Learn Hardcore Croatian: Poslije posla sjedim u vrtu i pokušavam biti opušten. - After work I sit in the garden and try to be relaxed. male speaker

This “preposition + genitive” pattern is very common with time expressions, e.g. prije posla (“before work”), poslije ručka (“after lunch”), etc.

Can I say nakon posla instead of poslije posla? Is there any difference?

Yes, you can say nakon posla. It’s also correct and very common.

poslije posla – slightly more colloquial, everyday.
nakon posla – a bit more neutral or “bookish”, but still used in normal speech.

In most contexts they are interchangeable:

Poslije posla sjedim u vrtu.
Nakon posla sjedim u vrtu.

Both mean the same thing.

Why is it sjedim u vrtu and not sjedim u vrt?

Croatian distinguishes location vs motion with different cases:

Location (where?) → locative case
- u vrtu = in the garden (I am there; no movement)
Motion (to where?) → accusative case
- u vrt = into the garden (movement towards it)

In the sentence, you’re saying where you sit (a static location), so you must use the locative: u vrtu.

Nominative: vrt
Locative singular: vrtu

Why don’t we say Ja poslije posla sjedim…? Where is the subject “I”?

The subject “I” is built into the verb ending.

sjedim = I sit
sjedimo = we sit
sjedite = you (pl) sit

Because the ending -m already shows the first person singular, Croatians normally omit the subject pronoun unless they want to emphasize it.

You can say:

Ja poslije posla sjedim u vrtu…

but it sounds like you’re stressing I (as opposed to someone else) do that. The neutral version drops ja.

What’s the difference between sjedim and sjednem?

They come from two different verbs with different aspect:

sjediti (imperf.) → sjedim = I sit / I am sitting (state, ongoing or habitual)
sjesti (perf.) → sjednem = I sit down (the action of sitting down, one moment)

In your sentence, you’re describing what you usually do and how you spend time, so you want the ongoing/habitual state:

Poslije posla sjedim u vrtu… (I sit / I am sitting in the garden…)

If you said Poslije posla sjednem u vrtu, it would mean “After work I (then) sit down in the garden” – focusing on the act of sitting down, not the time you spend sitting.

Why is it pokušavam biti opušten and not pokušavam da budem opušten?

Standard Croatian prefers an infinitive after verbs like pokušavati (“to try”):

pokušavam biti opušten = I’m trying to be relaxed

In Serbian, it’s very common to use a “da” + verb construction:

pokušavam da budem opušten

Croatians understand pokušavam da budem opušten, but in standard Croatian the natural form is:

pokušavam biti opušten

Why is it opušten and not opuštena or opušteno?

Opušten is an adjective and must agree with the subject in gender and number.

Here, the subject is (ja) – “I”, and the default assumption in an example sentence is usually a male speaker:

ja sam opušten (I am relaxed – male speaker)
ja sam opuštena (I am relaxed – female speaker)

So:

Male speaker: pokušavam biti opušten
Female speaker: pokušavam biti opuštena

Opušteno is neuter (or adverb “in a relaxed way”) and would not match the subject “ja” (unless used in a different structure).

Could I use opuštam se instead of biti opušten?

Yes, but the meaning shifts a bit:

pokušavam biti opušten
- “I’m trying to be relaxed” – focusing on the state of being relaxed.
pokušavam se opustiti / pokušavam se opuštati
- “I’m trying to relax (myself)” – focusing more on the process of relaxing.

Both are natural.
Very idiomatic alternatives:

Poslije posla sjedim u vrtu i pokušavam se opustiti.
… i opuštam se.

Is the word order fixed, or can I move poslije posla or u vrtu?

Croatian word order is relatively flexible. These are all correct, with slightly different emphasis:

Poslije posla sjedim u vrtu i pokušavam biti opušten.
Sjedim u vrtu poslije posla i pokušavam biti opušten.
U vrtu sjedim poslije posla i pokušavam biti opušten.

Usually, time expressions like poslije posla often come at the beginning or end of the sentence. Starting with Poslije posla nicely sets the time frame first, just like English “After work, I...”.

Why is the present tense sjedim / pokušavam used for a habitual action?

In Croatian, the simple present tense covers both:

English present simple: “I sit, I try” (habitual)
English present continuous: “I am sitting, I am trying” (right now)

Context decides which nuance is meant.

So Poslije posla sjedim u vrtu can mean:

“After work I (usually) sit in the garden” (habit/habitual routine), or
“(These days / now) after work I’m sitting in the garden” (current pattern).

There is no separate “-ing” form in Croatian; the plain present does the job.

Do I need a comma before i in …sjedim u vrtu i pokušavam biti opušten?

No comma is needed before “i” when you just connect two verbs with the same subject:

sjedim u vrtu i pokušavam biti opušten

A comma would appear if the structure were more complex (for example, different clauses with different subjects), but here it’s one subject (ja) doing two actions (sjedim + pokušavam), so no comma.

How do I pronounce sjedim and opušten?

sjedim

Spelled: s‑j‑e‑d‑i‑m
Pronounced as one syllable start [sje] (like “sye-” in “syet”), then “dim”: roughly sye-deem.
The “sj” is pronounced together, like “sh” + “y”: [sj].

opušten

š = “sh” as in “ship”
e is always short “eh”, not like English “ee” or “ay”.
Approximate pronunciation: oh-POOSH-ten (stress usually on the second syllable: poo).