Romanian Blues (IV) – Fragment din ”Omul de cenușă”
▲ ALTCULTURE MAGAZINE Nr.105, 05/2026 ▲
Noi încă mai credem în cultură!
Romanian Blues (IV) – Excerpt from „The Ash Man” by Nicholas Jordan
ALTCULTURE MAGAZINE No. 105, 05/2026
Abstract:
In this vivid segment from The Ash Man, the narrative shifts from the intimate disillusionment of a weary guide in Scandinavia to the high-stakes, gray-market world of 1989 international tourism. As the Berlin Wall falls, signaling the end of an era, the protagonist navigates the precarious boundary between his professional persona and the „black tours” that sustain the elite cadre of guides—modern-day conquistadors trading in everything from illicit goods to lost souls. The narrative reaches a metaphysical climax aboard a cruise ship in Malta, where, amidst the secret geopolitical maneuvers of the Bush-Gorbachev summit, a chance encounter with a mysterious Knight of Malta challenges the protagonist’s perception of destiny, identity, and the cyclical nature of suffering. Merging historical reality with the esoteric, Jordan crafts a haunting reflection on the role of the „witness” in a degrading world, ultimately leading the protagonist to accept the most daunting assignment of all: a „Blue Christmas” pilgrimage through the monasteries of northern Romania.
Sala de așteptare, de Viorel Ploeșteanu
▲ ALTCULTURE MAGAZINE Nr.105 5/2025 ▲
Noi mai credem încă în cultură!
The Waiting Room by Viorel Ploeșteanu
Abstract:
In this poignant narrative, Viorel Ploeșteanu masterfully delineates the slow erosion of a life through the story of Evelina, an octogenarian living in the heart of Bucharest. Her existence is inextricably bound to the physical landmarks of her past—the decaying apartment on C.A. Rosetti Street and a towering plane tree planted in her childhood. As she faces the isolation of a post-communist society where neighbors are strangers and her family has long since emigrated to the United States, the tree stands as her final companion and silent witness. The sudden destruction of this living monument serves as the ultimate catalyst for Evelina’s detachment from the world she once knew. The Waiting Room is a melancholic meditation on the fragility of memory, the pain of abandonment, and the quiet dignity with which the elderly confront their own obsolescence. It is a powerful portrait of a soul realizing that her entire history has been reduced to „sawdust swept away by strangers,” leading to an inevitable, resigned surrender to the final sanctuary.
Câinii, de Nicolaie Dincă ▲ ALTCULTURE MAGAZINE Nr.105, 05/2026 ▲
Noi încă mai credem în cultură!
The Dogs by Nicolaie Dincă
Abstract:
In this satirical short story, Nicolaie Dincă exposes the hypocrisies of rural authority through a clever narrative centered on two of the village’s most prominent figures: the local police chief and the parish priest. Caught in a late-night encounter while supposedly tending to their respective duties, the two men exchange pleasantries that thinly veil their true nocturnal intentions. The irony reaches its peak the following day at the police station, when the two officials are forced into a tense confrontation after accidentally leaving incriminating personal items—a tie and a stole—at each other’s homes. With the threat of exposure looming, the protagonist-adversaries reach a silent, cynical consensus, attributing their scandalous behavior to the village dogs. Through sharp, dry wit and a keen sense of irony, the story serves as a mirror for human frailty, demonstrating how easily the pillars of moral and civil order can compromise when their own secrets are at stake.
Maria iubea florile, de Ion Bogdan Martin
▲▲▲ ALTCULTURE MAGAZINE Nr.105, 05/2026 ▲▲▲
Noi mai credem încă în cultură!
Maria Loved Flowers by Ion Bogdan Martin
Excerpt from the book Under the Sign of 12 | ALTCULTURE MAGAZINE No. 105, 05/2026
Abstract:
In this haunting and atmospheric narrative, the author recounts a chance encounter within the skeletal ruins of a derelict industrial plant on the outskirts of Bucharest. What begins as a quest for creative inspiration transforms into an unsettling dialogue with an elderly man who refuses to abandon his former workplace, obsessively maintaining an inventory of a single wooden chair. As the conversation unfolds, the crumbling factory—once a symbol of collective labor—becomes the stage for a poignant meditation on love, loss, and the refusal to accept the erasure of the past. The story skillfully blends social critique with a melancholic exploration of the „ghosts” that linger in the wake of privatization and societal upheaval. Through the figure of the old man and his devotion to his late wife, Maria, the text reveals a hidden landscape of personal devotion, culminating in a devastating twist that recontextualizes the entire experience. It is a profound look at how memory can become both a sanctuary and a self-imposed prison in a world that has discarded its history.
în lanțuri, de Doria Șișu ▲ ALTCULTURE MAGAZINE Nr.105, 5/2026 ▲
Noi mai credem încă în cultură!
In Chains by Doria Șișu
Abstract:
In this poignant lyrical reflection, Doria Șișu explores the existential weight of living within a society defined by artifice and spiritual erosion. The poem serves as a meditation on the paralyzing nature of conformity—a „chain of grins”—where authentic human connection is sacrificed to superficiality. Through evocative imagery of waiting—words and love standing in line, waiting for the „falling of the chain”—the poet depicts the internal struggle to remain human in an increasingly hollow world. The central figure of the woman, rooted in „clay and soul,” becomes a symbol of endurance, transforming years of suffering into a grounded, wingless angel. Ultimately, the work posits that true rebellion lies not in destruction, but in the radical act of forgiveness—a virtue that restores the broken human being and validates the struggle for transcendence against the constraints of a dehumanizing reality.
revistă editată de Asociația ECOULTOUR – OAMENI, FAPTE, IDEI – Brașov CIF 34237932, ING Bank, RO94INGB0000999916569535
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▲ ANOTHER KIND OF CULTURAL MAGAZINE / Un alt fel de revistă de cultură ▲ 64 pag. color, MONTHLY / lunar ▲ Director&FOUNDER / fondator: EUGEN MATZOTA ▲ALTCulture (Online) = ISSN 2601 – 159X ISSN-L 2601 -159X ▲ PUBLISHED BY / editată de Asociația ECOULTOUR – OAMENI, FAPTE, IDEI
EDITORIAL BOARD / Colegiul de redacție: ciprian cristea, CORINA GHEORGHEZA, ADRIAN GRAUENFELS, CLAUDIU IORDACHE, NICHOLAS JORDAN. BOGDAN MARTIN, EUGEN MATZOTA (redactor-șef), CRISTIANA MIRANCEA, MARIUS OANȚĂ, EUGEN D. POPIN, GHEORGHE SCHWARTZ, NICOLAE ULIERIU
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Romanian Blues (IV) – Fragment din ”Omul de cenușă” ▲ ALTCULTURE MAGAZINE Nr.105, 05/2026 ▲ Noi încă mai credem în cultură! Romanian Blues (IV) – Excerpt from „The Ash Man” by Nicholas Jordan ALTCULTURE MAGAZINE No. 105, 05/2026 Abstract: In this vivid segment from The Ash Man, the narrative shifts from the intimate disillusionment of a weary guide in Scandinavia to the high-stakes, gray-market world of 1989 international tourism. As the Berlin Wall falls, signaling the end of an era, the protagonist navigates the precarious boundary between his professional persona and the „black tours” that sustain the elite cadre of guides—modern-day conquistadors trading in everything from illicit goods to lost souls. The narrative reaches a metaphysical climax aboard a cruise ship in Malta, where, amidst the secret geopolitical maneuvers of the Bush-Gorbachev summit, a chance encounter with a mysterious Knight of Malta challenges the protagonist’s perception of destiny, identity, and the cyclical nature of suffering. Merging historical reality with the esoteric, Jordan crafts a haunting reflection on the role of the „witness” in a degrading world, ultimately leading the protagonist to accept the most daunting assignment of all: a „Blue Christmas” pilgrimage through the monasteries of northern Romania.
Sala de așteptare, de Viorel Ploeșteanu ▲ ALTCULTURE MAGAZINE Nr.105 5/2025 ▲ Noi mai credem încă în cultură! The Waiting Room by Viorel Ploeșteanu Abstract: In this poignant narrative, Viorel Ploeșteanu masterfully delineates the slow erosion of a life through the story of Evelina, an octogenarian living in the heart of Bucharest. Her existence is inextricably bound to the physical landmarks of her past—the decaying apartment on C.A. Rosetti Street and a towering plane tree planted in her childhood. As she faces the isolation of a post-communist society where neighbors are strangers and her family has long since emigrated to the United States, the tree stands as her final companion and silent witness. The sudden destruction of this living monument serves as the ultimate catalyst for Evelina’s detachment from the world she once knew. The Waiting Room is a melancholic meditation on the fragility of memory, the pain of abandonment, and the quiet dignity with which the elderly confront their own obsolescence. It is a powerful portrait of a soul realizing that her entire history has been reduced to „sawdust swept away by strangers,” leading to an inevitable, resigned surrender to the final sanctuary.
Câinii, de Nicolaie Dincă ▲ ALTCULTURE MAGAZINE Nr.105, 05/2026 ▲ Noi încă mai credem în cultură! The Dogs by Nicolaie Dincă Abstract: In this satirical short story, Nicolaie Dincă exposes the hypocrisies of rural authority through a clever narrative centered on two of the village’s most prominent figures: the local police chief and the parish priest. Caught in a late-night encounter while supposedly tending to their respective duties, the two men exchange pleasantries that thinly veil their true nocturnal intentions. The irony reaches its peak the following day at the police station, when the two officials are forced into a tense confrontation after accidentally leaving incriminating personal items—a tie and a stole—at each other’s homes. With the threat of exposure looming, the protagonist-adversaries reach a silent, cynical consensus, attributing their scandalous behavior to the village dogs. Through sharp, dry wit and a keen sense of irony, the story serves as a mirror for human frailty, demonstrating how easily the pillars of moral and civil order can compromise when their own secrets are at stake.
Maria iubea florile, de Ion Bogdan Martin ▲▲▲ ALTCULTURE MAGAZINE Nr.105, 05/2026 ▲▲▲ Noi mai credem încă în cultură! Maria Loved Flowers by Ion Bogdan Martin Excerpt from the book Under the Sign of 12 | ALTCULTURE MAGAZINE No. 105, 05/2026 Abstract: In this haunting and atmospheric narrative, the author recounts a chance encounter within the skeletal ruins of a derelict industrial plant on the outskirts of Bucharest. What begins as a quest for creative inspiration transforms into an unsettling dialogue with an elderly man who refuses to abandon his former workplace, obsessively maintaining an inventory of a single wooden chair. As the conversation unfolds, the crumbling factory—once a symbol of collective labor—becomes the stage for a poignant meditation on love, loss, and the refusal to accept the erasure of the past. The story skillfully blends social critique with a melancholic exploration of the „ghosts” that linger in the wake of privatization and societal upheaval. Through the figure of the old man and his devotion to his late wife, Maria, the text reveals a hidden landscape of personal devotion, culminating in a devastating twist that recontextualizes the entire experience. It is a profound look at how memory can become both a sanctuary and a self-imposed prison in a world that has discarded its history.
în lanțuri, de Doria Șișu ▲ ALTCULTURE MAGAZINE Nr.105, 5/2026 ▲ Noi mai credem încă în cultură! In Chains by Doria Șișu Abstract: In this poignant lyrical reflection, Doria Șișu explores the existential weight of living within a society defined by artifice and spiritual erosion. The poem serves as a meditation on the paralyzing nature of conformity—a „chain of grins”—where authentic human connection is sacrificed to superficiality. Through evocative imagery of waiting—words and love standing in line, waiting for the „falling of the chain”—the poet depicts the internal struggle to remain human in an increasingly hollow world. The central figure of the woman, rooted in „clay and soul,” becomes a symbol of endurance, transforming years of suffering into a grounded, wingless angel. Ultimately, the work posits that true rebellion lies not in destruction, but in the radical act of forgiveness—a virtue that restores the broken human being and validates the struggle for transcendence against the constraints of a dehumanizing reality.