600 grams tuna

*** getting the first days of chilly weather... finally! the sky is still bright blue and we are still getiing mornings full of light -- but the wind is sharper and the temperatures are definitely less summery now. there is an air out, especially when i step out in the morning or go out for a jog late in the evening that makes me feel strangely alive and kind of euphoric.

*** had my usual round of classes during the weekend and tutored a new student on sunday. he is a 25 year old former basketball player and now works as a model, while trying to finish off (not very successfully) a degree in business management. i would add he is not exactly the sharpest tool in the box and all he can talk about is his fitness schedule + "his" catwalks in istanbul + what seems like an endless list of girlfriends. on top of that -- his clothes are boy band material. think take that in the 90's or backstreet boys in one of their embarassing dance routines: white tank top, open shirt, baggy jeans, "gangsta" snickers and big watch. yesterday i nearly collapsed laughing when he informed me about his daily diet. his list went on as follows.

morning:
1 litre of milk + cornflakes (one box...500 grams)
protein shake

lunch:
600 grams of canned tuna
1 litre of milk
protein shake

dinner:
500 grams of grilled chicken
protein shake

your poor kidneys! -- i wanted to say... but then i - less humanitarianly so - noticed with a mix of horror and amusement he had a flock of in-growing hair peeking at me from his chest.

great...!

*** asked one of my groups of students to imagine they could be someone or something else for a while... "if you could be anything or anyone for a day or a week... a famous person, an animal, an object, a politician, one of your friends... who would you choose?" i thought this could be a great conversation starter - but it was received with rather lukewarm answers... some of the students who made an effort came up with things like...

- "i would love to be jessica biel (justin timberlake's girl) -- because he is gorgeous and i would love to live with him. stay in the swanky places where he stays... ";

- a rather stern guy said "i would love to be a woman for a couple of months. just to understand what women feel and how they think..." ;

- a goody-two-shoes 22 year old girl said "i just pray i could be a student somewhere else, living on my own. and free. because now i live with my parents. and they check on me all the time and my dad never lets me go out after 9 pm" ...

- the "intellectual" lad of the group said he wanted to be a stage actor for some time to perform in theatre;

- a couple of them nodded vigorously while explaining they would be "ataturk!" any day;

- a tabby, smiley girl said she dreamt about being a hero saving lives and helping the poor.

- someone commented "if you ask this question to any woman in turkey...you have to know... - any turkish woman's real wish is to be a man".

- the cutey of the class, a skinny minnie with interesting neon ear-rings and 80's hairstyle said she wanted to be a supermodel in milan for a week or so.

- a somber, shy student stated she wanted to be the "president of wall street... or some other stock exchange".

then the jessica biel wannabe (still grinning from the thought of mr timberlake) asked me what i wanted to be... and i said i had too many ideas in my head...then changed the subject by cheekily adding: "but what if justin does not shower much?" which made everyone laugh. needless to say...my mind was still having a hard time getting over the in-growing problem of mr. "600grams of tuna for lunch"...
but...
yesterday night -- as i was out jogging... i started thinking about the conversation about "being something / someone else" and could not stop coming up with ideas.
what would i be? (the wish list is endless...)

>> for a day...an actress with talent - performing on stage or working on a movie set;

>> for few hours...a professional athlete;

>> for a couple of days...kate moss twenty years ago, ten years ago and ten minutes ago;

>> for two or three hours...a swimmer in a stunning sea water pool by the ocean i saw in sydney, bondi beach;

>> for a week or so... a fly on the wall in the life of the people i do not understand. to see if they are happy. to see what their face looks like when they are at home / out having dinner / listening to their colleaugues or walking along the street by themselves;

>> for a week or so...somebody travelling a lot for their job - someone like alex, the character played by vera farmiga in "up in the air". (ok, partly because she gets george clooney...but mainly because she is uber cool).

>> for a month or so... a food writer or a food photographer;

>> for a couple of months... a professional photographer. no war zone. no fashion. no ads. no balinese landscapes. just portrayts;

>> for one day... my son. to see how he thinks. what he fears. what he likes best. how his sense of humour works;

>> for a couple of weeks... elizabeth abbott (tilda swindon in "the curious case of benjamin button") smashing fashion sense, sheer grace and amazing class;

>> for life... somebody who can speak any language in a fluent and natural way (turkish would be enough...at the moment);
((and so many other things, really...))
but -
>> for now... someone who keeps on wondering about stupid, useless questions of this kind!
(the image of that pool has fortunately replaced the in-growing hair issue...!)

*** PLUS... must now start working on other wish lists -- but of a terribly more banal (and xmas-y nature)... which i find hard to do... especially when i keep on hearing in class that "christmas is on 22nd december, teacher...but people in europe celebrate it on 31st too"