Russian wisdom from Natasha

[eekee 182]

florida has horrible pizza! i don't understand why, especially where my parents live where half of the population is actually from new york.

Awesome pizza can be had at Bison Creek Pizza in West Seattle or at SeaTac Airport. Unfortunaely for me this is 2500 miles away and they do not deliver. Best pizza I have ever had. Locally it is good only if you delight at grease dripping, soggy pieces. I usually have Canadian bacon & pineapple. Personal preference. Less grease and I think it tastes great.

[pianojangee 0]

One of the places I really look forward to taking Alla is a small little Greek pizzeria in my town. IMHO, pizza chains suck. I can't say any of them Alla would consider "tasty" as even I don't any more. Years ago, Little Caesar's was great, but now they serve out production line "Hot & Ready" garbage. I definitely plan on introducing Alla to Target and Meijer (I don't and won't shop at Walmart). I think they will be great places to buy her growing children their clothes. We also have a upscale mall where I already have bought several outfits for Alla at. It will be interesting to show her the stores where she has been receiving clothes from since 2004!

Since you mentioned Meijer, I assume that you live in Michigan? I was wondering if you live the state of Great Lakes, if you know any Russian resturants in Detroit area. I have heard from people mentioned that there are a few Russian places in Detroit, but I failed to get any details about locations. My husband is Russian and he became so loving Korean food, since I cook lots of Korean and my own fusion food of American, Italian and etc. I get to taste real Russian food when we go to Sister-in law's in Brooklyn, but I'd love to have some more Russian food near by.

Thanks for any info ~

Edited April 22, 2008 by pianojangee

[peejay 327]

We are fortunate to live in an area of Houston close to our house that has two Russian stores that stock foods, medicines, books, movies, etc. from Eastern Europe and many of the former Soviet republics. I lived there even before I met my wife, so it has turned out to be a plus. She has discovered American brands that are acceptable to her, but has the Russian stores to fall back on for certain things. Most notably unrefined sunflower oil, halva, various sweets, church wine (Kagor), and buckwheat (gretchka) comes to mind.

Sadly, Omaha has one 2 Russian stores that I have been able to find. One is down in the fru-fru section of town and is very expensive, and very selective in what they stock (It's called "Red Square"). The other is a gas station named "Terror-free Oil" and though very small, stocked every day stuff that made Natasha feel like home.

It's not only finding familiar products in these stores, but these stores are often a gathering place for other Russian speakers and a place to make social contacts with others from the former Soviet Union.

The biggest and oldest Russian store in my neighborhood is the Russian General Store. The history of the store is interesting. I am not Jewish, but there are many synagogs, a Jewish community center, etc. in my neighborhood. In the mid 1980's the Soviet Union started allowing Jews that wanted to leave the USSR to immigrate. The synagogs sponsored hundreds of Soviet Jews and they naturally congregated in my area of the city to be near the synagogs. Other Russian speakers that are not Jewish also began to congregate in the neighborhood too. So it is natural that the store prospers in my area of town. It is jointly owned by a circle of friends from Russia and Belarus. It is quite well stocked and the prices were reasonable until the US dollar started falling. It is still reasonable, but not as reasonable as when the dollar was stronger. In fact, the local produce in the store is cheaper than any of the grocery chains in the Houston and we buy our produce there often. I have seen various ethnic groups from all over the former USSR working there and as customers. The store has several free local Russian language periodicals with ads from local Russian owned businesses and local Russian community events. My wife's favorite free periodical is Наш Техас (Our Texas).

My wife and stepdaughter found the Russian stores helpful in setting down their new roots here, but it probably helped more that they were already very fluent in English before arriving in the USA. It was a lot harder on my stepdaughter because she left all her friends and it took a while for her to make friends here. Almost all of her present pals here are from the former USSR. Her present boyfriend here is a Ukrainian. Her two earlier ex-boyfriends were Kazakhstanis. In contrast, most of my wife's friends are Americans and she goes places with the American ladies in my neighborhood often. She does have a girlfriend she met from Uzbekistan and another from Russia, but they live across town from us and she sees them, at most, once or twice a month.

My mom's parents were immigrants from Byelorussia and I still have relatives there that I maintain contact with. In 1997 my cousin Igor asked me if I would help a friend of his that won the US Diversity Visa Lottery from Belarus. He didn't know anyone from the USA and was very surprised he won Green Cards for his family. I was living alone at the time and had plenty of room in my house, so I agreed to help them. The father (Viktor) arrived in Houston with his two adult sons (Ruslan and Vova) in 1997. Viktor spoke almost no English, Vova's English was very limited, and Ruslan actually spoke English very well. Ruslan ended up being the interpreter since I speak Russian about as well as Viktor speaks English. After about a month of me taking them around to get Social Security cards, driver's licenses, etc. I could see that their circle was kind of small. Viktor especially felt isolated. It was then that I remembered the Russian General Store. Even though it had been in my neighborhood for years, I never had been inside or knew a lot about it. When I told them about this place they were very excited to go there. It made all the difference in the world to Viktor. He was very relieved to find that store and to find contacts in the local Russian community. He was especially happy to be able to talk to someone else bsides his two sons. I would say that it made a huge difference in their transition to the USA. Viktor has since returned to Belarus and let his Green Card expire. Rus and Vova still live in Houston, are US citizens, and have done well for themselves. Both of them gave my stepdaughter lots of help when she arrived here in 2004.

The main point to this long winded post is to stress the importance of introducing your wives and fiancees to the local Russian language community if it is available in your area.

[LvivLovers 39]

This morning our alarm clock went off and when I told my wife we had to get up for our AOS interview she blurted out a couple sentences in Ukrainian. I said, "WHAT?!" She repeated it again in Ukrainian. So I said..."Honey, is that Ukrainian?" She said, "Yes." I said, "I don't speak Ukrainian...what does it mean?" She said, "I didn't water the plants yet." I said..."Hmmm....what?" She repeated "I didn't water the plants."

Anyway when she finally woke up she confessed she didn't know what in the world she was talking about. I'm always entertained when she speaks Ukrainian before finally realizing she's in the USA and switches gears.

By the way...most of the Ukrainian phrases I do know are things she yells at the dog! She's got about 30 phrases I hear fairly regularly.

Edited April 22, 2008 by LvivLovers

[Kazan' Tiger 1]

You may wish to at least learn those 30 phrases or you could end up in the dog house! Seriously, though, learn some Ukrainian for your own sanity. There is no way, I could live with a Russian woman without constantly learning more of her language each and every day.

This morning our alarm clock went off and when I told my wife we had to get up for our AOS interview she blurted out a couple sentences in Ukrainian. I said, "WHAT?!" She repeated it again in Ukrainian. So I said..."Honey, is that Ukrainian?" She said, "Yes." I said, "I don't speak Ukrainian...what does it mean?" She said, "I didn't water the plants yet." I said..."Hmmm....what?" She repeated "I didn't water the plants."

Anyway when she finally woke up she confessed she didn't know what in the world she was talking about. I'm always entertained when she speaks Ukrainian before finally realizing she's in the USA and switches gears.

By the way...most of the Ukrainian phrases I do know are things she yells at the dog! She's got about 30 phrases I hear fairly regularly.

[LvivLovers 39]

You may wish to at least learn those 30 phrases or you could end up in the dog house! Seriously, though, learn some Ukrainian for your own sanity. There is no way, I could live with a Russian woman without constantly learning more of her language each and every day.

This morning our alarm clock went off and when I told my wife we had to get up for our AOS interview she blurted out a couple sentences in Ukrainian. I said, "WHAT?!" She repeated it again in Ukrainian. So I said..."Honey, is that Ukrainian?" She said, "Yes." I said, "I don't speak Ukrainian...what does it mean?" She said, "I didn't water the plants yet." I said..."Hmmm....what?" She repeated "I didn't water the plants."

Anyway when she finally woke up she confessed she didn't know what in the world she was talking about. I'm always entertained when she speaks Ukrainian before finally realizing she's in the USA and switches gears.

By the way...most of the Ukrainian phrases I do know are things she yells at the dog! She's got about 30 phrases I hear fairly regularly.

I'm working on it for sure! Besides the dog phrases I've been learning a few basic Ukrainian words and phrases each day. I also picked up the Russian version of Rosetta Stone (they didn't have Ukrainian)...so I'm working through that too. Luckily, my wife speaks better English than most Americans so we can communicate easily while I'm learning. Her parents enrolled her in a school where they taught everything in English...they thought it would help her in the business world and never imagined at the time she'd be marrying an American. Worked out very nicely for us though!

My favorite sounding phrase so far (and I have no idea how you really spell it as I've only heard her say it about a billion times) is one she says to the dog that sounds like SKEEKY MOHZNAH. I love that.

[NavarreMan 10]

Couple of new experiences to report:

1. Could not understand why my shirts were all clingy. I asked Tanya if she was using the "Cling Free" dryer sheets and she said she was. I thought nothing of it until I saw her throw it in the washer with a load of clothes...

2. Zip-loc bags seem to be a marvel of modern technology that a Russian teenager cannot grasp the concept of. Dried out cheese and deli meats. Patience Bill...

3. She thinks I am possessed by the devil because I recommended using store-bought broth for cooking. "NYET PRAVDA!!!" I will find an opportunity to cook a stew or chicken w/noodles and drop the bomb that she just consumed hemlock juice!

4. Both Tanya and Victor seem to think that I am trying to keep them from driving. I can't seem to get the point across that they need to take a written exam and neither could manage it yet. If your state does not have a drivers manual in Russian then go to Washington State Russian Drivers Manual It may not perfectly reflect you states rules and regs but it goes a long way towards explaining all the rules.

5. Squirrels... Tanya was telling me that they are somewhat rare in Russia, at least in Taganrog. Aren't they just the cutest things! Well they trashed her bird feeder and she is discovering that they are tree-born rats and maybe not so cute after all. She cusses them out daily!

6. Has anyone seen my stack of bills to be paid? They were sitting on my desk before someone decided to clean my office!!! Ahhhhhhhhhrrrggggggg!!!

Did I mention that we get married Saturday?

[KGSodie 0]

Couple of new experiences to report:

1. Could not understand why my shirts were all clingy. I asked Tanya if she was using the "Cling Free" dryer sheets and she said she was. I thought nothing of it until I saw her throw it in the washer with a load of clothes...

2. Zip-loc bags seem to be a marvel of modern technology that a Russian teenager cannot grasp the concept of. Dried out cheese and deli meats. Patience Bill...

3. She thinks I am possessed by the devil because I recommended using store-bought broth for cooking. "NYET PRAVDA!!!" I will find an opportunity to cook a stew or chicken w/noodles and drop the bomb that she just consumed hemlock juice!

4. Both Tanya and Victor seem to think that I am trying to keep them from driving. I can't seem to get the point across that they need to take a written exam and neither could manage it yet. If your state does not have a drivers manual in Russian then go to Washington State Russian Drivers Manual It may not perfectly reflect you states rules and regs but it goes a long way towards explaining all the rules.

5. Squirrels... Tanya was telling me that they are somewhat rare in Russia, at least in Taganrog. Aren't they just the cutest things! Well they trashed her bird feeder and she is discovering that they are tree-born rats and maybe not so cute after all. She cusses them out daily!

6. Has anyone seen my stack of bills to be paid? They were sitting on my desk before someone decided to clean my office!!! Ahhhhhhhhhrrrggggggg!!!

Did I mention that we get married Saturday?

Bill, Bill, Bill. That wasn't a stack of important documents, it was a disgusting, unsightly MESS and DEMANDING cleaning! You'll learn, given time, I'm sure.

Natasha and Vika are still amazed at all the squirrels and rabbits in our yard, and in the neighborhood in general (particularly in our yard because our yard is in, shall we say, a much more 'natural' state than most yards). She says you don't see that many rabbits in Vogodonsk, and the ones that are seen are delicious.

Natasha (and Vika) absolutely love ziploc everything. We put everything in the bags. There are two things I always seems to be running short of - ziploc bags and toilet paper. It's the darndest thing.

Good luck tomorrow (Bill & Tanya's wedding), and post a link to some photos for us!

[Ilya R. 0]

Couple of new experiences to report:

1. Could not understand why my shirts were all clingy. I asked Tanya if she was using the "Cling Free" dryer sheets and she said she was. I thought nothing of it until I saw her throw it in the washer with a load of clothes...

2. Zip-loc bags seem to be a marvel of modern technology that a Russian teenager cannot grasp the concept of. Dried out cheese and deli meats. Patience Bill...

3. She thinks I am possessed by the devil because I recommended using store-bought broth for cooking. "NYET PRAVDA!!!" I will find an opportunity to cook a stew or chicken w/noodles and drop the bomb that she just consumed hemlock juice!

4. Both Tanya and Victor seem to think that I am trying to keep them from driving. I can't seem to get the point across that they need to take a written exam and neither could manage it yet. If your state does not have a drivers manual in Russian then go to Washington State Russian Drivers Manual It may not perfectly reflect you states rules and regs but it goes a long way towards explaining all the rules.

5. Squirrels... Tanya was telling me that they are somewhat rare in Russia, at least in Taganrog. Aren't they just the cutest things! Well they trashed her bird feeder and she is discovering that they are tree-born rats and maybe not so cute after all. She cusses them out daily!

6. Has anyone seen my stack of bills to be paid? They were sitting on my desk before someone decided to clean my office!!! Ahhhhhhhhhrrrggggggg!!!

Did I mention that we get married Saturday?

Bill, Bill, Bill. That wasn't a stack of important documents, it was a disgusting, unsightly MESS and DEMANDING cleaning! You'll learn, given time, I'm sure.

Natasha and Vika are still amazed at all the squirrels and rabbits in our yard, and in the neighborhood in general (particularly in our yard because our yard is in, shall we say, a much more 'natural' state than most yards). She says you don't see that many rabbits in Vogodonsk, and the ones that are seen are delicious.

Natasha (and Vika) absolutely love ziploc everything. We put everything in the bags. There are two things I always seems to be running short of - ziploc bags and toilet paper. It's the darndest thing.

Good luck tomorrow (Bill & Tanya's wedding), and post a link to some photos for us!

Russian women seem to eat toilet paper, seriously

[slim 1,514]

Bill, Bill, Bill. That wasn't a stack of important documents, it was a disgusting, unsightly MESS and DEMANDING cleaning! You'll learn, given time, I'm sure.

things I always seems to be running short of - ziploc bags and toilet paper. It's the darndest thing.

Online billpay is the best thing since sliced bread for keeping your documents from being thrown away. My "organized" stack of papers quickly found a home (an old cardboard box that sits on the desk and serves as my "in/out box") after my wife's arrival and first cleaning. I've since shown her the four or five bills we get in the mail each month and she's pretty good about letting me keep them. (By pretty good I mean she just throws all the mail in a pile on my desk.)

The toilet paper..... get yourself a Costco or Sams membership. They have bulk TP and ZipLoc bags. (And cheap fruits and veggies. If you didn't know, you'll also be spending a good portion of your grocery bill on fresh fruits/veggies now.)

One thing that is important to do (but might not work) is to sit down with your wife and explain how paying bills and monthly budgeting works. For some, it's a foreign concept and "check-to-check" is definitely not a Russian cultural phenomenon. Relate the paychecks to checking account to bills paid out and you may just have to break out one of those theorems you learned back in high school.

[NavarreMan 10]

OK - it's been almost a year now since we tied the knot. Vast improvements in becoming "westerninzed". Still working on the drivers test. Hopefully this will happen next week.

One funny story for today. Cat strutted through the living room and I made a comment about "jungle boag" (bad translation of lord of the jungle). Anyway Tanya looks at me and says "what jungle boag? jungle benz!" I said "what are you on about"? Tanya repeated "jungle benz, you know - jungle benz, jungle benz, jungle all the way"

The paramedics had to give me oxygen...

[Brad and Vika 129]

(And cheap fruits and veggies. If you didn't know, you'll also be spending a good portion of your grocery bill on fresh fruits/veggies now.)

One thing that is important to do (but might not work) is to sit down with your wife and explain how paying bills and monthly budgeting works. For some, it's a foreign concept and "check-to-check" is definitely not a Russian cultural phenomenon. Relate the paychecks to checking account to bills paid out and you may just have to break out one of those theorems you learned back in high school.

I am so there!

OK - it's been almost a year now since we tied the knot. Vast improvements in becoming "westerninzed". Still working on the drivers test. Hopefully this will happen next week.

One funny story for today. Cat strutted through the living room and I made a comment about "jungle boag" (bad translation of lord of the jungle). Anyway Tanya looks at me and says "what jungle boag? jungle benz!" I said "what are you on about"? Tanya repeated "jungle benz, you know - jungle benz, jungle benz, jungle all the way"

The paramedics had to give me oxygen...

[slim 1,514]

One funny story for today. Cat strutted through the living room and I made a comment about "jungle boag" (bad translation of lord of the jungle). Anyway Tanya looks at me and says "what jungle boag? jungle benz!" I said "what are you on about"? Tanya repeated "jungle benz, you know - jungle benz, jungle benz, jungle all the way"

Around Christmas time, see if she'll watch "A Christmas Story" (the one with Ralphy and the Red Rider, "You'll shoot your eye out.") together with you. The part in there where the family goes to the Chinese restaurant for dinner is classic.

[Brad and Vika 129]

Couple of new experiences to report:

1. Could not understand why my shirts were all clingy. I asked Tanya if she was using the "Cling Free" dryer sheets and she said she was. I thought nothing of it until I saw her throw it in the washer with a load of clothes...

2. Zip-loc bags seem to be a marvel of modern technology that a Russian teenager cannot grasp the concept of. Dried out cheese and deli meats. Patience Bill...

3. She thinks I am possessed by the devil because I recommended using store-bought broth for cooking. "NYET PRAVDA!!!" I will find an opportunity to cook a stew or chicken w/noodles and drop the bomb that she just consumed hemlock juice!

4. Both Tanya and Victor seem to think that I am trying to keep them from driving. I can't seem to get the point across that they need to take a written exam and neither could manage it yet. If your state does not have a drivers manual in Russian then go to Washington State Russian Drivers Manual It may not perfectly reflect you states rules and regs but it goes a long way towards explaining all the rules.

5. Squirrels... Tanya was telling me that they are somewhat rare in Russia, at least in Taganrog. Aren't they just the cutest things! Well they trashed her bird feeder and she is discovering that they are tree-born rats and maybe not so cute after all. She cusses them out daily!

6. Has anyone seen my stack of bills to be paid? They were sitting on my desk before someone decided to clean my office!!! Ahhhhhhhhhrrrggggggg!!!

Did I mention that we get married Saturday?

I dug back a few posts for this one. Vika also thinks squirrels are the cutest thing ever, and that processed foods give you triple polio and cancer. We have had several discussions about color sheets and dryer sheets (white box for wash machine, orange box for dry machine, right?). No matter how much tupperware I show her, the leftovers still go into the frig in the pot, or on a plate. And the driving test - you honestly need a SSN, AND a blue letter (in KY), AND a written test, AND a driving test. No exceptions - and no bribes

[baron555 934]

florida has horrible pizza! i don't understand why, especially where my parents live where half of the population is actually from new york.

Awesome pizza can be had at Bison Creek Pizza in West Seattle or at SeaTac Airport. Unfortunaely for me this is 2500 miles away and they do not deliver. Best pizza I have ever had. Locally it is good only if you delight at grease dripping, soggy pieces. I usually have Canadian bacon & pineapple. Personal preference. Less grease and I think it tastes great.

And you think the pizza in New York is good? And Seattle? Sheesh.

Come to Chicago for the best pizza, thin or thick crust.