Season 03, Ep. 08

(A cheesy) Season Finale. 

It's nearly the end of this year. It's definitely the end of the school-academic year over here. Therefore, in light of the end of an era, the end of a chapter, this season finale is going out to my beloved students. Past ones, current ones and future ones. It goes out to the teenagers we are growing today for this rapidly changing world which they're about to enter tomorrow. 

Wake up with a purpose. Wake up with a goal. What is your goal today. Even if it’s as simple as to say 'thank you' more often, own it, succeed, it, exceed it. Go to bed each night, ticking off daily goals. 

Success is not always in money, or fame or power. Success is in little things. Success is waking up knowing that you're about to spend a day doing what you love. It's about working with people you love. It's about going home to the people you love. Success is finding that drive, that passion, that purpose that puts a smile on your face when you hear your alarm going off in the morning. This can be different to everybody, so find your own drive but don't compare it to others', because they are not you. 

It's also about going to bed at night knowing that you did your best today. That if you saw someone on the street in pain, or in distress, you would stop to help. That even if you hated Physics at school, you still gave it a good go because you knew it can open your eyes about everyday things you didn't know. 

If you didn't know the answer to a problem or a question, but you did everything you could to find the answer, that's success. There's two types of failure. There is failure because you never even tried, and there is failure after we gave it our best shot. Never apologise for failing after having tried your best. Apologise for never trying. Apologise for not caring. But apologise to yourself, not to anyone else, because at the end of the day when you not care, it's only you staying behind, not anybody else. When you give it your best and you fail, own up to it. Take it away, learn from the mistake and come back for another go. And then another. Success is the total of failures plus the person who never gave up. 

Success is also joy, success is being free, falling in love, building a friendship, a bromance, a sisterhood. 

Success is in realising that there is always room for improvement in ourselves and that learning never stops. Not at 18, not at 25, not at 60. 

Find your passion. Find your joy. Succeed in all the above. Tick your boxes. Say please and thank you more often. It will get you a long way. 

Develop skills in all possible areas when you are at school. It's your only time to figure out what you like, and what you are good at. Develop manners. Care about your planet. It's your heritage to your sons and daughters. Your school is your fuel station. And there is nothing more attractive than an educated, smart, ambitious person. 

Merry Christmas and a Happy 2017.

Toodles,

Katerina

Season 2, Ep. 05

And So This Was Christmas. 

And what have you done? Another year over, and a new one just began. Whoop.  So. I could have been dreaming for a white Christmas but no no, this was my first very warm Christmas, since at this hemisphere that I'm stuck in, everything is backwards. The weather got so warm and suddenly, guilty, force of habit, my mind got fully set on summer mode and that for me means months away from any form of Christmas spirit. And here is everyone and everywhere around me getting ready and decorating for Christmas and I swear I had to go at least 10 times in my head "Oh yeah that's right, it's December". But anyway overall a great, great first experience. So much love, so much family, just like I reckon it should be. Plus heaps of rays of sun and piling on sunblock considering there is no ozone layer here and the sun is the devil in yellow. And you know how normally we complain about HOW MUCH we eat during the Xmas holidays,  I mean the weather alone is so cold outside and frightful-shot Frank-, our appetites are grande only because of that right? Yeah I don't think I'm the only one who shall agree that during extremely hot weather my appetite is fairly low and all I want to do is drink cold refreshments. So I cannot really participate in the stomach overload campaign either soz. But boy was it fun. And did I mention sunny? Mmmm. Few pressies here and there, great catch ups with people and Billie Jean wearing her fancy bow tie collar which was my cute highlight of the day. Hashtag crazy dog lady. And come on, let's face it, when you share these special days with wonderful people, they will turn out to be memorable, period. 
And now for the New Year. History has repeatedly taught me that the more pressure I put on NYE's plans the more crap it will turn out. Easy math. And so 10 years later here I am working-ish on NYE and deciding to change another year quietly and humbly by the TV releasing my movie junkie persona. And why not. Shan't complain, 2015 was pretty big for me anyway. As far as the 'new year, new me' theories go, nah, not for me thanks, my resolution would just be to teach my other half, Greek. Boom, there you go. 
So, how was your Christmas and New Year's?

Season 2, Ep. 04

Italia Conti, Continued.

 I'm gonna use a more festive colour to type this episode due to the holidays. Ha. 

 Hi! How you doin'? Counting down till Friday? I am! I'm actually cheating and decided to open first presents on Christmas Eve. Hashtag, sorry not sorry.

 Anyhoo, where were we. Oh, apologies for derailing the subject last week, but, you know, Ed Sheeran. 

So my time at the Drama College was definitely a big chapter. There were a lot of firsts. No, not those firsts. One of them was my first big panic attack. You know, like the panic attacks you get where you can't breathe and you squeal like a fox trying to gasp for air and at the same time you can't shut up, you just have to try to form sentences? Yeah that.

 I was always into my Ballet, it was after all my first form of art that I got into. I started as soon as I could walk and I just kept progressing until deep into my teens when I became so passionate I was taking extra summer courses abroad at Ballet Schools. So when I got into Italia Conti, and one of our classes was a Ballet class, almost every morning, I was bound to be one of the good ones. Good so far? Okay. Now, the teacher that handled the advanced ballet class was a typical British woman-'nough said- with her posh accent and her tough love approach. Think J. K. Simmons on Whiplash. Classic right? The tough teacher who pushes the talent and makes their life a living hell so they are ready to face whatever is out there once they graduate etc etc...classic right? Yeah, kinda like that. No bleeding fingers, maybe toes. Hashtag pointe shoes.

 So, I was getting told off and corrected over the smallest arm move mistake, leg, hip, knee, pointy toe mistake...breathing mistake. I had actually been "trained" to deal with this "type" of teachers early on, as my ballet teacher during my teens wasn't exactly a softie either, but did his job amazingly. But I wasn't ready for this woman, oh no. You see, apparently my focusing and listening face  came across as defensive and uninterested at the time. And that was the problem. You know not to take it personally being attacked and corrected for your technique because you know the  teacher sees something in you and that's why they're pushing you, but when suddenly you're told these exact words: "you are so uninterested, and look like you do not care Katerina", oh I remember this like yesterday, it totally hits the crap out of you. 

And you do such a good job reacting professionally and mature and walking out at the end of the class with your head high after of course you have said back 'no way, I am very interested'. You walk out and you feel so mature for not breaking down or even tearing up. And then your fellow class mates go "unbelievable what happened in there, I don't know how you did it, I probably would have had a meltdown right there if that happened to me". And here. We. Go. It's exactly the same when you are not okay, do an awesome job holding it in until someone asks if you're okay and the waterfalls start. 

 The more I sat there weeping and boiling, the worse it became, you know how women work, they sit there overthinking everything and end up frying their brains out. And that was it, the whole thing had taken its toll by then for me and so I storm back in the room while she was still there packing up and threw THE LOUDEST and funniest, tantrum ever. Have never done this to a man, but yeah sure, I did it to my Ballet instructor. I sat her down and started mouthing with much little sense words like "how do you dare telling me that I am not interested, I work hard!!" and things like that, until the panic attack from all the pressure that everyone goes through at those Drama Colleges hit me hard. No need to describe it again, just re-read paragraph 3 if you need. And that's when she held me tight, helped me breathe normally again, calm down, get over myself, and told me the same thing. She pushed me because she saw something and the face thing. Well she had better warned me about it as soon as she noticed before it would be too late apparently. Imagine being in at a job, at an audition and looking at the director with an "uninterested and defensive" expression. Fair enough. 

 Needless to say that this woman became my mentor and tutor till the end of the year, whenever we had or needed one to one time with our mentor for advice she was the one I would run to. To this day she is the person I respect the most out of that school, won't forget and are still friends on Facebook with-lol. As a mentor and a teacher myself, even if clearly everyone has their own approach and chemistry with their students, her honesty is what I've taken away from her. Thank you.

Take this time to enjoy your Christmas. Take this time to be with the ones you love, take this time to appreciate what you have. You can start complaining again next week. Ta. Merry Christmas!~

Katerina