December/January wrap-up

YouTube

Definitely Supersymmetry lectures by Fernando Quevedo became my lifesaver in December while writing report about my individual study of Supersymmetry. Lectures are awesome but the guy that was responsible for recording it has a big minus from me! There is a lot of excellent material lost! And that is very very sad! Nevertheless, those lectures are worth watching if you want to supplement any book in Supersymmetry. Especially if you do self study.

Book

"How to teach quantum physics to your dog" by Chad Orzel. It is well written, lightly funny book about physics that you can read instead of romance, and one day might become very handy if you will find yourself trying to explain quantum mechanics to your kids. I've bought it online as a Christmas gift to my fiance but couldn't control myself and read a bit the moment it arrived ;)

"Howl's moving castle" by Diana Wynne Jones is a fantasy book full of magic. It is about finding courage of seeking your fortune. About going on life adventure and becoming stronger and more aware of your own gifts and talents. Loved it and I have already bought two other books in this trilogy.

Music

have discovered two artists:

Ed Sheeran - Thinking Out Loud
- Lego House
- Don't

and
Mark Ronson - Uptown Funk tf. Bruno Mars

I have enjoyed:

Kiesza - Hideaway, MAGIC! - Rude, and Sia - Chandelier

And went back to some old tracks from 2013:
John Newman - Love me again; Pharrell Williams - Happy; Lorde - Royals.


Food

Chocolate cake from Wendorff :) There are no words that can describe how much I love this cake. And it is dairy-free!! LOVE IT!! I could it it all on my own but have to share because my fiance likes it too.


Event

Christmas Eve I have spend with my danish family. It was full of great food, joy of unpacking presents and fun while dancing around the Christmas tree.

I went to Szklarska Poreba in Poland with my fiance, parents, brother and his girlfriend. I have learnt some cross country skiing - it is great workout and I think on easy trails as those in Jakuszyce near Szklarska Poreba even those that do not exercise frequently can have a lot of fun. It is always good to take a lesson or two to learn some technique. That is what I did and I found it useful.

I have visited Norway to attend a Graduate Winter School in Theoretical Physics, but I also tried Norwegian cross-country skiing. I have to say one thing about my cross-country experience there -  you cannot be a beginner in Norway. I would recommend taking some downhill lessons before you go on any trail there - just saying ;) My ankle still aches ;)


Word

Bae in Danish is a word for poop. But some people on the internet use it thinking it means baby, sweetie etc ;)


Game

"Astronauts" - card game, highly addictive, competitive - I love it! During my stay in Poland we played it everyday after skiing ;) It is about going into space and then to get points for your excursion you need to come back safely home. There is a bit of strategy and luck (dice) involved.


Movie

I have finally saw "Frozen" and I really liked it.

"American sniper" is a good movie, especially if you an ignorant like me and go to see it without knowing it is a story based on facts.

"Big Hero 6" - is fantastic! It is Disney at its best, funny and touching movie.

"Birdman" - it is not an superhero/action movie! But it is interesting and good movie, about crises when your career peak is over. It probably is even more entertaining for people from movie/theater industry because it shows perks of that work.


Hope New Year 2015 is being Good to Everyone!

November Favorites

November has passed so fast that I almost haven't realized it was there. I am glad for that because if one do not make oneself very busy it is easy to get autumn blues.

MOVIE

I was waiting for this movie longer than sane people should wait for any movie... I saw it twice in theaters and I absolutely loved it!

I am of course talking about INTERSTELLAR.

Movie is full of physics, feelings and psychology.
It beautifully shows a sacrifice that great explorers must make to discover the unknown. Breathtaking.

And who cares that in the end they break a bit of laws of nature :p

BOOK

I was only reading science stuff this month... 
And I am not sure if I would recommend books I was reading to anyone...

Maybe let me put it that way:
if you ever would decide to get to know Supersymmetry (beautiful theory in physics, that tries to explain more than the Standard Model does) then do not start from "Supersymmetry and supergravity" by Wess and Bagger. It is a classic but unless you are math oriented it will be a nightmare to go through. 
I have decided to start from "Supersymmetry DeMYSTiFieD" by Patrick Labelle. It is much more useful that Quantum Field Theory from the same DeMYSTiFieD series, but I do not find it perfect...
Anyway...
Supersymmetry is worth the struggle but the struggle is definitely there ;P

MAKE-UP

Definitely a blush and eye-shadow from Body Shop that since I bought them I wear whenever I go out.
The Blush - 01 all-in-one cheek color shade: macaroon - my first blush in very long time and I like how it makes me look healthy and fresh. Not that I mind looking pale and sick but it is a nice change when going out :)
The Eyeshadow - 01 eye color shade: copper!
A very sweet shop assistant recommended it for my skin tone and I think he was right.
I wanted something that you can put on eye lids and it looks good without any effort.
My make up skills are very poor and making something like a smokey eye surpass them ...

Anyway, I think this eye shadow is very beautiful, it is easy to put on with basic brush and it adds a bit of glam to a natural look. Thank you Body Shop for releasing me from learning advanced make-up tricks that I would rarely use ;)

EVENT

I went with a surprise visit to my parents, because my mum had birthday!
I took a train.
I had a half a day in Berlin thanks to that trip. 

I took a long walk ... a bit longer than expected... to have a cup of coffee with a friend and then continued to my hometown Szczecin.

It was a perfect family time.
 It loaded my batteries with extra energy that still helps me to survive those grey, cold and windy fall days.

...

One day when I went out for a walk I smelled winter in the wind.
There is this bite in the air that one cannot ignore.
The winter has arrived!

Happy December everyone :)

make up or not to make up

We are surrounded by commercials, posters everywhere we go. People presented there are covered with make-up regardless their gender, age and beauty. No matter how much we are aware of photoshop, filters and other tricks of perfecting images, it can get into us.

It can make us think, that this is true beauty, ideal. Those images are made so that we will have a crush on people presented there. 

Commercials manipulate us to buy things, but what is worse they stuff us with images of "perfect" face, body, and life.
They make us think that what they represent is a true happiness.

I do not wear make-up on everyday basis.
I have never done that. I would do that only when going out, special occasions and so on.
Which means I do own some make-up and at least once a month when my hormones play with my mind I do question the way I look. It doesn't help that it is exactly the same time when I get the biggest amount of skin issues ;)

I do feel at those moments like the ugliest creature alive, but who doesn't?

The problem is if one feels bad about oneself everyday!

One just needs to STOP (easy to say hard to achieve)...
You beautiful, even without make up.
I do not think make-up is bad. I just think it is ok to look "bad", have dark circles under eyes, redness, pores, or a breakout. Everyone gets them.
The drive to look perfect is just not worth time and attention.
It is an unhealthy obsession that is out there waiting for our weak days just like a trap.

Our face is pretty just the way it is!

Instead of covering imperfections, it is better to try to find a source of bad skin in lifestyle.
Maybe too little water, too much stress, or too little sleep.
It is important to find what bothers your body, before it turns into something more serious than a breakout.

(If one suffers from severe acne then there is probably some health or lifestyle issue and I would recommend going to the doctor, changing diet for more clean food, and go to professional beauty salon for advice and treatment.)

It is not only our face that other people see.
There is also energy that comes out of us that makes people around like us.
If the energy is good no one worth your time will care about little imperfections.
What is more, there will one day come around someone that will find our bubbly face the most adorable on Earth.
It will be this positive energy that will attract that person and then who cares about the rest of the world.

We are billions of people and we are all different and that is phenomenal!
The diversity is a beauty of nature.
Our birthmarks or freckles make us unique.

There is no such an amount of "selfie" that one can take that will boost our self-confidence.
And no "likes" on facebook or instagram will gives us peace about the way we look.

Make-up will not cure real problems. 

It is not the look that in the end will make people love us and appreciate us. 

It will be all about who we are and how we look when we just woke up...

Breathe in and out...
 This covered up by superficial values world do not have to take over our life.

It is not make-up and perfect look what we admire about doctors that rescued our, or someones we love, life. It is their knowledge and skills.
It is not a pretty teacher but a passionate that will make the difference.

And if we want to then of course we should wear make-up but it should be worn for fun not as an armor.

Stay happy :) 

good book type of trouble

There is a reason why I do not read novels when I am busy with studies or work. 
I find good books addictive. 
It is just impossible for me to stop reading once I start. 
I do not sleep at nights, I do not talk to people, I lose track of time... My life stops, nothing that the world has to offer is interesting to me... The only thing that matters is to get to know the story.

And I have fallen into the trap again!
I have stumbled upon Jannifer Crusie name after I have finished "Me Before You" by Jojo Moyes and I was searching for more romance stories that could just stand on my bookshelf and wait for me to grab it. I quickly looked through her books and found one that took place in Ohio! 
Not that I think life in Ohio is so exciting that I really want to read about it, but I lived there for two years and a little piece of my heart belongs to that state. One could say I have now a bit of midwest girl in me. Anyway...

"Welcome to Temptation" is a funny love story with a lot sex and a crazy crime plot. It is all about human 'temptations' - greed and lust especially (btw. it is not a book for prude ones). Two sisters Amy and Sophie come to this little town of two thousand inhabitants called Temptation to make a movie. They are not making any movie, it will be a ”vanilla porn" starring people from the town. In such a small community this becomes a big deal and because of a civic duty mayor Phin and police chief Wes get very involved. 
Lots of love and lots of laughter. 
Great book!

I have finished this novel and I am now fighting a huge temptation to reach for another Jannifer Crusie book ;)

October favorites

So far Fall in Denmark is beautiful. We have many sunny days and it is actually not so cold. I try to go out as much as I can to enjoy it before it is over. 
One needs to appreciate small good things! :)


Movie

My favorite movie from those I have seen in October was certainly 'Gone Girl', because it made me discuss it over and over. 
I've even had nightmares because of it!? 
Anyway, definitely one of the best movies Ben Affleck has been in. I am generally not a big fan of movies about complicated relationships but the couple in this movie has sort of problems that I cannot imagine myself ever have. 
However, regardless how far from my reality the plot was I found it very nerve-racking. 
I highly recommend this movie but I wouldn't call it entertaining. For some reason my definition of entertainment is a bit different from feeling deeply stressed for two and half hour (the movie is quite long, as most of movie those days).

Books

'1st year physics brick', since that is the only book I have read in October, haha ;) I was taking a tryout of GRE Physics and last month was definitely dedicated to studying to this exam. Nice it is over.

As for novels, just before I got totally swallowed by reading to the exam I cried my eyes out, from laughter or because of being deeply moved, on two awesome romantic books:
1) "Me before you" by Jojo Moyes - very moving story about meeting someone in your life that makes you grow as a person, makes you see the world around in a totally different way... I am not going to say more because I do not want to spoil it for anyone. Let me just say that I haven't slept three nights in a row during my intensive (lectures were form 8am to 8pm) Summer School in Germany to read most of it. Last pages I was finishing in a train back home weeping like crazy. Definitely fantastic read, and I have already bought it in danish to give it as a present to my mother-in-law. I have actually also considered buying it in polish to give it to my mum too... which will make me a crazy person that bought this book in 3 different languages ;)
2) "The Rosie Project" by Graeme Simsion - more on laughing side. Anyone who ever had a friend, boyfriend, girlfriend or partner that is a science nerd will love this book! So funny. It is a story about feelings that no matter how smart you are you have to use your heart not brain to understand them. I love the way main character looks at the world and people around him, haha.

Music

I am not sure... but after checking 'recently added' to my Spotify it seems like: 

Vance Joy 'Riptide'

Jake Bugg 'Lightning Bolt'

Troye Sivan 'Fun'

Becky CJ 'If This Is Love'

Francoise Hardy 'J'suis d'accord' (I do not understand what she is singing about but this lovely song makes me happy:))

They probably old songs but they were new to me ;)

Food/Beverages

I have already started eating Christmas pepper-nuts cookies (they are a sign Denmark is getting into Christmas mood). Organic chocolate chip cookies - I have managed to find a delicious milk free version (since I am on dairy free diet). And most of all the wonderful milk free 'salsa burger' from Froggys Cafe in Odense - they make it with dark bread if one asks nicely :) As for hot beverages definitely Pumpkin Soya Latte from Starbucks has brightened some of my long days spent in a library. As for cold stuff I am very boring person, I drink mostly tap water and occasionally orange juice regardless the month of the year.

Clothes

Flower pattern on anything, especially on dresses is my favorite trend always. I have managed to find on discounts in h&m two dresses for this season and I love them both. I am generally getting more and more into skirts and dresses. Skirts as for me have to be high-waisted, I just love how much free mind they give me. I can easily eat a whole burger without getting aware that it all landed in my belly ;]

Beauty

I am on a big quest to make my skin acne/break-out free. I am trying many different tricks recently. But most importantly I have started to drink more water. Each day I aim to consume 3 liters but I haven't succeeded yet. However I did get to walk more since I need to go to restroom very frequently ;)

Make up

A shop assistant from Matas (Danish cosmetics chain-shop) has introduced me to some super eyebrows trick with an eye shadow from Nilens Jord and I loved it. I also heard from the same girl a scientific explanation of a technique of mineral powder application and that was cool too! Not that this powder was any special (I have no idea since I am not a big make-up user), but hearing about electrostatic forces from make-up artist made me liking this brand a lot!
I do not have money at the moment to spend on something that I would very rarely use, but the eyeshadow 626 and powder 331 are both on my Christmas 'wish list' :)

Happy November Everyone!

Water Taxi in NYC

Manhattan from water is a must see when you in NYC!



I took this trip two times now (spring 2013 and spring 2014) and probably if I am in NY again with someone that never tried it
- I will do it again! :D

Taxi costs $50, so not too cheap. Although, it is not unusual price for truistic attraction in US.

One can just sit at one boat and do the whole round trip - part of Manhattan, Brooklyn Bridge, and Statue of Liberty. There is a guide but unless you sit down in a closed part of the boat you might not hear/understand everything especially if english is not your first language.

The first time I took this cute yellow boat taxi I took the round trip which takes about 1h30min.

There is also other option with this taxi-trip.

One can also hop out and hop in at different stops and enjoy the trip more or less whole day and do a lot of sightseeing.

That is not exactly what I did on my second ride, because I only used one stop, but it is definitely a nice option.

My main aim on the second trip was Brooklyn Bridge, since I have never walked it before.
And for some reason I really wanted, so I have terrorized my travel companions and we did it!

I think it was totally worth it.
It was a bit challenging to find where to enter the bridge but definitely not impossible.

I haven't walked it completely.
However, I saw and experienced what I wanted.

From one boat to another there was plenty of time to enjoy the bridge and grab some ice-cream before boarding again.

There is no option of hoping out at the Statue of Liberty at Liberty Island.
So this little island and museum that they have there still has to wait for me.

Well I plan to come back to NYC again, so no need to see everything at once ;)

relativity of wedding menu

I am sitting in my super little apartment. 

It is an unusually hot summer night here in Denmark. 

Lucky year, we have so much sun that it is hard to believe. 

I love it, because I rather sweat than freeze.

Anyway, I am trying to compose a menu for my wedding, that might happen one day... 

I mean it is going to happen but in a year (!) so I feel a bit crazy to go into such details...

However, I want to book a place soon. 

Prices are highly depended on menu so to estimate a cost of the wedding party I unfortunately need to go through this abstract task of trying to foresee what I would like to have for dinner in a year from now...

I have started my mission impossible with great enthusiasm and believe that it is a piece of cake.

Well, I was wrong...

I am already sitting for few hours and I am not done...

You see on the beginning of the process I was very critical towards potential wedding dishes.

But there were so many options... so many of them... that I started to suspect that the names of dishes are randomly picked just to confuse me.

First I became tired, and that slowed my decision abilities.

But eventually happened the worst, yes yes - I became hungry.

One by one I have began adding things to my list that I do not even know what they really are...

Luckily a blessed brilliant thought came to my mind: 

'better go to bed before hot dogs end as a main course'

- Good night :)