Sasha 

Nathan's Party! 

Say What?

Tom was wearing a shirt he found in our boxes that just arrived from California. The shirt had Palm trees all over it. It was one of his favorites. As I was looking at him in it and thinking about him going to his meeting I heard myself say "do you want me to iron that for you?" I almost looked around to see who said it! I don't iron my own clothes. Since we have been here Ella has ironed for us and in California Tom's shirts went to the dry cleaners. Well, he was not about to pass up the offer. So he took off the shirt and I set up the ironing board. I know how to iron. I know how to do a lot of domestic tricks. I just don't always like to! Spencer walked in while I was ironing; he wanted me to put extra starch in the arms so Tom would have to walk with his arms straight out! I decided to continue being nice. No starch tonight!

One Year Later!

Good food, good friends and a good dictionary! Tonight we had dinner with Alexei and Lena. One year ago we had dinner with them and needed an interpreter. Tonight there was “nyet problem!” We had a good dictionary instead. They are studying English and we are studying Russian; so the four of us make a great team! We teach each other new words. We are very patient and spell the words or actually write them out for each other. Lena made ‘bliny” for dinner. Russian pancakes. She had sour cream, honey and caramel sauce for toppings. It was sooo good. I took over a carton of Strawberry milk. They had never tasted it before. I think Lena liked it! Tom brought over some of his ties for Alexei. It was a riot watching Tom and Alexei tie them. I have a short video I wish could be posted. Lena was asking me what I am going to be doing in Rome. I told her about Erin singing opera and my watching Rhianna. She translated for Alexei. While I’m in Rome the remont (repairs) on our new apartment are going to take place. Alexei started making up an opera about home repair. Tom joined in and they were off in their own world for a while! They gave us a copy of the Lord of the Rings in Russian and the Jesus Film. Lena knows that I watch movies with the boys in Russian sometimes and pick out as many words as we can and look them up.

I got two text messages from Nathan during the evening and then a phone call. He is planning a party for Sunday after church. So far all the guests are female! He has a guys phone number and he will "try" to get some guys to come over too! He is planning videos and pizza. They will probably watch movies in Russian. Nathan said he is doing better recognizing words when people are speaking. He is keeping his notebook with him and studies often. Tonight he walked home with our pastor, Valodia. He said he felt "very safe" with him. There is no one safer to walk with in the dark than a former military General!

Tom takes a photo! 

Two new ties!

Tom gives Alexei a lesson! 

Man of many faces! 

Alexei is collecting bottle caps for Tom! 

Shopping in the Rain

"treat-sit vosem, Ah!" As Spencer and I were leaving the house today to get our marketing done we were confronted by a little old lady who was looking for Marzhutka # 38A. She was concerned that maybe it was not working. I agreed with her. As I was I speaking with her we missed our bus. I tried to get away politely but she would not stop talking. I even tried using "I don't understand" but she kept on talking. I said "I only speak a little Russian" to her and told Spencer we need to go and catch a tram-vi instead. We started walking and she followed us still talking about the marzhutka. I asked her to excuse us and told her we were going to the tram-vi. Wouldn't you know it! She's still talking!

Spencer and I broke into a little run. I think she was harmless--- but we needed to get going!

We started taking our photos for our respective blogs and finally got to the tram-vi stop. We thought it looked like rain but we didn't want to go back near our house.... there was a babushka waiting for us back there! We made it onto the tram-vi just as the rain started. Once we got downtown on Krasnaya it was coming down hard. We needed to find an ATM. It took us four different locations before we were successful! Each machine was broken down. After we got our cash we looked in several stores for an umbrella. Now we have an extra for a guest! Finally, we were ready to shop. Walking in the rain is refreshing!

Grass being cut with a weed whacker!

This guy was ok with me taking his picture
---the first time... I checked my camera and
was not happy with the shot so I retook it
two more times. He started yelling at me.
I yelled back "Yah, Toureesta!" I told Spencer
that next time I will say "Yah, zhournaleesta" and
pay the person for their photo!

I let you know how it works out!

Central heating pipes # 1

Tom said these pipes are used to transport heat to
buildings up to 3 blocks away. Don't even try to touch!

Central heating pipes # 2

Tom says these pipes are even bigger in Moscow!

Cat on a hot tin roof

We have waited in front of this house many times
for the tram-vi. Today was the first day we
looked up and noticed this tin cut out of a cat!

Fancy drain pipe!

This is the same house with the cat on the roof!
Some houses are kept up by people who truly
pay attention to detail.

Simple talk

Everything! What a simple word. In English when we are at the end of a purchase the clerk might say “is there anything else I can get for you?” Or the ever popular “want some fries with that?” Here it is a simple word… “fso?” which literally translated means “Everything?” You will hear it at the end of a purchase, a lesson or even at the end of church if the worship leader is not certain. Ella (our housekeeper) asked me today how to say ‘change clothes’ in English. She said in Russian it is just one word. I replied “perhaps, we English speakers talk too much!” She smiled without giving away her feelings!

Tom is going to the Post Office again today. Maybe we will see him in time for dinner! He only has one package so hopefully it won’t take all day. He is also going to pick up a package from the states that has arrived for us. The boys have been praying that it is from Pop Pop and Tadah! They really want the voltage converters badddd! Spencer was trying to add up all the hours of video game time he should have coming to him since he has not played since we left Christine and Raul’s house. I don’t think that is going to fly with his Dad and I am certainly not buying it!

I had to make a call to the states to make sure some funds were transferred correctly for us to purchase the apartment. When I was being read back my account number I answered her in Russian. She laughed and said “that’s ok, I’m not from this county either!” Here I have answered people in English or Spanish. Nathan does it too. One of these days it will all come together. When I get to Rome I can’t wait to try out my Russian!

Grocery Shopping

Grocery shopping is not the thing to do when you are hungry. Grocery shopping in a European market when you are missing food from home and are hungry is a deadly combination!

Tom came with me to the market today.... my list only had a few items on it. But, when you shop in Russia if you find it.... get it! I was looking in the milk section when I finally came across something I have spent six weeks looking for; no, not peanut butter... we still cannot find that. But, I did find Bunny Milk!!!! The Sharp guys love bunny milk. I could not find strawberry Nestle Quick or any equivalent anywhere else I had looked. Today, Eureka! There it was in the milk section a box of "kubneeka moloka" Strawberry milk. Why do bunnies give strawberry flavored milk? I'm not sure. Tom says it's because they hop through strawberry patches.

After we finished up our shopping Tom found us a taxi. He has adapted Russian tactics. He offered a driver 100 rubles (about 3$) to take us home instead of waiting for the woman he was there for! The driver pounced on it! We took off lickety split! Taxis were scarce...it was during rush hour and we had a cart full of frozen and perishable food! Tom negotiates price before the ride now like a pro. We know the city well enough and we have tram-vi and trolley-bus passes so we don't have to waste money on a taxi unless we have a need for one!

I made a Mexican dinner when we got home. Spencer loves things like that... eating Mexican food in Russia. This morning he told me he thought it was funny that here he was in Russia reading a Japanese book that had been translated into English!

It's a small world!

Gagarina street neighbors have fences and gates. Some are Fancy!
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Some need repair!
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Some gates are simple
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Mary Kay is sold at Visheevoy Renoc!
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People still flick butts anywhere they want to!
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What goes around!

It is never good to laugh at someone when they make a mistake in class. Tom was being quzzied today by Lena and when he answered he said "adinasadt-adin" basically he said eleventy-one! Spencer and me laughed heartily because Tom was making up new numbers. We could barely keep straight faces during the rest of our quiz time. Later, we invited Lena to stay for dinner. She was asking us about salads in the US. We were giving her a run down of different salads and I blurted out "karandash".... pencil! I was trying to say Potato.

No more laughing for me!

I filled a bowl with pencils and served them to Tom. He put a napkin in his collar and then licked his lips! I think we are even...

First Crate arrives!

Nathan was invited to spend the day with friends down on Krasnaya street. Tom and I went to Visheevoy Renoc to shop and Spencer stayed home because I thought he needed the rest. Shortly after Tom and I arrived at the renoc my phone rang. Spencer said that someone called and they spoke so fast that all he understood was American, boxes and Language School. He thought we should go right away. I told him I would let his dad know. Tom and I decided that some packages must have arrived from the States and we would just go get them tomorrow. We kept on shopping. Spencer called again. Then Maj-lis called Spencer. Spencer called us again. We found out through further translation that one of our crates had arrived! We decided to hail a taxi and get over there quick. Alexei M. is the security gaurd over there and we found him keeping watch over our boxes. Tom had me jump out of the taxi because we were going to hold it and just make several trips. He asked me to see how many boxes there were. I looked and said about 30. Alexei yelled out "treat- sit-semb" I called back to Tom "Alexei says 37!" right then the taxi dirver is shaking his head no! Tom hops out and we let him go. We try calling Ervand. He is at the Black Sea on holiday. It is Russian Independence Day. We decide to hire a truck. 30 minutes later our belongings are on their way to our apartment!

It feels like Christmas in June...

Sunday Babushkas

These gals looked so
cute with their hats on!
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Before the boxes arrive!
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Hard at work
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Unloading fireman style!
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men at work
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Our courtyard filled with boxes!
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Smokey made it here safely!
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Igra studies Tom's face!
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Hey...don't I know you?
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Time on our hands

Tom spent two hours signing papers with the realtor, one hour with Heather to open an account at the bank and three hours shopping with me deciding how to remodel!

We have almost purchased an apartment.

The babushka that we are buying from has all the documents in order so she is wanting a fast sale. It should be done by the end of the month! We are not purchasing the apartment that I posted about earlier. That one did not really have the space I wanted. It is important for Nathan and Spencer to have their own rooms right now. Everyone's sanity is at stake!

At the bank today there was a man who was highly upset that there was only one window open. He went over to where two people in the back were visible and yelled at them to come up front and work. Someone came out for a bit to answer questions and then left...

It is fun understanding what is going on around us. To hear this guy ranting about having to work hard all week and then stand in line at the bank all day on Saturday was great. It was really funny though when he could not get his friend to leave with him!

After spending the day in the heat out shopping we went out for lunch and then found some videos to bring home. Tom and the boys are watching Monty Python right now. Nathan spent the morning on the internet searching for the code to make our DVD player play our videos from the U.S. He was successful! So now we can play videos from all regions and not just the ones we bought here.

This fence is right outside of Moscow Bank!

We had to go to Moscow Bank today and open
an account. Tom was asked for his Patronomic.
We don't use those in the States but if we did it
would be Normanivitch! Mine would be Johnova.

Men take their father's first name and add 'ivitch'
Women use their father's name with 'ova'!
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Wrought iron fences can be very intricate!

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We liked these tiles samples!


Tom will be supervising the remodel
of our new apartment will I am in Rome
so I had to go out and make choices ahead of
time! We chose the green for the bathroom
floors and the other tile for the rest of the
rooms.


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We found many remont (repair) items here!

This building had three floors all filled with
bathroom, tile, carpet, paint, etc. It helps us to have
photos of landmarks so we can remember where
to go back to. This building is on the tram-vi
route so it is easy to find!

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One of our neighbors got married today!

On Fridays and Saturdays it is very noisy around here.
These days seem to be the most popular to get hitched!
It is tradition here to follow the Wedding car honking
very loudly. One weekend Spencer counted 15 weddings!
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Language Practice

When our lesson ended Lena was in the entry way putting on her shoes preparing to leave. I was making an attempt to practice the new words we had just learned by asking her in Russian where she was going. However, I got my words mixed up and ended up asking her where she was right now! Duh! The smile she has when we make that kind of mistake is priceless. She corrected me and waited for me to say it right and then she answered the question. One day I will get it right the first time. I hope she doesn’t have a heart attack when that happens!

Top Ten Signs the Sharps have finished a Language Lesson:

10: Nathan is asking for ice cream
9: Alida is doing her homework
8: Tom is taking a nap
7: Spencer is playing with Brownie
6: Nathan is reading in his room
5: Alida decides to go shopping
4: Spencer is watching Russian TV
3: Tom is still napping
2: Alida comes back from shopping & makes dinner
1: Spencer is trying to sing the “Frito Bandito” song in Russian!
(Yah, Yah, yah yah, Yah, Frito Bandito! ... )

Happy Birthday, James!

Hey, James. I didn't want to wake you up to
sing Happy Birthday. I looked at the calendar
at midnight your time and decided to post a
birthday message instead. I thought you would enjoy
a photo of your favorite women! Have a good one.


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O What A Beautiful Day

Asking for directions in the USA is not the same as asking for directions here in Krasnodar. I asked a young lady, Nina, for directions today. I wanted to go to the Visheevoy Renoc (which is huge) by trolleybus or tram-vi. I was able to form the sentence to ask in Russian about the trolley bus. As I was speaking to Nina, her mom and sister came up. They talked and agreed the best way was by tram-vi. They showed me on my map. Then they asked me to walk with them. Spencer was with me and we were both in shock as we realized that they were walking us to the tram-vi stop! After we had walked about 3 blocks the mom and sister turned to go home letting Nina take us all the way there.... another 3 blocks. She waited with us until we got on the correct tram-vi. She told me to tell the conductor I wanted off at "astanovka visheevoy renoc ".

We were even able to have a conversation.... she told me that she was from Krasnodar and asked me where I was from. She asked what I was doing in Krasnodar. She wanted to know what the weather is like in California. I was able to answer her completely in Russian. She even asked me how long I had been studying Russian. When she heard that I have only been studying for 6 weeks she was shocked! It is good that we have been working with Lena for 6 hours a week and reading the dictionary before going to bed pays off! Lena says we are to listen when Russian speakers talk. I listened closely to how Nina conjugated verbs. I learned a few new ones today. I get to tell Lena at our lesson tomorrow. With the help of the Nina, the conductor and the girl I sat next to on the tram-vi; Spencer and I made it safely to the renoc!

My tickets to Rome arrived today. Hallelujah! (the heavens part and a choir is singing!)

I went over to the Language school to pick them up. The driver told the dispatcher that he could not deliver them at first because no one was home. Hmmmm.... the tickets were being delivered to the school. All the office personnel were there at work. I don't know what address he went to but it was not the school. The dispatcher called the driver to try again and I had Spencer wait outside. He came in about 15 minutes later to tell me that the DHL guy had arrived. I was there to sign for it and it was time for the happy dance!

This is who I will be going to see in Rome!

http://photos1.blogger.com/img/289/5738/320/DSC00176.jpg

Beauty in ordinary places

Tom and Spencer made a wind chime of
recycled parts. It was fun to get up close and
try to find the perfect shot!
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Tom collects glass bottles too!

Tom is a collector. He likes beads,
glass, bottle caps, music, people..... the list
goes on.
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Sharp kid is honing his skills

To see Spencer's photos look here!
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Beauty all around us!

It is rare to see that someone has planted
flowers here. We usually see vegetables or
grape vines.
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Window Garden

I love passing this window. We go
by here each time we go over to the
Language school. This helps make the
walk down the alley a bit more cheery!
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Small patches of beauty

Down an alley little suprises can be found!
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Babushka or not a babushka?

Franzi and I were supposed to meet today. However, when someone who speaks four languages plans a meeting and their first language is not English….lookout! I arrived at where I thought we were meeting and pondered how we could possibly miss each other. After all she is Swiss and I am African American. It’s not like we blend into the crowd. She went to the Renoc and I went to the Tram-vi station near the church. She was going to show me how to buy fresh meat. Maybe, God was telling me I’m not ready for that yet. City girls are not used to seeing fresh meat being ground up. I prepared myself by not eating breakfast. I did not want to lose it; if you know what I mean! I waited for an hour for Franzi to show up. We will try again next week.

Since I had time to kill I played a game….Babushka or not a Babushka. I took pictures of Babushkas once they came into focus! I also came up with this:

You might be a Babushka:

If you like to sit facing the other passengers…

If you listen to other people’s conversations and then interrupt when you have the solution to their problem….

If you tell someone else they need a sweater or jacket because YOU are cold…

If you like to wear socks with your sandals…

If you seem to always know what everyone else is doing…

If you like to get out early to get your shopping done…

If you ignore fashion and just wear comfortable shoes….

If you dye your hair interesting colors including orange or burgundy….

If you can invoke guilt in listeners who don't even know what you are saying!

Babushka

Bless her little heart!
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