Five years of doing it

Before the start of next month (and one poem a day for NaPoWriMo), here is my blogoversary. Today it’s five years since my first blog post.

Unsurprisingly, I had to move borders and live for almost a year outside Slovenia to start my first blog. I don’t know what it is about Slovenia that thwarts.

In five years I filled three blogs and am on my fourth now. What can I say… I find it hard to limit myself once I get going. Dog knows that it doesn’t happen that often.

I don’t wish to draw attention to my first post ever because its subject is sad, mad and bad. Instead, here is an overview of my first blogging month with some of my favourite, funniest, most memorable, cutest or quirkiest moments as posted in March and April 2014. (I posted 92 times in April alone. What was I thinking?)

I had fun with this selection and chances are you will too, especially since not many of you were around at the time.

These have been five special years. Thank you all for providing continuous pleasure, a platform and a push to keep doing it.

And when you blog – or do anything else, really – try to stick to this simple advice:

Where the link to the original post is added in the caption, it is worth clicking to see more poppies or street art, for example, or learn more about me. Most of these posts have barely a like. As you all know, it takes a while.

Part I. How did I get to where I am?

Here is a photo of our home which amore sent me before I got here and I pasted it to the wall of my ex kitchen. The dog came soon after I arrived. But it all started with the hands…

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  https://manjamaksimovic.wordpress.com/2014/04/07/home/
  

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  https://manjamaksimovic.wordpress.com/2014/04/14/it-started-with-the-hands/

West, Wait!

By Manja Mexi Movie

Come plunge with me into the plankton at night
when the salt is growing visible and the waves mysteriously quiet.
There is a certain power to the sea of which it is not aware
and continues to swim underwater.
Sometimes it comes up for air, to greet the seagulls and kiss the fish.
Come, listen to the coolness and quiet beneath the sea.
Look at this crack in the rock and that algae how multicoloured it is.
Be the sea with me and proximity will land you its hue
and the shore will talk to you as if it were really able to hear.
Life will be rejoicing
the sun will peek out and you will see 
that there is something else going on here
something that I will never run out of:
faith in summer! 

The favourite song of my arrival follows with accounts of how a language is learned, how I visited Niki’s Tarot Garden for the first time, and how bestia found a missing badge.

Possibly still my favourite Italian song: a crossroads, a church, a house, a cross.

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  https://manjamaksimovic.wordpress.com/2014/03/31/parole/

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  https://manjamaksimovic.wordpress.com/2014/04/05/niki-and-friends/

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How Fonzie found Bukowski

Bukowski, Charles, is the man on the badge that was pinned to my old, worn-out bag. It’s his black and white portrait with his kind intelligent eyes and rugged face. (Read on.)

Part II. Where do I come from and what do I bring?

Lest we forget: I’m Slovenian. Here is a song that tells so much once you translate it. Then there are some things I did for birthdays of my parents who I love and who will celebrate their 50th wedding anniversary this autumn. And then there are examples of what I carry with me: Sarajevo Olympic Games and a Serbian who knew.

Quintessential song about Slovenians. English translation here.

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  https://manjamaksimovic.wordpress.com/2014/03/31/moms-sixty/

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  https://manjamaksimovic.wordpress.com/2014/04/01/branko-ko-branco/

What were you doing 30 years ago?

On February 14th 1984, quite out of a blue, I told my teacher in school that I had to go to the dentist, and flew out of school as fast as I could. (I was going to something called all-day primary school, its last year, which included lunch and a few classes of independent work per day, very good for doing nothing at all, and lasted from 8 am to 3.30 pm.) Instead of going to the dentist I ran straight home. (Read on.)

Belgrade, good morning!

By Duško Radović

Blessed be all those who know what they want, 
who have desires and ideas.
Just like every day they will fill today with something, 
no matter how little, modest, barely visible.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Happiness is little, ordinary and far from striking, 
and there are many who are not able to see it.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Spring is coming. Lucky all to whom this matters.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The rain fell on the grain for a reason and on us for no reason at all. 
It’s been ages since we stopped bearing fruit.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
There are memories to the left of us and desires to the right. 
We are somewhere in the middle, equally far from both.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Even us who will never die must keep saying that everyone will die, 
out of respect for those who will die.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
    

Part III. How is it going? Vividly, politely and in the moment.

Here I’m surrounded by nature, beauty and politeness but I often return to the land of origin where it’s different, in a way more real and more right but also more nervous and suppressed.

But no matter where I am, the day is today, the moment is now, and my blog is my other world that I build. Always welcome!

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  https://manjamaksimovic.wordpress.com/2014/04/15/poppy-paste/

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  https://manjamaksimovic.wordpress.com/2014/04/29/welcome-to-tuscany/

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  https://manjamaksimovic.wordpress.com/2014/04/07/which-tower/

Politeness

By A.A. Milne

If people ask me,
I always tell them:
“Quite well, thank you, I’m very glad to say.”
If people ask me,
I always answer,
“Quite well, thank you, how are you to-day?”
I always answer,
I always tell them,
If they ask me
Politely…
BUT SOMETIMES
I wish
That they wouldn’t. 

Just giggling fun. Oh, that picture of New York.

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  https://manjamaksimovic.wordpress.com/2014/04/23/metelkova-city/

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  https://manjamaksimovic.wordpress.com/2014/04/21/tournament-street-tournaments/

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  https://manjamaksimovic.wordpress.com/2014/04/06/on-children/

Today

By Manja Mexi Movie

Today I did plenty.
I caressed the dog, 
rolled up my sleeves, 
moved my head for a butterfly, 
had a look at the sea, 
walked somebody home, 
stuck the sun onto the sky 
and happily used foul language.

I gave the world one more. 
A new one.