Andrzejki!
Yesterday was Andrzejki, one of the biggest party days of the year in Poland.
Here's the scoop. Every day of the year has a few names associated with it. These 'name days' or more important than your birthday and you always celebrate it. For example, 'Tomek', because it's so popular, falls on three days of the year, but the one I celebrate is the one that follows my birthday, so it's December 29th. All Tomeks have a party that day. My sister will have hers January 21st. All Agnieszkas, which in Poland extends beyond 87 year old cranky grandmas named 'Agnes' will get together and drink too much and tell their brothers that they love them, then probably punch them on the chin.
Yesterday was Andrzejki, or Andrew's name day. It was also the last day before Advent. During Advent, good Catholic girls aren't allowed to dance, go to parties, so traditionally this is the last huge party of the year before Christmas. However, in modern times, people drink and dance anyways, so this is just a huge excuse to go over the top.
Anyone named Andrzej is basically required to bring cake and cookies for everyone at work or school and to throw a big party.
All the bars were having Andrzejki parties last night and the one we went to had a little table set up for fortune telling. A custom on Andrzejki is for young women to have their future told to them by pouring wax through an old key into a pot of cold water. The wax is then backlit onto a wall and the shape is interpreted.
We did this last night and discovered that
- I will be in love, happily married, have a kid and live in the Carribbean, because my piece of wax looked like a seahorse.
- Agnieszka will die a miserable lonely death and her life will be full of pain and solitude. All this was clearly visible on her piece of wax, including a very detailed picture of the tractor accident that will finally kill her.
That's all. No pictures, I forgot the camera and I also forgot my piece of wax. Damned beer.
Check your name days on this list and decide on the Polish equivalent of your name and celebrate it at home. Find everyone you know with this same name and include them in the party. Post what you've found and when so I can send you an email. Deep, good luck picking your new name. Go nuts.
http://www.rootsweb.com/~polwgw/namelist.html#T
http://www.behindthename.com/namedays/lists/pol.php
posted by Tomek @ 11:47 AM
5 Comments:
my name day is different in each of those websites! which one is more accurate?
actually, who cares? I'll just celebrate it twice.
St. Aloysius (Luigi) Gonzaga
Feast day: June 21
Patron Saint of Catholic youth, Jesuit students, and young people.
Saint Aloysius Gonzaga was born Luigi Gonzaga in Castiglione della Stiviere on the 9th of March 1568 in Northern Italy and was the first-born son of the reigning Marquis Ferdinand Gonzaga.
Aloysius spent much of his childhood living in his castle home and on many occasions went missing only to be found in some old closet or amongst the woodpiles with his little hands joined in prayer.
As he grew older much time was spent in the great courts and palaces of Italy and Spain, where all the materialistic distractions held no attraction for him as he was just not interested in the social happenings and events taking place, glamorous though they were.
One day while praying in the Church of the Annunciation in Florence, he became clearly aware that Jesus was calling him through the intercession of Our Blessed Lady to be a religious and that he was to join the Jesuits.
His mother Donna Martha was a most pious lady, who loved her son dearly and was equally overjoyed with the news as she was always praying for one of her sons to be a religious; but it was a very different situation with his father who flew into a rage and became very angry. He saw his son Aloysius becoming a great leader and statesman for he was very intelligent and had a sharp business head.
With much deliberation his father finally gave in and gave Aloysius permission to leave the Castle and to become a Jesuit. This meant a total renouncing of all his inheritance, wealth and titles over to his younger brother Rudolph, as Aloysius was a Prince.
Aloysius was filled to overflowing measure with joy and peace while the servants, family and other people at the Castle were filled with tears seeing him depart for he was greatly loved by all. He entered the Jesuit Novitiate at Sant' Andrea in Rome. His motto was "WHAT WILL IT BE WORTH FOR ETERNITY ".
A plague broke out in Rome at this time, and Aloysius, who never enjoyed good health, insisted on treating with love and dedication the most serious cases for whom no one else would care. He caught the plague himself and died at the age of 23, a victim of charity, in Rome on 21st June 1591.
His body lies in the Church of Saint Ignatius of Loyola in Rome close to the room where Saint Aloysius lived and studied for many years. These rooms are open to visitors who wish to learn more about this wonderful holy young man, and to seek his intercession and protection.
And now we know.
Luigi
Deep??
Fuck!! I always get ripped. Even at Niagara falls.....1000s those damn 'named' key chains.....not one Deep. It's not easy being a Sikh.
Bizzare. Are those members of society who don't have "name days" (say like moi & Deep)shunned and chastised? Lynched even? It sounds like a lonely existence. Sure, fine for all you Tomeks' and what not but . . . Even weirder is the unique folk overtones . . . hot wax pojection soothsaying . . . Fuckin occult is more like it . . . Good Times. So, essentially everyday is a full on party? Since there is so many different names? hmmmmm??
Yeah new jews are always like that . . . they grow on ya. That's what makes 'em so loveable. I like that there are alot more female jews present . . .
Your trip to Berlin sounded great. That manhole bar was lookin like goodtimes. Did you piss on the wall?? Not in the club dummy . . . the Berlin wall?? Although I somewhat disagree w/ your assesment of big cities . . . part of the charm & adventure is creating your own definition. Although, I also see your point of perhaps missing all the best things w/out having a good local barometer. Its a gamble I guess. Although I find the lost and aimless approach can yeilds real gems. Things that are truly personal. Not recommened by tourists or locals . . . just by you! But all that really matters is you had a smashing time of it. Mission accomplished.Congrats!
So, is all of Europe as accessable as it would seem. Just a hop skip and jump from one another? Doin more travelling? Is Brussels close? If your ever over that way you should check this out :
17 11 2005
Greetings from Brussels. At the moment I am working on an installation piece together with the sculptor Banks Violette. He has created some really amazing structures out of cast salt and shattered blackened sheets. My part in the piece involves 4 x subwoofers, 4 oscillators and some +/-25hz & +/-55hz sine waves. As Banks said, the sound moves into the space of sculpture with gravity, mass, dimension. We collaborated on a piece earlier this year which was recently purchased by the Guggenheim museum, and this is sort of the evolution of that collaboration.
The piece is titled "On Black Wings / Six Channel Bleed" and is showing at GALERIE RODOLPHE JANSSEN at 35 Rue de Livourne, 1050 Brussels, Belgium. http://www.galerierodolphejanssen.com. It will show for the next seven weeks. SOMA
I'll email ya some more info brother.
When Elvis comes to me in a vision while I'm watching the Surreal life and drinking skunky beer I'm called crazy.
Jesus comes to "Saint" Aloysius and he's a blessed hero.
If you can prove to me that Jesus could move his hips like Elvis, you'll convert me!
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