However odd it sounds but a lot of exciting things in life happened to me…in the kitchen. Czytaj dalej „Gosia Bezubik: “I don’t trust people who don’t like desserts”” →

Gosia mogłaby prowadzić na Oxfordzie zajęcia Urok Osobisty w Biznesie. Opowiadać ludziom jak ważne jest budowanie pozytywnych relacji, dobre pierwsze wrażenie oraz że źródłem tego wszystkiego jest przede wszystkim ciekawe życie i bycie dobrym człowiekiem. Na co dzień jest świetną mamą, nauczycielem angielskiego i wybitnym cukiernikiem. Póki Oxford nie wpadł na nasz pomysł, możemy zapraszać ją do pisania felietonów w języku angielskim na przedsiebiorczepodlasie.pl i z wielką przyjemnością to robimy. Założenie jest proste – połączyć przyjemne z pożytecznym. Czytanie felietonu z odświeżaniem naszej wiedzy o języku angielskim.

Czytaj dalej „Bezubik: I found it extremely annoying when people around me tried to assure that skinny me does not need the gym whatsoever…” →

I have always been a strong believer that everyone has their own eccentricities…not only me. Moreover, I have always thought that our individual peculiarities only surface with old age or once we enter the holy sacrament of marriage. Nothing further from the truth. Recently, I asked my teenage students whether they have any strange habits. To my surprise, I actually discovered that some of them can best perform their everyday activities only to particular songs and continue to repeat the routine on a daily basis. Others, for instance, massage their feet after school- wow, speaking of peculiar! These answers totally brought it home to me that, in some cases, eccentricities can be very useful. They may either organize one’s life, give a new meaning to it, or even preserve some memories. My personal definition of being eccentric is that our peculiar behavior stands us out from the crowd and makes us so much more unique. Furthermore, willingly or not, we pass some of these patterns down to our family members. Hence the old-school expression, like father like son, when a particular quality runs in the family.

My grandfather used to be a passionate oil lamp collector. Regardless of weather, he would always wear an elegant, bright suit and have his favorite coffee and dessert at the same café for decades. My father, on the other hand, is a musician with an impressive collection of vinyl records, ranging from jazz to hip hop, and absolutely has to do everything in sync with the music in the background. He continues to stay “green” and rides his bike everywhere, come rain or shine, and believes that anything can be fixed with glue. My sister has a funny habit of making the whole family watch a film in the evening, preparing a bulging bowl of popcorn, then falling asleep within the first minute of the movie, and waking up to a bolt upright position at the very end, asking what had happened. When we were kids she was the one who decorated Christmas cakes with symmetrical precision, arranging nuts and raisins horizontally and vertically. My mother is the one to make sure that the dining table is always perfectly set, wears dresses that reflect the colors of current season, and hides things for worse days to come. The mere thought of meeting all my eccentric family members this Christmas fills me with indescribable joy!

If I were to pinpoint one of my numerous eccentricities, I would have to choose the mildest of all, so as not to put you off reading this article. I admit, I have early symptoms of hoarding. I see beauty in things other people normally call…rubbish. I often free my family and friends from stuff they no longer want or need and give these objects a new life, new meaning. My sentimental soul battles over every piece of old furniture and instead of getting rid of it, I upcycle. I do not fancy chain stores or mass production as such. I would simply rather shop at a flea market or a second-hand shop where you can meet inspiring, correction – eccentric people. Apart from purely aesthetic value, most of my peculiar ideas are moneywise and engage the whole family. The outcome surprises even the most skeptical ones. This Christmas, for instance, we are not buying, we are manufacturing!!!

Dział Felietony wspiera Partner Sieńko i Syn- Autoryzowany Dealer Audi. Przeczytaj kolejny na  https://przedsiebiorczepodlasie.pl/felietony/  Zdjęcia: Monika Woroniecka – fotografia biznesowa

Ever since I was a little girl I dreamt about becoming a professional ballerina or a Ballroom dancer. My dreams came true when my parents enrolled me into a dancing class. It seemed like a perfect way to use all the energy a six- year old could possibly have and put it into mastering some graceful moves. My folks made a very conscious decision, as they had been observing my sister and me goofing around at home and dancing to the sounds of Michael Jackson or Modern Talking. When I say I enjoyed the course a lot, I mean I trained hard and practiced choreography at home hours on end, and even made significant progress. I learnt the correct bodily posture, as well as the discipline and moves on the dancefloor that could truly tell a story. Not to mention the joy of performing in glamorous, sparkling dresses. My adventure lasted only a few years, due to the said outfits, which turned out to be too expensive for my family to afford. Again they made a very conscious, yet difficult decision that left me devastated for most of my teenage years. Later on I greatly appreciated their choice that shaped my future career forever. Instead of pouring great amounts of money into intricately decorated dresses, my parents invested all their savings, time and support into my education, foreign languages to be specific.

I have been studying English since I was six, and at first it was just for fun. With bated breath, I continued to watch Cartoon Network, imitated my favorite characters, and created my own words to most popular songs by Mariah Carey or George Michael. Due to the fact that my home was always filled with music, I felt a strong desire to experience it fully. Having learnt English I could finally understand what the songs were about, which was a bit disappointing at times, to be honest, but very educating in the end. When I was ten, my father once tricked me into believing that the reason why Sinead O’ Connor was crying in the “Nothing compares 2 U” video clip was the fact that her hairdresser completely misunderstood her and shaved her head bold…Needless to say, I sympathized with her up until I finally learnt the true meaning of the lyrics- priceless…

I must have been 14, judging by my flawless and careful handwriting, when I wrote my first cover letter to the headmaster of the secondary school I chose to attend, in which I thoroughly explained the numerous reasons for my first grownup decision. I remember I made it very clear, in the second paragraph, that I have my heart set on studying English and becoming an English teacher, and won’t settle for less. Over the past nineteen years, ever since I wrote that letter, I have never regretted my decision or the career path. I would never trade my profession for any other or give up on it. Today I am able to think of at least twenty reasons to look forward to each Monday and these “reasons” most definitely are the students I teach on Mondays. I still get a bit emotional while watching shows like “You can dance” or “Dancing with the stars”. I will always love dancing, no doubt. Funnily enough though, when I am dancing to the songs by English artists now, I focus more on the lyrics and singing them out right and with the correct pronunciation…

So far my son has been showing a keen interest in cooking and I am not going to rush him into making any decisions, as he is only five. However, it warms my heart to hear him sing in English with a perfect pronunciation. In my case, a seemingly harmful decision made by my parents led to a fortunate twist of fate and shaped my professional life. Who would have thought back then that one day I would be writing this text in English?

Dział Felietony wspiera Partner Sieńko i Syn- Autoryzowany Dealer Audi. Przeczytaj kolejny na  https://przedsiebiorczepodlasie.pl/felietony/  Zdjęcia: Monika Woroniecka – fotografia biznesowa