Life without a toilet...

15.June

What a wild weekend.  I don’t sleep.  I’m exhausted, but I’m having a blast.

Friday we went to Suzdal, which frankly, I liked better in winter.  After longing for warmer weather, I’ve decided I prefer winter.  Perhaps it’s simply a “grass is greener on the other side of the fence” thing, but honestly, the snow and starkness of the winter months is in many ways more beautiful than the greenery.  Besides, on my first trip to Suzdal we played baseball with a stick and snowballs, this time people barely spoke to one another. 

After Suzdal I went over to Masha’s (Masha Noskova) for her birthday party.  Then I slipped out early to head over to another party. I didn’t come home until five thirty in the morning.  Once I awoke from a brief nap on Saturday, I headed to the center to meet with the other Americans, and then I took them on a picnic in загородный парк, which we followed with a stint at an outdoor cafe, where we drank beer and watched the sunset at ten o'clock at night.  It was lovely.  Then I headed to Masha's to help her decide what to pack and to say goodbye to her (she left for the states today – watch out America!).  We had a sleep over.  She read me some lovely poems she had written over the last couple years, and sang me Russian songs.  When we parted the next morning, she promised to email me if she doesn't understand something in English or just about the U.S. in general.  Доброе just isn’t going to be the same without her. 

Upon arriving home on Sunday I was fed an obscene amount of blini for breakfast. Which, of course, made me sick.  I really think I’m lactose intolerant.  How frustrating.  Then I snuck away to go swimming with Anna, Roma, Sergei, his nephew, and Liza.  It was a blast.  I taught Anna how to swim.  She was terrified.  I kept telling her if she would just breathe normally everything would go much more smoothly.  Then we dipped Liza in the water.  She loved it.  Anna was concerned it was dangerous, but I assured her that I had learned to “swim” (more like love water) at only six months old.

I’ve taken to spending my breaks between classes in the teachers’ office, where I drink coffee or tea with them, listen to their gossip, and often continue some of my lessons.  I adore those women.  They thoroughly enjoy the coffee and peanut butter I brought them from America.  Better yet, being in their office often means that my breaks end up being longer than those of most students, because whoever is teaching me at the moment lingers longer because, well, her student is already there J 

 

09.June

While in the elevator this evening I heard a clicking sound.  It reminded me of the monotonous and tormenting tone of a timer attached to a bomb clicking the seconds off of soon-to-be-victims lives.  I’m assuming it wasn’t, because I’ve only ever heard that sound in movies, and the building has yet to explode. 

Upon arriving home, T told me that the toilet is “occupied” for the rest of the week.  Then she opened the door to the toilet room in order to display that in fact, there was no toilet at all.  We’re undergoing remodeling.  Always.  Immediately following this she told me that if I need to pee I should pee in the bathtub “like this” (yes it even came with partial demonstration).  Then she bluntly said that if I need to poop I should go to the neighbors’ apartment and that they’ve already been told about our toilet sitch.  Schweet.  I can see it going something like this.

“Knock Knock.” 

“Who’s there?”

“Madelyn.”

“Oh you must need to poop.”

Sitting on the toilet unable to perform.  Oh the pressure.

After the toilet fiasco, she made me eat (no surprise), but I’d already eaten at Masha’s (Masha Ermonovna).  However, T’s meal did come with kvas.  I told you she’s always trying to get me drunk ;)

I realized today while at Masha’s house that it was the first time I’d spent any real time with her alone.  Although I already knew her, she was Faye’s tutor and thus, I usually only saw her around Faye.  Also, Katya still lived here, so she often was part of the mix.  Now Faye is gone and Katya is gone.  It’s just Masha and me.  She’s a sweetheart.  I looked through a lot of her hiking pictures and she tried to teach me how to crochet again.  Honestly, I may be a lost cause.  Or just need reading glasses… sometimes I really think I can’t see.

Today was the first full day of classes.  I have ten hours a week one on one with Irina Alekseevna working on lit, and four hours one on one with Tatiana Mikhailovna for grammar.  The director of the program thinks that IA and I might kill one another by the end of the summer if I don’t at least switch a couple hours to something different.  Perhaps history with Evgenii Leonidovich?  Or maybe I can just promise to NOT kill IA.  I’m excited for the one on one with TM, I love that woman.  She can be pretty hardcore, but she’s soft on the inside.  Not all of my classes are individual.  I do spend a few hours a week in speech class with some of the new students and Nadezhda Ivanovna.  It’s only been two days, but I already believe we have a fabulous class dynamic.  I’m excited about it.  We’re also all grad students. 

My iPod’s battery died while I was riding the bus home tonight.  Consequently, I was paying much more attentive attention (yes I wrote that) to the various goings-on outside the bus window.  There was a little girl standing at a bus stop sucking on a lollipop.  Then I watched as her face lit up and she began running to the bus.  Her daddy was home.  He exited the bus and simultaneously she slammed into his chest.  It was so endearing.  Reminded me how much I love children.  Then it made me think about how I’ll probably never have any, which will be fine until I become my mom and need someone to hold back my hair and rub my back while I constantly puke in reaction to anesthesia.  And who will photograph me learning to walk again?  Damn.