Home is where you feel like (at)

I recently received a phone call from an English teaching Polish colleague of mine regarding a question she had received  from a journalist asking if the English slogan used for the Euro2012 ‘Feel Like at Home,’ was linguistically accurate.  As Euro 2012 is happening in less than two weeks, a quite imposing series of murals circling the central train station have been put up showcasing an array of international football fanatics in their respective country’s colors.   It’s hard to miss, trust me.  The imposing size, the bright colors and the eye catching slogan will undoubtedly capture even the most uninterested pedestrian’s attention.  Despite the size, the relevant thing to many Poles here in Warsaw is the slogan ‘Feel like at home.’ The debate is whether this expression is linguistically correct.    

The headline states that many Poles are upset about the supposedly linguistically invalid expression, yet many native speakers of English are nodding in approval about the expression maintaining that it’s not as natural as many of us would say; however, it’s logical. 

'Feel like at home', and Poles 2012 your hosts!

To the native speaker’s ear it doesn’t sound too wrong.  Anyway, if you look at the article found here(: http://natemat.pl/16321,burza-wokol-hasla-feel-like-at-home-w-szklance-wody-polacy-wytykaja-blad-a-native-speakerow-like-nie-razi   )   you will see that many are unhappy about the slogan.  Nevertheless, as one of the native speakers asked for the validity of this motto, I will reiterate that it doesn’t sound that bad.    We hear a lot worse from you Poles-from the best of you as well to boot.  Anyway, as a little experiment, I Googled the expression and it does not exist.  Of course, the best expression  and probably the grammatically correct expression is the expression ‘feel at home.’  The expression ‘feel like at home’ is a direct translation from Polish.  Regardless, if Poland invites me to feel at home or feel like at home, I will happily accept.  So, Where’s the fridge? And can I help myself to a beer?

Behind the main train station

To Run or to Jog? That Is the Question!

Is it running or jogging? It seems that I have always considered myself a jogger.  You know, the type that throws on a t-shirt, shorts, socks and tennis shoes and makes a few cheery rounds around a track or past a few houses before calling it a day.  The type of person who isn’t really walking but moving at a pace that isn’t really moving that fast either and is able to carry on a conversation about world events or poker strategies at the same time. Nevertheless, it probably would have been accurate to mark me a nothing more than a complete beginner until recently.  Jogging is an activity that often takes little motivation to get me moving, yet I had never been able to cover long distances in short amounts of time. Anyway, I was finally able to overcome this barrier recently by completing my first half marathon at the age of 35. 

 

About a year ago I started training for the half marathon in Warsaw.  I trained as often as I could.  However, I had never gone over 20 kilometers before.  So on race day I felt rather intimidated. In March, on the morning of the race I carefully found the back of the group (of  several thousand) and  sheepishly crossed the starting line.  Frightened as I was, in the end, I finished it quite easily.  The training paid off and I was able to complete the race in just over 2 hours which isn’t really a great time, but for me it was one of those little milestones.  I am more than a jogger now, at least.

Flash forward to a  week ago on a warm Saturday. I competed in a 10k race in my neighborhood, which included  only 264 people, so it felt more relaxed than the half marathon. This was part of the Warsaw Grand Prix series that comprises ten races over Warsaw during the year.   This was my first in the series.  Despite the heat, I ended up pushing myself without a water break, and crossed the finish line in just over 46 minutes, which for me is a great time.  I even placed right in the middle of the group at 132 out of 264 runners.  The next one is in June and I’m going to be there.  I even planning on doing the full marathon in September.

So in some way, I guess I’ve become like Forest Gump.  I’ll just keep running.  No more jogging.  Or whatever the vernacular is these days.   On the other hand maybe the concept of  running is more about one's level of commitment.  For me the biggest difference is that I can run faster, but more importantly, is that I take it more seriously or with more enthusiasm.  It no longer is just throwing on a shirt and shorts and making a few steps around in a park.  It has become more ritualistic. I try to have proper shoes, comfortable socks, and a t-shirt that isn’t too heavy or burns the nipples at long distances.  I also watch what I eat (slightly) more than before.   Most importantly, however,  I just do it because I feel better at the end of the day.  This is what’s important.