Wow! I haven't even looked at this blog for a very long time. But life is finally settling down, and, inspired by my young friend Kat, I decided to have another look at it.
For starters, I changed the name, since we are no longer in Moscow, very sad to say! So I changed it to something much less fun, but much more appropriate. What will this blog be now that we are living in Bartlesville, OK? I don't really know. But I know that the urge to write a few things down is still there. It might not be as fun as it was while living and traveling the world, but I think it will still be interesting (to me anyway!) Life always is! So stay tuned.....over the next few days, I'll catch you up on what has been happening in the Deathe family since last April! Cheers!
Monday, November 8, 2010
Thursday, April 1, 2010
Dog grooming, Moscow style
I have to preface this with two statements: (1) I've never had a dog groomed in the US and (2)there are dog grooming "salons" in Moscow. I just happen to have found one (compliments of my friend Betsy) who comes to the house. I'm not exactly sure this is the best way. But maybe I'll let you decide.
Lena is a lovely young girl. Probably mid-30's. Married, with children (a least one, who kept calling while she was working today.) I'm sure she supplements her husband's income. She comes with a small overnight case and a duffle bag full of stuff. Grooming stuff, her "work clothes"...she changes from her street clothes to a pair of tan colored pants, a tee shirt and a cute apron. Plastic sandals & socks. She is ALWAYS late...almost always 2 hours late. Today was no exception. She was to come Monday at 10, but then the bombings occured. I was not surprised she didn't show. Vadim the driver called and rescheduled her for today, 10:00am. She calls about 10:30am, says she will be 1 hour late. She is 2 hours late, arriving right about noon.
Then we get to work. And not in the "Royal We" sense. I mean in the I am just as much a part of the process as Lena and Abby. My job, is to comfort, cajole, caress, scold, and hold, Abby. There is pretty much nothing about grooming that Abby likes. She especially hates to have her feet and her tail touched, much less groomed. Lena obviously enjoys her job. She is great with Abby, not timid with her. In fact she grooms her with gusto! I would say Abby needs a pain reliever following the grooming session...I KNOW I need a glass of wine! But she works constantly, ridding Abby of every single piece of stray hair that is on her body and not attached with Super Glue. She also scrapes the tartar off of Abby's teeth. She has numerous brushes, combs, clippers, scissors, sprays, dental tools and whatnot to aid her in her work. Now picture this....we groom on the floor of the entryway. The marble floor of the entryway. With a huge column in the middle of it. Hey, it's the best place, trust me. So, we end up doing this little dance around the huge column.....Abby, laying down mostly (sitting on marble is hard for her....she slides down to a laying position. She couldn't sit for more than 10 seconds to save her life.) So we slide, around and around and around. Lena is good, she just grabs & grooms whatever portion of Abby she can get. Works around her snarling face and her desire to jump and run. Abby never bites but she does her "ugly" face as Harry calls it. It really isn't a mean snarl, actually she does it when she wants to play sometimes, or when she wants to let you know she doesn't like what you are doing to her. Then sometimes Abby just lays there, like nothing is happening. Wish I knew what was going on in that little brain. Anyway. This is a long and arduous task. Harry calls it Abby's Spa Day. I need a spa day after it is over.
Lena is very, VERY meticulous. You would think Abby was a show dog. She is not. As I stated above, I never had her groomed in the US. She didn't need it. Here, she grows long hairy, feet. She never did that in Houston. I assume the are her "snow shoes." I don't have anyone to compare Lena with. But she is takes alot of time "tweaking" Abby's 'do. Too long. I'm usually about to shout ENOUGH! Just shave her feet and her bum, and brush her good and let's call it good. An hour, tops, would be needed. Not with Lena. Snipping here, cutting there, PULLING hair out here (ouch). I want to say, helloooo she is just going to the poop park! But she is relentless, and yes, of course, Abby looks "stunning!!!" Not really....she looks cleaned up, less shaggy, no Grinch Feet.
So finally, 2 1/2 hours later, we are done! Lena changes back into her street clothes, I sweep up a BIG pile of hair, Abby gets a drink of water and begs me to take her out.
And as Lena leaves, she pulls a big bunch of beautiful radishes that she has purchased at the market, and says, for you!
What a day...but hey, I'm drinking wine and eating delicious radishes. What could be better! Well, maybe a spa day for me!
Lena is a lovely young girl. Probably mid-30's. Married, with children (a least one, who kept calling while she was working today.) I'm sure she supplements her husband's income. She comes with a small overnight case and a duffle bag full of stuff. Grooming stuff, her "work clothes"...she changes from her street clothes to a pair of tan colored pants, a tee shirt and a cute apron. Plastic sandals & socks. She is ALWAYS late...almost always 2 hours late. Today was no exception. She was to come Monday at 10, but then the bombings occured. I was not surprised she didn't show. Vadim the driver called and rescheduled her for today, 10:00am. She calls about 10:30am, says she will be 1 hour late. She is 2 hours late, arriving right about noon.
Then we get to work. And not in the "Royal We" sense. I mean in the I am just as much a part of the process as Lena and Abby. My job, is to comfort, cajole, caress, scold, and hold, Abby. There is pretty much nothing about grooming that Abby likes. She especially hates to have her feet and her tail touched, much less groomed. Lena obviously enjoys her job. She is great with Abby, not timid with her. In fact she grooms her with gusto! I would say Abby needs a pain reliever following the grooming session...I KNOW I need a glass of wine! But she works constantly, ridding Abby of every single piece of stray hair that is on her body and not attached with Super Glue. She also scrapes the tartar off of Abby's teeth. She has numerous brushes, combs, clippers, scissors, sprays, dental tools and whatnot to aid her in her work. Now picture this....we groom on the floor of the entryway. The marble floor of the entryway. With a huge column in the middle of it. Hey, it's the best place, trust me. So, we end up doing this little dance around the huge column.....Abby, laying down mostly (sitting on marble is hard for her....she slides down to a laying position. She couldn't sit for more than 10 seconds to save her life.) So we slide, around and around and around. Lena is good, she just grabs & grooms whatever portion of Abby she can get. Works around her snarling face and her desire to jump and run. Abby never bites but she does her "ugly" face as Harry calls it. It really isn't a mean snarl, actually she does it when she wants to play sometimes, or when she wants to let you know she doesn't like what you are doing to her. Then sometimes Abby just lays there, like nothing is happening. Wish I knew what was going on in that little brain. Anyway. This is a long and arduous task. Harry calls it Abby's Spa Day. I need a spa day after it is over.
Lena is very, VERY meticulous. You would think Abby was a show dog. She is not. As I stated above, I never had her groomed in the US. She didn't need it. Here, she grows long hairy, feet. She never did that in Houston. I assume the are her "snow shoes." I don't have anyone to compare Lena with. But she is takes alot of time "tweaking" Abby's 'do. Too long. I'm usually about to shout ENOUGH! Just shave her feet and her bum, and brush her good and let's call it good. An hour, tops, would be needed. Not with Lena. Snipping here, cutting there, PULLING hair out here (ouch). I want to say, helloooo she is just going to the poop park! But she is relentless, and yes, of course, Abby looks "stunning!!!" Not really....she looks cleaned up, less shaggy, no Grinch Feet.
So finally, 2 1/2 hours later, we are done! Lena changes back into her street clothes, I sweep up a BIG pile of hair, Abby gets a drink of water and begs me to take her out.
And as Lena leaves, she pulls a big bunch of beautiful radishes that she has purchased at the market, and says, for you!
What a day...but hey, I'm drinking wine and eating delicious radishes. What could be better! Well, maybe a spa day for me!
Tuesday, March 30, 2010
A bombing in Moscow
Yesterday, while drying my hair and preparing for the dog groomer to come, my phone rang. It was my friend CC. Have you heard the news? Two bombs went off in 2 different metro stations, Lubyanka and Park Kultury. Lubyanka is in the heart of Moscow, and runs below the old KGB building (now known as the FSB building.) Park Kultury is a bit farther out...4 stops to the southwest, on the same line, the oldest line in Moscow, the Red Line. Lubyanka is near where we go to church, but not terribly close to us. Neither is Park Kultury. But they are metro stations I've been in, many times. It was early in the morning, the first one occured just before 8am (Harry was in the car, going to work) and the other one followed about 40 minutes later. Rush hour, to be sure. People coming and going, minding their own business, going to work, to school, maybe home. All innocent....except for the two female bombers, with explosives strapped to their bodies. Waiting for the right moment....the train pulls into the station, the doors open, people disembarking and embarking. I can't imagine it. The horror is shown in pictures but I can't believe that you can even grasp what it must be like. I can't. The pictures seem like TV shows....I've seen lots of dead bodies on Law & Order. Then imagine the chaos that follows. Imagine being taken to a Moscow hospital. They probably receive adequate treatment, if they are lucky, if they have the language skills, if they know the right people. I always said that I would fly out of here for a hangnail, and I still say it. As my friend Lydia said, perhaps heaven would be preferable to a Moscow hospital!
So how did I spend my day? (The dog groomer never showed....I had my driver call her in the afternoon to make sure she was ok. He rescheduled her.) OD'ing on CNN and BBC World and Russia Today News. They had nothing new to say from about 10am on, but listen I did. I watched the pictures, the horror on peoples faces. I heard that they suspect 2 females from the Caucases, I try to imagine what would cause a woman to travel from so far away from home, strap explosives to her body and kill innocent people. What were her last thoughts? Did she look at the people she was trying to kill. Was the indoctrination complete? Obviously. She was killing infidels in a Holy War. She had nothing left to live for. Perhaps her children and husband had been murdered or disappeared. Perhaps she had been raped and imprisoned. As you can see, it was a dark day.
Today, I met above mentioned Lydia for lunch. I decided to walk to the restaurant, about 30 minutes away, on a busy street. Usually the walk is filled with people talking quietly, on cell phones, maybe schoolgirls laughing. Today, not so much. Quiet was the rule of the day. President Medvedev had declared a day of mourning. Flags that hung on buildings were draped with black ribbons. And the quiet was just eery. The day was beautiful. The sun was shining, the trees are putting out tiny buds, the birds were chirping. But people were quiet.
What will the next few days and weeks bring? That remains to be seen. PM Putin vows to find those responsible. Life will return to normal. The Russians are resilient people. Even yesterday, by the late afternoon, the metro stations that had been the site of the attacks were open. Hopefully the violence won't visit this adopted city of mine again.
So how did I spend my day? (The dog groomer never showed....I had my driver call her in the afternoon to make sure she was ok. He rescheduled her.) OD'ing on CNN and BBC World and Russia Today News. They had nothing new to say from about 10am on, but listen I did. I watched the pictures, the horror on peoples faces. I heard that they suspect 2 females from the Caucases, I try to imagine what would cause a woman to travel from so far away from home, strap explosives to her body and kill innocent people. What were her last thoughts? Did she look at the people she was trying to kill. Was the indoctrination complete? Obviously. She was killing infidels in a Holy War. She had nothing left to live for. Perhaps her children and husband had been murdered or disappeared. Perhaps she had been raped and imprisoned. As you can see, it was a dark day.
Today, I met above mentioned Lydia for lunch. I decided to walk to the restaurant, about 30 minutes away, on a busy street. Usually the walk is filled with people talking quietly, on cell phones, maybe schoolgirls laughing. Today, not so much. Quiet was the rule of the day. President Medvedev had declared a day of mourning. Flags that hung on buildings were draped with black ribbons. And the quiet was just eery. The day was beautiful. The sun was shining, the trees are putting out tiny buds, the birds were chirping. But people were quiet.
What will the next few days and weeks bring? That remains to be seen. PM Putin vows to find those responsible. Life will return to normal. The Russians are resilient people. Even yesterday, by the late afternoon, the metro stations that had been the site of the attacks were open. Hopefully the violence won't visit this adopted city of mine again.
Monday, February 15, 2010
We are still waiting to see when and where we are going when leaving Moscow. We have known for 2 months now that we will be leaving. The wheels are turning, but very, VERY slowly! Hope to have some news soon!
My dear friend Kim came back to Moscow this weekend. So glad to see her and to have someone to go to the grocery store with! I know I can do it myself just fine, but it's always much more fun to go with someone. Then of course, there's lunch! We met another young friend who just got engaged the night before (a romantic Valentine's proposal involving a pond and snow!) So it was a great day.
There is an article in the NY Times going around cyberspace entitled, "Washington Shivers, Moscow Laughs." It is rather hilarious, after 4 Moscow winters (although the "worst" 2 for me were the "mild" winters....too much slush,) to see the seat of government completely shut down. Yes, they don't get it often but come on, it's in the Northeast part of the US. I would understand it if Houston got that much snow...but Washington? Please! And I wouldn't say that Moscow does snow removal any better, and maybe worse, than the US but they just don't let it stop them. I remember moving here, I wanted to be sure to have plenty of reading material as I was SURE that I would be stuck inside for days on end due to snow and cold. Many of those books I shipped over still languish unread on my shelves because there is no way a blizzard stops anything here! Just put on your hat, coat, gloves, scarf, boots and get out there! That being said, I'm not the one that has to shovel it or drive in it.....
My dear friend Kim came back to Moscow this weekend. So glad to see her and to have someone to go to the grocery store with! I know I can do it myself just fine, but it's always much more fun to go with someone. Then of course, there's lunch! We met another young friend who just got engaged the night before (a romantic Valentine's proposal involving a pond and snow!) So it was a great day.
There is an article in the NY Times going around cyberspace entitled, "Washington Shivers, Moscow Laughs." It is rather hilarious, after 4 Moscow winters (although the "worst" 2 for me were the "mild" winters....too much slush,) to see the seat of government completely shut down. Yes, they don't get it often but come on, it's in the Northeast part of the US. I would understand it if Houston got that much snow...but Washington? Please! And I wouldn't say that Moscow does snow removal any better, and maybe worse, than the US but they just don't let it stop them. I remember moving here, I wanted to be sure to have plenty of reading material as I was SURE that I would be stuck inside for days on end due to snow and cold. Many of those books I shipped over still languish unread on my shelves because there is no way a blizzard stops anything here! Just put on your hat, coat, gloves, scarf, boots and get out there! That being said, I'm not the one that has to shovel it or drive in it.....
Thursday, February 4, 2010
In preparation for our departure from Moscow, I needed to get Abby's papers in order. I had taken her for her vaccinations in Jan. '08. Technically, you are to have your animal vaccinated every year here, but somehow that always slipped my mind. At any rate, I knew that I needed to get her in order, in order to get her out....wherever we end up going. In the past I have always had a friend go with me....sometimes even a Russian speaking friend, but all my "dog friends" have left, so here I am, alone, having to do this by myself. I just have to put on my big girl panties.....
So the driver finds the place in pretty quick order (new driver since the last time.) He parks across the street and says, there it is. Great....me & Abby cross the little street...not much traffic but ALOT of ice and snow and she is at full tilt. She needs to pee! Whew, that chore take care of and we skate through the gate and into the building. There is a sign on the door....I ignore it because I have no idea what it says. The waiting room is empty (could be good, could be bad...depending on what that darn sign says.) Well, I take my seat on the bench and notice down the hall, at the other end of the building, are alot of people with pets. But, I've never been down there. So, I sit...and pretty soon a guy with a dog exits one of the rooms and sits down in "my" waiting area. Ok, good sign. So I wait a few minutes more, a few people come through, dressed as though they work there...scrubs and official looking badges hanging around their necks. They all give me that disdainful Russian look.....what are YOU doing here. But I've gotten tough over the years....they don't scare me off! Finally, the door to the room I usually go into opens....and I can see that they are preparing to operate on a cute little weinerdog. He is obviously under the affect of anesthesia, they are gently arranging him how they need him, and then the door closes. I think, uh, oh....if I have to wait for the surgery to be finished, it might be awhile. In the meantime, to distract me....I hear BIG barking from the other end of the room....kind of behind us....and suddenly, in comes a street dog, talking big, like he owns the place. A lady comes out of the "operating room" (she is the kind lady I recognize from the last visit...YAY!) And she says to the dog, pajalsta (please) and shows the dog the door to the outside....and the dog dutifully leaves!! But he is out there barking and barking. He wants back in...where it is warm. So the kind lady disappears down the hall, but when she comes back she says a friendly "priviet" which means hi! in Russian. Not used to often, except among friends. I LOVE HER! I show her Abby's passport and shot record and mumble something about injections. She nods, smiles and motions me.......into the "operating room!!" Where they are OPERATING!! They have, fortunately, pulled a screen around so that I can't see. Abby and I sit and wait a few minutes, we fill out paperwork, she asks me for my email address (which I find hilarious.) She marks the passport, a couple of blue stamps, and the paperwork is done. I pay her 650 rubles (about $20 for a 4 in 1 shot) and we are done! Now to get out the door. I KNOW that street dog is out there. And sure enough, I open the door, Abby pushing beside me as she is ready to get the heck out of there...and there he is. He barks, we retreat. I think ok, I gotta get out of here. So I open the door wide, Abby and I slink out, he slinks in. Oh, well, the nice lady will have to ask him to please leave again! Whew!! Mission accomplished! Vadim waits on our side of the street, jumps out and lets Abby in the back. Now for the LONG ride home. Shouldn't take an hour but the traffic was horrible, and I had to stop for a framing project that I needed to pick up. By the time we drive in the gate, Abby is literally hopping up and down in the back. We both thought....I'm HOME!!!!!!!
So the driver finds the place in pretty quick order (new driver since the last time.) He parks across the street and says, there it is. Great....me & Abby cross the little street...not much traffic but ALOT of ice and snow and she is at full tilt. She needs to pee! Whew, that chore take care of and we skate through the gate and into the building. There is a sign on the door....I ignore it because I have no idea what it says. The waiting room is empty (could be good, could be bad...depending on what that darn sign says.) Well, I take my seat on the bench and notice down the hall, at the other end of the building, are alot of people with pets. But, I've never been down there. So, I sit...and pretty soon a guy with a dog exits one of the rooms and sits down in "my" waiting area. Ok, good sign. So I wait a few minutes more, a few people come through, dressed as though they work there...scrubs and official looking badges hanging around their necks. They all give me that disdainful Russian look.....what are YOU doing here. But I've gotten tough over the years....they don't scare me off! Finally, the door to the room I usually go into opens....and I can see that they are preparing to operate on a cute little weinerdog. He is obviously under the affect of anesthesia, they are gently arranging him how they need him, and then the door closes. I think, uh, oh....if I have to wait for the surgery to be finished, it might be awhile. In the meantime, to distract me....I hear BIG barking from the other end of the room....kind of behind us....and suddenly, in comes a street dog, talking big, like he owns the place. A lady comes out of the "operating room" (she is the kind lady I recognize from the last visit...YAY!) And she says to the dog, pajalsta (please) and shows the dog the door to the outside....and the dog dutifully leaves!! But he is out there barking and barking. He wants back in...where it is warm. So the kind lady disappears down the hall, but when she comes back she says a friendly "priviet" which means hi! in Russian. Not used to often, except among friends. I LOVE HER! I show her Abby's passport and shot record and mumble something about injections. She nods, smiles and motions me.......into the "operating room!!" Where they are OPERATING!! They have, fortunately, pulled a screen around so that I can't see. Abby and I sit and wait a few minutes, we fill out paperwork, she asks me for my email address (which I find hilarious.) She marks the passport, a couple of blue stamps, and the paperwork is done. I pay her 650 rubles (about $20 for a 4 in 1 shot) and we are done! Now to get out the door. I KNOW that street dog is out there. And sure enough, I open the door, Abby pushing beside me as she is ready to get the heck out of there...and there he is. He barks, we retreat. I think ok, I gotta get out of here. So I open the door wide, Abby and I slink out, he slinks in. Oh, well, the nice lady will have to ask him to please leave again! Whew!! Mission accomplished! Vadim waits on our side of the street, jumps out and lets Abby in the back. Now for the LONG ride home. Shouldn't take an hour but the traffic was horrible, and I had to stop for a framing project that I needed to pick up. By the time we drive in the gate, Abby is literally hopping up and down in the back. We both thought....I'm HOME!!!!!!!
Wednesday, January 27, 2010
Wow....it's been a long time since I have posted here. I should count up the number of times I start this blog with that statement! I think it must be almost all of them.
Well, indeed a lot has happened since the last time I was here. Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Years...just to name a few!
I won't bore you with all the details of everything.....it would bore me as well! I will just say that we had a great Christmas/New Years in the States with family & friends. It included a very quick trip to OKC, cut short by the snow storm of the decade. Then a wonderful cruise with the Lasher side of the family, as well as Meghan's Jacob and Drew's Marie. We were so happy that Marie was able to travel from her native Korea to meet all of us and go on the cruise. Despite jet lag, meeting a ton of new people and the language differences she was a trooper! It was good to get to know both kids' significant others. We enjoy them very much. We also got to meet our grand puppy PC (Meghan & Jacob's dog) for the first time. He is a sweetie, full of energy and love!
Just before we left for the States for the holidays we received word that we would be leaving Moscow in the first quarter (that's finance speak for sometime Feb/March.) We still don't know when or where! We are trusting God to put us in just the right place for us. It did cut down on the stock-up shopping for Moscow....and I sure didn't need to look for a new coat and boots! I'm really sad about the new coat...I wanted a RED one!
So how do I feel about leaving Moscow? At first, and still....SAD! I have loved my time here, I have loved my friends here, I have loved my life here. Still, we have been here 4 years...and probably it is time to move on, as someone told me, before I despise it! That is a positive way to think of it. And when we know where we will be going, then we will have something to be excited about (hopefully!) At any rate....if you would say a little prayer for us, it would be appreciated. The hard part hasn't even started. I suppose the long drawn out is a good thing. I have time to....detach. I have time to clean out those spaces that desperately need it at my leisure. I have time to do those last things I want to do. And revisit those things I want to see one last time.
So thanks for your prayers....please pray for me to leave it in God's hands and quit trying to take it back. Pray that Harry's next job is just exactly what he wants. Work has been stressful at times here. Heck, LIFE has been stressful at times here!! But we wouldn't have missed this opportunity for the world! Excuse me, while I go find a kleenex to dry my tears....the first of many!
Well, indeed a lot has happened since the last time I was here. Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Years...just to name a few!
I won't bore you with all the details of everything.....it would bore me as well! I will just say that we had a great Christmas/New Years in the States with family & friends. It included a very quick trip to OKC, cut short by the snow storm of the decade. Then a wonderful cruise with the Lasher side of the family, as well as Meghan's Jacob and Drew's Marie. We were so happy that Marie was able to travel from her native Korea to meet all of us and go on the cruise. Despite jet lag, meeting a ton of new people and the language differences she was a trooper! It was good to get to know both kids' significant others. We enjoy them very much. We also got to meet our grand puppy PC (Meghan & Jacob's dog) for the first time. He is a sweetie, full of energy and love!
Just before we left for the States for the holidays we received word that we would be leaving Moscow in the first quarter (that's finance speak for sometime Feb/March.) We still don't know when or where! We are trusting God to put us in just the right place for us. It did cut down on the stock-up shopping for Moscow....and I sure didn't need to look for a new coat and boots! I'm really sad about the new coat...I wanted a RED one!
So how do I feel about leaving Moscow? At first, and still....SAD! I have loved my time here, I have loved my friends here, I have loved my life here. Still, we have been here 4 years...and probably it is time to move on, as someone told me, before I despise it! That is a positive way to think of it. And when we know where we will be going, then we will have something to be excited about (hopefully!) At any rate....if you would say a little prayer for us, it would be appreciated. The hard part hasn't even started. I suppose the long drawn out is a good thing. I have time to....detach. I have time to clean out those spaces that desperately need it at my leisure. I have time to do those last things I want to do. And revisit those things I want to see one last time.
So thanks for your prayers....please pray for me to leave it in God's hands and quit trying to take it back. Pray that Harry's next job is just exactly what he wants. Work has been stressful at times here. Heck, LIFE has been stressful at times here!! But we wouldn't have missed this opportunity for the world! Excuse me, while I go find a kleenex to dry my tears....the first of many!
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