that is not based in reality (zombies, for example?), and we have the power to differentiate what's real and what's a game.

I'm not sure what you are proposing - ban on candy advertisements? Although, I had a feeling that sooner or later a tighter restriction will be proposed on advertisements of Burger King and ...butter. Silly, no?

The solution is, as always, education. In free market economy, marketing targets what works. Our culture, and that includes parents, has to change first.
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1 Nov 2013
Life / Halloween vs All Saints' Day in Poland [48]

But it just does not fit in the centuries-old traditions of the Old Continent

that might be true. But, as others pointed out, those traditions are constantly changing, and with each shift comes the same lament for the good "old ways".
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1 Nov 2013
Life / Halloween vs All Saints' Day in Poland [48]

I think the popularity of Halloween in US is because of costumes. Candy is incidental, the usual commerce push.
I'm not sure why people like to get dressed up in something so different from what they would usually wear, but the attraction is undeniably there, throughout the history. Maybe it's a need for some theatre? Art?

Except for Marti Gras, US doesn't really have another holiday when people can get dressed in costumes.
Mexico has their Dia de los Muertos, other countries have the carnivals, masquerades, even Jews have Purim!

I started thinking about this costume phenomenon today, when the battle cry for the wild parties rung throughout the social media.

So I set up a photo shoot in my house (just a drop and few lights), and asked my friend, who is a young mother, to let her young mother friends know that I'll be happy to take pictures, free of charge (I have a bit of a reputation as a 'mercurial' artist which I deliberately cultivated so I don't get roped into shooting a wedding or an "event" ever again). I was surprised how many showed up! Families with young kids, ladies and babies all dressed up with nowhere to go. (Don't let the media fool you, interest in walking door to door trick-a-treating, especially with a toddler in your arms is definitely waning, as well as interest in opening the door and handing out candy). We had elaborate costumes, outrageous make up, wide-eyed kids, and no candy in sight. I got some incredible shots, everyone left early, nobody puked, gathering was an amazing success... I think I'll make this a yearly tradition.

If you are in US, you are welcome to steal this idea. ;)

As far as Polish All Saint's Day, I just don't know. It's a touching tradition, but dwelling on those I've lost, especially in the somber, Polish style, comes too often as is. Something about having an authorized, designated day for it makes me resist.
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30 Oct 2013
Law / Where to obtain license plate in Poland? How long it takes? [24]

There is a good reason why in US those are called "Vanity" plates. ;)

Here are some examples of accidentally unfortunate ones:
huffingtonpost.com/2013/01/18/21-accidentally-inappropriate-vanity-plates_n_2473573.html
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24 Oct 2013
Life / Babcia or Busha - any social class difference? [359]

Why are we still beating this dog? If that was an honest question, it was answered: it is not a word used in Poland. Otherwise it just getting rehashed for the sake of argument.
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21 Oct 2013
Life / I hate Warsaw. The worst part about living here is the people who move here from small towns, villages.. [124]

I hated Chicago. I could not find much in common with people there, Polish or not. Also, I had no AC and summers nights were brutal. I was so miserable there, that since then I refuse to even visit and give that city another chance.

Loved NY. I clicked with a group that had insiders access to music/art "happenings" and I was bursting with creative energy.

But why are we talking about Chicago/NY?

I wish Zibi would say some good things about Warsaw..

I attempted to show, by example, some of the reasons why a person might like or hate the place they lived in.
Obviously, that message was completely lost on you, and in your usual fashion you chose to use it to insult.
Now, I will go back to ignoring your useless posts so you might do yourself a favor and don't bother replying to mine.
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20 Oct 2013
Life / Why are Poles always so miserable? Why do they never smile? [512]

I'm still not used to all the social fakery that goes on in the states.
For example, unless we're sharing something that really needs to be commented on, I am usually taken aback when strangers start talking to me.

I'm also uncomfortable around overly friendly waiters and the like.
I assume those are, partly, residuals of growing up in Poland.
This certainly does not mean that I'm miserable. I just prefer smiles reserved for the moments when one is actually happy to see someone, not a required norm when interacting with anybody and everybody.
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19 Oct 2013
Life / Why are Poles always so miserable? Why do they never smile? [512]

I found this advice for travelers, and I thought Poles are like that, too.
"Belgium
Don't compliment them on anything. They'll spend the next half hour bringing themselves down and assure you everything and everyone elsewhere is better."

Here is the rest of this thread, about what not to do when visiting. Hillarious!

reddit/r/AskReddit/comments/1ohxlg/what_should_i_absolutely_not_do_when_visiting
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16 Oct 2013
Language / Busha and JaJa [140]

when my son was a baby, he started calling my mother "Babie", and it stuck. Although he knows that this is not a Polish word for grandma, some of his friends now think that it is.

I believe that some grandmothers might have taken similar shortcuts, but most likely it was outside Poland proper, as I have never heard that word in Poland. ;)
f stop   
16 Oct 2013
Language / Busha and JaJa [140]

I think she meant dziadzia, a form of dziadzuś that babies use. It means grandpa.
I have never heard of busia. I think she meant babusia.
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30 Sep 2013
Love / Polish women: what do you think of Polish men? Physically unattractive? [180]

No, what I did was show what I, and maybe other Polish women might find attractive in a man and what they might not find attractive.

I piece of advice to you; before you post it is useful to not only try to understand the point someone is making, but also having a point of your own.
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29 Sep 2013
Love / Polish women: what do you think of Polish men? Physically unattractive? [180]

I already expressed my opinion about their looks.
But that's only half of their problem. Many of them are also racist, and think that the accident of their birth in Poland makes them some kind of priviledged nobility. They are dinasours.

For some reason many Polish women are able to adapt to the changing world better than the men.
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19 Sep 2013
Love / Dating a Polish man - how to impress his mother? [51]

My recommendation is to just be yourself. Do your own thing. Polish women I know get annoyed or embarrassed when somebody's obviously kissing up to them.

The harder you try to please her, less respect she will have for you. Show some backbone. And don't be afraid to point out something you can do better than her, and offer to help her. ;)