Ok, so seriously, I'm ready to stop falling on my ass every day. This is getting ri-goddamned-diculous. I don't know how the Russkies do it, particularly the women in stilettos.

Not too much to report from the Eastern Front. I got another ear piercing, much like the older one, just, you know, a little lower. I like it a lot, but I am super sketched out about having gotten a piercing in Russia, and have never wanted a blood test so bad in my life.

I also finished The Master and Margarita today, I'm a little ashamed that I hadn't read it earlier, frankly. I'm not going to write a book report on it or anything, but it was food for thought, especially given the topic of thought that I've been dwelling on a lot lately while on the toilet or trying to sleep...or both at the same time. The conclusions are few, but worthwhile. And, if nothing else, it has given me a reason to go back to Moscow in the spring. I have to see Patriarch's Pond now. If you've read it, you know what I mean.

Classes are chugging a long, it's hard to believe it's almost March. Really, once March ends, the program will sort of drift along until our trip to Sochi in April, followed by the best trip ever; the trip home. As for now, however, I can only look forward to the day the ice starts to thin, and I can walk surefooted once again. Russia in spring-time will be something else, I'm sure of it. After the mud and filth have gone away at least. There's something about spring anywhere that is just so wonderful, but I feel like I will greet this coming one with more cheer than usual. As long as I don't start falling in the mud, anyway.

Soooooo.

We went to Moscow this weekend, and it went along rather smoothly I think. We went to the Pushkin Museum of art, which was...interesting. Almost the entirety of their sculpturecollection, whicwas vast, was made up of plaster copies of famous works (think David, The Winged Victory, ENTIRE SECTIONS OF THE PARTHEONON). It was interesting, but in the end pointless, though it was cool to see fake versions of things I've seen in Greece and New York.

The next day we went to the Kremlin Armory. It was wild. The armory contains all of the jewels, gold, and as the say in The Goonies, "the rich stuff." 100 carat emeralds and rubies set into big books, covered in diamonds and pearls. It was crazy. Kushner said it best, "those fuckers had it coming soooo bad." Suc unbelievable excess. It was sweet.

Next wasthe Museum of History. Pretty lame, the highlight was the severed head of a body found preserved in the Siberian permafrost. One of two severed heads I gawked at this weekend, the other at the Pushkin museum, which was thankfully real. They also had a mummified cat and bird now that I think about it.

Sweet.

As far as personal time, it carried on much as usual. A fair amount of beer, a few stupid actions, but nothing too insane. Con-Air was on TV friday night, and we boozed and watched that for a while. Things got a little wild (read: stupid) after that, but that's a story not fit for this forum.

I almost forgot, we ate like kings at a Georgian restaurant. It's difficult o describe what I ate, but it's probably better that way, I personally don't really want to know. But it was delicious. And plentiful. Lots of lamb and wonderful....uhhh green and pink stuff....yeah, it was that kind of meal.

But now I'm back in Vladimir. The snow is falling, the tummy is grumbling, and all is well in the universe. It's Andy's birthday today. We're going bowling later tonight. Sweet.
That's all for now. Stay warm.

So, I finally beat Russia.

After I lost my phone on New Years, I went to go and buy another one. I found the same one I had before and loved, for not too much money, and a "better" one on sale for slightly more. I opted for the "better" one. Turns out it was a total piece of shit. Not only could I only write very small text messages, think 60 charaters, but the Russian letters on the keys were'nt in the right place. Being super lazy it took me about 20 days to gt around to attempting to return it. When I did I found out that I had only had 14 days to get a refund. I bitched about it as best I could but the man at the store said he was sorry, there was nothing he could do about it. Fuming, I bitched at him more, in poor Russian no doubt, and he finally cracked and gave me a piece of paper that would get the phone fixed for free at a service center. I caved at this point, better a shitty phone that at least works, than a shitty phone I can't use. So I hauled my cookies all the way to the service center, which was a terrifying place I hope I never have to return to, waited in line for about an hour or so, and then gave them my phone to fix. A few days later I went back to get the phone. The nice girl at the desk got it for me, said something really fast, and then gave me a piece of paper. I said thanks, and peaced. On the street I put my SIM card in the phone and tried it out. Fuckers hadn't done anything! Indignant I went back inside to give them a piece of my mind, when an old lady, who had been yelling at the service people, stopped and asked me why I was back, probably looking for some support. She explained that the piece of paper the girl had given me meant that the service people couldn't fix my phone, and that under the warranty I was entitled to a phone from the same store of equal value. I was ecstatic. I triumphantly marched back into the store I had bought the phone at, and demanded a new phone. This time I succeeded. Here's the kicker: I had bought the phone on sale, but the balance I had available at the store was te pre-sale price. So I got the phone I knew and loved from earlier, and used the rest of the balance to put more money on my SIM card, essentially getting a sale price on a phone which was way better, but also cheaper anyway.

Daniel:1 Russia: eight trillion.

So all's well that ends well. School is back in session, we've got a new crew, they're all pretty cool, and life is good. It's cold as a bitch, and everything is covered in slippery snow and ice. I fall daily, cursing loudy, sometimes in Russian, sometimes in English, and sometimes a mixture.
That's all for now, hope all is well to those at home, and abroad.