4 February, 2001
3 February – I’m baaaaaaaaaaaaaack! I returned from Vilnius at 2:23am CEST this morning. I walked home and went to bed. I woke up around 8am. The trip is over, however I still have another 8 days of Winter Break.
What will I do for that time? Hmmmm…I haven’t really thought about it yet. This weekend I will do nothing. I’ve already decided that. I went to the supermarket earlier this morning (it’s now 11h50) and now plan on staying in for the rest of the weekend. I want to be warm!
After that, I am going to Olsztyn some day (probably Monday) to drop off some pictures to be developed and to shop at HIT, a shop I’ve mentioned in my past journals, where I can save a lot of money instead of shopping at my local supermarket. I’ll have to make a second trip to Olsztyn to pick up my photos some day, probably Friday.
I’m trying to avoid going to Warsaw, but it looks like I will probably have to. I want to find a computer repair shop and see what can be done about my A drive. Not being able to use it is driving me crazy. I have to make tests or quizzes almost every day and now I have to into work very early to do it.
I’ll also probably listen to music, watch a bit of tellie, write in my journals (yes, that’s right, more babbling on about nothing of any importance) and also start my trip report for Vilnius.
Lets see, I also have to go over and see Lucja and family one of these days and also visit Mary on Thursday, just after she gets home from Italy (She arrives on Wednesday).
So, I guess I don’t really have too much time to rest.
I had planned on making tacos tonight as I still have some tortillas left from when I went to Warsaw in December (I froze some of them to save them for future use). While I was at the supermarket, I was able to find all that I needed, except salsa. THEY DON’T HAVE SALSA!!! I was almost sure that they did, however they don’t. I’ll get some in Olsztyn when I go, but that really surprised me. So, I put what I had bought for that back and changed my menu for tonight.
Sunset today was at 16h05
16h44 – According to the thermometer outside my kitchen window, it’s now –14C!!!!!! BRRRRRRR..I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again…thank goodness for Polish heating.
17h – "City Cabs" was from New York City today. However, it seemed strange.. The taxi driver that showed him around was driving a Ford Explorer. I’ve been to NYC many time and have never seen one of those used as a taxi. However, it was good to see NYC again. They went to Washington Square Park, The Statue of Liberty, Ellis Island and many other places that I know, as well as a few that I don’t (such as Brighton Beach, a Russian area in Brooklyn off the D train). I love NYC. I can’t wait to go back to the USA sometime to visit again and see a show or two. I also want to visit the Greenpoint are of Brooklyn as it’s the Polish area. I’ve spent very little time in Brooklyn, but would like to spend more. Most of my time has been spent in Manhattan.
18h55 – There was an article on CNN’s "Business Unusual" program about the Yuengling plant in Pottsville, Pennsylvania. It’s America’s oldest brewery and has been making beer since 1829, even through prohibition. I visited that plant this summer and, when I lived in Philadelphia, it was my beer of choice. I have one of their refrigerator magnets on my fridge.
As far as I can tell, the power situation in California is getting worse. Today is the first time I’ve seem the news since the last Friday of Jan, so I don’t know what’s been going on since then. According to CNN World, the state is asking businesses to cut back by 10% of the outside lighting that they have, there are commercials about saving electricity and
4 February – 8h – It’s snowing!! YIPPEE!! It’s only a light snow, bit it’s nice to see.
9h – The snow has stopped and it’s sunny now.
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The religious show was great again today. It was about the gifts that everyone has been given from God. Here’s what it was about:
Gifts from God
Discovering your gifts from God:
Romans 12: 4 – 8, 11
Acts 17:16 – 17
Dedicating your gifts to God:
Acknowledging that our gifts and abilities have come from God and offering them back to him.
Developing your God given gifts:
1 Chronicles 5:18
Proverbs 18:15 – 16
1 Corinthians 9:24 – 27
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There was an article on CNN World today about people going on treasure hunts using their GPS’ (Global Positioning System). There’s a website called Geocacher.com where people with a GPS can sign up and then get coordinates of a treasure near them. They use the GPS, which can narrow a position down to about 20 feet, to find the box, take something out of it, sign the log book and leave it for someone else. The treasures are small things like batteries for a GPS, etc. What fun!
10h21 – It’s getting warmer..It’s now –12C.
11h36 – I’ve just finished off some cheese I bought in Lithuania. YUMMMM!!! It was VERY good. It is called Rokiškio Suris, suris meaning cheese and Rokiškio is the name of the town it’s made in they’ve been making cheese there since 1964). It cost 14.99/kg, and the small block I bought was 0.194 kg, so it cost me 2.91lt.
My flat is getting quite warm now. It’s sunny and the sun starts to come in my windows at this time of the day, so the flat warms up nicely. It may be bitterly cold outside, but I’m in shorts and a T-shirt.
I’ve just noticed that the letters "n" & "m" on my keyboard are showing a bit of wear. A very small part of each has worn off, but they still work fine. I guess that that was bound to happen on a keyboard that is used for hours almost every day. Perhaps they’re the most often used letters.
I need measuring spoons. Both metric and imperial would be good, as I have recipes that are each. I’ll buy some at TESCO in Warsaw when I go down. I guess I don’t really need them, but they would be convenient to have.
Top Gear has changed to Waterwold for this month. That means that they’ll test boats and other watercrafts for a month. I prefer cars, but it was still interesting.
I’m making chili for dinner. Nothing like a nice hot pot of chili on a cold winter day. I’ve been letting my chili simmer lately longer as that makes the meat even more tender. I serve it over white rice, that way I get two or three meals out of it. I’ve been making it once a week for about a month now. It’s not too expensive and it’s good.
It’s now 17h37 and the temperature has dropped to –16C. I’m NOT going to Olsztyn tomorrow. I’ll wait until Tuesday and go if it’s warmer. If not, I won’t. It’s great to have a week off and not have to do anything!
I’ve decided that I need to learn how to make Salsa from scratch. I think I can do it with tomatoes, chilis, garlic, peppers and onions. However, I like chunky salsa and I don’t really know how to make the tomato sauce chunky, or for that matter, make the tomato sauce at all. I know that I can buy chilis at the supermarket, believe it or not. At least I could in the summer. I assume that I still can. Mexican food is still my favorite and always will be. Poland isn’t known for its cuisine.
On Sunday evenings, CNN’s Late Edition (with Wolf Blitzer) is on and it’s live. It’s on here at 18h, which would be 12h in USA Eastern Time (I don’t know if CNN is using its studio in Atlanta, DC or NYC for this show). This is the first time I heard Wolf say it was live. I always thought that it was tape delayed from Saturday, or an early broadcast of a show that was on later on CNN in the USA. I wonder why they call it "Late Edition"? Midday isn’t late in my book.
On the previously mentioned show, they talked a lot about the tax cut that W is proposing. Any American with a brain realizes that any tax cut will primarily help the wealthy, not regular working class people. Oh well, I don’t care. I won’t live in that country until W is gone.
There’s an election in Israel on Tuesday. The incumbent, Barak, is trailing in the poles and is expected to lose. I bet they’ll be able to make count their votes quicker than the USA did.
19h – Temperature is –18C.
I’ve just reread the "A Year in Philadelphia" journal (accessible from my "Writings and Ramblings" page) that I wrote after I left that great place and came to Poland. It was my home for a year, so I still feel attached to it. I love it and miss it, but the madness of the USA will keep me away from that country for now. Someday I will return to Philadelphia to visit, but probably not to live. I still want the world to know that it is a fantastic place. It’s often overshadowed by DC and NYC, however those of us that know Philadelphia know what a great place it is. Maybe I should keep it a secret.
The Jay Leno show was from the day after the SuperBowl.
21h – It’s now –20C.
I bought three candles at the supermarket yesterday and the first (Orange) one has gone out. It lasted from darkness yesterday until 21h25 today. I lit the 2nd one (green apple smell), am going to take a bath then gam going to bed. Good night.
