You know you're Eastern European when...

As emailed to me by a friend. Quite true, actually.
1. You had to share a room until you were 21.
2. Everything you eat is savored in garlic and onions.
3. You are standing next to the two largest suitcases at the airport.
4. You arrive one or two hours late to a party - and think it's normal.
5. All your children have nicknames which sound nowhere close to their real names.
6. You talk for an hour at the front door when leaving someone's house.
7.Your mom tells you you're too skinny even though you're 30 pounds overweight.
8. Your house is full of medicine from your old country and it's probably all illegal here.
9. You and your friends have ever been kicked out of a restaurant or recreational park for being too loud or rowdy.
10. You don't know how to use a dishwasher b/c *u are* the dishwasher.
11. You have a vinyl tablecloth on your kitchen table.
12. You use grocery bags to hold garbage.
13. Your dad ever butchered a pig or lamb.
14. You don't use measuring cups when cooking.
15. If you don't live at home, when your parents call, they ask if you've eaten, even if it's midnight.
16. Your parents don't realize phone connections to foreign countries have improved in the last two decades, and still scream at the top of their lungs when making calls.
17. It's "normal" if your wedding has 600 people.
18. Your 15 year old sister can out-drink any American guy.
19. You drive a nicer car than your parents.
20. Your dad carries around enough money to buy a car.
21. You have all brand new appliances in the kitchen but your mom cooks in the basement with the stove from your old house.
22. Your parents have gone on vacation ONCE and it was to your home country.
23. You base your whole life on fortune in your coffee cup.
24. Your parents still prefer to buy cassettes instead of CDs.
25. You're actually nodding and laughing at most of these things.
26. You're a proud Eastern European and pass this on to your European friends.
27. Your non-English speaking grandmother gives a shocked look when you say 'pizza'.
28. You wear French Connection and other designer clothing when going to work out.
29. You carry liquor back here from your country in plastic Sprite bottles under tons of clothing in the suitcase.
30. You have 17 consonants and 2 vowels in your last name.

(Not So) Quarterly Book Reviews #3

The new school term began two months ago, and with it my daily two-hour commuting odyssey in Belgrade's much maligned public transport, en route to my teaching job. It really isn't as bad as most people claim (public transport, that is, not my teaching), although it often occurs to me that it would take me less time to get to London by plane than to the other part of the city by bus. On the other hand, were it not for all the hours I 've spent commuting like that, I don't think I would have read nearly as many books and magazines, including some of these featured below.

HISTORY/RELIGION
Latter Days by Coke Newell, St Martin's Press 2000

"A guided tour through six billion years of Mormonism". I actually liked it, in spite of its rather pretentious subtitle. It narrates the genesis of that religion, its remarkable early history and explains the fundamental beliefs and values of the Latter-day Saint Church.

Needless to say, it is not to be confused with a soppy gay Mormon-themed novel & film bearing the same title.

ECOLOGICAL SPIRITUALITY

The Earth Path by Starhawk, HarperSanFrancisco 2004

Beautfully written, like most of Starhawk's writings, this book is a treasure trove of inspiration, meditations, rituals and practical ideas for all the eco-conscious people out there, not just those sharing the author's neopagan path. Just the sort of stuff Saunterer's loves to endorse.
ARCHAEOLOGY/HISTORY/RELIGION

The Bible Unearthed by Israel Finkelstein and Neil Asher Silberman, The Free Press 2001
A nice piece of serious and scholarly, yet quite readable, work on biblical archaeology. It's been referred to as "bold" and "revolutionary", questioning established beliefs regarding the origins of the Bible and its historical background. Along with claiming that most of Old Testament content is pure fiction, the authors take a step further and explain why and under what circumstances were the books of the Bible produced, and serving what (political) purpose, making them all the more fascinating.


SOCIAL STUDIES/RELIGION

Drawing Down the Moon by Margot Adler, Penguin Compass 1986

Almost 600 pages of excellent investigative reporting on "witches, druids, goddess-worshippers and other pagans in America today", written by an NPR correspondent and a practicing pagan herself. It's a genuinely thrilling book, filled with interviews, personal accounts and sociological analyses. It remains the single best A-Z of modern paganism.

Podcasts Update

If you're into podcasting, make sure you download CBC's Words at Large Podcast 15. CBC Radio's Tapestry host Mary Hynes speaks to writer Oriah Mountain Dreamer about her latest book, creativity and spirituality. It's a gem.

Along with moving to Beta Blogger earlier today (which made my blogging a bit more comfortable), another addition to SJ is a brand new Top 10 Podcasts section on your right (below all the other links). As you will notice, the selection is rather ecclectic - and listed in alphabetical order, which is so like me! It's the sort of stuff I listen to on my way to work or while cycling.

Quarterly Book Reviews #2

I was supposed to post these around Midsummer, but I was saving some of the books for my summer break, having decided there was no better place to read them than on an empty beach, in the early morning hours.


GENDER STUDIES/PSYCHOLOGY
Iron John: A Book About Men by Robert Bly (Da Capo Press 2004)

Probably the foundational book of the so-called mythopoetic (or expressive) men's movement. First printed in 1990, it stirred something of a controversy among feminists, masculists and all the other -ists. Using Brother Grimm's ancient fairy tale Iron John, award-winning author Robert Bly analyses eight stages of male growth and writes about the need for mentorship and the restoration of male initiation rites in contemporary culture.

NEW AGE/WICCA & PAGANISM
Wicca: A Guide for the Solitary Practitioner by Scott Cunningham (Llewellyn 2005)

With so many books on Wicca being published every year, it is more and more difficult to find a good practical introduction. Cunnigham's book, sold in about half-million copies, is readily recommended by most Wiccans, and for a good reason. As far as Wicca 101 books are concerned, this one is a must.

HEALTH
The Immune Advantage: How to Boost Your Immune System - The Single Most Important Thing You Can Do for Your Health by Ellen Mazo with Dr Keith Berndtson (Rodale 2002)
With this book I think I have finally found the perfect one-stop resource for disease prevention. Written with a holistic approach, it deals with everything from antigenic determinants (whatever that is) to the power of prayer. There's loads of practical advice, quizzes, tests... All the good stuff.

NEW AGE
The Book of Secrets by Deepak Chopra (2004)
Typical Chopra, for the thousandth time. How to unlock the secret dimensions of your life, etc etc. I don't think I am going to read any of his books ever again (says a person subscribed to Chopra's e-newsletter).

SACRED SCRIPTURE
Upanishads (Wordsworth Classics 2000)
Have you ever read something you couldn't quite understand (or even begin to), and yet you were utterly entranced by it, feeling the beauty resonating somewhere deep within?

As the T-shirts say, I've survived holidays in Croatia

I've returned from my three-week summer holidays in Croatia, my pays d'origine. I already miss its ancient cities, islands, the sea and the warm, unpredictable Mediterranean wind and, last but not least, its shopping malls (Croatian Tourist Authority really should pay me for heaping praises like that). I'll be travelling there again relatively soon, so I'm not too depressed about coming back home.

If I'm not too lazy I might post an extract or two from my journal later on. On second thought, who would want to read about me sunbathing, snorkeling and collecting pebbles and sea shells, going shopping five times a day (as a hobby) and maniacally doing crosswords in between, day after day?

P.S. A warm welcome (and come again) to everyone who visited the blog while I was away. And I've checked, there were quite a few hits!

Celebrate Summer

One of the things I have picked up along my spiritual path so far is the celebration of the ancient sacred days. While most people would identify them with (neo)pagan beliefs and practices, the fact is that all the major Christian holidays were originally pagan days of observance, clothed in Christian imagery during the first several centuries of the Common Era. Christianization of these holidays was supposed to show the all-encompassing superiority of the Christian creed, while heavily relying on pagan symbolism, rites and archetypes.

Going back to the authentic, Earth-based, meaning of these holidays, observing the cycle of the year and devising my own ways to honour it, gave a whole new quality to my spirituality, making it more positive, creative and less dependent on any particular religious or Church teaching. At the same time, it recognizes the Divine - however one might experience it - in the workings of Nature.

Tomorrow happens to be one of the most important solar holidays, the Summer Solstice or  Midsummer. If you want some facts and information about Midsummer celebrations in various cultures (both ancient and modern) and their rich symbolism, Religious Tolerance, Beliefnet, and BBC are great places to start.

Happy Summer Solstice and have a great summer!

Pyramids in Bosnia

One of many, many joys of living in the Balkans: sensational archaeological discoveries (not sure which one of these three words to put under inverted commas).

UNESCO Team to Probe Bosnian "Pyramid"

Reuters

SARAJEVO (June 5) - Bosnia's mystery pyramid will now be probed and inspected by a team of experts from the U.N. Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization.

"We shall send a UNESCO expert team to Visoko to determine exactly what it is all about," UNESCO Secretary General Koichiro Matsuura said in an interview published on Monday in Dnevni Avaz newspaper.

Amateur archaeologist Semir Osmanagic has caused a stir with his find, although local and European archaeologists denounce it as nonsense.

Geologist Aly Abd Barakat, an Egyptian researcher sent by Cairo to assist Osmanagic's team last month, has said that the Visocica hill did appear to be a primitive man-made pyramid of uncertain age.

Barakat said huge stone blocks found on the three sides of the hill used the same type of artificial cement used in ancient Egyptian pyramids.

Osmanagic's team is also investigating the Pljesevica hill -- which he calls the Moon Pyramid -- as well as underground tunnels he believes connect three pyramids.

The researchers have also found a sandstone monolith in the underground tunnel with enigmatic symbols engraved on it, which will be sent to Egypt for analysis.

Osmanagic, who studied pyramids in central America for the past 15 years, said that satellite and radar analyses have revealed the perfect geometry of Visocica and precise alignment of its sides with four cardinal points.
It does resemble a pyramid:
Photo: www.superbosna.com

Yucca will show them

For some inexplicable reason, none of the plants I've ever bought managed to stay alive for more than a few weeks. Sadness descends upon me whenever I remember a cute little bonsai I bought two years ago. I saw it in a garden centre and just had to have it. Within two weeks all of its tiny, dark green leaves turned brown. Another two weeks and all that was left of it was its miniature, leafless trunk. I thought it was going through a mini-autumn season of its own, supposing that bonsai trees, minuscule as they are, must have a different notion of time. Much like cats or dogs. I expected it to enter a verdant spring of its own in no time. It never recovered though. I've kept the poor tree as a decoration of some sort (it does look quite nice, although a bit morbid, lifeless and denuded as it is). It now also serves as a caveat, reminding me to think twice before I buy a plant I know nothing about. I've been keeping that rule ever since.

Until yesterday, that is. I dragged a friend with me to that same garden centre, as a safeguard against impulsive shopping. The same friend who not only encouraged me to buy that bonsai two years ago, but also got one for himself (similarly unfortunate, as time would show). To cut a long story short, meet two new additions to my home: Yucca and Pachira. Described as low-maintenance plants, tolerating all sorts of conditions and asking for only a little bit of sunlight and water (TLC goes without saying), they seemed just perfect. I keep gazing at them as I write, checking obsessively for any sign of malaise or discontent. I've decided that these two are to prove everyone (myself included) wrong in thinking that I have a lethal effect on plants, as some have implied. I'm prepared to do anything it takes for them to live a long and healthy life. And if they survive until spring, I may even feel encouraged to do some serious container gardening next year. Fingers crossed!

Yoga troubleshooter wanted

I was having really great time doing yoga this morning. Everything went just fine, I was centered and in sync with my inner self and all that - until I attempted to do this one:

A yoga torture posture from hell, as far as I'm concerned. I couldn't possibly lift my legs, head and chest simultaneously if my life depended on it.

This is what my handbook says about this asana: "The solar plexus area is revitalised and the massaging and stretching of the abdominal area relieves the sensations of anxiety we sometimes feel in the abdomen. [...] Toxins and tension are released from the organs helping them to work more effectively."

Well, those nasty toxins seem to have gone straight to my head, because I feel totally frustrated about not being able to pull it off, after months of practise. I know yoga is all about patience and slow progress, but for the love of...

This guy can't be an evangelical!

"An evangelical Virginia farmer says a revolution against industrial agriculture is just down the road. [...]

"Joel, who describes himself as a “Christian-libertarian-environmentalist-lunatic farmer,” speaks of his farming as his “ministry,” and certainly his 1,000 or so regular customers hear plenty of preaching. Each spring he sends out a long, feisty, single-spaced letter that could convince even a fast-food junkie that buying a pastured broiler from Polyface Farm qualifies as an act of social, environmental, nutritional, and political redemption."

READ THE REST OF THE ARTICLE AT MOTHER JONES:
http://www.motherjones.com/news/feature/2006/05/no_bar_code.html

Dalmatia Revisited

Adriatic coast of Croatia has become popular again, after the civil war and unrest of the 1990s. Its  beaches, islands and delightful towns testify to the truthfulness of the Croatian Tourist Board’s official motto: “The Mediterranean as it once was.” It didn’t take me much persuading to pay a visit, for the first time since the late 1980s.

I decided to travel by bus, for a number of reasons. The bus fare was quite cheap and so a great saver. Since the roads in Croatia are well maintained, the twelve-hour journey from Belgrade didn’t seem so long or tiresome at all. Each stop along the way proved to be a small adventure in itself, showing that Croatia’s rich cultural diversity doesn’t all come down to familiar, as-seen-on-TV, sights of Dubrovnik.

I left Belgrade on a hot July afternoon, reaching Serbian-Croatian border by midnight, amid old, tall trees of Sipovacka Forest of the country's continental, northeastern region. Several hours later, having quickly passed by Zagreb, the nation’s capital, we reached Lika, the region connecting continental and maritime parts of the country. Another short stop in one of its small towns, amidst white karst and cool air smelling of mountain herbs – and sheep! Adorably rustic.

After two more hours of wonderful scenery I got off the bus to Split, in the middle of Dalmatian nowhere. Below me, down the rocky hills, the so-called Karin Sea - actually a small bay of sorts, situated not far from Dalmatia’s highest mountain, Velebit. An unlikely tourist destination, with population of only several hundred (climbing up to several thousand during summer months). Karin certainly has its treasures: pristine nature, fine local wines, medieval Franciscan cloister and ancient monuments along the roads, dedicated to local pagan deities of many centuries ago.

Off the beaten path, it’s a Mediterranean pastoral idyll if there ever was one.

Quarterly Book Reviews #1

With spring beginning in just a few days, I thought it would be nice to make a seasonal review of some of the books that I read during the winter. Here are the ones I found particularly interesting and which I can heartily recommend.

PSYCHOLOGY/BIOGRAPHY

Inside the Mind of Joseph Smith: Psychobiography and the Book of Mormon by Robert D. Anderson (Signature Books 1999)

Another attempt to shed some light on the origins of the Book of Mormon. An impressive psychological profile of one of the most interesting and controversial religious visionaries of the 19th century. Enlightening when it comes to Joseph Smith's family background and the early childhood, far-fetched (although still fascinating) regarding the actual Book of Mormon = psychobiography hypothesis.


AUTOBIOGRAPHY

Before I Say Goodbye by Ruth Picardie (Penguin Books 1998)

Collection of articles, selected emails and letters written by an incredibly witty woman documenting her struggle with cancer and dealing with imminent death. Both hilarious and heartbreaking. One can only hope it will never be turned into a cheesy film.


RELIGION/MYTHOLOGY

On Having No Head: Zen and the Rediscovery of the Obvious by D. E. Harding (Penguin Arkana 1986)

Appropriately brief and concise given the topic (80 plus pages). Greater part of the book is the author's description of the experience of "headlessness" (with techniques on how to get there). Nicely written, beginner-friendly.

P.S. Makes one wonder about the whole concept of writing or reading books on Nothing...


CULTURAL PORTRAIT

The Book of Tea by Kakuzo Okakura

Short history and description of the Japanese tea ceremony, its significance in Zen culture, art and aesthetics, interspersed with the author's subtle nostalgia for Japan as it once was. Absolutely delightful.

RELIGION/MYTHOLOGY

The Spiral Dance: A Rebirth of the Ancient Religion of the Goddess by Starhawk (HarperSanFrancisco 1999) 

First published in 1979, it's a seminal book that continues to have a profound influence on the neo-pagan movement and feminist thealogy (that's right, thealogy). Although a Wiccan classic par excellence, it should appeal to religious progressives across the board, irrespective of gender, race or creed.

Taking Leave of God

I've always thought of myself as a religious person. I've been going to church services regularly for most of my life, reading the Scriptures, thinking about theological issues (rather obsessively at times), teaching Sunday School, volunteering... To cut a long story short, I was a devout Christian. Although there has always been a liberal twist to my faith, I never thought I would come to a point where I would question the fundamentals of my entire belief system. And yet, it did happen.

My "prayer life" was first to disintegrate. It worked fine up until my late teens, but by my mid-20s I realized I didn't really have any clue as to who or what I was praying to, nor why I should be doing it. The concept of Heavenly Father continued to make sense for some more time to come, until it eventually collapsed, leaving behind traces of an inherently ill structure based on emotional void and fear. It finally dawned on me: somewhere along the way I had mistaken neurosis for religion. And so rather than picking up the pieces and moving on, I simply moved on. Ran away, to be more precise, as fast as I could. About two months ago, talking to a close friend, I managed to utter that dreaded word - atheist - applying it for the first time to myself, if only to see how it would sound. Nothing spectacular happened. It didn't hurt a bit. The earth didn't quake. I soon realised it's really not a word I could fully apply to myself, but that's a different story.

All of this is to serve as an introduction to a book that has helped me understand and deal with what I've been going through, religionwise. It's "Taking Leave of God" by Don Cupitt, first published in 1980 by SCM Press. While some of the chapters might be too philosophical and somewhat difficult to process, it's a very exciting book, dubbed by some a manifesto of "Christian Buddhism". Drawing inspiration from religious thinkers and philosophers as diverse as Tertullian, Meister Eckhart and Kierkegaard (to mention but a few), Cupitt attempts to establish a new (or renewed?) and almost Zen-like paradigm of Christian religiosity. Warmly recommended.

Home

I dreamt of our old family house again last night. I was sitting in one of the rooms, surrounded by bookcases packed with old, dusty volumes on one side, costly bed-linen and layers of clutter stashed in massive wardrobes on the other. My great-grandfather's desk in the corner filled with his belongings, left untouched for decades after he had died, every drawer storing tangible proofs of his existence, every little thing oozing with a benevolent presence as real as my own.

Such images of my childhood home continue to resurface in the dream world, with the past and present converging, both unsettled and upset, seeking closure where there can be none. The house was sold years ago under difficult circumstances and an important chapter of my personal history came to its abrupt end. In many ways I continue to deal with that loss, my emotional attachment to the place undiminished by the passage of time.

However, within the confines of my mind that house is assuming a healing power, bringing renewed sense of belonging and restored awareness of who I am and where I come from. Rather than being a mere repository of melancholic memories, it feels like the impenetrable fortress of my boyish escapism that it once was. Resurging in my dreams and meditations, uncalled for but warmly welcomed, it remains my home.

Bittersweet Chocolate

It was last week that I undertook my first investigative visit to a local supermarket here in Belgrade. Investigative in that I actually bothered to read the labels carefully before I bought anything, which is something I rarely did in the past. It was both fun and enlightening. So last week I focused on chocolate, having read a wonderful feature article on cocoa in Jan/Feb 2006 issue of Utne Reader.

It didn't take me long to realize that only two out of dozen brands of chocolate advertised as "dark" (my favourite) have over 70% of cocoa, with all the others hovering about 30-40%. Blatant cheating, if you ask me. I won't name the top 2, as I don't want to advertise anyone here, but suffice it to say that neither is fair trade, organic, nor locally/regionally produced. Additional web search showed that both manufacturers don't exactly have a spotless record on environmental protection and workers' rights, but generally rank much higher on such issues than other mainstream, corporate producers.

I suppose the least we could do is to simply stop buying chocolate produced by unethical manufacturers, i.e. those exploiting forced and child labour on cocoa farms in Africa (some major manufacturers continue to do it), those still using banned pesticides, bringing the workers' health in jeopardy, or those who failed to follow a decent code of conduct. Luckily, there are numerous resources available on the internet which can help us make informed decisions. Check out the information on this website to find out why Nestle continues to be the single most popular boycott among ethical consumers in the UK. Also, make sure to read their illuminating buyers' guide on chocolate, found here.

Day 1

It took me hours to set up this account! At one point I almost abandoned all hope of ever figuring out how this thing works. Needless to say, I am really glad that the blog is up and running now and that I've managed to learn a thing or two in the process.

What I plan to post here in the months to come are book reviews, along with various comments and updates on my personal progress in exploring vegetarianism, yoga, spirituality, ethical consumerism and related issues, some of which figure prominently among my New Year's resolutions!

If you might have some interesting articles, books, websites etc. to recommend, please don't hesitate to do so, either by posting a comment on this blog, or by sending me an email.

I hope that my musings will be of some interest to other fellow saunterers.