Тапочки

I think I'm settling into my role as teacher. Last Thursday my Level 6 class and I got rather far off topic. We spent about an hour and twenty minutes or so (of an hour and a half class) talking about everything except what was in the text book. This is great, in my opinion. I learned quite a bit about the way things were and the way they are now. Take cell phones for example (I'm not sure how well this holds up outside the Kaliningrad region). Four or five years ago if you had a cell phone, that meant that you were a New Russian. Nowadays, everybody from the hunched-backed grandma hobbling to catch the bus to the preteen SMSing a person two feet away has a cell phone. As far as I can tell, costs are not that bad at all. (Today I tried to get my phone unlocked and buy a new SIM card for it. Unfortunately, my Russian wasn't quite good enough so I need to try back again tomorrow when some English speakers should be in.) The consensus seemed to be that life was all around better under communism. Not necessarily because of it, but because people thought they lived well and were content. Now that the iron curtain has parted its veil and revealed other people living in greater luxury the natural tendency is to want what the others have. Instead of leaving the door to your apartment unlocked because everybody had the same thing, multiple locks and doors guard valuables now. This description is less than ideal, but the point I was attempting to make was that, according to my class of young females, life is quantitatively different now in many not-so-good ways than it was prior to the late 80s.

A recurring question people ask me during free talk is where I live. The answer to this question would be where I live now, correct? I respond with the closest well known place - the Казино Ванда (Casino Wanda). If nothing else, it provides a touchstone for some of the lower level students. When somebody else walks in and asks where I live, they can respond with confidence, "Казино Ванда." After all, teachers in Russia make even less money than teachers in America, and I need some sort of supplemental income. So living in the casino makes sense. At least it's good for a few laughs.

This morning I made pancakes for breakfast. Surprisingly they turned out okay. I realized after the first ones were in my pan that I had nothing to top them with. Сметана goes well with anything, right? As a matter of fact, with thinly sliced bananas and peaches the taste was palatable, even delectable. I didn't burn any of them until I had finished eating and was frying the rest of the batter. When I started doing something on the internet I forgot about the stove and returned to find an excellent source of charcoal.

Ironing the last of my wash I came up with a great, probably unreachable, goal. I want to be able to iron a shirt (successfully) in under a minute. I have yet to time myself, but would guesstimate that I'm in the 10-12 minute range now. Somebody should offer me a reward when I get the 55 second shirt down pat. On a laundry related note, I wore my nice light colored khakis last week for the first time, ever. And it rained. Now I have nice mud splatters on the back of the legs. And after two times through the wash, the spots are still visible. That'll teach me to wear nice clothes when it is overcast.

A beginner student at the K-ELC lives on the same street as me and we ride the same bus home. It is good for both of us - he gets an extra 35 minutes of English practice twice a week, and I get to practice my Russian. I had been having a difficult time trying to find a place to purchase тапочки, so asked if he knew where I could get some. This Friday evening he pointed out a store from the bus where I should be able to find some. Today I went and now I have four pairs of тапочки. I suppose it stems from the dirty conditions outside, but all Russians (as far as I can tell) take off their shoes when they enter the house and put on a pair of house slippers. It is common courtesy to have a few pairs extra for that unexpected guest that drops by. At the store where I bought them, the price was reasonable, but probably on the high side. Suppose I should get out of the habit of thinking of everything in dollars, but for about $30 I have four really nice slippers of various sizes. That is great, except it means that I can only have three visitors over at any one time. As my pal and I walked home from the bus stop on Saturday afternoon, he pointed out a building maybe three blocks from where I live and told me it was a music school. I wonder how open they would be to letting me use a practice room there. I've touched the horns twice since leaving America 34 days ago. My current plan is to keep off them until the first semester finishes (end of October). Then take a few months and relearn some basics. Having a place where I could feel free to blow my brains out would come in real handy. In a few weeks I'll try asking somebody at the school and see what type of fiery hoops I need to leap through to use a room.

I've spent more time trying to sort out things at my former job in Maryland this weekend than I have since leaving. Hopefully things will normalize sooner than later. It is one of those cases where more preparation on my part could have prevented problems from arising. Alas, there are only so many hours in a day. I suppose this would be a logical place to show off the only website I ever created: Universal Energy Corporation, Inc. I did it three or four years ago, using friendly old Notepad and HotDog Pro. In my opinion it is due for an overhaul, but anything more complicated is out of my league, not to mention that I'm not state side.

I love the cold weather, but the past week or so I've been freezing in my apartment. Sheets are nice, but only provide so much warmth. One aisle over from my тапочки were these lovely comforters. I picked out a thick one with a tiger print on it, but decided not to buy it today. Maybe I'll head back and get it later this week. Friday morning I spent an hour getting the light in my closet to work only to enter it an hour later and get nothing when I flipped the switch. For the past couple days, just wiggling the fixture worked wonders, but today I've got nada no matter what I do. Another stint as electrician should fix it for good. I wonder what it feels like to have 220 course through your veins. The main thing that I've got to do now in my apartment is figure out where these little flying dudes are coming from. They look like the kind of bugs that find a hidden box of cereal or a bag of rice and replicate themselves. Before they call in reinforcements (or make their own), I need to conquer and destroy.

Oh yeah, later this week I should get around to posting some more pictures. I have a few from here in Kaliningrad and a whole boat load from in Moscow. Time for me to hit the sack.