1,2,3,5

Right now, there is a MAN barking AT a small dog outside of my window. And it’s 1am. So, stranger, bark on…I’ll use this hour to blog.

It’s been rainy and icy here as of late. The other day, I was groceryless and was heading out to the store when I stopped at my neighbor’s door to see if she needed anything. She’s a warrior of a woman—87, lives alone, speaks 6 languages (unfortunately her English consists only of these words: 1,2,3,5. Bread. Sank You.), and can still do the splits and a backward summersault (and demonstrated this feat for us on our living room floor during the second time we’d met her). I love her like crazy and love that I finally know enough Russian to be able to communicate with her on a basic level! Well, she insisted on coming with me to the store. So she bundled and we headed out. It was SO icy and SO cold, and we took this rugged shortcut that she insisted we take (like I said, she’s a WARRIOR.). Then, out of the blue, she stopped me in the middle of a field, pinches my thigh, and pulls hard. Then she let’s my pants snap back against my frozen skin, and we keep walking. She offered no explanation, but as best as I can figure, she was checking to make sure I was wearing thermal long underwear. I was. She stopped me about a block later to explain to me, while we’re standing in the freezing wind, that my health will be better if I only breathe through my nose when I’m outside. So off we went, arm in arm, breathing through our noses and searching for fresh bread. We found the bread, she told the bread lady that I was her American granddaughter, then she stopped to buy me some fruit (SUCH a grandma thing to do) and we went home. Then, she gave me rice and told me that I was very very very very beautiful, such a nice girl, would I please sweep the stairs, and “sank you sank you sank you sank you.” She opened the door for me to leave, patted me on the rear, and told me she loved me. And that was my date with Kamila.

Another funny little dialogue that took place today:

Student: Teacher, why you come to Kazakhstan?

Me: To teach you, of course!

Student: Why you come really?

Me: I guess it’s because I felt called to come to this country.

Student: Called on your mobile?

Me: Eh, no. See, in 100 years I’m going to have this HUGE party, and I want everyone I love to be at that party. So, the reason I came to Kazakhstan was to make sure you’d be at that party some day, too.

Student: In 100 years, you will be dead.

Me: Exactly!

Student: I no understand.

And that was that.