Curse? Necessity? Plague?

You've probably seen that video sneaking around Facebook. The one where Person #1 on a cell phone bugs Person #2 on a cell phone by pretending to have an equally loud conversation but just responding to Person #2's (supposedly too loud) conversation prompts. I say "supposedly" because it didn't actually seem to me that Person #2's conversation was all that loud...and Person #1 came across as rude...to me, at least.
There are an awful lot of rude cell phones out there, though. (Oh, you mean it's NOT the phone that's rude? Oh.)
Yesterday we had a 3 hour bus ride and were immediately in front of a whiny-voiced woman who used the whole time to catch up on everyone and everything. Actually, yesterday was full of rude cell phones.
A few years ago, I had the extreme good fortune to spend New Year's Eve in the same room as someone who was so important that she got phone calls and sms'es ALL NIGHT long...wishes for the new year and such. You know, important stuff. I guess she didn't know the phone's volume could, you know, be shut off. She also doesn't know how close she came to having that phone take a swimming lesson in the toilet.
Do I sound crabby yet? I do? Oh. Sorry. It's just this woman's phone apparently only works on speaker phone. On a crowded bus.
I value my privacy more than that. But whatever.

Knocking on Closed Doors

or at least on one. One morning, someone phoned me on my old number- the one I use for mobile internet but not actual phone calls. So, since the volume to that one is seldom actually on, I never heard it. 

So then there's a gentle knock on my door and this meek little voice- Uh Anita? (D) would like to talk to you. 

I glance at my very quiet phone- the one that's for talking on. And shrug- OK- Coming.

But the door stayed like this:

firmly shut. And no amount of persuasion or wiggling helped. I've never much liked that glass and considered breaking it...briefly (WHY do you need glass in the doors of rooms INSIDE a house? Esp if someone SLEEPS on the other side. Yes, I should cover it.) N is looking at it from the other side and says- There's no way to get ahold of the latch thing from here. (And Yes, I called D back on my real phone. Had the conversation. Told my predicament. He said- Uh, do you want me to come let you out? Well- since that would take at least 3 hours, I don't guess so. And everyone seemed relieved at THAT!)

So I find an empty bucket on the balcony and a ball of twine. (3 cheers for the genius who decided to keep at least some of the tool-y stuff (twine qualifies, in my book) on the balcony instead of in the toolbox in the closet in the hallway on the other side of that crazy door.)

Off to the window I go with my bucket.

And wait. See that little figure? :) My hero!

I lower the bucket to her, she puts this in and I haul it back up.

And lay into that door knob from my side. 

And was free at last! (Only to discover that there were screws on the other side, after all.... heh. See- I knew there should be but apparently there was a lack of clarity in that bit of communication and not everyone involved understood what those screws were all about. Oh well- that door knob was dangerous. I mean- what if I'd been alone?? See then the glass would have had a problem.)

So the next time- maybe I'll say- Sure D, come help us!
Or at least- Um, could you go get a neighbor and see if he can help? I mean the kind of neighbor that knows all about screwdrivers and door knobs. Not the kind that sometimes wears a skirt.
Sorry. But sometimes.... it's true.

Yum

One little tiny reason to love this time of year a great big lot!

Link post, did you say???

Hello there People. I cleared out (finally) all my saved stuff from Feedly...which still included a bunch of stuff brought over from Reader...where I apparently saved everything I thought was remotely interesting once upon a time. Here are the best of those (according to me)!

Spiced Pumpkin Smoothie- made this on my birthday and it was pretty good, actually. Couldn't find coconut milk so used some regular milk with lots of shredded coconut- not bad, actually. :)

A visitor to L'viv- the first city I lived in here- This city wasn't one where you'd walk down the street and meet people you knew. In fact, people here were mostly too busy to care about what you were doing. The first place we lived, though, had a nice neighborly feel to it. L'viv is still my favorite of the cities I've lived in here. L'viv is just plain cool. Hills. Cobblestones. Old buildings. Ancient buildings. And some grocery-cart grocery stores. :)

Whose toddler needs one of these? I mean. I wish I was a toddler! ;) Ok- I wish I was not so artistically challenged. My GORGEOUS niece- Baby B- NEEDS one!

A world wide driving tour. Gulp. These are quite the roads. I can't actually say that I have much desire to see some of these. But they are amazing. I was on one in Spain (that never made this list) that did it for me. It wound around a valley and you could see several wrecks down over the sides- they were irretrievable so left there...and then served as warnings to other motorists to Be Careful! And that wasn't even the road up to Dalsnibba. Gulp. (I'mSorryMrBerghForBeingSuchAWimp). And yes, it's gorgeous up there. But I'm still amazed I'm still alive. (Remember the cow that ran in front of the car part of the way, Trude? Poor thing. I'm still fretting about it!) ;)

And this is one of my favorites- Kids' drawings of their grandparents recreated in photographs!

Oh my- and the part of me that loves the Lord of the Rings (I mean the book) and The Hobbit (again, the book)- I love this interactive map of Middle Earth. Google does some cool stuff every now and again. Although this is, apparently based on the movies as there are characters in here I've never heard of. grrr

A Chernobyl post- something I'm always interested in. The original post. And the one it links to- a good and simple explanation of why the accident happened.

Um- some old time baby names? Whee- some good ones here! How many of these have you met? I know some from this list and some others that could be on this list!

Oh yes- and where to get (highly overpriced) American food when you don't live on the other side of the ocean. Ahem. When you see a small box of HayBale Shredded Wheat for $13 in the 'ethnic foods' aisle you might be tempted (I did not cave, though. Sigh. I fasted. :0 )

You want to know what the countries around you are best at? What they lead the world in? Here You Go. (And cough- I have no idea what they mean about Ukraine and THAT. Um.)

A little unclear on the concept

This is a comic I only recently found- and Oh haha- they can be funny. Not that you have to know what 'Tae Bo' is. But oh this conversation. It's just hilarious. 

No Want Kiss U!

Did I ever tell you this story? The story about the little 3 year old boy who was cornered by a Big Older (WellNotThatOld) Lady? He was trapped in a corner as Big Older (WellNotThatOld) Lady closed in. Big Older (WellNotThatOld) Lady said- Come here I want to give you a kiss! Little Boy shrinks further into his corner and, in complete desperation shouts- I have a RUNNY NOSE!!
And No- he did not get kissed.
At least not that time.
And like little boys seem to do, he grew and grew and grew. I just looked him up on Facebook... he's in college. Oh my. And I remember him from when he was 3. (And no, Big Older (WellNotThatOld) Lady is not/was not me!) ;)

I needed this pic after wading through Google's new Terms of Service.  I don't pretend to even begin to understand most stuff about the web. And I know that it's nearly impossible, really, to make things completely private or to delete them once they're created and posted. But I'm not kidding- You'd better make sure your Google profile is where you want it. Those folks scare me more than Facebook. They seem even more intent than Facebook on making everything public UNLESS you specifically specify otherwise. (I keep both accounts because- Well, I do need to be in touch with people. And both sometimes work better than regular email for some people...especially people who change their email address more often than.... Than what? Than Ukrainian roads need potholes fixed? Than you sing in the shower?  Something like that. 

And while I'm at it- Be careful with what you put on your profile. Does everyone need to know what year you were born? Do they need to see your face tagged in every single picture? Does every stalker on the planet need to know your home address and telephone number? Or the names and ages of all your kids AND the school they attend? (A few years ago, Google CEO Eric Schmidt was quoted as having said: "If you have something that you don't want anyone to know, maybe you shouldn't be doing it in the first place. (this is a link, fyi)"  Of course, he's right. Duh. We need to be honest, upright, moral, etc etc etc. We need to be that for our own conscience's sake. We should all be concerned about THAT first and foremost NOT because of what Google or Facebook or LinkedIn or whatever will share with the public or government. BUT there are other reasons for guarding privacy fiercely. Identity theft. Stalkers. It's a long list, and does include the government and what exactly they'll do with your web search data- but you can fight about THAT one somewhere else. The point is- We Need To Be Careful. Because I doubt that Google or Facebook care about more than their own earning reports or bank accounts. They don't really care about your privacy. At. All.)
Just saying.

In other random news:

• In spite of being dead tired and wanting only to go to bed, I took a shower last night AND washed my hair (does every stalker on the planet need- or want- to know that?!?)- And this is a Big Deal why? Because there is no water anywhere in the city today (and tomorrow, we hear)- the twice annual cleaning of the water pipes has begun. Natalya went to the train station to buy tickets today and did find out that the bathroom there has water. But the hospitals don't; the university doesn't; we certainly don't. 
• Have you ever seen Orc Children? You know- Tolkien's little monsters. We had 2 hours on the train recently with some kids (age 0, maturity wise) who'd been for a tour of Western Europe. After watching them on the platform and hearing how they talked with their adult chaperones- I'm pretty sure they're Orc Children. I have Tolkien's Lord of the Rings as an audio book and some of them sounded exactly like the Orcs of Mordor. And were about as refined and polite and nice, too. I'm going to persist in my belief that not all kids that age are like that. Please please tell me I'm right. I mean- there are some MYP's I read about often who surely are NOT like that. (I guess someone knows what that's all about.) 
• Early fall was cold and unfriendly. No heat. Freezing temps outside. Much need for camel hair duvets. The past 2 weeks have been gorgeous. Warm. (And full heat in the apt- go figure). Gorgeous foliage. I'm sure it won't last. But it's been great! 

I'll leave you with a pic for evidence! :)

And no- that isn't my car. Not even close. I'd want a Hummer anyway, for the roads we cover. Uff.

Et tu Family Circus?

Sigh. Grammar and spelling. How old fashioned. Let's just do away with all the words that confuse us so much. There, their, they're? Pick one and use it every time in every situation. It's and its? Ditto. Awhile and a while? Ditto. You're and your? Why bother learning the difference? Or proofreading? Just go with your...I'm sure we'll all understand.
Sigh.

A Little Unclear...all the way around

Apparently, at least in some venerated circles (or are those circles ventilated?)- the old 'from scratch' is now 'from itch'...because itch does come before scratch, you know.

Long Break

I'm not sure where the time went. Ever heard that one? ;)
Yeah, original.

One thing I did this summer is occasionally save a link I found and enjoyed on this post. I'm sure you'll be just over the moon with them, too.

This really interesting article about vintage bathing suits...wow

Have you ever wondered what the EU is? Well-- wonder no more! Or maybe do... (And- in case you're wondering- We here in the Wild East are trying to get into the EU. I don't really understand it all but it's causing quite a row with Russia and there is some resolution being signed very soon- next month, I think- about it. Not that much will change here, methinks. Call me a pessimist. And see that other post about the Norman Rockwell pic.)

This needs to be tried. Seriously. Frozen coffee. Oh Yum.

Oh wow- so does this. Greek Shrimpy things done some amazing way with feta cheese... I'm drooling. Time for my Shredded Wheat, I guess... what a substitute...(On the other hand- if you ever come to see us and want to tuck a box of the big 'hay bale' kind of Shredded Wheat in your suitcase, Well- feel free. I mean, I don't know anyone who'd mind. ;)

The Trees of Chernobyl - My first lesson with the students is a general one about stereotypes and how people see Ukrainians (and how they see Americans- now that's fun! We're fat and rich and dumb or smart (depending) and smile all the time, in case you were wondering!)- and Chernobyl is part of that. They live in a place that is still under the shadow of Chernobyl (although not as much here as in the NW) but they don't think about it. They don't think about radiation or its long term effects on them or the environment. And I think I understand that. I don't think about it, either. It's just part of being here. And here is where we are. And we live here. That's what we do. We Live.

A transcript of a space flight. The part about 'my watch is 10 seconds fast' sort of made me giggle. Imagine that being important. But I suppose it might be...might have been...(FYI- I did NOT read the whole thing. I skimmed the first 20 or so pages and then threw in the towel. But it did sort of look interesting. If you have a chunk of time you were wondering what to do with.)

hand drawn (beautiful) atlas of the early US. (another link to that atlas...and more links from this one. Really beautiful work) I wish I had this kind of talent!

and one about naps!! Nap On, Everyone! ;)

It just depends on where you were born

There's a new school year. In fact, it's not even that new anymore. I have a few weeks under my belt already of classes again. One of the things we've done this fall is tell a story based on a picture. Someone (some wonderful creative person) left a pile of Norman Rockwell calendar pictures. And they are great. That Mr Rockwell knew how to tell a story in brush strokes. And the kids do pretty well making up their own little tales, too. The pic below has been a fun one. 

So take a look at it and tell me what you see. 

Pretty straight forward, eh? I mean. Naughty kid. Writing lines. (And when? Can you tell me that? And WHO is that man?)

Now here's the thing- Without exception, from my students, this pic has elicited this story: The boy is in trouble with his teacher. His father comes to school with a gift for the teacher to placate her and get the son out of trouble. (Today, the word 'bribe' was used.)
The first time, I was sort of surprised and had a good look at this innocent picture. After 6 classes of the very same story, though, it's quite clear that this really is a different culture and that Rockwell depicted something that is universally recognizable by Americans.
And here's the thing- When I asked if they have 'detention' here, they just gave me blank looks. I guess not. But they do buy their way out of trouble. (Chocolate, coffee, liquor and money are preferred methods.)
Again and again and again.
Sometimes I think I'm used to the little nuances that make this place tick. And sometimes, it completely catches me off guard.
Again.

Ahhhh

Went with a dear friend this afternoon out into the valleys and ravines to simply ramble, breathe and be. And Oh, it was perfect. I have about a hundred more pix but will be content with these for now. Took plums from the tree here in the backyard with us and ate heaps along the way. Came home and had pancakes, eggs and smoothies for supper. And lots of good conversation along the way. Does it get better than that?

Good Idea

Snagged from somewhere on Facebook

Sweden's Best Kept Secret

My new friend.
It really is too bad this little dude and his friends and relations don't occupy a spot in every checkout aisle on the planet. You know- by the chewing gum, chapsticks and batteries.
Or maybe it's just as well that they don't. They sure are delicious, though. Oh My.

We are here just now. No matter how much of this I see over here- Europe is full of tragic war stories- I will never get used to it nor (hopefully) hear/read about it without shuddering. No family in Europe is unaffected, it seems.

And this is just a pop in to say hello! Yes- it's been a long time. And it'll be a bit longer!

:) Smile

It’s not raining here. Not right now. But it looks like it could. And it will. But hey- It’s spring! Yay! Here’s to walking in the rain and feeling it in your bones and loving it!! Have a great day!

Recent stuff on the net and things from my Google Reader starred list. (And when did I begin to use Reader? Well- I'm not quite sure but the first starred item is from April 18, 2007. Uh yeah- the digital closet needed cleaning.)
Chernobyl 27 years later The disaster itself happened April 26, 1986.

Cab drivers meet all kinds. And there are all kinds of cabbies. Here's a great story by a great cabbie from a Sept 2008 post I'd saved.

How about some double-mint stuffed Oreo cookies?

Or how about Reese's Overload (for sure) cake?

Along the food line but not so sweet this time- English Muffin bread. Is there any bread quite as yummy as an English Muffin? I think not. 

Alzheimer's prevention? Little Anecdote #1: My friend and cohort Lillian used to try to beat me to the crossword (and here's the thing- she was a lot older than me and I'd let her have first crack, usually). Do crosswords, she'd say. Prevent Alzheimer's. In 2000, I left the US and didn't see her again until the fall of 2005. By which time she no longer knew me and often didn't know what she'd just done. I've wondered since if she knew back in '97 that something was up. That there were things going missing. I still enjoy the crossword. Now if we only knew if Angry Birds or Words With Friends are good for keeping your mind active. The second one maybe. hmmm

Abandoned mansions from around the world. The first one's from Ukraine...which is basically why the article made it into this post (but stuff like this always catches my eye. There's the mansion down in Kentucky, visible from a major highway. The story, as I remember it: Rich Man builds it for his wife. Wife divorces him. Rich Man loses everything and isn't able to finish the 'house'. When I saw it, someone had fenced it and was pasturing cattle on the grounds. Right up to the house. Which truly was magnificent. That pic often comes to mind. How sad we humans can be sometimes.). Ukraine has quite a lot of old fortresses/castles/the likes. Unfortunately, the country has no idea, for the most part, of how to capitalize on this potential wealth of tourist dollars.

"A satirist is a man who discovers unpleasant things about himself and then says them about other people." (Peter McArthur- whoever he is) 

and this remodeled saying: "Give a man a fish, and you'll feed him for a day. Teach a man to fish, and he'll buy a funny hat. Talk to a hungry man about fish, and you're a consultant." (Scott Adams this time)

And another- from Mark Twain: "If you tell the truth you don't have to remember anything."

One way to figure out what to set the alarm for (this came in a newsletter):
The Best Part of Waking Up...

... Is Sleepyti.me, a Site That Maximizes Restfulness

We all wish for a little more shut-eye, but the truth is sleeping longer isn’t always better. Let us explain using Sleepyti.me, a barebones website that calculates the optimal time for you to go to bed or wake up depending on your current sleep schedule. But first, a quick science lesson. Sleep is broken up into 90-minute cycles, and it is much easier to wake up at the end of a cycle than in the middle of one. Hence, shortening your beauty sleep to accommodate this cycle actually leaves you feeling more rested. That’s where Sleepyti.me comes in. Tell it when you need to wake up, and it tells you when to fall asleep, counting backward in 90-minute increments. Skeptical? We were too. But in our tests it worked. Sleepyti.me can also work in reverse, helping you set your alarm if you are going to bed right now. In which case, you should probably get off the computer.

Last night

Yesterday was a busy day for us...in the afternoon. So, in spite of the fact that I had my cousins' bib numbers and had wanted to keep track of them as they ran the Boston Marathon, I really couldn't. By the time I could check on them via the Marathon's site, they were long done. They both did very well, finishing 1114 and 1632 (out of 23,336 who started, 17,580 who finished- honestly- I have rather a lot of runners on my mom's side of the family- (thankfully, it didn't infect me) and they are good and I knew it but I didn't know they were that good). They're both just barely in their 30's with families- little kids, one has a newborn- so I'm just really glad they are fast, that they are distance runners up to the race. Really glad.
Because by the time the finish line exploded, literally, they were on their way back to the Midwest and their homes with their families still intact.
A family friend was also running. And she's good and I've known it for a long time. She started the race about an hour after my cousins did. So when I finally got to my computer last night, I looked her up on the marathon site and found her. A little pink avatar running towards the city of Boston. Nearly there, actually. I did other stuff. Got ready for bed and thought- Wonder where A is now? I'll just check once more before shutting down for the night. And she was so close. Another 20 min, I thought, and she'll be there! Done! Who wants to go to bed now? I'm gonna watch her cross the line...or at least watch her avatar do that. So I read some other stuff and came back to the site every few minutes. And she was moving along. Had picked up her pace again and was at the Apple Store on the map*. What looked like about 2 1/2 blocks from the line. And then she just stayed there. And a thought flitted through my head- I hope nothing happened, hope she didn't get knocked over or something like that.
20 min later, she was still there. So I hopped onto facebook (love it or hate it, f/b last night was the meeting place, in the end, for all of us wanting to know just where and how A was). Of course, it took no more than a few seconds to realize that, in fact, 'something' had happened.
And from across the ocean, my blood pressure and heart-rate just went right up.
I read what was available online (not a lot) and waited. There was no more thought of going to bed. Should I have not checked once more? I don't know. Truly. But this family goes way back with our family. We were friends as kids; our parents were friends. We did Thanksgiving together- not every year but several times. She and Mom are 2 days apart in age. She came to see me just before I left the States, spent a night with us. We all reconnected. She's more than just an acquaintance, in the end, and knowing that she was in that group of as-yet-unaccounted-for people... I'll admit it- I was afraid for her, for her kids, her grandkids. I was wide awake and waiting, waiting, waiting. 
I didn't go to bed. I couldn't. Not then. There was a group of people commenting on f/b posts, trying to find her. The sister of the lady who, with her husband, was at the line waiting for her was 'there', too.
It took hours. I'm not just sure how long, 2 hours anyway, before there was, finally, a peep (on f/b) from her. And it was longer before the people looking for her finally got to her and before her kids were finally able to talk to her. And in the end, her danger was probably more from the toll the race takes on your body and then not being able to take care of those physical needs in a timely way than of actual proximity to the bombs.
From over here, I was impressed with how quickly there were websites up and running to track down people- both runners and spectators. But it's a chilling feeling to go on one of those sites and find a post for your friend made by her son but no news yet.

And really- I cannot comprehend the kind of person who could actually place bombs like that. We are in touch with humanity all the time; we see, maybe more than some, the saddest, the most discouraging things. And yet, this kind of thing- it is monstrous and incomprehensible. Regardless of how you feel about religion, about faith, about those kinds of things- the world really is full of people who couldn't do this kind of thing. But unfortunately, there are a few who apparently can. One article I read today called them cowards. And I would have to agree.

And I'm so glad that, in spite of being on track to finish her fastest marathon yet, she wasn't just a little faster this time.

*Zooming closer, I don't think she was actually quite there yet but that's what it looked like.

stuff and stuff and more stuff. Some of these will make you smile. Some won't.

Ancient Iranian citadel destroyed in a 2003 earthquake (from 360 world cities, so well worth the look- panorama 360 rotation). Wikipedia article about said citadel- Arg-é Bam.

Buchenwald as it was liberated. (series of photos from Life Magazine- Warning- some pretty horrifying pix- I quit partway through. Yes, I have a weak stomach for things like this. I no longer visit war museums or places like the Holodomor museum in Kyiv. I have no quibbles with whether or not those things happened. I don't need to see it to believe or feel the horror of it. I put the link here because of the historic nature of the pix as well as the event and because I think some of you will be interested in seeing them. And because Life Magazine was phenomenal and their website is great.)

Someone mentioned St Louis' "City Museum" recently. Wow! Anyone been there? Reminded me a bit of 'The House on the Rock' in Spring Green, WI. One of my favorite places. on Wikipedia

Collection of photos from the Viet Nam war.

Zip...found alive in a bag of mulch (this is an ongoing story and, I understand, is still being updated. It'll activate your cute receptors, for sure...just not at the start!)

Biscuits and gravy? Yes, Please! These look fab!

What not to give a knitter...and why.

Quirky street art...by a Russian artist.

Why spelling does, after all, matter. Tongues, anywone?

For your inner child...and then invite me over, please. No, I don't want to actually take a trip down that thing- but I want to watch you!

Kids and their favorite toys. (I thought of a certain little girl and a typewriter and could picture her wanting her picture taken with that!)

Someone (that would be you, Kristina! :) ) recently referred to the fact that Google Reader is being discontinued. And, while I was in mourning for awhile, I've now switched (and mostly adjusted) to Feedly. But her comment reminded me that I have a raft of articles starred in Reader. Things I wanted to keep track of, for some reason or other. Sat afternoon when all was quiet, I started wading through them. These are some of them. I'm sure you'll see more. Since I'm enjoying posting links. For now. :)

Did you know....

….that a ‘babushka’ is not actually a scarf? It means ‘grandmother’ in Russian, Ukrainian (and possibly other Slavic languages). Interesting that the term made it into this comic strip. I never heard it used in the Midwest but I understand it’s common in Western Canada where there are many Ukrainians.

I've had this post open for umm awhile now- and have been adding a link or 2 each day. So some of them are rather old now. But still good/interesting/funny/scary...

Food for thought about internet use. RAT...had never heard of this before.

and one about cancer survivors

and one about differential gears. (hey hey- Have you thought about your differential gear lately? Yeah- I hadn't either. Not that I have one...)

from Yahoo news- a mama elephant fighting off hyenas to save its baby.

a pretty decent article about Facebook privacy.

and another about F/B privacy. Yes, I have f/b. Yes, I'm careful. Very. Believe me- you need to be careful.

40 years of cell phones...well really, only 30 but...

you like cats? Wild cats, too? How about this one?

tree house envy, kicking right in

ok- does your dog eat peanut butter?

or would you like some pre-Revolutionary War events? Oh. My.

oh- And did you hear about the man who thought he bought a poodle...only it wasn't. It was a....(on steroids).

And in case you were wondering- it's technically spring here, yes it is. But we had another couple of inches of snow this morning (mind you- it did us the courtesy of melting this afternoon). It doesn't exactly feel like spring yet, though. It's been a most unusual winter, that's for sure!

only instead of rain...

we have this:

sigh.

be nice

I've completely left off reading blogs, for the most part, except in spurts. And I'm not exactly sure why. It's not that the people who write them have become any less dear or important. 

And I notice that it corresponds to a serious decline in my own blogging. 

Tonight, though, I've been catching up...again... 

And found this on another blog: Be nice to everyone.  You never know what will happen in the years to come.  That little kid could some day be a spouse to one of your children.  He could have the open home you go to each week.  He could be the one that takes you from the nursing home to g.m.  You just never know!

That nice little life lesson brought back something from a few years back. (Have I told this story here already? Who knows? I'm going to make a fantastic old person- I'm already re-telling everything. By the time I'm 80, everyone will know all my stories- just go ahead and start numbering them now so you'll have a head-start...)

My T friend and I get a call one day. 

-Tanya's going to be in your town on (day) next week and she'd like to meet up with you.

-Do we know her? In fact- I know we don't know her. I don't know her.

-She knows you.

-How? She can't. I don't know her.

-Well she does and she'd like to see you.

-Ok. 

So Tanya has our number, we've got hers. 

The day arrives and we arrange to meet Tanya at a statue downtown. 

And we get there and are positive- We have never seen this girl nor do we know her. So what is going on?

So we ask. And she says- Well (2 weeks ago, let's say), I was in town and took the (4pm let's say) bus back north to my town and you were on it. I sat beside (my T friend, I think) and she slept all the way there and you (as in me) sat across from us and did crossword puzzles all the way (which was so spot on, it had to be true). 

And- LP was my English teacher a few years ago and I knew when I saw you that you were her friends.

Which dropped my jaw. Because, in fact, everything she said was true. LP was/is a very dear friend. 

And we had a very nice time with Tanya. And she stayed on our radar for quite a few years. But isn't there just now. I haven't heard from her lately. And I wonder what's happened to her. 

After we said good-bye that day, my T friend said- Thank goodness we weren't picking fights with the other passengers that day!! ;-)

But it truly is amazing how small the world sometimes is. And when you see people again. And when they see you again. And who they end up being. 

Here's to being nice.

And to behaving! :)

Just when you need it

I love to be in touch with people- always have. I wasn't always so aware of it, though. But one time, a friend said to me- I wish I could be a people person like you.
Which literally took my breath away. Because I'm shy by nature (at least I feel shy) and people can intimidate me fairly easily. But I also find people easy to love. And easy to be fascinated by.
Recently, I had a couple weeks in Estonia, waiting on a visa. A good friend's (Friend A) parents are there. And another friend's parents have a small studio apartment just down the road from the first couple. (The studio is often empty as it serves as a stop off place for many people, including the owners.) So, the sound of the studio apt sounded appealing and luxurious and 'ahhh- like a nice soak in a sea-salt-with-essential-oils-bath'. But it was already booked. And Friend A tells me that, truly, I'd be more than welcome to stay in his parent's guest room.
So, I book myself in there. And they were kind and gracious in their welcome. They met my flight. Took me home, fed me, tucked me in for the night, told me to sleep as much as I could (I was trying to sleep off a virus, actually).
And really, in spite of the fact that the studio apt really had sounded inviting (I like alone time sometimes) I was also looking forward to being with the other folks. Partly because their child is my good friend, of course, but also partly because, I realized, I really do love to be with people. I do.
And I find that rather amazing. Because I still think of myself as fairly shy and easily intimidated.

Anyway- here's the thing. Those 2 weeks with that couple- it was better than a 'nice soak in a sea-salt-with-essential-oils-bath'. We talked about anything and everything. We covered the funny, the sad, the serious, the painful, the happy, the encouraging. And I think I needed that more than I knew.
I wish you all the 'nice soak in a sea-salt-with-essential-oils-bath' when you need it! And I've noticed that I always get one when I most need it...whether I knew I needed it or not.

xo

What's Up?

Just in case you've been wondering what I've been up to the past few days. Cheshire-cat-grin
Turns out walking like a penguin (remember?) doesn't always work... oops (I trembled and shuddered and then giggled at those penguins.)

Oh my. The first time, ever, to have any kind of cheesecake in Europe with an actual honest-to-goodness graham cracker type crust. And hands down the best cheesecake I've had outside the US...at least in recent memory. Oh. My. Goodness. Gracious. Sugar. Free. (Not). Life.

My new secret don't-tell-anyone friend. Yikes.

Took a walk along the seashore this morning. Saw a ferry coming in but it was sort of not moving at all... I thought. So I left. 

Looked back about 3 min later and it had really snuck up on me! I wish I'd stayed put.

We also listened to the final of the Estonian English Speakers' Union public speaking contest for high schoolers in grades 11 and 12. The winner and runner-up will go to London later this spring. All 6 were excellent and had much better English-both comprehension and speaking- than my university English translation students back in Ukr. Oh Dear. The audience got to choose a 'peoples choice' winner and runner-up. The boy I voted for wasn't the most polished and his delivery actually lacked quite a bit, in comparison with at least 3 of the other 5. But, he spoke from personal experience about the power of forgiveness and how it will improve your life. Many of the others covered grandiose topics (like activism and getting involved in making the world a better place by helping the Syrian refugees). There was a time in my life when I was quite passionate about things and could have written and given (if not as well) one of those speeches. I feel now, though, that those things really are beyond our reach, are too often misused and will never make a dent, really. We can effect small (and sometimes big) changes in our own sphere, though and I was quite impressed with a teenager actually understanding that. And apparently the judges liked him, too, as he was the runner-up!

And furthermore, I don't really trust public speakers or speeches much anymore. The power of speech is artfully used to produce desired effects from a specific target audience. And always has been, I suppose. I really don't trust that kind of powerful speaking...

Diary of Five

I am seeing...My room in shades of white, pale green and peach- lovely!

I am hearing...Supper being prepared. 

I am smelling...Chicken, I think.

I tasted...Parmesan cheese- sooooo yummy. (The stuff you slice, not the stuff you sprinkle!)

I am feeling...Content.

New Friends and Old

I was all checked-in and roaming around the back side of the airport...or the front side if you consider that all the plate glass windows are on that side. Small terminal, 1 place to get coffee, no place to get sandwiches, 1 place to get expensive drinking water but 3 places to get perfume, alcohol, tobacco and chocolates- and I see this little dude. With whom I fell in love back in Germany about 11 years ago. Oh my... and it's still yummy. My ear drums needed it on the flight, I can tell you. My poor virus affected underwater eardrums.




And then I was roaming a grocery store in Tallinn, Estonia, just to see what I could see. And I found this guy. Oh my. Almond and white chocolate granola bar. Take it from me, It is SOOO worth the calories!










I'm not sure this qualifies as a friend as I'm not all that fond of them, actually. But I was roaming another grocery store tonight when I realized I was looking at very familiar packaging. It put a grin on my face and made me feel sort of warm and fuzzy inside. Jelly candies from Roshen. Which is a Ukrainian confectionery. The best in the country as far as I'm concerned. And here they're selling it in Estonia! Mind you, Roshen chocolate is really where it's at. That stuff is so good, you'll never want Hershey's again if you get the chance to eat Roshen. Or at least that's what I think! ;)

:-)

From the walk home yest. Yep, it really is beautiful...even if we've had more than enough for this winter!

Still...........

Snowing. No kidding. This winter,
It. Just. Won't. Stop. Snowing.

Grape Nuts...and other yummies

How funny. I've had Shredded Wheat (the hay bale kind, not the mini's) and Grape Nuts as many mornings as I could manage while in the US and I wasn't at all ready to quit. It was a treat, in fact, to have those again. So this time, Agnes, we are poles apart. :)

And speaking of grape nuts. Did you know you can make them? You can. :) Here's how:


8 pounds whole wheat flour (28 cups)
4 pounds brown sugar (8 cups)
3 quarts buttermilk (10 cups)
1 pound butter (1 1/2 cups), melted
1 cup vinegar
3 tablespoons soda
2 tablespoons vanilla
2 teaspoons maple flavoring

-Mix ingredients

- Bake in cake pans @325F until well done

-Cool

-When cold, crumble and put back in pans

-Dry @170 F (all night/day)

(When the cake has cooled, I break it up into big chunks and then let it dry a bit before grating it- like you grate carrots, for instance.) 

And then there was this recipe recently... hmmm. oooo- or even better- THIS one! Or...this one!!! (Speaking of the above comic strip.)

And since we're drooling over sweet things we'll never make or eat (because I-don't-eat-sugar-except-when-I-do)- well, there's these...

'scuse me, I gotta go get a towel... got a little damp around here... 

I don't remember that we had a lot of junk food around the house when I was a kid but we did have Hostess Twinkies sometimes. And I LOVED them. I loved the cakey outside- mostly soft but with a little bit of brown in it. And then that creamy inside. All that yummy-ness. And then the 2 together. Oh Yum.
And whenever I'm back in the US, I have 1 or 2 or 3 for old times' sake. Only this time when I did...uh... they were just a tad sweet and hmmm.... not all that great.

Good-Bye Hostess

But that doesn't matter. I'm still going to miss them. I'm going to miss knowing that I can go eat one for old times' sake. 

ramble on

I have a bad habit of rolling through my day and thinking out mini blog posts (or emails or letters to friends, for that matter) and then never doing anything more than that.
So here's one from Dec.

- Do you know what a 'Фура' (Fura) is? It's a semi. Ever ridden in one? Probably some of you have. I hadn't- in spite of the fact that I know quite a few people who drive a big rig.
Hadn't. See, that's all in the past. Early Dec.
I was on my own, with a schedule. A regular round of visits and mtgs and buses and trains and such. And lots of bad weather. But that's a 'nother story. And I had a Fri night engagement in town 'L' and a train at midnight:40 in town 'Kh', an hour from town 'L'. No biggie, I think. L is on the main highway, lots and lots of traffic and lots of buses.
Can't buy a bus ticket, though, for anything after 7.30 pm. Odd.
No biggie. L is on the main highway, lots and lots of traffic and lots of buses.
Kids walk out to the road with me shortly after 8. We chat. We watch traffic (which is mostly 'фура's- huh). And we start to freeze. So I send the kids off home.
And wait.
And chat with a smattering of other people waiting. One woman informs me she's been there over an hour with nary a bus gone by.
huh
And we wait.
And freeze.
And wait.
And I'm wondering just how do I get down to Kh with no buses and nearly no cars.
One nice middle-aged man, the woman and I agree that if there's no bus by 10, we'll get a taxi from across the street at the bus station and split the cost.
And we do our best to flag down someone, anyone.
And Woman flags a trucker at (no kidding) 9.58.
And grabs me and hauls me up into the cab with her. And off we go.
Well- even in the dark, it's a great vantage point! I listen to Woman and Trucker talking. Woman is determined to share her entire life history. We make 'uh-huh' noises at appropriate times. And I begin to realize that she...uh...has no class at all. None. Zip.
But Trucker is a genuinely nice ordinary family-type of guy.
He doesn't, however, drop us off in town...as I'd oh-so-naively thought he would. Oh no. Trucks take by-passes. I didn't even know Kh HAD a by-pass. It does. It goes on forever and ever and ever.
2 km ON THE OTHER SIDE of Kh at 11PM, he dumps us off on a traffic circle. Sigh.
The ride cost a cough drop...he had a sore throat. :)
So now all we have to do is hitch a ride back INTO town...
It's foggy. And sure enough still cold.
We wait and wait and flag and wait.
(And find out later that it's illegal to stop on a traffic circle...no wonder the cops kept circling that one. For about 15 min. Creeps. No, they didn't stop to try to help us...just kept waiting for someone to stop and pick us up...which no one was dumb enough to do.)
The cops leave and about 2 min later a car stops. Woman tears off to talk to them and I grab the bags. And we nearly collide as I approach and she backs up fast. And says- I'm not sure we want to ride with them. And I think- If SHE doesn't want to, I sure don't want to.
And we wait another 5 min or so. A car stops- 2 guys and a woman. Going to the train station. Yay! We pile in and sail off into the foggy night.
They took about $2.50 for safe passage to the train station.

And that is the story of my ride in a фура. Which I enjoyed. But likely won't repeat.

Got snow? (yes)

I genuinely found this interesting. I'm going to see if I can remember to do this- the sidewalks are mostly ice around here. Thankfully, I don't fall much. But I'm going to make the penguin my new role model...for now. 

All this came Sun night. Really pretty. Sigh.

And a gorgeous hoar frost this morning. That lasted most of the day, actually. ;)

got snow? Uh-huh

Life can be crazy, of course. We all know it. And sometimes life is a mad rush. Mine is like that a lot...but an organized mad rush and I really quite like it.
I like the new. I like the change.
And sometimes I don't like the change. It would be nice to find a groove and stay in it. Sometimes I think that. But... I'm not sure I'd find my groove. Maybe the 'change' groove is my groove. :) The thing about change, though- it happens and you might as well like it. So, I'm looking forward to Mar. To the change that comes then. To some time spent on the shores of the Gulf of Finland, of all places, up where the Tsar used to have his winter palace. To the place they sometimes just call 'Peter'. I will love getting to know this city and I'm definitely looking forward to time spent there with someone I consider a friend whom I'm very much looking forward to getting to know better.
Speaking of change- one thing that hasn't changed in quite awhile is the fact that it snows here. For the fun of it. Every day. Lots. Still. For months. I'm sure.
Seriously...it snowed yesterday evening and all night. Yup, that's pretty. Nope, we no longer need it. I mean- I'm sure we've had enough here to share with the entire MidWest US...and still have all we need. I haven't seen a winter like this in... I-don't-know-how-long.

It is pretty though! :)
 And that's not the fresh stuff. That's last week's.
Here's some more of last weeks:

It was coming down thick and fast and wet...just as the kids were getting out of school. How cool is that?? 

Calvin and Hobbes revisited, beautifully
A taste of summer-to-come. Do this. It's delish!!!

'night you all! xo

ps- It's my baby sis' 37th birthday today!! 

That C Word

Cancer is a word you  have to practice saying. It doesn't fit nicely on your tongue or anywhere in your mouth.
A month ago today, Jan 11, in the middle of a conversation, my friend said- I have a lump.
A WHAT? I said.
A lump.
A lump?
A lump.
uh. You need to get that looked at like right away.
And one week later, I knew she was going in to get the results of her initial exams. The time for the appointment came and went and no word. After awhile, I texted her: So what'd you find out?
The answer: I have to tell my parents first.
I don't think I've come down to normal living since. There is just no way that can be good news in that context. That night, she texts: Can you come with me to the cancer hospital next Mon? I have a biopsy then and I'll need another set of ears (because medical terms in a non-native language can be daunting). (And that was the first time the C word made an actual appearance. But I didn't say it. Not then. Not for awhile. I did cry, though.)
We needn't have worried about the terminology. There was no way to misunderstand what the nice doctor was saying- Stage 1, yes, but definitely malignant.
I heard everything the first time he said it but only retained one phrase- Stage 1. Maybe because she's older, smarter, wiser; maybe because it's her- her stage 1, her lump, her body- she got it all the first time. The second time, I got it, too. I could repeat it. I retained it. I might have even said the C word once or twice. But mostly I said, to myself- Stage 1. Stage 1. Stage 1. (choke) stage 1 (whisper)
That was the sudden ray of sunshine to grasp for. The bright spot to stand in.
There was a flurry of communications. What to do? Where to go? Stay? Go back to the States?
There were definite points made for each option but in the end, my friend chose to have her surgery here. A nurse-friend told her- After surgery, you'll know more about the KIND of cells you have, what kind of tumor. You can always go back to the US then if it seems best.
Surgery was perfect. Surgeon was happy- The perfect Stage 1, perfectly contained, lymph nodes are fine, everything looks great!
So, up to and for 5 days after the surgery, we coasted along. We made jokes on facebook- jokes in which the C word was used a little more freely. Good riddance to bad rubbish. Cancer begone. And so on.
And then the pathology report.
Perfect Stage 1, ok...but a very vicious and aggressive little Stage 1. The kind that will quickly grow up, not into some funny little lab specimen but a roaring deadly lion. Aggressive. Aggressive. Aggressive.
And so treatment.
And so there's a plane ticket booked and some kind soul (or souls) back in the Golden State is doing some legwork to have things ready to roll. My friend goes back with a bit of her perfect Stage 1 in paraffin so the dr's there can pass judgement.
And I've been practicing saying that word. That C word. I hate it. It doesn't fit. But it pushed its way into our lives. Into all of our lives. When we least expected it. It was just a tiny little perfectly contained Stage 1...but it snarled and bit and left me breathless.
It's getting a bit easier. In one sense.
But I don't think that's one of those things that ever really gets easy. Not when it has meaning. Really has meaning. It's the kind of word that leaves you gasping for breath and hoping that the ride is soon over. And ends gently and stays on the tracks.

And to the very dear friend who shared her own experience with my friend (who let me read it, too): Thank you so much for taking out some of the 'scare' and readjusting the light to shine, not on a black hole but on a fresh day, somewhere in the future, when the wanna-be lion will be a thing of the past.