Κάτι κινείται στην ΚΑΕ Άρης

Τα τελευταία χρόνια ακουγόταν όλο και πιο έντονα ότι στην ΚΑΕ Άρης γίνεται πολύ καλή δουλειά. Από οργανωτικής απόψεως, δηλαδή. Με άλλα λόγια, αρκετοί ήταν οι καλαθοσφαιριστές εκείνοι που δήλωναν εντυπωσιασμένοι από τον τρόπο λειτουργίας του Άρη. Δεν είναι άγνωστη η ιστορία συγκεκριμένου παίκτη (ονόματα δεν λέμε, υπολήψεις δεν θίγουμε) ο οποίος, όταν εκπρόσωπος της ΚΑΕ τον οδήγησε στο σπίτι του για πρώτη φορά – σε ένα από τα σπίτια που διατηρεί η ομάδα στο Πανόραμα – εκείνος κοίταξε γύρω του εντυπωσιασμένος και ρώτησε “με πόσους θα το μοιράζομαι αυτό;”. Όταν έμαθε πως θα έμενε εκεί μόνος του μόνο που δεν πήδηξε από τη χαρά του. “Στην προηγούμενη ομάδα μου έμενα στο μισό από αυτό το σπίτι, με άλλους δύο συγκατοίκους” έλεγε και ξαναέλεγε, υπογραμμίζοντας το ότι ο Άρης φαίνεται να σέβεται εκείνους που αφήνουν τις οικογένειές τους και τον τόπο τους για να παίξουν για εκείνον.
Δεν είναι, όμως, μόνο οι καλαθοσφαιριστές που μετράνε. Είναι και πολλά άλλα πράγματα, και μέχρι τώρα εκεί ο Άρης χώλαινε. Δημοσιογραφικοί κύκλοι μας ενημέρωναν ότι τα τελευταία χρόνια, από άποψη συνεργασίας με τα ΜΜΕ (εντάξει, ίσως όχι με όλους, βγάλτε τα δικά σας συμπεράσματα!), η ΚΑΕ δεν εμφάνιζε και το καλύτερό της πρόσωπο. Συγκεκριμένο παράδειγμα είναι ότι, όταν περιοδικό της πόλης χρειάστηκε να κάνει ρεπορτάζ για τις τρεις ομάδες (Άρη, Πάοκ, Ηρακλή), το γραφείο Τύπου του Πάοκ το κανόνισε μέσα σε μισή ώρα, το γραφείο Τύπου του Ηρακλή χρειάστηκε κάτι λιγότερο από μια μέρα, ενώ δύο χρόνια μετά, ακόμη περιμένουν το γραφείο Τύπου του Άρη να τους απαντήσει.
Όλα αυτά φαίνεται ότι βαίνουν προς αλλαγή. Γιατί το λέμε αυτό; Μα γιατί αυτό το καλοκαίρι άλλαξαν πολλά στα γραφεία της διοίκησης του Παλέ ντε Σπορ. Με ικανοποίηση και ελπίδα, λοιπόν, υποδεχθήκαμε την είδηση ότι ο Βασίλης Κεχαγιάς ανέλαβε τη θέση του υπεύθυνου επικοινωνίας στην ΚΑΕ. Άνθρωπος με κύρος, λέγειν, άποψη, και κυρίως, μυαλό και γνώση του αντικειμένου.
Δεν είναι άγνωστος ο Βασίλης Κεχαγιάς, ούτε στο χώρο της Θεσσαλονίκης, αλλά ούτε, φυσικά, και στον κόσμο της δημοσιογραφίας. Με ανοιχτό μυαλό και δημιουργικότητα, ο διευθυντής του Μουσείου Κινηματογράφου και επί χρόνια σινε-κριτικός και αρθρογράφος / δημοσιογράφος σε εφημερίδες της πόλης ελπίζουμε ότι θα φέρει τον καινούργιο αέρα που τόσο χρειάζεται αυτή η ομάδα. Εξάλλου, η δημιουργικότητά του δεν τίθεται υπό αμφισβήτηση, οι καλές του ιδέες αλλά ούτε και το καλό του όνομα στην “πιάτσα”.
Σιδεροκέφαλος, λοιπόν, και άντε, ας δούμε καμία βελτίωση.
Και μιας και μιλάμε για νέο αίμα, αυτό φαίνεται να κυλάει και στα πιο υψηλά κλιμάκια της ΚΑΕ. Ο Θανάσης Κουιμτζής είναι η καινούργια προσθήκη στη διοίκηση και από νωρίς φαίνεται να έπεσε στα βαθιά, μιας και τοποθετήθηκε στη θέση του αντιπροέδρου.
Πρόκειται για έναν καθ' όλα ευυπόληπτο επιχειρηματία που δραστηριοποιείται στην περιοχή της Σίνδου και είναι γνωστός από παλιά στις τάξεις των φιλάθλων του Άρη. Από εκείνους που ακολουθούν την ομάδα όπου μπορούν και είναι παρόντες όταν εκείνη τους χρειαστεί.
Ο Θανάσης Κουιμτζής είναι ένας άνθρωπος μορφωμένος, επιτυχημένος επιχειρηματίας, αμερικανο-σπουδαγμένος, δραστήριος, με ιδέες και όνειρα και όραμα για τον Άρη. Φίλος του Θανάση Τζεβελέκη από τον χώρο των επιχειρήσεων, δέχθηκε να βοηθήσει μόλις του ζητήθηκε από τον πρώην πρόεδρο του Άρη. Και φαίνεται ότι θα βοηθήσει, μιας και – πάλι σύμφωνα με πηγές, αχ αυτές οι πηγές μας! - έχει πέσει με τα μούτρα στη δουλειά και έχει αποφασίσει να “στρώσει” αυτό το μαγαζί, πάση θυσία!

Shit

Did everyone watch the news?
About the earthquake in L'Aquila??
Remember that town? That's where I was supposed to be. Remember the job in Italy I was offered and was thinking about taking?
That was there...

Nature is humbling. We take and we take, and we destroy and we burn, and we cut and we tear down and we suck the life out of this planet that has been so kind as to take us in and let us live on its back.
And every once in a while it decides to show us who's the real boss. And then we talk about "Nature's wrath" and lament lives lost and properties destroyed.
I hope we learn. We learn and respect. We respect and learn the planet. We learn the planet and fear its powers. We fear its powers and protect ourselves. We protect ourselves and live in harmony. Live in harmony with nature.
Only through respect we can do that, and we, the human race, are still, after millions of years on this planet, so far from it.

be my...

be my..

be my little rock 'n' roll queen!

Snow

Can you guys see the snow?

I know that for most of you it isn't a big deal, and you probably don't even like snow, cause it causes a lot of problems and all that...
But it doesn't snow that often here, and it almost never sets, so today? big day for me!
It's been snowing all morning (it's 12:47pm right now). I woke up at about 9, it started snowing about half an hour later. Nothing is white yet, just wet and probably slippery, but at least I can see snowflakes!
so... yeah...
snow!

Control

I was watching "Control" again last night
it killed me once again, as it always does
Ian Curtis had been a personal icon for me, even though i was 4 1/2 when he died

What really shocks me is that this man never really got to know and realize - and I believe that he never even imagined, not to the millionth of its extent - how decisively he would change the fate of music, art, what a deep trace his existence and work would leave to the psyches and cultures of people all over the world

Icons such as him don't exist any more

Out to get you

My work is killing me today. Their voices, the things they say, they just stab me right through the head, and I can’t stop them.

I took my earphones and placed them on my ears. I pushed the button and closed my eyes.

The music filled my head like only music can. I imagine the room emptying. There’s noone here but me. Now, not even me anymore.

Im so alone tonight, My bed feels larger than when I was small, back then, when things were easy. And beautiful. Now I’m Lost in memories, lost in all the sheets and all old pillows. My past is flowing by me, like butterflies, tickling my fingertips, caressing my shut eyelids, kissing my lips. So alone tonight, miss you more than I will let you know, Miss the outline of your back, miss you breathing down my neck. My breath is heavy, because I can see you. You’re standing there, by the door, so many years back, giving me that look, that stole my dreams so long ago. So deep in the past, and so near to my surface.
All out to get you, once again, theyre all out to get you, once again

It’s funny, this sweet taste a very bitter past can acquire through the years. Like all the pain is filtered away, and all you’re left with is a teary nostalgia, that walks with you everywhere you go. And, like a shadow, every time you reach out to touch it, it reaches out and touches you back. Only it can’t feel your touch. Only you can. Insecure, what ya gonna do, Feel so small, they could step on you. Called you up, answer machine, only I never did. Because you were only a dream, when the human touch Is what I need, what I need is you, I need you.

I need you...

Growing up is a bitch. Especially when all you have to show for yourself is compromise and dead dreams. Did you know that dreams never really die? Looked in the mirror, I dont know who I am any more The face is familiar, but the eyes, the eyes give it all away. They just stop their screaming in your head, and that’s when you think they have died. But all they do is crawl up on your face, dig a trench and live in there for ever. And steal their part of the gleam in your eyes. Because that’s what makes our eyes shine: our dreams. When we bury them, then we’ve nothing.
Theyre all out to get you, once again, theyre all out to get you Here they come again

Oh, here they come again… They’re after me, they’re after you, I’m after you, I was after you, I’ll always be, even when I’m not. But you’ll always be so far away… so Insecure, what ya gonna do, Feel so small, they could step on you, and haven’t they? Called you up, answer machine, when the human touch Is what I need, what I need is you

And all these years, all I ever wanted was to breathe. Let me breathe, if youd let me breathe

Theyre all out to get you, once again, theyre all out to get you

Once again…
I need you...

Home

I stayed at home today, meaning that I didn't go to work. I called in, not sick, but very tired and worn out.
I'm very happy I can do this with my boss, even though I don't really like my job. The truth is, I'm on antibiotics for, well, something, and they hurt my stomach. Last night I was feeling drunk, even though I haven't drunk in ages... The room was spinning, I couldn't see clearly and my stomach was feeling like a stupid... uhm... I'll say "rock", cause no good word or metaphor comes to mind. I slept few to zero hours last night - Panos, good man, - my boyfriend, for those of you who don't know- refused to stay at his home (we were at his place when it happened, but I couldn't stay there) and drove with me to my place and stayed at my place, even though his (stupid) cat was pissed at him for leaving (I swear, this cat is human, and he hates me!), so I was feeling secure.

To stop everyone right there, before you start saying I'm sick and getting all worried and everything, I'm not sick, I just need to take these antibiotics till Saturday or Sunday for this tiny little unimportant thing I have, and then everything will be better! I just think Augmentin is a bit strong for me, but I'm already better.

I thought I'd work on my Ronda thing today, that I'm at home, but the truth is, it's already noon, and I am still watching stupid shows on TV, my brain is already mushed from watching too much Menegaki (seriously, consider yourselves lucky for not living in Greece and not having the Menegaki option when staying at home) and I don't think I can be creative in any way.
The truth is, I don't really know what to do with my time, once I'm at home, and not at work. When thinking of the prospect of staying at home, I have all these plans for what to do with my day. "I'll do this, I'll write that, I'll shop there, I'll jog here" and all that. When the time comes, I find my ass glued on my couch, I don't even carry my laptop to my desk, so my feet take turns falling asleep from sitting in weird positions, trying to make myself comfortable on a couch I only like sitting and not lying on! I need to be more organized, or I'll never finish my Ronda*.

*yes, my Ronda is a book

I am thinking of doing so many things in the future, that I am sure I won't be doing any. I am still considering L'Aquila, though my initial enthusiasm is kind of fading away... I mean, yes, I do want to get out of here, but how is going to some village in Italy and stopping what I'm doing in order to do something completely different going to help me at all? But I'm considering going to Dublin. Or London. Or even New York (though that would be truly expensive, and I don't want that). Panos said he'd consider going to Chicago with me, if we could find jobs... HEY, ANYONE IN CHICAGO, WE'RE GOOD AT WRITING, AND GREAT ON THE RADIO! ANY JOBS OUT THERE FOR US??
Anyway, I have no idea how to get a job in another country. In Greece it's all about the people you know, and I don't know anyone in Chicago.

The bottom line is, I really need a change in my life. When I was younger, these points in my life were more frequent, and when they came, I'd change boyfriends, jobs, go on trips, completely change my hair, you know the feeling? Well, I like my boyfriend (which is really a first for me!), I don't reaaaaaally want to change my hair, I wish I could find another job, but it's difficult, and I really can't afford to take another course at the NYFA, the last one cost way too much money! Plus, I feel like I can't get myself organized to think of anything, and plan anything, and I need a break from work. I still have 12 vacation days left from last year, but I can't take it yet... And 2 weeks (that's how long that is) is really not enough!

Anyway
Am I ranting?
Was that a rant?
who cares?
I'll let you in on a little secret: I typed more than half of this with my eyes closed!

A birthday wish

Tonight, I have a birthday wish
that is a little bit different
than any other birthday wish I've given
I have a birthday wish that goes out to an angel

I wish you a happy birthday
I wish you know that you changed my life
I wish you feel no more pain
I wish you are still dancing
I wish you got to see Iceland
I wish you found that faeries exist and danced with them to eternity
I wish your days are filled with music
I wish you know you are special
I wish you are loved
I wish you know how loved you were
when you were down here with us
I wish you know you still are loved
I wish that heaven is treating you well
and the clouds you are wearing are fluffy enough to your liking
I wish I never forget you
I wish I always remember the things you taught me
I wish we had more time
and I wish one day we meet again
some day
Until then
I'll always be remembering you
every day
I wish you are well
Happy birthday

Stolen

So, shoot me

i have blogger's block, so i have to do this
I stole it from Erin's blog, which rawks

What is on your bed right now? new sheets, thank you very much, yes I am clean

When was the last time you threw up? oh, during my forgotten years, that was about 10 years ago.. uh-huh!

What's your favorite word or phrase? I don't know... wait, that's not my favorite phrase, i just really don't know!

Name 3 people who made you smile today? Three??? Are you kidding? Do you know the people I have to deal with? Ok, Panos made me smile today, and Antigone, and I was laughing with (not at) Kalouda on MSN, so that might be 3 if I can count

What were you doing at 8 am this morning? I was having breakfast, realizing that I'll probably be having a bad day stomach-wise... I was right, there was pain! :D

What were you doing 30 minutes ago? Trying to get the cat that found the door open and ran outside

What is your favorite holiday? Erin said "Halloween" and I agree

Have you ever been to another country? Yup, i have

What is the last thing you said aloud? "And you're singing the songs thinking this is the life and you wake up in the morning and your head feels twice it's size where are you gonna go where are you gonna go where are you gonna sleep tonight" I had mtv on

What is the best ice cream flavor? Yoghurt and cinnamon

What was the last thing you had to drink? Tea

What are you wearing right now? Shirt, yoga pants

What was the last thing you ate? Breakfast

Have you bought any new clothing items this week? This week? uhm... burberry's rain boots...

When was the last time you ran? I ran up the stairs this morning

What's the last sporting event you watched? Football games, last night... both football and... well... football, cause football is played with your feet, you know! FOOTball, get it??

If you could go anywhere in the world, where would you go? New York, and Dublin, and Los Angeles, and Canada, cause I've never been to Canada

Who is the last person you sent a comment/message on myspace? I don't even remember, for real... My space on myspace is a dead space

Ever go camping? Every year for about 20 years!

Do you have a tan? oh of course i do, it's January, who doesnt!

Have you ever lost anything down a toilet? Yes, I have, a ring, it fell off my finger while I was -DUDE!!- washing my hands, bounced off the counter right into the toilet, and I refused to stick my hand in there and get it back... what???

What is your guilty pleasure? Food, shoes and New Kids On The Block

Do you use smiley faces on the computer alot? Yes... and on sms...

Do you drink your soda from a straw? Uhm... whatever...

What did your last text message say? it was a phone number

Are you someone's best friend? you bet

What are you doing tomorrow? Work, then a game, then maybe I'll go out, but then again I'm going out tonight and then again on Wednesday, so maybe just the game, we'll see

Where is your mom right now? At home

Look to your left, what do you see? Panos, his foot on the couch's back, a plant, doors...

What color is your watch? It's white with black eyes, shaped like a skull... oh wait... That's it on the right

What do you think of when you think of Australia? Kangaroos and sunny Christmases

Ever ridden on a roller coaster? Uhm... no... Ok, once, but it was a thousand years ago and it was the tiniest little thing you've seen so I don't think that counts

What is your birthstone? I forgot to ask. I was too happy to be born

Do you go in at a fast food place or just hit the drive tthru? I don't go to fast food places, period.

Do you have any friends on myspace that you actually hate? Again, MySpace, DeadSpace

Do you have a dog? I have a cat that looks like a dog

Last person you talked to on the phone? Antigone

Any plans today? I'll try to get my stomach to rest and then go out and mess it up all over again

Are you happy? I am healthy, I have a loving family, a good man, a cat that hates me and friends all around me... I'm OK... If I was happy, that would mean I have no goals and my life is complete, and I don't really want to die just yet

Where are you right now? At Panos' place

Biggest annoyance in your life right now? Panos is baking sausages and his house smells

Last song listened to? This is the life

Last movie you saw? Stardust

Are you allergic to anything? Chocolate

Favorite pair of shoes you wear all the time? My boots.

Are you jealous of anyone? I'm human, aren't I?

Are you married? Nope

Is anyone jealous of you? Why would anyone be jealous of me??

Do any of your friends have children? Actually, no.. Some people I know do, but noone very close to me

Do you eat healthy? Sometimes I do

What do you usually do during the day? I go to work, I come back home, I sometimes go to the gym, I cook, I read, I listen to music, normal things... what, you think us awesome people are not normal, like everyone else? Please...

Do you hate anyone right now? Hate?? gawd, no, why would I give anyone I dont like this much attention??

Do you use the word 'hello' daily? It would be kind of weird, considering I speak greek

How old will you be turning on your next birthday? 34... shit, I'm old

Have you ever been to Six Flags? Six Flags??? eh... no...

How did u get one of your scars? Chicken pox

The 100 best English-language novels of the 20th Century

This is something Richard posted, but i thought reposting it was good, cause these things need to go around

plus, i need to keep this list, for future reference.

In 2000, a board of authors and literary critics created a list for Random House of the 100 best English-language novels of the 20th Century. This is that list. I've bolded the works that I've read.

Note that these are english-language novels, and any additions to that list are more than welcome, english language or not!

1. (1922) Ulysses James Joyce
2. (1925) The Great Gatsby F. Scott Fitzgerald
3. (1916) A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man James Joyce
4. (1955) Lolita Vladimir Nabokov
5. (1932) Brave New World Aldous Huxley
6. (1929) The Sound and the Fury William Faulkner
7. (1961) Catch-22 Joseph Heller
8. (1940) Darkness at Noon Arthur Koestler
9. (1913) Sons and Lovers D. H. Lawrence
10. (1939) The Grapes of Wrath John Steinbeck
11. (1947) Under the Volcano Malcolm Lowry
12. (1903) The Way of All Flesh Samuel Butler
13. (1949) Nineteen Eighty-Four George Orwell
14. (1934) I, Claudius Robert Graves
15. (1927) To the Lighthouse Virginia Woolf
16. (1925) An American Tragedy Theodore Dreiser
17. (1940) The Heart Is a Lonely Hunter Carson McCullers
18. (1969) Slaughterhouse-Five Kurt Vonnegut
19. (1952) Invisible Man Ralph Ellison
20. (1940) Native Son Richard Wright
21. (1959) Henderson the Rain King Saul Bellow
22. (1934) Appointment in Samarra John O'Hara
23. (1938) U.S.A. (trilogy) John Dos Passos
24. (1919) Winesburg, Ohio Sherwood Anderson
25. (1924) A Passage to India E. M. Forster
26. (1902) The Wings of the Dove Henry James
27. (1903) The Ambassadors Henry James
28. (1934) Tender Is the Night F. Scott Fitzgerald
29. (1935) Studs Lonigan (trilogy) James T. Farrell
30. (1915) The Good Soldier Ford Madox Ford
31. (1945) Animal Farm George Orwell
32. (1904) The Golden Bowl Henry James
33. (1900) Sister Carrie Theodore Dreiser
34. (1934) A Handful of Dust Evelyn Waugh
35. (1930) As I Lay Dying William Faulkner
36. (1946) All the King's Men Robert Penn Warren
37. (1927) The Bridge of San Luis Rey Thornton Wilder
38. (1910) Howards End E. M. Forster
39. (1953) Go Tell It on the Mountain James Baldwin
40. (1948) The Heart of the Matter Graham Greene
41. (1954) Lord of the Flies William Golding
42. (1970) Deliverance James Dickey
43. (1951-1975) A Dance to the Music of Time (series) Anthony Powell
44. (1928) Point Counter Point Aldous Huxley
45. (1926) The Sun Also Rises Ernest Hemingway
46. (1907) The Secret Agent Joseph Conrad
47. (1904) Nostromo Joseph Conrad
48. (1915) The Rainbow D. H. Lawrence
49. (1920) Women in Love D. H. Lawrence
50. (1934) Tropic of Cancer Henry Miller
51. (1948) The Naked and the Dead Norman Mailer
52. (1969) Portnoy's Complaint Philip Roth
53. (1962) Pale Fire Vladimir Nabokov
54. (1932) Light in August William Faulkner
55. (1957) On the Road Jack Kerouac
56. (1930) The Maltese Falcon Dashiell Hammett
57. (1924-1928) Parade's End Ford Madox Ford
58. (1920) The Age of Innocence Edith Wharton
59. (1911) Zuleika Dobson Max Beerbohm
60. (1961) The Moviegoer Walker Percy
61. (1927) Death Comes for the Archbishop Willa Cather
62. (1951) From Here to Eternity James Jones
63. (1957) The Wapshot Chronicle John Cheever
64. (1951) The Catcher in the Rye J. D. Salinger
65. (1962) A Clockwork Orange Anthony Burgess
66. (1915) Of Human Bondage W. Somerset Maugham
67. (1902) Heart of Darkness Joseph Conrad
68. (1920) Main Street Sinclair Lewis
69. (1905) The House of Mirth Edith Wharton
70. (1957-1960) The Alexandria Quartet Lawrence Durrell
71. (1929) A High Wind in Jamaica Richard Hughes
72. (1961) A House for Mr Biswas V. S. Naipaul
73. (1939) The Day of the Locust Nathanael West
74. (1929) A Farewell to Arms Ernest Hemingway
75. (1938) Scoop Evelyn Waugh
76. (1962) The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie Muriel Spark
77. (1939) Finnegans Wake James Joyce
78. (1901) Kim Rudyard Kipling
79. (1908) A Room with a View E. M. Forster
80. (1945) Brideshead Revisited Evelyn Waugh
81. (1953) The Adventures of Augie March Saul Bellow
82. (1971) Angle of Repose Wallace Stegner
83. (1979) A Bend in the River V. S. Naipaul
84. (1938) The Death of the Heart Elizabeth Bowen
85. (1900) Lord Jim Joseph Conrad
86. (1975) Ragtime E. L. Doctorow
87. (1908) The Old Wives' Tale Arnold Bennett
88. (1903) The Call of the Wild Jack London
89. (1945) Loving Henry Green
90. (1980) Midnight's Children Salman Rushdie
91. (1932) Tobacco Road Erskine Caldwell
92. (1983) Ironweed William Kennedy
93. (1965) The Magus John Fowles
94. (1966) Wide Sargasso Sea Jean Rhys
95. (1954) Under the Net Iris Murdoch
96. (1979) Sophie's Choice William Styron
97. (1949) The Sheltering Sky Paul Bowles
98. (1934) The Postman Always Rings Twice James M. Cain
99. (1955) The Ginger Man J. P. Donleavy
100. (1918) The Magnificent Ambersons Booth Tarkington

All right

after two days of partying, not sleeping and (I'm sorry Debs, we're Greek, we can't have a celebration without it!!) food, life is slowly getting back on track (and so will I, food-wise, today!). Of course the holidays here are far from over, the celebration ends on Tuesday, but it's much lighter and far less partying...

so... i guess what I'm trying to say, is

happy new year to everybody

I really do hope this year is better for everyone than 2008 was! No one expects it to be challenge free and rosey, but at least i hope it's easy and filled with more laughter and good times!

Anyway... it's back to work for me (no work yesterday, thankfully, because I couldn't even stand on my feet!) but i can't even get myself to get dressed! I should already be there by now, but wth

Hopefully you all had a great time, and 2009 proves to be fun as well as... well... fun! :)

goodmorning everybody