.dilemma.
From the Greek word δίλημμα, meaning double proposition. A dilemma is a problem offering at least two solutions or possibilities, of which none are practically acceptable.
Should I be listening to my parents?
Nah, fuggedaboutit*
*She is very sick with a stuffy nose and a cough right now, thus the New York accent :)
Should I be listening to my parents?
Nah, fuggedaboutit**She is very sick with a stuffy nose and a cough right now, thus the New York accent :)
.good.morning.
First thing in the morning, together with her coffee, Nina's grandmother (Nagyi) checks two blogs (our blog and this other one) to see if she can find new pictures of her granddaughters.
This morning we have two pictures for Nagyi. Enjoy :)
This morning we have two pictures for Nagyi. Enjoy :)
.jane.
A few weeks ago Nina frequently started taking the position above. She loves reclining like this. At times, she even starts doing leg-lifts. Thus, our friend Janet named her Jane (after Jane Fonda). This is definitely one of those pictures that we will stash away, and then ambush her with on her wedding day slide-show :)
What is this? Not sure, but she HAS BEEN trying hard to communicate. Bababa, gagaga, and dadada are among her favorite words.
.mistery.solved.
On our last day in Sarajevo, I woke up with a weird scratching in my throat. I assumed a cold was about to attack, so I started taking throat candy, and when we arrived home, I added cold medicine and vitamins galore. To no avail. The throat stuff continued - only for about a day - but in the process, was joined by a VERY runny nose, LOTS of sneezing, and a general muscle weakness. It kept getting worse, and although medicating myself, nothing was changing. Someone around me suggested it might be allergies, which I immediately brushed off as impossible. With no history of any allergies to pollen in my family, and me never having been allergic to anything, I was sure that is not what it was.
And then this morning we left for Budapest for the day (Arpi was teaching at the church there), and in the afternoon, before heading back home, I realized that although I had left the house armed with a considerable amount of tissues, I didn't need to use them even once! Not even a tiny sneeze! Hmmm. I was leery of coming back, for I suspected what awaited me.
And sure enough, soon after arriving back home to Vajta, the sneezing attacks returned.
I have always felt VERY sorry for my friends who have allergies to certain types of pollen, but secretly - I now realize - I felt some kind of sick pride for having a stronger immune system than that. (Feel free to judge me for that one. I deserve it.)
So now, at the age of 30+, I get to discover how they have felt all these years. And you know what's really scary? At this time in my life, God has me living on the grounds of a castle which is surrounded by a HUGE property, covered in nothing but grass, bushes, trees and flowers! Somethings is always in bloom starting now until roughly September. Yikes.
And purely for entertainment's sake, I looked into what pollen looks, like. Check it out....
And then this morning we left for Budapest for the day (Arpi was teaching at the church there), and in the afternoon, before heading back home, I realized that although I had left the house armed with a considerable amount of tissues, I didn't need to use them even once! Not even a tiny sneeze! Hmmm. I was leery of coming back, for I suspected what awaited me.
And sure enough, soon after arriving back home to Vajta, the sneezing attacks returned.
I have always felt VERY sorry for my friends who have allergies to certain types of pollen, but secretly - I now realize - I felt some kind of sick pride for having a stronger immune system than that. (Feel free to judge me for that one. I deserve it.)
So now, at the age of 30+, I get to discover how they have felt all these years. And you know what's really scary? At this time in my life, God has me living on the grounds of a castle which is surrounded by a HUGE property, covered in nothing but grass, bushes, trees and flowers! Somethings is always in bloom starting now until roughly September. Yikes.
And purely for entertainment's sake, I looked into what pollen looks, like. Check it out....
Pretty, isn't it?All this to say, I am now officially a pollen-allergy sufferer. Of which kind, I don't know yet, but if anyone out there knows of some kind of medication that can be taken to make life a bit easier, please, HELP!
.sarajevo.part.4.
Although we came back home from Sarajevo almost two days ago now, there is one more post about it that we want to share with you, so here it goes ...
When reporting on Bosnia, it is absolutely impossible to avoid the subject of burek, a national staple. It is eaten at all times of the day, although it is quite a heavy meal. Phylo dough with various fillings (ground meat, cheese, spinach, potatoes, etc.) and lots of oil makes for something that will sit in your belly for about a day - at least if you're not a local. Locals seem to be able to consume endless quantities of the stuff, even late at night, with no effect whatsoever on their digestive system. As for us - the not-so-trained - we stuck with the morning hour consumption. It is soooo worth it! Yummy!
When reporting on Bosnia, it is absolutely impossible to avoid the subject of burek, a national staple. It is eaten at all times of the day, although it is quite a heavy meal. Phylo dough with various fillings (ground meat, cheese, spinach, potatoes, etc.) and lots of oil makes for something that will sit in your belly for about a day - at least if you're not a local. Locals seem to be able to consume endless quantities of the stuff, even late at night, with no effect whatsoever on their digestive system. As for us - the not-so-trained - we stuck with the morning hour consumption. It is soooo worth it! Yummy!
Inat kuća or The House of Spite. This house is now standing on the right side of the Miljacka river. The interesting thing is, that it used to be on the other side of the riverbank, but during Austro-Hungarian times, when they were building the City Hall, all the buildings there had to be demolished - in order to make room for the new, big building. The government paid compensation to all owners of the buildings which were demolished. However, the owner of this house refused to accept the offer, and instead demanded that his house be moved to the other side of the river. He was very stubborn about it, and in the end, the authorities agreed. To this day, the House of Spite sits in the place where it was then moved, and today, a restaurant functions in it.
Nina had a grand time - as you can see. :)
.sarajevo.part.3.
The quintessential Bosnian characters in local jokes are always two friends: Mujo and Haso. What you need to know about them is that they are portrayed as lazy, and ... well, not so bright. These jokes also portray the Bosnian state of mind and general mentality quite well. There are literally hundreds of jokes about Mujo and Haso. We read a good one the other day in Sarajevo, so here it goes:
Mujo applied for a job. At the job interview, after getting the job, they start discussing the finances.
Mujo: How much will my salary be?
Employer: First it will be 500 Marks (the Bosnian currency), and later 1000 Marks.
Mujo: Okay, then I'll just come back later.
PS: More pictures to come soon!
.sarajevo.part.2.
On our second full day here, once again, we were out on town for a good chunk of our day. Nina has been nothing short of a trooper. She is filled with energy, smiles at EVERYONE who even glances at her. So far our two days have been very informative, we have been talking with our hosts a lot about life and ministry here, and have also been discovering the city. Here are some pictures.
One of the symbols f Sarajevo, the Sebilj, a cool-looking structure influenced by the Ottomans (like many other things here).
The street corner where the First World War began. This is the spot where Gavrilo Princip assassinated Franz Ferdinand and his wife.
We went to The Tunnel yesterday. During the siege of Sarajevo (1992-1995) this 800 meter long, 1.6 meter high structure was the only way in and out of the city. A family and their friends dug it next to their house during a four-month period. Food and medicine came in here, and hundreds of thousands left the city, and became refugees, then immigrants all over the world.
The waiter whom Nina charmed yesterday. They had fun together, as the picture proves it too!
The three young girls working at a burek fast-food place. (Burek is a local specialty made of phyllo dough and stuffed with various fillings. It's a yummy , cheap way to fill your tummy.) They too, were charmed by our little charmer.
.sarajevo.part.1.
We made it here safely! Yesterday we visited the old town, where we walked around and ate yummy ćevapi. Mosques are everywhere (and they are not empty, like they used to be many years ago), here's one in the picture above.
Copper alley is a part of the old town bazaar, where coppersmiths proudly display and sell their artifacts.
Rob and Janet Mezger, our wonderful hosts, and Nina and Arpi walking in old town.
Nina is having a blast, as literally EVERYONE here wants to play with her. I am positive that she has got to be thinking something like this: Mom, Dad, is this place for real? This is sooooo cool!
.mocking.glass.
The mocking glass is a literary tool. Writers use it to show a slanted picture of a person, or an event. A friend just gave me a link to an interesting blog titled Stuff Christians Like which is sort of a mocking glass by a Christian, of Christians, discussing things like cross stitching, talking to strangers on airplanes, and tattoos - i.e. stuff Christians like. Go ahead, click on the following link, you will have a good laugh, especially if you have experienced mainstream Western Christianity:
On a different note ... We are leaving for Sarajevo tomorrow morning. We will be gone for six days. If you get a chance, please pray for us, we are expecting God to reveal further details of His plan for our future while visiting there.
On a different note ... We are leaving for Sarajevo tomorrow morning. We will be gone for six days. If you get a chance, please pray for us, we are expecting God to reveal further details of His plan for our future while visiting there.
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