Immigration and visas

passport stamsLiving as a foreigner in a foreign country has certain pluses and minuses and these are going to be different for everyone involved, but one thing remains the same for everyone – dealing with immigration to ensure your resident status.

In the seven years I’ve lived in Lithuania, I’ve had to deal with it every year and every year, it’s been a different experience. This year was the most harrowing of all, though.  Continue reading “Immigration and visas”

On Judging English Competitions

HostingSeveral years ago, back when I was regularly attending pub quiz, I met a woman who was the head of a primary school. Being a native English speaker, she had asked me if I could possibly come and be part of a jury for an annual English/speech competition the school hosted. Naturally, I said yes and have been doing it now for several years. In addition, I’ve also done some recording for her as the voice on the audio portions for grammar school English books (and, I was just informed, the English teacher in the books was named for me!) Continue reading “On Judging English Competitions”

Neil Gaiman on Why We Read and What Books Do for the Human Experience – Brain Pickings

So I posted this on Facebook, but it seems like it needs a more permanent home. Therefore, posting it here.

And while it’s true this is piece is focused on Gaiman, there are a number of really good links which are just as important to the truth of reading and storytelling that I wanted to keep it nearby. “Truth is not in what happens but in what it tells us about who we are.”

Source: Neil Gaiman on Why We Read and What Books Do for the Human Experience – Brain Pickings