The Surprise!!! ;)

So….. Here it is!!!

As promised here’s some more news about the ex MDP project. The band has decided to drop the weird name Aaylk in the favor of a more convenient one, DOGMA. As it was said in the previous related news, the band consists of Vardan and Heno of MDP who teamed up with Dero of Aramazd and a new vocalist, Zara, to create progressive ethnic metal. Their debut appearence will take place on 29th of February in Yerevan State Puppet Theatre. The band will be accompanied by Sard, who will once again play live after many years of hiatus.

Source Zhesht.am

Just come ;) !! 

Art Sharing

For everyone interested in art, I want to drive your attention to two sites.

First is a newly created site “Art Sharing” for everyone who have their works, amateur or professional, in prose, poetry, painting, music and consider them interesting to be posted there and shared with others. There’s also a comment section for discussion. Very interesting indeed, and I do recommend joining it!!!

Second is the newly launched 3rd edition of “Inknagir” literary magazine. However, the on-line magazine, especially the English section is not filled with many materials yet, as far as its presentation took place several days ago. Hopefully, new materials will appear soon, meanwhile you can have a look at it here.

Break

People, to let you know:
It’s a tough though a very interesting and productive period for me. I’m sorry not to blog in the nearest future – a bit busy, a bit lacking time, a bit tired. And actually, I don’t feel like blogging at the moment, either nothing to say, or reluctant to say.
However, I promised a surprise, so hopefully I will let you all know about it soon, very soon

Patience,
Peace,
Love.

Merry Xmas and Happy New Year!!!

I trimmed our Xmas tree in the beginning of the week and already got my first New Year present!!!

Not saying much, just wishing everyone happy New Year! Let the coming year be time for joy and happiness, let it bring you everything you wish, let it be full of pleasant surprises… and expect one from me

Happy…happy…happy…!!!
Merry…merry…merry… !!!

Peace.

Update: Save Teghut Forest! Puppet theatre at Nubarashen special school #11

Thanks to vhovhan who informed me about their intention to take a puppet theatre to Nubarashen special school #11. This is a group of young activists whose initiative is to bring change about the everyday life of these children and not only. Incidentally, this is also exactly the group of young people who rose their concern about destruction of Teghut Forest with the purpose of exploitation of the ore mine by the Armenian Copper Program (ACP). Recently this group visited Teghut Forest to see it personally and talk to the dwellers of adjacent areas. A young activist Ovsanna posts her impressions and discoveries:

We used to think that villagers were against forest destruction because they care about their health, but in reality they were happy, because now they could have work. They didn’t know their children could develop health problems from the mine and they didn’t care about it. I didn’t even speak about the trees and animals. It would be useless to talk about animals when people don’t even care about their children. But, no, they told us, they do think about their children. The mine will give them an opportunity to earn money and send their children to Yerevan city. They were also falsely informed about the number of trees to be cut down, because when we asked them if they knew how many trees will be cut, they answered “100”. In reality, over 170.000 trees are going to disappear.
The villagers didn’t believe us when we told them we are just young activist who left our jobs to come and fight for nature. They think somebody paid us to do this.They no longer believe that humans will do something for nothing.
This is a very poor village and a cooper mine is a real “dream” for them. I want to mention the last thing they told us “They give us money, we are on their side. You give us money, we will be on yours”. MONEY…. KILLER MONEY!

Why luxury of cars and mobiles!

Always thought that mobile phones are just a means of communication, while cars being that of transportation and not luxury. However, with the current crappy telecommunication provider Armentel disfunctioning for most of the time (still fixing something) and traffic jams caused not that much because of the construction going on in Yerevan, but because of abundance of cars, I’m happy I purchased my new mobile, which now is mainly used as mp3 player, and just on that especially when I get stuck in a traffic jam every day on my way home.

So now I change my opinion – mobile phones must have as much functions and be as entertaining as possible in order to have something to busy yourself when you are stuck in a van with dumb faces looking at each other and shoutings, signals and noises outside, while you can put on your headphones and enjoy the mess outside listening to your favorite music, unless something more interesting is happening inside the “marshrutka” ;).
And just on that, cars must also be very comfortable with all the necessary equipments inside, so that you do not have to get frozen and nervous when waiting in a jam and giving way to stubborn drivers who think they’ll run their turn to break the congestion.

Comin thro’ the Rye

Comin thro’ the rye, poor body,
Comin thro’ the rye,
She draigl’t a’ her petticoatie
Comin thro’ the rye.

Oh Jenny ’s a’ weet poor body
Jenny ’s seldom dry,
She draigl’t a’ her petticoatie
Comin thro’ the rye.

Gin a body meet a body
Comin thro’ the rye,
Gin a body kiss a body –
Need a body cry.
Oh Jenny ’s a’ weet, &c.

Gin a body meet a body
Comin thro’ the glen;
Gin a body kiss a body –
Need the warld ken!
Oh Jenny ’s a’ weet, &c.

Robert Burns (1759-1796)

We bury honored Mr. DOLLAR

1USD = 305AMD

Тhe coinage was drastically debased especially yesterday. Apart from some well-known reasons for such a dramatic exchange rate, which are the upcoming elections for allegedly putting higher numbers in the budget, and some people’s desires to accumulate more money, don’t know whether it may have some connection with yesterday’s All Armenian Fund raising Telethon during which they managed to gather $15,276000. If given that the previous day the exchange rate was 311AMD the difference with today’s rate should worry some people, especially when it is predicted to debase up to 250AMD as far as New Year celebration and feasting is not far anymore, and willy-nilly people will have to change their dollars sent from abroad.

Thus, dear compatriots, let’s lament the loss of our dear dollar, it was a good cheap fellow!!!

Save Teghut Forest!

Concerns over the possibility of destroying a virgin forest and posing a threat to the adjacent settlements within the next 30-40 years were confirmed several days ago as the government of the Republic of Armenia conceded to the Teghut Copper-molybdenum mine in the province of Lori for exploitation.According to the working plan by Armenian Copper Program (ACP) the exploitation of the ore mine demands logging 357.16 hectares of wood, where the volume of timber will make 57,700 cubic meters.Environmentalists say 170,833 trees will be logged for the exploitation, including rare sorts of walnut, oak, apple and pear trees. In the Teghut woods 55,000 rare and 45,000 valuable trees grow, as well as plants and animal species included in the Red Data List that will likely vanish when the mine is exploited.“Our estimates show about 2,000 hectares of forests will be destroyed for exploitation, creation of the tailing and communication infrastructure. As a result Teghut will become a landslide zone,” says economist Razmik Terteryan.The fuss kicked up by environmentalists somewhat delayed the government’s decision. However, the new Minister of Environmental Protection Aram Harutyunyan, came up with a hasty positive conclusion to the examination set for the issue, thus continuing the work his predecessor Vardan Aivazyan began, despite the minister’s statement for holding another examination within the next one month.The work by the former and the present ministers was approved by Prime Minister Serzh Sargsyan, who visited the mine in the village of Teghut several days ago to attend the set up of the ore mine. According to the PM any kind of mine exploitation would affect the environment, but the company has taken an obligation [to minimize the negative impact]. “I think there is no need to worry, because the RA government clearly defines the rules of the game and we, as the government, will constantly be supervising the second party of the process,” Sargsyan stated.

Read the rest of ArmeniaNow article.

Some things…

I have a bit free time, so decided to post something, though don’t know what to talk about. At the moment everyone and everything is engaged in politics and elections, and I bet mostl of them are fed up with it from the moment they start thinking about it. I belong to that group as well.

Yesterday our entire block didn’t have electricity and everything was dark around. My brother kind of kiddingly said: “Hehe… I see Levon is back”. Now everyone are intrigued by the ex-president Levon Ter-Petrosyan’s return into the political arena and his efforts to become President of the Republic of Armenia once more. Years of his presidency are remembered by people as “dark years”, to which I referred in this blog long before his “Second Advent”. However, whatever happens and whoever wins the upcoming presidential elections, “dark years” will always serve as metonymy to Mr. Ter-Petrosyan.

On a different note, finally I grew my hair long enough to cut it equally in a line, so that they be of one length. Actually I managed to withstand everyone’s’ persuasions to cut my hair into layers and dye it, something that is done by almost all young girls, whereas I don’t like artificially looking hair. I always wonder why right after finishing schools young girls hurry to look older through dying their hair, making up as much as possible preferring an artificial look, or jumping into high heels for “visiting” the universities they will study at.