BRITISH SCHOOL GAZETTE Spring 2016
T AR EDITION INTERVIEWS
Teachers and artists
PHOTOGRAPHY
Student Photographers
NEW BSG MASCOT The winning design
SPORTS
Sports News
TRIPS
Barcelona
Av. de Chatelaine 95A . 1219 Chatelaine
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T: 022 795 75 10
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www.britishschoolgeneva.ch
Play&Learn (10 mon - 5 yrs)
EDITORIAL The BSG Gazette is proud to bring you yet another edition, this time centred around art. It has been such a pleasure to produce this edition and we are sure you will enjoy it. In this edition, you will find our usual sections of school events, sports and interviews. Fancy yourself an art guru? Have a go at our art crossword in the games section. Think you know a lot about your teachers? Read up on our teachers’ interview section. Impressed by the design of the Gazette and want to know more about the man behind it? Read up on our exclusive interview with our designer, Andy Finlay. Does a career in art interest you? Then you will be inspired by Queen Mashie’s story. All this coupled with talented individuals sharing their passion for art makes this edition of the Gazette a good read. With the end of the school year quickly approaching, the BSG Gazette will be looking for new members. If you are interested in being part of the team next year, keep your eyes open for job openings. I would like to thank my team who have successfully produced two editions this year, our mentors, Mrs Prior and Ms Crawford who provide guidance, everyone who has contributed in any way and you, our readers who continue to support and encourage us for making the BSG Gazette what it is now: a wonderful read and something we can all be proud of! Valentine Mberu, Year 13 Editor-in-chief.
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A COLLECTOR’S HABIT We (that’s my husband and I) got started because of a 1980s band we enjoyed named Bauhaus. They had taken their name from a German art school and, while backpacking round Europe after graduation, we took the opportunity to visit the Bauhaus museum in Berlin. The Bauhaus movement is credited with having a profound influence on developments in art, design and architecture; this influence can be seen all around us. On returning to the UK and setting up home together I remember vividly the first objet d’art we purchased, which was heavily influenced by Bauhaus: a pair of black glass bowls (pictured below) with geometric shapes etched into them. The Liberty of London (a large department store) sales assistant looked at two ordinary young people dressed in oversized second-hand coats (very fashionable at the time) and asked, “Do you know what they cost?” This was to be a very typical attitude of art gallery assistants and it reminds me of the Pretty Women scene when Vivian returns to the cloths shop where the assistants had refused to serve her. Holding out a plethora of shopping bags Vivian remarks, “You’re paid on commission, aren’t you? Big mistake! Big mistake!” We often visited Amsterdam (and still do) and happened upon an art gallery in the main pedestrian shopping street. We took our time looking around - never rush buying art - and got acquainted with the young assistant who was also in his early twenties. He had no preconceived ideas about our interest in, or resources for, purchasing art. We bought our first bronze sculpture from him. I remember the trepidation of this. It was a lot of money. We had to trust this young sales-rep regarding the provenance of the sculpture - there were no mobile phones on which to do a quick internet search. We returned often to this gallery, the young sales assistant became a life-long friend and we spent many hours chatting, drinking coffee, viewing and, above all, discussing art, one of the great pleasures of collecting. Now I live surrounded by beautiful things and every one evokes reminiscence: seeking it out, spending time choosing it, meeting the artist or receiving it as a gift - the memories are endless. So if you’re keen to develop a collector’s habit, here are my hints and tips. Never rush choosing a piece. Some of the best work can take time to appreciate and those you instantly love, you may tire of quickly. Spending time visiting galleries and artist studios, viewing and discussing art is much of the pleasure. All that really matters is that you want to live with the piece; what others think, how much it costs are all unimportant. If you are concerned about your investment choose a career artist. A career artist is exactly what it says. It’s not a hobbyist, it’s someone who is making their career in art, they will generally have been educated in art, be represented by established galleries and produce a high quality creation, not only imaginative and original but executed with skill. As to how much you spend, if you’re a true addict you’ll generally spend more than you can afford but there are a number of ways to ease this. Always negotiate on price: buying a number of pieces at one time may entice the gallery or artist to give a little more. Often galleries will agree payment plans. This may surprise you but they want to sell art and they’ll help you buy it. So have a go, you may find you enjoy collecting and it might well become a habit. By Louise Prior
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TIME TO DO SOMETHING CREATIVE Carving a sliver of time to do something creative. Like writing, or making music, anything creative takes you out of normal time; it’s an altered state of consciousness. I mostly paint when I can carve time to attend a class. Now I go to a life drawing class. There is no teacher, just a model each week. I like to go round at break time and see what everyone else has done – so many different styles. I enjoy the challenge, even if results seem somewhat hit and miss. Model poses range from 3 minutes to two hours. I’ve always taken photographs and when I joined a local art club, I would exhibit both paintings and photographs. In 2013 I spent the whole year doing a daily photo project: a friend in Glasgow and I would send each other a photo every day. I liked the odd juxtapositions thrown up: when I was in the Sahara in Algeria, he was at his auntie’s birthday party. Sometimes, odd coincidences (we never looked at the other person’s photo until we had sent our own) – both photographing a musician on the same day, for example. When I look at them now, I see there are stories behind many of them – I would want to explain things to someone looking at them. As an art project, I think it would work between any two friends, or two strangers even, and maybe especially in different countries. We stopped after 13+ months and I missed it for quite a while – it made me experience everything differently, as I was more or less constantly looking at the world as if through a viewfinder, to find a good photo for the day. But it was also a relief! Deciding to show the daily photo project at the art club exhibition gave me the idea to make photo cards – hoping that selling them would pay for the materials for the daily project. In the end, the cards were a big hit. The last couple of exhibitions I have had no paintings, just framed photographs and the cards. It helps to have a camera with you whenever out and about, and just pay attention. There are always things going on, worth our notice. There’s a photo album in my head of the photos I deliberately didn’t take: the Algerian soldier walking our way with an AK-47 on one shoulder and a flowery pillow tucked under his other arm, for example. I suspected he wouldn’t appreciate being my photo of the day. By Fiona Crawford
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PHOTOGRAPHY
I received my first camera when I was 15 but until then I spent years studying and fawning over the work of amateur photographers on the photo-sharing website, Flickr. I was becoming increasingly indifferent towards art but discovering a community of pre-teen photographers who were producing such an unexpected level of work that made me see photography as something more than lacklustre PATRICIA photos of plants. I now focus on portraiture because I like taking good photos of people and I know people like seeing good photos of themselves. Despite my work being centered primarily on portraits, I love shooting what would otherwise be irrelevant details. Photography has been my way of capturing facets of life, some less aesthetically interesting than others, and making them look good while also jumping through hoops of uncontrolled lighting, limited equipment and so forth. The best thing that I’ve found about photography is the complete lack of obligation to explain myself. Although I don’t intend on pursuing photography professionally, I’m sure my desire to work in the film industry will require me to put my skills to use at some point in the future. For now, I’m perfectly happy snapping pretty pictures.
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DELA PENA, Past Student
PHOTOGRAPHY
I got into photography as more of a hobby, and it still sort of is. I had saved and earned just enough money for over a year to buy myself a canon 70D. I planned to use it to shoot film mainly, but then I discovered the vast photographic potential of the camera. I shot in Manual mode in 16:9 and just began taking photos of random stuff outside and indoors; eventually I got pretty good at composing shots, using colour, and editing in post from research and simply taking photos as much as possible. I plan to use this skill mainly for enhancing my cinematography, but whether the photos are of scenery, people, or selfies, it’s come in handy plenty of times now and will in the future; also it’s just fun.
LYO YUSON, Year 10
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QUEEN MASHIE My name is Tatenda Sandra Mashiringo a.k.a Queen Mashie. I am a France-based Zimbabwean songwriter and Mbira player, born and bred in Zimbabwe. I started singing at the tender age of 4 and professionally from 2000 when I joined Andy Brown as a backup vocalist. I later decided to go solo and joined the Vintage Band where I was a lead singer. I recorded my 1st album entitled Higher Heights in 2006 before I moved to Nairobi, Kenya. Having moved to Nairobi to pursue my musical career, I worked with Nyota Safi Band and later joined The Tutu Band as a lead vocalist. I was signed with Sound Africa and recorded my 2nd album in 2008. I collaborated with different artists from Zimbabwe and Kenya and produced my 3rd album CD/ DVD Queen Mashie Collaboration 2009. I also performed with various musicians from different parts of the world (Mozambique, France, Senegal, Austria and Zimbabwe). After living in Kenya for 7 years, fate moved me to France where I am residing now. I formed my new band, which consists of 5 members - the Afro-Pop. My latest album is “Time”. You can’t reverse time, you can’t stop the clock. This is the Time, This moment, here and now! On this album I am singing about how people should value time and stop worrying about things they can never be able to fix. Live your life while you can, because no one knows what tomorrow will bring. Any further information my website is: http://www.queenmashie.com/ index.html
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Queen Mashie and her traditional Instrument “The Mbira”.
INTERVIEW By Gabrielle St. Hilaire, Year 12 While having an interview with the brilliant graphic designer and printer of our well-established BSG Gazette, I gained insight beyond the canvas and computer screen of his artistic zeal. For more information, https://www.allartists.com/artist/andyfinlay Andy Finlay is an artist, graphic designer, event sketch artist and former musician, now based in Windsor in the UK. He characterises his art as “never leaving home without a sketchbook”. Initially, he was not as passionate about science, humanities or anything while he attended school, as he was about art. Having no-one mention to him at the time that art could be a career option, he pursued a business doing graphic design, drawing his designs before computer graphics became popular. Today, Andy’s graphic design business, ‘the Design Well’, aims to provide excellent graphics, printing, website building and advertising at affordable costs and great benefits to customers. Andy, however, has always been an artist at heart and is always keen on exposure for his artwork, whether in cafés or on social media, being very active on twitter, @AFinlay_artist. To further develop his art skills and establish himself in the art world, Andy made the decision five years ago to study for a degree in Fine Arts part-time at Westminster University, which will take him around 5 years to complete. Andy insists that no matter how successful he may be in his graphic design business, art will always be his true passion. It is this passion that has won him exposure for his work and allowed him to kick start his career as an artist, exhibiting his work at the prestigious Royal Academy of Arts in London, along with several other exhibitions. Painting has become his favourite and most identifiable type of art. In fact, Andy is becoming known for his combination of figurative yet abstract pieces, using white-on-white oil paintings and etching at events to create drypoint etchings so that he can hand print and watercolour this work. As he explains on the AllArtists website for publishing artists and artwork, “My aim in all my work is to draw viewers in and for the work to slowly reveal itself. It is my way of slowing down time, to remove them to a place where the world drifts slightly away. My work tends to sneak up on you and slows you down as it transforms and I like that. It’s such a contrast to the instant imagery that’s all around us.” Currently, he is working on another entry piece into this year’s summer exhibition at the Royal Academy of Arts. Andy describes a typical day as running with his dog, reading a boatload of emails, spending the rest of his day either at the university or working at the graphic design studio until he can retire in front of the television, with a sketchpad of course, to work on new ideas. Andy manages to keep his dream of becoming an artist alive and stay motivated day by day, “I wake up every morning and I tell myself, ‘Nothing has been written in my life today. Anything is possible BECAUSE nothing is written today.’ Sometimes it’s impossible to wake up thinking like that but it’s worth the try and it truly inspires me to keep doing what I love more than anything.”
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BSG MASCOT ENTRIES
This year, BSG welcomes our mascot, The BSG Dragon! Voted by you, our winning mascot graces the school colours, yellow and purple. The intertwined fiery dragons are sure to breathe new enthusiasm to the BSG school spirit and will be a new addition amongst the mascots of the other international schools. Soon enough you will start seeing the mascot everywhere, making appearances in school events and accompanying our sports teams to their tournaments. Who knows, we might even have to audition for someone to actually dress up as the mascot! Here are some of the other entries which were just as good but there could only be one winner!
GO DRAGONS!
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THE WINNING MASCOT
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GAMES ZONE
CROSSWORD
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Across 3. Name the artist who created the sculpture called the Pieta. 6. The surname of French artist who is known for his paintings of Polynesian women in Tahiti? 7. In Indonesia, this 2000-year-old style of decorating fabric is considered a national art form. 8. Painter Gilbert Stuart was most well-known for his portraits of which U.S. President? 11. What is the name for the type of art portrait that deliberately exaggerates a person? 14. Identify the surname of the author of this fictional work related to the sea: The Old Man and the Sea. 15. In 1375, this legend first appeared in British Literature. 16. What 14th century Italian painted the Birth of Venus?
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Down 1. Which artist's first important painting, from 1885, was called "The Potato Eaters" 2. What is the surname of the English poet and author of The Canterbury Tales and is known as the father of English poetry? 3. What type of painting is applied directly to a wall? 4. The Mona Lisa is one of the most famous paintings of all time. What is the alternative Italian name for this painting? 5. The surname of the author of a science fiction classic whose title is named after the temperature at which paper burns? 9. In Florence, Michelangelo built this 5 metre tall masterpiece in 1504. 10. Which bronze sculpture was sculpted in 1902 by Auguste Rodin? 12. The first name of the mysterious writer who created "The Raven" 13. What 19th century French impressionist painted The Boating Party? 16. Mixing together the three primary colours in art (red, blue, and yellow) what colour is formed?
MUSE IS NOT AMUSED
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GAMES ZONE
SPOT THE 5 DIFFERENCES
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Life of Art
offers painting and drawing classes
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We have created a warm and welcoming environment, which includes state of the art lighting
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All of your equipment is supplied for so all you have to do
is come by and be inspired.
The first class (trial class) is Free! Call us now to book. 022 525 5232
or info@life-of-art.ch
www.life-of-art.ch
SPORTS NEWS BSG sports’ teams are proud to show off their new team kits. Now as they take on other international school teams in the respective leagues, they will be flying our school colours! If you fancy joining either of the teams, please make sure to sign up.
GO BSG DRAGONS!
Call: +41 – (0)76 483 84 28
Email: contact@zingyfood.ch
We cater for kids B’day parties, social gatherings, business meetings, office lunch and food for take-away.
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A-LEVEL STUDENTS: MUSIC INTERVIEWS Louise Ligertwood, Year 12 Which instruments do you play and how long have you been playing them? I play the piano and some guitar, which I have playing for about 8 or 9 years. How did you get involved in learning to play music? My parents wanted me to take up music at the time, so they enrolled me in lessons and my enthusiasm grew ever since. What kind of music do you like playing on them? I normally play classical and pop music, but I will also play any genre of music I feel like playing at the time or that is set for me by my teacher. What would you recommend to someone who would like to take up music? Make sure you are passionate about music and learning to play it. You also need to commit yourself to it as it is very time consuming. Gianna Harness, Year 13 Which instruments do you play and how long have you been playing them? I play the guitar and the piano and I also used to play the flute, which I have been playing for 6, 5 and 8 years. How did you get involved in learning to play music? I was suggested to start learning the flute by my school at the time. However, it was my own choice to take up the guitar and the piano. I took lessons to learn the flute and the piano by a music teacher, but I self-taught myself the guitar and also the piano later on. What kind of music do you like playing on them? I like playing rock tunes and I also like to write my own music that I enjoy playing. What would you recommend to someone who would like to take up music? If you want to be good, you need to be determined and put your effort into learning it. You should also enjoy playing music. Timothy Inkoom, Year 13 Which instrument do you play and how long have you been playing them? I play the piano, which I have been playing for 5 or 6 years. How did you get involved in learning to play them? My parents wanted me to learn to play the piano, so they signed me up for lessons and I continued taking them after I realised how much I liked playing music on it. What kind of music do you like playing on them? I generally play classical and jazz tunes, but I don’t particularly mind on the genre. What would you recommend to someone who would like to take up music? Choose an instrument you think you will like and enjoy playing it.
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BARCELONA TRIP
Early this March, the AS Geography class experienced the vast array of Barcelona’s finest displays of art, history, cuisine and culture. We were grateful to come to such a city that has been rebranded on its vibrant, urban lifestyle and its enticing historical background for our Geogrpahy fieldtrip. We stayed in a modest, yet trendy apartment, that provided us with a homely environment that ensured all our necessities were met and we had sufficient comfort, located in the city. However, we only spent a few brief hours in the morning and night at our accommodation, since we were always on the move during the day travelling; whether by foot, train, boat or cable car to the various adventures Mr Lille had set out for us. On a particular day we had been exploring the city of Barcelona for a total of 11 hours, walking a total of about 18 km visiting the house and historic landmarks of Antoni Gaudi (one of the greatest Spanish-Catalan architects and artists), the Sagrada Familia (the soon-to-be tallest church in the world) and the Ramblas ( the central street of Barcelona). This gave us ample experience and information to conduct our Unit 2 Rebranding investigations. Every other day, we visited historical, cultural, sporting and religious landmarks, sites and buildings such as a tour of Montserrat, the Nou-Camp Barcelona Stadium, the Olympic Stadium Barcelona and the Museu Nacional d’Art de Catalunya just to name a few. This definitely gave us an enriching perspective of the city.
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BARCELONA TRIP While there, we indulged in the local cuisine, known for its colourful flavours. The evenings allowed us plenty of time to savour the variety of Spanish restaurants in Barcelona, which at night appeared to be surreal and definitely worth coming out to see. When we were done basking in the ambiance of the magnificent city, we retired to our accommodation to not only work on our fieldwork reports and grab a bite or shower before bed, but to also share our perspectives of what we learned and hoped to gain from this astonishing field trip. In the end, the AS Geography class gained an extraordinary experience in these five days away. Nos vemos una vez mรกs, Barcelona! By Gabrielle St. Hilaire Year 12
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TEACHING ART
Art Interview
with Mrs. Browning
How did your interest in art begin?
I am not exactly sure as to when, during my childhood, I became interested in art, because I just seemed to have a natural ability for it.
How did you use your talent to succeed in your career? I already had a natural ability for it, so when the opportunity came up to study it at school, I took it. I studied art at GCSE, fine and text art at A-level and several other art courses at Degree level. I then used my skills throughout my art career while working as an accessories fabrics designer, an interior designer and a teacher.
Do you need any specific skills to take art as a subject?
You need to have an open mind as well as a positive attitude towards it. You also need to be willing to take time to work on your projects and to have “happy accidents� whilst experimenting.
What should students look forward to in art at GCSE and A-level? They can look forward to working and experimenting with media, personalising different types of artworks and working towards individual response to ideas.
What are the applications of art in terms of careers?
An education in art allows you to have a vast range of careers in departments including: graphic design, journalism, freelance photography, illustration, architecture, film Industry, etc.
Do you do any art work yourself?
Not particularly, however I renovate the house quite a bit, I have made my own curtains from fabrics I fancied and I make my own festive cards.
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PAST STUDENT When did you discover and how did you develop your interest in photography? I can’t really pinpoint one specific time or moment where photography became important for me, but I think a fun fact is probably that my grandmother used to take me for photos with her every month for the first 3 years of my life. We’d get all dressed for just that one appointment in the afternoon. The biggest development definitely occurred early on in my teens. I had always been into fashion and I just absolutely loved the photography and from there I first started using my grandfather’s old camera. When I turned 14 my family got me my first digital camera, which was a point and click and then 2 years later I was finally ready for a DSLR camera as I had been reading up about them on the Dutch Elle girl forum where I would also get inspiration and share my photos with other girls. In the meantime, I was also published by a photographer called Karl Taylor. Then at the age of 18 I finally joined Instagram and my love for photography just reached new levels, because finally my friends were seeing my work, but also because it’s quite challenging sometimes to shoot something nice with your phone and not a full on camera where you get to determine a lot of the settings. And don’t forget that it had to be a square before the recent Instagram update. Nowadays I’m using polaroids more frequently. Why do you like it? I like photography because it captures details and it stops time. Photographs have allowed me to see what my motherland Rwanda looked like before the war or what countries I haven’t even been to yet, look like. I think photography is one of the few things that covers all my other interests. Whether it’s a selfie at a football game, a photo of my breakfast or a progress photo for my fitness journey, photography is always there and can immortalize the moment. Sharing photos also means sharing moments which is very nice when your family and friends don’t live in the same country. Would you say photography is a hobby for you? A few years back, photography played a bigger role in my life, because I had more time and I would be able to dedicate a few hours a day to taking photos, editing them and sometimes publishing. Nowadays I work between 45 and 60 hours per week; so I barely have time to post something on Instagram, let alone use my cameras. But I’m currently waiting for the summer to arrive because there will be more hours of natural daylight, but this difficult combination of work and photography has made me realise that I will definitely dedicate my weekends to photography later on or that I might even take up a more creative job, just because I do miss using that in my daily life. What are you currently up to? I’m currently working as a Business Analyst for the Intersport account within Nike. It’s only an internship but it’s good to discern what you do want to do later on and what you don’t want to do. I definitely know for now that I want to keep working here, but ideally in a more creative/out of the box-thinking position.
By Melissa Basebya
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INTERVIEW By Archana Madhav Year 13
The Aquilantes
The Hutchesons
How long have you been married?
Mrs: 4 years in July. We will have known each other for 10 years this July.
Mrs: We met 20 years ago but we got married in September 1996.
What’s your spouse’s biggest pet peeve?
Mr: With her, I think, people that are not on time, that could be a problem. Mrs: Exactly! Mr: And unfortunately I’m the kind of guy who is sometimes [late] and she likes things to be in order, very organized. Mrs: this is an easy one for you but difficult for me. Let me think, what annoys you? He’s annoyed by washing the dishes immediately after we finish eating. Mr: It’s hard to really make me angry but regarding students I don’t like when they are very sloppy in writing things.
Mrs: There are so many, maybe I have too many and you don’t. I don’t think he has one. I think he’s filled with the love of our Lord. (laughs) Mr: I don’t know if I really have one. It’ll come and go [but] there’s nothing that really annoys me desperately. I think for her it’ll probably be grammar and spelling. Mrs: (Laughs) That’s actually true; I cannot go a week without saying there’s a spelling mistake, maybe more like a day though and people who don’t check their work. Mr: Why are you looking at me?
What’s your spouse’s favourite book?
Mrs: It’s not a specific book but a specific genre, like popular science, about the universe, how it was formed and about questions that puzzle humanity, he has a lot of those books. Mr: On the other hand, Laura likes novels, one you liked was ‘Eat, Pray, Love’. She likes romance genre. Mrs: Yes, but there is something I like more. Mr: We’re talking about books, yes? Give me a hint. Mrs: Agatha Christie? Mr: Ah yes okay. Archie: So, crime? Mrs: Exactly. Detectives, mystery... Mr: Yes, but that was when you were younger. I also had that phase in my life. But now it’s more romance, lately I’ve seen you reading romance.
Mr: I think can answer yours; it would be Kate Bush’s favourite, Wuthering Heights Mrs: Yeah and Mr Hutcheson’s would be a series of comics called Starblazer Mr: If we had to pin it down to a hardback book… Mrs: Yeah, let’s pretend that you read for a second. Mr: There’s a Kids’ book called the Osborne Book of ghosts, it’s really great, you can read it quickly. Archie: Very different tastes. Mr: Mrs Hutcheson reads the books and tells me the highlights so I don’t need to read them. Mrs: One sentence, simple words.
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The Aquilantes
The Hutchesons
What’s one TV show you love to watch together?
Mr: Haha this would be difficult to tell you because it’s on Italian television… Mrs: It’s called Affari Tuoi and we watch it almost every evening. It involves the 20 regions in Italy and contestants from each region have to win money that is in boxes. Mr: The presenter is also very funny and explains the probability to win because during the game you can change strategy and things like that.
Mrs: Dr Who at the moment, Sherlock, Flash Gordon (laughs), Spaced.
If they had a choice, where would your spouse want to live?
Mr: She would like to go back to Romania, back to Transylvania. Mrs: Surprisingly he doesn’t want to go back to Italy, somewhere in Europe and why not Switzerland? I think Switzerland is his first choice. Mr: Yeah it’s close enough to Italy that we can go back on vacation but we don’t have to live there and cope with a number of things that I don’t like. Mrs: I really enjoy living here but for the future I would like to go back. Mr: We like mountains so living in Sudtirol in northern Italy [among] those fantastic mountains. We would like to go to Corvara in Badiya. Mrs: Yes, that would be perfect for retirement.
Mr: What? Anywhere in the world? Archie: Yes Mr: We’re so changeable, aren’t we? Mrs: We are (laughs). Mr: One week, let’s go to Sri Lanka, next let’s go to Cornwall! If money was no object and we didn’t have to work, then probably the Isle of Man.
What’s one food item your spouse hates?
Mr: She doesn’t like the [food considered to be the] pride of Napoli which is where I’m from, which is not really mussels but… Mrs: Octopus, seafood. Mr: Octopus is a very traditional food in Napoli.
Mr: For you, that would be marmite. Mrs: And then for you it would be maybe vinegar, you don’t like too much vinegar in your salad. Or like an octopus, you know, something that obviously looks
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INTERVIEW The Aquilantes
The Hutchesons
What’s one food item your spouse hates? continued...
Mrs: It’s very difficult because he eats pretty much everything. Mrs: Is there something he doesn’t like? Oh, actually I know! It’s a typical Romanian dish called ‘piftie’. Mr: Oh yeah. Mrs: It’s made of pork meat and gelatin. It’s like a soup that you put in the fridge, and it becomes gelatinous. He hates that and I love it. We traditionally have it for Christmas and New Years’.
like an alien life form. Or seafood in general… Mr: Unless it’s fish and chips.
What’s the one thing you love most about your spouse?
Mr: She gives me a sense of security and she really knows how to do everything! She’s the leader and I feel safe. I can always count on her and sometimes when I’m sick she helps me much more than I can help her. Mrs: That we can have high level conversation, he’s super smart and this is what I really like, and he’s also very attentive, he listens, I talk a lot, and he has the patience to listen to me so I think we complement each other. He talks very little, I talk a lot, but he listens.
Mrs: Oh, careful. Mr: That’s so hard. Mrs: I think his sense of humour… or his hair (laughs). Mr: Yeah, there’s not much time spent in the bathroom competing for the mirror. I think it’s the same, really, that we can laugh at each other… Mrs: Near each other, with each other. Mr: Yeah definitely, I mean you can’t take it all too seriously. Mrs: Or my sense of humour to put up with all your comments.
What did you have planned for Valentine’s Day this year?
Mrs: What we discussed was to go out for a romantic dinner but no details so far (laughs). Mr: And it’s on a Sunday, everything’s closed. Mrs: Another thing we discussed doing was going ice skating. We have skates and we go skating every winter in Vernets. Mr: She skates very well, I’m terrible. Mrs: That’s not true; you never fall, so you manage. Mr: The good thing is since I don’t know how to skate; I put in a lot of effort so it’s good exercise. Mrs: So our Valentine’s Day would be skating and a romantic dinner hopefully.
Mrs: I’m planning on being disappointed (bursts out laughing). What about you? Mr: I was planning on being disappointed. Mrs: What on disappointing me? Well hopefully he can’t say because he’s probably planned something spectacular. No plan is the best plan. Mr: No, well, I don’t want to say. Mrs: Not nothing then, there you go!
BRITISH SCHOOL GAZETTE
Page 22
20 bloody years… (They laugh together)
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