In and article in the Blogger Knowledge section Rebecca Blood presents the authoritative and finite list of reasons why someone would maintain a blog: information sharing, reputation building, and personal expression. I have the fourth to add - even though this might be also labeled personal expression in a sense - namely: THERAPY. The healing effect of keeping track of one's unimportant errands and ripples of the mind is beyond question. It keeps me relatively sane. It's not about returning to the state of "perfect health" (in every sense of the word "health") but rather choosing therapy as a way through life.

On joining the European Union on May 1, I believe many Eastern Europeans have contemplated the new situation of their respective countries and the consequences this political move might have. On the very personal level the most salient consequence is the feeling of being further marginalized. I have spoken to quite a few people of my age and above (35+): if one filters out the hysterical reactions of post-communists and not-at-all-post-communists, one has to feel the deepening blues of Eastern Europeans in the face of the ill-conceived integration (which could rather be termed "proliferation of the ritualized euro-bureaucracy").

Noun 1. Angst - an acute but unspecific feeling of anxiety; usually reserved for philosophical anxiety about the world or about personal freedom
anxiety - a vague unpleasant emotion that is experienced in anticipation of some (usually ill-defined) misfortune