Friday, August 31, 2012

WELCOMING READERS FROM PERU, SWEDEN, INDIA, and SOUTH KOREA

I want to say hello and acknowledge readers of this blog ! I always wonder if people from other countries who check in are of Hungarian ancestry themselves! If you would like to leave a comment, please do!

Sunday, August 26, 2012

SOME WORKS OF COMPOSER ROBERT GULYA

I'm always open to learning more about Hungarian born artists and composers. I don't think the average American knows much about Hungary at all. Having some Hugarian heritage is a starting point for a developing interest. Recently I came across a CD called SOME WORKS OF ROBERT GULYA, and inside is a little resume that kind of goes like this "The man is loaded with prizes and awards for his music!" So i brought it home and listened to it and I liked what I heard. It felt relaxing to me, though I'm not sure he was composing to relax people like some New Age composers are.

Going a little further, I found his official web site, which I've linked to (click on the title) and read that he divides his time between London and Hungary and is composing for film. Yes there are sound samples.


Monday, August 20, 2012

THE BERLIN WALL FELL : HUNGARY CELEBRATES

From 1961 through 1989 THE BERLIN WALL was a cement barrier between East and West Germany that was many miles long attended by armed guards. In 1989 Hungary began to allow people through it's Austrian border and in a month's time it's said that more than 13,000 East German's, tourists, escaped through Hungary to Austria, even leaving their cars behind. A chain of events followed...

Friday, August 17, 2012

DID YOU WATCH THE OLYMPIC GAMES LONDON 2012? : HUNGARIAN ATHLETES WHO PARTICIPATED

A Hundred Fifty Nine athletes from Hungary participated in the Summer Olympics and her's the official site which profiles all of them.

Thursday, August 16, 2012

HUNGARIAN NEO NAZI CSANAD SZEGEDI DISCOVERS HE'S PART JEWISH AND STEPS DOWN FROM THE JOBBIK PARTY

We Americans seem to know a lot about World War II and the Holocaust from films. Even if we never meet a Jewish person in our life, if we go to the movies we've probably seen at least a couple films that show the horror of the Holocaust.

Even here there are Holocaust Deniers. That's why so many of the survivors have recorded their testimonials before they die to be preserved so that in the future the Holocaust Deniers won't succeed in saying it never happened. To most of us, I think there is this: genocide is not limited to the Jews or the past.

In Hungary there is an openly anti-Semitic Jobbik Party. I'm just learning about them. I don't know if they want another Holocaust, or exactly how anti-Semitic they are or why. I did find this story about a man who has learned his grandmother died at Auschwitz and has had to step down from that Party. Articles on the net say he is going to Israel and meeting a Rabbi.

This year I went to a Museum of the Holocaust for a Memorial Day event. It was overwhelming and depressing. I didn't have to be Jewish to feel that. I think what struck me the most was the realization that the Holocaust was before I was born, but closer on the time line than the films I've seen felt to me.

It may be very American and idealistic of me, but I do think Hungary, a country that takes such pride in its Christianity, needs to consider that Christianity's Jesus was Jewish.

Monday, August 6, 2012

SUMMER IS THE TIME TO GET A CAT BEFORE SCHOOL STARTS : CATS ON SALE!

If you are a CAT LOVER, and you've been thinking about getting a cat as a pet, or adding a cat to your collection of pets, this summer is the time. Kitty can settle in before you or your kids go back to school, and by then the kids know the routine, feeding Kitty and cleaning the litter pan.

Let's face it, with these new clumping cat litters it has never been easier to have a house cat!

One of my best friends, a man, loves cats. He's tells me how the little one sleeps on his feet every night. He went to the hospital and the cat cried missing him (or his feet!) His family had to hold the little cat up to the phone and he would talk to it, it's little ears twitching and a look of astonishment on its face when it heard his voice.

I'm personally allergic to cats, but many of my friend's have them, and I enjoy visiting and playing with them!

I'm aware that there is a special 9 lives $9 cat promotion going on; any cat over 9 months old is $9 out the door, with shots, and spayed or neutered, from a shelter. FOUND ANIMALS is the name of the non-profit, and I'm linking to the site now, which has the details! This is in Los Angeles, but check with them, because I think they may be expanding their territory. BEST FRIENDS ANIMAL SOCIETY also had a dog and cat special this past weekend and there are other cat specials going on sponsored by other non-profits.

Just as the depression era economy is resulting in more homeless people, there are more homeless pets than ever. Despite all the rescue groups working hard to place animals, people who are loosing their homes or going into apartments that don't allow pets, are facing having to give them up. Some people whose pets have run away are not picking them up at shelters, even though the animal is licenced or micro chipped because they can't afford the bail out. Some people are paying the fees to shelters to take the animal for them. Some people are ABANDONING THEIR PETS AT DOG PARKS or on the street, thinking that maybe, if they don't die eating out of garbage cans or miss getting his by a car, they will be taken in by someone willing to feed them. I should pity them though, because maybe they really tried on their own to have the pet adopted by friends and time ran out, and they just feared that a shelter would put the animal to death.

Dogs require more than cats, no doubt. A cat doesn't need as much interaction to be happy. But one thing you should know. A cat will starve to death before it will eat something it doesn't like. A dog will after a few days eat whatever you put out and risk getting sick!

I've been cat shopping for a senior friend of mine who can't deal with the animal shelter scene. So very many cats! Do you have enough love?

Friday, August 3, 2012

OREGON HUNGARIANS ! ARATAS ENSEMBLE

"We are a small group, currently four men and eight women. We are always looking for new members, so twice a month, on first and third Saturdays, we have tanchaz (recorded music, except for live tanchaz about twice a year), where we do teaching in the early evening, then dance until late evening. We also periodically hold a one-day workshop at the Chalet (see details below).

The group is run democratically, which sometimes means chaotically. We developed our own choreographies in the earlier years, and later bought professional choreographies from Sandor Timar, Sandor Roman, Zoli Nagy, and Erika Bakonyi. We currently have two "real" Hungarians in the group (Eszter and Judit), but everyone in the group is highly interested in Hungarian culture, dance, culture, and song. Some of us are able to speak enough Hungarian to sometimes let the Hungarians know what we're thinking, and mangle the language enough to amuse them."

music and dance! These Portland, Oregan based Hungarian American's are looking for members! Check out their site, linked at the title of this post!