I have it all figured out. They thought that they could hide it from me, but I saw through their plan. Everyone is only PRETENDING to believe that it's the end of March, when really, Moscow is stuck in a gigantic time warp in which we are reliving January over and over and over again. Otherwise, it couldn't possibly STILL be snowing. Yet even as I type, the little clumps of snowflakes are tumbling merrily past my window - as they have been all day and periodically ever since...actually, ever since the end of October. Of course, every once in a while the conspirators will clear away the clouds and hang the sun up for a little while, let it melt a little of the snow, get everyone talking about spring, and then WHUMP! They dump a new load of the white stuff out of the sky. Don't ask me who "they" are...my conspiracy theory hasn't advanced that far yet. Maybe in the next blog...
IN MODERATION!!!
I feel so sinfully luxuriant - I got to leave dance practice early, and I've already showered and eaten dinner and have a whole three blissfully empty hours stretching ahead of me before bed. But then, I think these last few weeks have merited three hours of dawdling. It's been really hectic here! Teaching is getting busier - I was just assigned two new students, one of whom is a 15-year-old teenage boy with whom I will have a 2 HOUR AND 15-MINUTE CONVERSATION COURSE ONE-ON-ONE. ("Conversation" means that there isn't even a textbook.) I mean, I have four younger brothers, I think I can say that I to some extent understand teenage boys, and there is NO WAY any teenage boy would want to sit and speak a foreign language for two hours and fifteen minutes by himself. That's not even counting the fact that conversation classes don't require students to take a placement class before they start, so I have no idea what his actual level is. It's entirely possible that we will get into class together, and get past the mandatory "Hello, how are you?" "I'm fine, thank you.", and then I will say, "How long have you been studying English?" and he will give me a blank stare and say, "Не понял вопрос," ("I didn't understand the question.") in which case we will be doing a lot of blank staring at each other for the next two hours and fifteen minutes.
Ok, rant over. Maybe it won't be that bad. I hope. The other fun student is an older businessman named Vladimir, who I just started teaching this past week. He is an extreme beginner; I had to explain the difference between "is" and "are" to him last class. Not that I mind beginners, but he has a reputation for being a difficult student. Not only does he question the purpose of every exercise, he also has a set-up with the school wherein he doesn't have a scheduled lesson time - he can just call any day he wants and the teacher has to scramble together a lesson plan/ refresh her memory on the lesson plan she prepared a long time ago anticipating his arrival, and be ready to drop everything to teach him at any moment when she is not in a another class. However, so far it hasn't been too bad, in part because I have a plot to hide my limited Russian skills entirely. In other words, "Ya ne govoryu po-russkiy." (I don't speak Russian.) I think this will be to my advantage, because then he will have a lot harder time challenging my exercises or trying to give me condescending little compliments because a) he doesn't have the vocab in English and b) I don't understand him when he speaks Russian. Actually, I get a devious pleasure out of it - and I have even set it up with the administrators so that they won't speak Russian to me anytime Vladimir is in the building, and they won't let on that I speak it. In the last class, he was trying to compliment me on how I had such good handwriting, and how that really speaks for a person's character. But I could tell from the way he said it that he wasn't really complimenting me so much as just trying to get on my good side and smooth the way for himself. So it was great fun to look at him with a half-pained, half-smiling "I'm sorry, but I just don't understand you" face, and then continue the exercise. Maybe I shouldn't get so much devilish amusement out of it, but I can't help myself.
Outside of the school, dance is pretty much the only other thing I'm managing to do at the moment. Right now it's a bit exhausting - some nights I'm so tired it's all I can do to drag myself onto the metro to get there, and yet I love dancing. I think it probably doesn't help that right now we are preparing intensively for our show, so we don't normally do a full barre before starting rehearsal, so my stamina is down. And try as I might, I can't seem to find the energy to give myself barre at home, at least not right now. But hopefully after the show, when we've finally escaped the January loop and there isn't so much tension in the air at rehearsals, I can find some energy to get in better shape.
I'm really excited about our show. I'm not dancing that much, which is actually good because I didn't have a lot of time to learn the choreography and I definitely don't have as much time as I would like to dissect the pieces I do have. Plus, I think trying to figure out all the different costumes and pieces of costumes might be just too much of a tax on my Russian skills - they are being pushed to their max right now remembering names of dances, "vest," "ribbon," "scarf," "safety pin," etc! And it is so wonderful that we will get to perform in the Tchaikovsky Concert Hall. It is the home stage of the Moiseyev Company, so I have seen it on film and didn't even hardly dream that I would ever get to dance there. It's really exciting for me.
I'm also really excited because I bought tickets to go and see the Bolshoi in June - and I will get to see "Chopiniana," which is a ballet I've danced in twice myself, and one of my favorites - the choreography is lovely, and Chopin's music is so beautiful.
Well, teaching and dancing - that is about all that I have on my agenda at the moment! Oh, and I've been re-reading Harry Potter in Russian. Normally I wouldn't do something like that when I have Pushkin sitting around my flat, but sometimes it is so nice to be able to read something comfortably, and my level is about at Harry Potter right now - specifically the sixth book - and not higher! I had the ambitious plan of trying to read something else last week, and on a whim I picked up Turgenev while walking out the door to work. But after having to look up twenty words on the first page, I decided that Turgenev is useful for keepng me humble about my language skills, and the best way for him to do that is to just sit on my bookshelf unopened and stare at me. I also took a brief break from Harry Potter to sample my first - and probably my last - Stephen King book. We have a few random English books lying around the school, and that is one of them. I took it home last night when I was too tired to read Russian. Basically, it doesn't even merit disgust. The characters were caricatures rather than real people; he tried to make deep evil sound enticing and alluring, and he showed a lack of understanding of the Catholic faith in particular and Christianity in general. And the worst part is, I don't think he really set out to do any of these things - he just wanted to write a gross vampire story that would sell well. If it were my book I would rip it up into little pieces and throw it away - and I'm an English major! - but it's not, so I won't (probably).
Well, that's all folks! Except for the fact that my family and I have unanimously decided that skype is no longer sufficient and we are ready to see each other face-to-face. Of course, I'm still enjoying my time here, and I will continue to try to enjoy every minute until I leave, but I'm also really eager to see all my loved ones, family and friends again. I'll be home at the beginning of July! :)
my crocuses think it is springtime
However, note the background. Clearly, it is not spring.
not that the snow isn't beautiful (note the individual snowflakes) :)
IN MODERATION!!!
some sort of blessed spring on the walk to work - people always come to fill jugs of water here
beautiful birch :)
This bush seems to be the official bird hang-out spot - they are always here outside my building!
I feel so sinfully luxuriant - I got to leave dance practice early, and I've already showered and eaten dinner and have a whole three blissfully empty hours stretching ahead of me before bed. But then, I think these last few weeks have merited three hours of dawdling. It's been really hectic here! Teaching is getting busier - I was just assigned two new students, one of whom is a 15-year-old teenage boy with whom I will have a 2 HOUR AND 15-MINUTE CONVERSATION COURSE ONE-ON-ONE. ("Conversation" means that there isn't even a textbook.) I mean, I have four younger brothers, I think I can say that I to some extent understand teenage boys, and there is NO WAY any teenage boy would want to sit and speak a foreign language for two hours and fifteen minutes by himself. That's not even counting the fact that conversation classes don't require students to take a placement class before they start, so I have no idea what his actual level is. It's entirely possible that we will get into class together, and get past the mandatory "Hello, how are you?" "I'm fine, thank you.", and then I will say, "How long have you been studying English?" and he will give me a blank stare and say, "Не понял вопрос," ("I didn't understand the question.") in which case we will be doing a lot of blank staring at each other for the next two hours and fifteen minutes.
Ok, rant over. Maybe it won't be that bad. I hope. The other fun student is an older businessman named Vladimir, who I just started teaching this past week. He is an extreme beginner; I had to explain the difference between "is" and "are" to him last class. Not that I mind beginners, but he has a reputation for being a difficult student. Not only does he question the purpose of every exercise, he also has a set-up with the school wherein he doesn't have a scheduled lesson time - he can just call any day he wants and the teacher has to scramble together a lesson plan/ refresh her memory on the lesson plan she prepared a long time ago anticipating his arrival, and be ready to drop everything to teach him at any moment when she is not in a another class. However, so far it hasn't been too bad, in part because I have a plot to hide my limited Russian skills entirely. In other words, "Ya ne govoryu po-russkiy." (I don't speak Russian.) I think this will be to my advantage, because then he will have a lot harder time challenging my exercises or trying to give me condescending little compliments because a) he doesn't have the vocab in English and b) I don't understand him when he speaks Russian. Actually, I get a devious pleasure out of it - and I have even set it up with the administrators so that they won't speak Russian to me anytime Vladimir is in the building, and they won't let on that I speak it. In the last class, he was trying to compliment me on how I had such good handwriting, and how that really speaks for a person's character. But I could tell from the way he said it that he wasn't really complimenting me so much as just trying to get on my good side and smooth the way for himself. So it was great fun to look at him with a half-pained, half-smiling "I'm sorry, but I just don't understand you" face, and then continue the exercise. Maybe I shouldn't get so much devilish amusement out of it, but I can't help myself.
more snow
sunshine!!
more sunshine - on the way to dance
our dance hall - also a school (we rehearse in the gymnasium)
beautiful snow on the branches on the way to dance
I'm really excited about our show. I'm not dancing that much, which is actually good because I didn't have a lot of time to learn the choreography and I definitely don't have as much time as I would like to dissect the pieces I do have. Plus, I think trying to figure out all the different costumes and pieces of costumes might be just too much of a tax on my Russian skills - they are being pushed to their max right now remembering names of dances, "vest," "ribbon," "scarf," "safety pin," etc! And it is so wonderful that we will get to perform in the Tchaikovsky Concert Hall. It is the home stage of the Moiseyev Company, so I have seen it on film and didn't even hardly dream that I would ever get to dance there. It's really exciting for me.
I'm also really excited because I bought tickets to go and see the Bolshoi in June - and I will get to see "Chopiniana," which is a ballet I've danced in twice myself, and one of my favorites - the choreography is lovely, and Chopin's music is so beautiful.
Well, teaching and dancing - that is about all that I have on my agenda at the moment! Oh, and I've been re-reading Harry Potter in Russian. Normally I wouldn't do something like that when I have Pushkin sitting around my flat, but sometimes it is so nice to be able to read something comfortably, and my level is about at Harry Potter right now - specifically the sixth book - and not higher! I had the ambitious plan of trying to read something else last week, and on a whim I picked up Turgenev while walking out the door to work. But after having to look up twenty words on the first page, I decided that Turgenev is useful for keepng me humble about my language skills, and the best way for him to do that is to just sit on my bookshelf unopened and stare at me. I also took a brief break from Harry Potter to sample my first - and probably my last - Stephen King book. We have a few random English books lying around the school, and that is one of them. I took it home last night when I was too tired to read Russian. Basically, it doesn't even merit disgust. The characters were caricatures rather than real people; he tried to make deep evil sound enticing and alluring, and he showed a lack of understanding of the Catholic faith in particular and Christianity in general. And the worst part is, I don't think he really set out to do any of these things - he just wanted to write a gross vampire story that would sell well. If it were my book I would rip it up into little pieces and throw it away - and I'm an English major! - but it's not, so I won't (probably).
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