So cute...

Internet, Schminternet...

We have been having some problems with our internet in our apartment. It doesn't like to work between 7-10 pm. Our best guess is the infrastructure cannot support the volume of internet users each evening, but we wanted to make sure there was nothing else interfering with our ability to use Skype.


So, Gulnara came over the other night and was going to bring an internet guy with her. She came and immediately realized that the cordless phone doesn't work. We knew this and had told them, but whatever... We were pretty sure this wasn't effecting the internet capabilities, since the cable runs through a splitter.


Gulnara called her mom (landlady) to tell her the phone doesn't work and we could tell they were arguing about that. Saida called back to tell Gulnara that the phone DOES work, even though it doesn't. Really.


The next part got Stephen and I chuckling because as Gulnara was on the phone with her mom, her speaking slowed down and her voice got loud and firm as she said, "Mom, eta telefon nee ra-bo-ta-yet!" She pronounced each syllable deliberately, much as I would if I were trying to make a point. The exact translation of what Gulnara said is, "Mom, the telephone does not work!"


We have told this story to our parents on skype and they didn't really laugh. We think it's hilarious! You are probably thinking, "Yeah, that's not that funny." I guess you had to be there.


Sometimes, we just find comfort in knowing that there are similar cultural things that happen, even if you're on the other side of the world. A daughter making a point to a stubborn mother can be handled with pro-nounc-ing each syl-la-ble, care-ful-ly, and loud-ly.


Just thought it was funny.

Could It BE Any Colder...

There is something wrong with this picture:

Can you tell what it is?

Yes, we are inside.

Yes, my students are wearing coats.

Why, you may ask? Well, today, my thermostat started to drop drastically. It started off at a comfortable 23 C. That's what it's set at. For all y'all who don't know Celcius, that's about 73.4 F.

Within a half hour, I watched the temperature drop down to 17.5 C. That's 63.5 F, people. That's when I sent my teaching assistant to find out what in sam hill was going on. She was told they were changing the filter in the furnace.

I watched it drop down to 16.0 C. That's 60.8 F. The F stands for FREEZING. That's when my kids' lips started turning blue and one of them asked me if it was going to snow in the classroom. We all put on our coats and tried to "toughen it out." I'm a very motivational speaker sometimes.

The fix-it man (if you can really call him that) stopped by at the end of the day to say it probably won't be fixed tomorrow. I told him (he speaks Russian) that it dang well better be because I have twenty students whose tails will freeze off if it's not fixed. He just looked at me with that Lady, I have no idea what you're saying and I don't care look.

And here's a glimpse into ex-Soviet living.

This is called: Here's a fancy-schmancy electronic thermostat so you can see how hot or cold your classroom is, but we don't trust you, even enough to control the temperature in your own classroom, so we're going to put a plastic case over the thermostat and a LOCK so that this one maintenance guy in the building can decide if your classroom's temperature is conducive to learning or not.

D to the Dubbs....

Who is the dishwasher in your house?
What's that? You have a dishwasher?

We don't. And we didn't when we lived in NYC, either. I forgot how much I hate not having one.

I despise handwashing dishes. The only time I don't mind doing them is when you have to wash the china.

But I registered for dishwasher safe china, so I will not even have this problem. One day. When I can live in a house with my stuff.

Gotta say: The dishwasher has to be one of the greatest inventions....EVER.

Lucky for me, Huzz is going home soon to do the dishes so I don't have to. Aren't I the luckiest girl, ever?

Riley Update...

Great news, everybody!

Riley's test results came back from her biopsy and it wasn't cancer! The vet doesn't expect her to have any recurring problems.

I am sooooooo relieved!

Thank you for the big P's, if you sent some up. They were definitely heard by Him and felt by me.

I am enjoying my last day of my week off and trying to mentally prepare myself for the next week of work. So, guess what we're doing?

Watching Lost. Yeah!

Lost...

What have we been doing during this luxurious week off from work, you ask?

Oh, you didn't ask? Well, I'm going to tell you anyway.

We have been lazy. In the best way possible. Because, people, I'm telling you this job wears me out. I am looking forward to June 12th like you wouldn't believe.

Since Stephen's job is pretty much done, he is occupying the majority of his time while I'm at work with searching for a new job back in the States.

Yes! It looks like we'll be moving back "home" at the end of the school year, at the latest. Do I sound happy to you? Maybe a little too happy? Hmmm....

Anyway, we have been enjoying time together. Sleeping in till noon, doing dishes together (sounds like fun), hanging out with our teacher friends, and watching Lost.

Yes, it seems as if we are way behind the times. We've been hearing for a few years now how amazing a show Lost is. How addictive, and heart-stopping, edge-of-your seat viewing it is. And honestly, my thoughts were always, "Sounds stupid to me."

It's not, people. It's just not. Huzz and I have decided we like Lost even more than 24! I know, I know... those are strong words. But it's true. We are through Season 1 and just finished Disc 2 of Season 2 last night. I'm not going to go into what's happening because I don't want to spoil it for those of you who don't watch it and who are now going to start because of my valuable recommendation.

Thank you, Kelsi (Sista) for giving us the seasons for Christmas!

Kyle (Bro) & Alexis gave us the John Adams HBO series, too, and we watched that and enjoyed it immensely, too. And after we finish Lost Seasons 1-3, we will be starting the West Wing DVD's Seasons 1-5. I know. Our life is sad.

And I also completed my Friends collection, so those keep us laughing when we need something mindless to keep us busy. That's when I do my knitting. I have been knitting booties. I'll post some pictures of them on here very soon.

I know you will be on the edge-of-your seat waiting for those, too.

Riley Update...

Well, Riley had her surgery yesterday and did really well. She has an incision about 4 inches long on the side of her stomach and all her beautiful hair is shaved away around it. No cone on her head, but she's wearing Big Red t-shirts to give another layer of protection.

I just talked to her on Skype and it looks like she's getting a little sore - we all know that feeling. Well, you do if you've ever had surgery.

Here's a video of her that my dad emailed me.

Thank you, Dad, for taking such good care of her!

a LOVEly week ahead...

Yesterday was my last day of school for a week and according to our HR guy, for 9 working days.
Don't even get me started on that guy.

Anyway, we went to a mandatory party last night at the school with parents. I survived and only 3 sets of parents from my class were there, so not too shabby! Then, we all went to Matt & Sonia's to hang out. I fell asleep on the couch while Matt & Stephen discussed world topics. It was obviously very exhilarating. Stephen woke me up at 1:30 to go home and go to bed.

I had everyone over late this morning for pancakes and R'iordan loved them! He ate FOUR, all by himself. Big hit.

We are going out to dinner to this Italian restaurant called Borgo Antico tonight that we're hoping won't be too busy so we'll be able to get in without a reservation. This place never has more than two other tables occupied when we go, so we're hoping it is the case for tonight.

It's a great way to start our week long vacation together, don't you think? We decided on no gifts for each other, but just do this nice dinner together.

Have a great Valentine's Day, and tell those you love how much they mean to you!

Love,
Beth

Oh, and this is my 100th post! Crazy, huh?

Plumbers, Police, and big P's...

Last night started like any other night...for about the first 5 minutes.

Huzz and I went to the bank on our way home after work to talk about our options with money, since the Tenge has lost about 25% of its value in the last week. It's just not good, people. Especially when your husband is a finance guy. Needless to say, I am learning all about "exchange rates" and "pegging to the dollar" and various words like that, which I never had any interest in before. Well, I still don't actually.

Anyway, we got home and I ran to the Toilet Room and noticed the toilet seat was wet. I promptly accused Huzz of weeing on the seat. After an insistent, "I didn't do it!" I looked up and noticed some droplets of water on the ceiling. We decided to keep an eye on it. Well, by about 7:30, it was constantly dripping all over the toilet and the floor, so we called the landlords. Their daughter, Gulnara, speaks great English and lucky for her, has automatically been designated to deal with us. She came over and took a look at it and agreed that it's not good and a good amount of water is coming through that there ceiling. She said her mom was going to call the plumbers and they'd probably come over. If we need translation, just call her and she'll talk to them.

The plumbers showed at about 9:30 and took a look at the dripping, told us they'd go up to the apartment above us. They were gone for about 10 minutes, came back down and said they'd be back.

I went to bed at about 11:00 and shut the door. That was the last of what I knew until this morning, when I asked Stephen what happened the night before. He replied, "The police showed up."

Um, what? Why? He didn't know why, but the upstairs neighbor showed up at the door at 11:45-ish, with two big K policemen standing behind him. They looked at the bathroom....those policemen know so much about plumbing, you know. And then they demanded to see Huzz's passport. That's when Huzz called the landlords again and let them know what was going on.

Apparently, he checked out alright, and they left. I stayed in the bedroom, and they never knew I was there. We are so thankful that He protected us.

Now, it just smells really bad in both the toilet room and the bathroom. We don't know why, but horrible fumes are coming up through the sink and the water in the toilet room just makes it smell so musty.

It just seems that when you're living someplace far away, especially, asking for big P's for our safety never seems to go out of style. It is very scary when you live somewhere where you cannot even trust the police.

Along with that, late last Friday night, a group of teachers were walking back from a restaurant and were approached by police who wanted to see all their passports. One of the teachers, who speaks Russian, didn't have it on her, so they walked to her apartment and she showed it to them and they went away....only to show up at 6:00 the next morning, demanding a cup of tea.

It's just scary! So anyway, if you think of it, please keep sending up the big P's not only for us, but also the other teachers and friends that we have made here. Corruption plays a big part in our lives here, which is scary for those of us who have not had to deal with this kind of corruption all our lives. We don't understand it and it effects us.

New Apart-a-mento

Hey there! Welcome to the big K, and welcome to our apartment that we moved into about a week and a half ago. Please excuse the piles of things around the place, as that's what happens when you live in furnished apartments. There's nowhere to put your STUFF that you brought with you.

So, this is what it looks like when you walk in the front door.

Don't you love this little sign? Our good friends, Matt & Jonna, gave it to us. We will keep it forever to remind us of our time here.

To the right is the living room. Now, here's what I'm talking about: there are no bookshelves in the apartment, so we have nowhere to store all of our DVD's and books, which are extremely important to us here! So, they are living in the box next to the couch.

This is the dining room, which is across from the living room. It gets lots of light because of the big window. That's why I liked this apartment. It doesn't feel like a hole.

Here is the kitchen, which is open to the dining room. It's alright. No dishwasher, though, and if you know me, you know that I DESPISE doing dishes.

This is the view from the kitchen. A few things to notice here: the drying rack for our laundry. The washing machines are just KILLING our clothes here. Air drying your clothes makes them very crunchy and threadbare...that and the fact that they spend about 3 hours in the washing machine with each cycle. Also, the curved doorway is leading to the living room.

This is the second bedroom that we only use to store a bunch of our STUFF and Stephen's clothes go in the wardrobe in there. And, all the bedding that the owners were storing in the wardrobe is now on the bed. There were about 10 blankets, none of which we are using because it FREAKS ME OUT to use strangers' bedding.

This is the toilet room. Not to be confused with the bathroom.

That is next door. Why they are separate, I'll never know. I'm sure there's some non-logical reasoning behind this.

This is the view from the bathroom, looking back at the front door.

And this is our bedroom. It's pretty much just big enough for the bed, bedside tables, and wardrobe. The sheets are ours and the afghan is one that I knitted a few years ago. Those are the only bedding items that my face will be touching.

Looking out of our bedroom.

And this is how I feel like it is sort of home: our books and pictures are arranged on the window sill in the living room. I look at these every day!

Books...

I saw this Book Meme on a blog and thought it'd be a fun way to tell you about some books I've read.

1. One book that changed my life: A Tree Grows in Brooklyn by Betty Smith. If you haven't read this book before, go to the bookstore and buy it. Today. So good.

2. One book that you’ve read more than once: The Little Women by Louisa May Alcott. If you haven't read this one, do it. It's even better than the movie, but I think the movie (with Winona Ryder) is really good.

3. One book you would want on a desert island: Pillars of the Earth by Ken Follett. It took me about 2 months to read this book because it is ENORMOUS, so it'd be good to pass the time on a desert island and whenever I would read it, I'd escape inside of it. Very well done.

4. One book that made you laugh: I really can't think of a humorous book I've read! I guess I like the more serious reads. But, I laugh hysterically when I read BigMama's blog and The Meanest Mom's blog.

5. One book that made you cry: Lucky by Alice Sebold. It's a memoir about when she got raped in college. The first chapter had a serious effect on me. I sobbed like a baby.

6. One book that you wish had been written: I don't really understand this question. I have no wishes for books. I just like them.

7. One book that you wish had never been written: The Mermaid Chair, by Sue Monk Kidd. Just a horrible book. Ridiculous plot, weak characters, corny. Stupid. I read it because I had read The Secret Life of Bees by the same author and it was really good, so I had high expectations.

8. The book that you are currently reading: Gilead by Marilynne Robinson. Stephen gave me this book and another one that goes with it for Christmas. They have the same sort of story plot, but each is told from a different character's point of view. I'm just starting it.

9. One book that you have been meaning to read: Marley & Me by John Grogan. I saw the movie over Christmas break and it was all I could do to keep from moaning in the theater because I was crying so hard.

10. Books you don’t enjoy: Non-fiction. I think they're boring, unless they're written like a story. I tried to read 1776, but it wasn't story-like enough for me.

11. Book you remember as a real page-turner: The Time Traveler's Wife by Audrey Neffeneggar (or something like that). You HAVE to read this book! It's not scary - just weird. But not like bad weird. I really liked it a lot.

12. Non-fiction books you have enjoyed: The Diary of Anne Frank. It reads like a story, that's why.

13. Children’s books your family has loved: Green Eggs & Ham by Dr. Seuss. I love this book because I remember it was the first book I ever read on my own. I remember sitting on the living room couch when we lived in the yellow house in Omaha, in my pajamas, reading it cover to cover all by myself. And then I ran to tell my mom!

Students...

With every year that I teach, certain things become more and more difficult, while other things obviously become easier. It seems that the things that should be "simple" and mundane become a hassle and tedious.

For example, lining up. This should be an easy task. When I say, "Boys and girls, push in your chairs and line up," here is what happens: They all jump up and run. The only ones who run to the line are the ones who want to be first, for some reason. The rest of them just look like they are busy. Groups of about 4 to 5 girls gather in various places of the room and just hen-peck. Gab, gab, gab. About nothing in particular or important.

I count down. "Get in line! You have 5...4...3...2...1! You should be quiet and in line now...No, that's not a line. That's a bunch...Turn and look around the room, boys and girls! Most of you did not push in your chair! Now, as you walk to PE, please stay in line - that means you are right behind the person in front of you. No one is beside you. No talking." And that's when I just hate the sound of my voice. And as they walk out the room, following my Teaching Assistant, they all start quietly talking to each other and are moving as one large mob. And as they move down the hallway, I can hear them getting louder and louder.

This is my life. Daily. I feel like I've never seen kids like these who just do whatever they want, all the time. It is the most frustrating situation. I have tried all different ways to punish them when they don't listen, but they don't care. These problems continue to be.

I don't want to teach anymore.

I know some of you would disagree with me and urge me to continue doing it. However, each year that I do it, I feel more and more strongly that it is not for me.

I do have my moments when I enjoy it. It is the once in a while, rare occurence when my students are actually listening and paying attention. They'll give me feedback during the lesson and I begin to have fun! It is just so RARE. It's just not worth it.

And I wonder why I'm doing it, when I feel like I'm not making a difference at all. At least, I can't see the impact right now. Right now, I am a baby-sitter, at best. A nagging, grumpy, unhappy baby-sitter.

Like the baby-sitter that took care of me when I was 10 and my brother and 3-year old sister for a weekend while my parents went away, probably to a business conference in Omaha. I think they called a baby-sitting service to hire her. I remember she was old, didn't smile, and extremely grumpy; downright mean, if you ask me. Anytime we asked her if we could do something, the answer was a sharp, "NO!" We had to play very quietly in our house for the whole weekend. I remember Kelsi coming into my room after bedtime and sleeping in my bed with me because she missed Mommy and she was a little scared. I took care of her. I protected her. I dressed her. And I comforted her.

Now, I am the nanny. I am grouchy and I never smile. Does that sound like me?

I am ready to leave the big K. I want to leave the big K.

My Riley...

Most of you know that I have this dog:

Her name is Riley.

I knew what I would name her before I even met her.

And I knew she was mine the second I laid eyes on her, as she trembled in the corner of her breeder's kitchen and her crazy brothers and sister ran around barking and carrying on.

When I picked her up, I did the trick to see if she'd submit to me...You know, because I am so dominant. So, I picked her up and cradled her on her back in my arms, like a baby. And she just laid there, relaxed, and looked up at me with her big, sad, puppy-dog eyes, as if to say, "Please take me from this place and love me."

So, I did. And 20 minutes later, we were in the car and she threw up puppy poo all over my sister. The first thing we did when we got home was take a bath.

I'm worried today, friends. I need big-P's sent up for the healing of my Riley. My mom told me this morning on Chat that she had taken Riley to the vet that day. When I was home at Christmas, I noticed a lump on Riley's belly. It's only about an inch long and is the shape of an egg. I asked my parents if they had noticed it and my dad said he had just a few days before. Mom took her to have it checked out and Dr. B ran some tests on it and thinks it might be a soft tissue sarcoma, which is a type of cancer. Dr. B said that if it was her dog, she'd have it removed right away. Because my parents are going back and forth between Colorado and Maryland this school year, Riley won't be able to have the surgery until the 16th.

Please P that the surgery will go well and the results will be a relief. Please P that Riley can continue to live a healthy, happy life of a dog.

And please P that I will trust in Him to take care of my dog. It kills me that I cannot be there now, or when she has her surgery. If you've ever met Riley, you know how she is: the happiest, most loyal, most ball-obsessed little person of a dog you've ever seen.

I cannot wait to see Riley again - hopefully this summer! We are hoping we'll make it to our big family reunion in Minnesota, and Riley LOVES Minnesota.

Please, if you think of it throughout the next couple of weeks, just send up a little P for Riley. She needs it!

Another Big Move...

Although, they are getting smaller each time. This is because every time I go to pack my clothes, I get more and more picky with what I put in the suitcases. I am so tired of moving all this STUFF!

But, we really don't have a lot of STUFF. We moved on Saturday, and it only took 3 trips in a Honda CR-V (not the largest SUV) and both of us and our driver still rode in the car. That's not that bad, right?

One reason I hate moving is that I feel judged throughout the whole process. While we're packing things, Huzz seems to comment a lot on how many clothes I have. It is taking him a while to realize that girls have tons more clothes than boys. It's just nature.

Then, I feel judged on moving day because whoever is helping us, and inevitably SOMEONE help us, which I am extremely grateful for, but that person/people always comment on how much stuff there is.

It makes me feel about this big.

Anyway, I was able to clear away two huge piles of clothes that I don't wear anymore -- thankfully, most of it is from my REALLY fat days, so it's too big. We are trying to figure out what to do with said clothes, as they are perfectly fine for wearing still, but there is no such thing as a "Salvation Army" or a place where you can donate clothes. Our church doesn't have a working program to do that, either. Our best idea is to give the clothes to the workers at the orphanage we have helped at. Now, getting them there is a new task.

We got all moved in to our Soviet apartment! It's very cozy and homey...and HOT. The heating runs on a government-controlled system and it is flippin' hot in the evenings. We are opening the windows!

It's pretty funny because when we were living in the first apartment last summer, when the electricity and internet and hot water would go out, we would look down on the Soviet block apartments below us and say, "At least we don't have to live there!"

Hello, reality check.

Ironically enough, I like the Soviet apartment more than that first one!

I was a little grumpy yesterday because I was finding that the apartment is just so dirty, I can't do anything until I clean it. Dishes, counters, floors, shower, furniture...you name it, I cleaned it.

Oh well. Patience.

Also, we are pretty sure the pipes under the bathtub are leaking, as the floor is sopping wet after each shower.

And we went to buy a drying rack for our clothes yesterday, but the cheapest one at the store was about FORTY DOLLARS, or 4,000 tenge. Um, no.

But I can't do laundry until we get one.

Sigh.

On the brightest side of everything, we finally have high speed internet at home!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

It has only taken us seven months, but we had it within 15 minutes of moving in on Saturday. Such relief.

And, we started watching the Lost DVD's yesterday. Kelsi got us seasons 1-3 for Christmas and we are HOOKED.

Do you watch Lost? Don't tell me what happens!