TRAVEL DIARY

A weblog regularly updated by Jodi Rose.

Thursday, February 9, 2006

9:27 PM
Posted by jodi rose

Talked with a friend from melbourne last night, who articulated something about Australia being a culture of envy, with a deep anxiety about intellectual life - especially art and academia. Why does it seem that wanting something more from life needs to be apologised for?

I just had a lovely email from a friend about emotional intelligence, written on a flight from belgium:

"They say as a human one not always makes calculated rational decisions but they are heavily influenced by our emotions.
Did this man just read my mind or what?"

Indeed. Even when I (rarely) think I'm being completely rational, there is often a level of complete emotional illogicality to the decision.

Seem to be operating from a position of extreme emotional stupidity right now. What does it take to get the message?
Someone who says they never get lonely - I'd like to bottle that.

Had a really lovely day, pottering around sorting out piles of stuff, old newspapers, clothes and the like, getting my house in order. Feels good. Looked at the thermometer and it said 21 degrees celcius - didn't quite believe it but opened all the windows to the fresh air. Once the sun went behind a cloud it was more like 2 degrees. Walked over to Esztergom, looking for this antique shop. Tried to follow Gabriel's directions, but could find neither cafe trafo nor the confectionary (cake) shop - a shame, as my back-up plan was to retire to one of these for refreshment. Asked a man shovelling snow on a street behind the basilica if he knew where the antik shop was - but must have inadvertently said bookshop, as he then directed me to the place Gyuri had already told me about. Down along the small danube, over the second bridge, and then second street to the left. Still, I found some wonderful hungarian language books - one with all kinds of useful letter writing phrases, such as 'I am rather pressed for time at the moment as my brother is ill in bed,' the frighteningly honest 'I can't think of anything else to write about at the moment', and 'Most hallottam a nagyszerü hirt, és sietek elmondani neked, mennyire orulok' - trans I have just heard the marvellous news and I hasten to tell you how delighted I am. Fabulous. And some other flashes of genius, which I will only tell in english:
'Mary joins me in sending you and Elisabeth our best wishes'
'Please remember George to Bill'
'I met Casba last week. He said he met you last year in Glasgow, and wishes to be remembered to you.'
'His name became a household word and he lived to be ninety'
'People idolise figures that are not really worthy of admiration'
'He became famous overnight as the result of a television program'
..and this was published in 1974, was before the reality tv craze.

there are some slightly more acerbic yet extremely useful sentences, like:' Milyen jo volt végre levelet kapni toled. Mar azt hittem, elvestztel.' How nice it was to hear from you at last, I had given you up for lost. and 'Micsoda meglepetes volt ennyi ido utan levelet kapni toled' What a surprise it was to get a letter from you after all this time!

Aha, and write (right?) at the beginning are instructions for beginning the pen-pal correspondence - bizzarely enough one of them with the exact name of the friend I just had a strange evening with.

Crazy-making. Maybe heavy drinking and ridiculous inanity is the way to go. And yet... I wanted more.

So, it's a bath and early night for me. Lulled to sleep last night by the incredible stillness of the snow gently sparkling as it swirls to earth.