Athanasios Athenaios

Strike!

2008-04-08T01:19:00.002-04:00

It's official. As of 12.01 am today McGill TAs are on strike!

Happy Easter

2008-03-23T14:48:00.002-04:00

To those of my friends who celebrate today

Happy Easter

(Orthodox Easter is on April 27....)

Got in...

2008-03-19T23:01:00.004-04:00

I got confirmation today that my abstract for CLA was accepted. So, I am going to Vancouver after all... :)

In the mean time, I just can't stop laughing after watching this:

(WATCH IT AT YOUR OWN RISK!!!!)

Apparently, this was someone's idea for a kid's toy!!!

Passed!!!!

2008-03-07T16:47:00.003-05:00

What more to say? I got a few content questions (I guess if you point out problems of the analysis yourself and possible solutions, this disarms people!) and mostly comments for further development. Well, I still have the public presentation, but this should not be a problem....

And yes, I am very happy right now!!!

Fate written on hands...

2008-03-03T18:27:00.010-05:00

I just finished reading an article in a Greek newspaper about digit ratio and its correlation to traits in health, behavior etc. (Here is Wikipedia's entry).In sum, the proponents of this scientific theory argue that there is relation between the index/ring finger ratio and some aspects of people's health and personality (It all has to do with testosterone levels in the development of the fetus that affect this ratio). Women have a ratio of 1 or more (the index is of the same length or even bigger than the ring finger, while men usually show a ratio of 0.98 (the ring finger is bigger)

Some of them say that people with a very "male" ratio (<0.9) are prone to arthritis and those with a very "female" one (>1.0) could develop neck cancer!
Although I would give some credit to this (after all, digit ratio is controlled by testosterone and there seems to be a relation between hormonal levels and predisposition to diseases) nevertheless, I find these conclusions a bit extreme.

And yes, they also correlate digit ratio with sexual orientation, but let's not get there...

Some good news....

2008-02-28T15:19:00.005-05:00

I just finished the meeting with my eval. committee. It went well. Both PBG and R(F)FS seemed pleased with the content and made mostly stylish and clarification comments/questions for the draft.
That said, I am given till Monday to submit the final draft and I am defending on Friday!!!

O.K., now I can see how the white hair I have will increase with geometrical proportions....

Signs of life....

2008-02-25T10:07:00.002-05:00

O.K., first post for 2008 (after a long period of silence!)
So what's up with me (if you are still wondering that is...)?

For the most part I am doing O.K.; I am still waiting for comments on a draft of an eval. paper that should have been submitted/defended/passed (or failed, there is always this chance) a long long time ago) but better late than never...

On other (academic) news, I have submitted an abstract for CLA, so I might (hopefully) get to Vancouver (which would have been my back-up plan 5 years ago), should I was not admitted in McGill).

In all other fronts, everything is quiet (maybe too quiet), but that's another story...

So, I will try to post more regularly, but I cannot make any promises on this...

Until next time....

Merry Christmas....

2007-12-25T13:43:00.000-05:00

Merry Christmas everyone!!!!

This is one of my favorites....

A night out....

2007-12-01T01:48:00.000-05:00

It's always nice to spend time with friends, especially the ones you don' t get to see much. So today, after a rather tiresome grading marathon (which will continue tomorrow) was a rather great relief that I went out for drinks with Tobin, Josh, Andrea and Oner. It was about 8.00 I have finished the part of grading I had planned for today and I was quite surprised that the guys showed up in Eva's office (I was there so that I did not have to go down the stairs each time I had a question about the grading). After all, it was a bit late...
Nevertheless, and after a bit of indecision, we decided to go for drinks to Crescent Str. We ended up to Winston Churchill , a rather big (and surprisingly empty for the day and time) place. Yes, the security was weird (they had our bags checked and it proved difficult to leave), but the drinks and the food (I was the only one who had something to eat) were good. Of course, the best thing was the company since these are the people I do no usually get the chance to talk with as much as I would like.
So, we spent the night pleasantly talking about linguistics and other stuff. Eventually, Andrea had to leave, only to miss the highlight of the night:

Right next to us (BTW we were sitting outside, where they have these outdoors heaters) sat two girls who were in a skating (I think) team and they just visited town for a day and a half trip (they were competing earlier this day). So, we (or I should say Tobin and Oner) ended up having a small talk which was fun, but also a bit awkward (I am either losing my touch, or it is just a sign I am getting old - I can't believe I stayed almost silent during the whole thing!!). Eventually, the girls decided to get inside (one of them was REALLY lightly dressed!) because they were getting cold, so, they left while we continued drinking beer...

A little bit later Oner left us, and soon after this, Tobin, Josh and I decided to call it a night (after we made a small pit stop to the local McDonald's, since the guys were hungry).
Yep, I definitely had a good time, and, people, we have to do that again....

Celebrating 29 ....(part deux)

2007-11-05T00:09:00.000-05:00

Today marked the end of my (almost) weekly celebrations for my birthday (with a brief break yesterday to celebrate Francis' birthday and to attend a late Halloween party!).
So, what did I do today?

a) I woke up early (thank God for DST ending!) to go to church where I brought a cake (guess where I got the cake from...) which was enjoyed a lot by everyone (Leo, I can't believe you missed a second cake-eating chance!) later during coffee hour. Somehow, having the whole congregation singing "Happy Birthday" to you makes you feel very special!

b) I had my birthday dinner at Le Coin Grec, a Greek restaurant on Parc attended by the rest of my friends (the people who couldn't make it for part 1...). Overall, I found the food good and reasonably priced, although the service could have been a bit better. So, many thanks to Christina, Émile, Francis and Moti, Marius and his mother, Mina, and Nino and his girlfriend who came and truly honored me with their presence. Many thanks also to Andrea, Öner, Tobin and Josh who could not come for reasons beyond their control, but still kept me in their thoughts, something that really makes me a very happy and lucky person!!!

So, once again, thank you all for coming and may God keep you all safe and well.

Now, back to work.......

Celebrating 29.... (part 1)

2007-10-31T00:40:00.000-04:00

It's official, I have just turned 29, so, no more 2_ (aka "twenty -----") for me.
But, no complaints there as long as wisdom comes with age....

So, how did I spend my birthday today? (I will also be celebrating my birthday on Sunday, since Tuesday was a bad day for most of my friends in the department, thus the "part 1" in the title)

Well:

a)I brought again these really yummy cakes from Afroditi, which people in the department (and I) really enjoy

b)I attended a very interesting talk on gender in bound pronouns presented by a fellow Greek linguist...

c)I spent the evening with some of my friends by having dinner at Fire grill, a very good, but a little bit expensive steak place on Stanley.

So, many thanks to Andonis, Nora, Panayiotis, Victor, Nevena, baby Dionisio, Leo and Philippe who came and wished me "Happy Birthday".

Special thanks to Nora, who like every year, made me a birthday cake which most of us enjoyed (unfortunately Leo and Philippe could not come, but (as promised) I will be saving a piece for you guys!) later on, when we went to her place.

Finally, many thanks also to my friend Dimitra who called me from Greece to wish me "Χρόνια Πολλά" [xróɲa polá] (lit. 'many years') , to Raph (you shouldn't have done this, but thank you so much!!!) and to all the people and friends from the department today who (both in person or electronically) wished me a Happy Birthday. (... you will also have a second chance to do so on Sunday :D )

So.... that's all for now (and Raph, I think I understand now why you do it; it's so cool when you celebrate your birthday for an extended period of time!!!!)

Love you all, and hope to see you (again) on Sunday!!!

The best competition ever....

2007-10-17T00:23:00.000-04:00

This made me laugh....

As a part of this year's celebration of International Education Week, there is a photo competition for all McGill students (Canadians and international alike).

So, we all received yesterday the relevant e-mail with two attachments, one stating the "photo competition guidelines" and the other was the registration form.

As I was skimming through the form, I ran into this statement:

"By participating in this event, you accept and fully understand the following terms:

ISS will not be responsible for damaged or stolen photographs (make copies before submitting an entry).
Entries will be disqualified if the guidelines are followed...."

O.K., I know this is a typo! But still, it's just funny!!!

Caffeined.....

2007-09-29T11:38:00.000-04:00

I always knew that coffee gets me. I mean, in the morning, a good cup of coffee does the trick all the time.
But what happened to me yesterday was way off the board.
So, me Aemilius, and Mina ended up watching two of Woody Allen classical films, Manhattan and The Purple Rose of Cairo. It was the first time I saw Woody Allen films (I am mostly an action flick guy), but I have to say I found them both brilliantly funny.
Now, everything would have been just great, if I hadn't had the idea of getting a cup of coffee beforehand. It was a regular cup of coffee (with milk and sugar, as I always have it; nothing weird. Mina also got one).
But, somehow it got me and it got me bad. Maybe it was my empty stomach, I don't know; but from the second half part of the second movie till we reached Thomson House later for a pizza, I was totally agitated and excited. I mean , I felt like I was drunk (which I wasn't) and it was only after a pizza and two glasses of beer (+ 1 glass I spilled) I reverted to my usual boring, and tired self....
Oh well, at least we all (+ Andria (who joined in for the second movie and on) and Moti and Francis who joined for pizza) had a good time.
Yeah, we should definitely re-establish our pizza nights at Thomson House, but note to self "no coffee with an empty stomach!"

Some values last for ever....

2007-09-22T19:57:00.000-04:00

Go Chuck!!!

(I just love the "Walker Texas Ranger button")

Disappointment

2007-09-16T21:24:00.000-04:00

I expected better from my fellow Greek people. And above all, I expected them to show some "logic" (In Greek the word "logic" in this context is synonymous to "sense"). How can you vote again for the people responsible for financial, social and political scandals, people responsible for the deaths of 67 of their countrymen and a unprecedented ecological disaster?

To them I dedicate the following poem of K.P. Kavafis

The City

You said: "I'll go to another country, go to another shore,
find another city better than this one.
Whatever I try to do is fated to turn out wrong
and my heart lies buried like something dead.
How long can I let my mind moulder in this place?
Wherever I turn, wherever I look,
I see the black ruins of my life, here,
where I've spent so many years, wasted them, destroyed them totally."

You won't find a new country, won't find another shore.
This city will always pursue you.
You'll walk the same streets, grow old
in the same neighborhoods, turn gray in these same houses.
You'll always end up in this city. Don't hope for things elsewhere:
there's no ship for you, there's no road.
Now that you've wasted your life here,
in this small corner, you've destroyed it everywhere in the world.

As for the leaders of opposing parties who failed to do their job properly, I think that the words of King Richard already sound in their minds...

King Richard II:
...For God's sake, let us sit upon the ground
And tell sad stories of the death of kings;
How some have been deposed; some slain in war,
Some haunted by the ghosts they have deposed;
Some poison'd by their wives: some sleeping kill'd;
All murder'd: for within the hollow crown
That rounds the mortal temples of a king

(William Shakespeare, King Richard II, Act III, Scene II)

No Christmas

2007-09-13T20:27:00.000-04:00

I was just checking the PGSS 2007-2008 agenda. They forgot Christmas..... (Just don't tell Santa...)

Il était une fois...la vie

2007-09-09T22:27:00.001-04:00

For the last 3 hours the theme from this series keeps on playing in my mind. This was one of my favorite shows when I was a kid and although it was dubbed in Greek, the theme was not, so this show was one of my earliest contacts with French

Interestingly, I found an English version, but nah, I still prefer the French one...

R.I.P. Luciano

2007-09-06T01:56:00.000-04:00

Luciano Pavarotti

10/12/1935- 09/06/2007

You shall always be remembered....

Disaster

2007-09-05T03:08:00.000-04:00

11 days of fires...

77 people dead.... (67 fire related deaths + 10 in fire related road accidents)

280,000 hectares of forest land burnt

40,915 hectares of farm land burnt

120 villages affected

1500+ houses destroyed

100,000 people left homeless, or lost their farms...

The song heard in the background is titled "Omorfi ke parakseni patrida" (Beautiful and strange homeland)

Alarmed

2007-09-04T00:06:00.001-04:00

I just got back to my apartment after a (once again) false fire alarm. Now, why does the fire alarm has to go off at 11.30 pm?
In fact, I am really annoyed, because this is the second time it happened in the last week. But the most annoying part is that when the alarm goes off and the fire brigade comes, they have to figure out in which of the 6 (!!!!) buildings the alarm goes off, there is a fire.
You see, my address is shared by 5 buildings (which are in fact one) and they are connected to the same fire alarm system. (Of course, I still don't understand why there is a 6th building connected to the same system, a building that has a different address.....). I am afraid that if a fire does break out, by the time they figure out where it is, it will be too late.

Churching...

2007-09-02T20:45:00.000-04:00

Today, after months I have to shamefully admit I went to church (although I got there half an hour late; and before you say anything, Orthodox services start early in the morning).
Overall, it felt good seeing old friends and communicating with God, something I haven't been doing quite often....
After all, typically in the Orthodox Church, the church year starts in September 1st (I think that this is a remnant of the old roman empire taxing season), so this is a good time to resume good habits. Finally, it is also the beginning of a new academic year, another reason to seek help and guidance from the 'guy upstairs'. (I just hope I get it!)

Movie Watching....

2007-08-31T12:38:00.000-04:00

So, persuaded by Marius, (and not having any other better way spending my evening) I decided to join him and his friends in their movie watching adventures. For those of you who don't know, this is the time of the Montreal World Film Festival , the last event for the summer. The first film we watched on Wednesday was totally by mistake and it ended up being a weird Spanish movie titled La Caja. Though there were some funny moments, I have to admit Ifound some of the scenes a bit gross for my taste.
The second film we watched yesterday was far funnier and more entertaining. It was titled Ciudad en Celo and it was an Argentinian-Spanish production. The story revolved around the lives of a group of friends who are reunited under a tragic event. Ordinary people caught in ordinary circumstances, a very realistic, funny and yet dramatic film as life usually is. Moti, a friend of his visiting from Washington and Francis also joined in, as well as many other people (the theatre was almost packed!) and seemed to enjoy the film also (at least they did not disliked it!).
Definitely a good choice for the evening.

BTW, there was a Greek film participating (Eduart) playing at the same cinema (the movie had just finished) and as we where standing in line, I heard a Greek lady commenting how she was pleased that some Greeks showed up, because usually Greek films are not supported by Greek fans.... (OOPS!)

Facebook....

2007-08-30T17:55:00.001-04:00

As a parting favor to Raphinou (I still think this was a low blow), I have just created my facebook account. My profile needs still updating, but I guess had to start from somewhere....

(I will also make an lj entry of this just in case people do not read this blog anymore...)

Των οικιών εμπιπραμένων υμείς άδετε....*

2007-08-28T13:27:00.000-04:00

It's been a long time since I have made a post. I guess I have been busy and feeling down for a long time now....
Anyway, I had a good time yesterday visiting the Biodome and the Botanical Garden with Raphinou, Aemilius and Francis. Though I have been in this city for 4 years, it was my first visit there and I really enjoyed everything (including the bugs in the insectarium; I guess as long as me and those bees are separated by glass, I am fine.)
However, having seen all this green and nature I couldn't help not thinking about what's happening in Greece right now...

For those of you who haven't heard, southern Greece (that's the Peloponnese) and the island of Evia (the second biggest island of the country after Crete) have been devastated by raging forest fires which are still burning (for over 5 days now) resulting to 63 people dead and hundreds left homeless since whole villages have been literally burnt to the ground. (Here are links to CBC, CNN, BBC.) My aunt and her family who were in my grandfather's village on vacation, have barely escaped as the fire approached the village. We learnt later that my grandfather's house was not seriously affected (the fire just passed through the front yard), but other houses were not that lucky.
As for the ecological disaster, that goes without saying. Whole ecosystems have been destroyed, forests that will take decades to regenerate, if ever, I am afraid. The ecological and financial disaster (initial cost estimates are about is €1.5 Billions) are actually incalculable because the fire consumed also crop fields and farms, leaving nothing behind.

I am shocked and I am furious. Shocked from the disaster and the death toll, furious with the response of an incompetent administration, people who not only did nothing to prevent this disaster, but also failed to organize a proper response.
The forest surrounding the archaeological site of Ancient Olympia (the birth place of the Olympic Games), and the surroundings of the International Olympic Academy (I' ve been there in the past, a beautiful building inside a magnificent forest) they are all gone. Thank God, the ancient monuments were not affected, but I guess stone cannot catch fire in the first place.
Once again, this administration managed to embarrass the whole country. How can we even claim the return of the Parthenon marbles, when we are incapable of protecting what we already have?
And to add to their incompetence, they are looking for an excuse in international conspiracy theories. They speak of an 'asymmetrical threat' meaning terrorism. Yes, of course, how couldn't anyone think about that? It is Al-Qaeda, or maybe Turkish spies, or Kossovo Albanian nationalists, or maybe every right wind extremist's scapegoats, the illegal immigrants, the Gypsies, the international Zionism or "social radicals", (yes, of course, it has to be members of the opposition socialist party, after all, this is an election period in Greece, and that would make the conservative administration look so bad.) Who knows, maybe the fires were caused by extra-terrestials!!!
It's everybody else 's fault except theirs. They did all they could! (Exactly like they have been doing everything the could (and that's nothing) for the last three years, since they came to power.)
Well, so will I! At least I will try to... (If I get my passport on time). I will go to Greece to vote and hopefully put them and us out of our misery.

ΦΤΑΝΕΙ ΠΙΑ (ENOUGH IS ENOUGH)

*The saying chosen as a title is from Aesop and it translates: " While your houses are on fire, you are singing tales". I think that is most appropriate.

Για την Αμαλία (For Amalia)

2007-06-01T03:33:00.001-04:00

“Patients have the right to be respected and preserve their dignity”

(Aritcle 47 of Greek Law 2071/1992)

“Guys, let the quacks become the exception and not the norm...”

(Amalia Kalyvinou 1977-2007)

Since she was 8, Amalia started to be in pain. Despite her frequent visits to doctors and hospital admissions, no one managed to diagnose the benign neurinoma at her leg. Seventeen years later, Amalia was told that the neurinoma had developed into a malignant neoplasm.

For the following 5 years, Amalia had to struggle not only against cancer, but also against a diseased National Health System [Ethiniko Sistima Igias, ESI; the acronym is pronounced and spelled as [esí], a word that means ‘you’ (2nd sg) in the language] that has been choosing to ignore the "fakelakia" issue [the term from Greek is deliberately left untranslated. This term basically stands for bribery. For more information on this Greek “innovation” please follow this link] and keep on procrastinating through irrational bureaucratic practices. On top of the radiotherapy and chemotherapy, Amalia had to face financial exploitation by doctors who stood against rather than by her side. On top of her pain, she had to cope with the greed of private clinics [in general, private clinics in Greece are free to charge their own rates for medical services, rates often very high] and the grueling queues of social insurance institutions, just to obtain a required seal [a form of verification so that an often poor financial compensation for the patient can be approved].

Amalia passed away on Friday, May 25 2007. She was only 30 years old.

Before she died, she managed to document her experience and share it with the rest of us though her blog. In her website (http://fakellaki.blogspot.com) [in Greek, unfortunately] this young philologist [“philology” for those of you not familiar with the term is the study of literature and language. Having a BA in Philology myself, gives me another reason to be sympathetic to her story] named one by one the doctors she had to bribe, praising alongside the ones who chose to honor the Hippocratic Oath. Her testimony moved thousands of people who stood by her side in her unequal struggle with the disease until the very end.

“Amalia’s goal was to tell her story in order to stir up as many people and as many consciences possible. Primarily, she wanted to show there are ways to resist not only to the without control authority of cold-hearted and unconscionable doctors, [many doctors in Greece, are often rude towards their patients. They rarely disclose any detailed information about the diagnosis and the nature of treatment (although they are required to do so by law), since they view such questions as an attack to their expertise] but to the bureaucrats of the National Health System as well.”

Dikaia Tsavari and Georgia Kalyvinou (Amalias’s sister and mother)

According to Article 77 of Greek Law 2071/1992:

“Bribery [i.e., fakelaki] and, especially the acceptance of fees or any other sort of property for any medical services offered”

is considered a disciplinary offence for doctors working under the jurisdiction of the National Health System.
Amalia Kalyvinou struggled for things taken for granted in a modern European country. Unfortunately, this is not the case for Greece. Following the efforts Amalia initiated, we protest in public and we demand:

IMMEDIATE MEASURES TO BE TAKEN BY THE STATE TO PUT AN END TO THE FAKELAKIA AND THE INEQUITY THEY BRING TO THE TREATMENT OF PATIENTS

THE GOVERNMENT TO DEVELOP MORE FLEXIBLE RESPONSES TO PATIENT NEEDS SO THAT WE WILL NOT MOURN AGAIN FOR VICTIMS OF LINGERING BUREAUCRATIC PRACTICES

THE INTERACTION OF PHAMACEUTICAL COMPANIES AND THE MEDICAL ESTABLISHMENT TO BE PUT UNDER A STRICTER CONTROL

THE GOVERNMENT MAKE THE MOST OF THE UNDER-UTILIZED HOSPITAL INFRASTRUCTURE [there are public hospitals with modern equipment worth of thousands of Euros literally still in boxes because the required operating personnel is not yet hired] AND THAT THE CONTINUING EDUCATION AND TRAINING OF ALL THE DOCTORS AND PARAMEDICS OF THE NATIONAL HEALTH SERVICE WILL BE ENSURED

THE INSTITUTION OF A NATION WIDE ELECTRONIC MEDICAL RECORDS SYSTEM TO SPEED UP PROMPT DIAGNOSIS AND TREATMENT

LET US PUT AN END TO THE HYPOCRITIC BEHAVIOR OF THE ONES WHO GOVERN, PEOPLE WHO OPT FOR DOCTORS BEING BRIBED BY THEIR PATIENTS RATHER THAN BEING PAID A DECENT SALARY BY THE STATE

NO MORE FAKELAKIA
NO MORE BUREAUCRACY
NO MORE MOCKERY

WE ARE ENTITLED TO FREE AND EFFICIENT PUBLIC HEALTH SERVICES

Next time you will be asked to give a fakelaki, don’t! Choose to make a donation instead. Amalia’s last wish was to contribute to the under construction Oncological Centre for children. (Elpida Foundation, tel. No. +30210-7757153, e-mail: info@elpida.org, bank accounts: National Bank of Greece, Account No. 080/480898-36, Alphabank Account No. 152-002-002-000-515. Please remember to quote that your donation is “for Amalia”.

INTERNET MOVEMENT OF AMALIA’S FRIENDS

(The text above is a direct translation of the one posted in Greek, and (aside my explanatory comments made in the red) is slightly different than the officially adopted English translation, mainly provided by Gerasimos.)

I will end this post with some words taken from Amalia’s blog: (I kept her formatting; my explanatory comments are again indicated with brackets)

“I have cancer.
I have gone over any type of chemo you can imagine. No effect.My condition was continuously deteriorating. In my chest, somewhere among the numerous tumors, one could see a bit of a lung which I used to barely breathe and, strangely enough, a heart that kept on beating. Near the end of 2006 the doctors of Errikos Dinan [a private clinic named, of course, after Jean Henri Dunant] learned about a drug that can be currently found only abroad and could probably give me some hope.With lots of efforts, after over two months of (potentionaly deadly) bureaucracy, submitting the supporting documents to EOF [Ethnikos Organismos Farmakon, National Drug Agency, something like the U.S FDA] and I.K.A [Idrima Kinonikon Asfaliseon, Social Insurance Foundation, the largest (and most problematic) public social insurance agency in the country] I finally got the mostly-desired approval for the first 3 doses of the drug after…

…naturally, after firstly my doctor, Mr. Klouvas [he is one of the good guys] had to forget his profession for hours and turn into a scribe to prepare a volume of supporting documents needed by the wherever present bureaucrats [Amalia is using a stronger word for “bureaucrat” in Greek which is difficult to translate. The original word used is “kareklokedavros”, which literally translates to chair-centaur] to justify their salary.

…naturally, after Errikos Dinan social service people, Mrs. Hatzaki and Mrs. Tzortzou had to remind the public slackers that my condition could not take any delays

… naturally, after my relatives were racing from one agency to another to submit new “revised” or complementary documents, for example the fact I had sarcoma had to be stated not only at the third line of a document, but at the sixth as well!!! They could not conclude this by themselves, so my parents had to rush to my doctor to turn him again into a scribe of stupidity….”

(post made by Amalia on Thursday March 22, 2007)

"I have suffered from intolerable pain….I have been deprived of numerous pleasures, I have been deprived of entertainment, I have interrupted my studies more than three times, I have been deprived of the carelessness of movement because of the pain itself or the fear of it, I have never played professional volleyball, [one of Amalia’s favorite sports] I have never put on a mini skirt because of the pain-related atrophy [Amalia experienced major pain in her leg, so she did not use it a lot; as a result atrophy kicked in], I have faced the disbelief for my pain from the doctors, I have faced the disbelief for my pain from my parents,….I have felt embarrassment for the appearance of my body, I have faced irrational bureaucracy, I have been a victim of financial exploitation by doctors, I have become a candidate victim of sexual abuse by a doctor,… I have lost my full autonomy [because of the tumor Amalia had her leg amputated]… I avoid being around children, like my beloved nephews, so they will not miss me when I die…I cannot hold a baby in my lap, I have been deprived for a long time, and now permanently, of my great love, dancing, I have heard three times (because of the radiotherapy) the dreadful “crack” a bone makes when it breaks, I have to give comfort to everyone around me when I get the results of a biopsy or other bad results, something I am getting bored of, I have seen numerous of pleasures passing by me, I can’ t scream.

BECAUSE OF YOU, MY GOOD DOCTOR "

(post made by Amalia on Saturday, April 7, 2007)

Ας αναπαύσει ο Θεός την ψυχούλα σου κορίτσι μου και ας σου δώσει την γαλήνη που τόσο πολύ δεν απόλαυσες στο πραγματικά σύντομο περασμά σου απ’ αυτόν τον κόσμο. Αιωνία σου η μνήμη...

The sad story of getting old.....

2007-05-28T18:41:00.000-04:00

I think my body is trying to remind me that I am not 21 any longer...
My metabolism is slowing down (losing weight is becoming more and more difficult as opposed to gaining weight), I find out that I need more sleep and I am developing allergic reactions I didn't have in the past....
Up to now, I was under the impression I was allergic to only two things, atropine (used mostly as a local anaesthetic) and most likely pollen (since at certain times in spring and autumn I got running eyes.)
However, for the last 4 days I have not been feeling well, having nasal congestion, a burning sensation in my eyes and of course cough, which returned with a vengeance. At the beginning I thought I was coming down with the flu, but a friend of mine suggested to me to check for allergies. Since last year, (it was again at the end of May), I had exactly the same problem, and that was allergy, (the cure was a trip to Niagara Falls!), I decided to give it a try and I started taking anti-histamine pills....
Oh yeah, that was it! Now, I am breathing much better, my coughing "seizures" are reduced in number and intense, and I feel O.K, though a bit tired. But I still do not know what is causing it; it could be pollen, but that would mean that my tolerance to nature has decreased significantly.

Oh life.....

Things you find out....

2007-05-25T14:03:00.000-04:00

I am not really a gamer, but I do enjoy playing at a PS console or a nice PC game whenever I have a chance. One of my favorite games is Civilization IV a strategy game, where you choose a civilization from the dawn of time (guess what ancient civilization I choose) and through diplomacy, war and technology you try to defeat rival civilizations.

One of the coolest things about this game (leaving aside Leonard Nimoy's narration or a certain individual's of our very own department voice participation) is the music. Especially the introductory theme is quite moving and uplifting. So, imagine my surprise when I did a search yesterday and found out that this song is actually the Lord's Prayer ("Our Father...") in Swahili! Now, I am not sure if a PC game is the proper place for the Lord's prayer to be heard, but why not? In any case, this is a remarkable product of evangelization.

The song ("Baba Yetu") can be downloaded from the composer's (Christopher Tin) site here. Check also "Coronation". Alternatively, you can listen to the original file (the version on the game is slightly different) here:

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Imagine that!

Strike me hot...

2007-05-24T22:19:00.000-04:00

The Montréal transit workers decided to go on strike (although the Quebec government imposed the workers a 48 hour deadline that ends tomorrow, report from CBC here), so for the last couple of days, buses and metro are running only at specific hours.

Now, generally I do not have anything against people going on strike; people should have the right to work in decent conditions and to earn a decent salary. And a strike sometimes is the only way their message can get through ...(some very thick walls/people)

Just one question: why do they have to pick up the hottest days yet (we had about 30 C today) to go on strike? Why? This incident reminds me of the sudden TTC strike last year in Toronto. And guess what: That was a very hot and humid day as well.

Oh well, at least the comments left by my students on my TA evaluation really made my day. So, according to some of my students, I am "cute", the "most caring TA" and
charismatic".

O.K., now I am blushing.....

What? No T-shirt??

2007-05-23T21:05:00.000-04:00

I just got an e-mail informing me that due to a mix up with the order, I will not get one of these nice Wug T-shirts that SLUM had them made for this year.
(After all these months.....)

Now, I am officially sad :( :(

For today...

2007-02-14T18:00:00.000-05:00

Who says that the Bible does not speak of love?....

The Beloved

15 Behold, you are fair, my love!
Behold, you are fair!
You have dove’s eyes.

The Shulamite

16 Behold, you are handsome, my beloved!
Yes, pleasant!
Also our bed is green.
17 The beams of our houses are cedar

(Song of Songs 1, 15-17)

Not in the mood...

2007-01-30T16:37:00.000-05:00

Well, at least this day did not end up to be a complete disaster...
So, let me be more clear...

In general, this was not supposed to be a good day after all.
First, today marks the second year anniversary of my mother's passing. Diphilus once said "Λύπης πάσης ἱατρός γίνεται χρόνος." ("Time becomes the healer of every sorrow") which in my case probably means that I do need more time....

Given my condition and also the fact that yesterday I had to hear all over again the story about a woman I know being diagnosed with breast cancer, it's no surprise I woke up today at 4.30 am after a rather disturbing nightmare. (If you are not in the mood of reading about scary/depressing dreams, just skip the following paragraph)...
I cannot remember all the details, but somehow, it was about a friend of mine (I cannot remember whom exactly) who happened to participate in a race (I think it was a WRC-like event). Now, this person was involved in a terrible accident, so I immediately rushed to the site (don't ask how I got there; it is a dream, after all) and found him bleeding to death. As he was about to die, he grabbed my hands and tearfully asked me to pray for his soul. This is when I woke up, rather upset, I have to admit...
Needless to say, I didn't manage to get a lot of sleep afterwards, so I was feeling rather drowsy in class today.

Last and not least, I had an appointment scheduled with EBG about my eval. paper, a meeting I worried about a lot since my research had reached a dead end....

Well, the good news is that the evaluation paper may not end up into a disaster after all. (As long as I manage to have it done by March 30th).

The bad news is that I still can't get that stupid dream off my mind, something which given the circumstances is expected, but still, extremely annoying...

Blogger makes me angry..

2007-01-23T22:38:00.000-05:00

Another title for this, is "Why can't I post?"

Recovering...

2007-01-23T22:18:00.000-05:00

I had wished my first blog entry for 2007 would be a good one, but no luck there...

So, yes I had a really nice Christmas and New Year's Day but since then (i.e.: for the last 3 weeks) I’ve been under a viral infection with just one annoying symptom: COUGH!
Well, at least the bright side of the story is that (after I had it checked and double-checked) it is not something serious. However, the bad news is that this condition has seriously affected my sleeping and eating habits. In fact, I cannot even talk for more than 5 minutes (yes, I know; some of you might consider that a blessing!), laugh, climb up the stairs (or any physical activity for that matter) without starting to cough. And when that happens, I usually can't breath, which has some nasty effects.
So, for the last weeks I’ve been trying to stay indoors as long as I can (besides, this weather does not help, really!) and when I do go to school, I try not to talk much, so that I will not irritate my throat even more. I guess I have to wait for this thing to go away by itself as both the doctors I saw the last couple of weeks have assured me.
At least for the last couple of days, there are some signs of improvement. I am breathing better, (probably because of a medicine I 'm taking) and my coughing "crises" are reduced in number and severity. This is a good thing because I really need to meet with EBG without having to fear I will collapse during our meeting....

Contrasts....

2006-12-29T18:11:00.000-05:00

This was taken this morning at around 7.00 am. (Somehow I was up!!!)

Kallithea is my hometown, a suburb of Athens...

Merry Christmas!!!

2006-12-25T11:25:00.000-05:00

Merry Christmas everybody!

Joyeux Noël a tous!!

Christ is born - Le Christ naît
Glorify Him - Glorifiez-le

And here (at least) two things you should avoid during Christmas...

Days of my life...

2006-12-06T16:04:00.000-05:00

I know I have not been updating this blog very often, but there aren't any great developments, really!! (Yes, i have a term paper due next week and an evaluation paper due at the end of the month, but that is a different story...)
So, today I had breakfast with Raph and Émile at a creperie close to Mont-Royal Metro and then headed to the department where I realised (the bad way, unfortunately) that there was no meeting for the course I am TAing.
Oh well, at least it is snowing.... (because contrary to rain, I really LOVE snow!)

In other news, Christmas is fast approaching, but no plans yet. (After all, I will probably be very busy at the time...)

Maligayang bati sa iyong kaarawan, Raph

2006-11-02T12:03:00.000-05:00

....and in English:

Happy Birthday to you, Raph.

28....

2006-10-30T14:01:00.000-05:00

It's official. Today, I turn 28!

So, Happy Birthday to.....me!

More to follow...

Halloween Memoires

2006-10-29T16:25:00.000-05:00

Yesterday did not start as one of my favourite days, but at least it ended as such. As I have often stated in this blog, I HATE RAIN, and we had a lot of that yesterday. In fact, I almost reconsidered my decision to go to Senhor and J. D. Horner' s spooky soirée, something I am glad I didn't.
So, I put on my sombrero, (because of the heavy rain, the Ancient Greek, toga-like costume option was rejected for practical reasons), got my Coronitas and after I endured blistering winds etc., I got to their place at around 8.00. On the way there I met up with Émile and Andria who also had to fight through the nasty weather.
But the night was rewarding in many ways. After all, it is always great to interact with the people from the department for other reasons (and not just school stuff). In fact, a lot of people showed, up; Joey, Heather, Moti, Mina, Marc, Syngirl (+4), Gus (+5), most of them in costumes, which was great considering the bad weather conditions.

Highlights of the night included:

Tarot card reading (courtesy of our psychic linguist Senhor-he is damn good-)
Movie watching (the Princess Bride and the all-time classic, Rocky Horror Picture show. Tobin and Joey took care of the audience participation. OMG, that was hilarious; but, thank God the kids were in the bedroom playing and did not listen to any of this!)
Playing the piano, drinking (btw, great punch, greater when vodka was added!), and of course making a fool out of ourselves.)

At around 1.00 am, people started leaving with Gus, his friends and me being the last. (I had to stay a bit longer because I wanted my cards read!!!)
Pictures were taken but not that many (I did not have the chance to take a picture of everyone) Anyway, here is the link:

Click...

I think everyone had a great time (I certainly did, and considering I am not generally fond of Halloween, that says a lot.) As the rain had stopped, I decided to walk home (after all, I live only one metro station away). So, I got home at around 3.00 only to realize that in fact it was 2.00 (Daylight Savings Time had finished). So, I had an extra hour of sleep.

Again, many thanks to Tobin and Josh who invited us over to their place and made sure we have a great time! (I just hope they didn't have to do a lot of cleaning today!)

What's next? Oh, yes! My birthday tomorrow). But that is another story....

Between things....

2006-10-26T09:52:00.000-04:00

It's been a long time since I updated this blog, but I am back to blogland! (And obviously, I am alive....)

So, what have i been up to? Well, I have been busy with school stuff and some home improvement (remember that old TV series?, imagine something along these lines), but overall, I am doing fine, just a bit sleepier than I should be. (I think this because of my new place which is a bit darker than the old one, something that dangerously affects my sleeping habits). So, yes, my days are getting fuller and fuller...

In other news, my birthday is fast approaching (October 30th) but I haven't had anything planned yet. It's not that I am feeling reluctant for celebrations (although, I am turning 28!) but inviting people over is still out of the question (recall the 'home improvement' clause; btw, I promise I will plan something in the near future!) and dinner plans for the weekend have been seriously affected by Halloween celebrations. That leaves Monday, which is really a bad day for many reasons....

In any case, I am ready to entertain suggestions, but I guess I need someone to 'push' me into it....

Nasty surprise...

2006-09-14T00:38:00.000-04:00

When I got home today, I discovered half of the stuff I had in my bathroom lying in my kitchen, while my bathroom towel was hanging over my bedroom's door.
At the beginning I thought somebody had broken in. However, I immediately realized I had actually unlocked the door before entering my apartment and nothing was really missing. The mystery was resolved when I got into my bathroom.
As I looked up in the ceiling, I realized there was no ceiling to look at in the first place. My guess is that, something broke up in the apartment upstairs (probably a water pipe ) , there was a leak,people came, replaced the damaged pipes, but had to destroy my ceiling in the process. And all that happened in the 5 hours I was away....
What really annoys me (up to now, since I do not know when my ceiling will be repaired), is that no one left a note about what happened and no one could be found to give me an explanation.
Instead, someone thought it was proper to dispose a cup of coffee in my sink, while I had two trash bins in my apartment, in very prominent positions, one in the bathroom and the other in the kitchen....
Guess whom I will be talking to tomorrow morning.....

Having said that, I certainly had a better day than these people. No comments there; really. What happened at Dawson College was just terrible....

Things that can happen when you play frisbee......

2006-09-10T19:18:00.000-04:00

The weather was good today, so Émile, Moti and I decided to go play frisbee at the Mont Royal, earlier this afternoon.
Overall, the game was uneventful excluding:
a) my incapacity of catching and throwing properly the frisbee partially because of lack of practice, mostly because of too much caffeine in my bloodstream, that made that frisbee appearing threatening sometimes)

b) Two guys who started fighting with each other (reason remains unknown)

and C)

As we were playing, Émile (I think he was the first to realize what was going on) noticed a small single engine plane coming from west, flying really low, I have to admit. As we turned our heads, we watched that plane making a turn north over Parc Avenue and flying lower and lower and lower until.... it LANDED on Parc Avenue. There was a big noise as the plane hit the ground, probably from its left wing hitting a road sign.
We immediately run to see what was going on (and to take some pictures, Émile has his camera, I had my cell-thus the poor quality-). When we got there, there were a lot of people gathered and some policemen have already shown up.
As you can see from the pictures, the plane was almost intact; only its left wing was a bit
damaged and a window was reported broken:

What was completely remarkable is that, thank God, no one got hurt. I mean, Parc Avenue on a sunny Sunday afternoon is not the best place that one could land a plane. But so it happened that a) the pilot was extremely skillful (to remain calm, after an apparent engine failure; there was no noise from the plane's engine as it was coming down) and b) he was SO LUCKY (and so were we). Lucky, because at that particular moment, the street was empty, there were no cars nor pedestrians walking on the crossing. It was a small miracle; should the circumstances have been slightly different, we could have been talking about a tragedy right now.
Of course, there was a huge traffic jam (police were not that fast to reroute the traffic), but given the alternatives that is nothing.

Eventually, we got back and continued playing frisbee until 6, when we decided to call the day off. As Émile and I started walking up Parc Avenue heading to Mont-Royal Metro, the plane was still there; I guess it's not that easy to tow a plane and, besides, this is not a task that police people are usually trained at.

But, all is well that ends well, and besides from the plane and the sign, no one and nothing else was harmed.

Absolutely amazing

Dream Greek Team...

2006-09-01T22:47:00.000-04:00

In an unparalleled exhibition of team effort the Greek national Basketball team has defeated 101-95 team USA in the 2006 FIBA World Championship, currently taking place in Japan. The Greek team (who are the reigning European Champions, since last year, when they won the trophy in Belgrade) although they fell short by 12 points in the second quarter, they managed to overcome and lead the score by 4 (45-41) at half time. The Greek team never lost the lead after that, while their strong defense (they play the best defense in the tournament) and some successful 3-points shots they had, allowed them to lead even with 14 points (69-55). In the last period, team USA made their final attempt to turn the game, but they only managed to reduce the Greek lead to 4 points (99-95), 17'' before the end.
It is the first time the Greek basketball Team qualifies to the final of the World Championship (they have qualified in the final four of the World Championships of 1994 and 1998), and the first time they beat team USA in a official, non-friendly game.
The Greeks face Spain on Sunday in the final, while team USA will face Argentina for the bronze medal.

Α - Π - Ι - Σ - Τ -Ε - Υ - Τ - Ο

Moved in...

2006-09-01T22:07:00.001-04:00

So, I have moved in my new place since last Tuesday. (Many, many thanks to my friends Antonis, Emile, Gustavo and Leo who volunteered to help me with the move).

Overall, I am very satisfied with my new place. It is bigger than the old one and much cheaper too. The area (Westmount) is good as well (supermarkets and other amenities are close by), while having access to both metro and a good bus route (24) keeps me close to school. I guess, I do not miss downtown that much. Actually, the only thing I really miss from my old neighborhood is a Lebanese place where, as a regular customer, I always got a drink for free. But, you cannot have everything in life, can you?....

So, for the last days I have been unpacking stuff, but I am only half way there. (I can't believe that it was easier to pack than to unpack). The truth is that I am keeping some stuff in the boxes, since my living room needs some painting job. Although, the apartment is in a really good condition, the person who lived here before me left the place last weekend. So, the landlord barely had time (I got the keys on Monday) top clean the place up. And... red, though my favorite colour, is not the best solution for a living room. I talked to my landlord today, and he told me he can start next week, which is good. In addition, I need to get curtains for the living room and kitchen and some furniture, a dining table and chairs.

But, I guess, I have to wait for my first real, full paycheck for all these....

Astronomy 101....

2006-08-18T01:26:00.000-04:00

Our solar systems has 9 planets....

Nah, scrap that!

So, as it seems, according to a draft decision by the International Astronomical Union (IAU), the number of the planets of our solar system is going to come up to 12. For the last years astronomers have been discovering solar system bodies, some of them larger than Pluto (the out-most planet of our system), so the issue of what is actually a planet came up. In IAU's General Assembly that is currently being held at Prague, an actual definition of "planet" is proposed, and a new category of planets is introduced, the "plutons" (in sum, "plutons" are the planets which are far, far away from the sun). For more information, check this article.
If the decision is passed, then astronomy books will have to be rewritten, and as for us, who are already out of high school, we will have to remember the names of the 3 new members of our solar system. So, here they are:

Ceres (named after the Roman goddess of agriculture, identified with Demeter of Ancient Greek mythology)
Charon (the ferry-man of the dead in Ancient Greek mythology) and
2003 UB313

Now, believe it or not, students may not have a problem remembering the last one, which although has no official name, it has been known (and nick-named) for some time as XENA.

And yes, that IS the lady in leather and with a chakram

Planet Xena...

Imagine that!

Edit (24/08/2006):

The afore-mentioned draft was rejected since it seems that the scientific community did not want to keep on adding "planets" to our solar system, as more celestial bodies would be discovered. Instead, they decided to provide a more strict definition of planet, and as a result, the number of "planets" of our solar system has been reduced to 8. Specifically, Pluto has been "demoted" to a "dwarf planet" and in the same category falls Ceres and "Xena" (2003-UB313). More details can be found here. So, no "planet Xena" after all....

Just, do not tell Lucy...

Greek invasion? (Not really)

2006-08-13T15:50:00.000-04:00

For the last 5 days or so, I've been seeing many Greek sailors walking on downtown Montreal (and standing in lines out of clubs on St. Laurent at night, but that's another story...), something that I found extremely strange.
It turned out that two Greek warships have docked at the old port, the HS Prometheus and the HS Aegean as part of a two month training trip. So, imagine my surprise when I got the old port, to find (next to the usual souvlaki stands) two Greek ships.
Now, since the docking coincided with the celebrations for the 100th anniversary of the Hellenic Community of Montreal, people are allowed to visit the ships in the late afternoon (after 17.00). Yes, you still have time. (Today is actually the last day!)
Anyway, here are some pictures I got with my cell: (of bad quality I am afraid; and a disappointment for some of my readers: no sailor close-up pictures-SORRY!)

(All the pictures depict "Prometheus", I did not take any pictures of the other ship)

So, if you come across some Greek sailors, don't worry; you have not been invaded! After all, Canada is too far away and besides, we are too lazy to do something like that during the summer.....

A metro meme

2006-08-12T16:49:00.000-04:00

(My turn!)

Not many, since I haven't been to many places, but anyway, here are the metro systems I have used over the years

Got at b3co.com!

From left to right: Toronto, Montreal, Amsterdam and Athens. (the first is "line 1", the 100 year old "electrical railways" system while the latter is "lines 2 and 3", the new metro lines constructed in the late '90's.)

Coup de boule*

2006-08-01T14:20:00.000-04:00

* Coup de boule: What Zidane did to Materazzi at the World Cup final....

Apparently, this song is becoming a hit: (post partially ~~stolen~~ copied and inspired from this blogger)

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Anyway, here is also the video clip I have just come across on the net.
It is just hilarious.....
And if you wonder what is being said, here are the lyrics...(In French of course. For an English translation, just check the original post I am referring to.)

Coup de Boule

Attention c'est la danse du Coup de Boule!
(Coup de boule, coup de boule)
Coup de boule à droite
(Coup de boule, coup de boule)
Coup de boule à gauche

Allez les bleus! Allez,

Refrain:

Zidane il l'a frappé, Zidane il l'a tapé
(Coup de boule!)
Zidane il l'a frappé, Zidane il l'a tapé
(Coup de boule!)
Zidane il l'a frappé, Zidane il l'a tapé
(Coup de boule!)
Zidane il l'a frappé, Zidane il l'a tapé

Le rital, il a eu mal
Zidane il l'a frappé
l'Italien ne va pas bien
Zidane il l'a tapé
L'arbitre l'a vu à la télé
Zidane il l'a frappé
Mais la coupe on l'a ratée
On a quand même bien rigolé

REFRAIN

Trezeguet n'a pas joué
Quand il a joué il a raté
Il a tout fait capoté
La coupe on l'a ratée
Barthez n'a rien arreté
C'est pourtant pas compliqué
Les sponseurs sont tous fâchés
Mais Chirac a bien parlé

REFRAIN

Attention c'est la danse du Coup de Boule!
(Coup de boule, coup de boule)
Coup de boule à droite
(Coup de boule, coup de boule)
Coup de boule à gauche
(Coup de boule, coup de boule)
Coup de boule avant
(Coup de boule, coup de boule)
Coup de boule arrière
(Coup de boule, coup de boule)

Et maintenant penalty
Attention il va tirer: un, deux, trois...c'est raté!

REFRAIN

On a quand meme bien rigolé
Zidane et Trezeguet
La coupe on l'a ratée
Zidane et Trezeguet
On a quand meme bien rigolé
Zidane et Trezeguet
La coupe on l'a ratée
Zidane et Trezeguet

Et Trezeguet...et Trezeguet...
et Trezeguet guet guet
Trezeguet
(Coup de boule, coup de boule)
et Trezeguet
(Coup de boule, coup de boule)
et Trezeguet
(Coup de boule, coup de boule)
et Trezeguet
(Coup de boule, coup de boule)
Trezeguet

(I just hope that fans of "Les Bleus" will not hate me....)

Full days...

2006-07-24T17:44:00.000-04:00

So, I had a very good time yesterday and today...

Sunday

After I spent Saturday night without sleep (I still do not know why), I went to church in the morning. After the service, I and some other people volunteered to help one of our parishioners carry some boxes with books he had in his van to his house. So, we got to his place and started carrying. Man, some of these boxes were really heavy, but overall it was fun (I guess I have developed these masochistic tendencies after all...)
Anyway, while I was helping out, Moti left a message on my cell saying that he was planning to play frisbee at Mont-Royal with common friends. It was only after I finished moving boxes I realized someone had called me. So I called Moti back and told him that I would probably meet them later.
Having completed my good Samaritan deed, the guy who we helped offered to give me a ride back to downtown, so I asked him to drop me off at Mont Royal. When I got there, I met up with Émile, Moti, Josh and Ray and joined the frisbee activity. For a first timer, I did relatively well, although my passes were not good at all, thus I really exhausted people. But the weather was nice, there were just enough clouds in the sky to keep the sun away (for the most time) and we had a lot of fun.
At around 6, we decided to call the day off and started walking west on Mont-Royal. Josh had to leave while the rest of us decided to grab a bite in a falafel place close by. (I did not get anything because I had an upset stomach, probably from not sleeping). Eventually, we split up and at that time I decided to call my friend Panayiotis to see how he was doing. So, I ended up being invited to his place. As I was getting there, tiredness started kicking in (remember I was sleepless) and I almost fell asleep in the metro.
Anyway, as always, I had a great time with my friend and his girlfriend. Besides, they had these really yummy BBQ chicken legs for dinner which despite my stomach condition I could not resist to try....Eventually, when my friend woke me up at around 10.40, I realized it was time for me to leave. So I got home at around midnight and just... crashed on my bed, only to wake up almost 14 hours later. (I am getting old after all...)

Monday

Since I woke up just in time for it, I got to the department to attend a talk on an online Malagasy dictionary. I found the whole task very challenging and interesting; just imagine having a huge database where you can do a query for a word and instantly have links to many kinds of information about the word, strictly grammatical or not (like idiomatic phrases it is used, pictures etc.) Though there is a lot of work to be done, still this was a great job which reveals a certain amount of dedication to a cause. (I am just disappointed that a task like this is so difficult to get good (if not any) funding for modern Greek.)

Later on, Raph, I and Moti joined the profs for dinner at Leméac, a very posh restaurant on Laurier. Overall, the food was great, (I just wished there was more meat than fries in my plate) but expensive. Now, it was agreed that all non greatly-funded students will pay $20 but that does not really make me feel better.I guess next time we can try the after 22.00h option...

So this wraps about everything.
Summers in Montreal can actually be fun (!!!)

All we are saying, is give peace a chance....

2006-07-17T17:31:00.000-04:00

"...

Priest: For all that is good and beneficial to our souls, and for the peace of the world, let us ask the Lord.

People: Grant this, O Lord.

..."

From the Petitions of the service of the Divine Liturgy.

Oh no!!!

2006-07-15T23:52:00.000-04:00

I just got an e-mail from paypal. My subscription to ESS.tv (no link, since the site is coming down) has been cancelled. ESS provided (through winamp) streaming services where you could watch old (and rather new) tv shows. Since I do not have a TV, I found it a good deal for $5 USD/month to be able to watch my favourite star trek shows. But ESS was not only that. Over 45 streaming channels were provided of a wide range of content, cartoons, comedy, drama, sci-fi; it was really internet tv. In fact, during the world cup, they actually streamed live some soccer games, which was so cool! So, for $5 you got to watch really good shows in a very good quality, non-stop and WITHOUT commercials...
But, like all nice and cheap things in life, it did not last long. Apparently, as the people behind the site admitted, legal issues came up (even though they were mainly streaming already broadcasted and recorded material) so, they had to inevitably shut the whole thing down.

....MERDE...

What I really liked about ess, was that I could have cheap and easily accessible entertainment everywhere (as long as I had a decent internet connection), without the expenses and the distraction of cable TV. But now that's all gone...

:( :( :(....

So, do I want a TV? (Notice I did not ask whether I need a TV...)

Τζάμπα Μάγκες (Incompetence, part two)

2006-07-13T11:34:00.000-04:00

After a race with time, the Greek Government managed to pass the required (by FIFA) amendments to the new Sports law and as a result, FIFA has revoked their decision to suspend the Hellenic Football Federation.
This is one of the most weird laws ever voted. The majority of the articles introduce state control over sport associations, while the HFF is miraculously exempted all together. So, all is well that ends well. Of course, there is the humiliation of a whole country, of the democratic institutions (the deputy minister of sports was making so many changes up to the last moment that members of the parliament complained that they could not understand what they were voting for (or against), and, of course, there are issues with other associations. At least, they managed to resolve this problem just in time so that this Friday, a Greek team can play for the Intertoto cup.

Just in time...

As for the title in Greek for this post, it is an expression. Literally it means ('brave for free') and it is addressed to people who are full of talk, bragging and ready to "play brave" when they are secure, but when the time comes to actually defend their position, they sound retreat. But I guess, as it has been said, people just get the governments they deserve...

No pain, no game

2006-07-10T17:02:00.000-04:00

This is another biking post:

So, last Saturday I continued my biking training. Overall, it went O.K.. I am more balanced, I can make turns (most of them anyway) and I can successfully ride the bike over other surfaces, like stone paved paths and grass.
Then, again I really need to learn to use the BREAK. Watching that tree (actually, it was not a particular one, since that happened many times) getting closer and closer and doing nothing to prevent my imminent crashing, or being unable to control the bike downhill (I have to start playing with the gears) it's not reassuring. And since it was highly unlikely the tree would move, you can imagine the results.
I fell about 4 times off the bike, the last one being the most spectacular of all; the bike landed on me, or I ended up lying under the bike (I guess that is a matter of point of view). Since Sunday afternoon, there are a few parts of my anatomy that do not cause me pain when I move, I experience problems mostly with my left arm (which I cannot bend in some ways) and knee. Although it was suggested to me to go and check it out, I will probably wait a couple of days to see if it gets better by itself. After all, today, my arm feels a bit better. I really do not think anything is broken, probably it is just muscle pain.
Anyway, what I am really worried is that I want to do that again (the biking, ideally without the falling part). I just hope I am not developing tendencies of masochism....

FORZA ITALIA*

2006-07-10T01:20:00.000-04:00

Signore e signori

I campioni del mondo

La Squadra Azzura

ITALIA

*Disclaimer: Any political references are totally unintentional..

Superman returned....

2006-07-04T23:31:00.000-04:00

I got home after watching Superman Returns with Moti and Raymond.
Overall, I was satisfied with the movie. Yes, the plot (Moti thought the movie did not have any) was naive and the acting in general could have been better, but these are not the things you expect to get from a movie like this. (Christopher Reeve was the apparent exception to this rule of course, but again, it's tough for a movie to compete with a ghost. In fact, the movie was dedicated to both Christopher and Dana Reeve). So, Kate Bosworth did not really convince me as Lois Lane. She just lacked the sparkle that her role is all about. If you ask me, I believe that the ideal Lois Lane was Teri Hatcher from the TV series Lois and Clark. Finally, Kevin Spacey had better moments, but again, Lex Luthor rarely gets good credit..
On the good side, the visual effects were very good (Superman looked like he was really flying) and Brandon Routh stood well as the man of steel. In a way, he resembled Christopher Reeve and this, as well as Marlon Brando's voice as Jor-El was kind of eerie.
So, if the acting was generally not that good, the plot naive and with holes, why did I like that movie? I guess, because I am a Superman fan and it was nice to get into a theatre again and listen to that well known theme.
As for the guy with the red cape fighting for truth, justice and (let's not forget) the American way, I believe it is the absurdness of the existence of such as person that makes it all work.

Happy 4th of July!

2006-07-04T11:56:00.000-04:00

To all my American friends

Happy Independence Day!

Incompetence....

2006-07-03T12:38:00.000-04:00

When I decided to have a blog, I made a promise to myself that I will not make any comments about political parties and politics in general (trust me, Greeks really love to discuss these topics). With only one exception, I kept my promise. But some things are just too ridiculous.

Today is a very bad day for Greek soccer.
FIFA has decided to suspend E.Π.Ο (the Hellenic Football Federation, HFF) and as a result all Greek football clubs, the Greek National Football team, are banned from all games until the decision is revoked. This news actually managed to make first page in FIFA's website. For the actual decision of the Fédération Internationale click here.
The story how Greek football got to this situation is a long one. The short version of it is that since these (the conservatives) people got elected in 2004, one of their first priorities was to get football affairs under direct governmentnt control. As a result, a new law was passed which raised concerns on behalf of HFF, that would not be approved by both U.E.F.A. and FIFA. The truth is that HFF had always problems in regulating football affairs. On the other hand, it is also true that FIFA prefers incompetent self-ruling football associations than governmentnt-run ones (which in any case for everybody who knows Greek affairs does not rule out incompetence after all..)
The Greek goverment promised to amend the law; (more than a year ago). They didn't . And now HFF is out and so are all Greek Football clubs.
It's really hard to comment on situations like that. With an almost 10% unemployment rate, university students and professors rallying on the streets against a vastly opposed "Educational Reformation", most Greeks being unable to go even for a short vacation because they just can't afford it (especially after the euro was introduced, prices went rocket high, but the average salary still remains in the 70% of the E.U. average), being unable to resolve a stupid problem that they themselves created in the first place, is just ridiculous.

Perhaps you can teach an old dog new tricks after all....

2006-07-03T01:50:00.000-04:00

This is a continuation of this post.
Today was definitely a good day. First (totally irrelevant, but still good news: the Ferraris got first and second position in the Indianapolis Grand Prix). Secondly, (and VERY relevant) I actually started having a grasp of the whole biking thing. After numerous and frustrating attempts to get a decent balance and co-ordination of my two legs (so that I could actually pedal), today, I made some good progress. Seriously; it just happened:
I got on the bike, gave myself a boost and started pedaling and..pedaling...and... pedaling and OMG!, I was still on and I was not falling. (Actually, the moment I realized what was happening, I lost my balance and just stopped (no, I did not fell) at the side.) But this was no glitch. It happened again... and again... and again.
O.K., there are still many things to master, like:

Actually going straight. Though I try to keep myself on a straight path, I still get a feeling of loss of balance. The good news is that I am compensating with the wheel, so I do not fall (at least most of the times). The bad news is that for the external observer I look like I am drunk!
Turning. It is just tough. I know that is more balance than steering, but I really need a lot of work on that.
Pedaling on the grass. and/or uphill. I just can't do that. I either have to get the hand of playing with the gears, or my legs are two weak and I need this:
Confidence!! Right now there is just no way I will pedal on a street (you know with cars etc.)

Many thanks to my friends Panayioti and Nora who, not only provided the bike (I am actually thinking of getting one now; after all,that was the whole point from the beginning) but they provided crucial support and advice. Panayotis also took some videos of me and when I get them, I might post them so that you do not think that I am kidding you...

Yes, definitely a good day!!

World Cup disappointment....

2006-07-01T21:11:00.000-04:00

I just can't believe it. Brazil is out of the finals, beaten 0-1 by France!

Rumor has it that France, mainly because of Zinedine Zidane, played much better than a (once again) disappointing Brazilian team.

As a true fan of Latin-style football (that is "soccer" for my friends of North America origin), I can't imagine what type of World Cup finals we will get, without at least one representative of this "school" of football like Brazil, or Argentina.
This is the first time since 1982 the World Cup turns to a European affair because all the teams which qualified to the finals are from Europe,namely France, Portugal, Germany and Italy.
With these four teams remaining, I guess a final match between France and Germany (they are the hosts and the play well too!) is likely but again, nothing is certain at this point.
In a way this will make the finals very interesting; I just hope no matter whatever team makes it to the final, that it is going to be as spectacular and productive (in goals achieved) as a World Cup final should be...

Happy Canada day!!!

2006-07-01T12:34:00.000-04:00

Happy Canada Day to all!
Joyeuse fête du Canada à tous/toutes

Moving with style (!!!)

2006-06-28T19:14:00.000-04:00

I will be probably be moving by the end of my lease. However, should I call these people?:

I do not know about you, but for me the way this ad combines "looks" with "moving" as well as the specific picture you see with the text you read, makes it just surreal... (and funny!)

This is a real ad! Photograph was taken at the entrance of the building I live....

Bonne fête nationale du Québec

2006-06-24T16:56:00.000-04:00

...et à tous/toutes mes ami(e)s francophones,

BONNE FÊTE de la St. Jean Baptiste!!!

À la gauche, c'est le drapeau de la communauté francophone d' Ontario et à la droite, c' est le drapeau de la communauté francophone d' Alberta. (Cliquez ici pour une liste complète ...)

και... Χρόνια Πολλά στον αδερφό μου (et bon anniversaire à mon frère)

Music to my ears.... (Part 1)

2006-06-24T01:09:00.000-04:00

There are a few things I find completely thrilling. One of them is the sound that an F1 (and the more, the merrier!!!) vehicle makes. O.K., I know that this can be a health hazard (and with already diminished hearing ability from one ear, I should be more careful) but I cannot really control it. I can almost say that I am addicted to it, you know, that escalating sound while the gears go up (and up, and up...)
Being in this city for 3 years, this is first time that I got to the track. (And I will be there tomorrow and on Sunday of course, for the actual race). Although me and my friend got general admission tickets, we managed to pinpoint some good spots that, God willing and if we get there on time, will provide a fine view of the track and the race.
This is definitely going to be a memorable F1 weekend . After all, my camera trembles (!!!) when I play the videos of the free practice session I took today (since we were behind a fence most of the time, it's the sound that counts and not the picture), and that IS promising....

More to follow....

Spam...I HATE YOU!!!

2006-06-21T21:14:00.000-04:00

I just can't take it anymore...
Although most of the spam e-mail I get ends up in a rarely used Yahoo account (and we are talking about 7 e-mails per day), for the last month I have been receiving spam in my other accounts which (unlike the aforementioned one) I forward to Outlook.
Thus, every time (twice per day) I check my e-mail, I get at least 4-5 e-mails with extremely annoying context.
Though the ones with weird attachments (a.k.a., viruses) are limited in number, still this situation is frustrating because they are just junk! From online degrees to pirate software, and from invitations to online gambling to special drugs which are supposed to improve my sexual life, although I found it funny in the beginning, now it's just becoming annoying.
I guess, I can always stop forwarding my e-mail accounts to Outlook, or create a new one that I will just give it to friends. However, I do believe that something can be done for this situation, namely more improved spam filters could be implemented.
I have to admit that Yahoo does a good work since, I rarely get any spam e-mail that will not be automatically forwarded to the "bulk" folder. (Unfortunately, the amount of junk e-mail this account receives does not allow me to turn it to my basic one, and besides, they charge for POP 3 forwarding.....)

Jaywalking and Saskatchewan immunity....

2006-06-16T21:55:00.000-04:00

I was walking down on McGill College earlier this evening when I reached a red light at the corner of President Kennedy. Since no car was passing, I decided to cross the street. Now, with me there was a group of people standing in the corner (I guess, waiting for the light to get green) Two of them (a man and a woman) decided to cross the street, just like I did.
A woman from the group yelled at them (apparently joking): "Jaywalkers!!".
The man replied: "We are from Saskatchewan, we can do anything we want!"

I thought this was funny....

You can't teach an old dog new tricks..(Or can you?)

2006-06-12T01:00:00.000-04:00

Believe it or not, I have to shamefully admit I do not know how to ride a bicycle. Yes, I 've been on a tricycle (when I was a child) but my first and only attempt to actually ride a real bicycle was when I was 14 and that was a very, very unsuccessful (and painful) experience, as I recall.
So, I let it be, and kept on looking ,some times with envy, all these people that could do something I didn't know how

Now you know where this is getting at, don't you?

Well, I finally decided that "better late than ever", so today, I had my first serious attempt to get the hand of it. In fact, I had asked some friends (one of them had a spare bike to let me try) to help me in my task. So, today was the day!

Now, since this is not Hollywood but real life, I cannot tell you how I mastered the whole bike thing in 1 hour, because I just....didn't!!! However, I did manage to stay on the (bleep) thing for second(s) and, I guess, that is some progress.
Everything is balance, I know that, and unfortunately this is exactly what I lack. (And I do not think all this extra weight helps!) But, I am determined to go through it at least if not for myself, just to disprove this stupid saying I chose as a title for this entry.

So, wish me luck and I am open to suggestions/ advise etc.

(Just please be helpful and if you want to make fun of me, do it before or after you leave some comments)

Pentecost Sunday

2006-06-11T14:38:00.000-04:00

Today is the Sunday of The Holy Pentecost for the Orthodox. (For those of you who do not know this, Pentecost in the Christian Church is the feast celebrated 50 days (pentekoste=50th (day) in Ancient Greek) after Pascha/Easter. (Just like Jewish Pentecost is celebrated 50 days after Passover). This is when the Holy Spirit (according to Christian belief) descended in the form of tongues of fire on the Apostles signifying the birth of the Church. For those interested, more information can be found here.

The feast is always celebrated on a Sunday and is followed by the Monday of the Holy Spirit. It is a time when Christians pray specifically for guidance from the 3rd person of the Holy Trinity, especially those who are engaged in mental activities. In fact, in Greece, this is an official holiday for students and teachers (and everybody involved in education) and the Press (journalists are considered as mentally hard-working; well, yes, considered is the "key-word")
Though I haven't reached that part of the program yet (and that day is coming), any help and guidance (especially from "upstairs" ) is more than welcomed. Therefore, I hope (and pray) that the Holy Spirit will always be there for us all, guiding us to the fulfillment of our goals.

"Ευλογητός εί, Χριστέ ο Θεός ημών, ο πανσόφους τούς αλιείς αναδείξας, καταπέμψας αυτοίς τό Πνεύμα τό άγιον, καί δι' αυτών τήν οικουμένην σαγηνεύσας, φιλάνθρωπε, δόξα Σοι"

"Blessed are You, O Christ our God, who made fishermen all-wise, sending upon them the Holy Spirit and, who through them, have caught in Your net the whole world, O lover of mankind, Glory to You"

(Apolytikion of the Feast of the Holy Pentecost)

Blogger, you make me so angry.......

2006-06-08T13:02:00.001-04:00

What is wrong with blogger?

WHAT?

I have spent half an hour to post something, (25 minutes of which was the actual posting process and it turned out to be posted twice)

All these recurring problems (no, it's not the first time) make me seriously considering of migrating to my other account.... (but in that case, I will have to learn basic html)

Gym days...

2006-06-08T12:44:00.000-04:00

So, What have I been up to since summer kicked in?

Well, I have finally decided to do something with all this extra weight that is bothering me (and not forget is a health hazard). So, back to the Y for me it is, and hopefully, this time ,the effects will last...

In other news, I do not know yet if and when (that sounds like the potential topic for eval. paper 2) I 'll get back to Greece. It will all depend on the studying I will have to do during the summer for eval. paper 1 which will be determined in a meeting I will have with EBG later this month. It's not a big secret that I do not really study when I am in Greece, so this time it might be a short or no trip at all. (an eventuality that will not make my brother and dad happy!) We 'll see....

That's all....oh wait!

Many thanks to Émile for the postcard I got... (You know now that I am expecting more...)

Break free....

2006-06-04T13:41:00.000-04:00

I have just read the news:

Two prisoners escaped today from Korydallos prison complex in Athens, Greece when a helicopter, (yes, a HELICOPTER) landed in the courtyard and....picked them up!!!!

Korydallos prison complex is a considered a maximum security facillity. In fact, this is where the members of the notorious November 17 terrorist group are held.

What is most surprising is that the escape happened in broad daylight (18.25 local time) and the prison guards did not manage to stop them since they were surprised and/or confused because the helicopter had colors (white with blue stripes) similar to police ones.
The escape seems to have been organized by the notorious Greek criminal, Nikos Paleokostas, who with some "associate" of his, rented a helicopter (under false identities) and using explosives and grenades threatened the pilot to get them to the prison. When they got there, they picked up two people, Niko's brother Vasilis and an Albanian guy convicted for murder. Later, the helicopter landed in a remote cemetery and the prisoners used motorcycles to get away leaving the pilot behind.

Though other people have escaped from Korydallos in the past, this is the most spectacular escape ever. Although excuses can be found, (the helicopter was difficult to track; because of the Athens "Acropolis Rally", there were about 18 helicopters over the city) still this is a major blow for the police (I mean even if the helicopter had similar colors like police ones, apparently it did not have "POLICE" marked on the sides.)
When the story broke out, the minister of Public Order said "he will take heads", but maybe he should start with his own....

Trip and pics

2006-05-31T23:30:00.000-04:00

So, I am back from my 5 day trip to Toronto (for the CLA).
Details:

Friday:

After a rather uneventful trip, as you can see in the picture,

Émile, Gus, Guillaume and me arrived at Toronto in the evening. Raph met us at the station and afterwards we headed for the Duke of York where we had a late dinner... It was then that we decided (since none of us was presenting on Saturday) to rent a car (many thanks to our driver Guillaume) to go to Niagara Falls.

At around midnight I got to the youth hostel. Not a very bad place; the only problem: I forgot to bring flip-flops and the shower is located at the other side of the corridor where my room is...

Saturday:

Apologies to everyone for standing them up for about an hour. (I had this "brilliant" idea to go to YU and register early in the morning)

So, we left Toronto at around 2 p.m and after a short stop at a winery

and a slight delay as "Celine" had to pass bellow the bridge..

we got to our final destination, the falls. One word: AMAZING:

As you can see, we had lots of fun, especially when we decided to go into that little boat you see above....

in the mist...

For a complete list of pictures (with better quality and size) click here

Our short trip to Niagara Falls ended with dinner at a restaurant "downtown" and a small tour around the area. I even won some presents in the arcade.....

Finally, we returned to Toronto at around 1.30 am.

Sunday

Well, it was about time to get to YU. There, we met up with Jen and Naoko , while Raph and Émile gave their talks. Later that evening, we attended the general reception (the food could be better) and then we headed downtown. Being curious and needful of some help from the "big guy upostairs", I ended up attending a late mass with Raph. Overall, there are many similarities between the Orthodox and the Roman-Catholic ritual. After the service, we caught up with Jen, Naoko and Émile and at around midnight we called the night off...

- I just realized that though I have cable tv in my room, there is no remote!!!

Monday

TTC went on strike; the city is paralysed, it's hot and humid and... I am giving a talk!!!!

After a very expensive taxi ride to YU, I caught up with Jen, Gustavo and Naoko. I had brought my laptop with me, so I spent a lot of time refining my handout just before my talk. However, I believe it went O.K. I even got PA to admit that I presented a good argument against an alternative proposal he had in mind.....

Later on, Jen , Naoko and me went to the CLA reception and at around 7 pm we decided to return downtown. We had heard that the strike was over, little did we know though that not everything was working. So, we got the bus to Downsview subway only to find out that it was still closed!!.
After 2-2.5 hours of travelling by bus, on foot and by subway (the stations that were operational, that is) we got to the Duke of York for dinner (me; I hadn't had anything all day) and drinks (the girls). We called the night off at around 10.30 and we said goodbye since the girls would leave the next day.

-That room in the hostel is damn hot!!

Tuesday

Since I did not manage to meet up with Raph and Émile, I decided to tour a bit the city. So, I headed for the Greektown just to see what is all about. It was funny to see the names of the streets written in Greek.....

Wednesday

Checked out, got the train back to Montreal. It is raining!!!

Oh well..., at least I had a good time....

Evaluation and other news...

2006-05-16T20:08:00.000-04:00

I got the evaluation report for this year from the department. Overall, they seem to be satisfied with my progress so far, but the more interesting (and harder) part of the program is to follow so I'll keep my fingers crossed. The only dark spot: one "reason for concern" for my performance as a TA. No surprises there!I knew that all these bad and rude comments I got would eventually come back to haunt me....

In other news, I finally (better late than never) got accommodation arrangements for my short stay in Toronto at the end of the month. It's a downtown youth hostel but,considering my budget limitations (where is that tax refund?), it's the best possible solution. I just hope everything will turn out O.K.. I guess I should not make a big deal out of it, but it's just that my 4 years of staying in a dormitory with a whole bunch of problems (power/water shortages, leaking ceilings, lack of hygiene) made me a bit eerie of this type of places.

Anyway, I think it's time to see how I can change a bit my presentation, so it will not be exactly the same as for MOT.

Done!

2006-05-03T18:42:00.000-04:00

I 've just e-mailed a long due term paper. I can now breathe more freely.Now, I still have some grading to do and apparently there is my presentation later this month, but at least I can get some time off.

In other news, I have completed on online census questionaire for Statistics Canada. Since I have no dependants (good for them), it took me about 4 minutes. Interesting details:

Question: "Please enter your date of birth:

Answer (it' s not a big secret anyway): "30-10-1978"

Click on "submit"

Next page shows up: "On May 16, 2006 you were 27 years old"

Comment: Thank you for reminding that to me... :(

At least they will go nuts when they see my answer in the following question:

"What is the language that this person first learnt at home or childhood and still understands?"

No comments there, really :)

ΧΡΙΣΤΟΣ ΑΝΕΣΤΗ

2006-04-23T15:48:00.000-04:00

"O Death, where is thy sting?O Hell, where is thy victory?
Christ is risen, and thou art overthrown!

Christ is risen, and the demons are fallen!

Christ is risen, and the angels rejoice!

Christ is risen, and life reigns!

Christ is risen, and not one dead remains in the grave.

For Christ, being risen from the dead, has become the first-fruits of those who have fallen asleep.

To Him belongs all glory and dominion, unto the ages.

Amen".

From St. John Chrysostom's Paschal Sermon, read in all Orthodox Churches during the Service of the Resurrection

Happy Easter

2006-04-16T13:36:00.000-04:00

For all my friends who celebrate today

Have a blessed Easter
(Back to work now!!!)

Feeling unique....

2006-04-08T19:11:00.000-04:00

From a letter I got yesterday:

" You are unique. The reason you are unique is that you are one of our preferred cardholders....."

And at the end of the letter:

"...Thank you for being our client and making ********* card your only card for all your credit card needs."

Now, does it matter that I have never used that credit card? NEVER!!!

Oh well.....at least they have a good taste for... unique customers!!!

Somebody bomb me....

2006-04-04T11:22:00.000-04:00

What Famous Leader Are You?
personality tests by similarminds.com

And the quest goes on....

2006-04-03T20:53:00.000-04:00

Because I am bored, depressed and haven't posted anything for a long time....
(stolen from aemilius)

What Classic Movie Are You?
personality tests by similarminds.com

Toronto... (there is going to be a part 2)

2006-03-15T23:52:00.000-05:00

I just (well, 3 hours ago) got an e-mail confirming my acceptance at the CLA conference!

Yay!

So, now I have to start thinking for:

revising/ enriching my paper
planning the actual trip (accommodation etc.)

Hey people, are we still on for renting a house?

No Comments (At least none I can make in public)

2006-02-20T00:15:00.000-05:00

I have just gotten home.
As I was entering the building, I saw a middle-aged woman standing in front of the panel.
There was a nasty odor coming from her direction.
It took me 2 seconds to actually realize (my brain refused to process the image my eyes had seen) she had just taken a number one and/or (most likely) a number two!
She said something to me in French.
I did not understand a thing (and.. that was one of the few times I was happy about it!)
I did not say anything, I just opened the main door and got in.

I am still shocked!

Happy Valentine's Day

2006-02-14T12:20:00.000-05:00

For everybody who celebrate today:

Ἔρως ἀνίκατε μάχαν /Oh Love unbeatable in battle
Ἔρως ὅς ἐν κτήμασι πίπτεις, /Oh Love who you make possession of whatever you fall at
ὅς ἐν μαλακαῖς παρειαῖς / who, over the sweet cheeks
νεάνιδος ἐννυχεύεις, /of a young girl, you spend the night
φοιτᾷς δ΄ὑπερπόντιος ἐν τ᾽ / you wander over the seas
ἀγρονόμοις αὐλαῖς. / in the lonely forest homes
καὶ σ᾽ οὐτ᾽ ἀθανάτων / and no one among the Immortal ones
φύξιμος οὐδεῖς, οὐθ΄ /can get away from you
ἁμερίων ἐπ᾽ ἀνθρώπων, /nor among the mortal men
ὁ δ᾽ ἔχων μέμηνεν / but whoever you catch, looses his mind

Sophocles, Antigone (781-790)

Happy Valentine's day!

Weekend at Toronto

2006-02-13T20:25:00.000-05:00

(I guess another title for this post could be MOT 2006)

Overall, I really had a great time this weekend.
My train trip to Toronto was great (I LOVE trains) even though I, ahem. "missed" my early train and had to take the 9.40 one.
So, I arrived at Toronto station at 15.25, as scheduled. Sandhya (one of the people providing shelter for me, the other was Benjamin) greeted me there and gave me instructions how to get to York.
Well, since it took me a while to get there, I only managed to attend the final discussion period for that day. Being tired from the trip and a bit hungry, I and Bubbles headed to downtown for a quick dinner.
Saturday was the "big day" since I would give my talk in the afternoon. Overall, I think it went O.K., (at least this is what GP and KR) told me) and I DID get feedback for my research questions, although not really exactly what I wanted to hear. Later this evening, we went to a party organized by some of the profs. We really enjoyed ourselves, the Thai food was superb and the selection of music was good. The music was multicultural and actually one of the profs put an LP (yes, they still exist) with 60's Greek music. (That was so nice!)
On Sunday, GP and Syngirl gave their talks. Once again, the McGill team achieved top levels of performance!) The conference ended with a nice pizza lunch at the U of T Linguistics Department.
Since I had some time left (my train would leave at 18.30), I decided to do some sightseeing. So, what did I do?
Well, I took some pictures of the U of T campus (mainly the buildings close to where MOT was held) as well as of the downtown (and the not so downtown) area of the city.
But, of course, where I really wanted to be was the CN tower.
So, after waiting in line for 20 minutes to get my ticket and waiting another 20 minutes to get in a lift, I reached my first stop, the glass floor. It was absolutely AMAZING. (That is as soon as I convinced myself that this is perfectly safe, btw those children jumping on the glass do not really help!) The view was breathtaking especially when I got to my final destination, the Skypod.
So, here are some pictures I took (they are not the best, but I am still learning!)
I only regret that I did not have enough time since I had to get my luggage from Benjamin's place before I got to the station.
The trip to Montreal was uneventful and (since I could not use my laptop, but this is another, unfortunately sad, story) boring. After all,, when it is dark, you can't really see anything...
So,overall I really enjoyed my first North American conference experience.
Many thanks to Benjamin and Sandhya for being terrific hosts and to the people of U of T and York University for a successfully planning.

So, until next time....(that can be very soon)

Thursday's activities

2006-02-02T23:25:00.000-05:00

I had my graduate seminar presentation today. I believe it went O.K. (I almost finished on time!)
So, overall, I have a basic analysis for the paper; the real trick, of course, is to justify that analysis in a way that it does not seem ad hoc.
In other news, this afternoon I went to my friend Pat's place, where she invited me for dinner. Again, the food was really yummy, and generally I had a good time, although things are getting even more confusing...

Trying a software

2006-02-01T16:21:00.000-05:00

For the "e-freaks" out there, Microsoft launched their Beta version of IE 7 ready for download. Now, maybe it's just me, but that "new" interface reminds me of other browsers...

Pros (for now): faster than IE 6

Cons (Strangely, a blogger issue: I can't see the text I am writting in the compose tab, although the text becomes visible in the edit html tab! Weird!)

'Ενας χρόνος......

2006-01-30T11:07:00.000-05:00

Πέρασε κιόλας ένας χρόνος.
'Ενας χρόνος χωρίς την αγάπη σου, την αγκαλιά σου, την γλυκιά σου φωνή. Ένας χρόνος χωρίς εσένα.

Μου λείπεις....

"Προσδοκώ ανάστασιν νεκρών....."

Today marks the year anniversary of my mother's passing...

Pizza and a movie

2006-01-28T11:07:00.000-05:00

Once again, pizza at TH yesterday with the usual suspects: Émile, Raph, Yukio, Moti and (after a long time) Tobin and Josh. And yes, Josh, for us "damn Greeks", only the times you eat and drink count :) ..... Glad you joined us guys!
The pizza was good, and as always, we had lots of fun and (most of us) lots of beer. I guess I was a bit dizzy afterwards but anyway..... So , after the pizza me, Émile, Raph and Moti decided to go to see a movie. (Coincidently (?) , we caught up Tobin and Josh on the bus to AMC. )
At AMC we saw Andrew (that was pleasant surprise) while Moti and Émile (a first timer) tested their skills in Dance Dance Revolution, just before the movie started.
So we ended up watching Breakfast on Pluto. The movie was O.K, and, at certain times, really funny, but I did not enjoy it much. It's not that I didn't like it, but for the most part I was trying to understand what was going on, with all that Irish accent AND keep myself awake (I guess, I was really tired).
Overall, I had a great time and it was good to spend some time in the company of good friends...

Weird weather, exagerrated reactions (part 2!!)

2006-01-26T08:44:00.000-05:00

While temperatures are getting back to normal for the season in Montreal, in Greece people still fight the icy weather conditions. So, what happens when temperature drops to -5° C in some northern suburbs of Athens or even to -24° C (yes, that is not a typo, and windchill factor is not estimated) in northern areas of the country?:

Parts of the country experience electricity shortage problems (even in Athens) and some islands like Ithaca and Kefalonia are without power for the third day today!
Schools are closed in Attica (that includes the greater area of Athens) and in many parts of northern Greece, especially in south-west Macedonia. That includes Universities of course, with the exception of Athens Law School, The Medicine School and the Sports Academy (I REALLY do not know why they decided to continue with courses while other schools did not.)
Courts are in business, but it's up to the judges to determine whether cases will be tried.
Since today ships disembark for the islands since the really strong winds started to subside
And of course, there are still problems in highways because of snow and ice accumulation.

I guess many of you will find these reactions a bit exaggerated and, honestly, so do I. (I think I might have been in this country for too long!) In fact, this is what I told my brother yesterday when he told me that people didn't show up for work, especially in Athens where they are not accustomed to below zero temperatures.

As for the power shortages, the blocked roads (even in Athens!) etc, well , I would really not want to comment on the efficiency of our (conservative) government....

Crazy weather

2006-01-24T17:18:00.000-05:00

I do not know what is more weird:

That we have 1°C in Montreal or that right now it is -0.3°C in Athens.
Yes, it is true that this is stangely warm January and it is also true that Europe and the Balkans face a severe cold wave coming from Russia) but still....

Dinner and a movie

2006-01-19T00:09:00.000-05:00

So how did I celebrate my name day?
Well, I got to the department for a TA meeting. After that, I just stayed at the computer room where I chatted a bit with Raph, Gustavo and Moti. At around 5.30, I, Moti and Raph left. (I have to say that walking down Peel was not as frightening as I thought it would be; you know, with all that ice....We did though go by the road and not by the sidewalk!)
I walked with them west on St. Catherine's (although I live at the opposite direction) since I had made plans to meet my friend Andonis at Guy/Concordia. You see he had his name day yesterday but since he was working we decided instead to do something today for both his and mine name day.
So, we went for dinner to Bangong (one of the best Thai food places, if you ask me) and while still there we started discussing about a possible movie we would like to watch.
Strangely enough we ended up to AMC and saw Brokeback Mountain. I have to say I have been a bit curious about that movie (let's not discuss the famous saying about the unpleasant results of curiosity for now) and we thought that since it had received so many good reviews (and Golden Globes recently), well, it had to be good.

So, impressions (kind of the "straight" eye for the "gay" movie)

Definately an Ang Lee movie. Superb direction; period. And the scenery, it was just breath-taking.
The acting was great. I have to shamefully admit that I know little about the actors who starred. In any case, great (and, at least for me, convincing) performance from almost everybody (including the non-leading characters).
I do not really like labels and I do try to avoid using them. It's interesting this movie is mostly referred to as a "gay romance" one, since I find that characterization superficial. I believe that the best description of the movie comes from its director. In the words of Ang Lee: "You can never categorise or stereotype a region or a place. People fall in love, period. This is a universal story ... I just wanted to make a love story." And, I believe this is why the movie wins the spectator at the end. It is a love story, but not only that. Love, is explored directly and indirectly in so many levels and forms. So you have the love between the two main characters, the love between them and their wives, the love between them and their children, the love between them (as children ) with their own parents (this is so prominent in one of the last scenes of the movie).
Overall, it was a movie about human emotions and passions and how people deal a) with them, b) with the other people around them and c) crucially, with themselves. I guess, the only way one could find that movie offensive in any way would be not to share any form of any of these emotions, in a way not to share what makes us all human.
When the movie finished and lights came on I saw that the room was even more packed than it was before the movie started. If you consider that it has being on for some weeks now and also that this was a week day, you can see how good that movie is.
Just one bad thing: For the first 25 minutes of the movie, the audio was really low and people sitting in the back rows could hardly hear anything. In fact, the distinct accent of the main actors made understanding kind of a challenge for the non-native speakers. Then, suddenly, the volume increased and the dialogues were clear. After the end, we asked some of the theater people about it, but they said that this is how the movie was filmed. Now, I might be wrong, but this looks so BS!

Celebrating a.... name

2006-01-18T12:12:00.000-05:00

For those that may find it interesting, today is my name day (i.e., the feast day when the saint after whom I got my name is celebrated).
So, there was a Saint Athanasius and in fact he is considered a great figure in the Church, both the Roman Catholic and the Orthodox. (In fact, St. Athanasius is called "The Great".)

Athanasius is mostly known from defending the faith, and in particular defending the divinity of the Lord in the early 4th century A.D., when the heresy of Arianism appeared. (Arianism claimed that Jesus is not full God (and therefore, He is not equal with the Father, in contrast with the Trinitarian dogma of Christian theology). More information about this can be found here and here . In the Orthodox Church his feast is celebrated twice a year, on May 2nd (like in the Roman Catholic Church) and on January 18th with St. Cyril of Alexandria.
Name days are celebrated in Greece like birthdays (but usually there is no cake!) and in fact ,until the early 20th century, people used to observe only their name day (at least those who were baptized Orthodox Christians) and not their birthdays.
So, I got some phone calls and e-mails from Greece wishing me "χρόνια πολλά" and I sent some e-mails myself to my friends that celebrate today.
And a cultural detail: In Greece, people do not usually invite over friends for name day's celebrations. Rephrase: People do not need to be invited for a name day celebration. They just drop by the place of the person. The idea is that since everybody knows when your name day is, you do not have to make any invitations. People will just drop by and apparently you are expected to have something planned. On the contrary, for birthdays invitations must be made.

Back with a vengeance

2006-01-16T11:10:00.000-05:00

Winter is back!
After endless pleas, we finally got “normal” temperatures for the season. (-17°C).
I mean, this is Montréal, right?

Too bad to be true...

2006-01-12T17:50:00.000-05:00

Once again, the my TA evaluation turned to a disaster. I have to say, I was surprised that ALL I got was negative remarks about my English (again) and my ability to answer/explain things.
Now, that should get me really frustrated but it didn' t. Honestly, it is not because I am irresponsible or I do not care.
It is just that I cannot believe people found nothing good in my teaching. Especially after some positive input I had throughout the semester. I guess it is always understandable when people "old enough" are not fond of being treated as if they were still "primary school" students. The catch, of course, is to stop behaving as such!
That's all...

Stressed Saturday...

2006-01-07T13:20:00.000-05:00

I am still struggling with this abstract. (It's still too long)

Anyway, in other news, Happy name day to my dad (John, named after John the Baptist, click here for a more Orthodox Christian perspective ) and Happy Birthday to Josh.

An afternoon that could have been much better (or worse)

2006-01-05T21:34:00.000-05:00

After a very alarming chest paint event that fortunately lacked the rest of the unwanted symptoms (like shortness of breath and extension of the pain to the back and/or the left arm) I rushed myself to Royal Victoria Hospital, just to be sure. After 2 hours of waiting and 3 hours of testing I was relieved to know that both my EKG and chest x-ray results turned out O.K.
So now I am kind of relieved that I do not have a heart condition, however, I am worried because I do not know what caused this thing (it happened 6 months ago also) and whether is going to happen again. Somehow, the words of the nurse that if I feel again any discomfort, I should have it checked and especially her view that this might be because of stress, are not very reassuring....
And then you tell me I am not getting old.....

Το λακωνίζειν εστί φιλοσοφείν*

2006-01-05T10:36:00.000-05:00

*Acting like a Laconian (Spartan), i.e., being terse/concise/laconic, is philosophy.

Unfortunately, I am not Laconian, I am Athenian. And like my predecessors, I can't put limits on my words or/and thoughts.
Now, can somebody please tell me how to submit a successful abstract of just 300 words? (EVERYTHING included)

Happy New Year

2006-01-01T13:01:00.000-05:00

To all my friends out there:

May you have a trully Happy and joyful New Year.

So, here it goes:

Happy New Year, Bonne Année, Feliz Año Nuevo, Buon Anno, Μanigong Βagong Τaon, שנה טובה, and of course, Καλή Χρονιά

When 2005 leaves with a....ring

2005-12-31T15:48:00.000-05:00

Give me a reason I would be awake at 6.30 in the morning in New Year's Eve?

a) I decided to watch the last sunrise of 2005. (Umm, NO!)

b) Somebody knocked on my door.... Now., if I was in Greece, this would be possible since it is customary for children to go from house to house singing the New Year's carols; (BTW we do the same for Christmas and Theophany/Epiphany (which is celebrated on January 6th)). NO, again!
c) And the winner is....the fire alarm!

There was an odor of something being burnt, so once again we all gathered in the lobby waiting for the fire brigade. Interestingly, after they arrived and were looking for a possible fire, they were puzzled since that newly installed, fancy (and expensive) fire protection system insisted that the problem was located at the 17th floor. Now, that can be quite confusing when the building has only 16 floors!!!(I know, it is the the secret floor, where all the weird experiments are carried out....).
Anyway, after 30 minutes, the problem was resolved (it was actually at the 9th floor, but I could be wrong) and we were allowed to return to our apartments.

I just hope 2006 will be more tranquil...

And do not forget, this year's countdown is a bit different: It goes like that: 5......, 4....., 3......, 2......, 1......, 1..... (again), Happy New Year. Why is that? Well, it is all because of that leap second. May you all enjoy that extra moment in time.....

Christmas with friends

2005-12-27T14:21:00.000-05:00

Ok, back to blogging...
So, how did I spend Christmas ?

Saturday-Sunday Morning

I went to Ottawa invited by Caroline and Leo to spend Christmas with them and the in laws. (This was the second time I went there and the first time I got to see some of the city. since the last time I have been there, I spent the whole day in a basement of a church).
Memorable stops:

Touring the city by car where I saw most of the important stuff, the parliament building, the Supreme Court, the National gallery, etc.
Spending Christmas Eve and Christmas morning in a big house with a fireplace surrounded by wonderful people. What more can anyone ask?
Taking a stroll to the bank of Ottawa river (which was not completely frozen) late at night singing Christmas songs. (If only it did not rain....)
Waking up early (after having slept 4 hours) to attend Liturgy of Christmas at the Orthodox Cathedral.

Thank you guys for everything, especially the hospitality!!!

Sunday afternoon

Driving back to Montreal
Getting to Nazar's place (a common friend) who had invited us for dinner.

We really had a great time with Nazar, Nada (his sister) and their mother. The food was just exceptional. (If you haven't had home made tabouli, then you do not know what you are talking about!). Needless to mention the meat and all the stuffed things (onions, vine leaves etc.). Memorable stops:

Me getting friendly with the family's pet. (Did I mention that I just love dogs?)
Nazar sharing a funny story about him buying a matryushka (and not baboushka!!!) doll.

Monday

For the first time ever I participated in what I call "the boxing day madness". Although I have indulged myself too much by getting a desktop computer and a new digital camera last week, there were still some things I wanted to buy.
It is funny that although I knew in advance what I wanted to get, it took me 4 hours to buy a case/battery charger kit (for my camera) and a printer. I guess I spent a lot of money this year, but except from the camera, everything else was really needed...

For many reasons, this year's Christmas are a lot different. I am just glad they turned better than I thought....

I hope all of you guys had a truly blessed time...

Spending the day out....

2005-12-19T19:54:00.000-05:00

So, what did I do today?

Woke up at 10.30. (disappointment for fans, but no Greek dance music this time. Instead, Christmas songs by the Three Tenors.)
Spending some time in the department; chatting with Jen, Tobin and Gus.
Joining Emile and Raph to celebrate Andrea's birthday at the Taj.
HAPPY BIRTHDAY Andrea.
Getting to Emile's house (actually, I got the feeling that we were self-invited) where we watched Harold and Maude. Great movie, and if you haven't watched it yet (like me), I strongly recommend it.
Going back to the department where I am blogging about this right now....

I just love this time of the year when even if you have things to do, trying to find time to enjoy yourself does not feel wrong...

Cultural differences....

2005-12-15T19:30:00.000-05:00

-This comment should have been posted on Wednseday but I was too busy in the afternoon....-
So, here it goes..

Time: Yesterday morning (around 11.00-11.30 am)
Place: The apartment building I live.

It is not a big secret that I do not respond well to waking up in the morning, (did you notice I did not say "early"?), so one of the strategies I employ to keep me awake is to listen to music. I mostly prefer something vivid with tempo and rhythm, so, it is time for some Greek dance music.
Since I turn the volume high and I often sing along, you can guess I am being quite noisy. So, when I heard someone knocking on my door, I naturally assumed that this was one of my neighbors coming to protest.
I reluctantly opened the door ready to a) admit that the music was loud but also b) that it was 11.00 and other people make even more noise than me in really inappropriate hours (after 10.30 pm for example). So you can imagine my surprise when I opened the door and saw one of the painters painting the walls in the corridor. It turned out that the guy was Greek , and as he told me, when he heard the Greek music, he knocked on my door to .....just talk to another Greek person. And not only that, but he also had a request: He actually asked me to keep the volume up since he really enjoyed the music! (something I did with pleasure.....)
But that was not all! Ten minutes later, somebody else knocked on my door. Once again, not a protesting neighbor but ANOTHER Greek painter who just wanted to tell me he enjoyed the song he was listening too!!!
Now, correct me if I am wrong, but I think most people would not react in this situation like that; (I mean they found it natural to knock on my door and ask me for something, without knowing me and I found natural a) what they did and b) to do what they asked.
Imagine that....