Off-Topic / Best posters [875]

Gertrude Stein, once wrote that: "There never will be anything more interesting than that American Civil War."

Clearly she was wrong. The most interesting subject in the world is anal. Even 10,000,000 years from now, when people will have evolved into furry, seal-like creatures - it will still be considered funny by their shrunken brains for one to place his penis in another's butt.

Language / A study on how bilingual Polish-English speakers think [86]

I have noticed that bilingual Polish-Russian speakers have much higher level of emotional stability than bilingual Polish-English speakers. I will not name any names, but you know who you are.

Off-Topic / Let's talk about shoes [308]

@Alien

Is this even a question? You seem to have answered it yourself.

Rapidly moving on... I still have something to say on this subject.

You can use winter boots in the summer if you are at high altitude.

You can use winter boots in the summer if you live somewhere past the Arctic Cirlce.

You can use winter boots in the summer if you are a goth teenager.

You can use winter boots in the summer if you have exceptionally smelly feet. The reason - winter boots will provide a more hermetic seal - this making you a more pleasant companion. If you feel more attention that usual from people - tell them "I'm just breaking them in early".

P.S. This is a classic question an extraterrestrial would ask.

Life / POLISH MYTHS - let's debunk or prove them! [140]

@pawian

Russian hedgehogs are capable of carrying not only apples, but mushrooms also.

I saw one photo of a hedgehog carrying a marinated mushroom.

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Off-Topic / Best posters [875]


If a baboon can participate in a forum, why not a cat? I'm sorry - I apologize for this classic whataboutism...

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Off-Topic / Best posters [875]

@Alien

... and when you say you enjoy eating cats - is this not a provocation? Shock!?

News / Poland's Krab Howitzer (the 155mm gun) Has Passed the Test! [49]

@pawian

The next 60 came out costing $700M. That's one expensive self propelled artillery you Poles made! $12M a pop! Making good money on Ukrainian war, are you?

Off-Topic / Best posters [875]

@Novichok

Alright, sorry. Really it was just a dumb joke, I shouldn't have tried to substantiate it. Jokes don't always have to be true to be good, though I agree it's best when they are true.

Off-Topic / Best posters [875]

@Novichok

I apologize, I just thought I noticed a certain penchant for approaching minors of the opposite sex.

News / Abortion still under control in Poland [2986]

@Korvinus

If you read Hobbes, then the answer to this question is that it is a bad idea, because he could do the same to you. Can a baby kill you? I suppose it could.

Off-Topic / Best posters [875]


I have suspicions that Cargo Pants, Strelecz and Johnny Reb are all the same person, but at different levels of blood alcohol content.

Genealogy / CHERDIA - What or where could it be?! [15]

@Pleuvoir

Zherdia is actually quite plausible as origin for Cherdia. Especially since its Polish spelling might have contained the letter Z as Czerdia. Kamenets was the state capital of the entire P.G. So people from smaller villages likely received their documents there.

I think this is relevant, especially if there is one in the Podolsk Governorate in those years when he emigrated.

Genealogy / Birth in Lviv in 1926: Polish or Ukrainian nationality? [29]

@Irenka

Pre-39 Polish nationality, if after then Soviet nationality.

Genealogy / CHERDIA - What or where could it be?! [15]

Here is a link to an electronic version of a book published in 1893, listing all settlements in the Podolsk Governorate:

elib.shpl.ru/ru/nodes/25851-guldman-v-k-naselennye-mesta-podolskoy-gubernii-alfavitnyy-perechen-naselennyh-punktov-gubernii-s-ukazaniem-nekotoryh-spravochnyh-o-nih-svedeniy-kamenets-podolskiy-1893

Also, you could look at maps and try to find it. In general, this will be a big task on account of the fact that the Podolsk Governorate was huge (today it is spread across multiple oblasts of Ukraine), and very densely populated (second only to Moscow region). Even in the 1890s there were 3 million people living in the area, and today it's probably closer to 15 million people living in the same territory. There are probably hundreds of villages in that area.

Here's one map, unfortunately the names are written in Russian. Got it from the Russian language Wikipedia page where you can find it in original size. I gave a quick scan and did not see a Cherdia.

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Genealogy / CHERDIA - What or where could it be?! [15]

@Pleuvoir

Не за что.

Just another little tip. If you have no idea how to even begin spelling a Russian word you'd like to search, try finding its English Wikipedia article first. Then on the left side tab switch the language to Russian and copy over the articles Russian title for your searches. Russian Wikipedia is among the biggest, and certainly more complete on Russian subjects than the English version. Thus, I think you will always be able to find that link.

Off-Topic / Stock Market and Trading Talk [1011]


Whoa! You are truly a genius. I had to look it up now, and $36 represents the exact bottom for the stock's movement over the last five years. Given your, how shall we say - less than stellar past performance - it is nothing short of a miracle that you timed your investment into Exxon so perfectly. Surely, this is because you had developed a strong thesis for why Russia was going to invade, and correctly predicted the specific implementation of the sanctions packages against Russian energy companies. Goldman Sachs needs traders like you. Hell, even the CIA could benefit from your awesome analytical abilities.

I stand in awe of your investing skill.

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Genealogy / CHERDIA - What or where could it be?! [15]

@Pleuvoir

You probably will have to install a Russian keyboard on your pc, and start using Google Translate on webpages heavily. As workaround for keyboard since it will be hard to use without the stickers, you can use a website like translit.cc. It will transliterate whatever you write in Latin into Cyrillic.

Here's a few Cyrillic terms you can copy/paste in your searches and not worry about the spelling:

Подольская Губерния - Podolsk Governorate
Деревня - village
Уезд - sort of like county. If Governorate is equivalent to a U.S. State or Canadian Province, then Uezd is a lower level administrative division like a county.

Архив - archive
Перепись 1897 года - 1897 Census

Finally, here's a few attempts of mine at guessing what a potentially correct spelling for Cherdia is:

Чердиа
Чердя
Чердь
Черяда

PS. Governorates and Uezds don't exist in Russia since the October Revolution, so the results you get when searching these terms should be relatively specific to the time period you need without getting a lot of other clutter.

Genealogy / CHERDIA - What or where could it be?! [15]



I don't think Podolsk the city is meant here. It's listed second, after Cherdia, so to me it indicates that it refers to the Podolsk Governorate (Подольская Губерния). The territory of the former Podolsk Governorate bordered Austria-Hungary in the West and is entirely inside modern Ukraine, while Podolsk the city is outside Moscow. So, these are very different places. It being placed in Russia in the documents is not relevant since Ukraine did not yet exist. If I remember correctly, this poster's family was Ukrainian in origin, so it would make much more sense for them to be from this state, rather than the city near Moscow.

You could try going through Russian archival data to find where in the Podolsk Governorate Cherdia was located. It's clear to me that it was a small place, likely a village, and not a city because no large settlements under that name appear in the Wikipedia entry for the Podolsk Governorate. My hunch would be that the village no longer exists. Thousands of villages in the Western USSR disappeared during WW2, and especially in this area. The Podolsk Governorate had a large Jewish population (~15% according to Wiki), so if your family is Jewish in origin or came from a predominantly Jewish village, then it's doubly likely that it no longer exists and has been lost to history.

Life / What do Poles really think about cats? [434]

Dog personality=Cat personality^10

My dog, even though it is incredibly stupid and belongs to one of the stupider breeds in general, is capable of easily performing tasks that would be extremely complex for a feline.

How come you don't see any cats at the border, or working in counter narcotics, riot control, security? Because they are useless.

Language / Polish people: did you struggle learning English - differences between both languages [75]

@Lyzko


Yes, and this is why many times one sounds like an idiot without realizing it.

Language / Polish people: did you struggle learning English - differences between both languages [75]


Nah it's not a pain, we all learned to type this way in the 90s - not least because you cannot type a website url in Cyrillic, or some other specific applications. Irritating, but not a big issue.


It is absolutely maddening. "I live in a house" vs "I live in the house" vs "I live in-house" - very difficult to wrap your mind around as a new student.

Language / Polish people: did you struggle learning English - differences between both languages [75]


This is indisputable. It's kind of you to group Russian in the European group of languages instead of Orcish. What's helped me most is understanding how many Russian and English words are French or German in origin. Studying Italian in college gave me an appreciation for the Latin foundation. Being wary of false friends, these have been amazing guides.

Language / Polish people: did you struggle learning English - differences between both languages [75]


Oh stop tooting your horn. I learned your language, idioms and all within ten years. Articles are still an issue for me though. Drives me mad when I miss a "the".

Off-Topic / Best posters [875]

@johnny reb

I am not 16 and I think your posts are creepy AF. So there's that.

Off-Topic / Best posters [875]


Russia is a democratic country, with constitutional protections for citizens' freedom of speech. This is your right, and I will type many posts in forums in support of your right to continue opposing the president.


To protect the gentle psyche of our young members I will answer you. Your Russian is perfect. As good as Google translate can get. Now bugger off to "your" thread. It's yours, right?

Off-Topic / Best posters [875]

@RussianAntiPutin

I apologize, I just cannot contain myself when I see pictures of the Sun-like One. Feel blessed, child, that your entire life has been spent under his watchful eye.

Off-Topic / Best posters [875]


What... are you gay, or something?

Off-Topic / Best posters [875]

@jon357

What a man. What. A. Man. Look at those pectorals.

Off-Topic / Best posters [875]

@GefreiterKania

I am getting accused a lot of homosexuality recently. It's all Pawian's fault for starting a "Hot Polish Men" thread. I ask you - why is it me getting attacked and not the man who founded the thread?

Off-Topic / Best posters [875]

@Lenka

Sometimes when I read old threads I start feeling sorry for myself for missing out on the Golden Years of PF. At the same time, back then there was no Novichok. The appearance of Novichok, aka Rich Mazur, was like a bolt of lightning on a clear day. Immediately it became clear that this kind of razor sharp logic and powers of deduction are without precedent on the server.

Also, those veterans that stayed have fermented and matured, like the famed canned suckers that JR consumes in his hut. Pawian of 2014 vintage, is not the same as 2022 Pawian. His wit is more ascerbic, his gardening knowledge more perfected.