Yes. In a few days I will officially be one year older! When exactly? December 31st!
Yes, I know. It’s New Year’s Eve ( = sylwester). I just have to make a small language note here – sorry, I can’t resist that ( = nie mogę się oprzeć). The word “eve” means “the evening before.” If you look at the words, you’ll realise that the word “eve” is actually the first three letters of the word “evening”! (Well, the real etymology is a bit more complicated, but my explanation is easy to remember…) So, Christmas Eve is “the evening before Christmas”, and New Year’s Eve – the evening before New Year’s Day. Makes sense?
Anyway, back to you guys. My birthday is on New Year’s Eve, and somehow it shocks everyone – I don’t know why ;). I’ve never been much of a party girl, so on December 31st I preferred to sleep anyway – instead of any kind of parties, New Year’s parties, birthday parties, whatever parties. I wish the fireworks ( = fajerwerki) had made the sleeping possible – I absolutely hate the abominable ( = obrzydliwe) contraptions ( = ustrojstwa), for all the noise they are making ;).
So, I never actually celebrated ( = obchodzić) my birthday. No presents, no candles to be blown ( = bez świeczek do zdmuchnięcia), no fuss ( = bez zamieszania). It’s always been a day like any other. But I think this year is, and will be, different.
This year has been quite a rollercoaster for me ( = kolejka górska). It has been an amazing year for my business ( = firma) – and I have to thank all of you guys for being there for me and supporting me. I started my podcast – thanks to a small tip ( = wskazówka) from Jędrzej Paulus, which made all the podcasting easy for me. Thank you, Jędrzej! I also started my youtube channel, and I’ve been more present on LinkedIn, thanks to my LinkedIn mentor Marcin Banaszkiewicz. Thanks, Marcin!
In January or February I got my sword back! In case you hadn’t followed the story a year ago – there was this sword ( = miecz; no, you don’t read the “w”) that I had sold during a bad time in my life, and exactly a year ago I located it with Szymon Okrutny, who has been kind enough to let me have it back! I’ve never believed in symbols, but this piece of steel does stand for ( = oznacza) my independence and freedom, and it does spark joy ( = rozpala iskierki radości), as Marie Kondo would say! So thank you, Marie Kondo… um, well, of course I meant Szymon!
In March, I had a great photoshoot ( = sesja zdjęciowa. Yes, I know you want to use “photo session.” This expression does exist, but “a photoshoot” is more natural). The photoshoot was with Kasia Gruk and Magda Jaworska. The girls spent a whole day with me, producing the amazing photos that you can now see everywhere. Thank you, Kasia and Magda!
And later on in March I made my dream come true and went to Spain, to see things connected with my beloved ( = ukochany) series, The Game of Thrones. I saw the exhibition of the props ( = rekwizyty) from the set ( = z planu), and I visited Seville, which was the location for one of the places in the series. I came back to Poland on the last day before they shut down air traffic ( = zamknęli ruch samolotowy) Thank you, Deanerys!
And then my hospital adventures started. Right after my return from Spain, I landed in a covid-19 hospital with some strange symptoms. I never got the test results back, but my fitness levels dropped dramatically. Even my personal trainer, Ania Kucharska, noticed that I was losing shape ( = traciłam formę) in between our workouts ( = treningi), instead of improving ( = ulepszanie). By the way, thank you Ania!
Then I spent a few days at a pediatric hospital with my daughter. She had had a spine injury ( = uraz kręgosłupa). Luckily, nothing very serious, but it did require her wearing a back brace ( = gorset ortopedyczny) for three months.
And then I landed in hospital again, with strange symptoms again, no-one knew what it was, and also I never got the virus test results back…
And speaking of back injuries, it turns out I have one too. Something is clicking between my vertebrae ( = kręgi) when I move, and my physiotherapist says it’s not so good… ;). Big thanks to Konrad Dąbrowski for standing by me ( = wspieranie mnie), even though I am a naughty patient ( = niegrzeczna) and don’t REALLY do all the exercises I’m supposed to be doing ( = mam robić). They are so boring!!!
It’s also been a year of recovering from childhood traumas. As they say ( = jak mówią), better late than never ( = lepiej późno niż wcale). Big thanks to my therapist, Agnieszka Redkowiak, who is helping me on my way towards happiness and independence.
But wait, I’ve saved the best for last. This year I’ve discovered a love of my life – bachata! I am totally infatuated with ( = zauroczona) this dance, even though I’ve only been learning it for a few months. Big thanks to my dance partners, Leszek and Andrzej, for bravely practising Matrix-like dodges ( = uniki), when I forget to do something safe with my arms while spinning, and they just fling around ( = miotają się), out of control. By the way, did you notice the pronunciation of Matrix – /ˈmeɪtrɪks/? It’s not like we say in Polish!
OK, that’s it! A year ago I wrote to you that life begins at 40. And to me, it really did. Now that I am 41, I can feel more myself than ever before. I’ve made myself a few birthday gifts. One of them was yesterday – a beautiful massage /ˈmæsɑːʒ/. Even though this word seems to come from French, the word stress ( = akcent) is on the first syllable, not the second. A year ago I would never think of saying such “nonsense,” but today I feel grateful ( = wdzięczna) to be alive.
So, I promised in the title of this lesson that I will have a gift for you – to celebrate MY birthday. This is something I have never done before, and I don’t know I will ever repeat that in the future. It is a discount code, for 50% off ( = zniżka) all of my audio, video, pdf and flashcard courses! So that’s basically everything apart from ( = oprócz) 1-on-1 classes and live ( = nas żywo) group workshops. The coupon code is Kasia – my first name – and it will work only on December 31st 2020, Warsaw time. Catch it while you can! 🙂
So, happy my birthday to everyone! Also, have a great New Year’s Eve, and the most wonderful New Year ever. And I’ll be there waiting for you – to teach you even more English!
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