Thanksgiving

Speaking about Thanksgiving, this year was very different for me. It was the first year I've celebrated this originally american holiday. I was invited to a thanksgiving dinner with a group of my dear  Czech and American friends.

The celebration started by a prayer and giving thanks. As we were sitting at the beautifully decorated table we- each one at the time- said what we were grateful and thankful for. It was a great reminder of how lucky we are that we can be sitting there surrounded by people we love. The dinner itself was delicious although for me kind of too much:) I mean it truly got me have the appreciation for what I've been studying at school about Thanksgiving and the alleged amount of food that Americans eat! For dinner it was served stuffed turkey with cranberry sauce and mashed potatoes as well as sweet yams. For a dessert I had a pecan pie and an exquisite cheesecake. 

I was so full after the dinner I can't even say haha. So funny that almost all the Americans helped themselves to some more while the Czechs were full, not able to move after finishing their food. Well, it was obvious that Americans are used to this tradition from back home.

After dinner there were a few activities and games that our American friends had prepared for us. One of my friends from the States had even prepared a sketch that included magic tricks and it was real fun. Afterwards there was time for chatting with friends and of course new people we were meeting for the first time. I got to know many incredible people and that is one of the things I am grateful for this year.

I must...

I must study hard!!! Such a cliche, right?! It is so true though... Every New Year's Eve I find myself promising myself that this year all is going to be different, especially school related stuff. And the way it goes is always the same. A week later I end up being that lazy unreliable doing-everything-at-the-last-minute person who I hate so much!
I think that there are many aspects associated with this problem. For me one of them is certainly TV shows. If it weren't for them I bet I would not be having this problem at all. I simply watch too many of them. There is at least one show for every day when a new episode comes out and I tend to put this event first and forget all about the preparation and readying for school. Now you probably think that it is no problem, I can just do all the stuff later when I am finished watching..well it is not so easy. I cannot just stop watching and go studying. Firstly, I am not a person blessed with a strong will as you have probably already noticed, and secondly, TV shows are so catchy that it is just physically impossible for me not to continue watching.
I think this may be a problem for many students (maybe not only them) but in my opinion there are a few suggestions that we can try. For example by promising ourselves some sort of reward for every bit of studying we do. Also the help of other people is appreciated because they can help us stay strong and resist the temptation of being disturbed.

The Truman Show

Have you ever felt like you were being watched? Like your life was possibly a TV show? Well, Truman Burbank never did and this movie tells the story of how he found out that his life actually WAS a TV show. Truman is an ordinary guy who has a family, job and whose life is not special at all. Or so he thinks. The truth is that Truman is the star of the world known TV show: The Truman Show whose everyday life is watched by milions of people from all around the world! His life is a lie and he has no idea. We get to see him go through various live decisions and choices, including the biggest one- the choice whether he will stay in the world that has been created for him and is safe or whether he will leave and start living the real life on his own. The last scene is epic, it brought tears to my eyes..

The acting performances are amongst the best I've ever seen. Jim Carey is brilliant as Truman, effortlessly conveying his personality, fear and desire. Ed Harris (Christof) is excellent as the creator of the production. And the entire support cast seems synthetic enough to let the audience know they are "acting" for Truman but in some scenes let their "genuine" feelings shine through. The ensemble simply cannot be faulted.

I simply loved this movie. Everything about it. It is the one you just want to watch over and over again!! If you have not seen it yet, go and watch it!! It’s a must!

„The sweetness of it all will capture you. Truman's predicament will rivet you. The last scene will move you.“

Music ♪ ♫

Do you listen to music? Well of course you do! Everyone does! People listen to music because it is relaxing refreshing and comfortable.
If I had to choose one artist that I listen to the most, it would be an impossible thing for me to do! I mean, there are so many not only artists but genres that I like that I can't even count! My choice of music is dependent mostly on my mood and disposition. When I am depressed or sad about something I like to listen to some slow sad dismal songs that kind of help me wash my sadness away. On the other hand when I feel great and fresh I listen to fun and energetic music such as Katy Perry's songs or Jessie J'.
I think less and less people think of themselves as fans of one particular music genre. When I ask my friends what they listen to, the answer is the same in almost all cases- 'I listen to everything I like'. And I get it, I would say the same about myself. Sometimes I hear a song on a radio and it does not sound like something I would usually listen to at all but it somehow gets into my head and I can't stop crooning it the whole day! That's the power of music:)
Lately I have been into rap and hip hop music, especially Eminem. He really seems to be using his music to get his frustration out! The lyrics of his songs are full of anger and hatred but also memories of his childhood and his daughter..I like it though. And it is fun to learn the lyrics to his songs by heart and then sing along!! It's so damn hard haha! ♪♫

Change? No, thank you

Change is an inevitable part of everyone's life. Everything around us is changing with the passage of time. But not everyone welcomes the change with a smile on their faces.. many prefer stick to their stereo type routines. What group of people do you belong to?

People who are in favor of bringing changes in their life often argue that change is very important to break the sameness of life. They further argue that in order to excel in whatever it is that they do, change is inevitable. And they are right!! The truth is that all the advancements in technology have been achieved through bringing a change! From the marketing point of view, in order to boost the sale of a product, the best way is to bring the changes in the shape and specifications. So change, such as in your company or professional status, brings the diversity, flexibility and financial growth in the life on an individual.

On the contrary, those who are not fond of changing their lives feel satisfied with their lives being just the way they are. They feel that in order to grow in their own profession and to gain a high position in their career, it is important to be consistent with their current job. They argue that to build a strong relationship one may need patience rather than giving up easily and moving on. So as per them, life is the name of stability and persistence and as a result they opt for that.
In my personal opinion change is the law of nature. I think people who deny change are afraid of the after-effects and are not ready to except the challenges of life. It cannot be denied that change can cost a lot but it is also undeniable that it brings prosperity if decisions are made properly.

Election

As I'm sure all of you know, the election took place this Friday and Saturday. It was a pretty big deal for the Czech citizens because it was the election to the Chamber of Deputies. To be honest I'm no political person, I never was.. nevertheless I decided to vote even though I would not change the results, on the other hand, it will influence them somehow. I am not going to tell you what political party I've decided to support, it's everyone's business whether they choose to share their political thinking with people or not. I think this arguing about everyone's choices is pointless, it doesn't lead to anything else but throwing people off.. no party is perfect and in many cases it feels like choosing the lesser evil.. but anyway, it is well thought that the election is silent, otherwise people would probably kill each other. As I said I've already chosen whom to put my faith in and only the time will tell how wise my decision was.

I realize that I am an adult who probably should be involved more in political issues.. before the election I did not do any research or study on which party would deserve my vote the most, all I did was basically seeing the promotional campaigns which were literally everywhere!! I did not even watch any political discussions on TV. That is definitely something I am planning to change in the future. I will build a strong political foundation so I'd be able to make a firm decision of who to vote. I knew what the party I gave my vote to planned on doing but I knew nothing about the others. I will definitely change that. Before there is next election I will do my research on the nature of every political party!!

As always there were many people who chose not to vote. Of course, the election is voluntary, the thing is that these people should not get to be the ones to open their mouth and complain afterwards.. they did do nothing for the election not to turn out the way it did so it is their fault, not others!!

Movie of the year??

I was not planning to go to the theater to see Gravity but my friend convinced me so I went. I knew about all the high ratings and people speaking highly of it so I did not expect to be disappointed.. and I wasn't!!!

With Gravity the plot is not the most important part..the plot is the space and the feeling it gives you is what is important. I was scared, I cried, I laughed, I was amazed, I was hooked and I had this harrowing feeling about all of it! This is the effect that watching of this movie had on me.

Sandra Bullock, George Clooney

Gravity is a space survival drama/thriller that will draw you into the plot immediately. The emptiness and loneliness of space is very well presented there. The breathtaking visuals and very deep scores is really outstanding and go well blended with the movie.

Some people say that this movie was boring and nerveless..I could not disagree more!! I wasn't bored at all!  This is one hot candidate to became a movie of the year! Or at least one of the best movies I have seen in my life.  I take my hat off to Sandra Bullock especially on whom the whole movie was based.  I was sooo wrapped up in her character Ryan Stone, and I really felt for her and for what she was going through. I only hope she at least gets nominated for this movie, she deserves it for her talent, she was very fit and looked the part.

In a nutshell - This movie is something you will be thinking about and talking about days after you see it, and that is good enough for me. Thumbs up!!

Me and English

Hey!

As you already know I study English for Business at the University of Pardubice but today I would like to share a bit more about English as a part of my life.

Well I started studying English as my second language in the first year of high school. Many people might say that I have a disadvantage because of the fact that I've been learning English for 5 years only but I actually think the opposite. I am grateful that I've been learning English since high school because that was the time I first started thinking about what I would like to do in the future and what my future job could be so now I am afraid that at that time English would have been ruined for me, because let's face it, in many cases pupils don't get any good foundation in language at elementary school. Anyway, at high school I got an amazing
English teacher who got me interested in English thus directed me the way I am now.

For me, English is not only something I really enjoy studying but also something that is necessary to know these days. It is an international language as we all know, everybody speaks it! Even people who are not interested in languages in any way will probably need it someday, either when they will go on a vacation and they'll need to ask somebody about something, or when they will watch some English or American TV show and without knowing the language they won't be able to understand a word! And that is actually what I think is the best part about it- I am not dependent on translations anymore! Of course that is not true every time, I do realize that I have a lot to work on, but the basics are mastered I would say and now I have to improve, improve, improve...:)

About me

Hey! Welcome to my blog! I think it would be best if I introduced myself for a start and tell you a little bit about who I am and what I enjoy doing in my spare time.Well, my name is Táňa and I’m 20. I study English for business at the university in Pardubice. I guess the reason why I study this is simply because I like languages, English especially.

But I also started to learn German! Well, I studied it at the elementary school and high school as my first language but I never really built up a foundation for it so I did not have anything to build the language on. This time I started  from scratch and hopefully it will go smoothly because there may be some knowledge left in my head.

What I do love doing in my free time is watching TV series, hanging out with friends, reading interesting articles online and most recently going jogging! A few of my friends talked me into it so I tried it and to be honest I was surprised how great that felt! I think next time it will be me who will talk the rest of the group into doing it again. Speaking about what TV series I watch, there are a few that I absolutely love! Those are Sherlock, Suits  and The IT Crowd  as for comedies. I think the reason I enjoy watching them so much is that it is a perfect way of relaxation but more importantly - listening! So I get the fun part and study part at the same time! But don’t get me wrong, I realize that listening is not everything. That is why I try to speak to as many native speakers as I can. Luckily I have many american friends I met on holidays that I am in touch with so they help me with my English just by talking to me.

OK, I guess that’s it for now :)