jo jo world

Restart

2008-05-02T02:15:00.000-07:00

it has been long time since my last post, but you know how it is - work, lack of time - busy indeed ! but on Tuesday our boss had her birthday and we had an assignment to make as a presence: tell me something about your mum... and so I did - I wrote a little story connected with me, my mum, my feelings to her as a grown up woman and - Amsterdam!

Here it is:

Name: Danuta Adamczewska - Krolikowska
Mother of: Joanna Krolikowska
Born on: 5.04.1952

She came to Amsterdam. For a first time since her journey to Canada 20 years ago, she crossed again the border of Poland. This time the roles have changed – I felt like a mother who’s waiting for her little girl and worrying about her journey: is she having a good trip? Is she afraid? How does she communicate with people not knowing the English language? Did taxi take her from the bus station? Is the taxi driver going to take her straight to my place or try to rip her off going around and letting the meter to count 1 euro after another? What if she doesn’t take the taxi – how is she going to come or contact with me – her phone is off since she didn’t turn her roaming on? Talking about phones – just before her coming my phone broke down and I almost freaked out trying to get ANY for the replacement, because I have to have it when she comes, so she could call me any time (or rather I could call her any time I want to check if she’s ok ;) )… all these fears embraced me and as much as I was happy about her coming I was also worried with the same force… on the day she was suppose to come I woke up very early, called the taxi for my Mum and waited… and waited… and waited… and started to worry… and called to taxi company asking “Did somebody took my Mother from the bus station?!!!”… then waited again… walked out searching for the lost taxi in the quite complicated students houses area… then I called AGAIN, because it seamed impossible that the taxi is not on the place yet… and while I was hanging on the phone and waiting for the reply from any taxi driver who might have taken my Mum from the bus station – finally I saw her: coming with her suitcase, smiling and looking totally relaxed – my Mamisia! “I told taxi driver that it’s the big white boat! I saw it even and I was trying to show him – this is that boat! But he didn’t listen and dropped me off beside one of the buildings with the number 42 on the door. So I went out, waited till he’s gone and walked straight to the boat” she said.

My big girl. How could I be worried about her? I mean – it’s my Mum! The best, the strongest and the smartest Mum in the world! At least for me ;)

Talking about rights, God and roof-fiddlers

2008-03-19T13:55:00.001-07:00

but on the other hand...

2008-03-18T02:17:00.000-07:00

There's great a quote from the "Fiddler on the Roof" - have a look:

"Mordcha: Why should I break my head about the
outside world? Let them break their own heads.
Tevye: He's right. As the Good Book says,
"If you spit in the air, it lands in your face."
Perchik: That's nonsense. You can't close your
eyes to what's happening in the world.
Tevye: He's right.
Avram: He's right and he's right?
How can they both be right?
Tevye: You know, you're also right."

3, 2, 1 - start!

2008-03-17T02:13:00.000-07:00

"It's not about me, it's about making the world a better place"

Battle for the Planet

2008-03-05T11:56:00.001-08:00

sometimes our actions turn out to be misunderstood ;o)

but we shouldn't give up - there's always tomorrow!

After hours in da Pindakaas

2008-02-29T05:16:00.000-08:00

cutting the edge...

Lotus on irish stream

2008-02-27T13:21:00.001-08:00

Random thought…the magic of heard tunes of music played on string instruments for me lye’s in the fact that I know how it’s coming to life – I know how it feels to have your fingers on the neck of instrument pressing the string, while moving the fiddlestick trough it and generate vibrations, which are felt so intense that your body respond immediately on its power by trembling with it… it’s all in my head, in my finger tips, my veins all over the body – kept as some old times, but still so alive and easy to bring back, memories … that’s the power of having played an instrument – physical reaction on just simple tunes…

Oskar Winner 2008

2008-02-26T01:22:00.001-08:00

Peter and the Wolf

What a beautiful movie! English-Polish cooproduction - English direction and Polish execution. And Prokofiev's music. Really fine piece.

Enjoy!

YES WE CAN

2008-02-24T07:21:00.001-08:00

I'm joining that message!

It's something more than America! It's the voice of today's necessity for change! Anywhere we are, anything we do - we need to believe that YES WE CAN change the world and DO it!

security cam

2008-02-22T05:15:00.001-08:00

look what these crazy guys are doing! I'm going to miss them!

good that at least some of them are staying... and the rest will come back to Amsterdam one day, that's what I'm sure of :) !

Good Morning Amsterdam!

2008-02-13T12:59:00.001-08:00

I must say that I was quite surprised when yesterday morning as I came to Amsterdam I saw this little ‘morning alarm’ creature on the bus stop just next to the place where I live now. Interesting - I though. It was 6:00 in the morning, sun was not ready to show up, but I guess it was already considering this eventually – or rather should I say – necessity. And so the rooster wasn’t yet ready to make noises for the morning call, but he was waiting - maybe waiting for a bus to take him to work – General Office of Awakening?

Recently someone told me that the influence of the way we are waking up and the first things we are exposed to, are setting us for all day. It fixes our energy, our aura. This means that it’s bad to wake up with a noise – loud alarm clock, radio or any other unnatural ‘noise and chaos – making’ device. And we CAN wake up without it – open up our eyes with birds, animals and sun. But where to find these parts of nature in the city? I was asking. And puff – here it is – my natural rooster - Awakening Officer!

It might be yours as well - if you only wish!

Criss-cross

2008-02-08T05:43:00.000-08:00

I wish you could see it in real or in 3D! Amazing view!

Competition! Prize guaranteed!

2008-02-03T08:16:00.000-08:00

I wonder if anybody guess what is this?! and where?
For the one who first guess it - there's very special prize to win, straight from the place where I am now :)

Good luck!
Jo

Carpe diem little Rhynochocyon udzungwensis;)

2008-02-01T13:05:00.000-08:00

New species of mammal discovered in Tanzania! That's great! I mean I’m so happy about the proof that there ARE still things we can simply find and learn about! Because what’s happening bad is that - you walk through this world thinking that there’s nothing to discover any more, no surprises, no mysteries, no child-like fresh findings, just the same boring stuff every day… you walk and you stop looking around, you stop being curious and… you become blind or rather limited – like a horse with blinkers. But there’s so many things we still don’t know about, so many things we already forgot, so many dreams we decided to leave, so many bad things which we accepted and we gave up to fight against, so many schemes we implied on people, surrounding, ourselves, and so many of us don’t even want to get up and see the world again! And that’s wrong! World is fascinating and still very unpredictable! Full of surprises like the one with finding new species, but also full of beautiful changes, moves, unknown beauty! And so much depend on us – our open mind and eyes. Carpe diem! Seize the day! No matter how many years you already lived thinking – there’s nothing that may surprise me anymore. You’ll be surprised how wrong you were!

Golden as a sunset in the port of Hamburg

2008-01-26T15:26:00.000-08:00

I live in Hamburg some time (well not too long), but from a very first moment while I was looking on the map checking how to get to my school I was intrigued and amused by the fact that I will cross street of Hamburgers - Hamburgerstrasse. What a funny name – I thought and of course it was quite obvious for me that Hamburg and hamburger has to have something in common ;)
But then I was asking German or even Hamburg people about it and was getting even more amused answers – “nein, hamburger – das ist ‘burger’ mit ‘ham’… and it was invented by Americans”. After asking more questions like what means ‘burger’ in English then, they were getting confused since actually it means something – it means citizen but! in German!!
After couple months of sort of accepting that strange explanation/assumption (but what do I know?! I’m not even from Germanic country), accidentally while checking up some German words commonly used in English , I hit on Hamburger! Hamburger, which is a name of sandwich that has its roots in – Hamburg, port city from where many emigrants were starting their journey to a new continent! Well, that explains now a lot! After knowing Germans preferences about the diet and favourite type of food I could easily imagine 19th century port full of booths selling Hamburg steaks served with onions or specially prepared – cured meat put between two slices of bread, which some travellers might have cherished in their minds till the journey was over. And then on the new continent willingly adding it into their daily menu.

It’s fascinating how much we can find out about the history and peoples behaviour by simply studying and tracking history of language!

Hamburgers – citizens of Hamburg – why not using this by selling ORIGINAL hamburgers in/from your beautiful city?!

FOR RENT

2008-01-18T08:57:00.000-08:00

I took a long walk around Hamburg 2 days ago with my friend/landlord Heiko. While I was doing so I felt in many places a little sorrow since I might leave that city quite soon. Cause I like Hamburg, I like Alster, I like these lights reflecting in the water, I like these streets with beautiful houses, I like Harbourcity, I like the fact that people are celebrating almost every sunny day, I like that mysterious dark feeling of black water when you walk close to the canals, I always wonder what kind of secret they’re hiding and how many bodies could be found on the bottom (a portion of happy thought once in a while ;) ), I like the wind – sometimes ;), it refreshes my mind a bit, and I even like German language, I started to learn it and I understand more my surrounding – finally! and I like many other things here… So I had all these reflections in my mind and I said it loud to Heiko who just replied – “Well, who knows, maybe after trying out other places, working and experiencing different things in your life, then lets say after 10 years you’ll come back and settle down here”… well, who knows ;)…

And one more portion of my wicked sense of humour: funny situation – Heiko is a doctor and sometimes he makes home visits. While we were going through the nice district with beautiful houses he told me that he had some visits in that area and it was really nice to see some of these villas from the inside. Then he pointed one of the houses saying – “There I was one time, there was living some old couple and… the guy is probably dead now”. And few meters closer we’ve noticed empty windows and the sign ‘FOR RENT’ – “I guess he IS already dead” he said glibly. ;))) I know, it shouldn’t make me laugh and maybe it’s not funny for some, if not for the majority of you, but in that particular moment it was, because Heiko said it so easily, so natural and emotionless. Well, it’s just a normal thing at the end, isn’t it?

With that positive accent I would like to wish everybody – Guten Nacht ;))))

Why cats are not good in being experimental subject

2008-01-01T06:10:00.001-08:00

The essence of woodyalleism...

2007-12-18T12:21:00.001-08:00

couldn't put this in other words. The sence of humour which makes my stomach hurt from laughing!... and then comes the reflection...

Kind of Blue

2007-12-17T05:51:00.001-08:00

talking about "kind of" - the visionaire - Miles Davis...

Those who don’t give up will be rewarded

2007-12-16T14:06:00.000-08:00

Like for example today. In the middle of washing process my washing machine refused further cooperation and started to make very annoying “pi pi pi” sounds.
Ok, I admit, it was a little my fault since my landlord warned me that using other than 3 basic programmes might cause some problems. Of course he knew it from his own experience and it would be nice to listen to him and keep basic usage of that quite peculiar machine. Yes peculiar, because I always have an impression that when it starts to spin it in fact wants to SPREAD ITS WINGS AND FLY! At least trembling of entire apartment reminds me the power of plane engines and its influence on the ground when the Boeing 747 gets ready to take off.

Back to the story – as you might have guessed I took another program, but I had a good reason – very delicate clothes which required special treatment during washing.
So it stopped. First I panicked! What will I do? It’s Sunday! I can’t call for anybody! And even if – it’s not easy to call some specialist and explain what happened in GERMAN! At least for now it just seemed impossible. Though when I think about it now, calling for a service I would very likely meet one of my countrymen ;) and talk easily in Polish.

So I had to try to do something by my self. It’s not that I’m very afraid of technical stuff, but I just didn’t know where to start. Though in the nook of my memory I remembered my landlord saying something about water, which he had to remove when similar thing happened to him. I found a kind of big nipple down of the machine but it was impossible to open it! I tried really hard and nothing, even small move… I was already thinking of asking some big man for help. But on the other hand – come on! I CAN DO IT! I’m not one of those helpless, weak women who need help even with opening a simple jar!

After a little rest, which actually was not at all relaxing since I had a problem on my head, I tried again. But believe me – it just had stacked. But – there is always a way. If you don’t have enough power in your muscles, use other part – yes yes, BRAIN! Think! And look. I’ve noticed that last time it must have also been treated not only with physical power – there were marks after some tool. So I looked around seeking for helping tool. I found a big jack and as it’s easy now to guess I opened that nipple (or whatever it calls). Water came out and I had some trouble with it, but this was more or less easy, just some executive work.

Can you imagine how proud I was of myself?!

Conclusions:
1. Women are not weak ;)
2. There is always a way to resolve the problem, it’s just the matter of finding it.
3. Being stubborn and not giving up brings the rewarding results.
4. And it’s hell good feeling to be independent ;))

2007-12-12T06:52:00.000-08:00

I guess for those who already knows Hamburg this image is nothing new, but for me it’s a very special view. It’s almost like magic! All the lights reflecting in the water, Spirit of Christmas made by big shiny Christmas tree right in the middle of the lake. Even the lights on the store have a shape of the christbaum (as you see I start to use some German words :) ). I love being here! Everything has a different spirit in that “cold and stiff” German city! And still who would think that it’s not cold at all. Hamburg is in fact very warm and friendly place where even the language sounds a little sweeter and even gentle. And the warmth of the lights reflects on my mood… well maybe with a little help of gluewine from the Christmas market… and the healing company of somebody very close to me…

moles tunnels

2007-12-05T07:45:00.000-08:00

I mentioned them at the very beginning of my blog.
It’s time to explain what I was writing about. There are some strange reactions, which we have no bloody idea where they come from. They appear like a weird but often wonderful surprise – Ta Da ! and you can’t stop yourself from doing things you would never suspect yourself of. Sometimes it’s nice, pleasant and just right in that particular moment but sometimes it’s just strange and you scratch your head asking: why and what exactly am I doing?
It’s always kind of exciting though cause you don’t know what’s going on. For a moment you feel like a little boy who’s having his first erection. And that’s a real discovery – discovery of what you thought surely can’t surprise you anymore cause you’re old enough to know it throughout – yourself ;)

Couple years ago I was camping with my friends during the summer. One day I was coming back to the tent when suddenly I saw tunnels made by moles (don’t want to put that horrible picture on my blog, so if you want to know what I’m talking about have a look). Brrrrrrrr this view shacked me up strangely and very disagreeably. Automatically I started to trample the tunnel till the ground was flat again. I really couldn’t stop myself even though it was just illogical and silly. It’s not the matter of these poor moles, I don’t mind them. I just don’t like tunnels sticking out from a ground. Why? Have no clue!

I like to discover these little strange things in people and in myself of course. I like when we think we know EVERYTHING about ourselves and then BAM! something uncontrollable and unstoppable is happening. And we have no bloody idea why and what is it! But isn’t it beautiful??! ;)

2007-12-01T05:45:00.000-08:00

It’s so strange... I finished my school and I don't know what to do with myself. For last few weeks including weekends I was always there, working and enjoying myself cause Miami Ad School was NOT just a school, it was a "whole new world" as my dear friend Vanessa would say ;)
New world of experiences, which I enjoyed so much. Somehow we've managed to build here a "better world" where we could rely on each other and always be sure of support and care... we've been trough couple tougher days with lots of tension and fear, but still we were able to clear everything out and get the support from others a little less stressed members of the group. I have never experienced anything like that and I am going to miss it like hell!

Jef, Vanessa, Julien and Thimo you'll be always in my heart - even though maybe it sounds a little cheesy ;) Thanks to YOU I regained my belief in people and that’s the most precious gift I could get from YOU my BOOTIES!! I'm so fucking happy (sorry Jef for using such strong word;) ) !!!!!

And of course experience of Miami Ad School – priceless, in total: people, knowledge, ambience, results, progress, friendships, professional practice, skills, understanding – these are the first words which come to my mind when I think about what I had here. Some say that it will be hard for us to get back again to the real life which is not as pink as what we had in this school, but I say – BULLSHIT! ;) because I have never felt so powerful before, so confident and so positive! I’m strong as a rock and very curious what will happen next!

Cheers!

2007-11-24T06:24:00.001-08:00

nostalgy...

2007-11-16T04:42:00.001-08:00

it's all about the right method

2007-11-15T00:29:00.000-08:00

exactly... so it's YOU who has to move the ars!!!

What's with these stories all about?

2007-11-11T08:51:00.000-08:00

I’ve seen interesting movie thanks to Jef’s blog. It says about the conspiracies on the huge scale like religions, wars and bank systems. Very threatful indeed. Some of these hypotheses I heard before like for example mislead terrorist attack on 11th September ’01, but I must admit that this document has a really nice and catchy story line – I mean it starts from very universal topic – religion and than goes throug popular subject of terrorist attack in NY and ends on bank system, all is fastened by the explanation that it’s all made to gain control upon people.
If anybody wants to see it, this is the link www.zeitgeistmovie.com (hope you don’t mind Jef that I also put it on my blog ;) )

The part about religion made me thinking and immediately I wanted to find it out – is it really true?? And it is! but some how not many of us actually knows it without searching for it on purpose. Or maybe it’s just me?? Though I don’t think so… And for me it should be shouted! This is not a coincidence that so many cults, not even only monotheistic but much elder polytheistic as well, had a pre-Jesus ancestors, ages before Jesus has appeared in catholic religion. I would have liked to know that before. I’m not a religious person and I’m an atheist or rather agnostic, but I have always been charmed by stories about Jesus Christ. As a child I loved to watch Christmas and Easter movies, which were showing the New and Old Testament stories even if every year the repertoire was exactly the same. I just loved them! Though they didn’t make me believe in God… but I was hoping at least that it might be true!!! I wanted this to be true. I wanted my lack of believe to be wrong… and now I feel misled. That little child in me is really disappointed ;) We are feed with all these beautiful stories to reveal our emotions to make us believe in illusions! and control us! And it's not a new invention. It's old as old is our existence. Are we able to free ourself from it? I don't think so...

So the conlusion:

Good stories make a difference!

Lets make up nice stories guys!!! And lets make a better world by them ;))))))))))

and now something lighter on the subject, take a look at this and have fun:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_XJfRzNOJNE

2007-11-09T10:11:00.000-08:00

Sometimes I wish the time could stop just in a second before taking a goal...

When you say A, you have to say B

2007-11-07T07:19:00.000-08:00

So yesterday I wanted to make some pictures of peoples windows on my way back home. And I found that beautiful window on the 1st floor with a room full of books and warm light. I got closer to the barrier, put my camera on the trash bin and prepared to take a beautiful shot… but suddenly the guy went out from the building, looked at me with that suspicious look and asked me something in German. “I don’t understand” I said. So he replied “So you like our building, huh?”. Oops, that tone didn’t sound very friendly. “I’m in trouble…” I thought. Ok, it wasn’t that bad, I just told him that I like lights in the windows and he said that it’s a German custom. Hm, don’t really know what did he mean by this but I just wanted to sneak out and not to continue the subject. Because well yes, I think people are keen on keeping their privacy. I have to admit that making pictures of somebody’s windows is not the nicest thing to do if you don’t want to violate their private territory.

But I’m a Planner. I mean my job is to look at people’s life and analyze their behaviour, needs, attitude etc. I’m like a detective or a spy! There’s a lot of psychology in that field as well, but it’s quite obvious of course…

Few days ago we had an exercise during class, which was based on asking “why?” question all the time to get deeper to the real motives of somebody’s attitudes. That’s a really good way to make reliable research and to find good insights. But that’s also a dangerous weapon, cause it takes out private information, which you were trying to hide from the others, and probably you had a good reason for that. And you might think that it’s so easy to cheat on this, telling something stupid, or just faking, but frankly saying IT’S NOT. I mean even the biggest liar base his stories on a bit of true. And when somebody still keeps asking him “why?” it always have to have some connection with the answer before so with that little bit of true as well. And there comes another “why is that?” and he has to answer again with another part of true. You know, when you say A, you have to say B. And at the end he gives up because it’s much harder to make up in couple seconds another fake story upon what he already have said than to take something from the authentic archives collected in his brain… And that’s how we disarm the felon ;)
You may also say that he can base it on somebody else’s life he have heard before about, or on the movie, book or whatever, but these stories are never so clear as our own and they don’t stay as firm as our own in the memories. We remember the best things, which we have experienced on our own skin…

Oh yes, that connects me to another subject - that I always have to step in by my big, bony and wicked foot in all kinds of shit…;) but that’s another story…

Window here, window there

2007-11-06T08:59:00.001-08:00

I like windows.
I kind of have an obsession.

For example: I’m VERY critical about the new architecture where are almost no windows. I’ve seen a lot of them in Valencia and all my Spanish friends who are studying architecture were doing projects like this. You know, big cubes, a bit like kids blocks. I hate it. I hate it almost like moles tunnels, those which stick out from the ground. Brrrrr

But going back to windows and nowindow buildings, I think that it’s not pleasant to look at it from the outside and it must feel like in a prison for those who are inside. At least I would feel like it. Or like in a madhouse! Well, I am a little crazy… but I definitely wouldn’t like to be turned in ;)

So I like windows.
Since I can remember I was fascinated by the view of peoples windows where thanks to the light turned on inside and darkness outside I could easily see what is happening in their rooms, what they have, how they live. I don’t know is it only curiosity, probably it IS, I’m a VERY CURIOUS creature, but there is also something welcoming in the bright and opened (not covered by curtains or something) window. And kind of sureness – come and have a look, I have nothing to hide… Personally I don’t like to put anything on my windows neither. Maybe it’s a kind of exhibitionism, but there's also a simple need to see clearly what’s out there, extend my living space and if somebody looks at me as well, well welcome, I don’t have anything to hide…

So now by creating this blog I’m letting people to see something from my live... and maybe I'll have a chance to extend my view on all that world on the other side of the screen ;)
I keep the light on and don’t put the curtains down. Have a look, maybe you’ll find something interesting inside...