AFSP: International Survivors of Suicide Day 2011 Webcast OD
By the way, I missed the live conference on Saturday, so I'm watching the recording now. For anyone who doesn't know, I lost my beloved friend and brother Thomas Ronald Kane to suicide on May 5th, 2009. If you would like to become educated about this phenomenon, you will learn a lot from real people by watching the podcast. Click the link above.
Blessings and love,
Beth
Sunrise on Mt. Sinai
Sunday, November 20, 2011
Monday, November 14, 2011
India, Japan, and the doctor's office
Hello and welcome back. Lol. Probably nobody reads this, but I feel it's worth it, even if just for me. How nice to be in a place you like, with a daily routine you like, a life full of good people, good occupations, happy at home, happy at work, etc. Thank you, God!
Looking forward to Christmas vacation at the end of December, but enjoying the meantime.
I had my first visit to a doctor in Russia. It was bound to happen sooner or later. I've lived here (not in a row, but all together) a total of 14 months. I felt ok, but after having a headache all day on Friday, I decided to go check it out just in case. I have good insurance and it was free to me anyway, plus a new experience to blog about, lol. A Russian recommended I go, saying that because it hurt behind my eye, that means some wind could have blown on me strongly and affected my nerves. I have never heard of this, and was pretty sure it was just lack of drinking water and not enough sleep. Russians also say you shouldn't read lying down; it's bad for you eyes. Sometimes I doubt where the line is for them between medical knowledge and superstition. But eh, what do I know? I'm no doctor. So I signed up for an appointment at the poliklinika.
After signing in, they told me which room I would visit and sent me back. No forms to fill out? Nope. No waiting in the waiting room and then they call your name? No. Ok. I found the room. The door was closed. I knocked. No answer. I opened the door. Oh, gosh. There were some people in there - I guess someone was seeing the doctor. Sorry! I shut the door. I looked around and asked a bystander, what's done here? He asked which doctor I was seeing and said he was in line for her too. Have a seat. Oh, ok. Russians love to stand in lines.
When it was my turn, I went in. There was a lady sitting at a computer looking at the screen. "I'm listening." Uh, .... I looked at her name tag. It was the doctor. "Oh, it's you. Hello." She made eye contact and smiled. Then we chatted. She was very frank and cold. "What's wrong with you?" "Nothing, I just, had some questions..." After our conversation, she examined me and gave me a perscription for my throat, which appartently there was something wrong with. No linguistic barriers; luckily I could say and understand everything I needed to. :) All in all, a pretty successful visit. Mostly similar to what I'm used to in the US.
Last weekend I went with Pasha to this exhibit they were advertising in the metro - "MYSTERIOUS INDIA." He suggested it, but it just so happens I love Indian culture. While we were there, we visited another exhibit on the next floor - "SAMURAI, THE ART OF WAR." They were both so cool! I can say I went to Japan, India, and back to Russia in one day :) They both had art and artifacts of all kinds. The samurai thing was mostly about the costumes and the swords; India had a lot about Hinduism. They both had live demonstrations - Samurai about how people fought with those swords (using bamboo swords for demonstration purposes, of course) and it was impressive. Some center where they study martial arts in Moscow had a small group of people come and show us how it's done. The most impressive part was when they screamed really loud as they attacked. It was also somewhat funny when one guy put on a face-mask helmet and the other one bopped him on the head. He just stood there. It was like slapstick. Then, in India, they had dances! Beautifully dressed and made-up dancers performed various traditional dances. It was extremely gorgeous and entertaining. Of course, I love that stuff.
Here are some more pictures from work. Last week I let them do finger painting - turned my back for 10 seconds and one child had understood it to be face painting. It was hilarious. Go, avatar!
Love,
Beth
Looking forward to Christmas vacation at the end of December, but enjoying the meantime.
I had my first visit to a doctor in Russia. It was bound to happen sooner or later. I've lived here (not in a row, but all together) a total of 14 months. I felt ok, but after having a headache all day on Friday, I decided to go check it out just in case. I have good insurance and it was free to me anyway, plus a new experience to blog about, lol. A Russian recommended I go, saying that because it hurt behind my eye, that means some wind could have blown on me strongly and affected my nerves. I have never heard of this, and was pretty sure it was just lack of drinking water and not enough sleep. Russians also say you shouldn't read lying down; it's bad for you eyes. Sometimes I doubt where the line is for them between medical knowledge and superstition. But eh, what do I know? I'm no doctor. So I signed up for an appointment at the poliklinika.
After signing in, they told me which room I would visit and sent me back. No forms to fill out? Nope. No waiting in the waiting room and then they call your name? No. Ok. I found the room. The door was closed. I knocked. No answer. I opened the door. Oh, gosh. There were some people in there - I guess someone was seeing the doctor. Sorry! I shut the door. I looked around and asked a bystander, what's done here? He asked which doctor I was seeing and said he was in line for her too. Have a seat. Oh, ok. Russians love to stand in lines.
When it was my turn, I went in. There was a lady sitting at a computer looking at the screen. "I'm listening." Uh, .... I looked at her name tag. It was the doctor. "Oh, it's you. Hello." She made eye contact and smiled. Then we chatted. She was very frank and cold. "What's wrong with you?" "Nothing, I just, had some questions..." After our conversation, she examined me and gave me a perscription for my throat, which appartently there was something wrong with. No linguistic barriers; luckily I could say and understand everything I needed to. :) All in all, a pretty successful visit. Mostly similar to what I'm used to in the US.
Last weekend I went with Pasha to this exhibit they were advertising in the metro - "MYSTERIOUS INDIA." He suggested it, but it just so happens I love Indian culture. While we were there, we visited another exhibit on the next floor - "SAMURAI, THE ART OF WAR." They were both so cool! I can say I went to Japan, India, and back to Russia in one day :) They both had art and artifacts of all kinds. The samurai thing was mostly about the costumes and the swords; India had a lot about Hinduism. They both had live demonstrations - Samurai about how people fought with those swords (using bamboo swords for demonstration purposes, of course) and it was impressive. Some center where they study martial arts in Moscow had a small group of people come and show us how it's done. The most impressive part was when they screamed really loud as they attacked. It was also somewhat funny when one guy put on a face-mask helmet and the other one bopped him on the head. He just stood there. It was like slapstick. Then, in India, they had dances! Beautifully dressed and made-up dancers performed various traditional dances. It was extremely gorgeous and entertaining. Of course, I love that stuff.
Here are some more pictures from work. Last week I let them do finger painting - turned my back for 10 seconds and one child had understood it to be face painting. It was hilarious. Go, avatar!
Love,
Beth
 |
| After we washed him :) |
Sunday, November 6, 2011
Greetings, one and all! How's life in the US? I've already become quite detached from it. The novelty of living here has worn off and I can say I'm quite happy. Let me tell a little bit about how we celebrated!
First, we, Pasha, Lena and I, spent all the day before and all the day of preparing - cleaning, going to the store, cooking, decorating, and getting ourselves ready, in our costumes, etc. We barely made it by the time the people got there! Sadly, all my foreigner friends couldn't come, but two of my Russian friends could. So, we had all Russians celebrating a foreign (to them) holiday. What did we do?
We decorated the kitchen by hanging leaves from the ceiling, adding a bit of garland here and there, putting up Christmas lights, and Pasha and I colored several little halloween-themed drawings. Late into the evening, when everyone was drunk (except me, but they made an exception for me because I'm not Russian) we carved a pumpkin! But the rest was done Russian style: arrange a beautiful table with food, drink, treats, h'ordeuvres, etc., and all sit down together, very formally, and pronounce toasts as we drink up. People make conversation and tell anecdotes, which we call jokes. It's all very nice and fancy. They asked me how we do things in America, and I couldn't really even answer. I guess we just party! I could say, though, that for us it's less "nice" and less formal.
The leaves are still on the ceiling.
Later on in the weekend I went to the New Tretyakovskaya again and finished looking at that one Gay exhibit, saw a bit more of the permanent collection, and then went out with my friend Marie Helen, a 45-year-old Swiss lady who is now my coworker and one of my first friends here in Moscow.
Moscow is a huge city. Most of the people live in apartments, even in the suburbs, and dream of buying not a house but an apartment. It's very very expensive, comprable to New York City or even more expensive, and many Russians tell me that it's basically impossible to get credit, although I see ads in the metro for just this.
Today I skipped my beloved Mass and went instead with a friend to her church. It is a protestand Christian center. As far as I understand, there are services there of different denominations at different times, for both Russians and foreigners. I listened to an Evangelical service in Russian. After that Shakara and I went to an open air market, and boy, was it cold!!! I bought some nice warm boots and wore them home. Been meaning to do that. I think I'll be set for the winter.
Well here's the rest of the halloween pics. Love and blessings to you all!!!
First, we, Pasha, Lena and I, spent all the day before and all the day of preparing - cleaning, going to the store, cooking, decorating, and getting ourselves ready, in our costumes, etc. We barely made it by the time the people got there! Sadly, all my foreigner friends couldn't come, but two of my Russian friends could. So, we had all Russians celebrating a foreign (to them) holiday. What did we do?
We decorated the kitchen by hanging leaves from the ceiling, adding a bit of garland here and there, putting up Christmas lights, and Pasha and I colored several little halloween-themed drawings. Late into the evening, when everyone was drunk (except me, but they made an exception for me because I'm not Russian) we carved a pumpkin! But the rest was done Russian style: arrange a beautiful table with food, drink, treats, h'ordeuvres, etc., and all sit down together, very formally, and pronounce toasts as we drink up. People make conversation and tell anecdotes, which we call jokes. It's all very nice and fancy. They asked me how we do things in America, and I couldn't really even answer. I guess we just party! I could say, though, that for us it's less "nice" and less formal.
The leaves are still on the ceiling.
Later on in the weekend I went to the New Tretyakovskaya again and finished looking at that one Gay exhibit, saw a bit more of the permanent collection, and then went out with my friend Marie Helen, a 45-year-old Swiss lady who is now my coworker and one of my first friends here in Moscow.
Moscow is a huge city. Most of the people live in apartments, even in the suburbs, and dream of buying not a house but an apartment. It's very very expensive, comprable to New York City or even more expensive, and many Russians tell me that it's basically impossible to get credit, although I see ads in the metro for just this.
Today I skipped my beloved Mass and went instead with a friend to her church. It is a protestand Christian center. As far as I understand, there are services there of different denominations at different times, for both Russians and foreigners. I listened to an Evangelical service in Russian. After that Shakara and I went to an open air market, and boy, was it cold!!! I bought some nice warm boots and wore them home. Been meaning to do that. I think I'll be set for the winter.
Well here's the rest of the halloween pics. Love and blessings to you all!!!
Monday, October 31, 2011
Halloween party
Hello all, sorry it's been a while - been so busy enjoying my week off and planning a party. Pictures at the end of the blog entry!! Check 'em out.
Here's how I spent the week: Monday - routine day, grocery shopping, etc. Most museums are closed on Monday anyway, so I planned to make maximum use of the other days off.
Tuesday - the old Tretyakov gallery. This is a museum where you can find "old" (pre-20th century) Russian art. They have an exquisite collection and periodic temporary exhibits. I have been here before but of course you can't see everything in one visit. I stayed for about 3 hours and explored the second floor. It was cold! Russian winter is on the way. www.tretyakovgallery.ru/en/
Wednesday - the new Tretyakov gallery. This is the 20th and 21st century collection. There was an exhibit by Nikolai Ghe www.en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nikolai_Ge into which I walked without paying, looked around for an hour and loved, and then on the way out realized I should have bought a special ticket for that. Oh well. Then I looked at 6 rooms of art of the permanent collection, out of about 50. After that I had to go home. Have to come back soon when I have the chance.
I also went to the Lenin Library (their library of congress) and read Anna Karennina both these days. What good days!
Thursday - IKEA. Yes, Shakara and I went to Ikea. That's it. But it was an all-day adventure. It took over 8 hours from the time I left my home to when I came back. We met in the metro, went to the last stop on the green line, from there took a bus to a MegaMall. Man, it was so mega! We shopped and ate and had some fun before going to Ikea. I needed some sort of cheap furniture for my room and a full-length mirror. She needed a blanket, pillows, etc. We both ended up getting what we need and it was a very successful trip - and a fun day! She sticks out like a sore thumb here because she's black, and I was wearing a dot on my forehead for fun. And we were speaking English. So we were a little noticeable. But that's ok. Most of the time, if I'm not talking, I blend in.
Friday - the Pushkin Museum of Fine Arts. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pushkin_Museum Pasha met me after work as we tried for a second time to get into this Dali exhibit. Last time we waited for an hour and they cut the line off just ahead of us. This time as I was off work I was already standing in line, and he met me there as soon as he could, at like 5:30. The ticket office closes at 6. It was gunna be close. But we got in!!!!! It was a very inspiring - and very interesting exhibit. Well worth the wait.
After that, we went to the supermarket to buy things for the party on Saturday night. We were there until they closed at 11. And we ended up having to go back again the next day anyway! But more about the party later. For now, just look at the pics :) Blessings and love to you all. It seems i'll be in the states over Christmas, so see you then if I see you.
-Beth
Here's how I spent the week: Monday - routine day, grocery shopping, etc. Most museums are closed on Monday anyway, so I planned to make maximum use of the other days off.
Tuesday - the old Tretyakov gallery. This is a museum where you can find "old" (pre-20th century) Russian art. They have an exquisite collection and periodic temporary exhibits. I have been here before but of course you can't see everything in one visit. I stayed for about 3 hours and explored the second floor. It was cold! Russian winter is on the way. www.tretyakovgallery.ru/en/
Wednesday - the new Tretyakov gallery. This is the 20th and 21st century collection. There was an exhibit by Nikolai Ghe www.en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nikolai_Ge into which I walked without paying, looked around for an hour and loved, and then on the way out realized I should have bought a special ticket for that. Oh well. Then I looked at 6 rooms of art of the permanent collection, out of about 50. After that I had to go home. Have to come back soon when I have the chance.
I also went to the Lenin Library (their library of congress) and read Anna Karennina both these days. What good days!
Thursday - IKEA. Yes, Shakara and I went to Ikea. That's it. But it was an all-day adventure. It took over 8 hours from the time I left my home to when I came back. We met in the metro, went to the last stop on the green line, from there took a bus to a MegaMall. Man, it was so mega! We shopped and ate and had some fun before going to Ikea. I needed some sort of cheap furniture for my room and a full-length mirror. She needed a blanket, pillows, etc. We both ended up getting what we need and it was a very successful trip - and a fun day! She sticks out like a sore thumb here because she's black, and I was wearing a dot on my forehead for fun. And we were speaking English. So we were a little noticeable. But that's ok. Most of the time, if I'm not talking, I blend in.
Friday - the Pushkin Museum of Fine Arts. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pushkin_Museum Pasha met me after work as we tried for a second time to get into this Dali exhibit. Last time we waited for an hour and they cut the line off just ahead of us. This time as I was off work I was already standing in line, and he met me there as soon as he could, at like 5:30. The ticket office closes at 6. It was gunna be close. But we got in!!!!! It was a very inspiring - and very interesting exhibit. Well worth the wait.
After that, we went to the supermarket to buy things for the party on Saturday night. We were there until they closed at 11. And we ended up having to go back again the next day anyway! But more about the party later. For now, just look at the pics :) Blessings and love to you all. It seems i'll be in the states over Christmas, so see you then if I see you.
-Beth
Wednesday, October 19, 2011
aliens rocked the planet
Hi. Let me tell you about the concert on Sunday (VocaPeople: http://voca-people.com/). It blew me away. I was gobstopped. I was flabbergasted. I was enthralled non-stop. The hour and a half went by like 5 minutes and left me wanting more. It was hilarious. They made the audience participate constantly and never let you stop laughing. I'm so glad I went!
There was a bit of a plot - their spaceship crashed and they need energy to go back home. They sang many medleys - history of "earth" music, popular movie soundtracks, etc., which were amazing, but they also performed in an acting, dancing, and beatboxing way. They introduced themselves and their vocal talents - bass, baritone, tenor, alto, mezzo, soprano, and two more guys, beat boxer and scratcher. Before the performance, they announced that all the sounds we were about to hear were made from natural human vocals only. Pretty sweet, very quirky.
Only one more week of work before vacation - we have a week off for the fall holidays. Actually, I have two more days of the "week of taste" to go, and then I'm off for ten! Woopie!
There was a bit of a plot - their spaceship crashed and they need energy to go back home. They sang many medleys - history of "earth" music, popular movie soundtracks, etc., which were amazing, but they also performed in an acting, dancing, and beatboxing way. They introduced themselves and their vocal talents - bass, baritone, tenor, alto, mezzo, soprano, and two more guys, beat boxer and scratcher. Before the performance, they announced that all the sounds we were about to hear were made from natural human vocals only. Pretty sweet, very quirky.
Only one more week of work before vacation - we have a week off for the fall holidays. Actually, I have two more days of the "week of taste" to go, and then I'm off for ten! Woopie!
Friday, October 14, 2011
Vomit and parents
What a day! Friday! I lived through this day! And it wasn't actually that bad. Only, I got thrown up on. Yep. A right of passage, you might say. A kid puked on me, right on my white pants. My white pants that I only wear when I want to look my best at work, part of my most professional and also beautiful outfit, white pants that made it through painting in the morning without a spot, that I was planning to wear to our photo exhibit in the evening, when we had to shmooz the parents. In the morning, I got dressed, put pants on as any normal person should do, and went to work. When I got to work, I took them off. What was I to do? That puke didn't smell pretty. Thank the Lord I had black stretch pants on underneath, for warmth. I worked all day in just those. They are worn in the crotch and not really "outer" clothes; usually I just wear them as pajamas and underclothes. But today I wore them at work. I washed my pants and hung them to dry; by the time the photo exhibit rolled around, they were dry. And the exhibit went fine. So all's well that ends well. Another time, I came home with blood all over my blouse. It's just my line of work. Blood, vomit ... can you imagine what's next?
Happy to have reached the weekend. Did I tell you I went to Canadian Thanksgiving at my new Canadian friend's house? A real feast: really fun and also yummy. That was last weekend I think. About ten people at her apartment and it was a blast. People from all over, speaking different languages. I like that a lot. It's one of my favorite aspects of church. I'm planning to host a halloween party with my roommates at the end of this month. I hope it goes well! Parties are so much fun.
Happy to have reached the weekend. Did I tell you I went to Canadian Thanksgiving at my new Canadian friend's house? A real feast: really fun and also yummy. That was last weekend I think. About ten people at her apartment and it was a blast. People from all over, speaking different languages. I like that a lot. It's one of my favorite aspects of church. I'm planning to host a halloween party with my roommates at the end of this month. I hope it goes well! Parties are so much fun.
Thursday, October 13, 2011
live music on arbat and in space
Hi guys – so sorry it's been so long. Wow – life in Russia. What a shtuka! That means “what a thing,” but in a kinda slang-ish way. Ups and downs of the past couple weeks... well October 3-7 was a really busy week work-wise. I got observed on the 5th and man, was I stressing about it for a couple days. If it were toddlers, I'd love being observed so I could show off my skills. I really have fun with that class. Today, for instance, we did the rhyme “five little pumpkins.” It was a big hit! I had the assistant turn off the light at just the right moment and they were all not scared but intrigued and fascinated and amused. But it was not toddlers or even the baby group, it was EFL (English as a Foreign language.) And she didn't even come at the beginning of the class, when I have routines and rituals, but at the end, after the break. I had three activities: two of them flopped. On top of that, we had a section meeting, got ready to think about halloween and Thanksgiving. This week's busy too: we have a photo exhibit coming up this Friday (which required a lot of planning and preparation) after that is the “week of taste,” a week featuring special lesson plans involving red and green foods, guests, special menus, decorations in the school, etc. After that, vacation! So I'm glad to have gotten all the deadlines figured out and made sure I won't forget anything. Plans were due earlier than usual, and I've been trying to get my hands on a buttload of little pumpkins for a while now – not so easy in Moscow without a car. But I finally got them – some were not actually pumpkins but a strange disc-shaped vegetable called patission, but who cares – and this week we painted them. They loved it!! I even had my older, EFL kids paint the big pumpkin because it was starting to go bad, lol.
I was walking on Arbat from work to the metro and I came across of group of two young people playing music, a guy with a guitar and a girl with a drum. I stood and listened for a while. I think they were playing Kino. I had just sold my old phone for 500 roubles, so I had some “extra” cash. I gave them the 500 and headed for the metro, but just behind me I heard the exclamation – of course they weren't used to getting that much. I was really delighted. Reminds me of the time mom and I made a cake and put it in my friend's refrigerator when she wasn't there.
I sat at home and played my music for Lena and Pasha (roommates) and sang along loudly and unabashedly. Then I went to do the dishes, and Pasha had managed to find the one song out of hundreds where I'm the one singing. It was the russian alphabet, made last year for my middle schoolers. Actually, no, it was made in grad school as a podcast assignment, but I used it with my middle schoolers. They could not hear that. I quickly slammed the computer shut.
Another concert coming up this weekend – the “VocaPeople.” They're all dressed in white like the blue man group, but not blue. And they have red mouths. They are aliens who travel the galaxy in a ship powered by music. They beatbox and cover popular songs a capella. Seems a little corny, but I like corny things. I'm going to wear a dress, yay! First time in Moscow. But it's going to be 38 degrees. Darnit! And we're going to have snow this week. :(
Here are some of the most recommended Russian musicians:
Чиж и Co
Nautilus Pompilius
Мельница
Кино
Смысловые галлюцинации
Чичерина
Би-2
Игорь Тальков
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