How strong must a person be in order not to inhale a single molecule of hatred towards other countries. You might be sceptical and moderately liberal, but that won't help; some pores on your skin let it pass into your body, without your being aware of it at all.

Milosz's Happiness. So Chestertonian -- and for me there are few words (if any) that mean something more beautiful. It's not just my admiration for GKCh that makes me say so. I found my new favourite author (only Andric was my new "acquisition" during all post-school years). His speech flows like water, and is almost as easy to read. And the language in this essay really resembles GKCh; language of images, too. One should not forget though that GKCh in my mind is, first of all, Trauberg's GKCh: both linguistically and critically, I guess. And she knew Milosz (?).

But this piece of prose is even better than GKCh, for it is free of his sometimes tiresome wordplay.

Accepted. Some people are excited. Some are sad. Me -- both.

But why did I start those PhD studies, after all? Now I remember one good reason: to be able to travel. How stupid. Of course this wasn't the one that made me begin it all, but still.
Tired of living and working in a place with so many lies. People study what they don't want to. People pretend one can study and not work when one is 23. People say -- ok, we'll try to give you leave for "family reasons", but if not, you can do it only for medical ones. Lies, or, as Ch. put ut, "puddles, puddles, puddles, puddles".

To dance.
To draw.
To travel.
To read Forster, Dickens, Chesterton.
Just a few things I would be able if I quit those pointless PhD studies.
So happy I'm back to dancing. Forgot it brought me so much pleasure. Literally can't wait for our next class!

How could I have overlooked the simple fact that I have read almost nothing GKCh wrote IN ENGLISH? I have the same amount of happiness waiting for me, or even more. Though a bit afraid Napoleon might be not as funny. Russian translation is superb, enjoy it so much. 

...

One day I'll go to London and visit all the places from The Napoleon of Notting Hill. The Waterworks Tower:

(from https://rbkclocalstudies.wordpress.com/tag/campden-hill/)

Вот это светотень... Оттуда же.

Wordsworth edition: 3 novels, and in each I find something which was omitted in Russian. Or, vice versa -- something that wasn't here and which is in Russian.

...

Did I ever dream about the theory of literature? Not really. And tonight I dreamt I was talking about GKCh. Feel the difference.

LOVE, LOVE, LOVE. Research what you love. Made a mistake in my 1st year, not going to make the same one.

Сопротивляться силе инерции. То, что меня забросило на эту кафедру, еще не значит, что я должна там учиться. If I groan when I see Bakhtin's name, if I, let's be honest, prefer history of literature to theory of literature -- I should do it. I should be bold. My first dark lipstick was called: be bold.
Припадок недовольства ситуацией -- после теоретического семинара. Да не хочу я быть теоретиком лит-ры!