My Life after CELTA

Draughting the letter about our stance on solar panel installation took almost my whole day. Since our property is part of a communal tenure, it is challenging to navigate the maze of regulations, laws, and private interests, let alone balance every aspect. There were so many details I had to take into account that my wee mind couldn't focus on anything else. Anyway, with the help of Ági, we could end the story and send the letter to our neighbours. But boy, am I exhausted? I taught a class today. Since Ági and Roya's last regular lessons were long ago, I thought I'd plan an easy lesson for them. The topic was food, which interested both of them. Apart from a few hiccups on my part, I think it went well. The weather is still strange. The average temperature is ten degrees higher than the typical average temperature in October. And according to the weather forecast, the next four days will be similar, although with less rain. With the letter done, I can find some time to stu...

After another cold night - it was +9°C in the morning - I was more cautious when I took Abby for her morning walk. I wore my winter socks and hiking pants and wasn't short of the fleece jackets either. But the walk was shorter than yesterday because Abby did her business as fast as possible. Today was the first in a long time that I could buckle down to study. I reviewed Charlette's previous lesson and collected all the words that needed attention. It really was a soul-warming experience for me. I suspected how much I'd missed studying, but I was surprised at how much I enjoyed finding my way back to studying. It made my day. When Ági's lesson was over, we jumped in the car and drove to the grocery store to buy the needed things. We got so peckish in the store that we had to stop at Burger King and buy junk food to fill our bellies with. Even though they say fast food is terrible for your health, we can't help but treat ourselves to it occasionally - meaning once in...

Another terrible night's sleep resulted in me waking up grumpy - I woke up several times, again. (I checked my sleeping pattern on my Apple watch, and according to the app, I took some steps during the night, which I can't remember at all. I hope I'm not a somnambulist!) When I made my way down to the living room, Ági and Abby were ready for the morning walk, so I dragged my weary body along with them to the local store to buy something for breakfast. After coming home and devouring the nosh, I looked forward to gulping down the much-needed coffee. Little had I had to wait till the effects of caffeine showed some progress on my mood. Since Ági had two classes to teach this morning, I finally went to my den to study. I reviewed Charlette's lesson; I had to look up a couple of words in the dictionary. Our schedule is not complete without visiting the craftsman store. Since there were no other engagements on our calendars for today, we jumped in the car and drove to the st...

I started the day with shopping. Since the pantry was empty, I had to visit the local store for some nosh for breakfast. The early morning walk with Ági and Abby was alright, and the shop wasn't full of nervous customers, so it went well. After devouring the nosh and drinking the much-needed coffee, I sat down to study. FINALLY! I had to complete the homework and the lesson plan for my next class with the guys I had a lesson with yesterday.  At 11:00 a.m., I took Abby for her grooming appointment. We had her fur shortened, a regular general maintenance for a Cavalier King Charles Spaniel. When we returned home, it was already hot despite the forecast. Although the meteorologists predicted significantly colder temperatures and lots of rain, none happened today. Truth be told, it got colder today, but not as much as they'd thought it would. Once we finished lunch, Ági went to teach, and I focused on my next lesson with the group. I'm quite happy with the lesson plan I put tog...

Unsere Gedanken sind in Österreich momentan. We look forward to our first holiday in 25 years starting on the 14. 08. 2023. Well, not the first vacation, obviously, but the first without any hindering relatives or remodelling/repainting/revamping the house. The plan is to spend six days in Wien as our Headquarters and randomly visit neighbouring cities. We'll see how things pan out because Vienna is a bustling city with many touristy places, so we might only drive to the city centre and take long walks there. My English study consisted of planning the next class and correcting errors with ChatGPT. First, I finalised the plan, enhanced the tasks, and tailored the smooth transition from checking the homework to the actual lesson. I enjoyed it. After I asked ChatGPT to provide me with random sentences containing various mistakes, I had to detect and correct them. It went well, and I was pleased with my performance, apart from one tiny mistake. The weather has changed. The morning was ...

The return of Abby filled the house again with that inexplicable sensation that only dog lovers know. Ági took her for the usual evening walk right after getting back home, and the rest of the evening was heavenly. Despite the meticulous drying, she was all wet. But even though her fur was moist, she curled beside me and fell asleep immediately. And she also slept a lot today, owing to the previous two days' happenings. Her being at the dog sitter was a remarkable experience with a brilliant outcome, so her inability to adjust to any new situation wouldn't stifle our plan to spend a few days in Austria in August. Wonderful news! I spent a considerable amount of time rephrasing sentences ChatGPT provided me with today. Actually, this tool is getting better and better, and its attentiveness and ability to gradually elaborate grammar, vocabulary, and complex sentence structures made the whole journey a remarkable experience and time well spent. The road to C2 is still long, and im...

The storm hasn't wreaked havoc over here, fortunately. Apart from a long but gentle shower, we weren't hit by any predicted gale-force wind, tennis-ball-size hail, or flat flooding. I don't miss any of them, so I'm not moaning about it. The day went by quickly. I spent the morning with Bing, trying to rephrase sentences at the C2 level. It's still not easy to come up with higher-level sentences, though. Still, I'm aware of the length of the process it requires to reach the coveted proficiency. I'm sure it won't happen overnight. My English class with Charlette was fantastic. She really is the best, and as I explained to her, AI is not ready yet to take over the role of a flesh and blood teacher. And I don't think it will be ready anytime to be as professional as a human being. Well, this is it for today, I'm afraid.

The last day of the heatwave is over, although the temperature is still pretty high, considering it is already 8 p.m., and the thermometer still shows +26°C. Tomorrow's cold front is supposed to bring some cooler temperatures. However, the predicted 3-degree difference is not significantly colder than today's peak, +37°C. It's summer, so there is no place to complain about the warm weather, however, we had to switch on the AC units because the temperature in the house was simply far too hot - +29-30°C in the attic. That was too much... I wonder when the first camels will replace the horses in Hungary. My English studies consisted of checking two units in the "1000 questions, 1000 answers" book, which was an eye-opening experience. I still have some gaps to fill in terms of the "use of English", but there are fewer gaps, and they are getting smaller and smaller. At the same time, it dawned on me how I should proceed with my CPE preparation and exam. There...

The day of expensive strudels Ági's old acquaintance had posted a picture of the "Első Magyar Rétesház", which triggered a voracious chain of thoughts in both of our brains. Needless to say, we drove off today to check the place and the " rétes ". Since the venue is in the downtown area of Budapest, we expected small but expensive portions. We weren't wrong. Even though the "rétes" was okay, one must pay for the swanky restaurant and location. The "rétes" they baked were okay, but mediocre would be more appropriate in this case. Other than that, the weather is terribly hot. Well, it's not as bad as in the Mediterranean region, but the +36°C is not for my winter-lover nature. I put off the visit to our friend in Balatonalmádi we'd planned because of the heat. I don't feel fit to drive two hours and then spend the day under the sun preparing some nosh in the cauldron on the open fire. This is not the right time to do that. Anywa...

I continued my little cooperation with AI today. After finishing breakfast, I buckled down for another session with ChatGPT and asked it to provide me with another set of sentences I could rephrase, and it could assess, check, and explain its reasons for giving that evaluation. To my surprise, today, it evaluated all my sentences at the C1 level, and none of it was lower than that. I made some progress, but my sentences need more attention to reach the coveted C2 level. I had to interrupt my studies due to our appointment with Abby at the dog-groomer lady at 11:30 a.m.  When we returned, I had a delicious tuna pizza for lunch made by Ági. While we were munching the nosh, we watched another episode of Dexter, in which the events culminated - the season is drawing to an end soon, so they have to increase the tension. The afternoon went by quickly. I spent another session with AI; apparently, it became my new friend, which sounds a tad weird. The weather was terrible today. The e...

The weather today was hot. According to the official weather apps, the highest temperature was around +36°C with not-so-clear skies, and it heated the attic so much that it felt like being in a sauna up here. Before hitting the sack, I'll surely switch on the AC units in the bedroom; otherwise, I won't be able to sleep. Anyway, as for my English studies, I made progress today. After the much-needed coffee, I buckled down to prepare the Saturday lesson for Ági and Roya, but sadly, Roya had to put off the meeting due to family issues. Since Ági asked me to teach her, I prepared another lesson for her, which consisted of the present and the past tenses. Let's see how things pan out with a one-to-one class with her. Besides the lesson preparation, I asked Bing and ChatGPT again to help me improve my writing. I get more and more positive feedback from AI, which is a good sign of my progress. Not to mention how much I enjoy these sessions. After my initial blunders concerning my ...

The colder weather they had forecast didn't bring freezing temperatures. In fact, it only brought a two-degree colder day, so instead of +35°C, the highest temperature today was +33°C. What a cool of, innit? Even the morning was warm, so our little visit to the dentist was not without a sweat. My English class with Charlette was fantastic. The lesson was all about natural remedies, including applying ayahuasca in indigenous communities in South America. We were talking about how the so-called Western way of thinking affects our perception of the world around us and how people in the developed part of the globe conceive of their roles in the world. It was a fascinating discussion. Besides the class, I asked AI again to help me improve my writing at the C2 level. Although I made some progress, there is still much to learn to reach the Proficient level. I'm on it.

Today was an intensive day in terms of studying. I refined my inputs and asked ChatGPT and Bing to help me improve my vocabulary. Additionally, I created a new set of parameters asking ChatGPT to teach me idioms and phrasal verbs. Surprisingly, both AI delivered proper and useful answers, and not only that, but their ability to do it in a split second was truly remarkable. I was thoroughly impressed by them. The weather was far too hot for my taste today. The highest temperature was around +35-36°C, so it was high time I switched on the AC units in the house. According to the weather forecast, the next few days will be equally scorching, and only the weekend will bring some relief.  Well, this is it for today I'm afraid.

I decided to use the Finnish days' name again. Not because I'm pretentious or want to boast about my non-existent Finnish knowledge, but because I still miss one of the best series I've seen so far, Bordertown. I wish I could set aside some time to learn Finnish and the other languages that have been waiting for me, such as Icelandic, Turkish, Spanish, Portuguese, and, let's not forget, French. Anyway, hardly had I buckled down to complete my homework when the locksmith called. He wondered if he could come today to install the fence in the back garden instead of the previously arranged Saturday. The fence is unlike the railing surrounding Buckingham Palace with those fancy golden figurines on top of each stick. Our fence is just a normal simple fence for normal simple people like us. We were happy about the news and were waiting for the guy. After hastily devouring our lunch and just as the coffee machine poured my cup of black refreshment, he pulled over. He brought th...

My DIY days are temporarily over. I'll continue it tomorrow by trimming the burgeoned bush in the shared garden, and the plan is to complete the thinning of the remaining of the mini forest by Friday. I'll collect the branches in our front garden and get the wood chipper next Monday, which will undoubtedly culminate in another day of toil. Regarding my pursuit of English studies, I focused primarily today on the homework Charlette had given me. The task that required me to elicit the meaning of twelve highlighted words in a text was easy. The reading task was hilarious. I had to peruse a short story from one of my favourite writers, Lamb to the Slaughter, by Roald Dahl. I had read it a few years ago, but this was the first time I've read it in English. The weather was marvellous today. The temperatures weren't exorbitantly high. I sat on the balcony with my AirPods in my ear, listening to the original soundtrack of "The Big Blue" by Eric Serra. I nodded off fo...

Local Painting Day After devouring my usual cinnamon pancake breakfast and gulping down the much-needed coffee, I disassembled the railing because the metal rods and the wooden slats were in terrible condition. It took me three hours to remove the slats, paint the metal rods, the top of the water meter utility hole, and the front door. I'm exhausted. The English lesson was excellent. Charlette's classes are the best. She always checks the unknown vocabulary and brings challenging speaking and writing tasks. Her feedback on them is priceless. She is the best English teacher I've met. I went for a 10k ride with my mate's bike I'd like to buy, and it was terrific. There is a bike path along the Danube which provides a fantastic view to the other side of the river. It's basically some trees and the river one can see, but it's far from the busy road, so it is kind of relaxing pedalling on it. Well, this is it for today, I'm afraid...

I woke up early today because I had an appointment to replace the winter wheels with the summer ones at 4:30 a.m. I wasn't the happiest person on the globe. I could have slept till 5:30 a.m., but I knew if I'd gone back to sleep, I wouldn't have been able to wake up in time and get there. Anyway, the whole wheel-changing process went smoothly. Then we had a delicious breakfast at the canteen, where I met an old colleague, who invited us for a coffee. I was surprised to notice how neutral my mood was while returning to the location where I'd spent almost 25 years. In hindsight, it was high time I left the company in February, however painful it was. Upon returning home, I started to study. I completed two tasks and began another one, so only one and a half exercises are left. I went down to the kitchen to prepare lunch at 11:00 a.m. Fish fingers with rice and tzatziki were on the menu, and we ate like two famished wolves while watching another terribly silly episode of D...

We watched the last episode of Bordertown. Now the series is over and won't be available on Netflix anymore. Moreover, they don't plan to shoot another season yet, so chances are we were lucky to have watched the complete three seasons. Anyway, "Vive le Finnish-Hungarian friendship and Uralic languages!" 🇫🇮🇭🇺 After Ági left for the university, I sat down to study. I received four tasks yesterday from Charlette, and I finished the open cloze text and made some notes on the vocabulary part of the lesson. Now ask me anything about "wear out", "hanker for", "wind up", "drop in on", drop in", "cloak", "spectre", "orb", and "mace". Writing a report, explaining the gist of a video to a B1 level student, and writing a letter to an editor of a magazine are left to be completed. When I finished studying, I made some lunch: the menu was pita-bread with Greek yoghurt and veggies - tomato, spr...

This morning, Abby left a surprise on the floor for us. It wasn't the best gift one might dream of, but this was a clear sign of another visit to the vet and another substantial expense today. This time she got some antibiotics, so we must also give her the pills besides the diet. We don't have a life... I studied a bit today, but in hindsight, I think I could have done more. Despite finishing my homework and going through another unit in the phrasal verb book, the time I spent learning seemed insufficient. I'll make up for my laziness tomorrow; I plan to revise the previous units and strengthen my weaknesses, such as the subjunctive and some words that I've been struggling with lately. Other than that, I think I'll look for another language to learn because I don't want to overfocus on my CPE preparation. There are a few languages I've been thinking of learning, for example, Icelandic, Finnish, Turkish, and Portuguese. If I took one unit of each book every ...

Today we decided to go on a hiking trip. After breakfast and a much-needed coffee, we jumped in our hiking boots, and off we went on a 5.5k walk up to one of our favourite spots. It was tiring but pleasant, mainly because the weather was divine. The temperature was already high, +20°C; however, the cold gusts of wind reminded us how carefully we had to choose our clothes. Anyway, it took us 75 minutes to climb up to a hill and return home, but the delicious lunch made up for all our efforts. When we finished devouring the nosh, I gave Ági a foot massage and watched two more episodes of Elementary. Then I passed out, which meant the Saturday afternoon dizziness was guaranteed. As for my English studies, I did a bit of revision today, read Charlette's articles, and wrote a draft version of my summary of the excerpts. Then I double-checked the text in Grammarly, corrected the two comma mistakes it suggested, and asked chtGPT to check the text to see if it was good enough for a higher-...