Culbert Report

You can never really post anything. Someone's just posted about a devastating cancer diagnosis. It seems inappropriate to post about a funny encounter with a pigeon on the way to the store. It seems shallow to read the next item in the newsfeed about the madhouse at Linens 'N Things. What a strange way to communicate about ourselves and our lives. Yet, all the same, I'm so thankful for any glimpse into my friends' and families' lives.

Петр, or Pyotr, has multiple nicknames in Russian, some of which we knew when we choose Peter's name, some of which we didn't. "Petya" "Petinka" "Petushka" "Petunochka" "Petunchik" "Petunia"  Really?  Petunia?  No, no Petunia.  Niet spaseebo (no thank you.) Interestingly enough, new nicknames for Peter have developed by creating American style nicknames from these Russian style nicknames:  nicknames of nicknames, so to speak. "Petunies" "Tunies" "Tuney" "Tune" "Tuninator" At some point, it's difficult to remember that we actually began with "Peter." A wealth of nicknames for a well-loved, and well-received little boy, both home and abroad.

Our Third Culture Kids, while Americans, don't share in the traditional American experience.  They're not really Russian either.  Just ask them a simple question in Russian and you'll see that as displaced as they are from American culture, they are somehow even further removed from Russian.  They are some kind of mix, a breed of their own, I guess.  And as they get older, so do the tensions between cultures intensify and the lack of a sense of belonging increases.   For example, our TCKs don't really celebrate Halloween.  I know a lot of kids who don't celebrate Halloween, so this isn't particularly remarkable; but our kids don't celebrate out of principle, they don't celebrate because nobody really does here either, they don't even know what it is.  Besides, where could I get costume supplies?  What would I do with a pile of Russian candies that nobody in our home really likes?  How many years in a row can I wear my Starbucks apron an...

It's true what they say, the days are long, the years are short.   Nearly a month has gone by since my last blog entry and I find myself in the same predicament I always seem to be in:  what do I write about? On one hand, it seems like nothing has changed, nothing has happened. On the other, each day is so full of the delightful little things that make one special moment overlap with the next until you look back and realize one week has flown by. Like Anna mimicking our stinters' slang, "tasty taste, Mommy, hashtag super delicious!"   Like Peter waving "hi" and exploding into giggles when we wave "hi" back. Like Anna doing a little dance which makes us think, "well at least I now know what I look like when I dance." We're so thankful for the little things.  Day to day, week to week, month to month, our lives are just packed with everything and nothing, all at the same time.

Recently the Moscow Times reported a shooting down in Southern Russia as the result of a disagreement over Kantian philosophy.  You can read the whole story  right here. Nobody was seriously injured as the bullets were rubber rather than real - however one could dispute the alleged moral high ground of such an answer in debate... The final line of the article made me smile:  " Many Russians like to discuss philosophy and history, often over a drink, but such discussions rarely end in shootings." Dan's response:  "This is why I love Russians.  This stuff is important.  And they talk about it with the seriousness it deserves." Now to leave you with a taste of Kant and a challenge to our philosophical sharp-shooter: " Live your life as though your every act were to become a universal law."  -Kant

One interesting commonality among ex-pats living in Russia?  A love for good Russian literature!  Although this characteristic is not true for everybody living here, we have found a fun pocket of fellow literary Russo-philes here in Moscow.  We even have a common joke amongst our fascinating [read: nerdy] group of friends that the first person to quote, allude, or even mention "Dostoevsky" during conversation wins a special prize.  And as much fun as this is for Rachel, it turns out that these avid readers also enjoy cycling, making them shockingly good company for Dan as well! Last summer, our little group began a book club as an opportunity to do a little more intentional reading, discuss interesting and pertinent ideas, and just have an excuse for more frequent meetings.  We also tried a new hot sandwich recipe each week, the most popular being a homemade meatball sub.  We read Jayber Crow by Wendell Berry.  Even Dan, much to his chagrin, enj...

Playground:  FAIL. Note to self:  when installing new flooring around playground equipment, be sure that you put the flooring around said playground equipment rather than next-to. The best part was watching the workmen putting in the fence stand around this corner for a good 2 hours deliberating how to fence in the wild side of the teeter-toter (as if it could be done.) Moscow playgrounds: 1 Culbertsons: 0