Life Only Gets Better, Though Not Without Difficulties

We have officially been back in Ukraine for 17 days today, and things keep looking up!

The view from our kitchen window looking out into the barrio. It is a busy place and everyone wears fur and black.

POINT 1:

I have received work teaching English and have done well enough that they have offered me to take on more work, which effectively means I will be working 15 hours a week, mostly on Saturday. With this barely half-time job, I will proudly earn enough so that half of all my earnings can go toward paying debt and the other half of money will pay for both Rick’s and my expenses here --- effectively freeing up his income to help pay down my loans. Financially, I am beginning to see that Ukraine was a VERY good choice. I could not imagine how cheaply we would be able to live here, neither could I imagine the amount of money I would be making as a teacher. I am not only happy with my work, but the income gives me hope that I will relatively soon be debt-free. Avoiding an American Tragedy, day by day. :D

POINT 2:

I am making friends! I can’t speak Russian well-enough yet (more on that later), but Rick has been supportive in trying to provide me with appropriate social interaction. Last Sunday and today (Sunday 31 Jan), we are going to a Spanish Language practice club. Most of the people are Ukrainians who are learning in order to travel or to build careers from it, but all are young and interesting people! It was such a relief, after my first week here, to be able to share myself with others. I realised how important this kind of interaction is for me, especially in a new environment. I am glad to be returning this evening.

Also, Rick’s contacts here have been wonderful and interesting. Yesterday evening we were invited to dine with an older couple, but some old students and friends of Rick’s. They spoke sufficient English that we spoke English during the whole visit. Again, it was nice to have interaction with intelligent interesting people with whom I could communicate.

POINT 3:

Without doing ANYTHING except eating in the Mediterranean way (which is delicious and includes plenty of fat and carbs) and walking a bit to the metro and to meetings, I have lost 3.5 kilos since leaving the US. (We, for the first time, were able to weigh ourselves last night). Hello! Fantastic! I have wanted to get back to a lower weight as I gained quite a bit in university (20 lbs). I have certain fitness goals and I think this time in Europe will really help achieve them. This sort of inspires me to consider seriously the blog Rick had mentioned. . .

POINT 4 (It’s not always easy.)

Although things get better every day, there are still stresses which can bring me to tears. One is realising that I would be a lot more at peace personally and emotionally if I could speak more Russian. At the current level, I am almost completely dependent on Rick (outside of the routes I have memorised to get to the grocery store and certain markets). The result is that if I want to go out, I need Rick to go with me most of the time. Sometimes our schedules or desires conflict. In these moments, I feel helpless and sincerely regret not having spent more time learning the language. Rick brings me home chocolate or flowers on these days --- and that helps a lot. But, I feel guilty for not prioritising the language more. Some days, I feel so limited.

Naturally, you can imagine the sort of stress this must put on Rick. He is, because I am unable to communicate, fully responsible for building much of our life here --- the apartment, the jobs, the social life. A lot of these things, he does naturally and he does them adroitly, but I know that my dependency wears on him sometimes. When I feel poopy and he remains so supportive despite his own stress, I am reminded how lucky I am to have met him and how lucky I am that he agreed to be with me. I love my husband; everyday I am thankful for him and everything he does to make my life easier and our life together fulfilled.

CONCLUSION and PICTURES:

Despite the stress of being a dependent in a new culture, each day is easier and more rewarding than the last (even the days when I feel the only way I will get through is if Rick gives me an IV drip of extra dark chocolate). I am very pleased with the way things are developing here and, if I can knuckle down and seriously learn Russian, life will improve exponentionally --- I may even fall in love with my life here.

Loving and missing you all.

Some cooking pictures! We have been experiementing with pierog (ukrainian pies that actually are just bread). . .no added sugar, rough milled flour, two eggs, wheat berries, a little salt and baking powder, plus whatever you can dream up!)

Our Pinapple-Upside Down Pierog (we also make a mean Banana Nut Pierog and Apricot Pierog)

Our Pizza Pierog. . . .my crowning achievement thus far :D

Sauce and toppings are underneath the bread, cheese and spices baked into the bread. . .simply delicious and utterly guilt-free! (Sorry for the bad lighting. . .)

Gastronomical Delights!

. . . I turn on the gas burner --- medium-high --- and begin to butter the bread, unwrap the Kraft American cheese and build my grilled cheese sandwich. No one else is home, and I cannot wait until Mom arrives and feeds me. What the heck?! I've seen Mom do this a thousand times, I'll just make a cheesy sandwich. I drop the sandwich in the fry pan; it sizzles ferociously. So far so good, I think. I constantly lift the sandwich off the pan to look at how the underside is browning. Hmmmm, perfect. Time to flip. Well, that went well. I'll leave it and check my email. . . .what is that smell? Shoot! I run to the kitchen and look at my sandwich --- a charcoal and cheese sandwich. I'll try again -- we have a full loaf of bread and lots of cheese. So try again --- fail. Try again --- fail. Try again --- fail. Try again --- fail. Try again ---fail. Try again? There are only four pieces of bread left. Don't try again. . .

My mother and sister do not hesitate to share this humiliating story, and others, with family and friends -- in particular when they sit down to a meal to which I have contributed. Because of epic failures like this, I was considered the daughter that couldn't cook, hated cooking, and deferred such arts to my younger sister (who at the same time was going through a cake-decorating passion --- none of her cakes fell, EVER).

It is amazing, however, what moving out of my parents house did for my inner-Chef. I was able to experiment without being teased for mistakes or simple questions. I found, slowly, that I enjoy preparing delicious, healthful (sometimes not) food, and that I love doing so for others: my friends and boyfriends in college, my family during the holidays, and --- now --- my husband, everyday. I take great pride in a healthy meal made well, how it pleases the senses and sustains the body. I am also proud of how, when I cook, it brings people together --- I am most glad for that.

I am at most a mediocre cook. But, I am learning. Sometimes I still make mistakes, other times I have stellar success. Recently, while staying with my sisters in Salt Lake City, I tried a meatloaf. I wanted something lighter than traditional loaves baked with BBQ sauce, ketchup and brown sugar for flavour. I found this fantastic American Bison Loaf, and it did the trick. Bison meat is naturally sweeter than beef and leaner, too. This recipe adds bulk and flavour with mushrooms, onions, fresh sage and fresh thyme. Rather than being sweet and sugar-laden, this loaf is, instead, a bit spicy due to a red-pepper (or cayenne) seasoned tomato sauce. It was refreshing, delicious, quick and --- best of all --- surprisingly simple!

Me, with the food. This recipe calls for roasted potatoes and spinach (we ate carrots instead of spinach).

Beautiful apron courtesy of Mom.

I substituted a pinch of cayenne pepper for the red pepper. Be careful not to over-pepper!

Everyone sitting down for the meal, minus Rick. The drink is a tasty treat handed down from Oma (Rick's German great-grandma), Italian Plum Juice and soda.

Slowly, these successes are helping me to overcome the trauma of incinerating an entire loaf of bread for a single grilled cheese sandwich. . .

I hope to post about a bread loaf soon. . .

Recent Reads and Recommendations

¡Hola amigos! Perhaps it will be obvious, because I am writing again so soon, but I am happy my computer is back online. As promised in my previous post, I am publishing a list of books I have recently read and am going to elaborate on those which I recommend. This is the first post of this kind for my blog. I will adopt a rating system similar to my husband's (0-5 astericks, more is better). In general, I will only be recommending 3 or higher. Let's get started!

Guns, Germs, and Steel: The Fates of Human Societies - Jared Diamond

Rating: **** (4)

In what is, essentially, a whirlwind history of the world, Jared Diamond analyses history to deduce the necessary conditions to

development of a conquest society. His thesis is that certain environmental conditions favoured the development of guns, germs, and steel which gave the colonial advantage to Eurasians rather than Americans, Africans, or Australians. Diamond focuses primarily on questions of timing and diversity of agriculture as well as timing and diversity of husbandry as the catalysts for marked population growth, which -- consequently -- spurred innovation and disease.

Diamond uses some of the most recent discoveries in geography, anthropology, and environmental history to build his argument. This book is a must for a contemporary understanding of our world history, economics, and politics.

Coming Home to the Pleistocene - Paul Shepard

Rating: ****1/2 (4.5)

A brief book chock-full of information on humanity's roots in the Pleistocene --- and the implications of this fact on humans in industrialised society. Shepard argues, based on studies from evolutionary biology, that we are creatures of the Pleistocene --- we are hunter gatherers at heart, more or less. The thesis is that many of the psychological, physiological, and physical problems we have in modern society are closely related to the denial of our roots. Plainly, our development is stunted by industrial society.

Recognising that we cannot return to the life of pure hunter gatherers, Shepard closes the book by making recommendations of how we can re-incorporate the Pleistocene lifestyle into the Modern one, ultimately improving life for individuals and society.

The Kite Runner -- Khaled Hosseini

Rating : *** 1/2 (3.5)

A contemporary fiction book set in Afghanistan, The Kite Runner touches on many relevant issues related to current events. Through the eyes a middle-aged man reflecting on his life, we experience the last 40 years of Afghan history. It is an intensely personal story of regret, friendship, courage, loss and redemption.

I hesitate to describe in detail what happens as it will all be irrelevant without spoiling one of the most important scenes in the book. I will say, however, that the story centers on the asymmetric friendship of the narrator and a childhood companion and the narrator tries, throughout the book, to regain balance in the relationship.

It is an easy, quick read. There is some graphic imagery (sexual and violent) which may not be appropriate for children under 15 and may disturb readers. However, the lesson from the book and the powerful themes inspire an appreciation of Afghani culture that is worthwhile.

NOTE: The Kite Runner, to me, is a parallel story to A Thousand Splendid Suns. I recommend reading this, then A Thousand Splendid Suns in succession.

A Thousand Splendid Suns --- Khaled Hosseini

Rating: *** (3)

Rated a half-star less than The Kite Runner, this book is not as thematically powerful, in my opinion, as The Kite Runner. It does, however, tell an important story from the female perspective of the last 40 years of Afghani history, the Taliban, and Shar'ia Law in Islam.

A Thousand Splendid Suns tells the story about how two Afghani women are brought together and have to learn to depend on each other to survive. Its salient themes are love, sacrifice, forgiveness, and friendship.

Beautifully written, particuarly in the final chapters. Some violence, but not as graphic as The Kite Runner.

NOTE: Recommended to be read with/after The Kite Runner.

Sex, Economy, Freedom and Community --- Wendell Berry

Rating: **** 1/2 (4.5)

A collection of essays by Wendell Berry, this books discusses important economic and social issues in the Industrialised world

--- environmental degradation, corporatism, consumerism and globalism. Berry argues strongly for localisation of economy in order to preserve the planet and it's resources. Written in the early 1990s, Berry seems to have been one of the first scholars to speak out against globalism and corporatism. Now, twenty years later more and more groups in society are recognising the negativity of non-localised economics.

This is a great book for a budding localist.

I have not finished this book, but feel that it is, already, worthy of being recommended.

Other books I have read recently:

Risk and Reason: Safety, Law and The Environment --- Cass Sunstein, **1/2 (2.5)

Pathways to Bliss --- Joseph Campbell, *** (3)

Luna Nueva (New Moon, Spanish) --- Stefenie Meyer, ** (2)

Training underway and wedding dress making!

Dear family and friends,

Sorry for not updating sooner. I have been lazy and busy with other stuff (namely training for work, signing up for fall classes, and wedding projects. . . .and watching the first season of Merlin).

Panera Bread is fun and, unlike other jobs that I have had, it keeps me busy. Today, for example I made sandwiches for 2 hours straight, no break in sandwich-making. Lunch is by far the busiest time for the cafe that I work at, mostly because we are right downtown. In addition to all the business people that we normally serve, there was the weekly farmers market. We were swamped. The people I work with are very supportive, however, and friendly so it was fun. Tomorrow (Friday) I start hands-on training as cashier. I think I am going to enjoy cashiering more than sandwich making.

Also, Angie and I have officially started on the modifications for my wedding dress. We added the length to the slip portion last night and have yet to hem it and add the lace around the edge. After we get the right length we'll be making a skirt to fit over the dress (I bought a vintage dress that we are refashioning, for those of you who weren't aware.) I'm getting quite excited and would really like to post pictures, but I want the design and look of the dress to be a complete surprise for Rick on the day of the ceremony. If you are interested in pictures, I will post more when we have it done and you can just let me know where you would like me to email the pictures. In the spirit of wedding-ness, however, I will post some other pictures of how things are coming.


The wedding colors

The paper roses I am making for the bouquets and boutineers

The reception hall at Lake Wabasis

How I want to wear my hair (if it grows enough).

On top of all this other stuff I have wasted a lot of time watching the first season of BBC's new Merlin series. I watched all the episodes online in the span of 3 days. I am glad it is done because it was taking up a lot of time. Though it was kind of addicting. I have always been sort of drawn to the Medieval/ Renaissance type stuff. I love the show; it is so fun -- although corny as all get out. Not to mention the gentleman cast as Prince Arthur is a total hunk (blondes aren't really my type but with the accent and manly-man-ness, I can't resist. :D)



Also, I have been entertaining the idea of visiting the Renaissance festival. :) I think it might make a fun date for Rick and I in September. What do you guys think about such things? Do you like these sort of shows, fashion, and fantastic themes? I think they'd be fun -- magic (the good kind of course) and chivalry, feasts, knights and ladies. Well, at least I think its fun to pretend! If you want to watch some episodes NBC has been showing it and you can watch episodes 5-10 on hulu.com.

I wish you all the best and I will try to post more often.

Love <3

A job, Free food. And the best deal of my life.

Hey everyone!

Last week, as I was finishing my classes, I started training for my new job at Panera Bread. Many of you may not be familiar with Panera Bread. It is a franchised bakery-café. The food is great, fresh, and healthy, maybe except for some of the pastries, which--by nature--are sinfully delicious and fattening. :D The people seem quite friendly and I am, so far, very impressed with the company, how it treats customers, and how it treats employees. When I went for my training sessions last week, the manager was very accommodating to my schedule and sent me home with a BIG bag full of free samples and a sincere "welcome!"

Imagine this, times 2 and plus 4 items more. That is what I got in free samples!

So, yesterday I went to the Goodwill nearby to buy some work clothes. (This is where the best deal of my life comes in. . .). I wanted to get something sorta nice so that I could wear these clothes for more than just work at the café. So, I looked for button down shirts rather than polos. I have wanted a red blouse, so I looked there first. "hmmm, what´s this iridescent one here?" It was a 100% silk Ann Taylor bouse, my size. $4.99. I could not pass it up. I wondered if they might have anything like it in blue. Well, what did I find? A blue 100% silk Ann Taylor blouse, $4.99. Wow, what luck! But it was not too uncommon to find, so I wondered about a bouse in purple. Holy moley. A 100% silk Ann Taylor bouse in rose purple, $4.99. I got them all. So, I am demoting my other bouses to work blouses and these are my new daywear and officewear bouses. Aren´t they beautiful? (Sorry the picture isn't better, but I had to use my webcam).

In all, I am well. Happier everyday as my life begins to settle here in Minnesota. Last night, I went with Pete and Angie to see Les Miserables in concert, a production by local high school students. It was extremely well done -- and I am not just being nice. Some of the performers seemed like they were, in fact, from Broadway. In particular the girl playing Fantina (I Dreamed A Dream), the young man playing Jean Valjean (Bring Him Home) and the couple playing the Thenardiers (Master of the House and Beggars at the Feast). Bravo!

Also, I have included this, for fun. . .
"Who Am I"

1. What time did you get up this morning? 12 pm (I was up late reading/finishing We the Living, Ayn Rand)

2. How do you like your steak? Well

3. What was the last film you saw at the cinema? The New Star Trek

4. What is your favorite TV show? I don't watch enough tv to make a fair judgement. Maybe Discovery, History documentaries?

5. If you could live anywhere in the world where would it be? Right now, the Oregon-California border.

6. What did you have for breakfast? Left-over Chinese haystacks. It was lunch-time afterall.

7. What is your favorite cuisine? Mexican

8. What foods do you dislike? I sorta don't like olives, but they are growing on me.

9. Favorite Place to Eat? El Rancho

10. Favorite dressing? Italian

11.What kind of vehicle do you drive? My bike. :D

12. What are your favorite clothes? My white pencil skirt a button-down shirt and my oxford flats.

13. Where would you visit if you had the chance? Antarctica or Tierra del Fuego

14. Cup 1/2 empty or 1/2 full? Depends on the beverage really.

15. Where would you want to retire? Retire-what? Not for me.

16. Favorite time of day? Dawn

17. Where were you born? University of Utah Children's Hospital, Salt Lake City, UT.

18. What is your favorite sport to watch? Football, soccer not American football

19. Who do you think will not tag you back? Irrelevant.

20. Person you expect to tag you back first? " "

21. Who are you most curious about their responses to this? This is for me. . .out of boredom

22. Bird watcher? Not formally.

23. Are you a morning person or a night person? Morning if I have work, night if I am left to my own devices.

24. Do you have any pets? Yes. Sort of, but not really. They are at my parents' house, where I will not likely live again.

25. Any new and exciting news you'd like to share? I got the fabric for my wedding dress! ivory silk dupoini.

26. What did you want to be when you were little? A singer, an artist, President.

27. What is your best childhood memory? Playing with fluffy cattails on the railroad tracks with my Dad.

28. Are you a cat or dog person? Dogs. Always dogs. I sincerely dislike felines.

29. Are you married? Emotionally. Legally, not quite yet.

30. Always wear your seat belt? Yes.

31. Been in a car accident? Yes. . .Craig Lake roll-over

32. Any pet peeves? Fewer and fewer.

33. Favorite Pizza Toppings? broccoli and tomato with white sauce

34. Favorite Flower? Sunflower.

35. Favorite ice cream? Vanilla with Rick's cocoa sauce and strawberries.

36. Favorite fast food restaurant? Subway

37. How many times did you fail your driver's test? Not once.

38. From whom did you get your last email? Mom, I was pinked.

39. Which store would you choose to max out your credit card? Probably more likely to happen at REI or backcountry outlet, but I do like Victoria's Secret and Anthropologie a lot.

40. Do anything spontaneous lately? Gave some bread to the street musicians in Minneapolis.

41. Like your job? Yes.

42. Broccoli? Yum.

43. What was your favorite vacation? Hiawatha Music Fest./ Craig Lake or Continental Divide Trail

44. Last person you went out to dinner with? Mom and Dad.

45. What are you listening to right now? ClassicalMusicAmerica.com

46. What is your favorite color? Green

47. How many are you tagging for this quiz? No one prolly.

48. Coffee Drinker? sometimes

49. What time did you finish this quiz? 15.28