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The reason why I always felt “at home” with computers is my first homecomputer, a “CIP”. Which was my first, back in the late 80s.

I probably won’t be voting this year. I’m telling you about my failed attempt to register for “vote by correspondence” or “votul prin corespondenta” as well as my passport application.

I just learned about two Romanian-Canadian people, mother and daughter Ana Constantin and Lisa Maria Paun being banned for life by Air Canada and left stranded without proper notice. This is not discrimination, just incredibly poor customer service and it’s an issue almost all of us have to deal with every time we fly.

I have recently read an opinion by some “journo” in a tabloid on how anonymous SIM cards should be sold no more (i.e., make them available only to those producing ID). I argue that the writing privileges of this person should be suspended.

Unlike most of my Romanian friends, who are angered by the details of the 112/police (EMS) response to Alexandra Macesanu’s increasingly desperate calls, I am far more upset by police colonel, university professor and forensic psychologist Tudorel Badea Butoi-Severin and the inconsequential censure by CNCD following his deeply offensive, misogynistic, victim-blaming comments. I believe that the hostility and inadequacy of the police response is rooted in the attitude that Prof Butoi has expressed and this bigotry is the root cause of police inaction and incompetence.

In a significant development, the full transcript of the 112 calls by the last victim, Alexandra Măceșanu, has been published. It is unclear to me if these are the official transcripts or rather what some of those who have listened may have remembered or clandestinely recorded. I do not expect that the official transcripts are any different and I am publishing them along with the censured victim-blaming comments made in 2010 by Tudorel Butoi, who continues to provide his “expert opinion” in TV shows.

Whereas in English "Caracal" refers to a “medium-sized wild cat”, in Romania it’s a small town, possibly named after the long disappeared animal. Recently, what may very well be a serial killer has been arrested after some agonizing, train-wreck of a police investigation. This would be the first such criminal there in a long time.

Recently, a friend asked me to provide Romanian lessons. I directed her to Duolingo (invite) and, as I occasionally listen to Romanian eTeatru (or “teatru radiofonic”), it occurred to me that this is something worth sharing with the rest of the world.

Whenever I talk to Romanians who want to come to Canada and I answer questions, I always end up being a bit upset. I find that people ask me too many simple questions they could answer themselves with Google and too few of the “important” questions. Maybe there’s a guru hiding inside of me, and here’s where I set him free.

The Romanian expression would be “niste carnati expirati” though in English I could’ve called them hotdogs or patsies just the same. Now, I owe a new installment in an older series, due to a debt born in comments; I know that and I’ll get to it eventually. However, this one is simpler and takes less time to write, which is why I am writing it now, quickly.

A relatively recent tragic murder and Munchausen by proxy case is a pretext to look at how Romani / Gypsy / Roma people are perceived, the guilt of their children and mob mentality.

Were the two girls, of each at least one lives in London and was traveling back home, subject to unwarranted aggression, or were they able to transform their own arrest into a long-winded drama, at the expense of the image and reputation of the Romanian Police?

One of the many silly “arguements” (sic!) listed in the previous article stuck with me: men are more desperate and supposedly stalk women more so than women do men. I do not recall ever stalking someone, but I do recall being stalked a few times (not killed or maimed, just a tad annoyed).

There was a time when women were dreaming of a “knight in shining armour” but a steady decline in the prestige of shiny things coupled with a long set of economic crises have put an end to those romantic times. Today women seem to want a man who’ll pay and they rely on the State for protection and Facebook and/or Twitter for DIY reputation management (aka PR). A recent article on dating and paying for it (ctch-tspr) reopened a long-forgotten subject, a subject I haven't attacked in a while (since between 12 and 12-B, to be exact), despite a desire and even a plan to do so.

A couple of years back I found myself in the Boston airport, meeting face to face Ana Birchall, whom I have previously featured on this blog. It was not a meeting organized by our respective secretaries, but it was nonetheless interesting for me.

Despite this being one of the reasons I started this blog, the more I try to engage in online debates, the angrier and more unsatisfied I get. Before I decide to completely and always avoid them, it may be worth looking into why they are this way.

The video of Dr Simona Tibu's arrest and assault has recently been released (cbc-video), after a protracted legal battle. What is debatable is to what extent is this a case of police brutality / use of unnecessary and excessive force, or white female entitlement.

I had started back in 2008 with Radna and continued with an echo from DoR. Radna was not the only one and when, at a recent party, I met the brother of another such checkbox, the memories came rushing into my head. I shall call her Anaughtia.

I’ve two heavy things on my mind right now, and unlike WhatsApp frustrations, I don't think I'll be able to balance them with some happier, care-free thoughts. The second part of the title was inspired by a comment left by Blegoo about a year ago.

On the subject of long-distance communications (following my recent WhatsApp-ian conversion). And then I added something a little less annoying and quite satisfying: a debating project.