May 16th

I am writing with some degree of guilt. It’s… actually hard to speak of it, but I suppose I need to say, to be honest and straightforward even when carrying the guilt equivalent to that of a true nationalist’s when betraying his country. I started another blog, in Hungarian I thoroughly enjoy writing it. I am in fact very excited about it for it is a new chance, another horizon to explore with a largely different set of people, even if there is some overlap. I am excited to non-politically write politics, Hungarian politics to people I usually bit concerned of offending when saying things straight out without a blog. But it also feels like I am starting another family parallel to this and of course while I am aware that it isn’t a real family, not in the traditional, nuclear family sense the history of… I am just blathering, perhaps wanting to show off. Sorry. I know love cannot be split only multiplied.

Ernest and I had a conversation on the phone today. It was a first one. We were right next to each other though. He loves phones but he will not talk to anyone on them, only imagine talking to someone. Today I was using both skpye and the phone to take care of a list of things that required phoning people. Mostly official stuff. He wanted a piece of the action so with the headset on my, hm, head I called the phone which he was imagining to have a conversation through. It was exciting. Than I helped him to ‘pick it up’. After some time he went along with the idea of talking so we did.

We started packing today, I think you think it’s soon, month before we go, but as proven it is just about time besides, the sooner we are packed, the more relaxed the actual hectic parts will be. The children handle it differently. Liliom dressed up as a cat. Ernest started packing too. Didn’t want to listen to Jen that should he pack his favourite cats into the boxes that will be open again in August only he will not have those cats.

Generally, the kids seem content though so long as - in front of them – I don’t get into the packing with Jen (they follow me around and stand in the way). I actually feel happy about it. She has experience you know. When we moved to Finland I was already in Finland when she had to pack up everything on her own. When we came over here I had exams then I took off for a week just before moving leaving her with the stuff. Maybe I should just let her handle it this time as well. I wonder what her comment will be.

Of course I am not being true here, I do keep busy with all the paperwork, money matters, organising, phone calls and blogging.

May 10th

I spend my days with my youngest child, pretty much all day everyday. This afternoon when in the bathroom he scribbled a drawing than announced ‘It’s a cat’, in toddler’s talk and repeated it a couple of times. I missed his first drawing! I wonder if I should be gutted or it may be shouldn’t bother and it’s just one of those stereotypical stay at home parenting things. Don’t know, don’t really know what a stereotypical stay at home parent would look like actually.

Irony is that when I arrived to wonder in amusement of his drawing, some 31 seconds later, pointing at it and asking ‘is this a cat?’ in excitement he just looked at me as if i lost it. ‘what cat? It’s just scribble.’ although he appreciated my excitement.

We had to have a talk with Liliom this afternoon: In school they were experimenting with the primary colours mixing them a bit. As everything in her school it came with a nice story that was pleasant to listen to when she retold it. However it was once again painful to realise that she thinks this school of hers has no connection to her other life, that the attempt to build a well functioning community of learners with her was so successful that she forgets to check it against other aspects of her life. She told me ‘she never mixed these colours before’ and I actually answered ‘bullshit!’
When it comes to painting session Jen and I are at times painstakingly fixated on these three most basic of colours as a starting point. And we eagerly share our views with Lili, needless to say.

But she received some payback later in the afternoon. At ballet they are learning some dance for the big end of term show ad her regular partner was off today. This wasn’t the pay back but as I found out at home, her partner for the session. Apparently they couldn’t work together and Lili spent the way home complaining and ranting about her. In some twisted sense it was entertaining, and cute. Of course at some pint I had to start being the good and sensible parent and try to help her resolve her inner rage in a constructive and creative manner.

The last ever episode of SGU has aired last night. After we’ve seen it Jen couldn’t stop swearing it was so rubbish. I was gonna say I bet she still going on about that in her had but she just told me ‘sizzle frazzle frizzle’. Late night studies do things to you

March 8th

It's international women's day today. Jen gives it a different name but I am too modest to type it. Apparently I should have been blogging in Victorian times. It's funny though that there are such things as this day. I think so long as there is an international day for women we don't even have to wonder 'are we equal'. The answer is given.

I may have forgotten to mention about the flash mob some weeks ago. It was the first ever flashmob i have ever been to. And so far the last one but that is not the fm's fault. Simply there hasn't been another one since. So I am converted, yet, it was a pretty rubbish one, still I had been a lot more cheerful after it was finished, on a particularly moody day. The whole point of the fm actually is the cats who live on the ceiling.

As part of the activity we were prompted to point at the sky as if there was something amazing up there and be totally amused by it for a while. That was the part that Ernest really got into. Ever since he engages in the occasional pointing up and being amused here and there. When he did it at home the first time, pointing at the ceiling, being amused he made the connection. It's an Ernest thing, anything amusing goes 'meow'. So there are cats who live on the ceiling.

Today I invited one of them to come down for a wee while and she did. They are some small breed of cats so a comfortable fit in my palm and she purred away happily when I pat her back. We went over to Ernest and he had a go stroking the cat, it even went over into his palm. So i guess it was a particularly small breed of cats but hey, they live on ceilings. We were most amused. Every body joined in and taking turns we all enjoyed playing with the little creature until about some 37 seconds later Ernest realised that at this age this is how far his brain is willing to go on this. Never the less, I am happy, I was missing our friends (imaginary) of late and since Lili became all so not into imagining imaginary tings it's a lot harder to keep their company. Maybe for another few years she can be dragged back to it and I is going to be just that much better now; the four of us imagining things together.

One more thing on looking up in amusement. At our local food store above the vegetable aisle there is a rather large air-conditioning vent. Liliom is most amused by it. I discovered that whenever she remembers to look up when we are there she just cannot take her eyes of it, completely tranced.

She has been giving me some hugs this evening and at first I couldn’t imagine what is the sudden urge for the display of affection and love. Than I realised that just minutes before I have been recounting to Jen the conversations at parents' evening in school. I guess she must have overheard (ha-ha! Listening intently to) the part where I was bragging about how clever my daughter is.

Apparently her teachers find it amusing that now whenever, wherever she meets the English teacher, she automatically converses in English.