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russian cursing

what do you do when you hear someone swearing in a foreign language?

i haven't gone out of my way to learn how to articulate cussing in russian, but after a couple years you can't help but pick up some of the more colorful adult vernacular.  

today i was sitting at someone's desk, fixing a problem when a nearby co-worker said "блин!".  which is actually the polite way of saying what they really meant to say which was "блядь".    in this case, the english version of sh--t or he-double hockey sticks.  

i played dumb but took notice the person was upset with his computer.  this was quickly verified as i was called over shortly thereafter to fix said problem.  after fixing it, i was tempted to say "see? it's only a computer not a блядь".  but right now it more fun to eavesdrop when no one thinks i'm listening. 

2 years in vladivostok

my anniversary came and went on oct 19th.  two years have passed by and it still seems like i just unpacked.  the benefits of staying at a post longer than two years for me are being the mr. know-it guy when it comes to the consulate's recent history.  other new americans can ask me why something or when something was done.  one example is our landlord, he's kind of a slippery character.  before i arrived, he proposed splitting our residences in half, to double the available occupancy.  i.e. be able to charge more for less space.  that idea was shot down since we don't have that many americans here anyway and there was no need.  well, fast forward 2 years later and he brings the idea up again with all new american staff.  except i was in the room and remember the old snake oil pitch from before.  the idea was kibosh'd again before anyone seriously thought about it.

now let's go to Brick for the weather..

1st snow of the season arrived during early morning hours in vladivostok.  it stopped around 5pm but the high winds kept the city subdued for the rest of the night.  traffic was close to non-existant and those that did travel reported multiple cars stuck in snow drifts and low visibility.  i stayed inside, stocked up on groceries and waited it out till morning.

my girlfriend and i ventured out sunday for lunch and to see what kind of damage the snowfall had done.  the cleaning crews still had their work cut out for them as even the main roads were still covered in wet stuff.  i'm happy to report only one close call as another driver didn't like how slow everyone was going and decided to start cutting people off, me included.  sad to see even bad weather doesn't keep the stupid drivers at home.

halloween

 

it's that time of year again.  treats for the kids, costume parties, the changing of the seasons.  i have a tradition of playing some of my favorite horror movies before halloween.  not the traditional classics, like the exorcist or the shining, nope.  they have to be zombie related. 

here's the playlist typically

• evil dead trilogy
• night of the living dead - original
• any living dead sequel
• shaun of the dead
• resident evil and any of its sequels

halloween is a recent addition to russia.  many enjoy it here and like the aspects of dressing up in costume.  there's a large party at the vlad motor inn, for parents and children.  each year, the total number of guests have increased dramatically.  on of my co-workers said she almost didn't make it this year since it's become so popular and the tickets were close to being sold out.    

i just realized, i don't have any russian horror movies.  something to check out.  in australia, i watched "wolf creek" and the saw movies (the first saw movie - created by aussies).  

parting advice in case you run into a zombie.  "beat em or burn em, they go up pretty easy." sheriff mcclelland - notld

60th anniversary - the end of the berlin airlift

   

a worthy example of american diplomacy, from history.com - this day in history - sept 30th, 1949

"After 15 months and more than 250,000 flights, the Berlin Airlift officially comes to an end. The airlift was one of the greatest logistical feats in modern history and was one of the crucial events of the early Cold War.

In June 1948, the Soviet Union suddenly blocked all ground traffic into West Berlin, which was located entirely within the Russian zone of occupation in Germany. It was an obvious effort to force the United States, Great Britain, and France (the other occupying powers in Germany) to accept Soviet demands concerning the postwar fate of Germany. As a result of the Soviet blockade, the people of West Berlin were left without food, clothing, or medical supplies. Some U.S. officials pushed for an aggressive response to the Soviet provocation, but cooler heads prevailed and a plan for an airlift of supplies to West Berlin was developed. It was a daunting task: supplying the daily wants and needs of so many civilians would require tons of food and other goods each and every day. On June 26, 1948, the Berlin Airlift began with U.S. pilots and planes carrying the lion's share of the burden. During the next 15 months, 277,264 aircraft landed in West Berlin bringing over 2 million tons of supplies. On September 30, 1949, the last plane--an American C-54--landed in Berlin and unloaded over two tons of coal. Even though the Soviet blockade officially ended in May 1949, it took several more months for the West Berlin economy to recover and the necessary stockpiles of food, medicine, and fuel to be replenished.

The Berlin Airlift was a tremendous Cold War victory for the United States. Without firing a shot, the Americans foiled the Soviet plan to hold West Berlin hostage, while simultaneously demonstrating to the world the "Yankee ingenuity" for which their nation was famous. For the Soviets, the Berlin crisis was an unmitigated disaster. The United States, France, and Great Britain merely hardened their resolve on issues related to Germany, and the world came to see the Russians as international bullies, trying to starve innocent citizens."

to all the cars i've outlived..

remember your first car? well if you grew up outside most major cities in the u.s., chances are you had one.  here the list of the metalglasswireandrubber combinations that i've driven, wreaked, traded away and all to often taken for granted.

dad bought a 72 chevelle for me during high school.  no cassette player, no working a/c.  but i loved it the most.  it survived my first accident after i ran into a plymouth horizon, no one was hurt but the horizon was totaled.  i pried out the front panel, away from the tire, and drove away after the police report.  a year of driving it around with all the dents before my dad and brother helped me restore it back to health and slap on a metallic aztec gold paint job.  it should have been called a phoenix..

63 ford falcon van - you just gotta have one ugly car in your life.  for $400 i thought it was a steal but it had its share of engine fix-up work that needed to be done, including all the rust in the floor.  the only car i've owned that was older than me.  comes with refrigerator, bed, and shag carpet. "if this van a rocking....ahh, you've probably got a fuel line problem"

1979 mazda rx7- after the van, and borrowing my dad's oldsmobile for a year or so (thanks dad), i bought this guy.  I would have enjoyed it more, but I alway seemed to be fighting a nasty oil leak problem.  but it was definitely fun to drive.  winter driving had me flying over snow drifts more than through them.  i remember it had one pop-up headlight that would wink at other cars when i went to fast over railroad tracks.

chevy beretta - not worthy of a pic

owning the beretta, i knew what it was like to drive in slow motion.  passing other cars required visual distances equivalent to the salt flats.   it was the last 4 cylinder engine i'll ever owned. or at least until i retire and buy a "mobility" scooter to go play bingo

1992 jeep cherokee laredo - i spent most of my life with this one (12 years) and through thick and thin, it survived my rampant need to drive cross country not once but three times.  definitely, one of my favorites over the years.  it's final days were in washington, dc.  shortly before leaving for africa i sold it to a redskins fan that just needed a car for weekend stadium trips.  a happy retirement ending to a great companion.

. . . and to the one i depend on now

2006 toyota fj cruiser- after the jeep, i couldn't go back to driving a car again.  vladivostok is the perfect place to own an suv.  but not for just the trails, also for the pot hole'd streets, extra high driving visibility and icy winters conditions.  suicide doors, funky retro design, and 239hp v-6 make this a fun ride in a hill covered city.

rikorda island

rikorda island is about an hour away by boat from vladivostok.  the boat ride in the morning was windy and wet, but we made it to the beach eventually.  you can buy tickets for boats to some of the more populated islands like russkiy or popov islands, but we enlisted a private boat and went to rikorda, which is farther out than the other two.  we had to pack food and drink since the island doesn't have any places to eat.  amid all the prep to get the car loaded and meet everyone, i forgot to bring all the fruit and snacks i had bought the night before.  i did remember the wine and vodka.  which i think everyone enjoyed more than the food.  we spent all day walking and enjoying the water and sun on different sides of the island.  by the time the sunset started to set we met up with our captain and took off for vlad.

the islands here have smooth rock beaches as opposed to the white sand ones in australia.  the water around the island was definitely cleaner than the city beaches i've visited.  i can see why russians like to visit them in the summer.  it takes a bit of time to reach them but it worth the trip once you get there.  i didn't see much wildlife besides birds and bugs so i imagine any four legged critters get caught by hunters.  no one was doing any jet or water skiing like they do at the city beaches.  it was a nice break from shamara beach just for the traffic alone.

speaking of, last week, i took my girlfriend for a scooter ride out to shamara. it's about a 40min ride. it's the first real passenger ride i've given in a couple years so i was a bit worried traffic would make it tough.  but during the whole trip, i didn't have any trouble with going in and out of traffic.  the wind is starting to get cold already so the days of summer are drawing close in the russian far east.

russian far east racing

last month, i caught a drag racing event outside of vladivostok.  another american at work is in to racing and is now a regular with the local city club.  he got us vip invites to watch the races during the first week of august.  (i'm late posting this)  so a group of us attended the races during one of the few nice summer days and enjoyed what seems to always be a crowd-pleaser.

the guys walking around the cars are there to make sure the cars start off from the right spot.  the green light is outside the pic, but resembles the same lights used see in the states.  anyone could enter and for the most part it was the serious motor enthusiasts that raced.  although there were a few folks that just wanted to see how their car would do and entered in the amateur category.

during racing breaks, the announcer would organize some comedy bits with volunteers from the audience, like seeing how long guys could hold a tire with straight arms at chest level.  just goes to show there's always something interesting to see in vlad.

more pics can be found here.

birthday cruise

С днём рождения:  "Happy Birthday"

on my birthday, i took a day off so we could enjoy a nice lunch at mario giovanni's and a sailboat ride around the harbor.

i been on several ships and boats but never a sailboat, so it was a nice way to end the day.  Here a snap of the captain.

he's a friend of my girlfriend and always happy to take guests out for a ride, especially the ladies.   beautiful weather and a great day to be on the water.

Specialist and Generalist

when it comes to distinguishing between the foreign service career paths, many officers still give me a blank stare when i mention i'm a specialist and not a generalist.  i get the impression that once someone is in a-100 class (generalist's orientation) they never hear about the specialist path.  during my specialist orientation  (sorry we don't have a snazzy name) the general path was explained in full and we quickly understood who the folks were walking around the foreign service institute's campus that weren't in our classes.

i understand american's coming from other agencies serving a tour as an FSO not picking up on it.  everything in the department of state is new to them.  i'm talking about regular FSOs that have already worked for several tours. i explain to them the differences in pay, job responsibilities, usually no language training, etc.  invariably, i get asked by post to fill in for officers even though i've never received any generalist training in that regard.  i've been a backup for management officers but that usually the norm for an IT person, since we work under that section and learn about it anyway.  but my current post has brought up other back-fill positions that i really have no right to do at the expense of my own responsibilities.  i'm all about working as a team, but that's like putting a running back into a wide receiver position. you better plan on seeing a few balls get dropped. it's better to just pick up another receiver to fill the gap.

so for all those aspiring generalists out there, just remember there's another career path out there also. and speaking for the specialists, we're happy to help you out and look forward to working with you.  take a minute to see who's who and save yourself any future missteps down the road.

Generalist:

Management Affairs

Consular Affairs

Political Affairs

Economic Affairs

Public Diplomacy (Public Affairs)

Specialists:

Facilities Maintenance Specialist

Financial Management Officer

General Services Officer

Human Resources Officer

Construction Engineer

Information Management Specialist

Information Management Technical Specialist

Regional English Language Officer

Information Resource Officer

Printing Specialist

Health Practitioner

Regional Medical Technologist

Regional Medical Officer

Regional Medical Officer/Psychiatrist

Office Management Specialist

Diplomatic Courier

Security Engineering Officer

Security Technical Specialist

Diplomatic Security Service Special Agent

Here's a nice wiki link to read more about the Foreign Service and it's history.