Moi Boze!

Good grief, time has been flying!

Hmm, well I'm teaching over 27 hours a week now (up from 16) and have my first private student, named Hanna. Work and life has been insane, but good.

Let's see, well, the Pope died, and that was interesting to be here in the thick of things. My time is too short now to write about it, but I've recorded many of my students comments and hope to post them here.

We spent Easter in the unpronouncable mountain town called Szczyrk. We got one run on skis in the rain, a nice long hike over rolling, snowy hills and ate some more quintessential inauthentic Mexican food! Smacznego!

OK, what else...oh, Jill, Dawn and I are training for the Krakow half marathon! (13.1 miles/21 kilometers). In high school I once ran over 16 miles...but that was half my life ago...
So, we're slowly but surely getting in better shape, and just in time for another trip:

WE'RE GOING TO THE DOLOMITES IN ITALY!!!!

He he he. Much more up my alley than skiing in Austria (which was still cool, of course!). It's Italy's 2nd rainiest month of the year, so who knows what we'll accomplish, but we hope to do different types of rock climbing at lower elevations, do some crazy/cheating via ferrat (iron way) routes, and if all goes well, 1-3 alpine routes. They've had a late winter, and got dumped on recently, so who knows.

Anyhoo, I just wanted to say hi as it's been a super long time since last post.

Oh, I'm legal now!!!!

Ciao!

j n j

:)

Red Tape in the Machine

Well things are semi-rolling along on my legality process. I got my work visa sticker in Chicago. I got my stamp when I landed back in Warszawa. The private office that's helping us then picked up my passport for I don't know what and returned it 4 days later with no comment.

Now this week I'm trying to get 'registered' with the infamous Wojewedon (Vo-ye-VE-don) office-the ultimate Communiste-era red tape machine. My landlord, who didn't know I was living in his place until today, and who also doesn't speak English, AND who also lives at least 2 hours away, will be required to come into this red tape plaza with me and sign off that I do, indeed, live in his abode in Warszawa.

As my dad would say, 'Asinine!'

After all this, then I'm allowed to apply for the 'legitimacja,' a residence card, and a driver's license.

Joy.

Keep your fingers crossed for me!

The West corridor

2Cs-Chihuly and Calatrava. A very similar piece is in the lobby of Seattle's Alexis Hotel, of which The North Face shares the same block with. Every glass piece is put in a perforated post, very delicately, and in a puzzling and exacting order!

2 statuesque women!

Fully outstretched wings, preparing for closure. Time 11:59 AM

Flappin' like a bird...

Almost there...