You know the feeling when you sometimes see something from your childhood – a car you haven’t seen for ages, a cartoon you forgot about, a toy you used to play with – and it makes you go ‘awwww’?
Thanks to the girls from the Milk Bar, I went ‘awww’ tonight as they posted a link to a fantastic Polish blog, called Pan Tu Nie Stał. Now, before I explain why I went all mushy, I should explain the name of the blog.
When the life of an average Pole was defined by the amount of time he or she spent queuing for even the most basic things, people got very territorial and defensive. Unlike the orderly British queues, the Polish equivalents were often messy affairs. “Stop pushing!” “Back in the queue, you ass!” “Don’t think this is your space” All these were commonly heard in Polish queues, when frustration and the cold weather made many a shopper impatient. But there always has been something unbelievably funny about those queues and such territorial behaviour. They’ve become the subject of many fantastic Polish comedies and most people will remember them with a smile on their faces.
That’s why the ironically titled Pan Tu Nie Stał (“Don’t think this is your space”) blog made me laugh and go ‘awwww’ simultaneously. It’s a collection of old things from the Communist Poland. Luckily for you, my English-speaking reader, this blog also offers an English version (sadly, only for the post titles), but because it’s mostly visual, you don’t need to worry much about the text.
So why is it so good? It offers everything from rare hotel stickers, to jewellery made out of old Polish coins to some mind-blowing porcelain figurines.
But for me the biggest ‘awwww’ happened when I saw this picture:
This is an image of an old Polish soap bar, called For You. And, believe it or not, when I was a very very little boy, these were the first English words I ever uttered. Without this soap, this blog would not exist. And I would probably be a bit whiffy.
Image © Pan Tu Nie Stał
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