August 2011
26 posts
excerpt from The Gulag Archipelago by Solzhenitsyn
You have the right to arrange your own life under the blue sky and the hot sun, to get a drink of water, to stretch, to travel wherever you like without a convoy. So what’s this about unwiped feet? And what’s this about a mother-in-law? What about the main thing in life, all its riddles? If you want, I’ll spell it out for you right now. Do not pursue what is illusory - property...
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Idiom of the day
черная/белая зависть
Lit. black/white envy
Black envy - the kind that’s possessive and destructive
White envy - the kind that makes you go out and get a higher-paying job or something
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“Perfume is like couture - it’s different on every woman’s skin”
– Riccardo Tisci
this is terribly pertinent as i’m looking for a new perfume but every one i like in the bottle turns out too sweet on my skin. the search continues.
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The origin of the word 'спасибо'.
russiangrammar:
You may be able to guess which two words ‘спасибо’ comes from.
The word ‘спасибо’, the Russian word for ‘thank you’, comes from two separate words: ‘спасать’ (to save) and ‘Бог’ (God).
Originally, people would say ‘спаси Бог’ (God save [you]). Hence when you thanked someone, you were actually asking for God’s blessing for them.
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The Best Time of the Day
Cool summer nights. Windows open. Lamps burning. Fruit in the bowl. And your head on my shoulder. These the happiest moments in the day. Next to the early morning hours, of course. And the time just before lunch. And the afternoon, and early evening hours. But I do love these summer nights. Even more, I think, than those other times. The work finished for the day. And no one who can reach us now....
“Is it really that bad if someone sees who you are? Why is it humans have a...”
– Joseph Gogler
“Before you diagnose yourself with depression or low self-esteem, first make sure...”
– William Gibson
“All we can do is adapt the way we view this condition, not as a crime or a...”
– Russell Brand on addiction, following the death of Amy Winehouse
I Remember →
By the first of August the invisible beetles began to snore and the grass was as tough as hemp and was no color–no more than the sand was a color and we had worn our bare feet bare since the twentieth of June and there were times we forgot to wind up your alarm clock and some nights we took our gin warm and neat from old jelly glasses while the...
